College Hoops 2k8: A New Challenge

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Only way I'm leaving Simmons and this team is if I get an offer to go to a Power Conference team.

Good news to me.

Once you do decide to leave, Niagara will be able to get a higher-caliber coach now since the team prestige is higher, correct?

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Galaxy

Good news to me.

Once you do decide to leave, Niagara will be able to get a higher-caliber coach now since the team prestige is higher, correct?

Honestly, I'm not sure how much that will help the team get a good coach. I do know that the assistants on my staff (who I've forgotten to talk about) are much better than when I first arrived.

[Balldog]

Unfortunately I think the way it works is you have to progress to another job before you'll get offered by a power conference. You'll probably have to leave Niagara to go to a school in the Atlantic 10, Conference USA, WAC, etc. That's the way its worked previously anyway.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Balldog

Unfortunately I think the way it works is you have to progress to another job before you'll get offered by a power conference. You'll probably have to leave Niagara to go to a school in the Atlantic 10, Conference USA, WAC, etc. That's the way its worked previously anyway.

Darn I did get offers from some A-10 and Conference USA teams last year. However, I thought in the 2k7 version I jumped from a mid-major school right to Duke (and it was surprisingly early in my career as well)

[Balldog]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Darn I did get offers from some A-10 and Conference USA teams last year. However, I thought in the 2k7 version I jumped from a mid-major school right to Duke (and it was surprisingly early in my career as well)

I could be wrong but from my experience that is how it works.

[Eaglesfan27]

We start off well against Marist, but then they go on a 10-0 run. They are up 19-15 with 11:12 to go as I bring in my bench. Hannan has been our leading scorer with 8. Noel has been their primary weapon on the run.

Down 34-29 with 4:41 minutes to go. Our bench ran a lot, but they ran better.

A few turnovers and they go on another 12-0 run. We are down 49-32 at the half. None of our 3 pointers are falling on the road today.


Hannan is our leading scorer with 8. Noel has 12 points and 6 assists for Marist at the half.


We try to run most of the first 9 minutes of the 2nd half. We cut it to 7 twice, but as our starters rest we are down 65-56 with 10:13 to go.


At one point we had it down to a 4 point deficit, but we are down 79-64 after a 10-0 run before I get my starters back in with 4:31 to go.

We lose the game 85-68.

Augustine, their SG, had 22 points, 4 boards, and 3 assists as the player of the game. He shot 8 of 15, 4 of 8 from the arc.

Noel abused Simmons' weak defense as he had 21 points, 9 assists, 3 steals, and 3 turnovers. He shot 9 of 16, 3 of 4 from the arc.

Sweetney and Smith each had 13 points for them on the interior.


Hannan was our only player in double digits with 22 points, 2 boards, 2 steals, and 3 turnovers. He shot 10 of 16, 2 of 4, and 0 of 0.

Simmons had 7 points, 4 assists, and 3 turnovers. He shot 1 of 8, 0 of 3, and 5 of 6.

Gill with 4 points, 2 boards, 2 steals, and a block. He shot 2 of 5.

Cornette with 8 points, 3 boards, 3 assists, and 2 steals. He shot 3 of 10.

Clifford with 5 points, 9 boards, and 2 assists. He shot 2 of 6.


Waters with 8 points off the bench and Bowers with 6 points and 4 boards.


There went our chance to climb into the polls this week.

[Eaglesfan27]

Our next game is hosting 6-2 Fairfield. Fairfield has 2 stars in SR PG Micah Ubaka and JR C Donta Strickland. They are only averaging 65 ppg, but they are playing very tough defense. Ubaka is their leading scorer at 12.5 ppg and Strickland is 2nd at 11.4 ppg. Ubaka is averaging just under 6 apg and is shooting 42% from the arc and 45% from the floor. They are vulnerable to the fast break as they focus on crashing the boards at both ends. Defensively, they primarily use a 2-3 defense that we could exploit from the outside.

[Eaglesfan27]

Wth a drive to the hoop, Gill gets a 2nd foul on Strickland with 15 minute to go in the half. We are up 14-4.

We are up 26-7 with 9:45 to go in the half as our starters rest. Hannan with 16 so far, as he is posting up his much smaller defender with success and hitting outside jumpers.

4:18 to go and we are up 33-16 as our starters return.


At halftime, we are leading 39-20.


Hannan is the player of the half with 18 points and 3 steals. He has shot 7 of 9, 2 of 2, and 2 of 3.

Simmons also had a nice half with 4 points, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 0 turnovers. Although he has shot only 2 of 7.


First minute of the 2nd half, Hannan draws a 3rd foul on their center who sits again.


The 2nd half was a thing of beauty. Hannan scored the first few baskets so they started double teaming him. He started kicking it out of double teams and we worked around to the open man. As a result, everyone started hitting shots. We are up 64-36 with 9:39 to go as I rest my starters, probably for the rest of the game.


We win the game 72-49.

Hannan was the player of the game with 26 points, 2 boards, 1 assist, and 4 steals. He shot 10 of 16, 3 of 5, and 3 of 4.

Simmons finished with 17 points, 9 assists, 3 steals, and 2 turnovers. He shot 8 of 18, 1 of 5, and 0 of 0.

Gill with 12 points, 2 assists, 1 block, and generally very good defense. He shot 5 of 8, 0 of 1, and 2 of 2.

Cornette with 2 points, 10 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. He shot 1 of 3.

Clifford with 7 boards, 1 assist, and 2 blocks.

Li led the bench with 8 points. Waters with 2 points and 4 assists.

[Eaglesfan27]

After the game, Daon Wentt signed with us. He should be a solid scoring threat for us within 2 years.

We lost another SF that I liked as Nigel Foster chose to go to Rutgers.


The early signing period is now over, and we'll try to battle for 2 4 star players towards the end of the year.


