DDSCB23: All In

[Wayne23]

3/7: We play #7 seed Central Michigan, 13-17, 10-10, in the quarter finals of the MAC. They beat us by 15 there, then we won by 20 at home. Their C is out and their SF will play hurt. We’re healthy.

3/8: They take the lead early on. Down 9 after 10. 36-41 at the break. We trailed by 11, tied it up, then fell behind again. 3 fouls for Grey. Poor shooting and D. We got nothing from our starting guards.

“Win or go home!”

We catch up then it’s back and forth. Up 1 with 10 to go.

83-80. We escaped. They missed an open three at the end. 28, 7 for Roon, 16, 4 for Ferk, 10, 3, 3 for Shel, 14 assists for Blan. +30 in the paint.

Next comes the team I LEAST want to face, #6 seed Kent ST, 18-14, 11-9. They beat us twice in games we let get away. I’ll frame it to my guys that we’re ready to beat them but…

Both games were close all the way.

3/9: Up 7 after 10. 43-35 at the half. 16 for Grey. Tuck and Roon each have 3 fouls. We’re shooting better than they are. +18 in the paint.

They’re staying close, Up 9 with 10 to play.

71-66! We broke their curse on us. It was a one possession game or tied 6 times in the last 2 minutes. 17, 10 for Ferk, 18, 4, 2, 3 for Grey, 10, 3, 1, 4 for Bowe. +22 inside.

It’s #1 seed Western Michigan, 22-9, 15-5, in the title game. We beat them by 14 at our place. We think we’re better inside but Tuck has to show up and our bigs have to stay out of foul trouble.

3/10: Back and forth. Down 1 after 10. A late run puts us up 46-34 at the half. 13 for Tuck, good guard play. We’re shooting 57.1% to their 45.5%. We’re not beating them by a lot inside.

They’re closing the gap. Up only 3 with 10 left. A mini-run helps!

84-74 and the MAC title! 20, 5 for Tuck, who definitely showed up! 12, 3, 5 for Grey, 10, 10 for Roon, 14 for Shel. +24 inside.

We won’t get a good seed, but we’re in!

[Wayne23]

3/12: #14 West. We play #3 seed#8 ranked Tennessee, 25-7. We would shock the world if we beat them.

3/17: They take the lead right away. Down 8 after 10. Down 20. 30-52 at halftime. 10 for Roon. No one else has more than 4. They’re shooting 63.6%, and they’re beating us inside.

It’s not happening. Down 24 with 10 to go.

64-91. We were in WAY over our heads.14, 4 for Roon.

The loss and the margin were no surprise.

[Wayne23]

4/3: #1 Gonzaga is the champ.

4/4: Awards: Merv Grey is MAC Def POY. That’s it.

4/9: We met all our goals but only gained 1 point in TP, 54 to 55.

Some pretty good teams come calling but I want to build something here at Akron.

4/23: I ask for a facilities upgrade.

Yes! From C+ to B. Great!

21-12, conf. champs. Not a bad first season!

We’re losing starters Tuck, Grey, and Blan, but I honestly think we’ll be better next season. Shel, Roon, Ferk, , Bowe, and Menz are back and I’ve got some good looking recruits.

We really didn’t have the right personnel for my system this year and we still did okay. I think we’ll be closer to having the right personnel next season.

[Wayne23]

5/1: #36 recruiting class.

Can’t meet expected spending. $10,000 short. I’ll ask for a budget increase in the spring. Nothing I can do in the meantime.

5/29: We lose Tray Bowe. He figured to start up front or be first off the bench. We’re looking for a big guy to replace him.

6/2: We offer to a PF from AZ ST. No.

6/5: We offer to a C from Rutgers.

6/9: Got him. He’ll play but not start.

6/25: We’ll go to the Chicago camp.

6/26: 5 scholarships. We want 2 guards, 3 bigs.

7/11: We offer to 2 PGs, 2 PFs, and a C.

7/17: All the U. S. recruits we’re chasing are at the Chicago camp. Great!

8/7: No Norton candidates this year. Didn’t expect any.

9/11: We get 2, lose 2. We get a PG, #84, and a PF, #254. We lose a big and a guard.

