2017-2018 Conference Schedule

Hugh's recent adventures in Japan featured on Japanese TV:

I am very happy with the win, but only playing 7 players has me worried about our next (very winnable) game against LMU. Hopefully those guys still have the stamina to compete. McSwiggan (38 min) and Diabate (36 min) almost played the entire game.

The schedule is a little weird this year, no? We have already played San Diego twice without having played LMU, Pepperdine, or Saint Mary's yet.

I'll admit that I was feeling there was a win in this road trip for us...  but I assumed it would be Saturday night if it was going to happen.

Solid defense won this game for us--I was impressed with the defensive effort when we were struggling mightily on the offensive end.  Still way too many unforced turnovers that need to be corralled.  I was most impressed by our resiliency... after giving up the lead late, we did not fold and came right back and continued to compete and get the lead back.  

If we can keep up this defensive intensity, there will be more wins coming--lets hope that this showed the young guys that 40 minutes of effort can lead to success.

Another win would be really nice before heading into the buzzsaw next weekend....

SouthCarolinaPilot wrote:I am very happy with the win, but only playing 7 players has me worried about our next (very winnable) game against LMU. Hopefully those guys still have the stamina to compete. McSwiggan (38 min) and Diabate (36 min) almost played the entire game.

The schedule is a little weird this year, no? We have already played San Diego twice without having played LMU, Pepperdine, or Saint Mary's yet.

I've thought the same thing about the schedule. We'll play Gonzaga again before we play SMC for the first time.

I thought LMU would also be tired since they traveled to high altitude BYU last night. But they played eleven guys, all with 5 or more minutes. Their top scorers played 34, 28 and 26 minutes. Fortunately, our guys can rest up the following week when they play GU and SMC back-to-back.

wrv wrote:
When you are 0 and 6, notwithstanding predictions of greater success, you play a rotation that you think gives you the best chance to win. Whatever happens at LMU, our record will not be a complete whitewash.

One thing that impresses me with this coaching staff is that they are trying different lineups and making adjustments considering performance.

I think this team is better than when this odyssey started partly because of the adjustments.

I am a little worried that Walker is turnover prone by trying to force passes.

I am hoping that the play of Franklin Porter improves.

Welcome back, wrv.....

I'm in total agreement with all your points.  TP said he would substitute more often going forward because of the cumulative effect the season was having on the players, but getting this first WCC win was more important.  

In a game of matchups against USD, who else could he go to?  Only three available players did not get court time....Smoyer, Smith, and M. Porter.  It was surprising the Malcolm did not play based on his performance in the UOP game, but we never know what goes on behind the scenes with some of these decisions.  

One has to hope that Malcolm and RJ (ankle) will be ready to go against LMU so as to give the starters some breathers.

Sound Voltex wrote:Hugh's recent adventures in Japan featured on Japanese TV:

Maybe I'm just too sensitive, or maybe I don't understand Japanese culture, but I thought the Japanese "reporter" treated Hugh as if he were part of a freak show.

On the other hand, Hugh's humbleness and politeness really shown through...."it's a complete honor to be here.  I may not be the most skilled here, or the quickest, but if I were selected I would just play my heart out!"

UP has been starving for on-court and locker room leadership this entire season, and I think we started to see an on-court leader begin to emerge last night when Josh came out all fired-up and confident despite concerns earlier about his ability to play at all due to flu-like symptoms.

Josh, as we know, is articulate but quiet, but if his energy and ability will begin rubbing off on his teammates, the Pilots chances of winning will increase.

Also, D's play last night was much more under control and deliberate...one has to believe it will be just a matter of getting more playing time before we start to see the D we hoped to see.   He speaks five languages....it should just be a matter of time before he picks up the language of D1 basketball.

Interesting how an away win against a very good USD team can influence KenPom's computers.  UP went from #309 to #283 with the win over #106 USD in the Slim Gym.  (Speaking of which, wow, what a puny crowd!  Sure the students were gone, but even with the Marine recruits in attendance for the first half, the place was like a morgue.)

With last night's performance, and looking at WCC rankings only, UP now ranks last in offensive efficiency, last in offensive rebounding, last in 2-point shooting (43.2%), 9th in 3-point shooting (29.1%), 7th in free-throws (67.7%), 4th in blocks, 3rd in steals, and a little bit surprisingly after last night's 17 turnovers, 5th in turnovers.

BTW, USD dropped from #106 to #123 after the loss to the University of Portland Pilots!!

The Marines were just there for the food. The broadcasters mentioned Navy guys also, but I never saw them. Must of been submariners.

up7587 wrote:The Marines were just there for the food.  

HA!  Those Marine "Boots" are just finishing up their 13-week Marine Corps Recruit Training, they were there to see:

blacksheep wrote:I was frustrated last night too, but this is not what I took away from the game.  I took away that gonzaga is really really good.  Like final 4 good.

Sorry to take us back to the GU game, but with about a minute to go in the game in Spokane I noticed that when #20 sank a two-pointer from the corner the bench went nuts and the some of the crowd rose to their feet while applauding and yelling....I figured it was just a seldom-used player getting a bucket.

And that would be correct, but it was also a feel good story about a young man who's mom can't afford cable who came "out of the laundry room."

www.kptv.com/story/37300219/southridge-grad-walks-on-from-manager-to-player-at-gonzaga

Let's hope the Pilots play well enough that #20 doesn't get in the game.

Good to hear the chatter on the Pilot board again! (Radio Silence after Zags and Pacific, )

Diabate continues to impress, Shavers defense skill helped save the game against USD. Jo Jo had a tough game. I wish Josh took charge like that more often.

I believe the Pilots have a good chance tonight against LMU.

I'm so glad we have a balanced lineup with Diabate at the 4, now Josh can play his natural position at the 3.

