Iup basketball

[EyeoftheHawk]

First time seeing Grove in person. He does freshman things as you’d expect but wow, the ceiling is high for that kid. I’m not so sure he doesn’t belong in D1, although he may end up there anyway. Reminds me a bit of Bryce Butler but bigger.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Yeah, I wasn't particularly surprised UPJ won at home, but I was surprised by the margin as I think Lock Haven will have a decent team this season. Guess we'll find out more today.

Well, UPJ followed it up by escaping Mansfield (a dreadful team this year).

I'd chalk last night up to one of those magic UPJ nights. They have 1-2 a year up there when that happens.

Lock Haven is scrappy. Decent size. They don't quit.

IUP went up 19 with 6 minutes to go and then it was down to 4. Joe learned today you can't call the dogs off with a team this young. That is what can happen.

[Ship69]

IUP's opponent tomorrow, Lock Haven, got walloped in Johnstown tonight (by 33).

It will be interesting how they come back tomorrow.

I've seen teams come back the next day all gangbusters, and others sulk. UPJ is famous for a couple games like tonight every year (when they shoot the lights out in that gym).

I suspect Joe will have a big crowd tomorrow. His teams are infamous for duds in the home opener. This should be interesting.

Yeah, I wasn't particularly surprised UPJ won at home, but I was surprised by the margin as I think Lock Haven will have a decent team this season. Guess we'll find out more today.

[Bart]

The route Ship would take here can obviously get real nasty.

I've been caught in some terrifying trips up in the Altoona area. That mountain can go from calm to all heck breaking loose real fast.

Reminds me of my commutes from Altoona to IUP over the Cresson Mtn. in the winter. White knuckled.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

IUP's opponent tomorrow, Lock Haven, got walloped in Johnstown tonight (by 33).

It will be interesting how they come back tomorrow.

I've seen teams come back the next day all gangbusters, and others sulk. UPJ is famous for a couple games like tonight every year (when they shoot the lights out in that gym).

I suspect Joe will have a big crowd tomorrow. His teams are infamous for duds in the home opener. This should be interesting.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Indiana was definitely nasty today. And at my house 35 minutes away in Armstrong county, not a flake of snow on the ground. We got rain all day.

The route Ship would take here can obviously get real nasty.

I've been caught in some terrifying trips up in the Altoona area. That mountain can go from calm to all heck breaking loose real fast.

[Chuck Norris]

Due to poor weather in Indiana, the Ship vs IUP doubleheader has been moved to Sunday (1pm and 3pm). Tomorrow (LH) is still on.

Indiana was definitely nasty today. And at my house 35 minutes away in Armstrong county, not a flake of snow on the ground. We got rain all day.

[hawks16]

Heck, Tony, please write a blog or something!

Tony is on substack.
https://tonycoccagna.substack.com/p/...dRedirect=true

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Due to poor weather in Indiana, the Ship vs IUP doubleheader has been moved to Sunday (1pm and 3pm). Tomorrow (LH) is still on.

[Ship69]

Well, since the team (and fans) no longer has any media coverage ... we'll have to make some assumptions based off of rumors and observations.

That said:

* IUP 'could' have several additional players dressed this weekend -- most notably Bautista Rodriguez. The 6'7", 220 lb SF has missed the first four games as IUP worked to get him through some issues with his academic clearances. He's from overseas and I don't know what's all involved in that process - or, why it wasn't resolved prior to the season starting. However, at least the 'rumor' is he may have the green light very shortly. What he'll instantly add is a very physical, tough presence. He runs the floor very well and has a nice shot. He's a bit of a 'hot head' from what I've heard, but, well, that's not always a bad thing.

- The mystery man ... No. 55. He's been dressed for the first four road games but has yet to appear on the (online) roster. He's certainly a guard, size-wise. He was a late addition to the team.

- Sebastian Campbell allegedly joined the team on Monday (immediately after the football season ended). He will play one of the guard spots. He's a very good athlete. He's been away from organized basketball, however, for a very long time. They needed some healthy bodies. If anything, he should bring some speed and (allegedly) strong defense.

- One can only speculate but being that Joe's adding guards out of the student body likely means Alphonso Pickens and (possibly) Dallis Dillard won't be back this year. Denzel Kabasele is still on the roster but did not travel with the team the first two weekends. He's also coming back from an ACL. Add them up and that's (3) guards IUP has been without -- two starters and one rotation.


