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#4 UNLV vs. #5 Wyoming

kansasCowboy said:
Also, I think playing in Vegas is fine. It's a great place where everyone travels well to. I just wish we would play in one of the other arenas, not in UNLV's home venue.

Exactly. There are literally 50 other places it could be played. Why does it have to be at Thomas & Mack?
 
kansasCowboy said:
I will concur with everyone else on here. These young Pokes made me proud yesterday. What a fight! Coach Shyatt and his staff are making me proud aswell.
Who knows whether we get a post season bid anywhere, or maybe we finish at 18-14. But I truly believe this years team, regardless of being the worst record coach Shy has had here, was by far his most well rounded team yet.
And we got key players coming back:
Adams: I'm tickled to death to see what the future holds for his Jr and Sr year! I could fully see him busting out 16-18 ppg avg next year.

Grabau: I know he kind of disappeared the last few games, but he's still a reliable guard. I can see him getting his 10-13 ppg avg next year. And his ft shooting is a dream! (Kind of wondering if that injury to his hand about a month or so back has been affecting him, cause his shot was never the same after that, even his 3pt avg dropped significantly after that.)

Nance: although a ? Next year, could be anywhere from an 8-10 ppg guy or if fully healthy and not nimble on that knee back to his 15-20 ppg avg. and possibly a dbl dbl avg as well.

Cooke will make more strides between this year and next. Overall he was a 6 ppg, 6 rpg type guy this year, and I could see that being closer to 8-10 ppg and 8 rpg type guy next year.

We will more than likely have Washington, Halderson, Sellers and Bentz returning, aswell as a great recruiting class coming in. Ant let's not forget McManamen also.
I really think we have the potential to be a Hot Commodity next year! I'm ready for next November!

Also, I think playing in Vegas is fine. It's a great place where everyone travels well to. I just wish we would play in one of the other arenas, not in UNLV's home venue.

I'm going to disagree with some of your points. First, I'm not so proud of this "young" team. Only 3 players contributed yesterday and 2 were seniors. Grabau has not been a factor offensively for many games now - including before Nance's injury. I would hope he is not starting next year.
I'm not as certain as you that Cooke will make strides. He is really limited physically as his quickness is not what the better players in the league possess. He scares me everytime he tries to dribble.
I don't know what you've seen in Halderson, bentz, or Sellers that would give you hope for next season. None of them would see the court on any of the top 4 teams in the conference. Replacing Sobey and Granberry is going to be tough. Without a significant infusion of talent and a healthy Nance, next year will be really challenging.

One bright spot: the development of Adams has been startling. He was the best player on the court yesterday. He really has a complete game now. He plays so hard that he will wear out in the second half without a blow or 2 along the way.
I'm not as hopeful as many posters are. I really hope to be proven wrong but we've read before (mostly on this board) about all the great talent coming in and then wonder why it didn't pan out. I look at the talent level of the top teams in this league and frankly, we are way behind those teams. Would the outcome have been different with Nance yesterday? I would like to think so. But we have to have great performances from our key guys because we so few guys who can actually contribute. Shyatt has a monumental job in front of him.
 
bladerunnr said:
kansasCowboy said:
I will concur with everyone else on here. These young Pokes made me proud yesterday. What a fight! Coach Shyatt and his staff are making me proud aswell.
Who knows whether we get a post season bid anywhere, or maybe we finish at 18-14. But I truly believe this years team, regardless of being the worst record coach Shy has had here, was by far his most well rounded team yet.
And we got key players coming back:
Adams: I'm tickled to death to see what the future holds for his Jr and Sr year! I could fully see him busting out 16-18 ppg avg next year.

Grabau: I know he kind of disappeared the last few games, but he's still a reliable guard. I can see him getting his 10-13 ppg avg next year. And his ft shooting is a dream! (Kind of wondering if that injury to his hand about a month or so back has been affecting him, cause his shot was never the same after that, even his 3pt avg dropped significantly after that.)

Nance: although a ? Next year, could be anywhere from an 8-10 ppg guy or if fully healthy and not nimble on that knee back to his 15-20 ppg avg. and possibly a dbl dbl avg as well.

Cooke will make more strides between this year and next. Overall he was a 6 ppg, 6 rpg type guy this year, and I could see that being closer to 8-10 ppg and 8 rpg type guy next year.

We will more than likely have Washington, Halderson, Sellers and Bentz returning, aswell as a great recruiting class coming in. Ant let's not forget McManamen also.
I really think we have the potential to be a Hot Commodity next year! I'm ready for next November!

Also, I think playing in Vegas is fine. It's a great place where everyone travels well to. I just wish we would play in one of the other arenas, not in UNLV's home venue.

