2017-2018 Non Conference Schedule

DoubleDipper wrote:If the Pilots can start hitting from the outside again and stay out of foul trouble (tough to do on the road), they'll have a chance!

Got the foul trouble down. Just not the hitting from the outside part in the second half. Another repeat of CSF.

Didn't like the stream cuts of the full court to under the basket during play, hard to track where the ball was.

Shaver with 20 points, Tyson 18.

Outscored by 17 in the 2nd half, lose by 13.

Sound Voltex wrote:[Got the foul trouble down. Just not the hitting from the outside part in the second half. Another repeat of CSF.

Pilots shot 51% overall, and 47% from 3pt. Even 76% on FTs, with Phil getting 2 of 4. Not too bad. How was the D? Oops.

Seattle was 57%, 16 of 28 on 3pts. And 54% overall. Hard to keep up with that. And they took 14 more shots than the Pilots, 65-51. Probably because they only got 5 FTs, while UP got 21 FTs.

SouthCarolinaPilot wrote: I think this game and the Hartford game are going to be really tough games for us. ESPN's (garbage) matchup predictor isn't giving us much of a chance tonight. Hartford is supposedly a strong team, but I haven't had the time to look into them too much yet.

Yes you are correct, Hartford is definitely a team that is on an upswing after beating #312 Quinnipiac and #314 Sacred Heart at home in their last two games….UP is now ranked #311, while Hartford is #326 according to KenPom.

Hartford is 4-6 overall against D1 competition (UP is 1-7), but has not won on the road yet this season.  Hartford is also just coming out of finals and it will have been eight days since their last game when they play tomorrow, but in that game the Hawks put together a second half of 20-29 shooting (69%), including 6-10 from 3-point range, in their win.
 
The guy to watch may be Palm Beach State junior transfer, #22 Travis Weatherington. It took him a while to get accustomed to his new surroundings, but after finally getting the start in his last three games, he’s shooting over 53% from behind the arc.  But the overall scoring leaders are #5 John Carroll (17.1), and 3-pt shooter #12 Jason Dunne (16.5), with 35 threes (16th most in the nation).

In 6-10/270 Hassan Attia, Harford has the 20th best shot blocker in the country (Phil is 29th), and he also has the edge in free-throw shooting over Phil, Attia is 9-25/36%, while Phil is 11-34/32.4% in D1 competition.  

Some are picking the Pilots to win this game, but UP’s Achilles heel has been defense, especially 3-point defense (345th in the nation)….so it will be interesting to see if they can step it up against a team that is finally coming together and is finding its range from outside.  Harford started the season slowly, but now they’re on the move and could be very dangerous in the Chiles Center if they start lighting it up from outside like Seattle U. did on Saturday night.

Quite a little road trip Hartford is on. At Portland on Tuesday, then at Florida International on Friday.

Is tomorrow's game a buy-game, or do the Pilots play at Hartford next year?

NoPoNeighbor wrote:Quite a little road trip Hartford is on. At Portland on Tuesday, then at Florida International on Friday.

Is tomorrow's game a buy-game, or do the Pilots play at Hartford next year?

It would be interesting to hear the logic of a buy game scheduled when school isn’t in session.

NoPoNeighbor wrote:Quite a little road trip Hartford is on. At Portland on Tuesday, then at Florida International on Friday.

Is tomorrow's game a buy-game, or do the Pilots play at Hartford next year?

With the weather forecast for the Northeast, they should just stay in Florida for Christmas....

Nope, not going to Hartford next year.

Geezaldinho wrote:It would be interesting to hear the logic of a buy game scheduled when school isn’t in session.

$$$$...Don't know the ins and outs of all the games, but this buy game is a heck of lot less expensive for UP than flying 22 people to just about anywhere or risking flight cancellations and delays close to the holidays.

If we aren't returning this game next year, maybe Hartford wanted to play in the PNW because it has a player on the roster from this part of the country... Luke Sikma's younger brother played at Hartford, but he's already graduated. They do have a senior on the roster, Jack Hobbs, from Anchorage. Maybe this game is partially motivated by wanting to provide his family an easy (relatively speaking) chance to see him play in person.

