What a great event! A free double over-time thriller with practically no crowd. We sat four rows behind the Devils bench. ASU even provided brownies and cookies after the game. If you're a hoops fan, check out the next one.
Our freshmen looked good. Remy Martin is going to be fun to watch. He is about the same size as Holder and Evans but possibly even faster and more athletic. Flat out gets on the ball defensively and a quick leaper who can finish at the rim. I'm not usually much for nicknames, but he looks like Purple Rain. Lawrence looks like a proto-three. Great size and very versatile. Looks good on the hoof. He looks like a 3 to 4 year starter.
ASU is a work in progress. Team eyeballs better than past years but is putting in new pieces. NState had decent bigs, a bunch of small guards, and a large talent gap. They also had the look of a team of upperclassmen who'd played together a lot. This was a huge advantage in such an early scrimmage. If this game is in February, ASU runs away.
Holder, Justice, and Evans were a little off. These guys can play and it's easy to take them for granted. The offense especially seemed a step off, especially in half court. Too much one on one and too little ball movement. Shots that we've seen them consistently make were not falling. All three got after it at times defensively (especially Evans and Holder) but there were too many lapses. As these guys get used to their new teammates we will expect to see rapid improvement.
Shibel is long. The type of Euro-four that Herb always wanted. He is moving pretty well with a knee brace and is active. Shooting stroke looks good. He hit a three to send it into overtime. Lake looks like a player and is athletic but needs to develop. He is way past where Jethro was last year but at times was reminiscent. In position to rebound but misses it. He has size, can run, and can jump. He had 3 or 4 hard dunks. He can likely give us some minutes and will improve going forward. Vila looked like Vila. Maybe marginally improved from what we saw last year. None of these guys looks like they should be our starting post.
It was disappointing we did not get to see White. We will need big minutes from him this year. NState had decent and large bigs and White could have gotten some good work. Hopefully he will be back soon.
It is hard to argue with the recruiting strides the Devils have made under Hurley. He appears a work in progress as a game coach. He really gets on his guys when they come out. This may have been due to the fact that there were issues with the way the team played. It seemed like there would be a hot lecture from Hurley followed by a cooling off period before they got out the board and drew plays. This could wear thin and is something to watch. Hurley is visibly upset at the refs on virtually every call. A little fire in the belly is a good thing so we will see how this plays out.
At the end of the game Martin was still playing tough on ball defense and appeared to be talking a lot of trash. He got a hard screen that knocked him down as time expired. He was slow to get up and appeared shaken. There were angry words between Hurley and the Wolves coach. There was no reason to set this kind of pick in that situation, but also no reason to be jawing when it took 2 OTs to beat a Div 2 team.
Go Devils.
Our freshmen looked good. Remy Martin is going to be fun to watch. He is about the same size as Holder and Evans but possibly even faster and more athletic. Flat out gets on the ball defensively and a quick leaper who can finish at the rim. I'm not usually much for nicknames, but he looks like Purple Rain. Lawrence looks like a proto-three. Great size and very versatile. Looks good on the hoof. He looks like a 3 to 4 year starter.
ASU is a work in progress. Team eyeballs better than past years but is putting in new pieces. NState had decent bigs, a bunch of small guards, and a large talent gap. They also had the look of a team of upperclassmen who'd played together a lot. This was a huge advantage in such an early scrimmage. If this game is in February, ASU runs away.
Holder, Justice, and Evans were a little off. These guys can play and it's easy to take them for granted. The offense especially seemed a step off, especially in half court. Too much one on one and too little ball movement. Shots that we've seen them consistently make were not falling. All three got after it at times defensively (especially Evans and Holder) but there were too many lapses. As these guys get used to their new teammates we will expect to see rapid improvement.
Shibel is long. The type of Euro-four that Herb always wanted. He is moving pretty well with a knee brace and is active. Shooting stroke looks good. He hit a three to send it into overtime. Lake looks like a player and is athletic but needs to develop. He is way past where Jethro was last year but at times was reminiscent. In position to rebound but misses it. He has size, can run, and can jump. He had 3 or 4 hard dunks. He can likely give us some minutes and will improve going forward. Vila looked like Vila. Maybe marginally improved from what we saw last year. None of these guys looks like they should be our starting post.
It was disappointing we did not get to see White. We will need big minutes from him this year. NState had decent and large bigs and White could have gotten some good work. Hopefully he will be back soon.
It is hard to argue with the recruiting strides the Devils have made under Hurley. He appears a work in progress as a game coach. He really gets on his guys when they come out. This may have been due to the fact that there were issues with the way the team played. It seemed like there would be a hot lecture from Hurley followed by a cooling off period before they got out the board and drew plays. This could wear thin and is something to watch. Hurley is visibly upset at the refs on virtually every call. A little fire in the belly is a good thing so we will see how this plays out.
At the end of the game Martin was still playing tough on ball defense and appeared to be talking a lot of trash. He got a hard screen that knocked him down as time expired. He was slow to get up and appeared shaken. There were angry words between Hurley and the Wolves coach. There was no reason to set this kind of pick in that situation, but also no reason to be jawing when it took 2 OTs to beat a Div 2 team.
Go Devils.
