San Diego:
The Toreros are 16-11 overall and 6-6 in the WCC and are riding a 4 game win streak. They are coming off a narrow, 5pt comback win over Portland on Thurs. after being down 8pts at half. Top Players:
6-0 pt guard Wayne McKinney (14.7pts, 3assists, 1.4 steals, 37.5% from 3)
6-2 guard Deuce Turner (14.6pts, 36% from 3)
6-6 wing PJ Hayes (11.2pts, 43% from 3)
6-8 forward Kevin Patton Jr. (9.4pts, 4.6rebs, 1.4steals, 1.5 blocks)
6-10 center Steve Jamerson II (9.4pts, 8.2 rebs, 1.0 blocks)
Walk-on Emmanuel Callas has been starting over Turner but Turner plays more minutes.
The Toreros are pretty mediocre statistically across the board. They do shoot a solid 3pt% as a team but they take a low # of 3’s which diminishes the impact.
The Toreros upset win over the Broncos was mostly a result of a boatload of TO’s (20) and horrible Bronco shooting across the board where the Broncos made a season low four 3’s on 4/29 shooting and shot a season low 34.8 eFG%.
This is an important game for the Broncos in securing at least 4th place. Another USD win would bring them within 0.5 of the Broncos and they’d hold the head-to-head tiebreaker outright. A Bronco win creates a 2.5 game lead and more or less locks up at least 4th place for the Broncos.
The Broncos did dominate the glass the last time around…they need to do the same and just make a few buckets.
This is a big game and I agree with 92 Bronc. I would add we need to limit our turnovers which as noted by many has been a season long problem. A win and we could still make NIT, a loss and we are toast (absent an unexpected tourney win). GO BRONCOS!!
I am in ESPN and I do not see the game listed. Is anyone else having same problem?
Apparently if I go to the APP and type in our name, it will search it, but scrolling through it did not. Sharing in case anyone else has same issue.
Not much hope for an NIT invite. It would probably take a win @ Gonzaga and a win in Vegas over SMC or Gonzaga to make that a reality.
Still SCU needs to finish 4th in the WCC to have any chance in the WCC tourney. Wish Sendek would experiment a bit instead of doing the same things repetitively (espically the things that aren’t working).
Great game by Benjamin! I had ringside seats. CMJ looked good too with some big buckets and good D. I noticed only a single over dribble event (which drained down the shot clock and resulted in a desperation heave by a teammate).
Benjamin was great in the 2nd half tonight. Without a doubt the best he’s played in a Broncos uniform. That was the player they were hoping to get in the transfer portal.
Solid effort on the road tonight by the Broncos to get the win.
I understand Bal and BK are both due back. I would prefer to see BK and Benjamin at the 1`and Bal at the 2 with a LOT LESS dribbling and ISO moves to the basket. (Set him up for the outside shot and if not there - opt to look inside and not penetrate and pack in the key) We do much better as a TEAM and with points distributed. Great help D today. Hope these last two games are preparing us for a San Fran takedown and if the stars align - a WIN at the Kennel would be EPIC.
+1 on multiple callouts of Benjamin above.
Not sure where that came from or if it’s sustainable but he’s making a claim to regain his starting PG role.
He wasn’t shooting it well to begin the season when he was starting but IMO the bigger problems were TO’s, and some poor shot selection and decision making.
I don’t expect, nor do we need Benjamin or even a combination of Benjamin and BK to score 23 (or even 15). There is plenty of scoring and shooting ability elsewhere amongst the rest of the rotation. What we need from our point guards: 1) take care of the basketball and limit TO’s; 2) Deal with half or full court Def pressure when we see it; 3) In half court situations, get the offense organized, help initiate the offense, be a facilitator and help generate opportunities for others with dribble penetration to break down the defense, 4) push the pace when there are potential fast break opportunities; 5) make a 3ptr or two per game w/ a reasonably efficient shooting %, ~35%+…and very important, 6) do a good job defending the opposing point guards, primarily in limiting dribble penetration.
Great to see Benjamin playing well. I don’t see why that can’t continue to be so (maybe not 23 pts a night, but still).
What Sendek needs to do is make this team significantly better with Bal on the floor than they are without him. The fact that they aren’t shows that Sendek has done a disservice to the rest of the team and Bal as well.
It’s not hard. Each player needs a defined role. That role can change as skills improve or decline, but it needs to be clear and tightly adhered to.
Let me first say Bal is the only player on the squad that will be playing in the NBA. That said, he currently is weak with fundamental skills (dribbling, passing, court vision/understanding). If he were just forced to attack the basket immediately every time he touches the ball (meaning he’s not a point guard) he’d likely be one of highest scorers in all of D1 and with a great fg % too.
The dribble dribble 1 on 1 fade aways will serve him well in the future. It just feels like everytime he touches the rock it’s kind of like an NBA tryout. Trust me, none of the scouts cares if he scores 18 points a night at SCU or 33 a night. Once they get him in their gym to take a look at his size, speed, agility and strength they’ll see he’s a 1st rounder.
But, for now, this team should be significantly better when he is on the floor than they are when he’s not. That’s certainly not the case, and that lies solely on Sendek’s shoulders. If he’s got any basketball sense he’s finally seen that in recent games and will resolve that for the better of the team.
Personally, I kind of like him more after that. To me it shows fire, desire, and willingness to fight for it.
That said, I’d be good with no more ejections from this point on.
Can’t say he cost us the SMC game when we were -25 the whole time!
Nothing he has done has totally crossed the line (like that punch by a NMSU player the other night!) . He didn’t get into legal trouble. By all accounts, he’s handled being demoted from the starting guard position quite well.
I’m a believer in second & third chances when it’s merited and I have no reason to think he is undeserving.
