BU hoops...Braves ready for 1st practice

[Big Mike]

by the "real" Dave Reynolds...

http://www.bradleyhoops.com/homepage/x1340497774/BU-anxious-to-hit-ground-running

[amckillip]

That article is a great example fo why SamM will be a starter throughout the remainder of his tenure here. He is a team leader who knows what it takes to win and isn't afraid to work hard. I would challenge anyone to ask what 'Open Gyms' are like if Maniscalco's there... As a sophomore he DRuff, AJ Guyton, and Sommerville doing drills - That's leadership

[tornado]

Nice story - keep them coming DR!

[jeffsu]

Braves briefs: Les said the biggest surprise of preseason conditioning is the progress of recovering Braves Andrew Warren (foot) and Will Egolf (knee). ???Will is markedly improved this week from last week in terms of his mobility, confidence in his leg and feeling free to play without limitation. Andrew has been ahead of schedule in terms of fitting back in and not looking too rusty.???

Love it! Thats the stuff.

And I agree, amckillip... Sam is clearly the on-the-court leader, but he proves he deserves that role by speaking well and making some great points in the paper here, too. Gotta look behind the stat sheet with Sam sometimes... (even though that's pretty darn good, too...)

[real fan]

The thing I agree with the most about article is what Coach E.Buescher said in that the toughest team will win the Valley. I think that there are 4 to 5 teams that have good players and are fairly evenly matched but the one that wins those games is the one that fights the hardest every possession both offensively and defensively , this BU team has a lot of those types of players so let the games begin.

[Jack Bauer]

The thing I agree with the most about article is what Coach E.Buescher said in that the toughest team will win the Valley. I think that there are 4 to 5 teams that have good players and are fairly evenly matched but the one that wins those games is the one that fights the hardest every possession both offensively and defensively , this BU team has a lot of those types of players so let the games begin.

I'd take it a step further...the 'healthiest' team usually contends for a Valley crown. With the exception of Dana's Bluejays staying in contention all year without Nate Funk, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a Valley champ that suffers from injuries to key personnel.

[Da Coach]

I'd take it a step further...the 'healthiest' team usually contends for a Valley crown. With the exception of Dana's Bluejays staying in contention all year without Nate Funk, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a Valley champ that suffers from injuries to key personnel.

Good point. Incidentally, that Creighton team of 2005-2006 was expected to win the MVC. They had the best talent and Funk was a senior, but with Funk's shoulder injury, they finished 4th in the MVC (just ahead of Bradley). They had gotten NCAA bids in 6 of the 7 seasons prior to that year, but missed the NCAA that year. So the loss of Funk did hurt them tremendously.

[tornado]

wait a minute coach-- how can you say that??
You can't use injuries as an excuse...if Creighton finished 4th then there just isn't any
justification for arguing they could have done any better with their star player!!
We've heard it a gazillion times....no excuses, quit using the injury thing..
Creighton was just a lousy, underproducing team that year and Dana was "mediocre"...

[shaunguth]

...the Bradley Braves are ???light years ahead??? of where they were last year at this point, coach Jim Les said this week.
???That??™s a result of having so many guys with experience on the floor,??? Les said. ???Last year, we were getting so many guys (six) acclimated to Division I basketball and our system. Now we??™ve got four freshmen who can all get behind a veteran or two and observe. It??™s less about teaching and more about execution because of our experience.???

We finished in 4th last year (just one game behind the mighty redbirds) and now we're picked to finish 6th or 7th by the "experts"? I really don't understand the "experts" sometimes!

???We??™ve always posted our season goals on the bulletin board,??? he said. ???This year, we don??™t have any goals. We have one word on our mind ??” win. That??™s all we care about, no matter how you get it done.

This thought process goes along with the new billboards very nicely......WIN (PERIOD).

[CubbieBear]

We finished in 4th last year (just one game behind the mighty redbirds) and now we're picked to finish 6th or 7th by the "experts"? I really don't understand the "experts" sometimes!

The PJS picked us 1st in the Valley last year in their pre-season preview issue, and we finished 4th...so maybe the PJS will pick us 4th this year, and we will finish 1st

[dogsrus]

by the "real" Dave Reynolds...
http://www.bradleyhoops.com/homepage...ground-running

Hey...I thought this was Wesslers article....

