Wright State would head into this weekend attempting to pick up double-digit wins for the 21st season in a row, facing IUPUI.
Pregame, the Jaguars were told that their star Marcus Burk could not start due to COVID-19 protocols. He ended up coming in after halftime, but it would be too late for the Jaguars.
As the lone Noon tip-off on Friday, the Raiders had the world’s attention. Even Barstool Sports did a stream of them watching the Raiders in their new Sportsbook in Detroit.
The “YMCA Big Man,” Loudon Love, as Big Cat from Barstool Sports called him, would get the game underway. Wright would start slow, but a 10-0 run before the under-16 media timeout would give the Raiders an early 12-6 lead.
Wright would then go on a 20-4 run after, giving the Raiders their first double digit lead of the game, owning the Jaguars down low.
The Raiders would head into the half with a 46-28 lead, outrebounding IUPUI by a score of 20-14.
Love would score 12 of his 16 in the first half, as he would be named to the Lou Henson Mid-Major Player of the Year watch list, a couple days later.
Wright State would shoot an impressive 54.3% at the break as IUPUI shot 35%.
It would be all Raiders in the second half again, as a Tanner Holden three would get the play underway, stretching Wright’s lead out to 21.
The Raiders would continue, scoring on their first four possessions of the half, stretching their lead out to as much as 25.
At the 9:11 mark, Love reeled down his sixth double-double of the season and his first of the month of January.
Wright State would ultimately win by a score of 95-65, as Grant Basile scored a career-high 24 points. Tanner Holden, Trey Calvin, and Tim Finke would all score double digits on the game as well.
The Raiders would head into Saturday with not as many lights, but as impressive of a game.
Grant Basile would start hot again, as the Raiders took their first double digit lead of the game at 8:45. Basile had a once again, impressive 20 points.
“I think the guy who is most happy (about Basile’s great play) is Loudon, because it take the pressure off of him,” said Scott Nagy, “When (Loudon) is not playing well, he gets 13 and 8. I’ll tell you, you’re a pretty good player if you’re not playing well and that’s what you’re getting.”
Love would do exactly that as Wright State would take a 41-27 lead the break. They would lead by as much as 17 in that first half.
IUPUI played much better out of the break though, cutting the Raider lead down to 10. That didn’t last too long though, as a 12-2 Raider run would extend their lead out to 20.
Love would get a dunk right before the under-4 media timeout, getting their lead out to 30, and it was all she wrote.
For the first time this season, Wright State scored 100 points. It was their first victory of the month that was not by 30+ points though. This one was by 28.
Rebounds were the difference as Wright State outrebounded the Jaguars, 40-25. Holden. Calvin, Finke, and Jaylon Hall would all score double digits. Grant Basile was later named the Horizon League Player of the Week.
Unfortunately, so much of my life has centered around being a New York sports fan. And not the good side of New York sports. We’re talking years of ineptitude from the Mets, a decade of filth from the Jets and a lifetime of delusion from the Knicks.
I start a post about the Robert Morris basketball team this way to try and let you know I can see a season falling apart from a mile away, and this Robert Morris season is on the verge of unraveling this upcoming weekend at Wright State.
The Colonials, now losers of their last four, are on the verge of a rare losing season under 11th year coach Andy Toole, the winningest coach in the history of the program.
The program has had losing seasons before. In fact, since a 2015 conference title in the NEC, the Colonials have had losing seasons in three of their last five seasons. But in two of those seasons – 2017 and 2018 – Robert Morris finished the season hot, climbing to .500 conference records and won road quarterfinal contests in the conference tournament.
It was 2016 when the Colonials posted their worst mark under Toole, a 10-22 marathon season that featured the lone time Robert Morris was bumped from the conference tournament in the first round under the current head coach. Ironically, that season also followed a conference title.
The parallels between that team and this team are few and far between. The 2016 team was a mix of great talent but little depth and absolutely zero ability to put the ball in the basket.
I would argue that this year’s team has more talent, led by AJ Bramah, who is playing at a level unmatched by any player in the Toole era. Throw in Dante Treacy, last year’s NEC tournament MVP, Jon Williams, Bucknell transfer Khaliel Spear and three talented freshmen making up the backcourt rotation, and you have a team that could theoretically compete at a high level, even in the Horizon League.
But the pieces just aren’t fitting together. The biggest difference between 2016 and now is, obviously, COVID-19 and the protocols that come with it. Forgive me for sounding like a broken record, but three COVID shutdowns has severely hurt the team’s chances of forming cohesion, developing an identity, finding consistency and allowing for progression from talented but inexperienced players that naturally takes course during a typical season.