Our next game is against the 1-7 Holy Cross Crusaders. They are a very weak team whose best player is Center Blankenship, but he is undersized. Their SF and PF are very poor players. Their PG and SG are decent. Their top scorer is their center who is averaging 10.1 ppg. Defensively, they primarily play M2M, so I expect huge games from Hannan and Cornette. Their offensive efficiency ranking is 260th in the nation and defensively they are ranked 335th in efficiency.

[Eaglesfan27]

We are up 24-15 with 10:37 to go as our bench comes in. As predicted, Cornette is completely dominating his man and our offense is running through him right now.

I'm unhappy with both unit's defensive effort and performance, but we are still up 37-28 as we bring in our starters with 3:52 to go in the half.


At the half, we are up 47-34. We'll miss Cornette's post ability next year, and really should use him more this year, like we have in this game. Cornette is the player of the half with 13 points, 3 assists, 1 board, 1 steal, and 1 block. He is 5 of 7 from the field and 3 of 3 from the line.

Simmons with 4 points and 5 assists, but he is only shooting 2 of 7.

Hannan had only 2 points in the first half, but he came to play in the 2nd half. He personally scores us a 12-0 run as we start putting it away.

When I pull my starters, we are up 72-52 with 8:43 to go in the game.


With 2:34 to go and a comfortable lead, I get Bitee and Cox into the game for the first time this year. We are up 75-58.

Cox with a 3 and 2 boards in the mop up duty. I need to get him more time.. he could be an important bench player next year as could Bitee.


We win the game 78-64.


Cornette is the player of the game with 17 points, 5 boards, 5 assists, 3 steals, and a block. He shot 7 of 13, and 3 of 3 from the line.

Hannan with 18 points, 5 boards, 1 assist, and a steal. He shot 7 of 12, 0 of 3, and 4 of 5.

Simmons with 6 points, 7 assists, 3 steals, and 3 turnovers. He shot 3 of 9.

Gill with 12 points, 4 assists, 2 boards, and 2 steals. He shot 5 of 7 and 2 of 3 from the arc.

Clifford with 6 points, 5 boards, and 3 blocks.

Li led the bench with 7, Bowers with 5 points and 4 boards, Willis with 4 points. Waters had 0 points and only 1 assist.

[Eaglesfan27]

In a fun scheduling quirk, we play an OOC opponent for the 2nd time as we are scheduled to host Saint Joseph's who we played in the preseason tourney. I believe I'll probably have a much harder time with their outside shooters this time.

[Eaglesfan27]

A tremendous effort from Hannan has us tied at 20 with 7:45 to go, but our starters are exhausted.


We go into the half down 38-29. Hannan with an incredible game before he got tired, and then we just couldn't hang with their talented bench.

Hannan with 13 points, 2 boards, 1 steal, and 1 block on 6 of 8 shooting.


Simmons with 3 points and 5 assists, but he is 0 of 5 from the floor.


We are down 56-35 with 12 minutes to go. Simmons just can't get his shot to fall and Hannan is being guarded much better in the 2nd half. No one else is stepping up and they are getting some transition points as well.


We end up losing the game 93-58.

Hannan led our team with 19 points, 4 boards, 1 steal, and 1 block. He shot 8 of 18.

Simmons finished with 7 points and 7 assists. He shot 1 of 12.

Gill with 7 points on 2 of 4 shooting.

Cornette with 0 points and 8 boards on 0 of 6 shooting.

Bowers led the bench with 8 points. Waters with 6 points and 2 assists.

[Eaglesfan27]

Next up is a game hosting an 8-4 Yale team that is the class of the Ivy League, but is still relatively weak compared to my team. They are relatively strong at center with a young sophomore named Rickey Osborne. They also have a solid PG and PF. However, they are very weak at SF and I expect Hannan to have a huge game. Osborne is their leading scorer at 10.6 ppg. He is also their leading rebounder at 9 rpg. They are running mainly a 3-2 zone defense that I hope to find some seams to drive into. Their offensive efficiency is 170th in the nation and their defensive efficiency is 149th.

[Eaglesfan27]

We are up 15-11 as the bench comes in with 11:39 to go in the half.


Our bench has a 7-0 run to put us up 27-22 befoe our starters return with 5:20 to go in the half.

A very nice last 5 minutes. We go into the half up 37-25.

Hannan is the player of the half with 7 points, 2 boards, 2 assists, and a steal.


Simmons taking over the game in the 2nd half after a poor 1st half. We are up 59-41 with 9:42 to go.


We are up 65-54 with 3:52 to go as our starters return to the game.

With 2:06 to go, Simmons fouls out of the game. We are up 67-56.

We win the game 73-63.


Hannan is the player of the game with 20 points, 3 board, 2 assist, and 3 steals. He shot 6 of 14, 4 of 8, and 4 of 4.

Simmons with 16 points, 6 assists, 1 board, and 1 steal. He shot 7 of 17, 1 of 4, and 1 of 2.

Gill only had 2 points, 2 boards, 1 assist, and 1 steal, but he played good defense.

Cornette with 8 points, 9 boards, 2 assists, and 2 steals. He shot 2 of 4 and 4 of 4 from the line.

Clifford with 8 points, 9 boards, and a block. He shot 4 of 4.

Waters led the bench with 8 points and 2 assists.

[Eaglesfan27]

Our last OOC game is at Cal State Northridge. They are 5-6, but are a talented team. Their PG and SG are young and relatively untalented, but their front court is strong arcross the board with their PF Frashon Sampson being their best player. Frashon is averaging an impressive 17.9 ppg this year and 7.2 rpg. He is shooting almost 50% from the floor. They love to run and constantly try to press the attack and fast break. They also tend to run a full court trap and play an aggress 3-2 defense. They tend to crash the offensive boards and are susceptible to the fast break.

[Eaglesfan27]

We are down 18-15 with 11:45 to go as our starters get a break.