* Despite our efforts on here to entice Karst Hunter to join the program ... no news on that front. Hunter (IUP QB) is 6'5" or 6'6" and about 215-220 lbs. He can fly, is very physical and was a very decorated high school basketball player. I think he could immediately help this team.



As for this weekend:

Shippensburg is off to a 1-3 start (they have been in all three losses). The Raiders have a legitimate star in guard Markus Frank. He's going to get his points (he put up 30-some on IUP last year). The question is will Joe go with his old theory of letting Frank 'get his' but suffocating everybody else? That was the approach IUP took a year ago. There's also the Chris Fite factor in this game. Obviously he's very familiar with everything IUP runs on offense and defense (he was Joe's top assistant for 5-6 years, and nothing has changed).

Lock Haven is 2-3 entering the weekend. The Bald Eagles are in a bit of a rebuild after last season's success. Aside from the opener, Lock Haven has lost two pretty tight games. The Bald Eagles have a lot of speed.


Compared to what IUP has faced thus far, both Shippensburg and Lock Haven have much smaller lineups. Size-wise, IUP has run into some gigantic teams thus far. These games should be good for Damir Brooks and Luke Triggs.

I'll be surprised if Ship wins either game over the weekend. I think some of their younger and less experienced players and they might snatch a couple of wins as the year goes on, but they don't seem to be ready for prime time at this point. The IUP and Seton Hill bigs are probably more physical than ours. With no seniors, Ship needs more steady scoring from its junior class (Donovan Hill, Trey Martin, Denzel Figueroa) to take some of the pressure off Frank.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

That was a really nice response to a tough weekend in Charleston, especially to rally against what looks to be a pretty solid team in their gym. There will be ups and downs I’m sure, but there’s the makings of something pretty good. They certainly don’t quit fighting.

Ashland just about upset No. 13 Ferris State last night (lost by 1 point). That was a big win for this young IUP team. Joe thinks Ashland will likely be an NCAA team.

I'd feel a lot better once they have some more guys dressed, however.

It's been a roller coaster so far, which is how I think the whole season will play out. There will be good nights and there will be bad nights.

The win at Ashland (Game 4) was certainly their best performance thus far. They aren't going to hit 15 or 17 treys a night all season, however.

The (7) guys playing have a lot of speed. The 'bigs' run well. You can tell they are still learning Joe's defense. They've been susceptible to long lapses. Triggs and Damir aren't the ideal size for post players (Brooks is about 6'5" and Triggs is probably closer to 6'5" than his listed 6'7"). They are both athletic and well-built, however. They won't see many lineups bigger than what they've already seen.

Looking back, the Glenville game was a disaster. That was clearly 5 starters playing together for the first time. The next night they got smoked in the first half at Charleston but then kind of smoked them in the second half. Tiffin was similar - great first half and pretty wobbly second half before pulling it out in OT. Ashland was the game I thought a lot of things started to click.

[IUPalum]

Well, since the team (and fans) no longer has any media coverage ... we'll have to make some assumptions based off of rumors and observations.

That said:

* IUP 'could' have several additional players dressed this weekend -- most notably Bautista Rodriguez. The 6'7", 220 lb SF has missed the first four games as IUP worked to get him through some issues with his academic clearances. He's from overseas and I don't know what's all involved in that process - or, why it wasn't resolved prior to the season starting. However, at least the 'rumor' is he may have the green light very shortly. What he'll instantly add is a very physical, tough presence. He runs the floor very well and has a nice shot. He's a bit of a 'hot head' from what I've heard, but, well, that's not always a bad thing.

- The mystery man ... No. 55. He's been dressed for the first four road games but has yet to appear on the (online) roster. He's certainly a guard, size-wise. He was a late addition to the team.

- Sebastian Campbell allegedly joined the team on Monday (immediately after the football season ended). He will play one of the guard spots. He's a very good athlete. He's been away from organized basketball, however, for a very long time. They needed some healthy bodies. If anything, he should bring some speed and (allegedly) strong defense.

- One can only speculate but being that Joe's adding guards out of the student body likely means Alphonso Pickens and (possibly) Dallis Dillard won't be back this year. Denzel Kabasele is still on the roster but did not travel with the team the first two weekends. He's also coming back from an ACL. Add them up and that's (3) guards IUP has been without -- two starters and one rotation.


