Capital City Recap

cygoat · 06-16-2006, 11:21 PM

Went to see all three games tonight. Here are my observations (focusing on the guys who will probably see time next season):

Corey McIntosh -- Outanding passer and floor leader. Was able to score from about everywhere. Had some amazing passes. Can break down a defense. Played solid defense. Very positive influence on the court and a good communicator. Kept everyone involved.
Michael Taylor -- Definitely a scorer. Hit some really tough pressure 3s. Also had some nice passes. He's skinny, but very quick. Very positive also.
Alex Thompson -- Looked really good. I would say he's our best big man. Had lots of different offensive moves, and he moves real quick for a big guy. Strong defender and rebounder also. I really wish he could play for us this year; we could use him. All those people who were second-guessing McD giving him a scholarship? Let's just leave those decisions to the coach, ok?
Wesley Johnson -- Very athletic and crafty. Scored in bursts. Oozes with potential. Will definitely have some crowd-pleasing dunks this season.
Cory Johnson -- Started off kind of shaky and got in foul trouble. Thompson gave him some troubles. But still, he did all right. Scored a lot of different ways, and had some nice passes. Didn't seem to force things. I liked his game best when he went hard to the hoop. I can see why he's such a prolific scorer. I think that trend will continue at ISU. His defense could be better, but that will come.
Dodie Dunson -- Strong defender. Versatile on offense. Not the passer or scorer that Johnson and Taylor are, but he's less experienced, too. Plays hard all the time. Followed his shot extremely well and got put-backs from hard effort. You can tell he's got strong leadership abilities, too.
Rahshon Clark -- Looked really good. He played hard--a lot harder than last year in this league (IMO). He's obviously been working on handling the ball and taking it to the hoop, which is great news. Shows some leadership. (I'm still utterly amazed at his explosive jumping ability.)
Jiri Hubalek -- Played fairly well. Looks to have bulked up some and appears to be stronger than during the season. He showed both an outside (3-pt) and inside game. I think he got frustrated at times, but he definitely looks like he's improving. He worked hard at rebounding, I thought. I still don't think he's a true big man, though.
Jessan Gray -- Came out absolutely on fire, swishing a couple of 3-pointers and getting fouled on another and hitting all 3 FTs. He must have scored a lot of points in his game. He looked stronger on the boards than during the season, so I think he's been working on this.
Ross Marsden -- Had trouble stopping some bulky ex-Drake center, who basically had his way with Ross (think Nebraska game). Seemed to lack assertiveness required for a big man. Seemed to not want to score. It's just one game, though, so I'm not concerned. Looks like he's starting to bulk up a bit, too.
Brock Jacobson -- He has about the nicest 3-pt shot you'll ever see. It should be in an instructional video. Has incredible range. As I've heard others mention, he's just about automatic. I don't know how he would do against belly-button defense. He could be good as a zone buster, though. Although not particularly fast, he looks strong and wouldn't get pushed around. It will be interesting to see how he does.
I really like the new guys. They all seem positive and tried to play team ball. And they just had good attitudes. I didn't hear much, if any, complaining about the officiating. It looks like they could have very good chemistry. I liked the way they communicated with their teammates on the floor.
I thought the games were good quality--entertaining, competitive, and team-oriented. It seemed like the ISU players played with a lot more intensity than last year.
I think this team will be capable of some very exciting, entertaining, and winning basketball. I'm still somewhat concerned about our inside play. But I'm eagerly awaiting next season to see what McD can do with these guys. I have a good feeling.
Non-ISU: I think I will go watch Drake a few times this year, just to cheer on Alou Kieta. He has such a great attitude and plays so hard. It's impossible not to like the guy. Oh, and Ajay Calvin looked real solid tonight, as did the kid from Alaska (can't remember his name). I don't like Grant, though. He's a ball hog and a prima donna.

Goclones1727 · 06-16-2006, 11:52 PM

Is Dodie Dunson not in the Cap City league?

Thanks alot for the updates, and i am really looking forward to see how this year plays out. Also could someone give me some dates and times for the games, i want to go down to southwoods and see a couple.

Thanks

dbronco7sc · 06-17-2006, 12:02 AM

Good stuff!!! Where can I go to find out when all the games are? Again... thanks for the post...

cygoat · 06-17-2006, 12:05 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Goclones1727 @ Jun 16 2006, 11:52 PM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'> Is Dodie Dunson not in the Cap City league?[/b][/quote]

Oops. I knew I forgot someone. I just added him in the original post.

Nedrick · 06-17-2006, 08:09 AM

Cygoat - thanks for the report. Glad to hear we have some quality recruits coming in. Will you continue to offer these in the future?

cygoat · 06-17-2006, 09:50 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Nedrick @ Jun 17 2006, 08:09 AM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'> Cygoat - thanks for the report. Glad to hear we have some quality recruits coming in. Will you continue to offer these in the future?
[/b][/quote]

No prob. Sure, when I get to the games, I'll summarize. Not sure how many more I'll be able to make it to, though.

