Some things about ISU for Virginia lurkers to chew on.

[rholtgraves]

WE WERE IN THIS UNTIL THE END!!!

Oh my god this write up had me laughing so hard. Don't know if it was meant to be funny but I can't stop laughing. Also, weirdly no mention of bad defense and bad rebounding. Maybe that's because... We were in this until the end!!!!

 

[jcyclonee]

Quoting my post: 1/9 – Baylor: shot out of their minds in making 34-65 (52%). Baylor shot 46.5% on the year. We were in this until the end.

Notice I never stated that Baylor shot 46% on threes for the year. Reading comprehension, yeahhhhh.

That makes more sense.

 

[Hoosfan13]

[We're also playing the best we've played all season right now. Our connectedness is at a season high.

Go Clones![/QUOTE]


You just beat Iona and UALR, how can you determine thats the best you've played all season when you beat kansas and a couple other big boys during a stretch earlier in the year?

 

[CycloneBBFan]

This team dealt with a series of big blow setbacks leading to losses. Red shirt star guard Naz Long, Jameel McKay suspension, Cooke suspension, and Mont Morris shoulder injuries to name a few. Been so long since we played our best basketball beating OU and Kansas that fans forgot. I do believe we are currently playing better than our best at beginning of season, or first half of season - at least where it counts as a team at this time of year. You are probably reading "fan relief" as the team is finally back.

 

[Malone]

"You just beat Iona and UALR, how can you determine thats the best you've played all season when you beat kansas and a couple other big boys during a stretch earlier in the year?"

Defense. Haven't seen that attention to detail all year. 3 quarters of good defense in the last two games. UALR was the first time we put a full game of defense together.

If you'd watched us this year, we beat good teams but it was with offense at home. These last two games, we went all Virginia and won using both, away from home.

 

[sheepplucker]

I noticed that non of the reasons you posted for losing was playing like crap. Chalking it's up to the other team shooting out of their minds or McKay is way to easy. We have had games where for an entire half we just couldn't make a shot and seemed to not have a clue what we wanted to do. the team has been focused these last few games. But there has been some games where it was just bad basketball.

 

[KMAC_ATTACK]

Okay - this is more for the VA lurkers - and also for our fanbase. Those that know me know that i love to pour over stats to view seasonal data to view which team has a hidden advantage and how to exploit it.

Here's some statistical numbers for our VA and ISU - incredible when you look at the two teams that the stats truly become nearly interchangeable. Scoring defense is somewhat misleading as there are actually four ACC teams that score below Virginia - they do it intentionally as a part of their system. The others do it because of totally inept offenses!

Considering these stats and UVA's seven losses its pretty easy to see how to beat them. Their defense although very stingy is not the best at defending the three. Of those loses, highest score they've given up is 73 and only twice gave up 70. Conversely, we were only held below 70 puts three times this season and all three were wins.

This truly comes down to a few key points.
1. Our FG and 3 PT shooting - if we hit our season shooting averages - no bad shooting night, IMO they will not keep up with our scoring. Even though our defense is not the best, it played better against Ark Lil Rock then all year.
2. Although both teams drive to the paint, neither team fouls a lot or shoots a lot of free throws - that helps us.
3. Rebounding - the two teams are very comparable sized - so we need to win the rebounding challenge by +8. If we lose the rebounding challenge - they will get some easy looks with their back cuts and screens - we need to limit their possessions.

We actually had a common opponent this season - Virginia Tech (rivalry game).
We won 99-79.
Tech actually beat Virginia 70-68 and lost at Virginia 67-49. So comparing, their offense scored 67 and 68 on a team that we nearly dropped a hundred on.....

Even game - who performs..... Cant wait!!!!!

 

[CoKane]

You forgot about the Tom Eades factor in the last OU game

 

[CycloneBBFan]

O.K. thanks for that info. On another note Brogs is a great player but nothing to the hell Buddy Heild gave us the last four years so I think we will be prepared on that front.

 

[CoKane]

OP forgot "the bleeping refs" as a reason for all ISU losses.

Isn't it amazing how winning two games against double digit seeds makes all the warts go away?

Should you be celebrating the fact Kansas made it out of the first weekend for the first time in forever?

