Basketball 2111

[Wayne23]

11/20: 2-0. 88-49 on the road, then 87-56 at home. Not great teams but still. Our two bench guys, Slay and Long, are our two leading scorers. I’m not ready to make any changes yet though, and I like having that power coming off the bench.

All 3 recruits sign. Chasing three others.

11/27: 4-0. All by big numbers.

12/4: 6-0, 4 of them on the road. Slay is still our leading scorer but I’m struggling to find him starter’s minutes. Can’t really. The three big guys starting ahead of him are all better defenders and 2 are better rebounders. Pleasant problem!

12/11: 8-0, RPI #72. 2 BIG home wins this weak, by 35 and then by 36.

12/18: 10-0, RPI #69. One more pre-conf. game. It’s a tough road game.

12/25: 10-1. We lost by 8 at No. Colorado. We shot 32.4% and 3 of our starters were in foul trouble all night.

RPI #78. +18.0 PPG, #46, #13, +11.9 RBs, #3, +4.2 TOs, #7. Our 7 scorers average between 12.9 and 9.6 so ours is a very balanced attack.

Looks like Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan are our toughest MAC opponents. There are two divisions in the MAC and both of those teams are in our division, naturally.

12/28: Great holiday present for Rav and Lara. He was able to hire her when one of his workers retired. So they now work together.

There’s word of an epidemic in India. We’re not getting much information in the news, but then we never do. They tell us what they want us to hear.

One thing that lots of people talk (privately) about is life span. It got to be near to 80 years back in the early 21st century. Again, no one tells us anything but it seems that people die a lot younger than that now. Given that most people work way too many hours under unhealthy and unsafe conditions eating substandard diets that’s no surprise.

The rumors are that the life span now is about 63 years and 3 months for men, and 64 and 8 for women. No way to know for sure though.

And yes, the word is that the lifespan is MUCH longer for the wealthy. There are even rumors that they’ve discovered some sort of immortality or near immortality medicines.

No way to know if there’s any truth to that. We rarely if ever see the truly wealthy, not even in newsreels. They keep out of the public eye at all costs. We see a lot of the politicians, all the time, but they’re not the real elite and no one believes that they actually run things or make any important decisions. They’re just figureheads.

Retirement? I mentioned before that there’s no such thing. People work until they can’t work anymore. When that happens they are sent to “facilities.” No one knows what those facilities are like and no visitors are allowed, even family members. No one even knows where the facilities are. The workers at these facilities? No one knows who they are. Most people figure that if people are vague about their work then they probably work in those places, or in places like them that house the mentally and/or physically disabled, who are also isolated from the rest of society. The word is that if you work in those places your lips are sealed or your life is in danger. Troublesome but there’s nothing that can be done about any of it.

[Wayne23]

1/1/2116: 11-1, 1-0. One game week, but we win our MAC opener on the road, by 3.

1/8: 13-1, 3-0. RPI #40. Tough road game this week.

1/15: 15-1, 5-0, RPI #32. We beat top team Eastern Michigan there by 12.

No travel to India or China allowed from the U. S. Rumors are flying about a killer virus.

1/22: 17-1, 7-0. Ranked #25, RPI #32. We’re having no trouble competing in the MAC. 2 game lead over 3 teams. Balanced scoring, terrific D (#3 in PPG Allowed), great rebounding (#6), and excellent ball handling (#14) are some of the reasons why.

1/29: 19-1, 9-0. #24, RPI #24. Another road win against a very good team. +17.4 PPG (#43, #2), +10.8 RBs (#7), +4.3 TOs (#17). Central MI is 2 back, Miami (OH) is 3 back, and everyone else is at least 4 back of us.

2/5: 21-1, 11-0. #17, RPI #21. Central MI is the only team within reach of us. We play there in a week and a half.

