Jacks vs. Menlo (11/20)

[jacksfan]

score: Jacks 79-65
scorer: Morris 21
rebounds: Morris 11
assists: Sperling 6
blocks: Baxter 1
steals: Sperling 3
turnovers - 13
field goal % - 47%
3 pt. % - 32%
free throw % - 76%
Rebouding margin: Jacks +6

[Marauders]

So Keith Davis ended up at the Academy of Arts. Did I know that?


Pioneers open season with overtime victory over Academy of Art

Academy of Art University - 2010-2011 Men's Basketball Roster



Jacks vs. Menlo (11/20)
score: Jacks 80-70
scorer: Spurling 15
rebounds: Morris 8
assists: Sperling 6
blocks: Morris 2
steals: Hunter 1
turnovers - 13
field goal % - 45%
3 pt. % - 30%
free throw % - 76%
Rebouding margin: Jacks +5

[Seattle Fan]

score: Jacks 74-66
scorer: Morris 16
rebounds: Hunter 8
assists: Sperling 5
blocks: Hunter 1
steals: Sperling 4
turnovers - 11
field goal % - 44%
3 pt. % - 25%
free throw % - 80%
Rebouding margin: Menlo +3

[Super mom]

score: Jacks 77-71
scorer: Morris 18
rebounds: Morris 7
assists: Sperling 4
blocks: Morris 1
steals: baxter 1
turnovers - 15
field goal % - 41%
3 pt. % - 36%
free throw % - 69%
Rebouding margin: Menlo +3

[Humboldt Super Fan]

With a successful debut win under the belt for Coach Kinder, the Humboldt State Men?s Basketball now shifts their focus onto their next opponent. That opponent comes into Lumberjack Arena on Saturday night in the form of the Menlo College Oaks. The tip off for the game is scheduled for 7:30 PM with the Pre Game Show starting at 7:15 PM on ESPN Radio 1340 AM. J.B. Mathers and the Hall of Famer Burt Nordstrom will be back on the call after the completion of the football season last weekend. The game will also be broadcasted on the Internet at Humboldt State University Athletics.

Humboldt State comes into the contest with a 1-0 record as the Lumberjacks defeated the Bethany University Bruins by the final score of 83-69. In the contest, the Lumberjacks got off to a fast start behind Brandon Sperling as they built an 11-4 lead. However, the Bruins would hang around in the first half before Humboldt State would open up an eight point which they took into halftime. In the second half, the Lumberjacks were able to pull away with credit going to their press as the Bruins committed 28 turnovers in the contest. In the second half, it was Brian Morris who got on track after being saddled with 2 early fouls in the first half. Along with the contributions from Morris, Randy Hunter showed his athleticism as he was able to provide hustle from off the bench with a couple of thunderous dunks that provided a spark in Lumberjack Arena. In the end, the defense would keep the Bruins at bay in order to cruise to the 14 point win in the coaching debut for first year Head Coach Steve Kinder.

For the Lumberjacks, Sperling had 15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals in his Lumberjack debut. Morris had a team high 18 points and grabbed 5 rebounds in the contest. Hunter had 17 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and 3 blocks as he came off the bench in the victory. As a team, Humboldt State shot 44.3% from the field, shot 27.3% from the three point line, and shot 76.7% from the free throw line. The Lumberjacks had 12 assists while committing 15 turnovers. On defense, Humboldt State blocked 4 shots and forced 15 steals in the win. However, in the rebounding department, the Lumberjacks were outrebounded by the final margin of 35-31.

For the Bruins, Brett Hoisington had a game high 24 points in the loss. Travis Derochowski added 12 points. Bethany University shot 48.0% from the field, shot 12.5% from the three point line, and shot 74.1% from the free throw line. The Bruins had 10 assists while committing 28 turnovers in the loss. On defense, the Bruins blocked 1 shot and forced 5 steals.

I missed the first part of the game as the football game was still going on at that time. From what I saw in the game, the offense had some good points and there was points that needs to be worked on going into their game. I?ll say this about Brandon Sperling. He is a gamer that finds a way to make the game flow smoothly. I think he has a little bit of what Jeremiah Ward early in his career. I think Sperling will have two great years at Humboldt State. Brian Morris had a good second half; however, he needs to find a way to stay out of foul trouble in order to get off to a good start in the first half. Lastly, I was impressed with Randy Hunter. Hunter can jump out of the gym when he is given the opportunity. I have a feeling Hunter will be in the starting lineup at some point this season. Overall, I think it was a good first game, but there are things that the Lumberjacks need to work on in order to get to where they want to be later on in this season.

Let?s look at the Menlo College Oaks as they will play their first regular season game of the season at Lumberjack Arena.

When we look at the Oaks, this is a small and quick team on the court. Menlo College has their tallest player at 6?7? on the floor. However, they do have a lot of experience back on the roster as 11 players are back from last season?s team. The Oaks are being coached by a first year head coach in Jon Surface, who was an assistant coach for the last four years. Surface inherits a team that lost seven games by two points or less and reached the California Pacific Conference championship game last season. Menlo College finished last season at 12-16.

