Bradley 90 - Winona State 77

[Da Coach]

BU fans are generally unrealistic.
These are of coarse my opinions.

From what I recall, the Bradley fans were right about last year's team all along, and the Bradley bashers like you were dead wrong. I have yet to hear you admit that.

Now it's a new year, and the Bradley bashing festival starts all over again for you. Have fun trying to be negative. I saw nothing to be negative about last night.

[Dallas Brave]

Re: Bradley 90 - Winona State 77

You may be right, but BU has no other option.

I was hoping that wasn't the answer, but it is the response I've been getting in emails this morning. "Who else do you play?" or "It sucks that Ray Brown can't play."

I have a gut feeling that Ray threw away his entire career at BU. When JJ was introduced last night they still did the little frisk thing. With all the new people coming in next year, I just have a feeling that Ray is going to get lost in the shuffle. I hope I'm wrong, but we'll see.

I haven't seen it first hand, but based on how it has been described at the Red-White and now the exhibition game, the guys need to drop the frisk move. It is one thing to make a mistake, its another thing to be stupid.

[Da Coach]

Was I (and my friend next to me) the only ones who saw WSU's point guard go by Ruffin several times for layups especially in the 1st half? Ruff must have been thinking POB was waiting... That team had way too many easy baskets and offensive rebounds for a team that wasn't very big or athletic. Sure, we wore them down, but they did play the previous night and then traveled. Their coach said it didn't make any difference that they played the previous night, but most coaches would never admit that it affected their team.

I am 100% behind the guys and I will have fun watching them, but we are a bit short-handed (size, height and experience) up front. If BU finishes higher than 7th I will be surprised. We may be able to handle our home court most of the time, but taking a short-handed team on the road is a bit scary.

George, we all saw what you saw. But it was the first exhibition game! And unlike the regular season games, Bradley did not scout Winona State, so the pregame preparation for each individual player on WSU was not what it will be in the regular season. A couple easy layups don't mean much when the defenders don't know what kind of offense they will run and don't know anything about their players. Do you think Daniel Ruffin has suddenly lost his ability to play defense? Don't worry, it will be there.
There might not be too many games this season where we can't pick apart and find some mistakes that will be made. I hope you can enjoy watching this team play. I really like the effort they give. Let's give these guys a chance. They were pretty good on defense last year, and will be this year. Just getting Adams and singh back to add depth will help a lot.

[lightsout]

Bottom line is Andrews, Ruffin and Crouch are going to have to play solid all season long if we want to compete in the Valley.

I was also suprised the crowd wasnt bigger for what could be the last game played at the fieldhouse. I got to sit right next to AJ Guyton last night and see Bradley play some pretty good basketball overall.


GO BRAVES

[Braves4Life]

Definition of a fan

Here are a few defintions I found for fanatic - of which I am one! Last I checked this board was called BradleyFans.com.

I say we ban everyone who doesn't fit with the definitions (I won't name names)

For those of you who will take this too seriously - I AM KIDDING! (I think )

Adjective fanatic has 1 sense

fanatic, fanatical, overzealous, rabid - marked by excessive enthusiasm for and intense devotion to a cause or idea; "rabid isolationist"
Antonym: passionless (indirect, via passionate)

Noun fanatic has 1 sense

fanatic, fiend - a person motivated by irrational enthusiasm (as for a cause); "A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject"--Winston Churchill
--1 is a kind of enthusiast, partisan, partizan

Fanaticism, from French fanatisme and fanatique from Latin fanaticus 'inspired by a god, frenzied' fanum 'temple' is an emotion of being filled with excessive, uncritical zeal, particularly for an extreme religious or political cause, or with an obsessive enthusiasm for a pastime or hobby.

According to philosopher George Santayana, "Fanaticism consists in redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim." (Life of Reason, 1905, vol. 1, Introduction)

The difference between a fan and a fanatic is that while both have an overwhelming liking or interest in a given subject, behaviour of a fanatic will be viewed as violating prevailing social norms, while that of a fan will not violate those norms (although is usually considered unusual).(Thorne&Bruner 2006)

Definition of Fanatic
Fa`nat?‚??ic
a. 1. Pertaining to, or indicating, fanaticism; extravagant in opinions; ultra; unreasonable; excessively enthusiastic, especially on religious subjects; as, fanatic zeal; fanatic notions.
But Faith, fanatic Faith, once wedded fast
To some dear falsehood, hugs it to the last.
- T. Moore.
n. 1. A person affected by excessive enthusiasm, particularly on religious subjects; one who indulges wild and extravagant notions of religion.
There is a new word, coined within few months, called fanatics, which, by the close stickling thereof, seemeth well cut out and proportioned to signify what is meant thereby, even the sectaries of our age.
- Fuller (1660).
Fanatics are governed rather by imagination than by judgment.
- Stowe.