Rumors everywhere of a plague sweeping India, the entire Indian sub-continent and Asia. Supposedly many millions dead. No U. S. travel out of the country is allowed for any reason, and no foreign travelers are allowed to enter the country. Sadly, if all of this is true, by the time these measures are taken it’s usually too late. Still, no reports of any cases in the U. S., yet.

2/12: 23-1, 13-0, #15, RPI #20. Central MI had a tough week and we now lead them by 4. 2 teams 5 back. Since we have only 3 to play we have clinched the MAC regular season title. We’re playing terrific basketball.

2/19: 25-1, 15-0, #12, RPI #17. We beat our closest rival Central MI by 9 there.

At 18-9 Gonzaga for a Bracket Breaker today.

Beat them by 4. They had us by 12 early in the 2nd half.

2/26: We end the regular season 26-2, 15-1, losing at Toledo by 4 on a night when the refs sent them to the line 36 times and us only 17. Ridiculous number of terrible calls!

We gave up a season high 83 points.

#12, RPI #16, +15.3 PPG (#54, #3), +10.5 RBs (#5), +3.7 TOs (#23). Bows leads us with 14.2, and Hall gets 8.3 RBs.

News stories are now mentioning the plague. They’re saying it has not struck anywhere outside of Asia and Africa. They're not saying much that has any substance though.

[Wayne23]

3/6: We play #8 seed Akron, 11-18, 7-9, in the quarter finals. Beat them by 27 at home.

3/7: 73-68. They led by 15 early. We woke up and got it to 28-28 at the half. They stayed close all the way. We never led by more than 8. 21, 12 for PF Mark Hall. +14 RBs, 10 TOs.

#5 seed Toledo, 13-16, 8-8 in the semis. They just beat us in the regular season finale but we’re a big favorite.

3/8: 65-40. Stifling D. Took us a while to get our offense going but we put them away in the 2nd half. 15 and 15 for C Tom Burr. Only 6 TOs, +14.

#7 seed Ohio, 17-13, 8-8, for the title. We won by 12 there and we’re a huge favorite.

3/9: 76-73. They led by 18 at the half. We just could not make shots in the first half. I had a calm talk with the guys at halftime, made a couple of changes on O and one on D, and we fought back. We tied it twice in the last minute and took our only lead when Jam Bows hit a three with .4 seconds left. This was an escape! 19 for Bows, 16, 5 for SF Will Dean. +10 TOs.

Conference champs in our first season here. I’m delighted!

29-2, MAC champs, #10, RPI #15. I’m expecting a #3 or a #4 seed.

3/12: #3 South. We play Grand Canyon, 19-11. We’re a very big favorite.

3/17: 81-65. Never close. 18, 10 for 6th man Des Slay, 18, 5 for SF Will Dean. +9 TOs. This gives us a 30 win season!

#6 seed Penn ST, 23-9, in the 2nd round. The goal I set for myself at the start of this season was to make the Sweet Sixteen. We’re one win away!

3/19: 95-88. Another of those games where we were sluggish at first. They took a 16 point lead early on. We got it to 7 at the half. Then we took over in the 2nd half, leading by as many as 18. 26 for guard Jam Bows, 13, 13 for Hall, 9, 14 for Burr, 15, 6 for Dean. But a season high 20 TOs. We need to get out of the gate and we need to take care of the ball if we hope to go any farther.

It’s #2 seed, #12 ranked Pitt, 25-8, in the Sweet Sixteen. They’re solid at all 5 positions and they’re favored by 4 ½.

3/24: 82-94 in OT. They hit a 35 footer at the end of regulation, and that seemed to take the wind out of our sails. Then Burr fouled out in the opening seconds of OT and Bows picked up #4 almost immediately after that. The refs hurt us. Pitt went to the line 29 times and we went 8. But giving up 13 threes didn’t help either. 15, 12 for Slay, 14, 4, 12 for Gard. Great season!

6 guys are graduating. Hopefully this is the year I get a great offer from a great school.

4/3: #2 GA Tech wins the title.

