Real lack of hustle on the defensive end. Continue to give up wide open 3 after wide open 3. That really has to get fixed and soon.

This team has talent. I think Rasmussen and Boyd found out just how fast the college game is while Harriot looked more seasoned. Reecher improved a lot on offense. Ana seems to have regressed or better yet her minutes will be based on her shooting. Harris looked good but missed too many layups. Overall this team missed a ton of open looks, free throws, and turned the ball over way too much.

But, it's game one and they'll get better as the season progresses.

I know it's only the first game, but who would have predicted that this is where the Lady Rockets bball team would be after winning the WNIT a few years ago? For whatever reasons, we had a couple busted recruiting classes...I do think this may be our best freshmen class in awhile, so maybe we'll make some noise in a couple more seasons. For now, my concerns are no true PG, disparity in 3 point shooting, and post D.

Rockets lose 81-71.

Offensively, I think this team has the potential to be very good. Scored 71 points without essentially any contribution from Inma. Reecher had a great game offensively. Rassmussen and Harriott making good contributions right away. If we get Elena back, that will only help more.

But defensively, boy do we need work. Just a couple years ago, if you said the Rockets would score 70, that would mean a 20 point victory most nights. CSU is very well coached, moved the ball extremely well, and shot lights out from 3 ... but UT didn't do anything really to stop them. D has to improve a lot by conference play, or it will be a long season.

My thoughts on losing the game;
Rockets started three players 6 foot plus, CSU has no one getting major minutes above 5-10 and Rockets got out rebounded.
Rockets touted has having a longer bench but 7 players got nearly all the minutes (Inma, Sophie, Harris, Janice, Rasmussen, Ana, and Bravio-Harriet). And these players scored all the points. It was a 7 player rotation.
Inma has to score more than 4 points for this team to win.
Cleveland State killed the Rockets at the 3 point line. Perimeter defense was weak throughout the game.
Two sophomores and one freshman in double figure scoring, with a second freshman with 9 points so maybe next year this will be a potent group.

It will take time for this team to get it all together. There were some positives and negatives during the game. I am not sure why there were so many negative comments posted tonight. There will never be a perfect game played in any sport at any level. Yes I could make a list of things I saw that need work, but I appreciate the positive ones much more. I think some need to look at reality. This a young but talented team. There will be moments when they look like world champions and others when they will make inexperienced mistakes that are typical of young teams. Tonight's game had some
frustrating moments for the fans, players, and coaches. The good news is that it will be a good film to be broken down by the coaches and players. The coaches will use the game film to help the team see the mistakes and make the corrections. That is how teams learn and grow. I saw the results of good recruiting and coaching tonight. As anyone, who has coached or played basketball knows, there is no substitute for experience. This was the first game of a long, growing process for our team. It is nice to see the team has so many players that can fit into the flow of the game. More important to me is the fight that every player showed right up to the end of the game. It is going to be fun watching this team play out an exciting season of Rocket Basketball!

(11-14-2014 09:34 PM)hwut1 Wrote:  It will take time for this team to get it all together. There were some positives and negatives during the game. I am not sure why there were so many negative comments posted tonight. There will never be a perfect game played in any sport at any level. Yes I could make a list of things I saw that need work, but I appreciate the positive ones much more. I think some need to look at reality. This a young but talented team. There will be moments when they look like world champions and others when they will make inexperienced mistakes that are typical of young teams. Tonight's game had some
frustrating moments for the fans, players, and coaches. The good news is that it will be a good film to be broken down by the coaches and players. The coaches will use the game film to help the team see the mistakes and make the corrections. That is how teams learn and grow. I saw the results of good recruiting and coaching tonight. As anyone, who has coached or played basketball knows, there is no substitute for experience. This was the first game of a long, growing process for our team. It is nice to see the team has so many players that can fit into the flow of the game. More important to me is the fight that every player showed right up to the end of be fun watching this team play out an exciting season of Rocket Basketball!

We are a couple seasons away, likely.

