I'll be there with family in tow. Anyone else?

ETSUfans.com

(PS.  I am the mod there and if you think our game thread format looks like yours, it's because I've been copying it for years.)

An interesting way to set it up, but I guess it makes sense since they are trying to alleviate travel costs as much as possible.  I assume that OHIO is also trying as hard as possible not to pay for a game unless it has to or its the Final. 

Looks like we've saved $93K so far.......plus expenses.......opener-$31K.....bye $31K......quarter $31K........Damn, we're making significant bucks here!  That's enough to keep bigbobcat on the payroll for another quarter.

Initial impression is that ETSU is an inside-oriented team.  They have good size.  They hold opponents to only 40% FG shooting!  That's great defense. 

They rebound well.

They seem to have a little trouble protecting the ball at times if you look at their assist-turnover ratio.

Looks like a tough assignment for the Bobcats, but we've been efficient on the road and I don't doubt we'll be prepared for this one. 

ETSU is actually a pretty good team. That is what scares me. They went 16-4 out of the Atlantic Sun. That says alot when you have that much success in conference play where its all on the line. Marshall alternatively went 9-7 in CUSA. I know CUSA is stronger than the A-Sun but not really that much when you think about it.

I wish this was a weekend game. I've been to Johnson City a few times. My roommate went to school there at Emmanuel School of Religion after OU. I visited him once and we actually had been to Johnson City a few times before he ended up there. I'm sure that would be a road trip I could convince him to go on with me. However, me and Mrs. UpSan can go anywhere within a day's drive next Saturday should we make the semis. I actually have an entire weekend off! We'll be rooting for that scenario.

As for the game, I really don't know much about them, but they did win at Dayton early in the year and played a challenging non-conference schedule. The only team to beat them at home was Belmont. Statistically, they're a better defensive team than offensive team, but they are efficient on both ends. They shoot a pretty good percentage, mostly inside the arc, and they don't turn it over much at all.

Looks like they have three shooters at 35-37 percent outside and almost no one else on the team ever shoots them. Five guys average 9+ points, led by Mike Smith, who seems to be a nice all-around player. They're not especially big in the post (6-8) and (6-6), but their leader by far in assists is 6-6 and never shoots 3-pointers. Everyone they play is 6-3 and bigger. They have some guys with unique skill sets that I'm sure give opponents problems.

Grimm had the problem some freshman have...they were a star at their high school, and then when they get to college, they can't handle sitting on the bench.  He transfered to a DII school.

Will need a big who can handle/manage the ball.

Greetings Bobcat fans,

East Tennessee State fan here...really looking forward to this one. We've been a bipolar team this year: sometimes we've looked great (e.g. Dayton away, Mississippi State away), sometimes we've looked abysmal (e.g., S.C. Upstate, Stetson). We've played a rigorous OOC schedule, and, for what's it worth, have a RPI of 91 right now (realtime rpi).

We're led by ASUN POY, Mike Smith. Smith exemplifies versatility: He shoots efficiently from anywhere on the court, can take it off the dribble, and can post up.  He's a tough cover at 6'6" 225; he's typically quicker than bigger posts and much stronger than smaller posts. Although we've been up and down all year, Smith has been the model of consistency all year. He had a 20/20  (points/rebounds) earlier in the season. After Mike, we have Micah Williams, who's a powerfully built guard who can fill it up in a heartbeat. He's also prone to disappearing in stretches. Justin Tubbs is another big, athletic guard who plays incredibly tough defense, but is also prone to streaky shooting. Isiah Brown, a bouncy, though slender, 6'8" forward is active on defense and quick leaper (67 blocks, 2.2/game), but has limited range. Rounding out our starting 5 is 6'6" PG, Adam Sollazzo. Sollazzo's height is obviously problematic for opponents. He can post up and is solid on defensive because of his length. He's a heady point guard that passes first and shoots second. Effective at getting to the rim,  Sollazzo's an average shooter at best.

Here's how I would summarize our team:
Stengths:

• Defense
• Big, athletic guards
• Overall athleticism

Weaknesses:

• Offense has been up-and-down all year. We tend to run a lot of isolation stuff, which has driven Buc fans to madness.  
• Depth-Coach Bartow insists on playing a 7-8 rotation, which is another source of frustration for Buc fans.

I expect a close game. Best of luck.

Despite our lack of variety on offense, we run a lot of different sets on defense. I suspect we'll run the 1-3-1, particularly if you all have struggled against this at some point. If memory serves me, I think we ran the 1-3-1 against UK in the first game of the year because Kentucky/Calipari has struggled against the 1-3-1. Unfortunately, for us, Kentucky is...Kentucky.  We like to trap and press, and thrive in transition. We're long, athletic, and gamble a lot on defense.   When teams slow us down, we look horrible.

Can you give us a snapshot of your team's strengths/weaknesses, key players?

alreadsy here