4/4: Awards: Senior Jam Bows makes the MAC 1st team. Soph C Tom Burr makes 2nd. I get Conf. COY. I think my guys got stiffed.

4/9: Here we are again. It’s that time.

Rhode Island in the A 10 wants us. We’re going for a visit…

Better conference (49-40) Better TP (36-27). Bigger budget by about $40,000. Team’s in decent shape, losing only one starter from a 14-15 team. Some rebuilding, of course…

4/10: A couple of other offers have come in, but right now it looks like URI… I’ll decide tomorrow.

4/11: We are now Rhode Island Rams!

4/16: The whole staff left, all for promotions. We get 3 decent, not great assistants. My #1 won’t be as good as the guy at U. Hart. was, but #2 and #3 will probably be better.

I will implement my 75% D for practice time strategy with the same O and D sets as I’ve used at U. Hart.

4/23: I ask for a budget increase. Unlikely but you gotta try! We get $10,450!

URI finished 14-15, 8-10, RPI #149, tied for 9th in the A 10. +0.1 PPG (#213, #119), +1.2 RBs (#231), -2.8 TOs (#313).

Overall, I am now 120-37, .764. That will take a hit for a couple of years but I’m excited about the new challenge. Great 5 years at U. Hart. but it was time to move on.

Rumors are wild about unbelievable numbers of death from this plague. Still no sign in the U. S. though.

[PointGuard]

RHODE ISLAND?!?!?!?!?!?!?

Seems like you like that place...weren't you there in a PREVIOUS life?

[Wayne23]

Can't escape beautiful downtown Kingston, RI!

[Wayne23]

5/1: #187 recruiting class. We buy East Gold and National Basic.

6/5: Room for 2 transfers. 3 guys we really like.

6/12: No luck.

6/26: 5 scholarships. We need at least 3 guards.

7/17: Some definite interest among recruits.

8/21: We offer to 2 PGs, 2 SGs, and a C.

9/4: I’ve got 6 guys in serious academic difficulty. They’re all eligible but barely. We’re fighting to keep them eligible.

9/18: We lose one.

Finally invited to an in season tourney, the Tip-Off in Paradise. We’ll play BYU.

9/25: Got 2 PGs, including the #1 guy we were after, #36 rated Ken Bakk. Also got #182, Jon Free. Lost 2.

10/2: Got a PF, #161. Lost a guard. Two more to get.

Progress with academics. @ guys out of the woods and the other four made some gains. Still working on it.

1st day of practice. We’re picked 4th in the A 10.

10/9: We get an SG, #153.

10/30: Only one guy still in a little academic trouble, and not all that much. Our tutors have done a terrific job!

11/6: We looked good in our 2 exhibition games. 8 man rotation:

Junior Hal Main is at PG. Soph Kit Stew is at SG. Senior Ted Safe subs at both guard spots.

Junior Ray Hael starts at SF, subs at PF. Junior Kha Wazo and senior Dee Catt sub at SF.

Frosh Gar Caye starts at PF, subs at C. Junior Keb Mell is at C.

Everyone on the URI campus, and we’re told everywhere else in the U. S., was brought in for an injection. No one would say what it was for or what was in it and it was absolutely mandatory. Rumors are it was related to the plague that has now been active in Europe.

[Wayne23]

11/17: 1-0. 4 point win on the road. We only have 3 guards on the squad. They got 43 of our 68 points. We played good D.

Off to the Tip-Off. We play #2 seed BYU, 0-1. We’re the #7 seed.

11/18: 62-63. So close! They had the last possession and they hit an 18 footer. 17, 12 for C Keb Mell. We had 22 TOs, and that really hurt.

11/20: 1-1.

All 4 recruits sign. Still chasing one. 4 home games coming up.

12/4: 4-2. We’ve been in some battles, losing by one and winning in OT. We don’t have a consistent go to guy. C Keb Mell is the closest but he’s had 2 poor games and 4 really good ones. Averages 15.0 and 7.5. Both of our starting guards average 14.0. Sub SF Dee Catt needs more minutes. We’re getting very little from the 3 and 4 spots. Those two guys were supposed to be better than they’ve been so far. It’s early.