 

[Dingus]

I liked the premise of the OP, but it ended up being too many excuses and explaining away losses/limitations.

I got no stats, but as I see it our biggest weaknesses are physical bigs/offensive rebounding, allowing dribble penetration, and generally at best mediocre defense.

Whereas in some previous year's the teams I least wanted to face were slow, grind it out, defensive oriented teams and those who shot the 3 well, that's not so much the case this year.

While I'd give ISU a 50/50 chance vs UVa, it'd drop to about 20% vs UNC.

 

[UVAFan]

So, I may have missed one, but in a thread for UVa fans, I believe I'm the first to post here, and it's page 5

There's nothing wrong with saying your team is good. Your team IS good. You're in the Sweet 16 for a reason, and it's not that you guys get blown out all the time by a bunch of scrubs.

So, I'm SURE this has been posted elsewhere, but I have missed it in all of our fans "LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT UVA/I'M A UVA FAN, AMA" threads: Tell me about ISU.

Obviously we know that Niang is a stud, and he's got a ridiculously well rounded game and we hoo fans are genuinely nervous about him going bananas and single-handedly beating us.

Tell me about the rest of your team. Players, offensive scheme, defensive scheme, tendencies, how you think you match up against our offense and defense. I want to watch the game as an educated fan.

 

[carvers4math]

Okay - this is more for the VA lurkers - and also for our fanbase. Those that know me know that i love to pour over stats to view seasonal data to view which team has a hidden advantage and how to exploit it.

Here's some statistical numbers for our VA and ISU - incredible when you look at the two teams that the stats truly become nearly interchangeable. Scoring defense is somewhat misleading as there are actually four ACC teams that score below Virginia - they do it intentionally as a part of their system. The others do it because of totally inept offenses!

Considering these stats and UVA's seven losses its pretty easy to see how to beat them. Their defense although very stingy is not the best at defending the three. Of those loses, highest score they've given up is 73 and only twice gave up 70. Conversely, we were only held below 70 puts three times this season and all three were wins.

This truly comes down to a few key points.
1. Our FG and 3 PT shooting - if we hit our season shooting averages - no bad shooting night, IMO they will not keep up with our scoring. Even though our defense is not the best, it played better against Ark Lil Rock then all year.
2. Although both teams drive to the paint, neither team fouls a lot or shoots a lot of free throws - that helps us.
3. Rebounding - the two teams are very comparable sized - so we need to win the rebounding challenge by +8. If we lose the rebounding challenge - they will get some easy looks with their back cuts and screens - we need to limit their possessions.

We actually had a common opponent this season - Virginia Tech (rivalry game).
We won 99-79.
Tech actually beat Virginia 70-68 and lost at Virginia 67-49. So comparing, their offense scored 67 and 68 on a team that we nearly dropped a hundred on.....

Even game - who performs..... Cant wait!!!!!

Other common opponent was West Virginia, whom they beat easily.

 

[iastatefan1]

So, I may have missed one, but in a thread for UVa fans, I believe I'm the first to post here, and it's page 5

There's nothing wrong with saying your team is good. Your team IS good. You're in the Sweet 16 for a reason, and it's not that you guys get blown out all the time by a bunch of scrubs.

So, I'm SURE this has been posted elsewhere, but I have missed it in all of our fans "LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT UVA/I'M A UVA FAN, AMA" threads: Tell me about ISU.

Obviously we know that Niang is a stud, and he's got a ridiculously well rounded game and we hoo fans are genuinely nervous about him going bananas and single-handedly beating us.

Tell me about the rest of your team. Players, offensive scheme, defensive scheme, tendencies, how you think you match up against our offense and defense. I want to watch the game as an educated fan.

We run a lot of ball reversals to get favorable matchups and isolate niang if the defense switches. We also like to run picks with niang and mckay (Niang is especially dangerous at this) for Morris and Thomas which are difficult to defend as Morris is a great facilitator.

I would say our weaknesses have been penetration off the dribble especially when McKay was playing poorly, Morris not being an outstanding shooter(he is O.K.) allowing the defense to play passing lanes, and Nader making bonehead decisions with the ball which he has really improved on.

Expect Nader and Thomas to be the deciding factors in the game with how well they shoot the three against your D.

