Empire 8

magicman · January 03, 2011, 08:48:11 PM

Quote from: Bombers798891 on January 03, 2011, 08:12:41 PM
First play of the game, Rossi drives and when the defender commits to him, passes it around him inside for a layup. Does this count as a real assist? Can we get a ruling?

It might count after we get a ruling on the exact distance of the pass.

Bombers up by 5 at the half 51-46.

Bombers798891 · January 03, 2011, 08:49:21 PM

End of the first half sees the Bombers up, 51-46.

IC leaders:

Cruz-Rivas 10 pts 8 rebs
Barera: 10 pts
Otztemel: 17 pts
Rossi: 5 Asst.

FROMAFAR · January 03, 2011, 09:24:27 PM

bomber798... Bomber your right and I'm wrong.....but what do I know

By the way I see very few games and obviously I am not an expert.... I'll reach out to you in the future since you obviously are more passionate and knowledgeable than I am about the game..............

bomber3 · January 03, 2011, 09:45:38 PM

Boom baby, Bombers win on the road against a very good F&M team. Not sure the last time they beat a top 15 team on the road (if ever) but this is a very good win that should bring some national recognition to the program. Hopefully IC starts getting some top 25 votes because I think they are deserving. 9--2 with wins against Nazareth (Wendy's Classic winner), F&M (14th ranked) on the road, and Hobart. They seem to be rolling now with point totals of 105, 96, 94, 94, and 97 their past 5 games. E8 watch out. Hopefully they can shore up the defense a little bit and really get some wins going..

Go Bombers.

Bombers798891 · January 03, 2011, 10:18:42 PM

Quote from: FROMAFAR on January 03, 2011, 09:24:27 PM
bomber798... Bomber your right and I'm wrong.....but what do I know

By the way I see very few games and obviously I am not an expert.... I'll reach out to you in the future since you obviously are more passionate and knowledgeable than I am about the game..............

Nah, it's all in good fun. When I get bored I tend to go into massively in depth statistical analysis. I tend to be very numbers-driven, so I look for things you can argue with stats one way or the other. Truth be told, I understand where you're coming from; it is odd that one player has double the assist totals of everyone else in the league.

But I don't think even Bomber fans are saying that that makes Rossi twice as good as anyone else in the league. Obviously, the Bombers scoring 88 points a game give him more chances than the average point guard. Obviously, the Bombers offense is conducive to a point guard getting a ton of assists.

I think his talent level is open to debate. Obviously, talent isn't 100% reflected in raw numbers. Some guys are better than their numbers. Others are worse.

But his assist numbers are what they are. They exist, and they all count the same.

Bombers upset #14 Franklin and Marshall 107-94. Cruz-Rivas with 27 and 12. Oztemel with 25 and 8. Rossi with 15 and 9. Ithaca puts five in double-figures.

Ithaca is really clicking on offense now. Five straight games with at least 94 points. (Fun fact: The Bombers have allowed an increasing number of points in five straight games)

Bombers now have four guys averaging 14 points a game, and Rossi and Grier are over 8 a game. The depth is what separates Ithaca offensively. But the defense concerns me to the point where it's hard to envision a deep run. Allowing 82 points a game and 46% shooting is not the stuff Final Four teams are made of.

For the record, the Bombers offense is essentially even with the great 2008-2009 team. They shoot much better from the floor, but less well from the line. I would suspect they operate at a slightly slower pace

magicman · January 03, 2011, 10:29:59 PM

Not only do the unranked Bombers beat #14 Franklin and Marshall 107-94, but the unranked Union Dutchmen defeat #20 Ramapo College 97-88 just minutes ago.
Tomorrow night #21 Plattsburgh State takes on undefeated #5 Middlebury in another tough matchup as the Panthers travel to Plattsburgh to renew their rivalry with the Cardinals. Three great games between these 2 teams in the past 3 years. Panthers hold a 2-1 edge. Hopefully tomorrow night it's the Cardinals turn.

Great win tonight for Ithaca, defeating the Diplomats on their home court. It's been almost a year since they lost a game at home.

Union moves to 8-1 with their only loss coming at the hands of the above mentioned #5 Middlebury team. With tonight's win the Dutchmen have certainly let the Liberty League favorites know that they are a serious contender to be reckoned with. Justin Gallo for Union had another huge night scoring 34 points. Looks like this guy can play basketball as well or better than he played football.

sjfcards · January 04, 2011, 09:33:36 PM

Fisher won their 5th straight tonight beating Elmira by 19. Not the most inspired performance by Fisher but a win is a win. Elmira is not very good, but 3-0 in the conference is 3-0 in the conference. Fisher is also above 500 for the first time this year at 6-5. Since Norsen has come back they are 5-0.

