Scrimmage update

[mat1992 2,254]

Have some quotes from PS that will follow. I'll probably see one more practice because I think I've seen enough. I don't mean that in bad way. This is a team that is going to be deep, strong defensively, and will press more than any of the previous Skerry teams. But that first nine that we know about: EK, Morsell, McNeill, Thomas, Morman, Starr, Tunstall, Martin, and Gorham. Improvements from some guys no doubt. But they are no mysteries. The only concern is which of the three freshmen will step up and which one will redshirt (my guess is Drayton).

Now to the scrimmage. I was there around 10:35 but I think they started earlier. But I caught enough. Saw a 12 minute scrimmage and a 16 minute portion with the same players on both sides. Here are my thoughts.

Deshaun Morman: I had him for 0-for-7 from the field in those two halves. He was passing well but I guess the rust of not playing much over the summer due to the hip surgery has slowed him down. Look, you don't expect him to become Steph Curry overnight but he needs to make jumpers to keep defenses honest. The D will be there. He's not really a great slasher either but we're three weeks away so I think he'll get better offensively. Again it still begs the question, do you start Zane or Morman at the 2?

Zane Martin: I had him for 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Zane took some bad shots, a few off-balanced ones off the wrong foot. They were playing him to go right. He took it right but shot it left off his left foot a couple of times. It's going to be tough to make those shots. Some lefties can make them. But overall, he has a scorers mentality. If he misses a shot, he doesn't put his head down. He's going to be very good but the question is whether it's this year or next. I think he plays good enough defense where you won't lose much if you start him over Morman or even over Morsell.

Jordan McNeill: Jordan has certainly made some great strides over the years. He was even playing some point guard as they may play him behind Brian Starr. Had him at 2 for 7 from the field. He's ok at finishing on the break with his speed but in traffic, he doesn't always go up strong with contact. As a point guard, it's a bit too early to tell whether he can do the job for 10-15mpg behind Starr. I think it's a good fallback plan to have if Jeff Prophete is not ready or they don't go with Van Rolle.

Van Rolle/Jeff Prophete: Both are battling for the backup point guard spot. I've like the progress Prophete (4pts) has made. He was a big-time scorer in high school and now he has to manage the game. Defensively, he's getting better but that the key with Skerry is playing D. Not only does he have to take care of the ball but he has to not lose his man. I do see him getting better each time I see him. As for Rolle, he's a scorer (6pts) with a scorer's mentality. That's not necessarily a bad thing but if you play the point, you also have to get others involved. And you can't turn it over. Rolle is a nice backup play if somebody gets hurt. He's a little undersized but he's fearless.

Eddie Keith: I wondered about EK playing the 4 over the summer. I thought maybe Gorham could eventually take his job. If EK plays the way he did today, I have egg on my face. He was fantastic today, hitting all four of his 3-point attempts and going 6 of 7 from the field. When Al Thomas went out to defend him at the corner, he faked the three and went past him for a driving one-handed dunk. Wish he was 6-7, 245 and no 6-5, 245 but I think he can do some really good things offensively. On the defensive end, we'll have to wait and see him going up against some of the better power forwards in the CAA. I don't think he gets pushed around but the lack of height could be a factor.

Gorham: Next year might be his season. JG has all the tools. He's added weight (around 235) and a lot more confidence. Like to see him be a little more careful with the ball. Free throw form looks better. I had him for eight points and five boards. Like his turnaround jumper. I think he could be our best low post scorer. If you are looking somebody to replace JD's offense off the bench, he could be the guy.

Al Thomas: I think big Al has arrived. I don't mean to say he's ready to be the CAA's next great big man. I just think he's figuring it all out. Without Moto, they need a more aggressive guy up front. On the boards. In the paint. Has the mid-range jumper. I still think he faces basket better. That's his strength. Had him for six points and a few boards. A nice pass to a backdoor cutting Prophete for a layup.

Tunstall: Had two points, a steal and a few boards. I think what Dennis does is not going to be found in stats. Still concerned about his foul shooting. He shot an airball. When he's in the game and we are pressing, the pressure goes up a notch.

Morsell: Had 12 points. Still off on his 3-point shot but I like the fact that he's going to the basket more. Posting up more. He's going to play some power forward so he is going to get his points, not just on perimeter shooting. Talked to Skerry about him and I'll get to his quotes later.

