[Husker] Men's Basketball

[Nick Chevance]

On Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 8:36 AM,  <gzimmerman5 at kc.rr.com> wrote:
> Like Scully and Mulder, I want to believe, but this conference season has made me wonder if we're heading in the right direction.
> --
> Greg Zimmerman, UNL '75
> Overland Park, Kansas

Warning - Long post, which repeats some of the most recent comments.

I'd sort of agree with Greg on this.  I too want to believe, and what
I see this year is a big improvement over last year.  And not just in
the size of the team (I mean really, did anyone really think we could
compete with the smallest lineup in Division I?), but also in the
skills of the players.  While I think another skill player would help,
I think this team has the nucleus of a much better team.

Diaz - they list him as 235 but if he weights 200, I'd be mildly
surprised.  But he has skills, and appears to be comfortable with his
back to the basket.  He needs muscle, weight, and time.  He could be
very good.

Standhardinger - a good player that hasn't apparently played within
any kind of system.  Give him a year to figure what Doc expects of him
and we'll see next year.

Ubel - Don't know what to make of this kid.  So many mistakes, but
every so often you see a flash of what skills he brings.  I think he's
a couple of years from making a big contribution, but he also needs
muscles and weight.  You can't be 6-10 and 220 in this league.

Jeter - What can you say?  Inconsistent, at best.  Against OU he ran
the offense without too many turnovers.  Against KState, all that went
out the window.  As a junior, I don't know if he's going to improve
enough for next year.  I have my doubts about the point guard
position.

The rest of the cast next year looks good.  Gallegos, Hankins-Cole and
Richardson have contributed well this year, and I would expect them to
be better next year.  Add to that mix Niemann and McCray out due to
injuries this year, and you've got a team that at least has the
ability to be better next year.

I would agree with Greg that point guard is a serious problem - we did
better last year with a 5-7, 165 guy than we did this year with a 6-3,
225 guy.  Some of that is quickness, some of that is experience, and a
lot of that is knowing what to do with the ball and when to do it.
Cookie Miller may have been a bit of a liability on defense, but he
know how to run Doc's offense.

Rebounding is all about attitude.  Height is good, body size is a
plus, knowing how to box out is a must, but desire to go up in a crowd
and grab the ball is what its all about.  Standhardinger seems to like
that contact, but he needs coaching and seasoning.  I'm not sure I see
that desire in the rest of the team, with the exception of Jeter.  But
with him at point, you don't want him down in the box elbowing with
the big guys.

Anyway, I'm sort of a glass half-full guy.  The OU game was fun to
watch because you could see what some of them can do.  But we also
know that OU isn't in the top of the BigXII either.  We've played a
really tough schedule in the league.  As others have pointed out, we
started this month playing KState, and then the next 4 teams, ending
with KState last night, were ranked, including Texas and #1 Kansas.
Let's see how they do against the last 5 on their schedule: Mizzou,
TTech and Colorado at home, Okie State and Iowa State on the road.
Let's hope they haven't been beaten down too badly, and can compete
and take a couple or more of these.

I'm not willing to lay this at Doc's feet just yet.  I think he needs
a couple of years with the players he's got now and those coming in
before I'll jump on that bandwagon.

Nick
-- 
"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
     Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821)