MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[sac]

At 1:32 of the 2nd Half Cody Stuive is credited with a  3pt miss on his shot blocked by Tyler Dykstra.  This is an error and was clearly a 2 point shot.

Hope was 9-14 from three.   



I also need to retract an earlier statement I made about Calvin playing a good defensive game.  That is partially true in some instances, but on many of the 3 point attempts they were simply lost.  Hope gave Calvin a lot of looks, screens and movement and it really seemed to get them confused many times.

[Flying Dutch Fan]

Alex Eidson is MIAA player of the week

http://www.miaa.org/landing/index

[sac]

Alex Eidson is MIAA player of the week

http://www.miaa.org/landing/index

Nate Van Arendonk didn't have enough points to be player of the week but he was 12-13 from the floor in the two games last week.

[realist]

Quoting from the Calvin sports report :  "I think I could have done a better job preparing us. I give Hope a lot of credit, they came out and got right after us," said head coach Kevin Vande Streek. "They were the aggressors, we were not, ...."

Whether you are a fan/supporter of KVS,or not, one really should take some time to think about that admission.  This is KVS's 18th season at Calvin, and if he learned one thing in that time it is that Hope is our big rival. 
KVS how can you not have this team ready to play?
It is only the premier home game of the year, in front of the largest crowd, and you can't take the time, and make the effort to have your team ready?
Sam Hargrave had his team ready to play Calvin on Wed, and Albion on Sat.
Matt Neil had his team ready on Sat.
Is it expecting too much of KVS that he have his team ready?

[calvin_grad]

Quoting from the Calvin sports report :  "I think I could have done a better job preparing us. I give Hope a lot of credit, they came out and got right after us," said head coach Kevin Vande Streek. "They were the aggressors, we were not, ...."

Whether you are a fan/supporter of KVS,or not, one really should take some time to think about that admission.  This is KVS's 18th season at Calvin, and if he learned one thing in that time it is that Hope is our big rival. 
KVS how can you not have this team ready to play?
It is only the premier home game of the year, in front of the largest crowd, and you can't take the time, and make the effort to have your team ready?
Sam Hargrave had his team ready to play Calvin on Wed, and Albion on Sat.
Matt Neil had his team ready on Sat.
Is it expecting too much of KVS that he have his team ready?

I would agree if he actually feels that he could have done a better job preparing them.  Sometimes I wonder if that is coach-speak (not only from KVS, but other coaches at all levels) for "Boy, we were ready, but did you see those guys out there?  They were terrible.  Couldn't make bunnies, missed defensive assignments, etc."  Maybe a case of falling on his own sword versus throwing the players under the bus.  IDK.  I just hear "I could have had them better prepared" more and more from coaches.

[HopeConvert]

I think it's pretty clearly coach-speak designed to protect the players. 99% of what is said to the media ought to be disregarded.

Eidson is deserving, but like Sac I think VanArendonk is really the key to this team's success. He opens things up for Hope's guards. If he can stay out of foul trouble Hope is a tough team.

[Roundball999]

Alex Eidson is MIAA player of the week

http://www.miaa.org/landing/index

Nate Van Arendonk didn't have enough points to be player of the week but he was 12-13 from the floor in the two games last week.

He's shooting just a fraction under 70% for the SEASON.  Pretty impressive.

[oldknight]

KVS's comment was coach-speak too obvious to even require notice or mention. Most coaches are carefully guarded when speaking to the press about their team to the point of being totally boring. A recent enjoyable exception occurred last season with Bo Pellini (for whom I have no fondness) when his QB made an egregious mistake just seconds before half-time (a pick-six if I remember correctly). Moments later coach found a microphone in his face with the sideline reporter asking what he thought of the the turnover. A steamed Pellini virtually screamed, "What do think I thought of it! What the hell kind of question is that?"

[realist]

It stretches things to claim that a coach that stomps his foot, and repeatedly yells loud enough at players to be heard on the radio broadcast is protecting his players.  Perhaps coaches should follow that old maxim:  "better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth an prove it".
How come no one is defending KVS claiming Calvin was well prepared?

[knightvision]

Whether KVS had Calvin "prepared" or not can be argued, but consider a slightly different perspective--in 4 years of playing these games, I don't ever recall needing my coach to get me fired up.  Strategy and preparation aside, and I'm not minimizing their importance, these games often come down to a battle of wills and who wants it more--and it looked to me like clearly Hope's guys wanted this one more than Calvin's guys.  Aside from Jordan Brink in the second half and some periodic emotion from Tyler Dykstra, Calvin looked uninspired and flat.  Or as one of my former teammates put it, they could use some more piss and vinegar in their bellies.  That's as much on the players as it is the coach...