I'd like to hear others' observations on the games, as well.

BTW, I like your sig pic. That's the first time I've seen it. Made me laugh. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif[/img]

Cyclone06 · 06-17-2006, 10:38 AM

I've heard that same thing about Thompson before. Supposedly he used to dominate the other summer leagues when he played at EICC. I'll take the nice route and say that Alford is that bad, and that Thompson will finally transfer his summer league abilities to the "real" games.

clone33 · 06-17-2006, 11:11 AM

Cygoat, thanks for all the time you spent on this post, great job. Its good to hear some positive stuff about the team and how they're doing. Van Coleman said that Wesley Johnson was real good, so its good to hear that from multiple sources. I'm excited about Jessan Gray and how he does, wouldn't be surprised at all to see him in the starting lineup come the first game. Thanks again

cgwarrior33 · 06-17-2006, 11:44 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Cyclone06 @ Jun 17 2006, 10:38 AM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'> I've heard that same thing about Thompson before. Supposedly he used to dominate the other summer leagues when he played at EICC. I'll take the nice route and say that Alford is that bad, and that Thompson will finally transfer his summer league abilities to the "real" games. [/b][/quote]

I have hear from reliable sources at Iowa that him and Brunner went toe to toe everyday. Alex just had trouble converting it to games. He also had a very short leash which will make a kid play to not make a mistake and tenative. Hopefully with having a coach have confidence in him he will be the next Brunner.

Jeremy · 06-17-2006, 11:49 AM

Thanks for posting a great analysis of the games. I had wanted to get to them but was unable to due to the site move. I have moved it to the front page so more people can enjoy it, thanks again!!

Jeremy

Kyle · 06-17-2006, 04:10 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cgwarrior33 @ Jun 17 2006, 11:44 AM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'>
Hopefully with having a coach have confidence in him he will be the next Brunner.[/b][/quote]
But with better hair.

isucy86 · 06-17-2006, 04:13 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cgwarrior33 @ Jun 17 2006, 11:44 AM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'>
I have hear from reliable sources at Iowa that him and Brunner went toe to toe everyday. Alex just had trouble converting it to games. He also had a very short leash which will make a kid play to not make a mistake and tenative. Hopefully with having a coach have confidence in him he will be the next Brunner.
[/b][/quote]

I agree that we can't really judge Thompson play at Iowa to project how he'll do at ISU. The year off should enable him to mature physically, which is always good for a post player.

I know some Iowa & ISU fans have been skeptical about Thompson's abilities, but he was in a no win situation at Iowa. Greg Brunner is a very good player, senior and team leader; he just wasn't going to the bench for long stretches. Its tough for a young player who hasn't received a lot of minutes during his career to have the confidence to make an impact when he might only play 2-3 minute stretches.

goclonz · 06-17-2006, 08:48 PM

I am very interested to see McIntosh, Taylor, and Wesley Johnson. Would you compare Wesley Johnson to a Tyrus Thomas kind of player?

cygoat · 06-17-2006, 09:13 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(goclonz @ Jun 17 2006, 08:48 PM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'> I am very interested to see McIntosh, Taylor, and Wesley Johnson. Would you compare Wesley Johnson to a Tyrus Thomas kind of player?
[/b][/quote]

Sorry, I'm not familiar with Tyrus Thomas. I'm not sure who I would compare him to. I suppose he reminds me a little bit of Scottie Pippen--tall, lean, sinewy, graceful. He can really elevate, too. Seems like he's not afraid to take it to the rim. He guarded Rahshon when they were in together and had his hands full; Rahshon blew by him off the dribble a few times. He plays really hard, though. (Well, all the guys did, so no surprise there.) I feel real good about the 3 spot if he's backing up Rahshon.

clone33 · 06-17-2006, 10:57 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cygoat @ Jun 17 2006, 09:13 PM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'>

Sorry, I'm not familiar with Tyrus Thomas. I'm not sure who I would compare him to. I suppose he reminds me a little bit of Scottie Pippen--tall, lean, sinewy, graceful. He can really elevate, too. Seems like he's not afraid to take it to the rim. He guarded Rahshon when they were in together and had his hands full; Rahshon blew by him off the dribble a few times. He plays really hard, though. (Well, all the guys did, so no surprise there.) I feel real good about the 3 spot if he's backing up Rahshon.

[/b][/quote]

I like to hear that rahshon can school him because johnson was the texas defensive player of the year or something to that effect wasnt he? That means rahshon will have a little more variety to his game now

And it'll be good for Wesley to have to gauard rahshon all offseason