The Joeys from da' Couch .....

[Taj79]

If anyone still questions who we are, last night proved it in spades .... we are a decent team with certain limitations and once again St. Joe's showed us that.  A decent start.  A lull.  A decent run out to a nine point halftime lead.  A dreadful start to the second half.  And then enough fire power to bury an opponent at home (anyway).  All coupled with some damn tough defense.  Capped off by a comfortable win.  

The Joeys are always hamstrung.  I said in a preseason thread that I thought they were again one serious injury away from being decimated.  Kimble.  Brown.  One of them down and lights out.  They have that with Kimble again and now add Oliva to it,.  Oliva won't win many games, but his loss makes Martelli go down a weak bench and pluck Lodge or Edwards or even Clover to step up.  And they usually don't.  Oliva's injury warps the sub patterns and Longpre's concussion did even more damage to a team ill-equipped to handle it.  Who's to blame for that?  Seems to me to be Martelli.  We've lost Henriques, Bishop, Graves, Johnson, Santos, Welmer and Gordon and manage to keep on plugging.  We've lost Hankton and Wiley and now maybe Jacobs for some time.  And we keep on plugging.  Let's remember one thing before we get too high ---- we are 5 and 0 playing the bottom of the league right now and our only decent encounter (Rhodey) was at home.  Wednesday at Duquesne will say a lot.  

Observations:  in another thread, I said Wiley would one day drop 20 making a lot of threes.  Last night.  We need Dion to maintain that shot and that presence.  Having him and Hankton, as threats, added to Bess and Isabell, is also what opens the middle for French and Goodwin.  I also believe this will do the same for Foreman, who we all know is best off the dribble ---- even if it is an odyssey at times.  Jacobs wasn't that great last night, but he seemed to be ready to turn a corner.  Instead, he turned an ankle.  Thor's departure means nothing in game situations ---- it hurts with practice players and it hurts with the raising of more questions as to why Ford can't keep kids.  I don't think it reflects much on Travis but the perception rather than the truth will prevail.  As of right now, Verbal Commits does not show Ingvi transferring nor is he deleted from the official roster.  Maybe he is, as some say, homesick and in need of time away.  No matter ---- here or gone --- I'm not crying over a line 2 games played, 5 total minutes, 2 missed shots, one rebound, one foul and no points.  Given the injury history chronicled above, one would have expected a little more.  Given it's zero, maybe he's zero.  I'll be stunned if he shows up on another D1 roster anytime soon.

Bess' job on Brown was downright amazing.  Only one shot made and that with 36 seconds to go in the game.  We didn't let Funk snapped out of it either ---- guy went 2-of-9 from three.  Chris Clover did nothing to back up his good game against Davidson.  Bynum was okay and I'd always dare a freshman to beat us.  

The 23 point run showed we can do well and we do have it in us.  I was torn about Isabell's last second drive but so what.  That, coupled with Brown's ineptitude, will be rallying points come February on Hawk Hill for the Martelli's.  The Joeys are 1 and 5 in conference for a reason and once the avalanche started to bury them, the conceded.  Frankly I expect that Billiken team to always be on the floor at Chaifetz and can't wait for it to happen against Davidson, Dayton and the rest of the A10.

We are pretty sky high but Wednesday as noted will be huge.  Also huge will be the month of February as we go on the road to Rhode Island, the Joeys, Geedubya, Dayton and VCU.  Then there is the close out in Olean before Brooklyn.  Those six games will really define us in the near future.  If we win at Duquesne, I can see 8 and 0 in the nearer future.  The Big Three are playing well and Isabell is close.  All we need is a decent Foreman and an equally decent bench and I like us in that future.  

[slu72]

Foreman has to wake up and give us the quality minutes we saw from him last year in A10 play.