Post by Commissioner on Feb 2, 2016 13:48:10 GMT -5
Cleveland State
When: Thursday, Feb. 4, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Wolstein Center, Cleveland
TV: ESPN 3
Radio: 1270 AM
The Titans stopped the bleeding on Sunday against Wright State, and could move to recapture something of this season by winning a couple road games this week against two beatable opponents, Cleveland State and Youngstown State.
First up are the Vikings of Cleveland State, who enter Thursday’s game reeling even more than our Titans. The Vikings have lost 3 in a row, and are just 2-8 in conference. At this point, they’re just trying to stay ahead of #350 RPI UIC who, as it happens, beat CSU in OT last weekend for their first win of the season over a D-I team. The advantage Cleveland fans have is that, once Anton Grady and Trey Lewis decided to transfer last spring (not to mention role player Kaza Keane, not to mention Bryn Forbes a year prior), they had all summer and early fall to get used to the proposition that their team would be no good. For us, we could keep up illusions for a long time.
CSU won’t have quite the same look it presented when the Titans won 88-80 in Calihan exactly one month ago. Guard Myles Hamilton, who played 18 minutes against the Titans, was dismissed from the team a couple weeks ago after mouthing off to Coach Gary Waters during a game. And guard Andre Yates, the Vikes’ #2 scorer at 10.5 ppg, is listed as questionable for Thursday’s matchup. He has missed CSU’s last two games, losses to UIC and Valparaiso, with a foot injury suffered in a loss to YSU. Also, 6-8 senior forward Vinny Zollo has been pulled from the starting lineup in favor of freshman Jibri Blount, though he remains part of the rotation.
If Waters goes with the lineup he’s used recently, the starters will be:
F: 6-7 Junior Demonte Flannigan (10.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg).
F: 6-7 Freshman Jibri Blount (5.7 ppg, 3.5 rpg). Blount has made his first two career starts in CSU’s last two games, and scored a season high 15 points against UIC, along with 6 rebounds.
G: 6-3 Freshman Rob Edwards (12.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 1.7 apg). The Detroit freshman has won Horizon freshman of the week twice this year, and remains the team’s leading scorer and primary three point threat (42.9%).
G: 6-4 Soph Kenny Carpenter (6.2 ppg 1.3 apg). Another Detroiter, Carpenter returned to the starting lineup when Yates went down, making his first starts since the season opener at Akron. Carpenter knocked down a career high 24 points, and also grabbed 7 rebounds and had 3 steals, in the loss to UIC.
G: 6-4 soph. Terrell Hales (1.8 ppg, 1.3 apg). Completing an all-Detroit native, 3 guard backcourt is Hales, who, as is scoring and assist numbers indicate, isn’t in the game for offense. Hales is a tough as nails defensive player, but his offensive abilities are limited. Over CSU’s last 4 games, he’s averaged 23 minutes per game, and scored a total of 1 point.
And scoring points has been CSU’s problem all season. The Vikes are last in the conference in points per game, and ahead of only UIC in points per possession and shooting percentages. Of course, CSU scored a season best 80 against us in January, but playing the Titans is offensive therapy for our opponents. They haven’t topped 70 since. CSU is also a turnover-prone squad –they turn it over more than anyone else in the league on a per possession basis.
So while CSU is likely to have a slightly different look than last month (as is Detroit, if Coach goes with last Sunday’s lineup), this game really should yield the same result. We are simply better than CSU is (I say that with a big gulp).
CSU’s other key players, BTW, are likely to be Zollo, the bulky (230 lb.) 6-8 center (6.2 ppg, 5.6 rpg), and a couple of walk-ons, Tim Hasbargen and Nelson Maxwell. Hasbergen is a 6-4 sophomore guard who has logged double figure minutes in 4 straight games, and averages 3 ppg. Maxwell, a 6-0 freshman, has only played in 7 games this year, but is averaging 16 minutes per game over the last 5 games, as Waters has grown disgusted with his regulars. He’s averaged 3 points in those 5 games. Forwards Jeron Rogers and Derek Sloan have seen their PT cut dramatically (though Rogers played 17 minutes against UIC), and junior center Aaron Scales has pretty much disappeared.
In January’s game, Paris Bass had the best game of his career for Detroit, with 28 points, 13 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 blocks, and 0 turnovers. It would be nice if he can recapture that form. Anton Wilson had a good game, hitting of 3-6 from deep and finishing with 19 points. Blackshear and Brundidge also scored in double figures, and the Titans forced 17 turnovers. For CSU, Edwards had the best game of his season, with 26 points. That game was probably closer than it should have been however. The Titans finally took the lead for good with a 10-0 run just past the halfway mark of the second half.
The Titans are 0-9 on the road. If they can’t beat CSU and YSU on the road, I guess it speaks for itself.