We are tied at 28 with 5:51 to go as I bring back our starters.


We are down 40-37 at the half. Hannan and Simmons each have 8 to lead our team.


We are up 60-58 behind balancing scoring from Cornette and Hannan. 11:34 to go as we rest our starters.


Up 69-68 with 5:40 to go. Waters is shooting so well that he will stay in the game and Simmons will play some SG with Gill resting longer.

Simmons has hit his first 3 shots at SG, but Hannan misses a shot as does Cornette and they take a lead on a 3. 77-74 with 2:54 to go.

Simmons misses a 3, and they get a breakway dunk and the foul.


Hannan with a quick 12 footer to make it 80-76.

We get a stop and then a fastbreak basket trigger by Waters to Hannan who slams it home! Down by 2 now. 1:12 to go.

I worried by our guard play defensively, but they have been solid these few minutes. Clifford on the other hand is getting worked by their center who slams it home off the spin move.

Simmons with a quick 3 on the other end to make it 82-81, down by 1.

We get a defensive stop, and then Waters to Simmons for another 3! 84-82. Simmons is shooting so much better as he gets himself space when he doesn't have the ball. 16 seconds left.

They try a 3 to win it at the buzzer and it rims out!

Hannan is the player of the game with 22 points, 3 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 1 turnover. He shot 8 of 14, 2 of 4, and 4 of 5.

Simmons with 19 points (mostly down the stretch while playing SG), 4 assists, and 2 turnovers. He shot 7 of 13, 5 of 9 from the arc, and 0 of 0 from the line.

Gill with 2 points, 2 boards, 2 assists, and a block. His man had 18 points for the game which is the most he has allowed all year.

Cornette with 17 points, 2 boards, and 3 assists. He shot 8 of 11, 1 of 2, and 0 of 1.

Clifford with 2 points, 11 boards, and 2 blocks.

Willis led the bench with 5 points and 5 boards.


That was our last OOC game this year.

[Eaglesfan27]

Our coaching staff believes that Waters has shown the most growth this year, although plenty of other players are improving some. After the success we just had, I'm going to give Waters more time with Simmons sliding to SG more often in upcoming games, although Simmons will start at PG each game.

[Eaglesfan27]

Our next game is hosting 9-4 Rider. They are close to us in talent and are led by a very talented center, Daren Benson. The senior could be tough to stop as he does a lot well and is averaging over 21 ppg. He is also averaging just under 10 rpg. We'll double him if Clifford has trouble. They tend to sag off shooters, so I'm expecting a good day for our outside shooters. They are 132rd in offensive efficiency and 16th in defensive efficiency. They are only allowing opposing teams to shoot 37% against them and holding most teams under 60ppg. I hope to shatter both of those today.

[Eaglesfan27]

About 2 minutes into the game Clifford and Benson collide as Benson tried to slam it on the break.. Benson is hurt. That should make things easier for our team.

With 9:57 to go, they bring back in Benson while I sit my starters. We are up 22-11 with Hannan having scored 12 points.


My bench played extremely well. We are up 35-14 with 4:48 to go. I decide to leave Gus Waters in and have Gill rest more. Simmons will play SG for the rest of the half or until Waters gets tired.

Simmons misses the few shots from SG.

We go into the half up 39-21.

Hannan is the player of the half with 12 points, 1 board, and 2 steals. He is shooting 5 of 10. Simmons has 6 points (all from when he was playing PG.)

Benson is their leading scorer with 6 points.


Benson has gotten 3 fouls on Cornette, but I'm leaving him in with 15 minutes to go.

With 7:51 to go and a 25 point lead, I pull my starters. We are up 67-42.


We win the game 78-51.

Hannan is the player of the game with 33 points, 4 boards, 1 assist, 4 steals, and 3 turnovers. He shot 14 of 22, 1 of 5, and 4 of 4.

Simmons with 9 points, 3 boards, 3 assists, and 1 steal. He shot 3 of 9, 1 of 3, and 2 of 2.

Gill with 4 points, 2 assists, and a steal in 22 minutes.

Cornette with 4 points, 9 boards, 3 asssits, 1 steal, and 1 block.

Clifford with 2 points, 8 boards, and a block.


Bowers led the bench with 9. Willis had 6 points and 4 boards. Wayers with 5 points, 3 assists, and 2 steals in just 18 minutes.

[Eaglesfan27]

At 13-2 we still haven't cracked the top 25 in either of the major polls. We are #2 in the Mid Major Poll, behind only Nevada who is 11-1.


On the recruiting front, we are facing stiff competition. The top center that we have locked in on, Randall Rodgers, is being heavily recruited by Michigan State. If they don't pull out of the race for him, we have no shot as he is from Detroit and appears to idolize them.

However, we are the top option of our backup plan (and I would take both rather than pull out on his kid) Andy Matera.


Meanwhile, we are well behind Rutgers for Karron Acker, the 6'4 SF who is Mr. Basketball in Connecticut. I probably should give up, but hopefully Rutgers will change their mind for some reason.

We are also far behind on our other 4 star prospect, 6'4 SG Garik Blizzard. GW is his top choice by a wide margin, but for some reason they haven't offered him a scholarship yet. He averaged over 16 ppg in the ABL this past season and appears to be a big time scorer.


Our next game is hosting Marist who beat us earlier in the year 85-68 when we tried running with them and were continually beat down the court. They are now 10-3. Their PG and PF are both big time players. SF Augustine is a dangerous shooter who is their leading scorer at 16 ppg. PG Noel is averaging 14 ppg and 6 apg. PF Sweetney is averaging 14 ppg and 6.5 rpg. Augustine is shooting 50% from the arc. They are 47th in offensive efficiency and 68th in defensive efficiency. We need to do a much better job handling their full court trap this game.

[Galaxy]

I haven't played this game in a while, does the game show honorable mention votes?

[Eaglesfan27]

No, I don't believe it does.