IMHO, either Jordan Brink and/or Mickey DeVries appear to be the most likely candidates to take the emotional leadership reins of this team--and I'd like to encourage them to do so sooner rather than later....

[KnightSlappy]

It stretches things to claim that a coach that stomps his foot, and repeatedly yells loud enough at players to be heard on the radio broadcast is protecting his players.  Perhaps coaches should follow that old maxim:  "better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth an prove it".
How come no one is defending KVS claiming Callvin was well prepared?

I don't think any of us can actually say the degree to which Calvin was prepared. How we'll you're prepared is different than how well you execute which is different still from what outcomes you see.

Example: Calvin seemed to execute the end-of-half play on the defensive end fairly well. They forced Eidson to catch the ball with his back to the basket in the corner. Jordan Brink played him close without being overly aggressive and risking a foul. Eidson turned and fired (falling away) and made the shot.

[realist]

It stretches things to claim that a coach that stomps his foot, and repeatedly yells loud enough at players to be heard on the radio broadcast is protecting his players.  Perhaps coaches should follow that old maxim:  "better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth an prove it".
How come no one is defending KVS claiming Callvin was well prepared?

I don't think any of us can actually say the degree to which Calvin was prepared. How we'll you're prepared is different than how well you execute which is different still from what outcomes you see.

Example: Calvin seemed to execute the end-of-half play on the defensive end fairly well. They forced Eidson to catch the ball with his back to the basket in the corner. Jordan Brink played him close without being overly aggressive and risking a foul. Eidson turned and fired (falling away) and made the shot.

Personally if KVS admits he could have done a better job preparing Calvin I see no reason to argue with him.  Like all of us he has his share of faults, but I don't believe he is the type person who knowingly would say something he didn't believe.  This isn't the first time he has admitted he didn't have his team prepared.  (He was correct those times as well).  If a coach doesn't know if a team is ready or not who should?
If this is a problem he has he should correct it.

[KnightSlappy]

Sidenote: Hoopsville is asking for our support.

http://www.d3blogs.com/d3hoops/2014/01/12/hoopsville-we-need-your-help/

[Knight2Day]

It stretches things to claim that a coach that stomps his foot, and repeatedly yells loud enough at players to be heard on the radio broadcast is protecting his players.  Perhaps coaches should follow that old maxim:  "better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth an prove it".
How come no one is defending KVS claiming Callvin was well prepared?

I don't think any of us can actually say the degree to which Calvin was prepared. How we'll you're prepared is different than how well you execute which is different still from what outcomes you see.

Example: Calvin seemed to execute the end-of-half play on the defensive end fairly well. They forced Eidson to catch the ball with his back to the basket in the corner. Jordan Brink played him close without being overly aggressive and risking a foul. Eidson turned and fired (falling away) and made the shot.

Personally if KVS admits he could have done a better job preparing Calvin I see no reason to argue with him.  Like all of us he has his share of faults, but I don't believe he is the type person who knowingly would say something he didn't believe.  This isn't the first time he has admitted he didn't have his team prepared.  (He was correct those times as well).  If a coach doesn't know if a team is ready or not who should?
If this is a problem he has he should correct it.

It's best to not argue with people who have already drank the Kool-Aid my friend.

[sac]

I might be going through the game with a finer tooth comb than some people, here's a few things that really stood out to me.


---Tyler Kruis' first touch of the basketball on offense came at the 15:55 mark on Calvin's seventh possession.  It's 23 feet from the basket and he's basically just the middle man between passes to guards.  His first offensive play comes 2 more trips later at 14:30 after a timeout.  Calvin runs two consecutive high ball screens and rolls for Kruis.  Both successful and I think Calvin only went back to that one more time in the game.

Five minutes is way to long to get your 6-8 Center involved in the game. 


---Calvin's guards struggled with screen action all day.  Brink, Daley and Parks all fell victim to screen action.  They were hesitant an number of times and its impossible to count the number of times two Calvin players seemed to have different ideas on how to play the screen (switch or no).


---Calvin gets credit for missing a lot of "layups" in the boxscore, lots of those weren't actually layups but pretty difficult contested shots with a man between them and the rim.  On at least two plays one by Kruis, one by Daley they have clear paths to the rim but fake themselves into more difficult shots.

---Cody Stuive's influence on the game match-up wise was immeasurable.  He made Hope much taller and longer, and the expected Calvin advantage at the 3/4 spots became just an advantage at the 4 spot.  At the 4 spot Byers and Neil put in terrific defensive work and actually held their own pretty well.   Stuive was athletic enough that he loses his man a number of times, he was like a Hope version of Tyler Dykstra.



I think when we get back to Holland in 3 1/2 weeks, quite a few things will be different from Calvin's angle.