Connor Pelton is a long time friend of the program. I use the term colloquially because I don’t really know how long he’s befriended PacHoops. What I do know, however, is that Connor is a helluva Rush the Court contributor, a House of Sparky staple, and a lifelong Beaver. So with the latter (lattermost?) of Connor’s areas of expertise headed to the McKale Center, I thought we’d let CP scratch the curiosity itch.
My questions. Connor’s answers:
Allow me to be the first to welcome you to Tinkle Town. Welcome to the Conference of Champions, Wayne Tinkle. You are the third former Montana head coach to join the Pac (according to my research department). One is in the Hall of Fame, the other is only an inch shorter than you. And please note, I’m not going to harp long on OSU’s new coach’s last name. My surname is tease-able, too, and I may have some emotional scarring from grades K-2. You’d be surprised how damaging it is to be called “butt.” Speaking of butts, Oregon State is going to finish at the very ass bottom of the Pac-12.
Why I love them:
Should we make the tinkle jokes now or later? I’m opting for later because I have to pick and choose my moments to act like an adult and right now shall be one of them. Mom, I hope you’re reading. I also think such humor is better suited for well timed tweets during tense game situations.
Alas, let’s welcome Mr. Coach Wayne Tinkle to the Conference of Champions. While he inherits what could amount to the worst Pac-12 team since – well since really not that long ago when Utah and USC were 6-win teams in 2012 – he can, however, take solace in the fact that he will now be the conference’s tallest coach! Tinkle stands 6-feet-10-inches tall and looks to be the Shaquille to Krystkowiak’s Divac. That said, K crushes bike and phone thieves and Tinkle:
So aside from from gravity defiance, what does Tinkle bring westward? He’s the third man (by my calculations, I could be wrong) to leave the Grizzlies for the Pac. No doubt he aspires to match the success of Mike Montgomery (281 conference wins), but let’s focus on what Tinkly has already done. He’s coached just one team to a losing record and played on CBS in March three times. That’s three more times than Oregon State in the past 24 years. Tinkle can Dance.
Of course a new hire begs the question whether or not he can dance in his new colors. It would seem he won’t be doing such for awhile but he has an auspicious start considering his son is considered a high major talent, a three-star forward named Tres Trinkle who will follow pops to Corvallis. Now let’s run that back real quick: big dad, coaching big son who’s name is Tres. If that doesn’t sound like the trailer to the sequel to The McDermotts: A Jump Shot Story then you’re not paying attention.
Disney just contacted me for a script (I declined after declining to watch Million Dollar Arm).
All in all, this is a good hire. Considering the timing of it all (weird) and the support around this program (minimal as 2014 saw Gill’s worst attendance numbers in years) getting a proven coach is good work. And work is what Tinkle will have to do to have any semblance of success in what amounts to the most success deprived basketball program in the conference.
Is it a good day to be a Beaver? Maybe. But it’s always cool to fly private:
Wheels up to Corvallis! So excited for the new adventure! Let’s Go!! #GoBeavs pic.twitter.com/KI12XmAKtw
— Wayne Tinkle (@waynetinkle) May 20, 2014
When I tiredly opened the Twitter app on my phone while awaiting a train that was seven minutes away, the first news I saw was that Craig Robinson had been let go. It took a second to process, such are Monday mornings, but as that sunk in, all I could think was, “Now what?”
Bob De Carolis oozed confidence just a handful of weeks ago in noting that his coach would return. He listed everything Craig had accomplished that the previous five coaches following Ralph Miller had not pulled off. Now many of these accomplishments are meek (Oregon State had four wins against top-50 and six against top-100 NCAA basketball programs this past season, including wins over two teams that advanced to the Sweet 16), and none included an NCAA tournament visit. But Robinson had bested them all. Oregon State’s best coach in more than twenty years. And now he now joins them as a former Beaver.
While “now what” was my first thought, reactions to the news were the immediate response. To address:
1) Why is Craig Robinson being fired?
