Putting all formalities aside...

[C0|db|00ded]

You may as well crown us now. (Just got back from Shocker Madness)

Valley, you aren't going to know what hit ya.

Sincerely,


T


...

[bigdawg]

Was it anything like the And1 games they have on TV sometimes? Whenever I watch those guys fancy dribbling and dunking I wonder why they aren't in the NBA because they are so darned athletic and we all know that is what wins games. It will be nice for that series to make it's way to MVC arenas this winter.

[BUDude]

Whatever. Shox are a .500 valley team at best this year.

[shockem]

The furthest from an And1 game that you can get. It was team ball and an improvement in the level of athletism from the past two years. Carl Hall isn't getting a lot of press, but he's gonna open some eyes this year.

[CBB_Fan]

Here is what I saw:

1. Carl Hall is with out a doubt the best player on the team, or at least was today. You may remember him as the 6'8" PF/C who's shooting range was 5ft. That is not the case. He had 18 points (in 30 minutes), and went 7-9 including two 15-17 foot jumpers.

2. Orukpe was slightly improved. He scored the first points of the scrimmage with a hook shot over Hall, then scored again after Hall answered him. He also had 4 blocks.

3. Jake White and Derail Green are dangerous shooters. I think Green was 3-3 from the 3pt line, and White made a number as well.

4. Evan Wessel looked good. Not quite starter good, but he'll get rotation minutes. Not a scrub anymore.

5. Early looked closer to being ready than Wiggins. He won the dunk contest, shot some 3s (2-3) and blocked Orukpe once. Wiggins seemed to disappear sometimes.

6. Kadeem Coleby played, though he will sit out this year. Not flashy, but effective. Blocks a few shots, gets a few rebounds, scores a few points, but not starter material yet.

7. Baker didn't shoot as much as I thought he would, but was playing PG instead of SG because FVV was sitting out. He looked capable of running the offense.

8. Speaking of that, four players didn't play because of injuries: FVV, Chadrack Lufile, Demetric Williams, and Zach Bush.

9. Overall, both teams were scoring with good efficiency. Both ended up over 50% and they shot a combined 11-23 from the 3pt line. Some of that is probably playing lower intensity defense than they would play in a game, but I'm encouraged most by the shooters and their length.

If they started playing today, I think the line-up would be:

PG: Armstead/Baker
SG: Cotton/Wessel
SF: Early/Wiggins/Wessel
PF: Hall/White/Early
C: EO/Hall

Though Demetric Williams and FVV will change that once they fully recover from their injuries. This team should be one of the hardest to match up against in the Valley, though the inexperience will probably negate that somewhat until later in the season.

[Shocker_Phi]

Whatever. Shox are a .500 valley team at best this year.

If we are a .500 team or below this year, I will eat my shoe. Scratch that. I will eat every shoe I can find. Shocker Madness showed us a LOT

[DoubleJayAlum]

Is Orupke going to start?

If not, he may go down as the most overhyped, overrated player in the entire history of the MVC.

I remember somebody telling us before last season that he had a good chance at being an NBA lottery pick.

[kochhead22]

Is Orupke going to start?

If not, he may go down as the most overhyped, overrated player in the entire history of the MVC.

I remember somebody telling us before last season that he had a good chance at being an NBA lottery pick.

Not really positive what Marshall's plan is for him this year, i don't see him starting but most likely coming off the bench early in games. I agree that he definitely hasn't been what we were expecting but i'll be happy if he can get in there every game, eat up some clock, get some rebounds and swat a few away. I'd like to see a huge jump in his stats this year but i'm still not for sure it'll happen.

[ictjay]

Here is what I saw:

1. Carl Hall is with out a doubt the best player on the team, or at least was today. You may remember him as the 6'8" PF/C who's shooting range was 5ft. That is not the case. He had 18 points (in 30 minutes), and went 7-9 including two 15-17 foot jumpers.

2. Orukpe was slightly improved. He scored the first points of the scrimmage with a hook shot over Hall, then scored again after Hall answered him. He also had 4 blocks.

3. Jake White and Derail Green are dangerous shooters. I think Green was 3-3 from the 3pt line, and White made a number as well.

4. Evan Wessel looked good. Not quite starter good, but he'll get rotation minutes. Not a scrub anymore.

5. Early looked closer to being ready than Wiggins. He won the dunk contest, shot some 3s (2-3) and blocked Orukpe once. Wiggins seemed to disappear sometimes.

6. Kadeem Coleby played, though he will sit out this year. Not flashy, but effective. Blocks a few shots, gets a few rebounds, scores a few points, but not starter material yet.

7. Baker didn't shoot as much as I thought he would, but was playing PG instead of SG because FVV was sitting out. He looked capable of running the offense.

8. Speaking of that, four players didn't play because of injuries: FVV, Chadrack Lufile, Demetric Williams, and Zach Bush.

9. Overall, both teams were scoring with good efficiency. Both ended up over 50% and they shot a combined 11-23 from the 3pt line. Some of that is probably playing lower intensity defense than they would play in a game, but I'm encouraged most by the shooters and their length.

If they started playing today, I think the line-up would be:

PG: Armstead/Baker
SG: Cotton/Wessel
SF: Early/Wiggins/Wessel
PF: Hall/White/Early
C: EO/Hall

Though Demetric Williams and FVV will change that once they fully recover from their injuries. This team should be one of the hardest to match up against in the Valley, though the inexperience will probably negate that somewhat until later in the season.

I was there. Pretty spot on! Wessel hustles and hit a couple shots but he cannot defend. Got blown by twice. Slow feet, but will be a decent bench player.
Hall and Early are players! Hall will be the center. Its his comfort zone. He ventured out and hit a couple mid range jumpers but for a "4", not active enough. Early likes the perimeter. Once he figures what he can do underneath, he could be unstopable.
E.O. Hit a couple of bunnies but he is still lost out there and has no clue how to pass. We quit counting at 6 fouls. He had 3 in 2 minutes. Strickly a backup.
White hit a couple of shots. He literally shot the ball every time he touched it. didn't get a lot of touches. Same with Cotton. He was invisible. Gregg was not pleased with shots being taken after 1 pass (though several went in)
Wiggins is Greggs whipping boy. Athletic but seemed lost on the court.
Armstead looked good, he is not a PG that will push the ball up the court. Forget about putting 5 out there and running people off the court.
Baker did a good job taking care of the ball. Hit 1 driving shot. Nothing fancy but steady.

[TrueBlueJay]

The rumor on the streets is that after Shocker Madness no Big East team will buy WSU for a home game again.