[JetsIn06]

Keep it up EF27! Your dynasties are always inspire me to write my own. Check out my OKC Thunder dynasty...I think once I get bored with that I'll do one for CH2K8.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by JetsIn06

Keep it up EF27! Your dynasties are always inspire me to write my own. Check out my OKC Thunder dynasty...I think once I get bored with that I'll do one for CH2K8.

I will. I'm having a blast with this game again. Wife has to leave tonight for a doctor's appointment in New Orleans early in the AM, so I'll be playing our next game tonight.

[Eaglesfan27]

We are down 20-17 with 9:35 to go as we bring in our subs. Simmons has had a solid first 10 minutes and has 7 points to lead our team.

Waters is playing their star, Noel, so well that I'm leaving him in as I did the last few games and Gill will rest with Simmons playing SG. We are up 26-23 with 4:19 to go.

A minute later, Simmons with a steal, he passes it to Waters who leads a 2-on-1 break with Hannan.. he passes to Hannan for the 1 handed jam! 30-23.

At the half, we are up 40-27 as we had a great last 4 minutes.


Simmons is the player of the half with 14 points, 2 boards, and 2 assists. He has shot 5 of 9, 2 of 4, and 2 of 2.

Cornette also had a very good 1st half with 7 points and 7 boards.


We got caught up in trying to run and gun, as well as we missed a lot of shots (Simmons is the only one hitting somewhat consistently tonight.) As a result, we are only up 52-48 with 9:44 to go as our starters rest.

Waters with brilliant play the last 7 minutes, sets up Bowers and Chen for some easy baskets (especially Bowers who has been deadly from the arc.) We are up 63-54 with 3:45 to go. We go to our modified starting lineup.

They never get closer than 5 as we win the game 66-61.

Simmons is the player of the game with 25 points, 2 boards, 2 assists, and 2 steals. That is a new career high in points for him. He shot 8 of 16, 4 of 10, and 5 of 7.

Gill with 3 points and an assist.

Hannan with 9 points, 3 boards, 3 assists, and 2 steals. He shot 4 of 13 including 1 of 4 from the arc.

Cornette with 7 points, 10 boards, 3 assists, and a block. He ended up shooting 3 of 10.

Clifford with 0 points and 10 boards.


Waters with 7 points and 6 assists in 20 minutes. He shot 3 of 6 including 1 of 2 from the arc.

Bowers with 8 points on 3 of 5 shooting, 2 of 3 from the arc.










We are now 14-2 and play at Manhattan next. They are 4-9 and at the opposite end of the conference standings. Their starting PG and SG are 2 of the worst freshman we've faced all year. Their SF and PF are decent, but their center is very untalented as well. They are averaging just 54 ppg and are shooting 35% from the floor. Their top scorer is PF Glen Murry who is averaging 11 ppg. He is their leading rebounder at 7.5 as well. They run pimarily a M2M defense and I expect our guards to tear them apart. They are 292nd in offensive efficiency and 322nd in defensive efficiency. They are giving up almost 80 ppg and are allowing teams to shoot over 47% from the field. I'll play that game tomorrow.

[Eaglesfan27]

Some of our player's season averages:

Hannan leads the team with 20.6 ppg. He is also averaging just over 3 rpg, 1 apg, and 2 steals per game. He is shooting 55% from the floor and 36% from the arc. He is shooting 82% from the arc.

Simmons is our only other starter averaging double digits. He is averaging 12.9 ppg, 6.2 apg, 1.6 spg, and 1 rpg. He is shooting 38% from the field and 33% from the arc. He is shooting 70% from the line.

Bowers leads our team in 3 pt efficiency as he is shooting 45% from the arc. He is averaging 7.5 ppg which is 5th on the team (Cornette is 3rd and Gill is 4th.) He is also averaging 1.6 rpg and 1 steal per game.

Clifford is our leading rebounder at 8.9 per game. He is also our leading shot blocker at 1 per game.


Our staff thinks Hannan has developed the most of any player on our roster this year. Most of the guys are improving, but somewhat concerningly they fell that Lisinic hasn't learned almost anything since arriving on campus. I'm counting on him to be a contributor next year.

[Balldog]

Have you thought about using Yoshi's custom playbooks over at OS? They've taken the game to a whole new level for me.

[Eaglesfan27]

As expected, Manhattan comes out with M2M defense and Simmons just obliterates his man. He sets up so many easy points for himself and others with quick drives into the lane. However, our defense plays pathetic as everyone focuses on scoring and no one plays solid on ball defense. We are up 34-19 in our highest scoring first 10 minutes ever. I bring in the bench and expect much better defense and a slower pace.

With 4:10 to go, the starters return to the game. We are up 41-27.


At the half, we are up 49-33.


Hannan is the player of the half with 22 points and 1 board.

Simmons has 11 points and 6 assists.



The offense is incredible again to start the 2nd half, but the defense remains terrible. We are up 71-52 with 9:41 to go as we turn to our bench.


We win the game 87-64 as our bench finished the game.


Hannan is the player of the game with 36 points, 3 boards, and a block. He shot 14 of 21, 3 of 4, and 5 of 6. He just missed his career high by 1 point.

Simmons wth 11 points, 8 assists, and a steal He shot 5 of 7 including 1 of 2 from the arc.

Gill with 7 points, 3 boards, and a steal.

Cornette was the only player who provided good defense. He had 9 points, 6 boards, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 4 blocks (a career high.)
Clifford with 1 point, 11 boards, and 1 assist.


Li led the bench with 12 points. Bowers had 7 points and 2 boards. Waters with 2 points and 4 assists.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Balldog

Have you thought about using Yoshi's custom playbooks over at OS? They've taken the game to a whole new level for me.

No, I honestly haven't even read about them. I think maybe I read something he did for NBA 2k9? In any case, your recommendation is enough that I'll definitely check them out sometime soon.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Balldog

Have you thought about using Yoshi's custom playbooks over at OS? They've taken the game to a whole new level for me.