(11-14-2014 09:40 PM)bcunn3128 Wrote:  

(11-14-2014 09:34 PM)hwut1 Wrote:  It will take time for this team to get it all together. There were some positives and negatives during the game. I am not sure why there were so many negative comments posted tonight. There will never be a perfect game played in any sport at any level. Yes I could make a list of things I saw that need work, but I appreciate the positive ones much more. I think some need to look at reality. This a young but talented team. There will be moments when they look like world champions and others when they will make inexperienced mistakes that are typical of young teams. Tonight's game had some
frustrating moments for the fans, players, and coaches. The good news is that it will be a good film to be broken down by the coaches and players. The coaches will use the game film to help the team see the mistakes and make the corrections. That is how teams learn and grow. I saw the results of good recruiting and coaching tonight. As anyone, who has coached or played basketball knows, there is no substitute for experience. This was the first game of a long, growing process for our team. It is nice to see the team has so many players that can fit into the flow of the game. More important to me is the fight that every player showed right up to the end of be fun watching this team play out an exciting season of Rocket Basketball!

We are a couple seasons away, likely.

Maybe or maybe not! It is all in the eyes of the beholder. I am enjoying the now! Hope others are too! Hope you will too!

There is definetly more talent but raw and future looks awesome especially on offense. Defense was aweful and freethrows bad. The rebounds were almost equal and only 12 turnovers and we out scored them in the paint. If we can improve the defense and get freethrows % up to 75% or better we are going to do ok in MAC but will loose games preseason. The offense has improved very much and has a lot of raw and young talent. Monakama will be very helpful if she can stay out of foul trouble. Sophia has improved a bunch moved, shooting, and certainly passing. Inma and Anna will have better games and the youth has rally high upsides on offense. If the defense had played anywhere near what we are used to it would have been a win. 11 threes and wide open including many wide open twos also Still enjoyed watching them.

(11-14-2014 09:34 PM)hwut1 Wrote:  It will take time for this team to get it all together. There were some positives and negatives during the game. I am not sure why there were so many negative comments posted tonight. There will never be a perfect game played in any sport at any level. Yes I could make a list of things I saw that need work, but I appreciate the positive ones much more. I think some need to look at reality. This a young but talented team. There will be moments when they look like world champions and others when they will make inexperienced mistakes that are typical of young teams. Tonight's game had some
frustrating moments for the fans, players, and coaches. The good news is that it will be a good film to be broken down by the coaches and players. The coaches will use the game film to help the team see the mistakes and make the corrections. That is how teams learn and grow. I saw the results of good recruiting and coaching tonight. As anyone, who has coached or played basketball knows, there is no substitute for experience. This was the first game of a long, growing process for our team. It is nice to see the team has so many players that can fit into the flow of the game. More important to me is the fight that every player showed right up to the end of the game. It is going to be fun watching this team play out an exciting season of Rocket Basketball!

I like your positive attitude! No matter what is going on with my sports teams, I always maintain an optimistic outlook!

(11-14-2014 08:57 PM)northrocket43 Wrote:  My thoughts on losing the game;
Rockets started three players 6 foot plus, CSU has no one getting major minutes above 5-10 and Rockets got out rebounded.
Rockets touted has having a longer bench but 7 players got nearly all the minutes (Inma, Sophie, Harris, Janice, Rasmussen, Ana, and Bravio-Harriet). And these players scored all the points. It was a 7 player rotation.
Inma has to score more than 4 points for this team to win.
Cleveland State killed the Rockets at the 3 point line. Perimeter defense was weak throughout the game.
Two sophomores and one freshman in double figure scoring, with a second freshman with 9 points so maybe next year this will be a potent group.

I'm never sure Heller knows what he's talking about but he said Rockets won the boards 40-39.

(11-14-2014 11:33 PM)flying dutchman Wrote:  There is definetly more talent but raw and future looks awesome especially on offense. Defense was aweful and freethrows bad. The rebounds were almost equal and only 12 turnovers and we out scored them in the paint. If we can improve the defense and get freethrows % up to 75% or better we are going to do ok in MAC but will loose games preseason. The offense has improved very much and has a lot of raw and young talent. Monakama will be very helpful if she can stay out of foul trouble. Sophia has improved a bunch moved, shooting, and certainly passing. Inma and Anna will have better games and the youth has rally high upsides on offense. If the defense had played anywhere near what we are used to it would have been a win. 11 threes and wide open including many wide open twos also Still enjoyed watching them.

You are so right! Let's hope others feel and enjoy the season like we will! Go Blue!