* Despite our efforts on here to entice Karst Hunter to join the program ... no news on that front. Hunter (IUP QB) is 6'5" or 6'6" and about 215-220 lbs. He can fly, is very physical and was a very decorated high school basketball player. I think he could immediately help this team.



As for this weekend:

Shippensburg is off to a 1-3 start (they have been in all three losses). The Raiders have a legitimate star in guard Markus Frank. He's going to get his points (he put up 30-some on IUP last year). The question is will Joe go with his old theory of letting Frank 'get his' but suffocating everybody else? That was the approach IUP took a year ago. There's also the Chris Fite factor in this game. Obviously he's very familiar with everything IUP runs on offense and defense (he was Joe's top assistant for 5-6 years, and nothing has changed).

Lock Haven is 2-3 entering the weekend. The Bald Eagles are in a bit of a rebuild after last season's success. Aside from the opener, Lock Haven has lost two pretty tight games. The Bald Eagles have a lot of speed.


Compared to what IUP has faced thus far, both Shippensburg and Lock Haven have much smaller lineups. Size-wise, IUP has run into some gigantic teams thus far. These games should be good for Damir Brooks and Luke Triggs.

This is everything we've discussed but I sure wish we could get some roster insight with the additions and injuries. So frustrating.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Well, since the team (and fans) no longer has any media coverage ... we'll have to make some assumptions based off of rumors and observations.

That said:

* IUP 'could' have several additional players dressed this weekend -- most notably Bautista Rodriguez. The 6'7", 220 lb SF has missed the first four games as IUP worked to get him through some issues with his academic clearances. He's from overseas and I don't know what's all involved in that process - or, why it wasn't resolved prior to the season starting. However, at least the 'rumor' is he may have the green light very shortly. What he'll instantly add is a very physical, tough presence. He runs the floor very well and has a nice shot. He's a bit of a 'hot head' from what I've heard, but, well, that's not always a bad thing.

- The mystery man ... No. 55. He's been dressed for the first four road games but has yet to appear on the (online) roster. He's certainly a guard, size-wise. He was a late addition to the team.

- Sebastian Campbell allegedly joined the team on Monday (immediately after the football season ended). He will play one of the guard spots. He's a very good athlete. He's been away from organized basketball, however, for a very long time. They needed some healthy bodies. If anything, he should bring some speed and (allegedly) strong defense.

- One can only speculate but being that Joe's adding guards out of the student body likely means Alphonso Pickens and (possibly) Dallis Dillard won't be back this year. Denzel Kabasele is still on the roster but did not travel with the team the first two weekends. He's also coming back from an ACL. Add them up and that's (3) guards IUP has been without -- two starters and one rotation.


* Despite our efforts on here to entice Karst Hunter to join the program ... no news on that front. Hunter (IUP QB) is 6'5" or 6'6" and about 215-220 lbs. He can fly, is very physical and was a very decorated high school basketball player. I think he could immediately help this team.



As for this weekend:

Shippensburg is off to a 1-3 start (they have been in all three losses). The Raiders have a legitimate star in guard Markus Frank. He's going to get his points (he put up 30-some on IUP last year). The question is will Joe go with his old theory of letting Frank 'get his' but suffocating everybody else? That was the approach IUP took a year ago. There's also the Chris Fite factor in this game. Obviously he's very familiar with everything IUP runs on offense and defense (he was Joe's top assistant for 5-6 years, and nothing has changed).

Lock Haven is 2-3 entering the weekend. The Bald Eagles are in a bit of a rebuild after last season's success. Aside from the opener, Lock Haven has lost two pretty tight games. The Bald Eagles have a lot of speed.


Compared to what IUP has faced thus far, both Shippensburg and Lock Haven have much smaller lineups. Size-wise, IUP has run into some gigantic teams thus far. These games should be good for Damir Brooks and Luke Triggs.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Having spent many of my school years in the Midwest and Big Ten country, where basketball has never been non-contact sport, I'm sure aware there is a human factor in officiating. Well, I think talking to the officials can go both ways.. Fite has been relatively mild-mannered for years, but we seldom seem to get much home cooking from the refs at our games. And I've seen guys such as Stitzel go nuts on the officials for almost the entire game. You have a few officials who engage in lengthy conversations with the coaches after disputed calls, during timeouts, etc., as if they're explaining the rulebook to them. Most officials when I was growing up did not want to hear a great deal of talk from the coaches.