Aside from the aforementioned vote of confidence from his boss (you paying attention to this possible future candidates?) we can rationalize why Robinson was fired as the trajectory of his program was less than promising. He was about to lead a team that had very little talent. Everyone of note was leaving and the program’s win totals over his six years reads like this: 18, 14, 10, 21! 14, 16. The Beavers were going to be very bad in 2014-15, competing with that 2011 ten-win squad as worst Robinson team in Corvallis. This is an unfortunate scenario for a seventh year coach. The why fire him question is kind of easy to answer despite some of his semi-unprecedented success in Corvallis.
2) Why is he being fired now?
The quick answers here suggest money was in play. Robinson was owed $4M and will make that $4M whether or not he coaches in Corvallis. Someone with lots of money perhaps wanted Robinson out and made it a possibility for the athletic program to oust the First Coach. They accomplished this either by subsidizing the buyout or threatening to subsidize nothing. Money talks and this maybe wasn’t a possibility when schools normally fire their under-performing coach in – say – March. Because it’s May now and so….
3) But seriously, why now?
It’s May, every coaching gig has been inquired about, filled or rejected, recruiting is picking up, and everyone is leaving Eugene. You’re offering a job that most closely resembles a rusted ’93 Taurus that also needs a new transmission. And brakes. And a rear window. And probably three new wheels. Gone are the Beavers’ five leading contributors and they might only have a mitten to cover it up (that’s a joke noting that Gary Payton’s son – Gary “The Mitten” Payton II – will be starting at OSU this fall). From Drew:
Wow that Oregon State program is a mess right now. Why would someone want to coach there? Cupboards not just empty, cupboards missing.
— Andrew Murawa (@AMurawa) May 5, 2014
The cupboard is bare, it’s non-existent and there isn’t even an appointment with the carpenter to build a new one. But taking over a talented roster is something only Steve Alford, Tubby Smith, and Bill Self got to do (sure there are others but that’s this moment’s #HotSportsTake). In moving coaching jobs, it’s not exactly a pre-requisite. A foundation for success, however, that’s a different story. Craig Robinson was sub-.500 and is the best coach the school’s had since they employed the second best Miller the conference has ever seen [winky face emoji]. In summary: they’re offering a bad role to a thin market.
The reactionary phase is satiated but we’re now back to my initial reaction: Now what?
Well Bob De Carolis lied to us in his press conference noting that he had “no candidates in mind.” Puh-lease. The third point above alludes completely and totally to the idea that there is someone lined up. At least that’s what I want to believe. And if there isn’t paperwork on someone’s desk that would make them the next coach inside Gill, then I have to ask, “BUT SERIOUSLY WHY NOW?” To not have a solid candidate lined up when working this far outside the realm of normal hiring cycles suggests ineptitude within an athletic department that seems to be pretty adept (solid football program, a top ranked baseball team, Women’s hoops danced, 2012-13 gymnastics conference champs).
The timing of this would seem to be an opportunity for De Carolis to either look brilliant or otherwise. 1) Awkwardly fire your coach to bring in [insert sexy hire here which could turn out to be Ben Howland which would be a monster hire at a school like OSU and might also demonstrate just how tarnished the Howland brand is in the wake of his departure from UCLA but we can probably dedicate an entire post to just that and cut out this run on sentence]. Or, 2) awkwardly fire your coach to bring in an elongated coaching hunt, an underwhelming name, and probably some serious heat.
The future of OSU basketball weighs in the De Carolis balances of decision making. And while part of that future is already written – the Beavs are going to suck next year – it’s the AD’s job to think big picture.
What is Bob De Carolis thinking?
Personal Note: I’m bummed to see Craig Robinson leave the conference. I defended his position when he was first retained because I thought he was, if nothing else, OSU’s best option. That’s the basketball side and while I don’t have particularly close access to these personalities, in my few opportunities, Robinson was a charming, thoughtful, funny guy. At Pac-12 Media Day I asked him about how his defense had improved by prefacing it with a comment on Barrack. He laughed, answered, and then coached the conference’s worst defense. But you laugh at my jokes and I think you’re good people. Good luck, Craig. You’ll probably do just fine.
