MBB: Great Northeast Athletic Conference

[D3HoopJunkie]

OK Falcon and GNAC fans, I just returned home from tonight's game.  The Falcons were victorious 86 to 73.

I was very impressed with what I saw offensively. Eian Davis will without doubt lead the league and be one of the tops in the country in assists. After one game I have no doubt that he is the purest point guard that Albertus has ever had. This kid just loves sharing the basketball. I also need to make note of his speed. He is literally one of the fastest players I have ever seen with a ball in his hand, AT ANY LEVEL and I truly stand by this. He finished with 9 assist and 10 points.

Victor L is a tremendous talent as well. Has a great finish around the rim and can definitely hit the mid-range jumper. Also had 11 rebounds to go along with 13 points. Should be a double double machine in conference play. He is also a legit 6-8 which is nice to see since we all know how generous coaches and SID's are with listing height and weight.

Darius Watson did his thing as usual scoring a game high 31 points and knocking in what I thought was 4 consecutive 3's in the first half. I like for him to help out a bit more on the weak side with rebounding instead of watching at times but I just can't really knock him after pouring in 31 and still grabbing 7 boards.

Julian Sanders I thought played pretty decent. Didn't shoot the ball from deep to well which I was surprised by but he slashed and took the ball to the rim whenever he wanted and got to the free throw line and for the most part converted those FT's. Finished with 11 points

Now on to my grinder of the game...... Lemar Larsen. I thought his effort was superb, really battled on the boards and definitely put on some much needed weight and muscle in the off season.  I thought his initial defensive matchup was going to be a problem because he came out on a much smaller forward who looked to have much more speed then Lemar but it didn't turn into a real factor. He had some nice finishes around the rim but my one pick on is that he needs to make his FT's more consistently. Other than that from my standpoint he played one hell of a game. 11 points

That was the starting 5 and notice how they all scored in double digits.

Onto the role guys (quickly)

Marc Wilson provided great minutes and made some nice baskets in the second half when the lead became very close. Marcus Walker looked pretty solid, made a couple of bad decisions with shots but hes a big strong kid and I think he'll progress as the season goes on. Kyle Wiggins is going to be the guy for this team that comes off the bench and launches from wherever he is on the court and I like guys like that. He may seem a bit lost out there right now and most spectators are probably wondering why he would pull the trigger on some of his shots but I think that's a confident player and even though he was off tonight from deep I really like his stroke and willingness to shoot the ball. He nailed a dagger three at the buzzer to end the first half as well.

Trevon Gibbs got a few minutes and as we all expected he is extremely raw. What I LOVED however was when Coach Oliver signaled to him to enter the game I don't think I have ever seen a single player get to the scoring table so fast and that really impressed me. You can just tell by looking at the kid hes a workaholic and will be a really good player in years to come.  Troy Owens and Allen Brown also got into the game.

Before I end this I would also like to give credit to Lehman as well. This was a quality team with some really good talented players. At one point it looked like Albertus was going to blow the game open but they fought right back and played very well. This was a great first game for Albertus to play because Lehman  for the most part was as athletic.

The Albertus defense for me was an issue (even with 20 TO's) for me but I've gone on long enough tonight and want to get to bed. After tomorrow's game with Mitchell maybe I'll touch base on that.

Good first win, Lets keep it going

[GnacBballFan]

Great assesment! i was at the game tonight and agree with basically everything posted above me. Here are my thoughts after watching tonight.

Eian Davis- OMG, i have never been more excited to watch a kid at albertus like i do this kid. he literally is the fastest kid I've seen with the ball. He could score 45 if he wanted too, but just wants to dish dish dish. he took not one bad shot tonight. i have no problem calling this kid the best pg in the conference even without seeing other pgs in the conference yet, bc no one last yr that i saw is on this kids level. i haven't seen a pg this good since jeremy shannon. and this kid might be better, yes that good! The best part about him is that he is so vocal, is the leader on this team, no doubt in my mind. had a smile on his face the whole night. he gave watson so many open 3's, just wow with this kid. what a land by oliver.

Victor- looked like a man amongst boys in the first half, then got a little lazy in the second half, for which he was pulled for a good portion of the second half. reminds me of Guiton(i think that was his name) from lasell a few yrs back. the kid from miami. except this kid can hit threes. Gnac has its hands full with this kid.

Watson- may have seen more open 3's tonight then he did all of last yr lol. davis just makes him that much better.

Larsen- took some shots i think he shoulda of dished off, but the kid is a workhorse

Jennings- didn't play, imagine him and davis together? they might get ticketed for speeding

Wiggins- def seems like a confident three point shooter, excited to see how he develops

Sanders- Solid as usual, missed some threes, but the perfect role player

Lehman was tough, especially that lefty that couldn't miss. Mitchell blows out albany pharmacy, tough road game for albertus tomorrow. They most certainly should win by 10-20 but mitchell at home will be tough. Not as much size as lehman, so i think their style fits right in for albertus to look great. they better play better D though. all in all great first game. just hope everyone stays healthy and eligible!!!