I just read about them. Are you using different ones for each game, or just using the balanced one for each team? I'm definitely interested in giving them a try.

[Galaxy]

15-2 is quite an accomplishment so far. Hopefully you'll crack the Top 25.

I'm guessing you'll be a hot commodity in the off-season when the schools start searching for new head coaches.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Galaxy

15-2 is quite an accomplishment so far. Hopefully you'll crack the Top 25.

I'm guessing you'll be a hot commodity in the off-season when the schools start searching for new head coaches.

I hope so. As much as I like Simmons, I want to move to a big program and hopefully eventually get to USC (I think Floyd has been there this entire career.) However, I'm thinking Balldog is right and I may have to go to 1 more stepping stone before I get a power conference. I've had some great seasons lately, and not gotten offers from big schools. Then again, I haven't had a deep tourney run. With this group, that might be a possibility this year, and maybe that will get me a big time offer.

Even with Simmons, I think things are going to be tough after this year as I really think I have so many underrated parts that will be graduating - Bowers is the perfect instant offense guy off the bench. Cornette is such a reliable guy on the inside with his defense and scoring when we need it. Clifford is a steady interior defensive presence, same for Ziri. Of course, Hannan is gone after this year. His ability to hit 3's, midrange, and drive for dunks is unrivaled on our squad and I really think he is the best player I've coached in this career. Not to mention his size will be missed. We'll have a huge hole at SF next year as Lisinic isn't developing quickly unless I get a big recruit this year to jump over him in the depth chart for next year.

[Eaglesfan27]

Our next game is at Saint Peter's. They will be using a custom offensive playbook, so it will be interesting to see how much more challenging that makes them. They are 6-8 and aren't very talented. Their PG and SG are both their weakest players. Their center and PF aren't bad at all. Amous, their PF, is their leading scorer at 14 ppg. Doellman, their SF, is their leading rebounder at just under 8 per game. Haynes, the SG, is their leading assist man at just over 3 per game. They generally focus on working the ball inside. Defensively, they tend to run a M2M defense. They are 156th in offensive efficiency and 237th in defensive efficiency. They are averaging 66 ppg and shooting 42%. They are giving up 69 ppg and allowing teams to shoot just over 42%.

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

I hope so. As much as I like Simmons, I want to move to a big program and hopefully eventually get to USC (I think Floyd has been there this entire career.) However, I'm thinking Balldog is right and I may have to go to 1 more stepping stone before I get a power conference. I've had some great seasons lately, and not gotten offers from big schools. Then again, I haven't had a deep tourney run. With this group, that might be a possibility this year, and maybe that will get me a big time offer.

Even with Simmons, I think things are going to be tough after this year as I really think I have so many underrated parts that will be graduating - Bowers is the perfect instant offense guy off the bench. Cornette is such a reliable guy on the inside with his defense and scoring when we need it. Clifford is a steady interior defensive presence, same for Ziri. Of course, Hannan is gone after this year. His ability to hit 3's, midrange, and drive for dunks is unrivaled on our squad and I really think he is the best player I've coached in this career. Not to mention his size will be missed. We'll have a huge hole at SF next year as Lisinic isn't developing quickly unless I get a big recruit this year to jump over him in the depth chart for next year.

Just curious, how has USC been doing? Can you get multiple offers at one time?

[Eaglesfan27]

We are down 13-11 with 11:40 to go as our starters get a break. Simmons is leading the team with 5.


Our shots just didn't fall for the next 6 minutes, but the defense from the bench was very disappointing. We are down 24-15 with just under 6 minutes to go.

GREAT defense from our starters over the next 5-6 minutes. We are down 27-25. We've gotten some great open shots, but they are just rimming out.

Their PF is the player of the half with 8 points. Hannan has 10 points and 4 boards. Simmons has 7 points and an assist.

A rough game has our starters tired. We go to the bench with 13:27 to go. We are down 39-37.

Our bench plays very well, so well that I leave them in longer than I planned on.. all of the shots that were missing before are falling and we are attacking the basket much more effectively. We are up 56-51 with just under 5 minutes to go as our starters come back into the game completely refreshed.

With 2:24 to go, they make it 59-58, we lead.


After Simmons misses an open 3, they hit a 12 footer to give them the lead. We come down the court, run a play for Hannan who hits a 14 footer from the wing. 61-60. 1:12 to go.

They try to pound it inside (which they have been doing all day) but Cornette blocks Amous shot! The carom goes to their SG who throws up a desperation 3 with the clock running out... it is short.. Clifford with the board.. They immediately foul him.

Despite his usual poor FT shooting, he hits them both to put us up 63-60! 29 seconds left.

Doellman comes off a screen and hits a 3 immediately! Tied at 63. We'll try to work the clock down before running our play.

We get Hannan a decent look at a 3 with 2 seconds left.. he misses it a bit long. We are going to OT.


They hit the first basket from just inside the arc. We respond with a Hannan 3. Their next shot produces an over the back foul on the attempted offensive tip. Gill hits both FT's to put up 68-65 with 3:44 to go.

They draw the foul inside and get to the line. Moreno, their backup PF, has done good job of this today. He only hits 1 FT.

Our next possession, we post up Hannan against a much smaller defender.. he gets good possession and hits an easy fadeaway over him. 70-66.

Cornette with a steal inside. We work the clock down and then give it to Hannan on the perimeter.. he beats his man with a quick crossover dribble and drives to the rim where he is fouled. He hits both FT's to make it 72-66.

Doellman with a 3.. he is a better shooter than I anticipated. Simmons gets a screen.. drives to the hoop and misses the layup. At the other end, Amous with a quick inside basket to make it 72-71.

Hannan misses an open 3, but Cornette gets the offensive board. We kick it out... work it around.. another 3 by Hannan.. another miss.. another Cornette offensive board! 55 seconds left now.