I'm going to disagree with some of your points. First, I'm not so proud of this "young" team. Only 3 players contributed yesterday and 2 were seniors. Grabau has not been a factor offensively for many games now - including before Nance's injury. I would hope he is not starting next year.
I'm not as certain as you that Cooke will make strides. He is really limited physically as his quickness is not what the better players in the league possess. He scares me everytime he tries to dribble.
I don't know what you've seen in Halderson, bentz, or Sellers that would give you hope for next season. None of them would see the court on any of the top 4 teams in the conference. Replacing Sobey and Granberry is going to be tough. Without a significant infusion of talent and a healthy Nance, next year will be really challenging.

One bright spot: the development of Adams has been startling. He was the best player on the court yesterday. He really has a complete game now. He plays so hard that he will wear out in the second half without a blow or 2 along the way.
I'm not as hopeful as many posters are. I really hope to be proven wrong but we've read before (mostly on this board) about all the great talent coming in and then wonder why it didn't pan out. I look at the talent level of the top teams in this league and frankly, we are way behind those teams. Would the outcome have been different with Nance yesterday? I would like to think so. But we have to have great performances from our key guys because we so few guys who can actually contribute. Shyatt has a monumental job in front of him.


I fall somewhere in between. Clearly the lack of talented depth in the frontcourt derailed this season, but they were one injury away from 3rd place. Do we have the talent of UNM, SDSU, or UNLV? No, and frankly I don't expect us to. I do expect us to compete talent wise with the rest of the league and we aren't quite there, particularly on the bench. That's the one area Shyatt has struggled with here. However, I do see a well coached ball club and each of Shyatt's teams have provided more joy to me as a fan than any of Schroyer's or of McClain's last 4 teams, so I give him some credit there.

In terms of individual players, the Nance injury really changes the trajectory of the program. If Nance is 100% and plays next year, the Pokes are not in a bad spot, but they will remain one injury away from the bottom. Adams growth near the end of his sophomore year is very reminiscent of Larry's growth last year and they form a strong inside/outside combo that we can build around. It helps that both are outstanding defensive players as well.

Around them, I am fine with Cooke at the 4. I don't see the quickness issue you see, he makes good cuts which is why he finds himself open near the rim with frequency. He doesn't have the skill set to put the ball on the floor and create offense but there is a reason that a 6'9" guy with his athleticism was deciding between us, Missouri St., and Evansville. He remains a work in progress. I have seen solid flashes and I believe he can be a solid productive role player if paired with someone like Nance that can draw the defense.

Grabau lost steam at the end of the year. Not sure if it was fatigue or injury but he was not the same player. Grabau is a limited played, but a quality shooter that makes good decisions.

I think a group of Grabau/Adams/Cooke/Nance is very solid. Experience does matter in college hoops, particularly in the MWC. You saw the drop-off from teams like CSU and AFA that became much younger.

The key for the Pokes is filling out the remainder of a rotation to compete. In order to do so, they will need the following:

1. A starting wing - Need someone with size to defend bigger guards in the MWC and someone that can get to the rim and the foul line. Hankerson was supposed to fill this role. That is very much a question mark at this point. If he departs, this needs to be filled with a JC player. That is possible.

2. A productive big off the bench - This was our biggest hole this year and there is nothing on the horizon for next year. It is unrealistic to expect Barnes, a guy that has about as much organized basketball experience as Cooke had when he joined the Pokes, to contribute right away although I am excited to see his future with the program. Herndon needs to eat a small herd of cattle before he is big enough to bang in the post in the MWC (looking forward to his future as well though, just not counting on him next year). Haldorson also lacks the bulk and it appears the tenacity to work in the post. Sellers...is not the answer. Shyatt needs to free up one scholarship and find some way to land a JC or 5th year transfer big man. Doesn't need to be a starter or a savior, just a legitimate MWC contributor.

3. A ball handling guard off the bench - On paper this would have been the role that Trey Washington grew into. That is also very much a question mark at this point.


The other spots (8-13) can be filled with current players and signees (McManamen, Herndon, Barnes, Jones, Haldorson, Lieberman), but the 5-7 spots will be the key. Right now those are manned on paper by Hankerson, Washington, and Sellers. I don't expect that to be the case by the time October rolls around. How those are filled will go a long way towards determining the Pokes success for next year.
 
SDPokeFan said:
Boy, what could have been this season if Nance hadn't blown out his knee. I wish I knew why God hates the Wyoming Cowboys.


I don't hate the Wyoming Cowboys.
 
SDPokeFan said:
kansasCowboy said:
Also, I think playing in Vegas is fine. It's a great place where everyone travels well to. I just wish we would play in one of the other arenas, not in UNLV's home venue.

Exactly. There are literally 50 other places it could be played. Why does it have to be at Thomas & Mack?
The T&M is the largest venue in LV and the Tournament pretty much sells out. Despite many others' attempts to spin the numbers and call UNLV's advantage a myth, the fact is they've only lost a single first round game on the "neutral" Tournament court.

Personally, I think the Tournament will probably get moved to the new arena MGM-Mirage is building behind NYNY and Monte Carlo in 2016 or '17.
 

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