It wouldn’t be the preeminent Pac-12 basketball blog if we didn’t get a chance to examine every post season team’s fortunes. Here we get two NIT previews and a CBI preview that digresses into commentary on Andy Enfield.
The not in tournaments:
#2 California Golden Bears
Opening Remarks: I was inside a raucous Haas Pavilion as Justin Cobbs drifted into the left corner, towards the baseline and Kaleb Tarczewski rolled with him. Cobbs elevated, the seven-footer elevated, and the shot was purely released. Cobbs wound up a heap on the ground, the fans wound up a mess on the court, and the Bears wound up in the NIT. That’s not how the story was supposed to end but that’s how it did. The inconsistencies caught up with them and they closed the season losing eight of their final twelve. That’s not a dancing tune and this is a frustrating NIT bid. In 2012 I watched as Kyle Fogg – an Arizona senior I saw grow, develop, and grind into an first-teamer – accepted a bid into the NIT. He handled it by scoring just 5 points on 2-5 shooting inside the McKale Center. He lost, his final game as a Wildcat, to Bucknell. In Tucson. The point here is that Justin Cobbs and Richard Solomon have tasted sweet tournament success. They danced each of the past two years and are just a year removed from giving Syracuse all they could handle. And now they’ve drawn a home game against Utah Valley, KenPom’s 198th best team, on the same floor that they beat an undefeated and #1 ranked Arizona team. It’s a different stage.
First Opponent: So you’ve heard of Utah Valley
So yeah, that happened. They also don’t shoot the ball and are going to make an effort to score inside the arc with the 333rd slowest offense in the nation. This offense is actually pretty impressive considering they take such a deliberate amount of time and conjure the 13th best A/FG ratio in the country. This suggests that their patience pays off. But not that much. They’re still the 209th most efficient offense. Cal should roll and throw zero basketballs at anyone in doing such.
Stories: The NIT committee doesn’t have the same undisclosed and denied sense of drama that the NCAA committee has. I mean, what do you want me to tell you? There was some sort of sick conservatism joke being played on Cal within their quad? They play a school from Utah with a potential second round game against Arkansas or Indiana State? I don’t suspect that to be the case but I also don’t see the Bears staying very long in this tournament. That’s not an indictment on their talents, but rather a recognition that they’ve already the filet, they don’t want the chuck.
Best/Worst:
#5 Utah Utes
Opening Remarks: Whereas an NIT invite was a let down for Cal, Utah has been on a different trajectory. No one has asked Utah to do anything except join the Pac-12 since 2009. Pardon, they went to the Sun Bowl, but I think we’re walking in stride here. It hasn’t been the sexiest three seasons in the Conference of Champs for the Utes. So garnering this invite was a big deal no matter how illegal what Arizona did to them is in Utah. Now, did I think they’d be a higher seed? Yes. Did I think they’d get to host a game? Yes. Neither is happening for the Utes. But sometimes, when you haven’t really demonstrated a track record of success (in recent history! I know all about Utah as the 11th winningest program) you don’t get treated preferentially. So, they’ll travel to win this thing.
First Opponent: Utah will return to the Bay Area to face the St. Mary’s Gaels. The first thing I want to note is that the last time they traveled to the Bay (2 weeks ago) they beat Cal for their second road win (big accomplishment) and gave everything they had for 39 minutes and 30 seconds to Stanford. Mal-execution cost them the Bay sweep but the overarching sentiment here is that the Utes set a precedence for A) Winning on the road which they had not done all season, and B) Winning in the Bay area. Moraga, CA is just 13 miles from Berkeley. This is familiar territory for the Utes particularly considering they’re basically playing a slightly better version of Washington State: slow as a turtle, threes like preschool. Of course WSU beat Utah which is seemingly inexcusable and perhaps an aberration. That weekend sweep in Washington were the Utah’s only losses to non-tournament teams. Enough revisionism. You knew I wasn’t going to get through a Utah bit without mentioning shots at the rim, right? St. Mary’s allows the 214th highest percentage of shots at the rim (38.8%). Hello, Delon.
