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Username Post: North Carolina        (Topic#22402)
84grad 
Junior
Posts: 277

Age: 64
Reg: 11-09-17
01-02-19 02:17 PM - Post#270821    

En route to NC from NYC. Haven’t been on Franklin Street since I was at Purdy’s bar in 1982 watching Jordan hit the winning shot against Georgetown.

North Carolina has plenty of talent and athleticism.

Well, Towns is pretty athletic. Oh wait ...

Well, Aiken is quick. Oh wait ...

16.5 underdogs last I saw. Gotta hope our depth allows them to keep it closish. For me, it will be interesting to see how Kirkland handles this test. He’ll get his share of turnovers again, but he may love the free flowing style. Also want to see Djuricic, who will have to deal with the big bodies.

Team needs to get some fine tuning out of this game with only 3 more games before the 6 week stretch.




 
HARVARDDADGRAD 
Postdoc
Posts: 2685

Loc: New Jersey
Reg: 01-21-14
01-02-19 04:56 PM - Post#270839    
    In response to 84grad

Hope you enjoy the visit to UNC 84grad. Sorry I'm not there as well.

It's a shame that this game doesn't have the meaning it could have. The coaching staff seems to have set up a masterful OOC schedule. High SOS but with every game winnable. SOS is currently 53rd on KP after reaching as high as #12 a few weeks ago.

The Crimson's 5 losses are by a total of only 25 points, with the largest deficit of 10 points against Northeastern. These losses include games Chris Lewis and Christian Juzang missed in addition to Bryce and Seth.

With Bryce and Seth, this could be an 11-0 or 10-1 squad heading into tonight's contest. Oh well.

Hopefully, the staff can engineer another attractive OOC schedule for next year and - more importantly - the squad can be healthy.

Enjoy the game!

 
PennFan10 
Postdoc
Posts: 3580

Reg: 02-15-15
01-02-19 07:15 PM - Post#270861    
    In response to HARVARDDADGRAD

I am hoping for a surprise return of one or both H4*s!

 
84grad 
Junior
Posts: 277

Age: 64
Reg: 11-09-17
01-02-19 07:27 PM - Post#270863    
    In response to PennFan10

All present and accounted for - except Towns and Aiken. They clearly did not travel with the team on road trip.

 
84grad 
Junior
Posts: 277

Age: 64
Reg: 11-09-17
01-02-19 08:07 PM - Post#270866    
    In response to 84grad

Tough matchup for Djuricic on Maye. No help so far.

 
84grad 
Junior
Posts: 277

Age: 64
Reg: 11-09-17
01-02-19 08:54 PM - Post#270876    
    In response to 84grad

Remarkably bad run for Bassey at FT line. Big on the boards, but I think they didn’t count some of his turnovers. He is forced to handle the ball much on offense. Juzang has clearly improved back to last year’s level after a rough patch early on in the season.

 
84grad 
Junior
Posts: 277

Age: 64
Reg: 11-09-17
01-02-19 09:00 PM - Post#270883    
    In response to 84grad

12 turnovers 1st half turnovers, and we’re not even playing Holy Cross.

 
84grad 
Junior
Posts: 277

Age: 64
Reg: 11-09-17
01-02-19 09:01 PM - Post#270884    
    In response to 84grad

By the way, the Palestra is much better than the Dean Dome. So glad we get to go to New Haven this year

 
section110 
Masters Student
Posts: 847

Loc: south jersey
Reg: 11-22-04
01-02-19 10:11 PM - Post#270916    
    In response to 84grad

Half the seats in the Dean Dome aren't even in the same zip code as the court.

 
SRP 
Postdoc
Posts: 4894

Reg: 02-04-06
01-03-19 03:01 PM - Post#271004    
    In response to section110

Lewis and Bassey are going to make layup attempts challenging for IL teams. They sent back a lot of close-in Tar Heel shots.

 
HARVARDDADGRAD 
Postdoc
Posts: 2685

Loc: New Jersey
Reg: 01-21-14
01-03-19 03:12 PM - Post#271007    
    In response to SRP

Yes, there were some positives, but not enough to overcome a 22-3 second half run and Corey shooting 1-8. Bassey was also the leading rebounder for either team with 11.

Too many TO's without Bryce and Seth to handle the ball and finish.



 
mrjames 
Professor
Posts: 6062

Loc: Montclair, NJ
Reg: 11-21-04
01-03-19 04:08 PM - Post#271011    
    In response to HARVARDDADGRAD

What I really liked last night was that Harvard stood toe-to-toe with UNC in key defensive areas. It sent back 20% of UNC two-pointers and rebounded nearly 80% of UNC misses (even more impressive because blocks tend to be easier for the offense to rebound). UNC pounds teams on the boards on both ends, and Harvard hung in there really, really well.

What was missing was efficient scoring and more importantly creation of good chances. The need to press to get good looks drove another insane turnover rate (29%). Harvard now has nearly the highest turnover rate in the nation.

Aiken returning would go a long way toward helping calm this offense down. He’s fantastic at being high usage with a decent TO rate. Towns would be as well, but he’s less of a creator for others. The offense, though, needs a go-to scorer or two that can do so without turning the ball over at high rates. Whether or not Aiken (and Towns) can return feels like the biggest story across the league as we approach the start of Ivy play.

 
HARVARDDADGRAD 
Postdoc
Posts: 2685

Loc: New Jersey
Reg: 01-21-14
01-03-19 05:33 PM - Post#271013    
    In response to mrjames

Thanks Mike. My instincts and observations pale in comparison to your analytics!

 
SRP 
Postdoc
Posts: 4894

Reg: 02-04-06
01-03-19 08:22 PM - Post#271024    
    In response to HARVARDDADGRAD

What Mike said is pretty much what I was thinking, although my opinion of Aiken as a facilitator isn't quite as high. Harvard looked long and athletic and deep and hard-working in this game but short of skill and finesse on offense, especially in the backcourt.