[7express]

and of course there's a NHRegister article talking about how this might be a rebuilding year!

http://www.nhregister.com/sports/20131114/albertus-magnus-may-be-in-rebuilding-mode

I LOVE how the article states they lost to Anna Maria in the GNAC finals, than then next sentence says advanced to the NCAA tournament.

Now they probably would have gotten in with a loss, but I can guarantee (and I hate making guarantee's too, so it must be right) that Anna Maria DOES NOT LOSE to Eastern in the ECAC semifinals if they beat Albertus in the GNAC finals....mainly because they would have bypassed the ECAC.

[D3HoopJunkie]

Falcons win again an capture the Mitchell College Tip Off Championship with 99-89 victory over host Mitchell. Good fast paced game which truly showed the athleticism of this Albertus team. Mitchell is much improve and a very talented team but the Falcons were just to much for them to overcome. Darius Watson named tournament MVP after back-to-back great games. Even though he didn't shoot the ball too well today he still finished with 21 points and managed to turn in a great game. Eian Davis joined Darius on the all tournament team and finished today's game with 27 points and 11 assists.

[pjunito]

and of course there's a NHRegister article talking about how this might be a rebuilding year!

http://www.nhregister.com/sports/20131114/albertus-magnus-may-be-in-rebuilding-mode

I LOVE how the article states they lost to Anna Maria in the GNAC finals, than then next sentence says advanced to the NCAA tournament.

Now they probably would have gotten in with a loss, but I can guarantee (and I hate making guarantee's too, so it must be right) that Anna Maria DOES NOT LOSE to Eastern in the ECAC semifinals if they beat Albertus in the GNAC finals....mainly because they would have bypassed the ECAC.

7, New Haven journalism at its best.... I disagree with you in one area... Albertus with 3 losses in the GNAC last year, doesn't get a bid. They were ranked 11 in the last regional polls. How is western looking?

[pjunito]

Great breakdown by you guys... I felt like I was there.

This Davis kid sounds like the real deal... I heard that he is great floor general. Albertus has been missing that the last few years. Add Davis with Victor L and Watson and wow that is a lot of talent on the floor. You have a big man, a great ball handler, and a great scorer....

Now add all of the role players: Saunders, Jennings, Lersen, Wiggins, and Wilson. This team could be the best that Oliver has had. They need to clean up their mistake, work harder on the defensive end, and learn to play with each other. Would love to see how this team is playing in January.

Can't wait to hear more from you guys.

[D3HoopJunkie]

PJ,

You really can't put into words how quick and electric Davis is with the basketball. Really need to see it to believe it, he is that damn good.  And he really is a floor general out on the court. He can distribute the ball like no player I have seen at this level and he can also turn on the switch when it is time to go end to end and score. He is like a blur out there. I almost think he loves passing more than scoring when you watch him play LOL. He threw an alley oop to Darius (which was the second time they pulled it off in the game) and after Darius caught it and threw it down Davis fell to the ground in excitement and shock, he could not stop smiling. He really is a leader and enjoys getting everyone involved and the team already feeds off of him as he runs wild and controls the show.

The depth and scoring that can come off this bench is tremendous and Victor L as I've already stated is a monster with an incredible touch.

The defense right now is suspect, even though they are forcing turnovers in both games Albertus gave up quite a high number of open jumpers and the loose balls (especially today) didn't seem to go there way because to me it seemed like they were leaking out a little earlier then they maybe should have trying to get out on the fast break before really securing the basketball. Just an observation and I definitely think this will improve once the coaching staff goes back and studies the game film.

I could go on and on about other players and their performance but will save that for another time. And by January this team will no doubt be clicking on all cylinders as they have already surprised me with how well they play together.

Go Falcons and good luck to all GNAC teams in non-conference play

I just want to say one more thing. I have all the respect in the world for Mitchell and how they have progressed over the years. Josh Ford is an outstanding player and Alex Del Rio is a very underappreciated guard but the Mitchell fans, and I don't want to say all of them because it wasn't but the majority was a disgrace. So much so that if I were Coach Oliver I wouldn't even play in the tournament next year. Booing the awards ceremony in a Tip Off tournament is just ridiculous.

[7express]

7, New Haven journalism at its best.... I disagree with you in one area... Albertus with 3 losses in the GNAC last year, doesn't get a bid. They were ranked 11 in the last regional polls. How is western looking?

They would've been close.  Would've come down to what other teams from other regions were on the board comparable to them.  But I'm with you, I think they would've been left out, luckily they got the auto bid and didn't have to worry about any what if's.

Western's 1-1 losing to Bowdoin 80-55 Friday and beating Fitchburg 95-82 yestersay, but since I coach now and have night classes on most of the night's they play I don't think I'll be watching many games in person this year, so can't tell you in person how they looked since I wasn't actually up there in MA this weekend.