Simmons with a drive into the lane.. kicks it out to a WIDE open Hannan.. he hits the 3 this time!!

They go for the immediate 3.. they miss.. Hannan gets the board.. Simmons is breaking up the court.. Hannan with the perfect pass and Simmons dunks it home! 77-71.

Haynes gets a 3 to keep the game barely alive. 14 seconds left.

We get it to Hannan who is intentionally fouled. He hits both FT's. 79-74. They miss the quick 3 and we finish it of.

79-74 win.


Hannan is the player of the game with 29 points, 5 boards, 1 assist, and 1 block. He shot 9 of 19, 3 of 8, and 8 of 8 from the line.


Simmons with 11 points, 2 boards, 3 assists, and 1 steal. He shot 5 of 14, 0 of 4, and 1 of 2.

Gill with 8 points and 2 assists. Corentte with 4 points, 7 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 3 blocks.

Clifford with 4 points, 9 boards, and 2 assists.

Waters led the bench with 11 points and 2 assists.

Bowers had 6 points and Willis had 4.


Amous led them with 18 points and 7 boards on 9 of 12 shooting.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Galaxy

Just curious, how has USC been doing? Can you get multiple offers at one time?

Yes, you can see every team that is interested in you. You can also see the top 5 (or 6) coaches that each school is interested in. I haven't even been making the top 5 of big schools in previous years.

USC is doing poorly this year (but has done well the last few years.) They are currently 8-7 overall and 0-3 in the Pac-10. UCLA and Stanford are the two main powers in the Pac-10 this year with Stanford having the best record at 14-1 (and being ranked 4th in the polls.)

[Eaglesfan27]

At 16-2, we aren't in any polls yet except for the Mid Major Poll where we remain #2 behind #1 Nevada who is 14-1 now.

[Eaglesfan27]

Our next game is hosting Loyola(MD.) They are 12-4 and 4-2 in the conference. They have a very talented offense and a good defense. They are averaging 79 ppg and shooting 46%. They are only giving up 61 ppg and holding opponents to 37%. They have a big advantage over us at both guard spots and their PF and C are both formidable as well. Galos, their PF, is averaging 16 ppg. Belser their SG is averaging 13 ppg while playing the point a fair bit. He is also their leading assist man at 5 a game. Belser is shooting almost 50% from the arc. They play very tight M2M defense.

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Yes, you can see every team that is interested in you. You can also see the top 5 (or 6) coaches that each school is interested in. I haven't even been making the top 5 of big schools in previous years.

USC is doing poorly this year (but has done well the last few years.) They are currently 8-7 overall and 0-3 in the Pac-10. UCLA and Stanford are the two main powers in the Pac-10 this year with Stanford having the best record at 14-1 (and being ranked 4th in the polls.)

Pretty cool. I need to get back into this game (I've only played two seasons or so). If this game have the multiplayer feature of NCAA Football, it would be incredible. Anyways, go Eagles!

[Eaglesfan27]

A physical first 7 minutes. Simmons picks up his 2nd foul and most of my starters are tired, so we go to the bench. Tied at 10.

Waters is having an unreal shooting performance. We are up 23-20 with 5:48 to go. Waters will remain in the game until he cools off, but all of my other starters return with Gill continuing to remain on the bench.

A great last 6 minutes from our starters. We are up 37-27 at the half.


Hannan is the player of the half with 8 points, 5 boards, and an assist.

Cornette also has 8 points. Waters has 10, and Simmons has 7.


We start off with an 8-0 run in which we were running well against them, but they recover with a 6-0 run of their own. We go to Hannan in the post to end that run.

We go off on another small run. With 9:35 to go, we are up 59-42 as our starters rest.

Waters isn't hitting shots as much anymore. We lose some of our lead, but are still up 64-52 with 3:44 to go as I bring back our starters.

Our starters nail the door shut. 77-54 win!


Cornette is the player of the game with a very well rounded performance. 15 points, 9 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. He also played great defense in the interior. He held his opponent to 4 of 13 shooting (although Galos did have 10 points and 13 boards.) Cornette on the other hand shot 5 of 6, 1 of 2, and 4 of 4.

Except Clifford every starter was in double digits.

Simmons with 10 points, 5 assists, 2 boards, and 3 turnovers. He shot 4 of 8, 1 of 3, and 1 of 2.

Gill with 14 points, 2 boards, 2 blocks, and excellent defense. He held Belser to 2 of 13 shooting including 1 of 6 from behind the arc. Belser finished with 6 points and only 1 assist.

Hannan with 16 points and 11 boards (a career high for him and his first double double.) He also had 2 assists, and 2 steals. He shot 8 of 22, 0 of 5, and 0 of 1. He held his opponent to 5 of 14 shooting.

Clifford with a career high 16 boards. He also had 4 points. He shot 2 of 6.

Waters led the bench with 12 points. He shot 4 of 7, 2 of 4, and 2 of 2.


This game was also played with custom playbooks, and I agree that it really takes the game to a whole new level. Thanks Balldog!

[Eaglesfan27]

Wow! At 17-2 we just had a huge jump into the polls as several of the top 25 had a rough week. We jumped from unranked to 15th in the media poll. Nevada is below us at 19th. We've also cracked the Coaches' poll at #25. Nevada is 16th in that poll. We've jumped Nevada to take the #1 spot in the Mid Major Poll. Our RPI ranking is #2 behind only 17-0 Texas.

Our next game is hosting Saint Peter's. After barely winning at their place, I'm expecting a much easier time with this game. I'll play that tomorrow.

[Eaglesfan27]

We start off strong. I think our coaching staff has ironed out a hitch in Simmon's 3 point shot. However, Saint Peter's is playing very well at our place. Tied at 16 with over 11 minutes to go as we turn to our bench.

5:19 to go, we are tied at 27 as our starters return.