Over half of Hartford's roster (8 out of 15) is foreign-born. They also have a freshman guard from United Faith in Charlotte. Isn't that were Alec Wintering went to high school?

Remember when the Pilots played Oklahoma in the PK80, and the Sooners' Trae Young scored 33 points and 8 assists? He's leading the nation in both categories, and just put up 26 points and 22 assists(!) in 29 minutes of their game tonight.  He scored a couple baskets over his average, and got one assist less than his average when he played the Pilots.  I don't feel so bad about UP not being able to stop him, now.

Good game tonight. The guards played quite well and shot very efficiently. Well done. And congratulations to Hartwich on the career blocks record.

Where was Austin Stone? He wasn’t even on the bench.

For my first game in years, I was not disappointed. It was nice to be back in Chiles and see so many familiar faces. It really reminded me why UP is such a special place.

First things first: beer at my seat is the greatest thing ever! Of course, I tried the Pilot Pale Ale and it was as has been described: very fruity. But, I liked it. Wish I could have gotten the Terry Porter Porter too, because I love dark beers.

I was pretty surprised at the crowd we had for a Tuesday night. At least those young kids were rowdy! Have to give a shoutout to those three Hartford fans, though. That’s dedication. The “stick to soccer” sign gave me a laugh too.

The team did not surprise me too much since I had been watching from afar. But, getting to watch D1 basketball in Chiles is such a deal compared to the price and sight lines elsewhere! I, too, noticed Stone missing.

The game went as well as it could have. I think the key to victory was that I was there last night. Anyway, I thought the guard play was awesome. Defense looked pretty good although rebounding left a little something to be desired. Congrats to Hatwich on the block record! I had already forgotten that Thomas van der Mars was the record holder. I was very surprised that the team had about a 20 point lead at one point, but then I became worried as it looked like we relaxed, got sloppy and cocky, and almost let Hartford get back in it. Hopefully they learn from that.

Alright, that’s enough from me. Just amazing to be back in Chiles!

SouthCarolinaPilot wrote:

I was pretty surprised at the crowd we had for a Tuesday night. At least those young kids were rowdy! Have to give a shoutout to those three Hartford fans, though. That’s dedication. The “stick to soccer” sign gave me a laugh too.

The back and forth between the three shirtless Hartford fans and the kids in the student section was priceless. Can we get those kids front row seats to the rest of the games!

blacksheep wrote:

SouthCarolinaPilot wrote:

I was pretty surprised at the crowd we had for a Tuesday night. At least those young kids were rowdy! Have to give a shoutout to those three Hartford fans, though. That’s dedication. The “stick to soccer” sign gave me a laugh too.

The back and forth between the three shirtless Hartford fans and the kids in the student section was priceless.  Can we get those kids front row seats to the rest of the games!

They were definitely more entertaining than the Christie guys who are next to me most games. Not a knock on Christie, but somehow it was more fun with those kids.

Oh, I definitely think the atmosphere during Christmas break with all the kids at the games makes a more enjoyable experience...they are just so much more spontaneous than the rest of us, including the studentbody.  Do they teach how to dance to "YMCA" in school now?  It seems all the kids knew how to do it!

Good game....but still a long way to go, for sure.

Whether it simply took a half of play for Hartford to overcome their long layoff, or what, the Pilots 45 points was a season high in the first half, but being outscored in the second half again has got to be a bit of concern for the staff.

Except for their difficulty down the stretch when Hartford amped up the defense, I thought the Pilots played very well when the starters were on the court.  There just seems to be too much of a drop-off in the team's rhythm and flow when guys start coming off the bench.  For the most part, this entire team is so inexperienced it is probably going to take much of the remaining season to jell all the parts.

Franklin may have played a few minutes at St. Mary's before coming to UP, but generally every player in the first seven except Phil, are playing their first year of D1 basketball.....and it often shows, especially when some of those "high school" moves show up.  

Each game I am more and more impressed with Josh's play, especially how his shooting is able to get the team rolling when there's an offensive lull, and to be honest, the entire starting 5 looks really solid.  It has to be tough for Smoyer, Jackson, and Diabate coming off the bench and trying make an impression on the game in just a few minutes, often causing them to make more negative plays than positive.  Malcolm has been very steady in recent games and, for the most part, does an excellent job of giving JoJo or Marcus or Josh some down time.  Feel badly for D'Marques, if he's not hot from the get-go he's coming out of the game because the younger guys are just better at keeping the team moving.