Anyway...good read.

[dogsrus]

wait a minute coach-- how can you say that??
You can't use injuries as an excuse...if Creighton finished 4th then there just isn't any
justification for arguing they could have done any better with their star player!!
We've heard it a gazillion times....no excuses, quit using the injury thing..
Creighton was just a lousy, underproducing team that year and Dana was "mediocre"...

Thats the way it is in MOST aspects of life....IF it happens to you (not you personally T) its an excuse...if it happens to that person it can be justified. So if AW goes down and BU is only 4th its an excuse from lets say MANY ISU fans...yet if O goes down and ISU is stuck in 4th its justified. (not picking on ISU its just how people are)

To go along with that though, IF your team never finishes higher then 4th, like BU, injuries or not eventually you are or will be considered only mediocre and people will get tired of the reasons....eventually you need to produce.

Many of us that are frustrated with middle of the pack finishes and no Valley titles (tourney or regular season) understand JL has been snakebit as much if not more then ANY Valley coach during his tenure and give him a flyer since everything else he's done is above average to well above average and it appears things are trending upwards.

Eventually though, those 4th, 5th and 6th place finishes and one NCAA appearance in 7 years has to improve....injuries or not.

Good kids...graduation rates that are beyond reproach...exciting basketball, new facilities, great attnedance, etc...all very good stuff but titles and NCAA's are what keeps the natives happy and coaches employed.

[Bravesfan]

Thats the way it is in MOST aspects of life....IF it happens to you (not you personally T) its an excuse...if it happens to that person it can be justified. So if AW goes down and BU is only 4th its an excuse from lets say MANY ISU fans...yet if O goes down and ISU is stuck in 4th its justified. (not picking on ISU its just how people are)

To go along with that though, IF your team never finishes higher then 4th, like BU, injuries or not eventually you are or will be considered only mediocre and people will get tired of the reasons....eventually you need to produce.

Many of us that are frustrated with middle of the pack finishes and no Valley titles (tourney or regular season) understand JL has been snakebit as much if not more then ANY Valley coach during his tenure and give him a flyer since everything else he's done is above average to well above average and it appears things are trending upwards.

Eventually though, those 4th, 5th and 6th place finishes and one NCAA appearance in 7 years has to improve....injuries or not.

Good kids...graduation rates that are beyond reproach...exciting basketball, new facilities, great attnedance, etc...all very good stuff but titles and NCAA's are what keeps the natives happy and coaches employed.

All excellent points dogsrus, but allow me to stir up the hornet's nest a bit. I would gladly trade three or four consecutive trips to the NCAA's for all of those points you cited in your last paragraph, IF those NCAA's came at the expense of cheating, questionable behavior and illegal coaching and recruiting practices.

Do John Calipari and Kelvin Sampson ring a bell? Ask the fans of Memphis and Indiana how messed up things are now because of those two clowns!

[flipper]

can we just win a missouri valley conference or tournament title this year. is that too much to ask. lets get to the ncaa tournament.... enough with the rinky dink post-season tournaments we played the last few years.

[Out of Balance]

That article is a great example fo why SamM will be a starter throughout the remainder of his tenure here. He is a team leader who knows what it takes to win and isn't afraid to work hard. I would challenge anyone to ask what 'Open Gyms' are like if Maniscalco's there... As a sophomore he DRuff, AJ Guyton, and Sommerville doing drills - That's leadership

Love it! Thats the stuff.

And I agree, amckillip... Sam is clearly the on-the-court leader, but he proves he deserves that role by speaking well and making some great points in the paper here, too. Gotta look behind the stat sheet with Sam sometimes... (even though that's pretty darn good, too...)

I agree with you guys. I have never understood and never will understand the underrating of Sam by some This kid has done nothing but good here in his first two years Both on and off the court At the beginning of last year he was really pushing himself to make up for the lost of AW. Also with the lost of non-returning player's JC and DR. This kid is a player, just check last years stat sheet and don't forget the great job he did replacing Ruff as a freshman As for his D the stats say he was second in steals and don't forget he played out of position last year! His play comes from his heart and about getting the job done Sam is the player appointed leader of this team, JL's man, and with his play will be why he will be the starting PG