Please be respectful with your answers
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The Rep ran an article on East Canton's great start. Hopefully some more much deserved coverage will come our way.
http://www.cantonrep.com/highschool/x1793479244/High-school-boys-basketball-East-Canton-is-creating-a-buzz-in-the-PTC
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Also, the first Hive poll has come to a close. Here are the results....
How many regular season games will the Hornets win this season?
48 total votes
3 voters, or 6% of voters, say they will win under 8 games
0 voters picked them to win between 9-11 games
16 voters, or 33% of voters, say the Hornets will win between 12-15 games
and 29 voters , or 60% of voters, say the Horntes will win 16+ games
Thanks for your votes! Look for a new poll soon
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28 comments:
I suppose it is my duty to kick this thing off...
Coming down to a final possession in a close game where the Hornets need a score, I first want to make sure I have both Smith and Slater under the boards for an offensive rebound and stick back. This eats up driving lanes and takes them out of the equation as the primary shot taker.
With 2 posts near the rim, I would bring Burfield up to set a high ball screen for Zell. I would want Cartwright spotting up for a three because that is not a bad option. Burfield screening doesn't allow the defense to switch and the pick may let Bradley get a head of steam towards the goal where he could put something up on the rim or dish to the finishers. A switch or trap of Zell could create a mismatch or shot for Burfield.
So Zell playmaking or finishing is my final answer...
What do you all think?
I like what you are thinking Matt...It's nice to have soo many options.
Here is a different thought:
I would work "inside/out"...Teams are going to respect the outside shot so I get it into Smith, deep in the post, early in the possession.
The defense has to crash to respect Josh's ability to score inside...If not, I would take my chances with Josh one-on-one down low. When the crash happens I have three solid shooters spotting outside, not to mention Brandon hitting the boards...I like our chances.
I had better actually pick the final shooter...I would pick Joe (I am parital to "lefties").
Divot: I like what your thinking...
Your method lessens the chance of a ball handling turnover due to over dribbling. And you got to have confidence in Smith, the teams leader in field goal %
While I am always likely to disagree with you just for the fun of it, there are some legitimate problems with you scenario:
You want to put the ball in one of the three guards hands, I get that. We can all agree the positive outcomes are drive it, shoot it, get fouled, or draw and dish/kick. AS RESPECTFULLY AS I AM CAPABLE OF (per your instructions) Zell is the best penetrator of the 3, but the third best shooter and foul shooter, and they all tie for last (or first if you want to stroke their egos) in the ability to feed the post. If you want to stay with your plan, it has to be Ryan right now. i would normally say Joe based on his toughness, but I am still bearing the mental scars of watching the 3 for 22 performance at the line.
My Plan: Get Brandon off the floor. He is still very much in my dog house, and I don't want their to be a celebration technical after we take the lead. Give the ball to Smith in the high post and he can drive to his sweet spot or kick out to Ryan and his feathery touch.
Sam: Great point on the FT struggles. I would want Burfield at the line if I could choose. Aside from Burfield, I would take Joe or Slater shooting crunch time FTs. I do wonder if Burfield has the shake off the dribble to just be able to smoke a defender. And if he is driving the ball, he is not spotting up.
And as respectfully as I may be, who are u subbing for Slater?
I think Slater should get to shoot because he is clutch. He made the shot at Tusky for OT. He can do it again if he gets the chance
Put anyone in that promises not to get a technical foul, and I agree burfield has not asserted himself as much as he could off the dribble YET, hence I want to throw it to Josh.
Murph...Brandon has been wonderful off the boards and around the basket for a season and a half now, but I can't take that chance right now.
It has to be Burfield. Have Zell take the ball down and Slater set an option screen on Burfield. If he's gaurded tightly there's always the slip for an open shot, or the flare screen for a three point goal (which I would trust him to shoot even in a one point game.)
If they switch the screen I would think that Burfield is quick enough to easily lay one in on the defender guarding Slater who is most likely bigger but also slower.
He's also phenomenal from the free throw line and the highest offensive power this year. He provides a multi-dimensional attack, since a well prepared coach probably has a prepared strategy for Zell (possibly even a drop zone to prevent such a drive)
Slater has to stay in because he has been clutch so far this season (Tusky, Free throw shooting down the stretch at Sandy) and Smith, Joe and Zell should round out a capable finishing group with Burfield taking the shot
I have to ask the question of who wants the ball when the game is on the line. We have guys who have made the free throws down the stretch, but which guy looks to Spurgeon with stare that he wants the ball? No self respecting team is going to let you get the ball underneath with the game on the line, so it has to be the guy who can shoot the jumper off the screen. We have seen each of our guys get hot from the outside. I say give it to the guy who is on that night. If I had to choose though...Burfield gets my vote.