We’re now days away from February and the Colonials sit at 3-7 overall on the season. Last year, RMU completed its tenth game on December 4. The team is almost two months behind schedule. That shouldn’t be misconstrued as an excuse. It’s just the reality of RMU’s situation. Ten games going into February is hardly enough time to play consistent basketball
Last season, RMU opened the season 2-8 with wins against Howard (one of the worst programs in the country) and Geneva, a non-Division I program. It was hardly a start to feel good about.
RMU finished the season 18-6, compiling a 20-win season for the fifth time in 10 years.
This year’s team isn’t going to get that opportunity to straighten out its season. It has to happen right here, right now at Wright State, arguably the most talented team in the conference. It’ll take a high level of play for a full 40 minutes to accomplish such a task, something RMU has struggled with across the season, but especially on its four-game losing streak.
Consider this: Robert Morris has outscored all but one opponent (Bowling Green) in the final 10 minutes of games this season. In the second game against Northern Kentucky last Saturday, the Colonials held a 26-16 advantage in the first 10 minutes and, generally, are keeping games competitive and avoiding large deficits.
It’s the details that seem to escape the Colonials in the middle 20 of contests. In the first 10 minutes of the second half, Robert Morris has been outscored by an average of eight points during its four-game losing streak.
“We battled, but we have to be more detailed and make the plays,” Toole said following Friday’s five-point loss at Northern Kentucky.
“We struggle with some of the details,” Toole added following Saturday’s overtime loss. “When we don’t stay locked in on the details, bad things happen for us.”
Details, details, details. It’s a maddening season given the talent of the roster – but again, is it fair to judge a team that’s played 10 games in two months of action? It probably isn’t, but judgement is coming either way, fair or not. The expectations for this team were high thanks to a conference title last season and the return of Bramah, Treacy and Williams.
And again, fair or not fair, there are simply more eyes on you when you enter a new conference. It would have felt good to make a better first impression to the Horizon League. Robert Morris still has the opportunity to turn things around, and there’s no better time to do so against the top dogs in the conference playing three consecutive weeks of basketball for the first time in a calendar year.
Coach Horn and the Norse, led by FOtW (for a fifth time) Marques Warrick, sent a timely welcome to the Robert Morris Colonials as they defeated them twice in their home gym. But there are still questions that need to be answered with this team.
I must admit, I was a little nervous. Heck, I’m still not feeling great but I feel alot better. As Chris Capella and I discussed last week, both teams were coming into the weekend series needing wins, but in my mind, only one team was desperate, and thus in a more advantageous position. The Colonials, last season’s NEC champions, were not used to lising like this, and they certainly were not content with it. A team filled with upperclassmen certainly would not let one, much less BOTH games slip from their grasp. I went into the weekend with zero expectations. So much so that, as the clock ran out on Saturday night giving way to the final buzzer, and the Norse were destined for a second victory in as many nights, I could not help but breathe a sigh of relief. Then, I went and grabbed a beer out of the fridge and moved over to Zoom to have a fun conversation with Bob on Horizone Gamenight. Life is so much better when you win.
The Norse entered the weekend series against Robert Morris at risk of two things: A loss on Saturday night would tie the Norse worst losing streak in conference play, in the Horizon League era. A loss on either night would tie the most conference losses in since the 2016-17 season, the first year the Norse made the tournament. Add in the pandemic, a brand new team that nobody knows about, the seemingly never ending political discourse in this country, and the fact that you cannot attend games in person, it’s fair to say that the Norse fanbase has been less than enthusiastic this year. I was trying to keep calm, but I knew how important this weekend series would be. If we sweep, we give ourselves a really good chance to “activate” our fanbase at some point this season. If we lose, forget about it.
Photo by: NKY Tribune
Who is leading this team?
The Norse came out both nights and made an effort to do something fans have been begging them to do for the entirety of the season, get the ball inside. You certainly felt the Norse willing to take more chances, move the ball around, rather than letting it die in the hands of one player. They made the extra pass, shot shots that were actually open (for the most part) and did a good enough job of making them. The Norse also saw contributions coming from all over the roster over the weekend, which has become a theme of sorts, anyone can step up and have a role any given weekend.
The Norse have found some consistency with a few key players, but for the most part, the rotation has been fluid this season. In fact, it feels like the Norse have somewhat of a “revolving door” at their 5th starter spot, not to mention the bench has fluctuated quite a bit since the conference season started.
I know what you’re thinking… That’s alot of data. Why don’t we make this easier and start with the easiest part, the constants. These are the four players who have solidified their role (for the most part) in the rotation as they key guys for the Norse.
Starting…. 4?