9/18: We get a PRIME recruit, a C, #30. We lose a guard. He was a long shot and we’re thrilled!

Going to the Memorial. Decent schedule, maybe a little weaker than last year’s.

9/25: We lose a guard.

10/2: First day of practice. We look good.

We get an SG, #112, lose a big.

[Wayne23]

11/13: Here’s the lineup:

Frosh Al Toxy is at the Point. He has really impressed us so far.

Senior Jam Shel is at SG. He’s ready!

#3 guard is frosh Jay Wain. He has great potential. Not there yet but getting there. #4 is soph Cap Cota. He passes well but that’s about it. SF senior Rob Menz will likely play some SG.

Despite his poor D, senior Jeb Ferk makes things happen. He’s at SF. Last season, when we put him in the starting lineup the team got significantly better.

Senior Bill Roon is back at SF. Very good shooter, very good defender.

Soph transfer JJem Hatt is at Center.

Menz is the first big off the bench. 2nd is frosh Gord Grah whose game is still developing. Next comes frosh Joe Will whose game also needs work. Finally is frosh Ivor Wims.

The season starts tomorrow at George Washington.

[Wayne23]

11/14: It’s close early then we take a lead. A big run puts us up 14 after 10. 44-30 at halftime. 14, 3 for Roon, 12, 3 for C Jem Hatt. Major foul trouble, Ferk, Toxy, and Shel have 3 each. +30 in the paint.

Up 18 with 10 to go.

80-67. 19, 8 for Hatt, 18, 4 for Roon. +14 for the bench. +38 inside. Great start to the season.

0-1 Dayton in our home debut. They can hit the outside shot.

1/17: Early lead. Up 8 after 10. 33-28 at the half. Too close! Hatt has 3 fouls. 15, 5 for Roon. Close early. Up 7 with 10 to play. Then we take off.

75-66. They got it a little closer but it was never in doubt.

19, 8 for Roon, 13, 5, 2, 3 for Shel, 10, 7 for Ferk, 12 for sub C/F Gord Grah. 2 in the paint.

At 2-0 Drake next. Good at 2 and 4.

11/21: Early lead again. Then they come back. Down 2 after 10. 42-44 at the half. Back and forth for 20 minutes. 3 fouls each for Hatt and Toxy. Hatt has a dozen points. We need more from our guards.

Still close early. Down 3 with 10 left.

75-71. We had to work for this one! 18, 5 for Ferk, 16, 7 for Roon, 16, 4 for Hatt. Just not getting much from our guards. We have plays for them to drive to the hoop but they’re not doing it enough. 56 in the paint.

Home with 3-0 Richmond next. Their C broke his ankle.

11/24: Back and forth early. Down 4 after 10. They’re tough. 50-50 at halftime. Not much D for either team. Hatt has 3 fouls yet again. 15 for Roon, 8, 3 for Shel. +20 inside. Too many whistles.

We take a quick lead but it’s close. Up 4 with 10 to go. Run!

101-87. 22, 6 for Grah, 19, 4 for Roon, 12, 3, 5 for Shel, 14, 3 for Hatt. 56 in the paint. We shot 63.3%, a benefit of taking as many shots as possible inside.

I typically get the staff together and do a major assessment of how things are going after the 4th game and again at the end of pre-conf play. We do that every day but this is more in depth.

4-0, NET #11, so that's good. We’re getting our points from our big guys. The first 4 scorers and 5 of the first 6 are Fs or Cs. We’re going to give Grah and Wain more minutes. Toxy is underperforming on O but his D will keep him in the lineup. Ferk continues to make things happen, high NET and ON ratings.

We’re 17th in shooting pct. Only #34 in PPG. +10 PPG. +4.3 RBs-6 TOs, a more than acceptable 11.0.

At 0-3 Texas- El Paso next.

[Wayne23]

11/28: They hang with us early. Then we go on a run. Up only 4 after 10. 46-46. We went on 2 runs and they came back both times. We led by as many as 13. I’m not happy with our first half performance. 3 fouls for Shel. Poor D. +22 in the paint is the only thing we’re doing well, really.

Early lead but it’s close. Up 1 with 10 to play. A late run.