Stories: The tale here is that Utah is in the post-season. Here is a program trajectory graph I created used highly advance statistical models to understand what Larry Krystkowiak is trying to do:
Oh, that’s just wins you say? Well I’ve long said it’s my favorite statistic and it doesn’t lie very often. Utah is headed in the right direction, a post-season invite is proof of it. A five seed in the NIT is proof they hadn’t been in the right direction. But that’s what March is for. Prove somebody wrong.
Best/Worst:
#1 Oregon State
Opening Remarks: The Beavers are going to pay $35k to host their first round game. Is this basically the plot premise of Her? This is their fourth time in the CBI. They won it in 2009 and lost in the semifinals to Washington State in 2011. All of these stats I had to look up because I really don’t know anything about the CBI and it will probably remain that way. I’ll peripherally keep an eye on the Beavs but this could be the extent of it. My eyes are on North Texas.
First Opponent: This tournament puts a new spin on the phrase “cost of winning” as advancing means OSU will pay $50k to host the quarters; $75k to host the semis. Whatever the case, the Beavers have drawn Radford who has the 329th best defense in the nation. Oregon State has the 49th best offense. Plus, it’s Radford and what I really want to do is mix in a Tim Floyd wakes up in El Paso reference because UTEP is in the CBI and USC isn’t. But Andy Enfield is still waking up in Los Angeles and so is Isaac Hamilton (albeit UCLA not USC).
Best/Worst:
Last night was as March as games not broadcast on CBS get. Every game saw a tie or lead change in the final five minutes (if not the final two minutes) and EVERY SINGLE ROAD TEAM WON. I’m not going to data mine to see if there has been a three pronged road sweep on a single night this Pac-12 season. But considering there have been only 44 road wins across 100 Pac-12 games, I don’t think we’ve seen it. Welcome to March.
Arizona @ Oregon State
I don’t know if this was a trap game or what it projected to be but I do know that there are some damn fine ball players on that Oregon State roster. They have size all over and Roberto Nelson is a scorer. Unfortunately, this was my mom’s analysis of the game, “It looked like one team had a plan and the other didn’t.” Well guess who won? Arizona did and was fortunate to do such if you’re asking their coach. He cited the Wildcats’ inability to rebound and so I present to you the expected rebounding numbers and the actuals and subsequently how Oregon State stayed in that game:
Colorado @ Stanford
If we break the game into quarters, the Colorado Buffaloes have been outscored by 45 points in the third quarter during conference play this season. That’s an average of about 2.7 points per game and worse on the road: -3.5 points, -25 collectively. Conversely, the Stanford Cardinal come out of the half and are plus 21. It’s a theme worth diving deeper into at another time but here is how last night’s battle for a bid played out:
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | |
| Colorado | 12 | 21 | 13 | 13 |
| Stanford | 11 | 17 | 13 | 15 |
In what appears to be that critical third quarter, the Buffs managed to play things even, maintain their lead, and subsequently close the game. Oh, and this was critical at 2:01
DWIGHT CHARGES WITH FOUR FOULS OVER JOSH SCOTT WITH FOUR FOULS. THAT WAS LIKE TWO LIONS FIGHTING FOR A GAZELLE
— Adam Butler (@pachoopsab) March 6, 2014
Utah @ California
Numbers don’t lie:
Oh, and what’s going on at Cal?
Between Roberto Nelson and CJ Wilcox, these tremendous seniors have weathered the worst Pac-12 storm we’ve ever seen. And that’s on a coast that rarely experiences bad storms. Across their four years, they’ve been a part of some awful conference play. Yet here they are now, on the cusp of being two of the best players in a conference possibly sending 7 teams into the Dance.