Most teams have a rotation of 5 players who start the game and get “starter minutes” (around 30 per game). On occaision, you’ll see a team with a solid “starting 4”, but the player who would normally fill their 5th starting role prefers to come off of the bench, while still playing “starter minutes”. In the case of NKU, they’ve had four players accrue “starter minutes”, two players rotate in and out of the 5th starting spot, and another seven players competiting throughout the year to fill out the rotation. Yes, strangely enough, NKU is 10 games into the conference season and has 13 players averaging 6 minutes per game in conference play. It’s wild. Let’s just start with what we know:
Trevon Faulkner, Marques Warrick, Bryson Langdon and Adrian Nelson have held down solid roles in the starting rotation. Langdon is the starting point guard and holding down the “floor general” role. Trevon Faulkner and Marques Warrick are the two starting “wings”, both filling what’s become the interchangeable roles of the more traditionally named “Shooting Guard” and “Small Forward” in the NKU rotation. Finally, the anchor of the team, Adrian Nelson, is the main “big” on the team. Traditionally more of a “4” (or Power Forward), a lack of size has forced Nelson into the “man in the middle” type of role, in which he’s performed admirably.
The 5th Guy
David Bohm and Trey Robinson have been somewhat interchangable in the 5th spot of the Norse rotation. Bohm started the first 6 games, but during the IUPUI series, Robinson got the start over Bohm. It was reported by Jim Kelch, the radio broadcaster for the Norse that prior to the Robert Morris series, Bohm approached Coach Horn and asked to come off of the bench. He said it made him feel more comfortable doing so. I remember hearing this and thinking “Okay, great – we finally have our consistent starting 5.” Robinson started both games, putting up 11 and 2 minutes respectively. Head hurt yet? Well try this on for size, Bohm would go on to have 26 minutes off the bench in the first of the two games, and only 6 minutes in the second game, yielding significant playing time to the likes of Paul Djoko, Adham Eleeda, Jacob Evans, etc.
The “Others”
Looking at the minutes played over the flow of the conference season tends to revolve around a key moment: the Adham Eleeda injury. It seems like when Eleeda went down, pretty much everyone got a chance, then when we returned this weekend (primarily in the second game), it ate into a couple of guys’ minutes completely, but it also reduced the others’ quite a bit.
Pre-Eleeda Injury (vs. Youngstown State)
Illustrated above, David Bohm held down the 5th starter spot against the Penguins with Adham Eleeda getting the “6th man” role. Trey Robsinson compiled a total of 17 minutes, Carlos Hines got 16 minutes and other than some sporadic time from Harding and Huppman in game 1 and a 5 minutes spurt from Djoko in game one, that was pretty much it. The Norse went 1-1 and it seemed pretty normal. Little did we know, the next 6 games would bring total fluidity to the lineup due to an Adham Eleeda injury.
Photo by: NKU Athletics
Eleeda down for (most of) the next 6 game, rotation opens wide
The Norse followed their 1-1 series against Youngstown stretch with 6 straight games where they would be without 6’5″ sharpshooting wing Adham Eleeda. What many might think of as a simple “plug and play” isn’t really that simple. At 6″5″ (6’6″ on a good day), Adham Eleeda provides the Norse with much needed size and length on the bottom of their matchup zone, while also providing them with the spacing of a guard on the offensive end. Eleeda is NKU’s best pure shooter, and his ability to stretch the defense by providing a legitimate deep 3-point shooting threat is vital to the spacing the Norse need on offense. Replacing Eleeda proves difficult because in a sense, you are replacing a guard on offense and a forward on defense. I believe that is reflected in the charge above. You see an obvious increase in Robinson, Harge and Harding’s minutes, all of which, more or less, can be “Eleeda-like” but none of which really took the role and owned it. In fact, you’ll notice that even Harge, who opened up with 36 minutes in two games against PFW – only matched that with 36 minutes over the next four games. Harding also saw a significant decrease in palying time against IUPUI, as walk-on freshman Jacob Evans was emerging as a key contributor off the bench.
Eleeda Returns Against Robert Morris
And that brings us to where we are now. The Norse have been shuffling the deck all season, and this past weekend wasn’t any different. In fact, after this weekend it feels like the Norse took a normal playing card deck, combined it with UNO cards, shuffled it and said “Okay now deal”. There is no real rhythm here, but that’s okay. We all knew it was coming, and personally I prefer it this way. Coming into the season, we knew we had 13 players on our roster who needed to be able to show us something this year.
Bryson Langdon, Adrian Nelson, Adham Eleeda and Trevon Faulkner were the returning players who played a ton of minutes last year. In some respects, we knew what we were getting from them, but we had never seen any of them in an expanded role with the Norse. To their own varying degrees of success, it’s fair to say that they’ve all been fairly successful in those new roles this year.