At our game Monday night, the Chestnut Hill coach charged at least 15-20 feet onto the court after one call he didn't like, which should have been an immediate technical, and he was on the court several other times. The so-called coaches' box has become a joke.

People in general will react better to you if you treat them decently. In sports journalism, you seldom saw people such as Cal Ripken and Brooks Robinson of the Orioles getting bad press, because they were standup guys and treated people with respect. A couple of years ago at a Capitals hockey game, I saw Ripken go out of his way to find a pen to give a kid an autograph when kid's pen didn't work. You're not going to give a guy such as that a hard time. Athletes and print journalists once has a fairly tight, symbiotic relationship that mutually benefitted both. That changed when TV took over and the athletes started making a ton more money. Attitudes changed, and so did the relationship

IUPAlum and I were cracking up during the Ashland game. Joe got so fired up he called a timeout and never spoke to his team. He called it just so he could hammer them (officials) for 60 seconds. It was great.


Totally agree on the coaches' box. It's the biggest joke going.


We used to joke all the time about getting the assignment to officiate a game between SRU and Mercyhurst -- say, back in 2016. I don't know how those officials made it through a game with KR and Gary hammering them for 40 straight minutes. Both of them have calmed down since those days (somewhat) but they were in beast mode back then.

[Ship69]

Games aren't always called fair. There's 100% a human element to officiating. Just in our little universe of D2, some of our coaches -- being brutally honest -- are complete d!ckheads on the court. They aren't getting close calls. In fact, because of their behavior, they are probably getting ticky-tack calls going against them (purely out of spite).

Let me tell you a little story.

As I often say, I've seen more D2 basketball games that I would ever publicly share. I know our officiating crews (many of them personally). I can tell you almost 100% accurately how a game will go as soon as I see the assigned crew.

A couple examples:

For instance, we have the "GQ Crew" which is far and away the worst in the Region. These are the three -- headlined by 'GQ' -- who honestly think the crowd is there to watch them. Every single game they officiate ... if the teams can play uninterrupted for 30 straight seconds it's a miracle. They ruin the flow of the game and make it terrible to watch. I would venture to bet (if anybody actually wanted to track this) they call double the amount of fouls per game than every other crew in the Region.

Moving along, there's the 'old guy' crew. This trio can no longer efficiently run the court. They are out of position constantly. The game has literally (and physically) passed them by. They specialize in blowing the whistle from 40' away, etc. One of them, in particular, has had it out for Lombardi for the past 15 years. He's T'd up Joe -- not joking -- at least 15-20 times. I'm not naive. Joe can be a jerk to officials -- not so much these days but certainly in his younger days. That said, he (oddly) historically hasn't been T'd up much -- with one (this guy) exception.


Think back to the Kevin Reynolds days at SRU. He was hammering officials in warm-ups lol. You think they were going to do him any favors? Not a chance. KR is much, much calmer these days on the sidelines. He was epic back in the mid 2010s.

Having spent many of my school years in the Midwest and Big Ten country, where basketball has never been non-contact sport, I'm sure aware there is a human factor in officiating. Well, I think talking to the officials can go both ways.. Fite has been relatively mild-mannered for years, but we seldom seem to get much home cooking from the refs at our games. And I've seen guys such as Stitzel go nuts on the officials for almost the entire game. You have a few officials who engage in lengthy conversations with the coaches after disputed calls, during timeouts, etc., as if they're explaining the rulebook to them. Most officials when I was growing up did not want to hear a great deal of talk from the coaches.

At our game Monday night, the Chestnut Hill coach charged at least 15-20 feet onto the court after one call he didn't like, which should have been an immediate technical, and he was on the court several other times. The so-called coaches' box has become a joke.

People in general will react better to you if you treat them decently. In sports journalism, you seldom saw people such as Cal Ripken and Brooks Robinson of the Orioles getting bad press, because they were standup guys and treated people with respect. A couple of years ago at a Capitals hockey game, I saw Ripken go out of his way to find a pen to give a kid an autograph when kid's pen didn't work. You're not going to give a guy such as that a hard time. Athletes and print journalists once has a fairly tight, symbiotic relationship that mutually benefitted both. That changed when TV took over and the athletes started making a ton more money. Attitudes changed, and so did the relationship