And do you realize that neither of these two would make a normal first team all-conference team? Normal would suggest a five-man squad which the Pac-12 doesn’t do so they’ve got a Pac-12 chance at first team. But these guys aren’t even top-5! Sure, neither plays on a particularly dangerous squad so they fly under the radar, ignored pretty regularly despite terrific individual numbers. I get that wins are the most important stat; but that doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate an individual’s efforts to try to win.
I wanted to tell each of their stories, how they affect the game. But as I worked harder into their numbers, deeper into their stories, I found some interesting parallels. And some fascinating divergence.
I’d like to begin with the parallels:
| Player | FG | FGA | FG% | 3P% | FT% | TRB | AST | PTS |
| CJ Wilcox | 6.2 | 13.5 | 0.46 | 0.401 | 0.854 | 3.6 | 2.6 | 18.2 |
| Roberto Nelson | 6.1 | 13.7 | 0.449 | 0.402 | 0.843 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 20.6 |
I was really excited to see these near identical outputs. The two best players on these two average teams. I mean, even their teams are nearly identical. Washington is 16-13, 8-8 and Oregon State is 15-13, 7-9. I even took a gander at their win shares: Nelson 3.7, Wilcox 4.0. Right on down the line they seem to be pretty similar. Wilcox is 6’5″ 195lbs. Nelson is 6’4″ 198lbs. Same size, same numbers, the big picture suggests they affect the game similarly.
But going a level deeper, we find our divergence.
Simply put, Roberto gets to the rim and CJ prefers not to. If you were paying attention to the chart above, you’d have noticed they were making nearly the identical number of FGs per game (6.2 Wilcox, 6.1 Nelson). Yet, per our graph above, Nelson is taking 18.5% more two-point shots than Wilcox. How are they putting up the same number of points. If you guessed free throws, you were right. Nelson’s free throw rate is double that of Wilcox’s (56.7% vs 26.3%). And so it makes sense.
Like our Delon Wright study, Nelson is the slashing creating type. He differs from Wright in that he connects on 40% of his threes (Wright’s an atrocious 25.6%). But ultimately the two of them, as noted, are slashing and creating. Nelson’s possessions result in a play at the rim more than 40% of the time. It’s inside the paint that Nelson fights to 20.6ppg with just a sparse percentage of his shots being assisted. A little more than a third of Nelson’s shots at the rim are assisted. With Wright as our barometer, Nelson gets a slight more help from his friends. Wright has 29.4% of his rim shots assisted. For continuity’s sake, Wilcox is assisted on 45.3% of his rim buckets. These numbers suggest some self-reliance on the part of Nelson and Wright, the ability to create for oneself.
Not CJ’s strong suit. Wilcox is a phenomenal three point shooter. We noted he makes 40% of his shots from there and takes half his shots from there. That’s a productive output and why he’s 10th in the conference in eFG%. Conversely, Nelson leads the conference in usage (32% good for 21st most in the nation).
Nelson needs the ball in his hands to affect the game. Now obviously so too does CJ, but he ranks just 19th in the conference in usage, the lowest such percentage amongst the conference’s top-10 leading scorers (Wilcox is fifth). He’s a beautifully pure shooter. I’m inclined to note how often CJ’s threes are assisted but it’s actually below the D-1 average (75.3% vs 84.9%). Not exactly fulfilling our CJ-is-team-reliant narritive. But as such a great shooter (career 39.2% shooter as compared to JJ Redick’s 40.2% or Salim Stoudamire’s 45.8% – wait, Salim was that much better than JJ, sigh…) it’s understandable that Wilcox is going to get the green light a little more often than not. Particularly as a senior with two underclassmen guards feeding him. Year-over-year, Wilcox’s percentage of assisted threes has decreased (I see you Abdul).
Ultimately, what each of these players is accomplishing is individually impressive and unique. They’ve arrived at similar destinations taking very different paths.
Neither of these seniors will win the Player of the Year award. But each has been a terrific Pac-12 basketball player, contributing to the resurgence of a conference once mired below mediocrity. It was the laughing stock of college basketball.