Northern Kentucky guard Bryson Langdon (11) drives on Purdue-Fort Wayne guard Jarred Godfrey (1) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Friday, Jan. 1, 2021, in Highland Heights, Ky. (Albert Cesare/The Cincinnati Enquirer via AP)
Marques Warrick, David Bohm and Trey Robinson were the 3 scholarship-recieving freshman that fans were super excited to see. Warrick has given us the most of the 3. It’s clear he has arrived and is ready to take his game to the next level already. Bohm and Robinson have had their moments, but their inconsistency has cost them. I believe given some time in a real offseason, with the proper amount of weight training, they could really find their role in the near future.
David Bohm and Trey Robinson have been somewhat interchangable in the 5th spot of the Norse rotation. Bohm started the first 6 games, but during the IUPUI series, Robinson got the start over Bohm. It was reported by Jim Kelch, the radio broadcaster for the Norse that prior to the Robert Morris series, Bohm approached Coach Horn and asked to come off of the bench. He said it made him feel more comfortable doing so. I remember hearing this and thinking “Okay, great – we finally have our consistent starting 5.” Robinson started both games, putting up 11 and 2 minutes respectively. Head hurt yet? Well try this on for size, Bohm would go on to have 26 minutes off the bench in the first of the two games, and only 6 minutes in the second game, yielding significant playing time to the likes of Paul Djoko, Adham Eleeda, Jacob Evans, etc.
Photo by: NKU Athletics
Darius Harding and Carlos Hines, our two transfers this year have been somewhat of a disappointment. I personally had no expectations of Hines because I did not know much about him, and I know he has grades issues and was injured most of last year – so the letdown doesn’t hit as hard. Harding is a bit of a letdown, because we were so excited with what he could do on offense and he was a top 100 JUCO recruit last year. My understanding is that he has not been consistent on defense, and for those who know Horn, defense is everything.
Paul Djoko and John Harge were also two returning players who have been up and down all year. Djoko came on strong at the end of last year, playing his way into the rotation of an HL championship team. His achilles heel has always been his offensive production. His playing time seems to go hand-in-hand with his willingness to be aggressive on offense (and all over the place) on defense. Norse fans saw that in the second game this weekend, as he made great use of the opportunity Darrin Horn gave him and earned 32 minutes of floor time. John Harge, the 6’8″ second-year (medical) red-shirt freshman is another player we expected more from this year. Harge was a prep school recruit who averaged 41% from 3 in his senior season. All signs pointed to him being a “Dantez Walton” type but the Norse have failed to find consistency in him this year. Fortunately Harge is a fantastically talented player, so there is plenty of time for him to prove himself (and he did play pretty well against Purdue Fort Wayne).
Photo by: Cincinnati Enquirer
Finally, I’d be remiss if I failed to mention Jake Evans and Noah Huppman. Those two have been seeing their number called more and more as the season went on, which is a huge surprise for two walk-on freshmen. It comes as no surprise to me though, as I reported upon signing both players that the expectation was they would be “project” players. If the Norse have a couple of open couple of scholarships before next season, and these two continue to perform like they are, I think it’s definitely possible that they get a look for one.
Who to watch vs. UIC
I think that pretty much lays it all out. Unfortunately I cannot tell you who the Norse will be running out against UIC, outside of the top 4 in the rotation, but I think it’s fair to say that the coaching staff is using this “COVID season” the right way – digging deep into their bag and finding out what they have in each player on the roster. I encourage fans to keep watching, because like a young child, you’re going to look back on this team’s infancy one day with a smile on your face and be glad that you went through the ups and downs with them.
Be on the lookout for more @NorseReport content in the coming weeks. We have a couple of videos coming out this week breaking down the Norse’s last week of action, and highlighting a key 2021 signee.
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In a season that has been a struggle no doubt, Youngstown State finally had some things go its way over the weekend.
Against a team that is currently in the top four in the Horizon League standings, YSU (8-8, 4-8 HL) was one shot away from a sweep.
Despite that, this weekend split is more about Garrett Covington and Naz Bohannon than it was about the win and loss.
Let’s talk games first
In game one, the Penguins yet again couldn’t hit a three and missed free throws again. It shot just 3-for-14 from three and only hit 11 of its 19 free throws in a one-point game. Up 66-62, the Penguins couldn’t hit a single free throw. Bohannon missed three of the four attempts YSU had up four and that became the difference.
Off a Teyvion Kirk missed three-point attempt, Michael Diggins grabbed the offensive board and put it in for the 67-66 win for the Flames. A devastating loss for the Penguins trying to get back on track.
No matter, Bohannon bounced back after a tough series against Oakland (6-13, 6-6 HL). He scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Michael Akuchie also contributed 13 points and 11 rebounds.