Franklin moved to bench, Shaver back to starting lineup.
Malcolm day to day with back injury.
Diabate is ballin'.
Phil being a beast on defense.
Team overall just a lot more fun to watch today and looks more in control of this game.

Man, these guys keep me on the edge of my seat. So many mistakes, and missed FTs. But they managed to stop LMU when they had to.

Nice win Pilots, enjoy...next  week will be tough.

Franklin finally played well tonight.

Diabate with the full court drive, pretty impressive.

2 in a row, yes!!!

Pilots only played 7 guys again; LMU played 11. LMU got 20 offensive rebounds. Pilots made 9 2nd half TOs. McSwiggan made an early 3Pt, and missed the rest of his shots. But, the other guys had good shooting percentages, and 16 assists tonight. Four guys scored mid-teens. And Phil's defense was great. He even made two FTs.

up7587 wrote:Pilots only played 7 guys again;

So as of tonight, current statuses of non-walk-on, non-redshirt players with recent little to no playing time:

Jackson: ankle injury
M. Porter: back injury
Stone: personal issues
Smoyer: ???

Lack of post players really shows once Phil is foul trouble.

Post game radio with Phil: https://vocaroo.com/i/s1lDwKipnNtZ
Post game radio with Kramer: https://vocaroo.com/i/s1kOjM7VJKor

DoubleDipper wrote:Interesting how an away win against a very good USD team can influence KenPom's computers.  UP went from #309 to #283 with the win over #106 USD in the Slim Gym.  (Speaking of which, wow, what a puny crowd!  Sure the students were gone, but even with the Marine recruits in attendance for the first half, the place was like a morgue.)

UP is up to #266 with the LMU win.

Win streak!

I cannot offer much more that hasn’t been said already. The bulk of the turnovers were from Walker and Shaver Jr. They would lose the ball, from my memory, often when trying to go up tempo. But, they showed good restraint and patience at other times. They are learning!

McSwiggan was our leader the other night but it is good to see the rest of the team step up when he had an off night. Franklin Porter provided a real spark coming off the bench! And, I continue to be impressed with Diabate’s development.

I think we have something brewing here.

We went to both games. You know what they say, It’s tough to win at home (?). USD had an announced attendance over 2000.  Even counting Marines, they were under a 1000 - especially considering LMU’s reported attendance was just over a 1000 and seemed higher.  LMU students have a lot of fun and are fun to watch.  They also get a lot of attention- T shirts, pizza, silly costume games on court.  They have a nylon flag with their school colors and logo that’s about 25 feet square.  They unfold it over their heads and then go crazy underneath.  Good model as we continue to court our students.  And the games - another old saying, we can do this the hard way, or we can do - oh hell, let’s just do it the hard way.  Great to see the Pilots become defensive threats.  USD just looked flummoxed most of the gane, and LMU wasn’t much better.  Diabate clearly coming into his own, Marcus and Jo Jo make a great combo, especially when they keep their passes under control. Phil’s a great defensive threat - he had the Lions unsure how to get inside.  Franklin great off the bench, DeMarcus delivers as needed.  Would like to see the rotation expanded, but can’t complain about the results.

Phil was a blocking machine... and it is great to see Diabate breaking out.

2 games in a row where we were able to come out strong, build a lead and then survive the inevitable counter-run. The team's poise, while it still has a ways to go, has been noticeably improved. We will see how that pans out against the next 2 opponents however.

If we can get the turnovers under control, we will take another step forward.

Sound Voltex wrote:
So as of tonight, current statuses of non-walk-on, non-redshirt players with recent little to no playing time:

Jackson: ankle injury
M. Porter: back injury
Stone: personal issues
Smoyer: ???

Joseph has actually taken a step backwards from where he was his freshman season, IMO.

Admittedly I've only seen a few practices, but because he hasn't gotten any stronger, his teammates are able to push him around pretty easily under the basket and I would imagine the staff feel they are better off  "going small" against most opponents rather than having Joseph in the lineup.  

On the flip-side, Joseph is an excellent engineering student who spends as much time in classes and labs as some of his teammates spend in the gym.  In many ways he reminds me of 2014 grad John Bailey, the 6-8 forward with a near 4.0 GPA who never developed or improved beyond his freshman year.

bullwinkle wrote:We went to both games. You know what they say, It’s tough to win at home (?).  USD had an announced attendance over 2000.  Even counting Marines, they were under a 1000 - especially considering LMU’s reported attendance was just over a 1000 and seemed higher.  

I know that homecoming games aren't what they used to be back in the day (at UP that meant downtown parades, bonfires on the Bluff, and UP Alumni noting how "easy the students have it today"), but the LMU homecoming game had to be a disappointment to the LMU Athletic Department in terms of extra excitement and motivation.

I spoke to a member of the LMU staff who remarked "there's just so much more going on in Southern California compared to say, Spokane, it's almost impossible to get people to come to a game, even on Homecoming Weekend."  

That same staff member said their game plan against the Pilots was to pressure the young backcourt in order to force turnovers and try to institute a run and gun offense.  UP's game plan was to maintain their poise and not turn the ball over. In this case, UP's plan worked better, but it got a little dicey toward the end when UP's young guards veered from the plan and toward the basket in their attempt to score.

On a final note, did anyone notice how Franklin's role changed.  Besides coming off the bench, something we can expect to see more of, he was not defending the speedy guards, but the coaches had him using his size to help contain the forwards.

DoubleDipper wrote:On a final note, did anyone notice how Franklin's role changed.  Besides coming off the bench, something we can expect to see more of, he was not defending the speedy guards, but the coaches had him using his size to help contain the forwards.

I’m glad I’m not the only one to notice that. If he keeps playing as well in that role as he did this weekend, it would be a huge help to the team this season.