Fisher has a huge weekend ahead going to Utica and Ithaca. Utica is likely to battle with Fisher for one of the E8 playoff spots, and IC looks to be the class of the league this year (that tasted bad as I said it). If Fisher can play well and win 2 this weekend, that could be a huge turning point for their season.

sjfcards · January 04, 2011, 09:45:35 PM

Sorry I got ahead of myself. Fisher is 2-0 in the league.

sjfcards · January 05, 2011, 09:56:19 AM

So how good is Utica and/or Ithaca? I have not seen much about UC but IC looks legit. Any chance Fisher wins both this weekend? Is that the toughest two game trip for teams in the E8?

Bombers798891 · January 05, 2011, 11:19:31 AM

Quote from: sjfcards on January 05, 2011, 09:56:19 AM
So how good is Utica and/or Ithaca? I have not seen much about UC but IC looks legit. Any chance Fisher wins both this weekend? Is that the toughest two game trip for teams in the E8?

I hate to be overly-simplistic or glib regarding IC, but it's really just a matter of the shots falling. Right now, the three main outside shooters from IC (Cruz-Rivas, Oztemel and Marcus) are shooting a combined 43.4% from three point range. When those guys are on, how do you stop IC? Barera's shooting 65% from inside, so you just can't defend that kind of shot-making ability. But there will come a time when they go cold. Always is.

But you're going to score on them. A lot. 82 PPG is astoundingly bad. What's funny is that their FG defense (46%) isn't that much worse than the 2009 team's (45.3%) and is much better from three. But they're giving up about 8 points more a game then that team. But opponents are shooting three free throws per game more, two shots per game more, and four three pointers per game more.

I would suspect this is sort of the hidden part of their defensive issues. It doesn't manifest itself in percentages, but teams are getting to the line more, getting a couple more shots off, and apparently, getting more good looks from three-point range then they used to.

The thing that will determine an IC Fisher matchup is who dictates the pace. Ithaca averages 64 FG attempts per game, Fisher 53. The thing I like about Fisher is their rebounding and depth. If they can control the boards to limit IC's chances, they should be able to stay fresh.

There are two red flags with Fisher when it come to playing IC. One is their offense. They play better D than a lot of teams, but they seem mostly like a team set to try and score 65. I'm kind of stunned to see that Fisher has only broken 70 twice this season. The Bombers lowest total is 71, and that was on a night where they couldn't dictate pace (56 shots) and never got to the line (5 FT attempts). Even if Ithaca's D helps out Fisher's O, hoping to keep the Bombers under 75 or so is going to be rough.

The second is turnovers. Fisher's averaging close to 17 a game. Way too many extra possesions to give up, especially to a team like IC.

Right now, I think the Bombers take it, 83-72

Bombers798891 · January 06, 2011, 11:48:43 AM

Naz loses at home to Cortland. Really now? And only scores 50 points in the process? Ye Gods

sjfcards · January 06, 2011, 03:48:15 PM

Thanks bombers. I am excited to see the Fisher/IC game. Especially if Fisher can get a win at Utica on Friday. It is obvious IC likes to run and they score a lot of points but Fisher has faired well in the bulb in the past. I am really interested to see how fisher slows down (or tries to) ICs offense. Should be a good game. It would be a huge win for Fisher if they can get it.

Bombers798891 · January 07, 2011, 09:45:24 PM

The Bombers are simply unstoppable on offense right now. They put together one of the most dominant games of the season and destroy Alfred 104-51.

IC shoots 62% from the floor, 59% from three, and is +20 on the glass.

Rivas with 18 points and 10 rebounds...Barera with 18 and 8 on 9-of-10 shooting...Oztemel with 15 on 5-of-8 from three point range. Rossi with 11 points and 12 assists, at least one of which was behind the back. As a team, Ithaca had 26 assists on 40 made shots.

What can you say when the Bombers are shooting like this? How can you stop them with so many guys capable of going off on any given night?

I will say, I was disappointed by Alfred. There was simply no effort given tonight. Bombers scored the first nine points and had a 22-1 run later in the first half.They closed the game on an 18-0 run and held Alfred scoreless for the last 8:42. Even though the Bombers can score in bunches, that's really a letdown.

bomber3 · January 08, 2011, 07:37:39 AM

Wow. 53 point victory? That is unreal. Hopefully the margin of victory is even bigger today! Good luck Bombers.

sjfcards · January 08, 2011, 10:06:00 AM

I watched some of the Fisher/UC game last night and I think todays game should be a good one. Fisher has looked much better recently, and they have picked up there scoring some. IC scores on everybody so I don't think Fisher can play the game in the 60's like they want to, but they should be able to frustrate IC some. I think it will be a tight game. Homer pick: Fisher by 5