[officer cadet]

Cadets participated Ramada Roundball Invitational @University of New England and
advanced Championship game but loss to Daniel Webster 62-57.
Evan Tullar and Tom McDonald named All tournament Team.
Not bad season start (1-1) ,Team seems get better each day and appearing unexpected contributor on the frontcourt players.

Next game on Wednesday Nov 20 @Johnson state 7PM

[lildave678]

After watching some of those ASA games on youtube, I was definitely excited about Davis and Victor L but the analysis has me absolutely stoked! Too bad their first home game isn't until December 7th!

[pjunito]

Cadets participated Ramada Roundball Invitational @University of New England and
advanced Championship game but loss to Daniel Webster 62-57.
Evan Tullar and Tom McDonald named All tournament Team.
Not bad season start (1-1) ,Team seems get better each day and appearing unexpected contributor on the frontcourt players.

Next game on Wednesday Nov 20 @Johnson state 7PM

Welcome to the boards Cadet... We have to stick together until conference play... There hasn't been a lot of support for the other GNAC schools on this board in years. Keep us posted on the happenings in Vermont. We will do the same with Albertus.

[pjunito]

Junkie,

You're the man bro! Thanks for your recap and insights. I felt like I was in the crowd; but I wasn't. I can't wait to discuss this team throughout the year. I really believe that this is Mitch's best team. He has always had one very solid player - Askew for three years, Watson for three years, and a good set of role players - Waldens, reeves, Jackson, jimmy eco, etc... He did have Askew and Watson together for one year; and that team was dominate for most of the year. But, Watson was a freshmen and had off games at times. They were killed by Middlebury when Watson sat on the bench.

This team adds two veterans at key positions along with a determined Watson. Adding a point guard like Davis immediately makes you a contender for the conference. But adding Victor L along with him makes an impact on the region. I will expand on this later as I have to take my son to basketball practice...

Yeooo....

PS. lil dave, Albertus must have thought they were the rangers playing on the road while MSG was under renovation.. Unfortunately for us... the nest is still the same ol nest.

[D3HoopJunkie]

Thanks PJ,

I enjoy doing the updates!!! Im going to do a little preveiw for tonights game against Newbury in a little while.

To recap some scores from last night, unfortanatley it wasnt a good one for the GNAC.

Mount Ida lost to former GNAC member Emerson 85 to 56. Norwich lost there contest with Johnson State 86 to 72.

[officer cadet]

Norwich lost to NAC's Johnson state 86-72 last night so,NU falls to 1-2 overall.

Cadets had to knock off them but Norwich Defense was totaled by Johnson's center Bryan Hickey(20pts)
and SG Asim Khan(23pts).
while ,Cadets Tom McDonald tallied 20pts,
Evan Tullar scored 16pts,
also,Nickolai Havoutis turned in 13pts.

[D3HoopJunkie]

Sorry guys, I didn't get around to doing a pregame. Too much going on at work and didn't have the time. I Didn't travel to the game tonight but was able to catch it online. The Newbury video feed I thought was actually very good.

Not going to give a big rundown, just a couple quick points. 

Albertus came hot out of the gates and you almost knew right from the beginning that they were simply too good for Newbury to matchup with. Newbury was a slower team defensively and came out in a zone defense which obviously didn't work for them because Albertus and specifically Darius Watson were able to knock down 3 pointers with ease. He was really feeling it tonight. Finished with 26 points on 10 of 15 shooting.  I think the Newbury coach new that if they had switched to a man to man it would have been even worse because they simply couldn't match the speed and athleticism of Albertus.

Grinder of the game goes to Marc Wilson. Had 16 points and a monster first half to really set the tone. I wanted to mention him because he is a hard worker who plays the game right. I also think it is appropriate because I believe we will be seeing much more of Marc because from what I can gather, unfortunately Julian Sanders season has come to an end. Apparently he has a torn ACL (sustained in the Mitchell game) and will not be able to return for his senior season. I feel for this kid, he has been a tremendous asset to the team for his entire career and his production and ability to shoot the 3 and also slash to the rim will be missed.

Bright spot of the game for me is Allen Brown who came off the bench and from what I could make out on video played very well. It's so much different when you are there to see it live but from what I saw he looked pretty good and just gives Coach Oliver another weapon to come off the bench. This team could really shoot the ball and with Eian Davis breaking down zone defenses and dishing (had another 9 assist tonight) I really cant see an easy way for a team to matchup with us. Against a zone we make shots and against man to man we run and gun.

Defense looked much improved tonight too; Newbury didn't have any easy shots. Almost all were contested and we also won the rebounding battle.
Also, big hats off to Lasell College who beat #23 Rhode Island College tonight in overtime 98-94. Love to see other GNAC teams winning great games and a win against a ranked opponent no matter what is always a quality win.

So much for short a short post, Go Falcons and Good luck to all GNAC teams as your seasons progress.