The Oaks have two quick guards that could present some problems in this upcoming game. If the Lumberjacks are not careful on their defensive assignments, they could see Julian Harris and Dejon Grant (a transfer from Chico State) carve up the defense in a big way.

The last point to make is that Menlo College has played three Division I opponents on their exhibition schedule this season. In their first game, the Oaks played hard in a loss at UC Davis by the final score of 84-78. Then, in the next two exhibition games, Menlo College would lose to Sacramento State and University of San Francisco. The Oaks are battle tested, so the Lumberjacks better not take this team lightly.

Let?s go inside the numbers and look at a few players to watch in this game.

Humboldt State:
Team: 83.0 points per game, 44.3% FG %, 27.3% 3 PT FG %, 76.7% FT %, 31.0 rebounds per game, 12.0 assists per game, 15.0 turnovers per game, 15.0 steals per game, 4.0 blocks per game.
Opponents: 69.0 points per game, 48.0% FG %, 12.5% 3 PT FG %, 74.1% FT %, 35.0 rebounds per game, 10.0 assists per game, 28.0 turnovers per game, 5.0 steals per game, 1.0 blocks per game.

Players to Watch:
Brian Morris: 18 points, 5 rebounds, 54.5% FG % vs. Bethany
Randy Hunter: 17 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 blocks vs. Bethany
Brandon Sperling: 15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals vs. Bethany

Menlo College:

No team stats. It is their first game of the regular season.

Players to Watch:
Julian Harris: 24 points, 5 rebounds vs. UC Davis (exhibition game)
Dejon Grant: 9 points, 3 assists vs. University of San Francisco (exhibition game)
Tim Tatum: 12 points vs. University of San Francisco (exhibition game)

Here are the Keys to the Game.

1. Pound the ball inside. My philosophy is very simple. When you are the taller team and that is the case with the Lumberjacks in this game, I would pound the ball inside until the Oaks find a way to stop that attack. Personally, I think Humboldt State is too deep in the interior for Menlo College to contain the inside the game in this contest. The only way this game is close is if Humboldt State decides to shoot three pointers instead of getting the ball in the paint. I feel Brian Morris and Randy Hunter should have big nights against this smallish Menlo College team.

2. Defensive rotation off of the press. I mentioned two guards that will be important for Menlo College to break the press that Humboldt State likes to run. Julian Harris and Dejon Grant have a lot of quickness that could be valuable in breaking the press. If Humboldt State can rotate and slow down the Oaks, then it could prevent some fast break points that Menlo College will be looking for from the press defense that Humboldt State loves to run at certain times of the game.

3. Rebounding. This is one area where Humboldt State has struggled in the last few years. I think Coach Kinder and Coach Asprilla needs to put a stop of this issue immediately. If I?m the coaching staff I would tell the players that they need have better effort on the glass. The rebounding numbers were disappointing in the season opener. Each player needs to identify what they need to in order to improve the rebounding numbers. Otherwise, this could be an issue that could haunt this team for the entire season.

Here are the predictions:
Score: Humboldt State 87, Menlo College 64
Scorer: Morris 24
Rebounder: Hunter 8
Assists: Sperling 4
Steals: Sperling 2
Blocks: Morris 3
Turnovers: 14
FG %: 48%
3 PT FG %: 33%
FT %: 75%
Rebounding Margin: Humboldt State + 6

[EDAllen17]

score: Jacks 87-60
scorer: Sperling 23
rebounds: Hundter 9
assists: Sperling 5
blocks: Hunter 2
steals: Sperling 2
turnovers - 15
field goal % - 52%
3 pt. % - 39%
free throw % - 79%
Rebouding margin: Jacks +4

[jacksfan]

So, I know this team can shoot better than they have thus far. Much better job rebounding. The main issue aside from the poor shooting??? 11 assists to 17 turnovers...that's why the game was closer than it should've been. On to the road next weekend...

Official results vs. Menlo
score: Jacks 76-65
scorer: Hunter 16
rebounds: Morris 10
assists: Sperling 3
blocks: Sperling 2, Hunter 2
steals: Broome 2, Hunter 2
turnovers: 17
field goal % - 41%
3 pt. % - 16%
free throw % - 77%
rebounding margin: Jacks +10

Total Prediction Points (this game)
EDAllen17 - 6
Super Mom - 6
Marauders - 5
Jacks Fan - 4
Seattle Fan -2
Super Fan - 2

Total Prediction Points (season)
[table]PARTICIPANT|POINTS|GAMES|AVG. POINTS PER GAME
EDAllen17|11|2|5.5
Jacks Fan|10|2|5.0
Super Mom|8|2|4.0
Marauders|7|2|3.5
Seattle Fan|5|2|2.5
Super Fan|5|2|2.5
[/table]