104-96. This was harder than it should have been. 16, 9, 3 for Ferk, 18, 2, 4 for Shel, 18, 6, 2, 3 for Grah, 13, 9 for Roon, 12, 4 for Menz. +16 for the bench. 56 in the paint again.

WAY too many whistles but it helped us more than hurting us.

At 2-3 UC-Santa Barbara next.

12/5: Early lead. Up only 2 after 10 as we let them back in. 45-40 at the half. Not happy with our D again. 12 for Roon. +16 inside.

We start with a run. Up 20 with 10 to play.

17, 8 for Ferk, 19, 4 for Hatt, 18, 4 for Roon, 19, 5 for Grah. 60 in the paint.

We’re in the middle of 4 road games followed by a tournament so we won’t play at home until late in the month. So far so good!

At 4-4 George Mason next.

12/12: They take the lead then we come back. Up 5 after 10. 30-27 at the break. Both teams are shooting poorly. We need to work our offense better.

The lead goes back and forth early. Down 1 with 10 to go.

62-69. They outplayed us in the final 2-3 minutes. They ha 8 threes and 9 more free throws. Their big guys beat ours.

At 7-3 Bradley. Good team.

12/19: Back and forth to start. Then we take the lead. Up only 3 after 10 as they come back. 46-39 at halftime. 18 for Hatt. +14 inside. We’re shooting 72%. They’re staying close. Up 6 with 10 to play. Good play late.

95-79. 21, 6, 3 for Hatt, 23, 4 for Roon13, 5 for Wain, 11, 5 for Grah. 66 inside. We shot 65.5%.

Grah sprains a finger on his shooting hand. Out for about a week.

7-1, NET #15.

Heading for the Memorial Tournament. We’re the #3 seed. We play #6 Robert Morris, 4-4.

[Wayne23]

12/23: Back and forth. Down 3 after 10. 41-54 at the half. They’re shooting 54.5%. We’re fouling too much, Roon has 3, my first 3 guards have 2 each. -10 from the line.

“Get it done. You look dazed out there.”

Cutting the lead. Down 1 with 10 to play. We take the lead.

95-87. Great 2nd half, 54-33. 29, 3 for Roon, 18, 6, 5, 3 for Shel, 15, 3 for Grah despite the injury, 11, 6 for Hatt, 5, 2, 11 for Toxy. 62 in the paint.

All the top seeds advanced so it’s #2 seed Stanford, 7-3, in the semis. Early lead. Up 4 after 10. Then a run. 48-29 at the break. 13 for Hatt. +26 in the paint. We’re shooting 72% to their 20.7%!

Holding our lead early. Up 20 with 10 to go.

87-74 but it wasn’t that close. 16, 7 for Roon, 17 for Hatt, 16 for Grah.

Grah is back but Shel sprained his wrist and is out for about 10 days. Wain will start at SG.

At #1 seed, #18 ranked Miami (FL), 9-1. This is the best team we’ve played this season. They’re very good outside and their Sg is an All American, so naturally my SG is out with an injury.

12/25: Back and forth to start. Down 7 after 10. Then back and forth again. 44-53 at the half. Wain has 3 fouls. Not much D by either side. 12 for Roon, +18 in the paint. Their SG has 18.

Down 10 with 10 to go. Not looking good.

91-100. We got as close as 3. 8 threes by them were a factor. Our 15 TOs hurt. 21, 5, 5 for Ferk, 16, 5 for Roon, 13, 4 for Wims, 10, 7 for Grah. 62 in the paint.

Expensive loss. Jem Hatt is out for a couple weeks with a broken nose, Bill Roon hurt his back and is out for at least two games, and Shel is still out for maybe 10 days or so. Rob Menz starts at PF, Gord Grah starts at C.

We end pre-conf. play at 9-2, NET #5.

2nd in PPG, +7.8. 1st in Field Goal pct. +5.9 RBs, -4.7 TOs.

Roon leads in points with 17.9, 5.6 RBs. Hatt is 2nd in points with 13.5, 4.5 RBs, which is weak for a C. 12.6, 3.9 for Grah, 10.6, 5.3 for Ferk, 9.3, 3.8, 3.2 for Shel. Toxy gets 6.2 assists.