They get a 3rd foul on Clifford with 4:11 to go, so Ziri will play the rest of the half.


We are up 39-36 at the half. Ziri is getting worked over in the middle.

Hannan is the player of the half with 15 points, 1 board, and 1 assist.


With 10:33 to go, we are up 62-55. Hannan continues to shoot extremely well.

With 3:53 to go, we are up 69-66 as our starters return to the game.


2:58 to go, they hit a FT to tie it at 69.

Simmons responds with a great drive into the lane and a teardrop floater for 2!

They get a quick interior 2 from Moreno. We run a play that sets up Simmons for a wide open 3.. despite better shooting of them today, he misses this one.

However, he gets a block on the other end to make up for it! He passes it to Gill who tries to dunk it on the break but misses!

We force a stop at the other end thanks to good defense by Hannan. We get a quick good look for Hannan and he takes it to the basket for a dunk! 73-71. 1:03 to go.

They try to pass inside, but Cornette steals the pass.. he passes to Gill who throws it ahead to Hannan on the fast break for another dunk!!

They miss some 3's, Hannan hits some FT's and win the game 78-71.

Hannan is the player of the game. 32 points, 3 boards, 2 assists, and a block. He shot 13 of 18, 3 of 4, and 3 of 4.

Simmons with 14 points, 4 assists, 1 board, 2 steals, and a block. He shot 6 of 11, 2 of 4, and 0 of 0.

Gill with 6 points and 2 assists. Cornette with 6 points, 11 boards, 2 steals, and a block.

Clifford with 2 points, 7 boards, and 2 assists.

Bowers led the bench with 7 points. Willis had 5 points and 2 boards. Ziri had 2 points and 5 boards.

[Eaglesfan27]

Our next game is at Canisus. They are 12-7. They have a very poor PG, but are good at all of the other starting positions. Their backups aren't very good. Their SF, Dickey, is their leading scorer at 12 ppg. Their PF James averages 11 ppg. Their backup SF, Carter is their leading rebounder at 6 per game. They run M2M defense. Offensive efficiency is at 115th. Defensive efficiency is at 230th. They averaged 69 ppg shooting 40% from the floor. They give up 69 ppg allowing opponents to shoot 41%.

[Eaglesfan27]

We start off trying to run them out of the building and with our superior athleticism it would be working, except we keep turning the ball over. Our worst game for turnovers this year. At 11:27, my 2nd worst nightmare happens as Simmons finally goes down from one of his collisions in the lane. He is holding his knee and we have to carry him off the court

I bring in my entire 2nd unit at that point. We are tied at 18.


With about 3:20 to go, Simmons is cleared to return. It is only a sprained knee. We bring in our starters. We are down 32-30.

Hannan with back to back 3's to give us the 36-32 lead.

We are up 43-40 at the half. If it wasn't for the turnovers, we'd be blowing them out as we are shooting at a much higher clip - 50% vs their 40%.

Hannan is the player of the half with 13 points, 3 boards, 1 assist, and 1 steal.

Simmons with 7 points and 5 assists.


With 13:03 to go, we are up 55-49 as our starters rest a bit.


With 7:24 to go, everyone but Simmons and Hannan returns as they are both still tired. We are up 60-58.


We are up 68-60 thanks to a 3 by Gill and Waters with 5:17 to go as the rest of our starters return.

Hannan misses 2 open 3's and Simmons has a turnover. With 3:41 to go, we are tied at 68.


They steal the ball from Cornette in the post and get a fastbreak basket by their star player who has 22 this game.


We run a pick and roll with Simmons and Hannan that ends with Simmons passing it to Hannan for a layup. Tied at 70.

Their SF comes off a screen and drives to the hoop getting fouled by Clifford. He misses the 1st FT.. but makes the 2nd one.

They steal it from Hannan in the post and get a fast break dunk. Next possession, Hannan steps out of bounds when receiving a pass from Simmons along the baseline.

Hannan misses the jumper on our next possession. Down by 7 with 1:18 to go after they get another quick jumper. I decide to go back to Waters with Simmons resting his bum knee.

Carter hits a 3 to give him 25 for the game. Waters with a drive into the lane and he gets the shot and foul but misses the FT. Down 80-72 with 35 seconds left.

We lose the game 86-77.

I wonder if that will drop us out of both polls.

Carter, their "backup" SF who ended up playing 29 minutes was the player of the game. The 6'6" JR who has an 88 rating in 3 point shooting. He shot 9 of 22 as Hannan did a reasonable job on him. He still had 25 points, 8 boards, 4 assist, and 4 steals.


Hannan led our team with 30 points, 4 boards, 2 assists, and a steal. He had 6 turnovers. He shot 9 of 21, 5 of 10, and 7 of 8.

Simmons finished with 9 points, 7 assists, 2 boards, and 3 steals. He had 5 turnovers. He shot 4 of 8, 0 of 2, and 1 of 3.

Gill with 7 points and 3 turnovers. He shot 3 of 7.

Cornette with 5 points, 7 boards, 2 blocks, and 3 turnovers. He shot 1 of 4.

Clifford with 4 points, 13 boards, and 2 blocks. He shot 2 of 2.


Waters with 15 points and 5 assists off the bench. He shot 6 of 14, 3 of 8, and 0 of 1.


After the game, we get word that Simmons will be less than 100% for about 2 weeks.

[Balldog]

I read the other day that the CPU rotations get screwy after a couple years, but you can go through and run auto-generate rotations on each team. It would take a while (hour?) but probably give starters better minutes for the CPU.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Balldog

I read the other day that the CPU rotations get screwy after a couple years, but you can go through and run auto-generate rotations on each team. It would take a while (hour?) but probably give starters better minutes for the CPU.

This was the first game I've seen "odd" rotations, but that SF is probably their 2nd best player who is just behind a slightly higher rated player, so I'm glad he played a lot even though it cost me the game. However, I don't think I can do the CPU rotations even if I wanted to, since this is a closed dynasty.