In the back half of the weekend series, the Penguins found a better rhythm. Despite UIC hitting 42.3 percent of its threes, YSU hit five of its own. The free throw line is where YSU made its biggest difference. The Penguins got 20 compared to the Flames right.
The other big factor was the turnover department. UIC turned it over 19 times to YSU’s eight while scoring 24 points off of them. Bohannon again played well with 23 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Akuchie was also good with another 13 points and nine rebounds as Covington scored 12 points and pulled down 10 rebounds.
Daniel Ogoro was the bench star with 19 points on 6-of-13 shooting in the 85-77 win.
History being made
The games were not the main show of the weekend. History was made by both Bohannon and Covington. First it was Covington who scored 12 points and became the 40th player in program history to score 1,000 points.
Bohannon made even bigger history as he became YSU’s all-time rebounding leader in the program with his nine rebounds. He broke a 30-year-old record set by Tim Jackson in 1991. He now has 904 rebounds. The previous record was 899.
The most important parts of both significant events is that they both happened which vindicates the Jerrod Calhoun hiring after a few years. Both of these men along with Michael Akuchie and Devin Morgan we’re part of Calhoun’s first recruiting class.
After what most would consider a failed tenure under Jerry Slocum, the Penguins needed to add talent that would change the course of this program’s history. These two have made it worth it and have shown how right the athletic department was in its choice of Calhoun.
All that said, this season has been rough but that doesn’t diminish how good his first three rebuilding years were and how good this can continue to be.
Calhoun has made the right choice in recruiting and playing for a while. That’s vital to the next few years for this program going forward.
Next on the docket
Now the Penguins host Detroit Mercy (4-8, 3-5 HL). It’s a team that has won three out of its last four games including a huge win on the road at Oakland which is rare in the last few years.
The Penguins will be tasked with stopping the second-highest scoring threat in the conference with Antoine Davis. He’s averaging 20.6 points in 12 games played. Bul Kuol is averaging 15.6 points in 12 games as well. That duo will need to be held in check to pull two wins from this upcoming weekend.
The Mastodons had a tough weekend on the road facing off against Green Bay, losing 77-59 on Friday, followed by an 87-72 loss on Saturday. Purdue Fort Wayne struggled to gain any momentum through both games, and they were outscored in all four halves.
The Mastodons start player, Jarred Godfrey, was hounded all night on Friday. Green Bay did an excellent job of limiting him on the perimeter and not allowing easy baskets at the rim. He was out of sorts throughout the game, and struggled again with turnovers, coughing it up six times. He finished the game with six points, six rebounds and four steals on 3-9 from the field.
The Mastodons had a whopping 22 turnovers, which has become the biggest detriment to this team. They average 19.2 turnovers per game, which ranks dead last in Division 1 basketball. The amount of possessions they give up per game is simply too much to overcome. Their rebounding struggles continued as well, only grabbing 30 rebounds to Green Bay’s 37.
The normally sharpshooting Mastodons, shot 4-18 (22.2%) from deep. They were able to outscore Green Bay in the paint 42-36, led by Jalon Pipkins, who pitched in 11 points and three rebounds. But the shooting woes and turnovers haunted them all night, and didn’t allow them to get into any sort of rhythm.
Depth has become a major concern
Following the brutal loss on Friday, the offense played much better on Saturday, but the defense was picked apart by Green Bay. Jarred Godfrey and Jalon Pipkins led the way, with 15 points for the former, and 16 points for the latter. Those two are the only players on the team averaging double figures, while the lack of depth has become a glaring issue.
Between the two games, the bench was outscored 87-41. The Mastodons leading scorer off the bench is Demetric Horton, who averages 8.7 points per game and 4.6 rebounds per game. Outside of Horton, their bench has provided no production. Freshman, Jarvis Walker, is the second leading scorer of the bench, with 4.8 points per game.
Purdue Fort Wayne desperately needs a third option to step up on a consistent basis. Defenses are beginning to put a lot of pressure on Jarred Godfrey, by forcing him to give up the ball and allow others to make plays.
Saturdays loss was concerning, due to the fact the Mastodons struggled from beyond the arc again, shooting 5-17 (29.4%). What use to be their bread and butter, has become a focal point for opposing defenses to key in on. Defending the three-pointer was an issue all weekend as well, while Green Bay shot 9-21 (42.9%) on Friday and 10-23 (43.5%) on Saturday.
Purdue Fort Wayne fell to 6-7 on the season, and 5-7 in the Horizon League. They will have a chance to put these losses behind them and return home, where they are 4-3, and battle a tougher opponent in the Oakland Golden Grizzlies.