Drayton/Ingram: Drayton had five points on two shots. He just doesn't really get involved very much outside of shooting. I think he's a year away in the weight room and needs more of a handle. Ingram is up to 180 pounds, which doesn't really show yet because he's going up against bigger guys like Morman. His jumping ability is off the charts. It's going to be hard to redshirt him because when they press, his quickness is going to be advantageous.

Starr: Has been dealing with an ankle injury so he played about half the time. Hit a three and had one turnover. He does take care of the ball and passes well. That's what they need. Can make the open shot. Down to around 185 so has lost about 15 pounds and looks quicker.

 

[mat1992 2,254]

Skerry's comments

On Canada trip
Went really good. I was encouraged with games against Caleton and McGill. We were down one at the half against Carleton and were up 20 after 3. Against McGill, that was our fifth game in five days. They had beaten Kent State and lost to SMU in OT. We were up 28 at the half. I was encouraged that we could play at a very high level. That was encouraging. I played the main guys aside from Deshaun. We pressed a lot. We didn't press on makes until the conference tournament. We have a lot of bodies. It's makes sense for us. We have a chance to be better on offense. We're more skilled and have good spacing. We're trying to work on not fouling.

On preseason
We know who are first nine is. We'll have a 10th and a freshman. I don't know who yet. Might be based on who's playing well. All the nine guys that are back have gotten better and healthier. That's encouraging. We can get to a high level. We have a lot of different guys that can hurt you. You want more but that doesn't always happen.

On Al Thomas
He's in the best shape of his life. We're going to go to him more. He's our best post defender. We are going to go to him more often. There are areas we are going to miss Moto and John. We are more skilled at the four with Eddie and Justin. We didn't have that luxury last season. Al's competitiveness is up too.

Morsell
Is in best shape in his career. Was OK in Canada. He played well in preseason. We need him to shoot the ball from the perimeter. The best shot for Towson is to be shot-ready. We've had some peaks and valleys when he hesitates. Keep shooting. He might miss three but he's capable of making the next four or five.

McNeill
Has improved over the summer. Has gotten stronger. We have to get Jordan on the floor because he's improved. Want him to defend a little better.

On Rolle
He's gotten better. He has talent. The challenge coming off the bench is are you looking for scoring or ball security and defense.

Prophete
Practiced well before he got to Canada. Got nicked up there. Very encouraged the last few days in practice. Has good vision. Is not going to be a dynamic speed guy. Has to slow it down at times.

Justin
Eddie is 245 now. John was never that weight. Moto played at the weight. We're not smaller. Eddie is a truck. He'll be a tough cover at the four. He gives us the driving and shooting. He led us in three-point shooting last season from the point. Now he's going to get more shots. Justin is playing well. He was our best frontcourt player over the summer, my only concern is fouling.

We have a chance to be a fun group to watch. Have to stay healthy and limit distractions. A couple of guys aren't going to start... I told them last week that we have nine starters. I also told them that John Davis made all-conference and was a star coming off the bench. Guthrie only started nine or 10 games and was all-conference coming off the bench. We have three wings that all played a lot.

On Brian Starr
Sprained his ankle and came back yesterday. We're not rushing him. Had eight assists to one turnover in Canada. Has had an excellent summer.

On Morman
He's healthy. Still a little rust. Has worked incredible hard.

How elite can we be in taking care of the basketball. Less fouling.

On freshmen
They can't get on the floor until they can't hurt us defensively. There is talent. They have some ability to move and offensively. How are you going to get on the floor? To jack shots? Highly unlikely. It moves faster with an older group. These guys are talented.

[TSU88 1,074]

Great info. Thanks!!

 I’m going to hector and vex you later with some questions & comments.

To the bat cave!!

 

 

[TSU88 1,074]

So, I’m curious as to your observations of Ingram-does he have an outside shot or is he strictly a transition guy?

What about Prophete? Dude was a scoring machine in HS. How does he look on the offensive end? Does he have an outside shot? Can he drive & dish or keep it & finish or get fouled?

 I’m cautiously optimistic about your assessments of Thomas & Keith. The cynic in me can’t help but think how often guys look great in preseason & then it doesn’t carry over when they start playing guys in different color uniforms. We lost what, 25 points ppg & 13 or so boards with the departure of Davis & Moto. Assuming Morsell & Morman replicate their scoring from last year, it would seem those 25 ppg have to be made up primarily from a combo of EK, ZM, Gorham, McNeill & Thomas (with a bit of freshman scoring sprinkled in for good measure).  I’m going to check later, out of curiousity to see what the aforementioned 5 combined in ppg last year-off the top of my head I would guess around 20 ppg. That means collectively they’d have to double that, with hopefully the freshman chipping in to make up the difference. I don’t know-Thomas is foul prone & McNeill struck me last year as streaky-I remember a game vs NE where he came out on fire & had like 9 quick points & then didn’t score the rest of the game.  That leaves EK, ZM & Gorham. 