[/quote]

[Da Coach]

There were a lot of fans who expected to see a good postseason run. There were quite a few of us who made our reservations in St. Louis through the Sunday championship game. And I also took off work the first week of NCAA play in anticipation of Bradley playing somewhere. I was far from the only one.

[collegehoopjunkie]

Getting back to the game vs. Winona
Here are some comments on their message boards by the Winona State fans.

They expected that Bradley might be the game they could win the easiest given how much Bradley lost from last year.

http://www.d2football.com/board/index.php?showtopic=5175

One of their posters who was listening to the game said that Bradley stuck with mainly their starters pretty much the whole way just so they wouldn't lose this game to a D-II.
Obviously he didn't know that BU used every scholarship player who was dressed just about evenly.
They also admired Bradley's outside shooting.

http://www.d2football.com/board/index.php?showtopic=5232

They are almost expecting to win at Minnesota on Nov. 8

http://www.d2football.com/board/index.php?showtopic=5264

Here's a little discussion on the Northwest Missouri State game vs. Bradley

http://www.d2football.com/board/index.php?showtopic=1730

[it's boogie time]

I think everybody predictons came true at some point last year. That's going to happen when you are 9-7 overall & 3-5 in conference at one point and go on to the best finish in 1/2 century.

Unless you predicted a boring season or a start-fast finish- slowly season, everybody was correct to some degree.

[flipper]

my estimaton is. most thought bu would finish in the top half of the conference which happened. most bu fans were a tad bit impatient during the middle of the season. most bu fans were very excited towards the end of the season. and all bu fans were happy about going to the sweet sixteen.

[MacabreMob]

And here is one of the BradleyFans board administrators wayyy back in August of 2005 predicting BU would go 2-1 in the MVC tournament and get an at large bid.

http://www.bradleyfans.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=1020

Hey - I am in this thread predicting Bradley wins the MVC. Guess that could be translated into saying I expected an NCAA bid (auto or at-large) and expected to maybe win at least one game.

[egib52]

Back to the game...(just so you know I agree with both sides in the BU pessimism optimism argument)...but why did JL only play 8. It was an exhibition game...now I wasn't at the game maybe it was tight the whole way, but I woulda liked to see everyone get in.

[tornado]

He played everyone he had any plans on playing.

Of the 14 players on campus....and on the roster...

These players started
--Ruffin
--Crouch
--Tauai
--Salley
--Andrews

These players came off the bench
--Warren
--Franklin
--Jassey

These players were injured and were not going to play even if BU fouled everyone out and were down to four players
--Sam Singh
--Danny Adams

These players are completely ineligible and would generate an NCAA violation had they played
--Ray Brown
--Jeremy Fears

These players are walkons, and will not likely ever play unless BU is so far ahead that it is safer to remove all the scholarship players.
They certainly weren't going to play last night in a game that Jim Les needed to see how his regulars and scholarship subs would play.
Had BU fouled out so many players that they were down to just four eligible, then these guys may have gotten in.
--Ryan Phillips
--Brian Lavin

So just who would you have put in to avoid playing only eight??

[egib52]

I didn't realize DA was that hurt, but I would have thought of playing the two walkons just to get some experience and (even though it didnt happen) to avoid injury of a regular. If we only have an 8 man rotation for the first two mos it will be though.

[tornado]

I didn't realize DA was that hurt, but I would have thought of playing the two walkons just to get some experience and (even though it didnt happen) to avoid injury of a regular. If we only have an 8 man rotation for the first two mos it will be though.

Both Danny Adams and Sam Singh are expected to be ready in a little over a week to be part of the playing rotation, so Bradley will be able to play 10 deep.

Ramember, last night was Saihou Jassey's first actual on court competition since his junior year in high school (at Montrose Christian in Maryland where he barely played any minutes at all.) So that means it was his first real game in 3 years, and he still has a lot of learning and maturing to do.
But he is very well developed physically for a freshman and will learn more, and get more playing time. But I do see Saihous probabl;y being the 10th man in playing time.


Sam will be 9th in playing time for the first month or so since the plan is to bring him along slowly on that knee.

Then Danny and Andrew Warren will get healthy minutes as the 7th & 8th men in playing time, while Ruffin, Tauai, Crouch, Franklin, Salley, and Andrews will split the playing time as the 6 most used players.

[braves12]

I thought the team last night played pretty well considering what I have seen in past 1st exhibition games. I was pleased with what I saw, and expect the team to get better as the year goes on. Rebounding will be a concern all year in my opinion, as will numbers if anybody gets hurt. Andrews was very good in the 2nd half, and I thought Ruffin played very well. JC is improved from last year. Warren looks like he could be very good in the future. Salley has a ways to go to be ready for Div. 1 play particularly in consistency. Saihou has a ways to go yet in many areas. The competition was very good in my opinion. Well coached team that did a lot of things well. I wonder if how the team tries to pressure and push the ball if Sam can keep up for many minutes at a time. Saturday I will look for defense and how much improved rebounding will be.