MBB: Landmark Conference

[hoopit123]

yeah, really.   what the heck happened up at scranton?  either danzig is a magician, or the kids just decided they didnt like getting beat up on anymore and pulled it together!

i remember discussion (and i admit, it may have been me) that after a being abused a number of times the 1st half of season and especially after at SU that scranton was just going to pack it up for the year.  Open mouth, enter foot!!!

[saratoga]

NEPA: No problem defending my only real issue. Please refer to my posts of 2/13 & 2/14 where I clearly state Coach Danzig & his staff have directed a pretty remarkable turnaround from where this season had been heading. No problem at all with game plans or X & O stuff & he seems like a really nice guy
Where I continue to be concerned is with the lack of first class recruiting that fills areas that need to be filled asap & with talented kids that can step in & play.
This late in the season & the issues that hurt them early (turnovers & being killed on the boards) are still there & will be until a real point arrives along with some size that can play & not just look good on paper.
I mean teams that want to make the tournement & advance can not give the ball away 20 times & not be able to break the press. They can not continually be beaten on the boards & rarely get themselves second chance shots. The kids he's rolling out are doing exceptional work but, kids like Zach & Eli & Luke would be even better if they had help both from a Randy Arnold type point & an inside presence that is in fact, a presence. I've said it a dozen times before & I'll say it again...I'm sure Coach Danzig is busting his butt for talented kids, the problem is talking to them is nice, getting them here is where there's room for improvement. There also seems to be a disconnect with the student body as crowds are horribly small for what once was a packed house almost every game. Is this the coach's fault? Of course not...but, if some interesting players were playing, perhaps the interest on campus would increase.
Bottom line, Scranton would not have won 6 games without Eli coming back for a medical redshirt year. Where would his points, blocks, presence & rebounds have come from? The reality is Tom Bicknell graduated 2 years ago & if Eli wasn't doing all he's been doing where  & who would have been their inside game? Right now, who's breaking the press? Who's averaging nearly double didgets in assists? Who's running the show & defying the press to come after them? Who's driving the lane & dishing at the last second or driving & pulling up for a short jumper?
Coach Danzig & his staff deserve tons of credit for getting this years edition of the Royals to within 1 game of an automatic berth & their 3rd. straight trip to the dance so obviously they are doing something right. The problem is, if you want to play with the guys on the national scene & move beyond Landmark titles, results in recruiting simply have to improve.
Right now his undermanned kids are playing with confidence, character & a determination that just may shock the conference & some teams already on the bubble & for that, this coaching staff truly has done a really incredable job.

[NEPAFAN]

Coach Danzig & his staff deserve tons of credit for getting this years edition of the Royals to within 1 game of an automatic berth & their 3rd. straight trip to the dance so obviously they are doing something right. The problem is, if you want to play with the guys on the national scene & move beyond Landmark titles, results in recruiting simply have to improve.
Right now his undermanned kids are playing with confidence, character & a determination that just may shock the conference & some teams already on the bubble & for that, this coaching staff truly has done a really incredable job.

Toga,

Agree with all of what you said, especially above. I am enjoying the run and will worry about who the staff is bringing in after all the games have been played out.

While USMMA has only had 1 home loss all year, 2 reasons to be optimistic if you are a Scranton fan is that A) Eli Londo only played 12 minutes after fouling out, and 2) Luke Hawk did not play at all in Scranton's early loss on the island.

[cold_case]

Bottom line, Scranton would not have won 6 games without Eli coming back for a medical redshirt year. Where would his points, blocks, presence & rebounds have come from? The reality is Tom Bicknell graduated 2 years ago & if Eli wasn't doing all he's been doing where  & who would have been their inside game?

You talk like Londo is another Irv Johnson, Mickey Banas, Matt Cusano, etc. all.
Carlino and Wynne would have filled the void nicely but Londo coming back retarded their progress.

[saratoga]

Cold case: I've never stated or implied that Eli was any of those players. What I have stated is that Eli means a ton to THIS team.
As for "retarding their progress", surely you jest. If you are a junior & you average about 1 minute per game throughout your first 3 years...your progress was impeded long ago.

[cold_case]

Neither one was going to play with Bicknell around. Londo had the experience and that's what the coaching staff decided on last year. Both kids I mentioned can play but again, the staff went with the experience.
Saying Londo is responsible for 12 more wins than the team should have is absurd. The three players I mentioned in my last post weren't worth that many and they are head and shoulders above Londo.
Or are you going to be silly enough to play the devils advocate?

[NEPAFAN]

Can we talk about the upcoming Landmark Final?

[cold_case]

Can we talk about the upcoming Landmark Final?

You mean the final that Matt's team is not in...again?
Where is Matt, anyway??

[Matt Letourneau]

Matt had really nothing to say about the current discussion about the roster compilation of Scranton, so...Matt didn't post.

In fact, pretty much the only thing Matt has to say at all is that I'm pleased that it looks like Banzhaf had a good game for Catholic--at least from the stat sheet.  At least he ended league play on a high note this year. 

Good luck to both teams this weekend--my personal belief is that if Scranton wins, MMA will get in via Pool C.  I don't think Scranton will get at Pool C if they lose. 

[TheGrove]

Can we talk about the upcoming Landmark Final?

You mean the final that Matt's team is not in...again?
Where is Matt, anyway??

Dude... way to make me look bad. Wasn't I just saying all the ribbing is "good-natured"

[cold_case]

Can we talk about the upcoming Landmark Final?

You mean the final that Matt's team is not in...again?
Where is Matt, anyway??

Dude... way to make me look bad. Wasn't I just saying all the ribbing is "good-natured"

It's certainly all good natured but some people are immature and revert to giving smite. Not hard to figure out who they are.
It's a game and nothing else. More important things in this life to concern ourselves with.
I'm also glad you enjoyed the playoff feature on SU in the paper.

[TheGrove]

Can we talk about the upcoming Landmark Final?

You mean the final that Matt's team is not in...again?
Where is Matt, anyway??

Dude... way to make me look bad. Wasn't I just saying all the ribbing is "good-natured"

It's certainly all good natured but some people are immature and revert to giving smite. Not hard to figure out who they are.
It's a game and nothing else. More important things in this life to concern ourselves with.
I'm also glad you enjoyed the playoff feature on SU in the paper.

Certainly not I. In fact, I think I'll steal one from the LLPP and give out some Friday +ks.

[NEPAFAN]

Can we talk about the upcoming Landmark Final?

You mean the final that Matt's team is not in...again?
Where is Matt, anyway??

Dude... way to make me look bad. Wasn't I just saying all the ribbing is "good-natured"

It's certainly all good natured but some people are immature and revert to giving smite. Not hard to figure out who they are.
It's a game and nothing else. More important things in this life to concern ourselves with.
I'm also glad you enjoyed the playoff feature on SU in the paper.

Certainly not I. In fact, I think I'll steal one from the LLPP and give out some Friday +ks.

Okay, I give up....what is the LLPP?

[NEPAFAN]

Landmark Championship   4:00pm

Live Video

http://powerlink.powerstream.net/003/02417/live1.asx


Live Audio

http://playlist.wusr.scranton.edu/

[hoopit123]

sooo, what does he who correctly predicts on day 1 the conference winner get???

must say, nothing against you scranton poster's or them in general, but i am happy to see MMA win...they run a good program down there; they've really worked their way higher and higher up in the LC the past 3 seasons.   that is the sign of a good program--getting better each and every year.