Good point Coach Reeves. They ALL want the ball.......that is why they are good.
I do know this.....If we need an insanely long three to tie a game in the tournament.....Zell is the guy.
Good Luck against Rootstown.....GAME DAY! Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Ken: Nice point! You always have realistic and objective viewpoints
We also could go with the element of surprise and let Elseser bring it up. As soon as he crosses half court we use Burfield (as a decoy) to set a back screen for Stu who is at the top of the key. Sam should look to lob to Stu for the alley-oop slam dunk shot. If that's not there we've got to look to Whitacre in the corner for a 3. He is 100% in varsity games this year so I'm confident in that. To round out the 5 we hide Smith in the corner as another decoy. Zell, Joe and Slater have loud voices so we need them cheering their teammates on. Money, Honey!!!!
An insane 3 by Zell? I think its insane everytime he shoots a 3 pointer. He is so fast I always expect him to drive past the D and show off his great moves.
Was the post about Stu, Elseser and Whitacre supposed to be funny... As a spectator for the Hornets, I was offended by these comments coming from a Coach. I can only image how these players feel about these comments.
Dear Anonymous,
While written sarcasm/humor is often the hardest thing to convey, I believe the shortest answer to your question is "yes". It reads to me as an obvious extension of the stranger and stranger scenarios that the rest of us fans were posting. Coach Hackenberg's relationship to the players, even after a short time, has been tremendous. If you want to know how they feel instead of only imagining, you should ask them. I am confident they found it completely non-offensive and humorous. They are all great, hard working kids, who know their roles and their value to the whole.
I apologize if I've offended anyone with my any posts. Please understand that any attempts at humor are just that. Whether in poor taste or not, the real tragedy is taking this blog too seriously
Players: If u read what I wrote and were offended, Spurg was going to make you all run suicides tonight but I told him not to. So we'll call it even
the hornets are 8-0... If this doesn't speak for itself i don't what does. We are state bound watch ouut STREETSBORO!!!!!!!!!!1
one comment on a blog offends you.
perfect example of the "soft" attitudes that have kept EC teams from winning more games in the past.
Thanks coaches for being hard on the guys and by getting them to the point where words do not detract them from their main goal.
offended anonymous poster - WAAAAHHHH!!!!
W. Sobchak
Slow down there "Sate Bound".
Let's enjoy what we have and let the land mine of a tournament just play itself out.
"State Bound": What u just did is the equivalent of referencing a baseball pitchers perfect game in the 6th inning... I would just delete the post but we'll use this as a teaching point
East canton is the top underdog team they know when to respond to the pressure there great kids and very disciplined they will be the ptc champs... NO DOUBT
more perfect game talk, I see.
let's declare them PTC champs at the end of February, not the beginning of January.
....so much for teaching points coach
I know its all about the varsity right now this year but i need someone to answer this question....
how is the varsity going to do next year with there top seniors leaving? i see the jv play and im just asking myself can they pull out a descent year
OK its clear enough that nobody is worried about next year and the jv moving up rite now. those kids are not very disciplined and need help next year will be tough for them
The Junior Varsity is a very inexperienced team with a handful of freshman players. They do indeed still have a lot of work that needs to be done in the off-season. They do have some talent though .. The Varsity will return their top scorer (Burfield), Sophomore starter (Elseser) and fellow soph (Whitacre). If just 3-4 of the JV's work on their games over the summer i believe that next seasons Varsity team will remain competitive. Obviously not near as effective as this year .. but once again, to make my point, they are EXTREMELY young and u also just dont replace a strong Senior class with high calibar players.
from experience, the drop off will occur (almost impossible not to), but it will not be as far as you may fear. I have seen it first hand on two occasions. The younger players are learning valuable things about competing and playing unselfishly. They play against great players every day. That has some carry over affect. A hard off season of work can see enough of those guys polish their games to the point they are ready for varsity action. Also, don't forget that everyone else's seniors also graduate.
While the coaches continue to prepare for the day these guys are gone, the fans should appreciate and enjoy what they are getting to see.
Our limited numbers make it near impossible for us to have 2 distinct JV and varsity practices. That means less work for the JV with their coach. I can assure you "mr. anonymous" that next year is a huge concern. However, to shift how we do things to accommodate the younger kids would be a great disservice to the seniors. It's a hard balance to find but any time lost by the JV that is spent helping the varsity run a better practice could easily be made up in the summer by a hungry, dedicated player
alright I see now what your saying. I am a fan to EC and i was concerned about watching the JV play their games but I don't have a profile just yet so I am gonna be anonymous for now.
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