After four years of losing to the Golden Grizzlies, Detroit Mercy got the grizzly off their back and got a win over Oakland. The first night of games three and four, the two teams have played this season started poorly for the Titans. At one point, the Titans were down 29. A strong second half powered by a red hot Antoine Davis assisted by Bul Kuol’s three-point prowess and a strong game from Dwayne Rose Jr. was enough to cut the Oakland lead to 1. But ultimately, the Grizz would prevail in the opening game.
In-game two, the Titans came out with their foot on the gas and did not let up. Davishad 27 points, Noah (aka Malibu’s Most Wanted) had 17 points and 8 rebounds. Rose had 16 points, Kuol had 10 points and 9 rebounds.
Oakland is a strong team. Moore is probably the conference player of the year. Williams has the ability to go off any night he’s on the court. Zion Young also has the ability to get super hot and make teams pay; make no mistake, Oakland is a top 5 team in the league, But so are the Titans. AD might be back and better than ever; he has four straight games with 20 points or more. He’s shooting like he did his freshman and sophomore year, and his swagger is back. His assist to turnover numbers are getting better, and he is starting to become a scorer that can also facilitate for his teammates.
Waterman is still someone who needs to work on somethings, starting with getting a lot of silly fouls. But Waterman missed a ton of practice due to being in quarantine three times, and he only starting playing basketball in high school. I have had writers, coaches, and scouts tell me he could be a professional player; he has all of the tools and just needs to get more polished. I see him as the “star” for the Titans when AD graduates and takes his talents to the NBA.
I can confirm Mark Montgomery, the former Northern Illinois Head coach and Michigan State assistant, was on the Titan bench this weekend actively coaching players. I have no clue if he was added to the staff full time, but he was 100% there. He would and should be a tremendous addition to the staff.
I can also confirm Taurean Thomson was not present. I have no answer as to why and I know he’s dealt with personal stuff since his time at Seton Hall, and I will leave it at that.
There’s no news on the recruiting front, but I don’t believe coach Mike Davis when he says that he won’t bring in anyone new for next year, and if they do, I fully expect it to be from the transfer portal or JUCO. Remember, JUCO’s are just starting to play now due to COVID-19.
This weekend UDM takes on Youngtown State. The Penguins have lost 4 of 5 and have been without the services of star guard, Darius Quisenberry who has not played since January 2; there is radio silence on why he’s out.
The Guins will rely on three seniors. The first Naz Bohannon is 6-6 and built in the likeness of former Titan Jaleel Hogan. He’s big and strong and will attack the rim from the paint; he’s also not a bad shot from behind the arc; he’s shooting 33%. Bohannon is averaging 17.2 points and 8 rebounds a game. I would expect to see more of Willy Isiani and Buay Koka to preserve Chris Brandon and Waterman’s fouls.
The second senior is Garrett Covington; he is currently averaging 10.5 points per game and 4.7 rebounds. The final senior is Michael Akuchie; he is not a huge scorer, but he is a great rebounder and has shown the ability to score in bunches and hit a three to keep the Guins in a game.
The final Penguin to watch for is Shemar Rathan-Mayes; he’s a freshman that has stepped up in Quisenberry’s absence. He is currently averaging 10 points per game and is a pretty solid three-point shooter. If the Titans can stay out of foul trouble and figure out a way to contain the Penguins inside scoring, I think Detroit Mercy has a great chance to get two wins this weekend.
For the second consecutive week, the Cleveland State Vikings split a weekend series versus one of the upper echelon teams in the Horizon League. Unfortunately for the Vikings, Saturday’s loss somewhat overshadows Friday night’s victory due to the nature in which it happened.
The Vikings came into Friday’s contest against Milwaukee with a two game lead atop the Horizon League standings following the split last weekend versus second place Wright State. The Panthers were looking to rebound from two bad losses at the hands of Purdue Fort Wayne, a team that Milwaukee had a difficult time containing defensively.
Unfortunately for the Vikings, they would once again be without the services of senior big man Al Eichelberger, who re-aggravated his foot injury in the team’s last game versus Wright State. Cleveland State came out on Friday with as much energy as they have had all season, as the Vikings jumped out to a staggering 23-2 lead early on in the first half. Senior point guard Craig Beaudion paced CSU the entire way with 25 points, which was enough to lead all scorers on 8/10 shooting from the floor. Torrey Patton also contributed with 13 points, six rebounds, and a team high five assists.
When asked postgame about his veterans, head coach Dennis Gates stated, “We don’t have much experience when it comes down to the three year, 90 game guy…but between Deante, (Johnson) Craig, (Beaudion) Tre Gomillion, and Torrey (Patton) those are our most experienced guys that we’re playing, they’re going on game 20 through 30 in their career playing under our system. We had to make sure these guys are staying connected with each other…I thought our guys did a great job of not pointing fingers but looking in the mirror at themselves and seeing what they individually could do better…that’s what allowed us to respond in the second half.”