(11-14-2014 11:41 PM)RocketBBallFan Wrote:  

(11-14-2014 09:34 PM)hwut1 Wrote:  It will take time for this team to get it all together. There were some positives and negatives during the game. I am not sure why there were so many negative comments posted tonight. There will never be a perfect game played in any sport at any level. Yes I could make a list of things I saw that need work, but I appreciate the positive ones much more. I think some need to look at reality. This a young but talented team. There will be moments when they look like world champions and others when they will make inexperienced mistakes that are typical of young teams. Tonight's game had some
frustrating moments for the fans, players, and coaches. The good news is that it will be a good film to be broken down by the coaches and players. The coaches will use the game film to help the team see the mistakes and make the corrections. That is how teams learn and grow. I saw the results of good recruiting and coaching tonight. As anyone, who has coached or played basketball knows, there is no substitute for experience. This was the first game of a long, growing process for our team. It is nice to see the team has so many players that can fit into the flow of the game. More important to me is the fight that every player showed right up to the end of the game. It is going to be fun watching this team play out an exciting season of Rocket Basketball!

I like your positive attitude! No matter what is going on with my sports teams, I always maintain an optimistic outlook!

You have the perfect understanding of what college sports is all about. It is so much fun to see the positive rather than the negative. I would give you a high five right now!

(11-14-2014 11:57 PM)hwut1 Wrote:  

(11-14-2014 11:33 PM)flying dutchman Wrote:  There is definetly more talent but raw and future looks awesome especially on offense. Defense was aweful and freethrows bad. The rebounds were almost equal and only 12 turnovers and we out scored them in the paint. If we can improve the defense and get freethrows % up to 75% or better we are going to do ok in MAC but will loose games preseason. The offense has improved very much and has a lot of raw and young talent. Monakama will be very helpful if she can stay out of foul trouble. Sophia has improved a bunch moved, shooting, and certainly passing. Inma and Anna will have better games and the youth has rally high upsides on offense. If the defense had played anywhere near what we are used to it would have been a win. 11 threes and wide open including many wide open twos also Still enjoyed watching them.

You are so right! Let's hope others feel and enjoy the season like we will! Go Blue!

I'm sure many of us will but criticism can be warranted. Though everyone on this board loves Cullop, the fact that it's year 6 and we're probably still 2 more seasons from sniffing an NCAA appearance is a cause for concern. That wouldn't be tolerated at BG...

Strange that Ana was 7th in minutes played when she is one of only two returning starters. Granted she fouled out, but that's not why she played so little. Three of her fouls came in the closing minutes as the Rockets were fouling intentionally to lengthen the game.

Inma needs to do more. I agree with those who say that she's more of a playmaker and all-around player than a scorer, but this team needs her to be more aggressive on offense, I think. I also was disappointed not to see us force a few more turnovers. Cleveland State traveled a bunch of times, but we hardly had any steals.

Reecher had monster stats. There were mismatches in both directions, as CSU couldn't handle Sophie's size, and Sophie had a hard time on defense staying with quicker players. It will be interesting to see if her offensive prowess continues or if tonight was an aberration. After the rebounding domination in the exhibition game, I was disappointed to see a small Cleveland State team stay with us on the boards. Their quickness helped them get some offensive rebounds.

Janice isn't a freshman any more, so it would be nice if she got her game a little more under control. I love her skills, though. There's so much upside there, but she makes a lot of mistakes as well.

This season will be an adventure. I wish we were contenders, and I think that we should be every year given the fan support that the team receives, which should be a big help with recruiting. Nonetheless, it will be fun to watch this team grow. I agree with the earlier poster who said that it appears that a MAC contender is a couple years away. Maybe we'll be pleasantly surprised, though.

Hey don't write off ncaa yet if they progress like I think they can and fix what I indicated previously they have the talent to sneak in the back door by winning tourney. I really think they could end up 2nd in our division or even first if they are as quick of learners as the are loaded with talent. They will loose several games at the beginning but if they hold their heads up and learn they could be very dangerous in the end.

(11-15-2014 01:03 AM)flying dutchman Wrote:  Hey don't write off ncaa yet if they progress like I think they can and fix what I indicated previously they have the talent to sneak in the back door by winning tourney. I really think they could end up 2nd in our division or even first if they are as quick of learners as the are loaded with talent. They will loose several games at the beginning but if they hold their heads up and learn they could be very dangerous in the end.

Well Said!!!