[Eaglesfan27]

Our next game is at Fairfield. We beat them early in the year at home 72-49.





We are tied at 22 with 9:40 to go as our starters rest. Simmons is almost ineffective right now.


Our defense is playing horrible, but Waters is shooting well. He'll stay in as all of the starters but Simmons returns. Down 42-36 with 3:45 to go in the half.

Unbelievable. Last game we held them to 49 for the entire game. This time we couln't hold them to 49 in the first half as they shot 58% in the 1st half. We are down 52-42.

Ubaka their starting PG has 14 points and 4 assists. Simmons will rest to the start the 2nd half as I'll go to Waters to try to cool him off.

Hannan has 18 points at the half.


Hannan scoring at a great rate and the defense is playing better. Down 67-60 with 10 minutes to go. Simmons will come in to play PG with the 2nd unit.

It's a while before our guys are doing well enough to put back out there. 4 minutes left and we are down 82-72.


We just couldn't stop their shooters no matter what we did. We lose the game 96-84.

Ubaka was the player of the game with 20 points and 11 assists. He shot 7 of 14, 4 of 8 from the arc.

Every one of their starters had double digits and Blalock, the backup PG/SG had 18 points in just 18 minutes on 8 of 13 shooting, 2 of 4 from the arc.


Hannan led us with 36 points, 3 boards, 1 assist, and 1 steal. He shot 14 of 26, 7 of 16, and 1 of 2.

Waters with 10 points and 6 assists. He shot 3 of 8, 2 of 6, and 2 of 2.

Gill didn't have any shots, but he did have 2 boards and 2 assists.

Cornette with 9 points, 10 boards, 3 assists, and 2 steals. He shot 3 of 10.

Clifford with 9 boards and a block. He was 0 of 1 in the game.


Bowers with 9 points off the bench on 3 of 8 shooting. Li with 6 points on 2 of 6 shooting.

Simmons with 3 points and 3 assists on 1 of 7 shooting.


I guess that seals us falling out of the top 25.

[Eaglesfan27]

Surprisingly, weare still 18th in the media poll. We are now out of the coaches' poll though. We've dropped to 2nd in the mid major poll. Nevada is 1st at 16-1.



An update on recruiting of the 4 players we've targeted:

Randall Rodgers, the center from Detroit Michigan who is ranked 17th among all centers still hasn't been offered scholarships from Michigan State or now the other team he is interested in, Louisville. We remain a solid #3 option for him and if the other 2 don't offer a formal scholarship, we should get him.

Andy Matera, the center from Burlington, VT who is ranked 22nd among centers has us firmly as his top choice. UConn has shown some interest in him and they are certainly capable of taking him away from us if they offer him a scholarship soon. Otherwise, he looks like he'll be ours. In further scouting, our staff really likes his interior defense and shot blocking ability. He also has good hands.

Karron Acker, the Mr. Basketball from CT continues to draw interest from Rutgers and now WVU. We have almost zero chance at getting him, but I continue to pursue him anyway. We are firmly in 3rd place on his interest list. In part, I don't mind keeping a scholarship open for a potential transfer, so that is part of why I'll continue to pursue him and this next player..

Garik Blizzard, the 6'4 SG from Washington DC who is ranked 17th among SG's continues to keep GW 1st on his list. However, they haven't offered the 4 star a scholarship yet and I'm hopeful we can win him over if they never offer. VCU is also in the mix for him.

Our next game is against 6-14 Iona who are near the worst teams in the conference. I'm going to rest Simmons completely for that game and start Waters. They are a team that is talent starved. Their PG is horrible, as our his backups. Their SF is also terrible. Hannan should hang at least 30 on him. Their SG, PF, and Center are all decent, but the bench is terrible. They play very loose M2M defense and are only shooting 36% as a team. They are scoring 58 ppg. Their offensive efficiency is 296th. Their defensive efficiency is 243rd. They are giving up 68 ppg and allowing teams to shoot 42%. I'll play this game tomorrow.

[Eaglesfan27]

After an extended practice today, I'm tempted to remove Lisinic's redshirt status. He isn't improving, but he is a very athletic SF who might be the best finisher on the team around the rim. I wonder if he might be a better option than Li on the 2nd unit which is dominated by outside shooters. However, he doesn't really have the foot speed to guard most SG's and I'm sure he wouldn't like having 2/3rds of a year wasted. I resist that impulse, but I am going to try mixing in more zones with our M2M defense if the opposition is scoring too much.

Now, to see if we can blow out Iona like we should.

[Eaglesfan27]

A strong start from Hannan has us coasting early. We are up 19-9 with 9:34 to go as our 2nd unit comes in led by Bitee at PG.

We are up 27-18 with 4:02 to go in the half as our starters return. Bowers is in a definite shooting slump the last few games.


We are up 34-22 at halftime.


Hannan is the player of the game with 11 points and 2 boards. He has shot 4 of 9, 3 of 6, and 0 of 0.


Hannan is the only reliable scorer on the floor for us right now, and our defense is getting lax. They put together a 8-0 run, but Hannan responds with a 3 and a 2. We are up 50-40 with 11:12 to go as our starters rest.

Li with a nice run. We are up 60-50 with 5:03 to go as our starters return.

Not the huge win I wanted, but we do win 70-57.

Hannan was the player of the game but had another relatively bad shooting night. He shot 9 of 23, 5 of 12, and 0 of 0.

Waters with 5 points and 6 assists. He shot 2 of 4, 1 of 2.

Gill with 10 points, 6 assists, and 2 boards. He shot 4 of 10, 1 of 3.

Cornette with 10 points, 12 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block. He shot 4 of 8.

Clifford with 4 points and 6 boards.

Li led the bench with 8 points. Bowers had 5, he shot 2 of 6.