 

[carvers4math]

So, I may have missed one, but in a thread for UVa fans, I believe I'm the first to post here, and it's page 5

There's nothing wrong with saying your team is good. Your team IS good. You're in the Sweet 16 for a reason, and it's not that you guys get blown out all the time by a bunch of scrubs.

So, I'm SURE this has been posted elsewhere, but I have missed it in all of our fans "LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT UVA/I'M A UVA FAN, AMA" threads: Tell me about ISU.

Obviously we know that Niang is a stud, and he's got a ridiculously well rounded game and we hoo fans are genuinely nervous about him going bananas and single-handedly beating us.

Tell me about the rest of your team. Players, offensive scheme, defensive scheme, tendencies, how you think you match up against our offense and defense. I want to watch the game as an educated fan.

Assuming he is healthy, Monte Morris will be very good at point. Low turnovers, sees the floor well, can score when he needs to and Coach Prohm encourages him to do so. Can shoot a three, drive, and has a nice little mid-range.

Matt Thomas is a 6'4" shooting guard who entered the starting lineup when 3sus of Nazareth Mitrou-Long decided to go for a medical redshirt on his surgically repaired hips. Is closest thing we have to a lockdown defender, rebounds well for a guard, and when confident, can shoot the three lights out. Also has a nice mid-range.

Abdel (pronounced Abdul, referred to as Dooley) Nader is 6'6" and while Coach Prohm says he is our most consistent guy since he got here, fans refer to his games as good Nader, bad Nader. In reality, I think he has been good all year, but sometimes his matchups can be good or bad. Had 16 rebounds in a loss at Texas in OT I think. Winning three against Cincy.

I view Thomas and Nader and perhaps sixth man Burton as the deciding factors. Morris and Niang will be who they have always been.

Jameel McKay is 6'9" and needs to eat a few cows. Has been great since an attitude suspension, doing what we need of him. Rim protection, hustle, rebounds, runs the floor well. We all die a little bit when he puts the ball on the floor, but when he is on, he can take our team an extra step on defense, which is much needed, usually because of the thin bench we were left with due to Hoiberg Watch 2015. Our defense isn't great, but is better than national media give us credit for, which they basically say we play none. Short bench means we can't get in foul trouble.

Deonte Burton is built like some of your guys and has some great games for us. Started with McKay out. Is 6'4" with 7'1" wingspan, built somewhat like some of your guys or our linebackers, and is just waiting for a dunk contest to happen. Can shoot from three as well.

Hallice Cooke is a bench guard who will play and can shoot the three.

Jordan Ashton might play a little. Like most of the team, also a guard. Can shoot the three well. I think Cooke and Ashton go in based on what coach thinks will provide the best defense while resting players.

 

[OWLCITYCYFAN]

Jameel McKay is 6'9" and needs to eat a few cows. Has been great since an attitude suspension, doing what we need of him. Rim protection, hustle, rebounds, runs the floor well. We all die a little bit when he puts the ball on the floor, but when he is on, he can take our team an extra step on defense, which is much needed, usually because of the thin bench we were left with due to Hoiberg Watch 2015. Our defense isn't great, but is better than national media give us credit for, which they basically say we play none. Short bench means we can't get in foul trouble.

Nice job! Niang, Morris & Thomas are steady - we know they'll always produce and can / have stepped up even more when others are off. Nader & McKay are the wild cards. Nader is probably our most explosive player, but he's been spending too much time on the pine after picking up offensive charges and lazy defensive fouls. McKay was the Big XII Defensive Player of the Year in a "short season" last year, but hasn't displayed the same shot blocking acumen in 2015/16, likely because he's playing safe to protect the shallow bench. Should McKay somehow recapture his rim-protecting form of last season, our inability to keep guards from penetrating wouldn't be such a problem. It also wouldn't hurt if he borrowed some stick-em from Dwight Howard's gym bag to convert those nifty passes from Monte and Georges into hoops!

I'm not putting too much emphasis on victories over Iona and UALR, but I believe the fanbase is seeing our Cyclones simply playing better team ball. It's illogical on my part, considering that Virginia has an excellent battle-tested squad and earned their 1 Seed, but I'm very confident the Cyclones will prevail on Friday.

