So I guess the big question today is if we can follow up that big game on Friday night with another big win, against a U of Pitt Bradford team that is one of the teams to beat in the AMCC. Even though they are 3-4 this season, that record is a little deceiving. Currently they are 2-0 in the AMCC. The Panther's last win came last Wednesday in overtime against a Medaille team that was 4-0 at the time. In another victory they topped the 100 pt mark. Plus they’ve got a lot of poise for being a primarily younger class-man team. The Panther's have got some players to watch out for, oh do they ever. Lead by the freshman Moore brothers, Junior Mike Ridge, and Sophomore Dan Heisey, they plan on being a team that is built for competition for the next few years.
Keys to Sunday’s Game:
All right Baron’s, there’s a few things we need to key in on if to get this W.
First thing, The Panthers really do not rely on the 3. So that means when they are scoring, they are driving to the net. We need a strong defensive presence! This means our big guys, lead by the man known for his Tenacious D Curtis Allen, will need a big game tomorrow to keep them out of the key. If Pitt gets in there, they will be deadly. (Mike Ridge already has a game this season where he scored 32 points, none of them were threes, and only 4 were gimmee buckets from the free-throw line. And if we neutralize him, we still would have to worry about the Moore brothers [think the twin Lidel towers of last season minus their good looks]).
Second thing, the Panthers are not that tall of a team, meaning they will be fighting for rebounds anyway they can get them. We need to box them out hard every play, and not be afraid to get a little physical for this game. Last game when the middle of the 1st half was getting pretty tight, Hiram got some key offensive rebounds that kept them in the game. We need to eliminate that by playing tough defense. This team will be comparable to our Barons in size, so we gotta fight them. I want our entire team to suddenly be overcome with whatever Danny “headband” O. is tripping on, because every time he’s out there, he out-hustles every player on the court. In these areas, we have a real chance at dominating them, which could swing the game our way.
After those things are done, here are the Barons that need big individual games to get the win.
Duke will need a big game since they can’t match his size (their tallest starter is 6'3'') as he drives to the rim. He's like a Mack truck, there is no way to stop him. If you try stopping him, you end up on the floor wondering how got there. He's the Chuck Norris of Baron Basketball. The be all, and end all. The alpha and omega. . . ok, i'll stop now. you get the picture. He's the Duke.
Another key Baron: Connor Flanagan. Why? Because he’s just that sweet of a player at rebounding, creating lanes, or just taking that fade away jump shot for a nice mid-range basket. And so this is when I would like to start a movement to push Connor's Austria experience to Fall 2009. You see, what good ever has come from Europe? ABBA? David Beckham? Really, Europe just sucks, it’s not even worth visiting. The Kartause has worse food than the caf, everything is twice as expensive as it would be here, and the beer sucks. OK, that last one is a terrible lie for which I am crying on the inside for having typed it, but the truth of the matter is, we love you Connor. If you leave us, we won’t anymore. OK that one is a terrible lie too. Fine, then what about this, Connor? Make these last few games your best ones of the season, and I’ll stop crying myself to sleep at night when I think of your departure. Deal. (But seriously, if you see him around tell him it's not too late to push it back a semester.)
Plus I want to see more from the bench. It hasn't been contributing enough. First of all, when the heck will James McDonald be healthy? He’s a big dude who could get in someone’s grill, and we’re gonna need that soon. Plus I want to see Danny the Headband drive to the net a few times. He’s got sweet ball-handling skills, now I just want to see his shooting skills. I know one of my fellow baronbloggers has a man-crush on Danny the Headband, and I could grow to love Danny too if he knocked down a few more baskets a game.
Basically it comes down to this, if the whole team brings the same effort we had in that game against Hiram, we will definitely have a chance tomorrow night against this Pitt-Bradford team. Stick to the fundamentals, and let’s just make this a good clean fight. With that being said, let’s get a big crowd at the game, and, as always. . .
Go Barons!
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