With this team with its fantastic guards , had AJR and Cook or Midoh stayed , we would have been unreal this year
The new world makes being a mid major dynasty a real challenge.
Very true. Developing players in particular is way more challenging. Kids (and their "advisors", whoever they may be) are often not willing to sit for a season or two as they learn the game at the D1 level, get stronger and enhance their skills.
That being said, if (a big if) the roster is mostly held together, the Stags do have some kids that could develop into significant contributors. Smith was forced to play earlier than expected. But he played decently and actually surprisingly well prior to injury. With added strength and skill development, he can build on this year's experience. Seck has height and athleticism that can't be taught. An offseason of strength training and working on offensive skills may turn him into a valuable piece in the paint. Curtis has decent size and a good outside shot. I think he will develop into a solid contributor with more experience. We don't know yet what we have in Rogan.
Of course, there may be unexpected defections into the portal. But there will also be some new talent recruited from the high schools or the portal. Certainly Casey and staff have the team playing a fun brand of basketball that should be attractive to recruits at all levels. The future may be bright, even in the current Wild West of college athletics.
Thanks all the players and coaches for a great winter of basketball. This team and the crowds at the Leo are something to build on. As others have noted, Caleb Fields was a rock for this program. He said once that Jay Young told him he could be special at Fairfield and he was. Getting to hear from Caleb, Jalen, Lou, Brycen and others on the podcasts made you grateful these young men were at Fairfield. I wish them all the best.
It was mentioned a few times in the end of the regular season Twitter space that Jaden Daly hosted —- it’s extremely difficult to beat the same team three times in the same season when there isn’t a huge talent disparity between the two teams. Our win over Iona in the tourney and last night’s loss seem to demonstrate the wisdom of that statement.
Yes that is a valid point that it is extremely difficult to beat a team three times when their is not a HUGE TALENT difference . However, the very good Iona teams under Tim Cluess and the Saint Johns scumbag could beat times three times in one season because they regularly had SUPERIOR talent compared to other MAAC teams. So it all comes down to recruiting better players that can execute against MAAC teams once , twice or even three times in a season. Let’s turn attention to the portal and see if we can recruit some superior players. Go out and get Coach Casey.
It seemed like the stars were aligned perfectly for us. It looked like 27 years of frustration were about to end. We all wanted this so badly especially considering the volatility with today's college game not knowing your roster year to year. Let's hope for another game with this group and build on all the positivity.
While last night came to a really difficult end and seemed like a missed opportunity, the season was still very fun and a pleasant surprise. Casey brought enthusiasm and offensive excitement back to this team and definitely thank him and all the players this year for that. They were a special team that unfortunately got cold from 3 at the wrong time. SPU’s size and athleticism underneath was a killer and Seck’s injury (?) came at a tough time as he could’ve helped too. But oh well. That’s the brutal part of a one bid conference in college basketball.
Yetna and Fields both played their hearts out last night in their last games and wish them best of luck going forward.
Way too early to start thinking about next year or what to predict but I’m hoping we can retain Leach and Goodine and reload up front. Thankfully I think Casey is the right guy to lead the way.
This will probably be mentioned quite a bit in the next few days; according to St. Peter’s coach, Mason, MAAC tournament MVP Corey Washington paid his own way to fly up from Arkansas to try out for a scholarship. He had no scholarship offers after his senior season in high school. After working out with the team, Mason offered him a scholarship.
I agree with all the sentiments expressed here. This was a crushing loss, but who would have expected us to be here just a few months ago? Big thanks to Coach Casey, his staff and the whole team for all their hard work in getting us to this point and giving us such an exciting season. I was at Quinnipiac last month and saw them play one of the most thrilling games I ever saw any Stags team play, and thrilling is not an adjective associated with our games in recent years. With a highly competent coach and players who have bought into his philosophy, we have cause for genuine optimism for the first time in a quite a while.
I want to say something else: Hats off, and congratulations, to Saint Peters. When you look at that school's resources, they pale in comparison to many of their MAAC competitors, yet they consistently achieve more with less. I didn't know that story about Corey Washington. This is what college is all about, a chance to achieve and maybe change the trajectory of one's life. If we had to lose to someone, I'm glad it was them. I hope they shock Purdue again.
Post by jenningsbeach on Mar 17, 2024 18:10:50 GMT -5
In the end, we didn't get enough offensive production from Leach and Goodine. The threes just didn't fall. Jalen did play well down the stretch against Iona and Marist, but it was all in the paint. And against St. Peter's, Corey Washington shut him down completely. That said, we played a strong first half last night, forcing St. Peter's to play at our pace. And when Fairfield took a 10-point lead early in the second half, I thought we were on our way. But St. Peter's had other ideas. The Peacocks hit clutch shots, took care of the ball when it mattered, defended stoutly and made more plays than we did. Hard to believe we committed only two turnovers and still lost.
Anyway, I tip my cap to SPU. They came alive at the right time, defeating the 4, 1 and 2 seeds, all quality teams. They earned the MAAC crown.
Great to see Bob Kulikowski at all the games. More than anything I wanted Fairfield to win the championship for him. We all know life isn't fair, but sometimes it is downright cruel.
Last Edit: Mar 17, 2024 18:17:03 GMT -5 by jenningsbeach
Just thinking that whatever went wrong in that Marist road loss carried over to this tournament.
Well, onto the post season tomorrow.
I had the same thought. Just a sense that maybe Dunne provided the script for slowing down and beating Fairfield. Overplay the perimeter, forcing the guards to put the ball on the floor or take contested shots. And if the guards did go the dribble, get in passing lanes and be physical in the paint.
I think back to Caleb Fields playing around 38 minutes per game all season. That has to wear on your legs and had to contribute to him not being as effective from 3pt land during the tournament games. I