It's time to put the rough preseason behind and begin the chase for the Big West Conference crown. The Ags jump into the fray tonight when they travel to SoCal to play the team that many think is the odds on favorite, UC Irvine, at 7 pm. The Anteaters are talented and deep and, as is typical of Russell Turner's teams, they play very disciplined basketball and are a solid defensive team.
Making a run at the title will be no easy task for the Aggies this year as they have struggled to play consistently good basketball and have had serious problems putting the ball through the hoop. There's bad news and good news reportedly for the Ags injury wise going into tonight's game: the bad news is that AJ John has not been cleared to play and the good news is that the rest of the team is healthy including Stefan Gonzalez who has been out a lot lately.
Most of the Aggie woes this year are due to a precipitous drop off in offense and most notably in 3 point shooting. Our inability to shoot well from the perimeter has forced the Ags to change strategies and try and pound the ball inside to Matt Neufeld and Garrison Goode and for our guards to try and score off dribble penetration in the lane.
The Big West teams will have seen the film and it's likely that we'll see teams clogging up the middle in an effort to make the Ags shoot from the outside. So we'll need for some shots to start dropping from distance in order to stretch the floor and help open up the middle.
As is the case with all Jim Les' teams, the Ags must play rock solid defense to keep us within striking distance. We just don't have the offensive weapons and consistency to be able to make big runs when we fall behind. We need to be the best defensive team in the conference to be able to compete with the best Big West teams like Irvine and Santa Barbara.
A "new season" begins tonight at 7 pm and the game will be televised live on ESPN 3:
Don't know if this means much, but you can see John (#25) in this tweet from Scott Marsh at UCI. Not saying he'll make an immediate difference upon his return, but it would be nice to have another experienced big guy available. Not sure why he'd make the trip if he wasn't close to coming back.
I sure hope AJ can go tonight. He's had a rough time with injuries over his career. I'm sure he's chomping at the bit to play especially since this is his last season.
That was definitely his best offensive game. We know he has the ability, intelligence and energy to be a big part of a winning team, it's just a matter of getting him back into game shape as quickly as possible.
Since John has been out, Neufeld has step into the starting lineup and done pretty well (he plays a different game then John, of course). Neufeld's issue is that he gets into foul trouble easily, fouling out in 2 of the last 3 games. Even if John just gives us 15 mins of good defense and rebounding, that would be a big help.
This is a game between two very good defensive teams. I thought the Ags defense overall was excellent in the first half. Irvine is solid defensively and we're having trouble with their size. We just can't shoot from the outside and we turned the ball over 9 times. That hurts.
The writer who said he didn't think the Ags would break 50 points may be right in his prediction.
Ags lose 71-69 in OT. Great effort by the Ags but I really did not like that last possession by the Ags when TJ just dribbled the clock down and then missed a long jumper. That's not his bread and butter. Drive the ball and either get a close shot or foul or kick it out for a 3.
Well I hate moral victories but at least we looked like Aggie basketball again. Good to see John back but missed gonzo. A win at beach would soften this loss
I just did a quick run by the UCI and BW boards, and there was clearly a lot of praise for TJ. He has the physical tools to take over a game, but it's his sheer will to win that makes him a step better. Not that the other players (on both teams) don't also want to win, but TJ has that certain something that only the great ones have. I just wish we got the chance to watch him for 4 years instead of 2.
I was thinking the same thing last night. His determination and work ethic are as good as it gets. He's set the standard for future Aggie PG's. It's a pure joy to watch him play the game.