Despite the Vikings looking like they would run away with Friday’s contest early on, the Panthers spent the latter portion of the first half playing catchup extremely successfully. Milwaukee was led by former Kent State guard Deandre Gholston who scored 20 points on the night. Gholston and senior guard Te’Jon Lucas were extremely prolific in the Panther first half comeback, as the two helped Milwaukee cut the Viking lead to just two points at the intermission. While Cleveland State had much difficulty scoring near the end of the first half, it was their defensive prowess that secured the game one victory against the Panthers.
The Vikings came out of the locker room for the second half on Friday night looking to get back to their brand of basketball; high energy defense. CSU did that and then some, holding the Panthers to just 5/28 from the field after the intermission. This propelled the Vikings to a 64-53 victory on Friday night, in front of a national audience on ESPN 2. 53 points was the lowest scoring output from Milwaukee so far this season.
Game two of this past weekend’s double header provided a young Vikings team with an excellent learning opportunity for a team that still clings to a one game lead in the Horizon League standings. While the Vikings led for most of Saturday evening’s contest, the Panthers have shown they are never truly out of a game with their high powered duo of guards. Lucas and Gholston combined for 52 of the team’s 81 points in a dramatic 81-80 come from behind victory in overtime. Most disappointingly for the Vikings, they led the game 57-41 with over ten minutes remaining in regulation.
Following the disappointing loss, Gates stressed his team’s need to stay connected during the aftermath of this tough outcome when he stated, “We just gotta learn from it. Take it as a learning opportunity, like we’ve done all season long take it one game at a time. Even after wins, make sure we learn, and after losses make sure we learn and continue to grow. That’s the only thing we can focus on at the moment.”
Despite blown leads being a theme for the Vikings during this series versus Milwaukee, they were fortunate to play an extremely hard fought half of basketball in the second half of game one against the Panthers which aided them in a victory. The Vikings still maintain a one game lead in the Horizon League standings over Wright State, who swept IUPUI in their last weekend series.
The Vikings will look to rebound from their disappointing loss on Saturday in another home series. This time, the Green Bay Phoenix come to Cleveland for a two game set. Game one tips off Friday at 7pm.
It was an impressive streak. Just over 4 years. That’s over 1000 days. It took until the 4th game of the series this year, which probably should not have been happening anyway as playing 4 times in a season is just unheard of. Asking a rivalry to do it is even worse.
Detroit Mercy FINALLY beat Oakland University in a basketball game.
Earlier in the season, Oakland escaped twice from Calihan Hall with victories. That was the series that wasn’t originally scheduled. The Horizon League, who is admittedly just trying to figure everything out during a pandemic just like everyone else, decided to keep the originally scheduled series at the O’rena and just have the two teams play twice.
The 3rd game of the series started much like every game in the OU/UDM series since Oakland joined the league. Oakland was dominating and up BIG. Oakland found themselves up 25 at the half. Detroit Mercy was getting nothing from anyone not named Antoine Davis.
Foul trouble was plaguing many of the Titans including Noah Waterman who they really needed to help break OU’s zone defense. The zone defense just stalled UDM, often ending with the ball in a big’s hands at the top of the key, but them unable to do anything with it. They were simply uncomfortable. At the break, Oakland Coach Greg Kampe warned his team that the Titans would come back.
And he was right.
On the backs of Davis and Dwayne Rose, Jr., the Titans got the lead down to 1 with only 18 seconds left on the clock. The wind had long been out of the sails of the Grizzlies, despite a breakout game from Zion Young who went 9-9 from 3 on his way to 28 points. A bad inbound from OU led to a lucky bounce, and the ball ended up in Kevin Kangu’s hands. He then did what seniors are expected to do and nailed some clutch free throws.
After the game Kampe was pleased. That’s usually how someone feels after beating a rival for the 15th time in 17 meetings. The blown lead didn’t bother him as he expected UDM to storm back. His analysis was that UDM turned it into a pickup basketball game, and they were way more talented in that style of game. His fear was that some of that momentum would carry over to the next night when his team was tasked with the near impossible task of beating a team a 4th time.
The next night, the Davis family finally got their elusive first win over Oakland.
There are a lot of people to credit for Detroit Mercy’s win. It should all start with coach Mike Davis. His starting 5 on Saturday looked a lot different. His rotation looked a lot different. He wanted to reward the guys that played well in the loss on Friday. Those guys helped to deliver the win.