We start MAC play vs. 3-6 Miami (OH), at home.

[Wayne23]

12/26: They take the lead right away and expand it. Down 16 after 10. 25-42. Shooting 28.6% to their 55.2%. No one has more than 4 points. With 3 starters out we’re really in trouble.
It’s not happening. Down 14 with 10 to go. Late rush.

72-75. We missed a three with 1.1 left. 14, 10 for Menz, 10 for both Wain and Will.

4-6, 0-1 Eastern Michigan is here. They’re good outside.

12/29: Back and forth. Up 4 after 10. 37-41 at halftime. It’s really tough with 3 starters out and the bench is short.

Still close. Down 3 with 10 to play.

81-87. 21, 3 for Grah, 14, 7 for Will. We just don’t have the personnel right now.

Roon and Shel will be back for our next. Hatt is out for at least one more game.

At 4-7, 1-1 Toledo. The bench is longer. We should have a shot at this game.

1/2/2024: Early lead. They go on a run and we’re down 13 after 10. We come back. 44-47 at the half. 13, 0, 0, 4 for Shel. Too many fouls and poor D inside.

We’re falling further behind early. Down 11 with 10 left.

81-92. Frustrating. 13, 6 for Roon, 14 for Shel.

Grah sprains a finger. Our for at least 10 days. Hatt is back.

We have our starting lineup back but our #1 sub is out.

At 9-3, 3-0 Ohio. We desperately need a win but it won’t be easy.

1/5: They take the lead early. Down only 2 after 10. 49-48 at the break. 10, 5 for Roon8 each for Shel and Grah even though Grah is playing hurt.

Mini-run and a double digit lead. Up 12 with 10 to play. Holding the lead late.

98-92. We needed this! 20, 10 for Roon, 15, 4, 4 for Ferk, 15, 6 for Shel, 12, 7 for Grah.

Amazingly, Hatt get hurt again. Bruised sternum and he’s out for 10 days to 2 weeks. Grah is out for a couple more games. What a year!

At 6-7, 3-1 Western Michigan next.

10-5, 1-3.

[Wayne23]

1/9: We fall behind early. Down 10 after 10. We come back. 38-39 at the half. 3rd team C Joe Will is doing okay in the middle, 7, 6. 14, 5 for Roon. Shel has 3 fouls and we gave up 8 threes.

We fall behind again. Then we fall way behind.

68-88. We’re just not competitive with our first two Cs out with injuries. Grah will be back for our next game. Hatt will miss one more.

5-9, 1-4 Northern Illinois is here.

1/12: Close early. Then we fall behind. Down 7 after 10. We come back. 43-40 at halftime. 12, 8 for Roon, 8, 6 for Ferk. +30 in the paint. We’ve taken 15 more shots, we should be ahead by more.

Holding our lead. Up 7 with 10 to go.

83-75. A much needed win! 18, 3, 3, 4 for Shel, 15, 10 for Ferk, 14, 10 for Roon.

We’re 100% healthy for the first time in ages.

At 10-6, 4-2 Kent ST.

1/16: Early lead. Up 6 after 10. 47-33 at the half. 12, 3, 3, 4 for Shel. +28 in the paint. Shooting 60%.

Up 8 with 10 left.

91-89. Whew! They cam back strong and got it to a one possession game several times late. We hung on, but barely. 15, 3, 3, 5 for Shel, 14 each for Roon and Wims, 10, 4 for Grah. +30 inside.

5-12, 5-2 Bowling Green is here ST.

1/19: Close early. Down 3 after 10. It’s close! 38-34 at halftime. 9, 6 for Ferk. 3 fouls for Hatt.

Good start! Up 7 with 10 to play. 84-71 and we’re at 4-4 in the conf. after a 1-4 start due to injuries. I think we’re the best team in the MAC.

18, 7 for Ferk, 15, 6 for Roon, 13, 7, 3 for Grah, 13, 1, 3, 3 for Shel.

13-6, 4-4, NET #59. We’re tied for 4th, 3 back of 1st.

6-11, 6-2 Ball ST is here.