Well, that was TERRIBLE. Really disappointed with the way the team is playing to end the season. Completely lackadaisical... Seemed like they didn’t care at times. Defensively we allowed a ton of layups. Offensively we have regressed. We pass it around the perimeter and NO ONE is a threat. It doesn’t have to be like this. We are not this bad. Trying to figure out what has happened to the team that beat Texas A&M.
"Rider is a very good basketball team so it's very difficult for us to beat them by scoring 51 points," Head Coach Jay Young said. "We need to keep working to find those answers offensively. Now we have to go on the road and show some toughness. I like that we are going on the road now because it will give us a taste of what we need to do when we get to the MAAC tournament in Atlantic City."
"I thought our guys did a really good job on the free-throw line, Stevie (Jordan) in particular, 13-of-16. I thought defensively, we were excellent. We started to really lock down. We allowed them to take the lead and then we just buckled down and played possession-by-possession and started defending better and that's what got us through." – Rider Head Coach Kevin Baggett
I am beginning to have just a tiny shade of doubt about what Jay can do for the Stags. Some of this is about basics being taught. Is our talent that bad? Maybe
I also feel they have gotten worse as the season has gone on. It’s more than lackadaisical. Some things should have been partly remedied by now even with our timid and inept offense. They happen over and over. What sloppiness today. And no excuse for the low energy which puts us in a hole.
How can you miss an uncontested standing still layup? How can you not be aware of the shot clock? Why dribble right into a trap that you can see coming? Why try to out-duel three defenders in the lane without looking to pass to someone wide open on the perimeter?
I’ll settle for one win in AC, and a recruiting coup.
Last Edit: Mar 1, 2020 17:31:18 GMT -5 by stagparty
AD Schlickmann - 18 months to complete the new on campus building with the MAAC games ready to be played for Winter (December/January) of the 2021-22 season (hopefully) and all games will be played next year at the WBA.
This 1-3 stretch and loss today really put me over the edge for the season. Just so disappointed, despite the low expectations for the season. We have shown we can compete and stay in games especially at home and we didn’t close today out. Today out of all the 4 was so important going into two on the road and the tournament.
Like stagparty says above, let’s get one in AC and move onto recruiting a solid roster for next year. While the freshman have personally brought me hope the rest of the roster shows little to no serviceable beyond Taj and a hot/cold Cruz.
Except for brief stretches at the end of the first half and start of the second half it was a mostly dreadful game. Offensive ineptitude nay have reached new lows today.
Possession after possession with aimless weaving for 25 seconds, punctuated by a desperation contested shot to barely beat the shot clock . . . if we hadn't turned it over already. And our bigs inability to finish at the rim is almost comical. God bless him, Eze plays hard and physical. He defends and rebounds. But he literally cannot make a shot more distant than a dunk. Cruz had maybe the worst double-figure scoring game I have witnessed. The ball repeatedly gets stuck when he receives a pass, and he is either incapable or unwilling to kick it out to spotted up shooters. He cannot work on the perimeter of an offense. I could go on but if 'you don't have anything nice to say . . .'
Anyway, I disagree that we were lackadaisical. The kids play hard. They get after it on defense and would have held Rider in the 50's if not for the late foul shots given. But this has to be one of the most offensively challenged Stags teams in school history.
If anyone on the floor was lackadaisical, it was Rider. When they turned up the intensity they took control of the game. Frankly, given their length and talent I would suggest they are the biggest underachievers in the MAAC this season.
Patience everyone. We were not going to sweep the 4 home games - had a chance to win 3, could have lost all 4. Need to give JY and staff another full recruiting cycle. Need better basketball players not just athletes - Rider was superior to us in that regard. Let's hope for one more league win and another in the tournament. I think the the best we can do under the current circumstances.