While Antoine was big with 27 points, Rose, Jr. chipping in 16 was just as big. Rose Jr. was one of the players rewarded for their effort and continuing it into the second game will likely get him rewarded further going forward. Noah Waterman was also a big contributor as he avoided foul trouble while chipping in 18. I haven’t bought a lot of the Waterman hype from UDM people, but it’s easy to see what they’re excited about with him. Koka did not play in the second game. Davis said it’s a conditioning thing and they need to get him back to speed. Whatever the reason, it was the right decision at the right time.
So what does it all mean for both of these teams going forward? Really, not a lot. Oakland beating UDM for a 4th time on the year was not likely. That they made a game of it and had a chance until the end was commendable. Many of their wins have been because they’re the better coached team, but on Saturday, Davis took his turn to be the better coach.
While both coaches are fiery personalities on the sideline, it was Kampe this time who was given a late technical and sealed the game for his opponent. He admitted while he didn’t think it should have been technical worthy, he’s not even sure he swore, that he shouldn’t have put his team in that situation. Oakland should feel confident about who they are and what they have to do to win going forward. Rashad Williams hitting some threes in the second game was a good sign for Oakland fans, and if they can put all the pieces together on a given night they are a scary team.
For Detroit Mercy, they’re still figuring out who they are. They have talent, they have speed, they have size, and they have a coach with a proven record of winning… at least at other places. To not think that Mike Davis won’t put it together at UDM would be foolish. It’s just a race against the clock for this season to see if they can figure out who they are and be that consistently. They showed, finally in that 4th game, that they can beat Oakland and put together a great game.
As of this writing, it has been 2 days since OU last beat UDM. The Titans have a long way to go to match OU’s last streak or to start chipping away at the 15-3 head to head record since OU joined the league. Let’s just hope these two teams aren’t asked to slug it out yet again in a 5th game of the season. Both coaches, teams and fan bases deserve a break.
As the second half of the conference schedule kicks off, Bob and Matt are still trying to make heads or tails of the identities of the teams within the Horizon League, as inconsistency has been a predominant theme from top to bottom. They also delve into what the format for the conference tournament may look like, specifically the reported incentive top four teams will receive,
The Vikings and Panthers will play on ESPN2 at 9 PM EST
Well that was a hell of a game to start off the Weekend Tip(sy)-off!
While it’s not likely that Milwaukee and CSU will be able to bring the same level of insanity as a battle between league-leading Cleveland State and overwhelming preseason favorite Wright State that ends on a game-winning alley-oop, we’ll try and make these rules in a way that’ll make it fun.
A new rule we announced on Twitter to account for things like the crazy shots Cleveland State was hitting down the stretch last Friday: HoriZone Roundtable can deem a play worthy of a drink after the fact. Be sure to follow along on Twitter to make sure you don’t miss any spontaneous rules. Once again, we’ll be using the hashtag #HLMBBWTO.
Now, onto the game.
The Rules:
Take one drink every time the announcers mention Cleveland State’s game last Friday.
Hey, let’s start off with some guaranteed drinks no matter how the game goes.
(Double) Bonus: Take 2 drinks if they show a replay of the ending.
Take one drink if the announcers talk about Meechie “Bald Head” Terry’s nickname or hair
For the uninitiated: the nickname makes it very obvious which one he is in the header photo to this article.
Take one drink if the announcers mention that Milwaukee’s DeAndre Gholston and Cleveland State’s Yahel Hill were teammates last year.
The two played together on a stacked Tallahassee Community College roster.
Take one drink every time Te’Jon Lucas makes a shot.
Ok, this one is a bit of a gamble. Lucas has already had a game where he made eight shots and a game where he made seven in Horizon League play. But he’s also had three games where he made two or less. With Cleveland State’s defensive prowess, tonight might be a struggle for Lucas.
Take one drink every time D’Moi Hodge gets a steal.
Hodge is averaging 2.3 steals per game in Horizon League play, and that includes a game against Northern Kentucky where he left with an injury 12 minutes in.
Take one drink every time Craig Beaudion gets an assist.
Beaudion leads Cleveland State with 2.5 assists per game. Outside of last Saturday’s blowout loss to Wright State, he’s tallied at least one assist in every game this year.
Open a new drink and finish it if Milwaukee wins
We’re gonna keep rolling with the underdog rule. Admittedly, this combined with the Te’Jon Lucas rule could make for a painful Saturday morning. Maybe Tafari Simms will score 30 again?
As always, we’re accepting ideas for rules for your favorite Horizon League team (but please try not to kill our readers). Next Friday, Wright State hosts Robert Morris on ESPNU. We’ll take rule suggestions for anybody in the league, but those two schools in particular would be great!
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