Even if the two stars do not return the Crimson will be difficult to score on. I was a little surprised that they didn't play more of the zone with Lewis in the middle underneath, given that UNC was not lighting it up from outside and Lewis was able to neutralize them inside when he was close enough to influence the play.

 
84grad 
Junior
Posts: 277

Age: 64
Reg: 11-09-17
01-03-19 08:44 PM - Post#271027    
    In response to SRP

Forbes continues to play well. He did a nice job on Maye on a number of possessions.

Wasn’t going to work having all 4 freshman on the court at the same time against NC. But the rebounding and blocked shots by the team during the game were very impressive. (The NC fans around me at the game were very surprised by the blocks). And they did a good job getting back against a team that can really push the ball and punish you.

Eliminating a chunk of turnovers in Ivy play will make things a lot better. Aiken or Towns would ensure a much lower TO rate.

 
84grad 
Junior
Posts: 277

Age: 64
Reg: 11-09-17
01-03-19 08:50 PM - Post#271028    
    In response to 84grad

By the way, nice move by Harvard at the game. I was sitting upstairs with my Harvard sweatshirt and someone (may have been Jonathan Walton-guess?) came upstairs and gave me a ticket for a seat downstairs. Great and much appreciated upgrade! Classy.

 
digamma 
Masters Student
Posts: 466

Loc: Minneapolis
Reg: 11-27-11
01-03-19 09:03 PM - Post#271029    
    In response to 84grad

I had a great experience in Chapel Hill as well. Can only echo what others have said about scoring and efficiency. Close (as in Bryce and Seth close) to being a really compelling team. And love the fearlessness that this team has.

 
bradley 
PhD Student
Posts: 1842

Age: 74
Reg: 01-15-16
01-03-19 11:06 PM - Post#271051    
    In response to mrjames

I remember reading about the high expectations for Spencer Freedman. Is it a function that he is a freshmen or is it a skill level issue or both?

As an outside observer, Harvard is truly outstanding on defense but does not appear to have a go to guy to put the ball in the basket. Towns has one on one ability and shoots to a high percentage unlike Aikens. If there was only one of the two available as an opposing coach, my inclination would be to face Aikens vs. Towns but it is a moot point. It is unfortuate that Harvard does not have two very talented players on the court.

 
SomeGuy 
Professor
Posts: 6391

Reg: 11-22-04
01-04-19 10:47 AM - Post#271066    
    In response to bradley

I’ll make an outside observation as well (I’m a Penn fan). While Harvard would obviously be better with one or both of Towns and Aiken, I am very impressed by how they play without them. I’m particularly impressed by Bassey, who seems to be a glue guy who just does whatever isn’t being done by the other players on the floor. Also impressed and surprised by what Juzang has become. Like Silpe for Penn, you could see a scenario where he could have been buried by more talented guys around him (and for Juzang in his own class). But he has been there to step into the void when guys went down, has worked to play a position that it initially looked like he wasn’t ready for last year, and now looks like it will be very hard to keep him off the court next year when everyone is healthy. Easy group to root for watching them represent the league against UNC yesterday.



 
HARVARDDADGRAD 
Postdoc
Posts: 2685

Loc: New Jersey
Reg: 01-21-14
01-04-19 11:10 AM - Post#271068    
    In response to bradley

You make a very good point, compounded by the fact that Harvard's ball movement offense and Coach Amaker's approach tend to lead to shots occurring late in the 30 second possession. With that approach, the last player with the ball needs to have the ability to make his own shot opportunity.

In recent years, players like Siyani Chambers, Wes Saunders and now Seth and Bryce filled that role effectively. As you point out, without Seth and Bryce the team does appear not to have determined who its 'go to' option is. In view of this, maybe the Crimson need to be more willing to take an open shot earlier in a possession. The inside out offense that Coach Amaker prefers eats up a lot of time during a possession.

As for current options, Christian is phenomenal from long range (see Tournament game vs Cornell), although he tends to come forward on his jump shot. Noah likely has the best combination of ability to drive or take a step back from outside the arc. Justin and Danilo can shoot and drive, but they don't have a consistent step back three, usually shooting after receiving a pass in rotation.

Spencer Freedman is a question mark. He is skilled and smart, but neither strong nor exceptionally quick. I've noticed that he is able to penetrate but has his head up looking to pass rather than score. Siyani used to play like that, not that there is any comparison yet. Thus far, my sense is that Spencer is a point guard who is limited by his size and thus is reluctant to shoot in traffic. He is an amazing free throw shooter and can hit 3's when given time and space. Hopefully, he will figure out how to take advantage of his strengths with experience.

In this very competitive Ivy year, either someone on this squad needs to take things to another level or Bryce and/or Seth need to return healthy. Otherwise, as you pointed out, Harvard has yet to develop the leader that it will need to win the inevitable series of close games that await them in the coming weeks.

A related issue is free throw shooting. At this juncture Christian (77%, but 89% last year) and Chris (much improved at 74%) are respectable. Justin, an 82% FT shooter last season, has become an issue at 50%. Likely that is due to fatigue as he plays more minutes than anyone else on the squad and is the most active defender and rebounder.

In addition to being able to create and shoot in tough situations, Bryce (85%) and Seth (81%) are the Crimson's best FT shooters. That's a big deal late in a game. If they return and Justin reverts to past FT%, Harvard could field an amazing FT shooting team, with guys like Corey Johnson (87.5% last season) and Spencer Friedman (100% this season) available as well.

This is clearly a competitive roster even without Bryce and Seth, but their return will be welcomed.

 
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