Couple questions:

1. Anything more on Inma's play? Only 4 points got my attention, but I wasn't there. Did she miss a lot of shots? Was she in foul trouble? Did CSU just do a really good job denying her the ball & defending her when she did have it? Did she seem injured/ill? Is she trying to fill more of a traditional PG role? All of the above? While I agree with those who feel her overall game is more valuable, and she's not likely to be a 20 ppg scorer, I do think she benefitted greatly from having Naama & Yo on the floor at the same time, a luxery she certainly didn't have last season.

2. Does Coach Cullop just not recruit JUCOs? We had 5 schollys to give last year, and another 6 this year (although 1 was probably Baker's?)...all 10-11 went to true freshmen. I'm wondering if our rebuilding wouldn't be a bit further ahead if we had used 1 scholarship in each of those classes on a game-ready JUCO--maybe a big and a PG? Do we recruit JUCOs and just don't get them here? I know Coach has brought in transfers during her tenure here, but I can't recall a JUCO?

(11-15-2014 09:13 AM)bcunn3128 Wrote:  Couple questions:

1. Anything more on Inma's play? Only 4 points got my attention, but I wasn't there. Did she miss a lot of shots? Was she in foul trouble? Did CSU just do a really good job denying her the ball & defending her when she did have it? Did she seem injured/ill? Is she trying to fill more of a traditional PG role? All of the above? While I agree with those who feel her overall game is more valuable, and she's not likely to be a 20 ppg scorer, I do think she benefitted greatly from having Naama & Yo on the floor at the same time, a luxery she certainly didn't have last season.

2. Does Coach Cullop just not recruit JUCOs? We had 5 schollys to give last year, and another 6 this year (although 1 was probably Baker's?)...all 10-11 went to true freshmen. I'm wondering if our rebuilding wouldn't be a bit further ahead if we had used 1 scholarship in each of those classes on a game-ready JUCO--maybe a big and a PG? Do we recruit JUCOs and just don't get them here? I know Coach has brought in transfers during her tenure here, but I can't recall a JUCO?

Yes, CSU was trying to stop Inma, but she's the best athlete on the floor and needs to take more than 7 shots. She could have scored 15 just driving to the basket and getting foul shots. She played all but two minutes.

Remember when we brought in a bunch of JUCOs a few years back and the whole class blew up? Not saying we shouldn't bring in a JC player for a specific need, but Tricia is likely wary.

(11-15-2014 10:03 AM)DetroitRocket Wrote:  

(11-15-2014 09:13 AM)bcunn3128 Wrote:  Couple questions:

1. Anything more on Inma's play? Only 4 points got my attention, but I wasn't there. Did she miss a lot of shots? Was she in foul trouble? Did CSU just do a really good job denying her the ball & defending her when she did have it? Did she seem injured/ill? Is she trying to fill more of a traditional PG role? All of the above? While I agree with those who feel her overall game is more valuable, and she's not likely to be a 20 ppg scorer, I do think she benefitted greatly from having Naama & Yo on the floor at the same time, a luxery she certainly didn't have last season.

2. Does Coach Cullop just not recruit JUCOs? We had 5 schollys to give last year, and another 6 this year (although 1 was probably Baker's?)...all 10-11 went to true freshmen. I'm wondering if our rebuilding wouldn't be a bit further ahead if we had used 1 scholarship in each of those classes on a game-ready JUCO--maybe a big and a PG? Do we recruit JUCOs and just don't get them here? I know Coach has brought in transfers during her tenure here, but I can't recall a JUCO?

Yes, CSU was trying to stop Inma, but she's the best athlete on the floor and needs to take more than 7 shots. She could have scored 15 just driving to the basket and getting foul shots. She played all but two minutes.

Remember when we brought in a bunch of JUCOs a few years back and the whole class blew up? Not saying we shouldn't bring in a JC player for a specific need, but Tricia is likely wary.

I honestly don't remember a bunch of JUCOs coming in the same class? Who were they? I guess the fact that I don't even remember them speaks volumes as to their contributions...The only recruiting classes that I can remember being a complete bust were the ones that had all true freshmen--Kendyl Nunn (transferred out), Cat Wells (transferred out) the guard from Detroit (Michelle Hayes? but she also left) and the gal from Fort Wayne whose name I also can't remember, but who also transferred out. Man...I'm surprised I remember my own name!

EDIT: "complete" bust was unfair on my part...I'm guessing Inma and Ana were members of one or the other of those classes now that I think about it...