Go Titans!
When: Thursday, Feb. 4, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Wolstein Center, Cleveland
TV: ESPN 3
Radio: 1270 AM
The Titans stopped the bleeding on Sunday against Wright State, and could move to recapture something of this season by winning a couple road games this week against two beatable opponents, Cleveland State and Youngstown State.
First up are the Vikings of Cleveland State, who enter Thursday’s game reeling even more than our Titans. The Vikings have lost 3 in a row, and are just 2-8 in conference. At this point, they’re just trying to stay ahead of #350 RPI UIC who, as it happens, beat CSU in OT last weekend for their first win of the season over a D-I team. The advantage Cleveland fans have is that, once Anton Grady and Trey Lewis decided to transfer last spring (not to mention role player Kaza Keane, not to mention Bryn Forbes a year prior), they had all summer and early fall to get used to the proposition that their team would be no good. For us, we could keep up illusions for a long time.
CSU won’t have quite the same look it presented when the Titans won 88-80 in Calihan exactly one month ago. Guard Myles Hamilton, who played 18 minutes against the Titans, was dismissed from the team a couple weeks ago after mouthing off to Coach Gary Waters during a game. And guard Andre Yates, the Vikes’ #2 scorer at 10.5 ppg, is listed as questionable for Thursday’s matchup. He has missed CSU’s last two games, losses to UIC and Valparaiso, with a foot injury suffered in a loss to YSU. Also, 6-8 senior forward Vinny Zollo has been pulled from the starting lineup in favor of freshman Jibri Blount, though he remains part of the rotation.
If Waters goes with the lineup he’s used recently, the starters will be:
F: 6-7 Junior Demonte Flannigan (10.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg).
F: 6-7 Freshman Jibri Blount (5.7 ppg, 3.5 rpg). Blount has made his first two career starts in CSU’s last two games, and scored a season high 15 points against UIC, along with 6 rebounds.
G: 6-3 Freshman Rob Edwards (12.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 1.7 apg). The Detroit freshman has won Horizon freshman of the week twice this year, and remains the team’s leading scorer and primary three point threat (42.9%).
G: 6-4 Soph Kenny Carpenter (6.2 ppg 1.3 apg). Another Detroiter, Carpenter returned to the starting lineup when Yates went down, making his first starts since the season opener at Akron. Carpenter knocked down a career high 24 points, and also grabbed 7 rebounds and had 3 steals, in the loss to UIC.
G: 6-4 soph. Terrell Hales (1.8 ppg, 1.3 apg). Completing an all-Detroit native, 3 guard backcourt is Hales, who, as is scoring and assist numbers indicate, isn’t in the game for offense. Hales is a tough as nails defensive player, but his offensive abilities are limited. Over CSU’s last 4 games, he’s averaged 23 minutes per game, and scored a total of 1 point.
And scoring points has been CSU’s problem all season. The Vikes are last in the conference in points per game, and ahead of only UIC in points per possession and shooting percentages. Of course, CSU scored a season best 80 against us in January, but playing the Titans is offensive therapy for our opponents. They haven’t topped 70 since. CSU is also a turnover-prone squad –they turn it over more than anyone else in the league on a per possession basis.
So while CSU is likely to have a slightly different look than last month (as is Detroit, if Coach goes with last Sunday’s lineup), this game really should yield the same result. We are simply better than CSU is (I say that with a big gulp).
CSU’s other key players, BTW, are likely to be Zollo, the bulky (230 lb.) 6-8 center (6.2 ppg, 5.6 rpg), and a couple of walk-ons, Tim Hasbargen and Nelson Maxwell. Hasbergen is a 6-4 sophomore guard who has logged double figure minutes in 4 straight games, and averages 3 ppg. Maxwell, a 6-0 freshman, has only played in 7 games this year, but is averaging 16 minutes per game over the last 5 games, as Waters has grown disgusted with his regulars. He’s averaged 3 points in those 5 games. Forwards Jeron Rogers and Derek Sloan have seen their PT cut dramatically (though Rogers played 17 minutes against UIC), and junior center Aaron Scales has pretty much disappeared.
In January’s game, Paris Bass had the best game of his career for Detroit, with 28 points, 13 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 blocks, and 0 turnovers. It would be nice if he can recapture that form. Anton Wilson had a good game, hitting of 3-6 from deep and finishing with 19 points. Blackshear and Brundidge also scored in double figures, and the Titans forced 17 turnovers. For CSU, Edwards had the best game of his season, with 26 points. That game was probably closer than it should have been however. The Titans finally took the lead for good with a 10-0 run just past the halfway mark of the second half.
The Titans are 0-9 on the road. If they can’t beat CSU and YSU on the road, I guess it speaks for itself.
Go Titans!