No, Austin was not on the bench against Seattle U. or against Hartford.  He passed his finals, his grades are fine, but I'm guessing the players are learning that TP has a no-nonsense approach to team rule transgressions.

The last preseason game for 2017 is this afternoon, but the only way we'll be able to watch the 5:30 matchup between UP and Sac St. is in person.  No TV and no streaming of tonight's game in the Sacramento Kings home, Golden 1 Center, even though all the equipment to do so is in the arena for the Kansas vs. Stanford nationally televised game that will follow....

Sac St. won its first D1 game on Tuesday at home vs. Cal St. Northridge....so UP has twice as many D1 wins!   Prior to that game, the Hornets have had to play without what would have been their starting backcourt due to injuries.  One of the guards, Jiday Ugbaja, is now back, but the other is out for the season.

Tonight will be the second time this season and third time overall that Sac St. has played in Golden 1 Center....now in its second year of operation, but UP shouldn't be intimidated by its size after playing in the Moda Center, the Veterans Memorial Coliseum, and Key Arena.

Sac St. is a pretty difficult team to scout because of their inconsistences, and they are not especially good at doing anything to this point in the season.  They do have a very good center, but he gives up 4 inches and 25 pounds to Phil....so I look for Phil to be the key to the game with his defensive rebounding skills.....he's currently 34th in the nation in that category!!

All the prognosticators are calling this one a "pick em," as neither team has emerged as a favorite. KenPom gives a slight edge to the Hornets because of the semi-home advantage.

If UP is going to win road games this season, Sacramento would be a good place to begin.

Pilots by 11 is my guess. Sacramento State is dreadful.

Does anyone have an audio stream? All the options I have tried, including the link from the UP site, play a recording saying play by play can't be aired, due to a rights issue. I had this happen for a previous game as well....

Yeah, I started getting that “can not stream due to rights issue” last game as well.

According to live stats, D’Marques is en fuego!

Winning streak! Beat the spread!

I'm upgrading my WCC forecast to 5-13 now. Looking good!

80-75 Pilots.  They were up by 13 early, 37-24.  Then after finding the same message trying to listen on the laptop, I turned on the radio.  They immediately gave up a 10 point run, and went to half up 3.  They played close most of the 2nd half, losing the lead at one point.  Largest lead got to 9 with just under 5 minutes to play, and they closed it out for the win.

Tyson and Hartwich led scoring in the first half, and McSwiggan, Walker and Shaver also ended up in double figures.  Eight guys played; Porters x2 and Diabate.

Although he wasn't the top scorer or play maker, the AP named Phil the Top Performer of the game tonight for the Pilots. His 11 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 blocks were considered the key to the game.

Another really good first half tonight for the Pilots, but the second half is still a work in progress.  Whether the opponents are adjusting or UP is not adjusting, or it's a combination, it's obviously something that needs to be emphasized....and I'm sure it is.

Sac St. did a pretty poor job of guarding UP at the beginning of the game, but stepped it up pretty well on defense toward the end of the first half and all of the second half, so it was good to see UP was able to come from behind after they lost the second half lead.

I heard the Sac St. coach talk about how they got back in the game by forcing  UP turnovers, but the Pilots only had seven on the night....and I'm guessing that is the low for the season after hitting a high of 17 against PSU.....a very good sign for the young backcourt.  

Was really excited to see D'Marques play so well against Seattle U, but then felt badly for him against Hartford....but now he's on top again after scoring 17 tonight.  He's always been a roller coaster shooter, but at least he and his teammates are finding ways to get him free for the shots.

Another solid performance from Josh tonight.  I'm not yet seeing him as the team leader (Phil is emerging in that role on the court), but I expect it will be either Josh or Franklin taking over by this time next year, or sooner.

From the couple of pictures I saw of the game, Austin was once again not on the bench...

TheW.tv/Stadium produced a conference preview video for each of the WCC teams through non-conference play. I think it went in order of last year's standings, cause we are the final one, which came out yesterday.