USC Upstate is Dukeman2's favorite team outside of Charleston Southern.

Believe it or not, I noticed an NBA player recently that had played at Upstate. Wonder if he was on the team that beat the Dukes in the postseason tourney where they squandered an 8-point lead with 3 minutes to play, getting outscored 9-0 to end the game.

nothing was worse than mason winning and the old 8 point swing with 7 seconds left last year.

My wife had never seen me sports mad until that moment

(10-11-2018 03:11 PM)Centdukesfan Wrote:  nothing was worse than mason winning and the old 8 point swing with 7 seconds left last year.

My wife had never seen me sports mad until that moment

I had blacked that out of my mind. Thanks for the reminder.

Most people on here agree that it's a make or break season for Rowe. Curious to see what everyone thinks "make" is though. Winning record? 20+ wins? CAA semis? Finals? NIT? NCAAT?

top 4 in the CAA

I would say winning CAA record, which historically is good enough for top half.

(10-12-2018 08:19 AM)JMU08 Wrote:  Most people on here agree that it's a make or break season for Rowe. Curious to see what everyone thinks "make" is though. Winning record? 20+ wins? CAA semis? Finals? NIT? NCAAT?

For me it’s at least 16 wins. This is not a high bar; and if we cannot eclipse that this season, then I think it tells us that it’s unlikely Rowe will ever turn the corner as a head coach regardless of how strong his recruiting prowess is.

I have higher hopes for this team, with a strong backcourt and (hopefully) some good bodies to throw into the frontcourt. However, I think the fact that the players like him, there have not been many (maybe not any) off court embarrassments, and the strong recruiting class may give him more time to show stronger results.

I say Rowe needs to be .500 overall both in and out of conference.

For JMU I’d guess it will likely be close to 500 in CAA play.

Keener got a 4th year after 6,5 & 7 wins.

Rowe will absolutely get a 4th year, no matter what.

Was it the correct decision to keep Keener for a 4th year? I don’t think anyone wants to repeat mistakes.

The other major thing to consider is the $88 million Union Bank & Trust Center opening 2years from now. JMU cannot go into that timeframe without strong winning momentum. Ticket sales will start one year in advance and it could be a financial disaster if the program still doesn’t have a fanbase which we know is at an all time low based on the reported figures.

There is pressure to win now more than ever. JMU absolutely has to maximize the grand opening of an arena.

What will be interesting is if The AD issues a public Bourne Ultimatum like he has with previous coaches. I’m guessing he will not because of the terrible first 2 years Rowe has posted.

Wilson is my guy. Get a little mean in Wilson and you have something.

(10-12-2018 12:17 PM)Duke Dawg Wrote:  Keener got a 4th year after 6,5 & 7 wins.

Rowe will absolutely get a 4th year, no matter what.

Wasn't saying anything about 4th year, firing, or anything. For you as a fan, what do you need to see this year to make you convinced that Rowe is the guy vs Not. Maybe he already is/isn't in your mind, that's fine if so. I just noticed a lot of people felt this was a make or break year in their mind for Rowe.

Anyone going to HOOPS FEST tomorrow?

(10-12-2018 02:54 PM)Deez Nuts Wrote:  Anyone going to HOOPS FEST tomorrow?

When I first saw the announcement, I was a little disappointed (just a little, not losing sleep over it) this wasn't scheduled on a home football Saturday. I get it that last weekend was Family Weekend and our next home FB game on the 27th is Homecoming. Still, that would probably lead to even more attendance and interest.

Oh well, it is what it is. Perhaps it's just me I admit.

besides record.....things im looking for this season.
1. greater attention to detail from staff
2. Better late game execution from players......prepping from staff of course
3. foul up 3 in last 10 seconds....rowe has blown 3 games not fouling....dont argue this point with me....hahahaa
4. Individual player improvement esp. from wilson, phillips, jacobs, jones

GO DUKES

(10-12-2018 08:02 PM)nyduke Wrote:  besides record.....things im looking for this season.
1. greater attention to detail from staff
2. Better late game execution from players......prepping from staff of course
3. foul up 3 in last 10 seconds....rowe has blown 3 games not fouling....dont argue this point with me....hahahaa
4. Individual player improvement esp. from wilson, phillips, jacobs, jones

GO DUKES

Can't argue with that list. I'll add one...

...learn to bury teams given the opportunity. We got into the (poor) late game execution situations far too many times when we held decent-to-good leads with 5 to 8 minutes left in the game. Instead of mashing the gas pedal, we started floundering and letting teams back in the door down the stretch.

Hopefully, with improved depth we can: 1) keep our starters fresher and 2) avoid significant drop off when starters depart the game. I expect a smarter team with added experience (especially the sophomores) and handling late game pressure situations much better.

Experienced and more talented players make coaches look a lot smarter.

CAA Hoops Media Days take place this week...

Wednesday: MBB
Thursday: WBB

https://caasports.com/news/2018/10/11/me...17-18.aspx

Photo gallery of this past Saturday's Hoops event at the Convo... https://jmusports.com/galleries/?gallery=6722

(10-12-2018 08:19 AM)JMU08 Wrote:  Most people on here agree that it's a make or break season for Rowe. Curious to see what everyone thinks "make" is though. Winning record? 20+ wins? CAA semis? Finals? NIT? NCAAT?

I think .500 or better in CAA & 18+ wins