 

[VirginiaHoops]

Paul Jesperson is a great kid. You may be interested in knowing that he was on our team, but couldn't really get any playing time, so he transferred.

 

[UVAFan]

Assuming he is healthy, Monte Morris will be very good at point. Low turnovers, sees the floor well, can score when he needs to and Coach Prohm encourages him to do so. Can shoot a three, drive, and has a nice little mid-range.

Matt Thomas is a 6'4" shooting guard who entered the starting lineup when 3sus of Nazareth Mitrou-Long decided to go for a medical redshirt on his surgically repaired hips. Is closest thing we have to a lockdown defender, rebounds well for a guard, and when confident, can shoot the three lights out. Also has a nice mid-range.

Abdel (pronounced Abdul, referred to as Dooley) Nader is 6'6" and while Coach Prohm says he is our most consistent guy since he got here, fans refer to his games as good Nader, bad Nader. In reality, I think he has been good all year, but sometimes his matchups can be good or bad. Had 16 rebounds in a loss at Texas in OT I think. Winning three against Cincy.

I view Thomas and Nader and perhaps sixth man Burton as the deciding factors. Morris and Niang will be who they have always been.

Jameel McKay is 6'9" and needs to eat a few cows. Has been great since an attitude suspension, doing what we need of him. Rim protection, hustle, rebounds, runs the floor well. We all die a little bit when he puts the ball on the floor, but when he is on, he can take our team an extra step on defense, which is much needed, usually because of the thin bench we were left with due to Hoiberg Watch 2015. Our defense isn't great, but is better than national media give us credit for, which they basically say we play none. Short bench means we can't get in foul trouble.

Deonte Burton is built like some of your guys and has some great games for us. Started with McKay out. Is 6'4" with 7'1" wingspan, built somewhat like some of your guys or our linebackers, and is just waiting for a dunk contest to happen. Can shoot from three as well.

Hallice Cooke is a bench guard who will play and can shoot the three.

Jordan Ashton might play a little. Like most of the team, also a guard. Can shoot the three well. I think Cooke and Ashton go in based on what coach thinks will provide the best defense while resting players.

Awesome! Thank you. How bout x's and o's? The post above yours said you run a lot of pick and roll? Is the offense based on anybody's offense who I'd have heard of? What do you guys do defensively?

 

[cyclonenation5]

Awesome! Thank you. How bout x's and o's? The post above yours said you run a lot of pick and roll? Is the offense based on anybody's offense who I'd have heard of? What do you guys do defensively?

A lot of the half court stuff is based off what Fred used to run, so it's NBA-like I guess.

 

[carvers4math]

Awesome! Thank you. How bout x's and o's? The post above yours said you run a lot of pick and roll? Is the offense based on anybody's offense who I'd have heard of? What do you guys do defensively?

This I am no expert on, although my brothers and father were coaches. I guess would say we play modified "Hoiball" which was based on Fred's NBA expertise. Spread the floor and lots of ball reversals and pick and roll. When Georges is out top and we are spread, he can drive and take it or dish it and for a guy who all announcers say is not athletic, he is deceptively quick. Passes well in the post too, drops the ball off to shooters and Jameel for dunks. Monte gets looks for others too with penetration. Georges has a good two-man game with pick and pops with either Monte or Matt. We don't push the ball quite as much this year due to the short bench. So we are a little different than with Hoiberg, but a fun game to watch the second half of is our comeback from 20 down in the second half against Oklahoma in 2015 in Hilton. Someone can probably put the video up. That was a lot of iso for Georges or Monte and I think we do less iso plays this year. I think we are best when we have ball reversals and start Georges out on top, but maybe that's just me.

Defense? I know even less here. We played quite a bit of zone of a few varieties against some conference teams, especially with Jameel suspended, due to short bench. We did much better playing man and rotating on screens against ALR, but that isn't exactly like playing KU or Okahoma. I expect we will be in man against you.

An aside, we usually handle a press well and have had some success end of game, especially against someone like Iowa, employing a press.

Caveat: I am an old lady and my playing experience was Iowa high school six girl basketball back in the middle ages, intramurals at Iowa State, and bookstore basketball at Notre Dame.