 

[mat1992 2,254]

49 minutes ago, TSU88 said:

So, I’m curious as to your observations of Ingram-does he have an outside shot or is he strictly a transition guy?

What about Prophete? Dude was a scoring machine in HS. How does he look on the offensive end? Does he have an outside shot? Can he drive & dish or keep it & finish or get fouled?

 I’m cautiously optimistic about your assessments of Thomas & Keith. The cynic in me can’t help but think how often guys look great in preseason & then it doesn’t carry over when they start playing guys in different color uniforms. We lost what, 25 points ppg & 13 or so boards with the departure of Davis & Moto. Assuming Morsell & Morman replicate their scoring from last year, it would seem those 25 ppg have to be made up primarily from a combo of EK, ZM, Gorham, McNeill & Thomas (with a bit of freshman scoring sprinkled in for good measure).  I’m going to check later, out of curiousity to see what the aforementioned 5 combined in ppg last year-off the top of my head I would guess around 20 ppg. That means collectively they’d have to double that, with hopefully the freshman chipping in to make up the difference. I don’t know-Thomas is foul prone & McNeill struck me last year as streaky-I remember a game vs NE where he came out on fire & had like 9 quick points & then didn’t score the rest of the game.  That leaves EK, ZM & Gorham. 

3

Ingram's shot is developing. Kind of like Morman but quicker. Prophete doesn't shoot much so I think he's just trying to run the offense. He's not incredibly quick. He's similar to Starr as a big point guard but again, I think he's not trying to do too much. His role is not to score 30ppg.

I agree about Thomas and EK. But I can only report on what I see in preseason. These guys roles have changed. They both need to score now. Thomas isn't going to put up 20 and 10 but he needs to score some. EK was the best 3-point shooter on the team last season. But his role was to set people up as the point guard. Now his role is going to be attack but he can also pass it. Jordan is streaky.

Let's also remember that this team is going to press a lot. That's something we didn't have last season and I think we score more in transition and more off turnovers. Maybe we force 1-2 more turnovers but instead of teams just throwing it away, maybe we score 4-6 more points off of turnovers. That's possible because that's what I've seen over the summer and the last two days of practice. Constant pressure, traps in the backcourt and some in the frontcourt. Most of the pressure we've seen over the years has been zone pressure. Now we're trapping and doubling of the press. That's something I've been pushing for 20+ years for this program. And I guess we've never really had the talent.

[TSU88 1,074]

Going to be interesting.  Did you happen to hear anything on the recruiting front?

[mat1992 2,254]

I'm hearing more about WBB recruiting. Coach Rich is getting a lot of talent but seriously I'm just trying to find this point guard, who apparently doesn't want his commitment known until he makes the announcement himself.

[mat1992 2,254]

But I think this team will be fun. Frustrating at times, yes. Pressing certainly helped UNCW win two straight titles but they also had a lot of three-point shooters, something that we lack. We need McNeill, Keith, Morsell and Zane to carry us in that department. Starr and Morman can occasionally make one and so can Gorham (he's not there yet with that shot). I really like Drayton's stroke the most but I don't think he'll play this season. You have to do more than that to play for PS. I think Ingram could be the x-factor but when PS talked about finding a 10th guy, I assume that will be Prophete because we need a backup point guard.

[TSU88 1,074]

I was pleasantly surprised with the results of the Canada tour. Still think it’s possible this team is a year away, what with Sanders having to sit out this year, & the 3-Star kid from Fla coming in next fall. Not to mention ZM & Gorham will be Junior’s and this year’s freshman crop will have a year under their respective belts

[Moleman 1]

Matt, 3 quick ones:

1.  You say Morsell might play at the 4? Is his ht & wt at the level for that now?!.. In any case, i (I'm sure we ALL!) hope this will finally be his shining year we've been anticipating!

2.  Speaking of wt, hopefully Tunstall has filled out some. Last year he had a lot of good things going for him, but lack of weight/musculature was holding him back..

3.  If Prophete lacks speed, and his "role" puts somewhat of a clamp on his (potential) stellar shooting, then it sounds clear that the more experienced Rolle is the better choice backup @ the 1, no?

Edited October 9, 2017 by Moleman