Today, while neither of their teams has seen great success, they’ve developed into two of the most dynamic and unique players in the conference. A part of arguably the best guard corps in the nation.
And they are seniors at the ends of their respective paths. I enjoyed watching them and I imagine you did, too. They did great. Good luck.
This week I’ll be taking in zero live Pac-12 action. As in not attending any games. I’m not all too happy about it but I’ll get mine. Attending games – particularly as March is so close we’ll experience it this weekend – is as exciting as it gets. And March is perfect. Therefore, if you’re in Salt Lake, Westwood, Tucson, or Tempe, I implore you to get to the nearest Pac-12 arena, yell for your team, and buy an enemy a drink. You’ll be a better person for it and someone on the east coast will be jealous as you exit to sunshine and Spring. And while that reads pretty happy-go-lucky, the reason you need to get to these arenas is because the play will be anything but. These guys are fighting and clawing for the sport’s most coveted invitation. YOU GUYS IT WILL TURN MARCH THIS WEEKEND. THIS IS WHY WE WATCH AND THIS IS WHY WE CHEER AND THIS IS WHY WE BLOG. MORE IMPORTANTLY IT’S WHY THEY PLAY SO LET US SIT BACK, IGNORE THE NICE WEATHER, AND ENJOY.
BRING ON MARCH. GIVE ME THE BRACKETS.
GotW: Without hesitation, and with all eyes on Thursday and Westwood, it’s Oregon‘s visit to UCLA. We breifly discussed the Ducks and their stance amongst it all in the review but now it’s time to preview. A season ago the Ducks won both matchups between the two (in LA and in LV). Of course last year the Ducks were one of the best defenses in the country and, as it were, defense travels. Flash forward to this season and we saw a Wear family member shovel in the game winner just ahead of the buzzer in Eugene. With all of that said and under the pretense that I was previewing, let’s move to Thursday. The Ducks are winners of three straight and just might be sneaking back onto the bubble (if they’re not already there). The showed some propensity to defend against WSU but honestly that doesn’t count. This spade is indeed a spade and tomorrow night the Ducks are going to need to rely on their offense to knock off the Bruins. These are the conference’s top two offenses so if you like points – and you’re a Pac-12 fan so of course you do – this is your kinda game.
Game to Avoid: I’m quick to say that you should avoid Oregon State at USC because it airs at the exact same time as our GotW. But if you’re watching UO-UCLA then you might as well simulcast the Pac-12 hoops. It’s ESPN2 and FS1, respectively, so it won’t be too tall an order for the barkeep. Glancing through the schedule you’ll notice that there are some spicy contests on every single night of the Pac-12 slate (Wednesday: Stan-ASU, Thursday: GotW, Saturday: CU-Utah, Sunday: Stan-AZ). You’ll notice, however, that I missed Friday’s Apple Cup battle in Seattle. You have better things to do on Friday than watch KenPom’s 95th and 199th best teams duke it out for pride.
Something to Prove: My reaction is to call out the Oregon Ducks here. They’ve been trying to prove themselves since quacking all over themselves the first half of conference play but winning in Pauley is not an expectation. It’d be a really nice thing for them but the realist in me says a 1-1 weekend for the Ducks is a success. The burden of proof, this weekend, falls on the Bay Schools. They seem to be flip flopping as to who the hotter team is and while I recognize the magnitude of their road task this weekend (in the hateful State), the team that can fly home with a 1-1 mark is a big winner. Right, Mikey? Conversely, the Arizona State Sun Devils have got a little something to prove. They got swept on their Ski Trip on the heels of their big win over Arizona. The friendly confines can be a season saving spot but Stanford and Cal are no joke and a pair of hiccups is not out of the realm of possibilities. Spencer and I discussed all four games in Arizona this weekend on WANE (posting soon) because it’s the center of the Pac-12 universe.