The plague, or whatever it is, has hit Latin America for the first time. No doubt it is on its way here.

12/25: 6-3 going to A 10 play. RPI #164. +3.9 PPG (#163, #77), +4.0 RBs (#200), -0.1 TOs (#174). Happy with our PPG Allowed, but not with much else. Individually, C Keb Mell is definitely our leader, 15.7, 7.1, a really good defender. Our guards, PG Hal Main, 13.4, and SG Kit Stew, 13.2, also score for us. #3 guard Ted Safe will get more minutes. Still not much from SF and PF, but it is what it is. There’s no one else to put there.

No one in severe academic trouble. Two needing more help, and they’re getting it.

HUGE rumors are floating around. It’s impossible to know where these things come from or whether there’s any truth to them. Anyway, supposedly the shots we all got- there were a series of three, were definitely to try to halt the plague. Fasten your seat belts. For decades the wealthy have been getting these shots monthly, and they are… life extenders! They don’t offer true immortality but they extend life, greatly, by repairing telomeres. Evidently aging occurs when the ends of the telomeres start to degrade, and when the blood “becomes fatigued.” These shots counter both of those things; the little nanos go in and repair the ends of the telomeres and somehow liven up the blood, probably by removing impurities. BUT, the shots need to be given on a monthly basis in order to be effective. That won’t happen for 99%+ of us, but the three shot series should have been enough to stop the plague in its tracks. Supposedly those shots were given throughout the world.

As it turns out the plague is gone. As it did in the 21st century it just stopped infecting people. Because of the shots? Coincidence? Who knows. The other rumor is that this episode of the plague killed about 2 billion people, almost all of them in Africa, Asia, and in the Indian sub-continent. If that’s true the world’s population would be down to maybe 1 ½ billion. That’s good for the planet, of course.

But who knows if any of that is true.

[Wayne23]

1/1/2117: 1-1 start to A 10 play. St Louis kicked our butts there (We had only 17 RBs) and we beat Davidson here.

1/8: 8-5, 2-2. We’re looking good at home but we need to play better on the road. I’m down to a 7 man rotation. Ted Safe and Dee Catt are the subs. I think they give me a little more scoring and rebounding and they don’t hurt us on D. Rebounding and ball handling need to be better.

The government announced that the three shots we got were a newly discovered vaccine that was designed to stop the plague, and that it does so 100% effectively. They said that rumors regarding increased longevity are completely false.

A non-violent movement called “Truth in Government” (TIG) has begun. They are being VERY careful about what they do and how they do it. The organization is known but no one knows who the members are. They drop leaflets in public places, asking for (1) more accountability from the government, with regard to supplies and distribution of critical materials like food, heating fuels…, (2) more production of those same items, and of shoes, which are always in short supply, and, (3) contact with the wealthy. Their point for #3 is that rumors regarding longevity, even immortality, will continue until and unless wealthy people are seen regularly in public. The leaflets are phrased very carefully and they do not use inflammatory language or make demands. They are phrased politely and in the form of requests.

Everyone thinks that when any of the members of TIG are exposed they will “disappear.”

1/15: 10-5, 4-2. We finally won a road game! RPI #184. I think that’s too low but it’s rarely accurate except for the very best teams.

Two tough teams this week. I’ll take a split gladly!

1/22: 11-6, 5-3. Got the split I was hoping for. RPI #145. Duquesne held us to a pathetic 48 points in the loss. The only positive was that PF Gar Caye had his best game so far,
13 and 10. But 25 TOs. Caye got 13 more in our win. Maybe he’s finally getting it together. That would be a really big help to us.

1/29: 11-8, 5-5. Not good. RPI #160. +0.2 PPG (#258, #76), +4.6 RBs (#151), -1.4 TOs (#245). In a 3 way tie for 5th. And 5 of our last 8 conference games are away.

