The reported attendance of 560 fans was exaggerated. There could not have been more than 300-350 there, including about 50 Griz fans. Met some fun Griz fans after the game at the Little America Hotel where we stayed, and we partied into the wee hours.
First, NAU is perhaps the weakest Big Sky team I have seem in many years. There are small, young and lack talent. I don't see it getting any easier for whomever their new coach will be, because they will be playing in this cracker-box gym in front of empty seats. This place is worse than many high school gyms. Can you imagine bring a coveted recruit in for a visit and to having experience a game here? No way they can compete for top talent with other Big Sky schools who have real BB facilities and play in front of real crowds.
Regarding the Griz last night, here are some observations. Selvig lived up to my expectations by continually passing up open 3-point shots and either passing the ball, or dribbling. A couple of his passes resulted in easy Griz baskets, and a couple resulted in turnovers. He shoots the "3" better than 40%, was being guarded by a player 6-8 inches shorter than him, yet he refuses to shoot the rock. He would drive me crazy if I were coaching him. One would think that 3 years as a starter would school him on playing to his strengths, but seemingly not so. On the plus side, he had quite a few rebounds, which was expected since he towered above the NAU players on the court.
Cherry and Jamar are very special players. These kids do so many things well, and are the heart-and-soul of this team. Jamar has really improved his shot since last season, and has become a very good ball-handler too, allowing him to play the point if he has to. He rebounds well, plays good defense, and looked like the team leader on the court last night.
Cherry still does not shoot very well, but does so many other things well. His defense at the point prevents penetration and dish-offs by the opposing point guard, allowing for great team defense. He lightening quick, and plays with intensity. I love this kid. Perimeter defense has plagued the Griz for many years, until we recruited Cherry. He is the real deal on defense. Team defense starts with the point guard, who MUST be able to stop penetration. Will does this.
Ward has some stretches where he looked good, but also has some very shaky stretches last night. I still like him, and think he is an asset to the team. Weisner is very smooth shooting the rock for a frosh. I think this kid will develop into a very good player, who can put up some good scoring numbers.
Steward is an enigma to me. The guy has talent, and has shown flashes of what he can be in some past games. But last night he committed three very stupid fouls, two of them within 5-10 seconds.
Henderson has got some game. He made a great baseline move for an easy bucket that was negated by a questionable traveling violation. Again, I think he has got some game and can be a solid, if not great player if he continues to develop.
Was not as impressed with Gregory. He physically looks like a ninth-grader, and was getting muscled on defense. He made one nice full-court driving basket, but he will need to add to serious bulk if he is going to be a factor.
As I have stated before, Stockton is a Frontier-caliber player, who is too slow, and not a good enough ball handler to be much of a help to this team. Wood does not belong on the court, in my opinion. This guy is not a Big Sky caliber player. Just the way I see it.
The player I was very impressed with in limited playing time was DeShields. I was pretty critical of his signing back when it was announced, because his videos did not show much of an ability to penetrate. He seemed to be strictly an outside shooter, very one-dimensional. However, he showed me some great court-presence last night, and made a couple of very quick moves to the rim. In my opinion, he should be playing more, with Wood and Stockton playing less!
Was looking forward to seeing Reader. Where was he? I never saw him on the bench or in warm-ups. Is he injured?
The future looks very bright for next season. The loss of Selvig, Steward, and Stockton will not hurt the Griz much. With the talent returning, and the POSSIBILITY that the new 7-footer can play defense, clog the paint, and rebound, the GRIZ should be VERY GOOD!
Regarding the freshmen who played last night......I did not see a Jamar or Cherry among them, but I did see some solid role players who could develop into good players in supporting role. You always need that "Star go-too player". We have two of them now in Cherry and Jamar. Hopefully Tinks has recruited another one in this recruiting class.
First, NAU is perhaps the weakest Big Sky team I have seem in many years. There are small, young and lack talent. I don't see it getting any easier for whomever their new coach will be, because they will be playing in this cracker-box gym in front of empty seats. This place is worse than many high school gyms. Can you imagine bring a coveted recruit in for a visit and to having experience a game here? No way they can compete for top talent with other Big Sky schools who have real BB facilities and play in front of real crowds.
Regarding the Griz last night, here are some observations. Selvig lived up to my expectations by continually passing up open 3-point shots and either passing the ball, or dribbling. A couple of his passes resulted in easy Griz baskets, and a couple resulted in turnovers. He shoots the "3" better than 40%, was being guarded by a player 6-8 inches shorter than him, yet he refuses to shoot the rock. He would drive me crazy if I were coaching him. One would think that 3 years as a starter would school him on playing to his strengths, but seemingly not so. On the plus side, he had quite a few rebounds, which was expected since he towered above the NAU players on the court.
Cherry and Jamar are very special players. These kids do so many things well, and are the heart-and-soul of this team. Jamar has really improved his shot since last season, and has become a very good ball-handler too, allowing him to play the point if he has to. He rebounds well, plays good defense, and looked like the team leader on the court last night.
Cherry still does not shoot very well, but does so many other things well. His defense at the point prevents penetration and dish-offs by the opposing point guard, allowing for great team defense. He lightening quick, and plays with intensity. I love this kid. Perimeter defense has plagued the Griz for many years, until we recruited Cherry. He is the real deal on defense. Team defense starts with the point guard, who MUST be able to stop penetration. Will does this.
Ward has some stretches where he looked good, but also has some very shaky stretches last night. I still like him, and think he is an asset to the team. Weisner is very smooth shooting the rock for a frosh. I think this kid will develop into a very good player, who can put up some good scoring numbers.
Steward is an enigma to me. The guy has talent, and has shown flashes of what he can be in some past games. But last night he committed three very stupid fouls, two of them within 5-10 seconds.
Henderson has got some game. He made a great baseline move for an easy bucket that was negated by a questionable traveling violation. Again, I think he has got some game and can be a solid, if not great player if he continues to develop.
Was not as impressed with Gregory. He physically looks like a ninth-grader, and was getting muscled on defense. He made one nice full-court driving basket, but he will need to add to serious bulk if he is going to be a factor.
As I have stated before, Stockton is a Frontier-caliber player, who is too slow, and not a good enough ball handler to be much of a help to this team. Wood does not belong on the court, in my opinion. This guy is not a Big Sky caliber player. Just the way I see it.
The player I was very impressed with in limited playing time was DeShields. I was pretty critical of his signing back when it was announced, because his videos did not show much of an ability to penetrate. He seemed to be strictly an outside shooter, very one-dimensional. However, he showed me some great court-presence last night, and made a couple of very quick moves to the rim. In my opinion, he should be playing more, with Wood and Stockton playing less!
Was looking forward to seeing Reader. Where was he? I never saw him on the bench or in warm-ups. Is he injured?
The future looks very bright for next season. The loss of Selvig, Steward, and Stockton will not hurt the Griz much. With the talent returning, and the POSSIBILITY that the new 7-footer can play defense, clog the paint, and rebound, the GRIZ should be VERY GOOD!
Regarding the freshmen who played last night......I did not see a Jamar or Cherry among them, but I did see some solid role players who could develop into good players in supporting role. You always need that "Star go-too player". We have two of them now in Cherry and Jamar. Hopefully Tinks has recruited another one in this recruiting class.