Something to Lose: This late in the season it’s hard to say that anyone really has anything to lose. Everyone is vying to look pretty for the selection committee and wants to prove themselves worthy of an invite or a better seed. Thus, the teams with the most to lose would be the teams that have already proven something. Arizona‘s sweep of the Ski Schools last weekend was only the second such occurrence of a Ski Sweep in three seasons of ski schools in the Pac. It subsequently also earned them Lunardi’s number one overall seed in the latest bracketology. I mean, such a distinction suggests that the Wildcats literally have nothing further to prove, only things to lose. They’re hosting the Bay Schools (Cal tonight, Stanford on Sunday) with revenge on the mind. It was Cal, after all, that handed Arizona their first loss and Stanford that gave them all they could handle.
The YouTuber: Episode one has aired – it’s a Sunday night show so it’s up against GIRLS and LOOKING and True Detective – but rumor has it that yours truly makes an appearance in that first episode. And so believe you me, I will have that clip on here. For now, the teaser is strong:
Conference play will tip tonight. That’s a fun fact to let sink and now’s a good time to let your loved ones know that Thursdays and Saturdays are booked (and the occasional Wednesday. And the occasional Friday. And the occasional Sunday. And all of March). I love conference play because it means something. A “good win” doesn’t just carry a nice perception, it moves you up the ladder. And we know that college basketball is all about getting to the top of ladders. With scissors.
Fourteen things to watch in this 2014 Pac-12 season:
I’m not about to sing the glowing prospects of a team who’s best player has been accused – by the coach – of being a Beer Leaguer – and who’s other top-two players were indefinitely suspended. No that doesn’t quite equate to a shining review and, quite frankly, the future is only about a mild squint’s bright in Corvallis. Craig Robinson is once again telling us his team is dedicated to the defensive end (more later).
Why I love them: And who doesn’t like bigs? I’m 6’5″ and always get picked up at open gym. In the Pac-12, 6’5″ isn’t going to get you much beyond a shooting guard and in my case an assistant associate to the video coordinator’s assistant. But enough about me. OSU touts Eric Moreland (9/11), Devon Collier (13/6), and Angus Brandt (12/9 before busting his knee). Each is greater than 6’8″ and is going to be further supplemented by the playing time of 6’9″ Oakhill Academy product, Daniel Gomis. This kid is 2010 and has been at OSU since that time with nary a minute played. Additionally, you have to like Roberto Nelson (guard) because he looks like Drake.
Why I hate them: Last season the Beavers committed to man-to-man defense and promptly posted a 101.1 AdjD – good for 167th in the nation and last in the conference. They also placed last in the Pac and so it makes good sense that Robinson sees a need for further commitment to that side of the ball. Moreland – who is suspended for 14 games of the season and a further reason to dislike their prospects – was one of their better defensive players; snatching boards at the fifth highest rate in America (27.5%) and blocking 2.5 shots per contest. Robinson called him irreplaceable despite needing to replace him. At pachoops, we call that an “unenviable, self-inflicted predicament.” Of a similar self-inflicted vein is Beer League basketball players. Robinson previously felt his senior leader, Nelson, was in All-Beer League shape. He’s since sung Nelson’s praises for getting into shape, but earning that hoppy honor is an inauspicious start to a defensively oriented season.
Stat you should know:
3
Number of .500 or better seasons OSU has posted since 1992. Other popular things from 1992 include: The Dream Team, Aladdin, and the birth of Miley Ray Cyrus. It hasn’t been the greatest 2+ decades in Corvallis basketball.
Quotable:
“Don’t pooh‑pooh the All‑Beer League. I’ve been on some beer league teams, and we have beaten a lot of guys.” – Craig Robinson
Outlook: I won’t soon pooh-pooh the beer league – I had my first softball game on Monday in which I had to pitch after blowing up my ankle in beer league hoops – but I am going to pooh-pooh OSU’s defense. I can’t quite buy this team as contending for much better than 8th in the conference. Moreland’s absence isn’t helping things and neither is the fact that this is the strongest Pac-12 conference since Robinson joined the league.