2/5: 12-9, 6-6. Not making any progress at all.

The leaflets continue, about twice a week. I’m told they are being placed in cities all over the country. The government has asked that the leaders of the movement show themselves so that the government can meet with them. So far that hasn’t happened. I’m not involved in this but if I was, I sure wouldn’t go public!

2/12: 14-9, 8-6. A rare two win week! RPI #125. In a 2 way tie for 5th.

2/19: And we’ve caught fire. 5 straight wins. 16-9, 10-6. RPI #111. Tied for 3rd.

2/26: We end the regular season 19-9, 12-6, 8 wins in a row. RPI #79. Alone in 2nd. Why the turnaround? Not a clue. +1.7 PPG (#251, #51), +4.0 RBs (#148), -0.8 TOs (#242).

The leaflets are still coming out about twice a week. No one knows who's responsible, or at least no one's saying.

[Wayne23]

3/7: We play #7 seed ST Louis, 15-14, 10-8 in the quarter finals. They crushed us by 29 there and we only won by 2 at home so we are not taking them lightly.They are favored by ½ point.

3/8: 43-59. Our lowest point total of the year. We shot 28.8%. 19, 7 for Mell. No one else had more than 7.

19-10, 12-6, RPI #86. One of our goals was to get to the NIT. We just might!

3/12: NIT, #5 South. So we meet all of the goals set by our A. D. We play #4 seed Central Michigan, 20-12. They’re favored by 1 ½. They are a very balanced team that does a lot of things well. We’d like to get a win or two in this tourney. A 20 win season would be nice, too; we’re at 19.

3/14: 53-78. We were awful.

The last bit of business for the season is to nail down our last recruit, a big guy. We really need him since our inside game was a bit disappointing except for junior Keb Mell.

4/3: #12 Mississippi ST is the champ.

4/4: Awards: Junior C Keb Mell makes the A 10 1st team. That’s it.

4/9: We’re not looking to move but we’ll listen…

Nothing interesting.

4/16: We get the C, #77!

4/23: I ask for a facilities upgrade. Got it! We go from C to B.

19-11, RPI #86, +0.2 PPG (#281, #42), +3.8 RBs (#142), -1.1 TOs (#254).

Overall I’m 139-48, .743. Not a bad first year here at URI.

The leaflets are still appearing. Patrols of soldiers and cops have increased dramatically after dark. There’s been a partial curfew for years. People like me, who often need to be out after dark must be certain to always carry our papers. Given that it’s my first year here I have had to show them often.

[Wayne23]

5/1: Recruiting class #15. Wow! We buy the East Gold, National Basic again.

6/5: 1 spot for a transfer.

6/12: No luck.

6/26: 5 scholarships. We’ll take 3 and 2 either way.

8/21: We offer to 2 PGs, an SG, and 2 PFs.

9/18: We lose one.

Hawaiian Shootout vs. Texas.

9/25: We get a PF, #78, and an SG, #396. We lose one we were really hoping to get.

10/2: Got a PF, #691, but he’s better than that.

1st day of practice. We’re picked 4th in the A10. Somehow we again have only 3 guards on the squad.

10/16: We get a PG, #126. One more to got.

11/6: 8 man rotation but a lot is up for grabs:

Senior Hal Main starts at PG. Junior Kit Stew is at SG. Frosh Ken Bakk subs at both guard spots. All 3 guards get about equal minutes for now.

Junior Vin Duff is at SF. Frosh Wei Zhao subs.

Soph Gar Caye is at PF. He was a disappointment last season but looked good in practice and in the exhibition games. Senior Ray Heal subs at PF and C.

Senior Keb Mell is at C. He was our best player last season.

As quickly as the leaflets appeared they disappeared. About three months ago they simply stopped showing up. People still wonder about the longevity/immortality thing and
about the wealthy and why they are never seen.