iona86, thank you for the comparisons to several recent quality players. Still not sure why several individuals are so concerned about what is wrong with the team and AJ in particular at this point in the season. Gambling losses? I understand that pretty high expectations were placed on this team coming into the season, but lets just realize that they were expectations not realities. Still pretty early in the season for a group to come together considering how many new players are being called upon. Have faith that through their efforts and the coaching staff they will play better and with more consistency as the season progresses. This is college basketball and not the NBA, they will struggle at times and shine in others. The nature of the beast. Every game presents a new challenge and learning experience for this team. The team and individual players learn to adapt and overcome difficult situations through repetition and hard work. At this point I am not overly concerned as they are approaching the challenges as a team rather than blaming one another. Let's get concerned if the inconsistency is still a problem before the MAAC Tournament.
Glad to see AJ bounced back with a good effort today. The team overall played a much better game in the friendly confines of home court. The upcoming stretch of road games present a challenge, especially UMass. Hopefully AJ and company can take energy from todays' game into those. Merry Christmas!
It's not just the O. Even today AJ was burned repeatedly on D. No one will ever consider Machado or Momo great defenders, but English today got absolutely roasted on several occasions. It doesn't mean what he did offensively should be overlooked, of course. But I purposely watched him on D today. If Iona archives the game for replay, I urge you guys to check it out.
The greatest poster in the history of the MAAC as determined by THREE separate polls.
It's not just the O. Even today AJ was burned repeatedly on D. No one will ever consider Machado or Momo great defenders, but English today got absolutely roasted on several occasions. It doesn't mean what he did offensively should be overlooked, of course. But I purposely watched him on D today. If Iona archives the game for replay, I urge you guys to check it out.
Will be archived next week following Drexel and UMass games.
It's not just the O. Even today AJ was burned repeatedly on D. No one will ever consider Machado or Momo great defenders, but English today got absolutely roasted on several occasions. It doesn't mean what he did offensively should be overlooked, of course. But I purposely watched him on D today. If Iona archives the game for replay, I urge you guys to check it out.
It's not just the O. Even today AJ was burned repeatedly on D. No one will ever consider Machado or Momo great defenders, but English today got absolutely roasted on several occasions. It doesn't mean what he did offensively should be overlooked, of course. But I purposely watched him on D today. If Iona archives the game for replay, I urge you guys to check it out.
number 0, scored 20 pts in the first half with aj guarding him, he got 0 in the second half with amayo and ibn guarding him he avg 11ppg st. louis, very easy to get steals and rebounds when you don;t guard anyone
It's not just the O. Even today AJ was burned repeatedly on D. No one will ever consider Machado or Momo great defenders, but English today got absolutely roasted on several occasions. It doesn't mean what he did offensively should be overlooked, of course. But I purposely watched him on D today. If Iona archives the game for replay, I urge you guys to check it out.
number 0, scored 20 pts in the first half with aj guarding him, he got 0 in the second half with amayo and ibn guarding him he avg 11ppg st. louis, very easy to get steals and rebounds when you don;t guard anyone
Think it was IW who shut him down early in the 2nd half, followed by Amayo.
I think that's the point we're trying to make here. No, not that Bill is handsome. That every player, especially at our level, has a flaw. AJ's is defensive desire. It's one thing to play D while trying never to foul, like Laury. But AJ just gets roasted at times, and as such really should be guarding the other team's 5th option (unless he is a true post player).
The greatest poster in the history of the MAAC as determined by THREE separate polls.
Quote from AJ after yesterday's win. Yes, extremely selfish and displays poor leadership qualities. Just like Antoine Mason who throws teammates under the bus and bolts for bigger school the second things get tough.
Not sure why we are focusing on the one thing that he needs to improve on and not the countless others that he does that are better than most we have seen at Iona in a while.
"Everybody's telling me that I had a tough game. My numbers definitely weren't how they usually are, but I feel like it's not about me," said English, who was 3 for 19 and scored just 18 points in his previous two games combined. "I feel like I'm the fourth- or fifth-best player on the team, so I just try to feed off my guys."
It's not just the O. Even today AJ was burned repeatedly on D. No one will ever consider Machado or Momo great defenders, but English today got absolutely roasted on several occasions. It doesn't mean what he did offensively should be overlooked, of course. But I purposely watched him on D today. If Iona archives the game for replay, I urge you guys to check it out.
number 0, scored 20 pts in the first half with aj guarding him, he got 0 in the second half with amayo and ibn guarding him he avg 11ppg st. louis, very easy to get steals and rebounds when you don;t guard anyone
AJ plays basketball on the edge. When he clicks that up a quarter turn, he can be a turnover machine, and he gets blown by on D. Back it off a quarter turn and you get a game like he had yesterday. He put some shots up yesterday that were "What the fxx - great shot!" On one sequence on D, I saw him over rotate to his man's left looking for the steal. Weak side D (Ryden) also over-rotated to the same side. Result an 'ole lay-up. That is up-tempo basketball that gets out of synch - admittedly too often of late, but not yesterday.
What I struggle with is, why the anger at Cluess and at AJ? As '05 pointed out, look at the body of work. AJ is one of the all time greats at Iona! Thankfully, unlike may of us here, he has a short memory and does not roll into a ball when he is a quarter turn over the top.
AS for the D first basketball, I had four tickets to the St. Louis - Vermont game last Sunday. I stayed home and watched the Rams get gutted by the Giants. That was more fun for me than a 53 -49 40 minute hack attack, and I am a Rams fan. By the way, AJ could probably not play for Jim Crews or his predecessor, the late Rick Majerus at SLU. And I have not gone to a single SLU game, despite access to free tickets, in the last ten years.
It's definitely a problem giving up 85 points, if we fail to score 86.
I think that's the point we're trying to make here. No, not that Bill is handsome. That every player, especially at our level, has a flaw. AJ's is defensive desire. It's one thing to play D while trying never to foul, like Laury. But AJ just gets roasted at times, and as such really should be guarding the other team's 5th option (unless he is a true post player).
I agree, from what I saw of him on TV at the Quinnipiac game last year, Bill is handsome.
st Louis my point is all time great mean top5 , top 10 ot top25 that is how this whole thing started I see 25 but not 5 or 10 , I asked for a definition somewhere and this all started
st Louis my point is all time great mean top5 , top 10 ot top25 that is how this whole thing started I see 25 but not 5 or 10 , I asked for a definition somewhere and this all started
The funny thing about the criticism of this thread is that, as of today:
- AJ is the #1 scorer in the nation. - We are 7-4 with road wins against ACC and CUSA teams. - AJ is shooting nearly 50% from the field and 41% from 3 pt, higher than Momo and equal to Machado in both of their MVP seasons (when both were seniors). - AJ's 5.7 RPG are the most of any guard in nearly 20 years. - AJ's "selfish" 5.0 APG are the most of any guard not named Machado in exactly 20 years. - AJ has hit more game winning and clutch late game shots than Momo, Machado and Sean combined.
Yet this thread is not worth keeping open and is disrespectful to the other greats, nearly all of whom AJ is on a path to surpass...simply because he doesn't play intense defense, like all of the other great Cluess coached scorers who preceded him did?