Basketball thread

[ssgaufan]

We started out hot and all the sudden we can't buy a basket.  I'd like to see some damn offensive rebounds and second chance shots.  Oh well, still a half to go. WDE!

[chinook]

I blame our Defensive Coordinator.

[CCTAU]

Finishing strong. Pearl might get everything from these guys this season.

[chityeah]

It's a win. 83-73. Looks like the possible score of the football game tomorrow. Does the committee think we're in yet?

[ssgaufan]

Finishing strong. Pearl might get everything from these guys this season.

Nice win over a team that made the tournament last year.  Once our guys found their groove it was fun to watch! WDE!

[Buzz Killington]

#auburnfast

[The Prowler]

How did my man Bowers do tonight? Btw, I'm calling him the "Round Mound of Rebound"...regardless if that nickname has already been taken.

[Townhallsavoy]

How did my man Bowers do tonight? Btw, I'm calling him the "Round Mound of Rebound"...regardless if that nickname has already been taken.

18 points.  17 rebounds.  Beast.

[jmar]

INITIAL THOUGHTS:

Have to see them play a number of times but agree this is a fun team to watch. Two very good scorers with Harrell and Mason with a formidable presence in Bowers. Nice guard depth should prove a real strength into the schedule.

We are set up to be an up-tempo, dribble-drive, trap team. My best guess is as long as we can dictate the pace we can get around the absence of rebound help versus teams that don't really pound the boards. Auburn looks as if it could be a good free-throw shooting team overall so taking it to the rim and getting to the line will be a big plus.

The analyst working the game pointed out the lack of an assist man as a concern and while other teams might converge on Bowers attempting to slow him down in the paint and get him in foul trouble, the big man showed great body control inside along with some Barkleyesque open court ability.
Our other two scorers are simply going to get their points.

Shamsid-Deen plays very hard and I don't know how badly his shoulder is after diving with his weight having landing on the ball at his right bicep but we have good group of ball handlers to lean on while he mends.

Like our bench even though it was pointed out as a weakness several times during the course of the opener. All are capable of eating 10 minutes, offer something a little different and seem to realize their roles. Any of them can likely get several buckets which will prove a premium against the best teams in the conference.
IMO this Auburn team will be very competitive. I can imagine opponents flocking on Bowers but then our shooting guards are capable of scoring 25 plus each so it's sort of a mystery whether or not low scoring games will be in our favor. The ability to dictate the pace, steady defense (limit guard penetration) and bench scoring are my keys because I think at the core we can be very good no matter the opponent. 

     

[WiregrassTiger]

I fell asleep before we won but I was pretty impressed. Instead of caving and finding a way to lose, we pulled the first one off for the new coach. And Milwaulkee looks to be a decent team.

Pearl is contagious.

[jmar]

I fell asleep before we won but I was pretty impressed. Instead of caving and finding a way to lose, we pulled the first one off for the new coach. And Milwaulkee looks to be a decent team.

Pearl is contagious.

Take you a pep pill or drink a cup of coffee after dinner. Everybody's working for the weekend Gramps.

[jmar]

I blame our Defensive Coordinator.

Truly it was about a ten minute interval and lack of defense that allowed Milwaukee to surge ahead.

[AUChizad]

I fell asleep before we won but I was pretty impressed. Instead of caving and finding a way to lose, we pulled the first one off for the new coach. And Milwaulkee looks to be a decent team.

Pearl is contagious.

Since I lead a much more interesting life than WT, I was out partying and had to DVR the game.

I've been watching this morning instead of actual football today, which is weird.

DOWN AT THE HALF?!?! DOWN LATE IN THE GAME AS WELL?!?!

#FIREBRUCEPEARL!!!

JK. But for reals, we were pretty ice cold from the field in most of that game. Shit was just not going in the bucket. Hope that was jitters and we see less as the season rolls on.

Prowler, I think you're free to call Bowers the "Round Mound of Rebound". The color guys were calling him "Round Mound of Rebound II". "Barkley-esque" was used all night.

Speaking of color, since I'm a gay racist, I noticed that Australian kid  Jack Purchase was the first white boy to get significant PT since, who, Scotty Pohlman? Not sure what was going on there with the personal foul that was reviewed for like 5 minutes.

Nice to start with a win, and I'm just happy to give a shit about basketball again.

[chinook]

Game 2 tonight against Colorado.  Set your DVR's as it will be a late tip off. 

AUBURN, Ala. — Can't sleep? Then Bruce Pearl has something for you. Tune in to watch his Auburn basketball team play on ESPN2 at midnight, Auburn time, this evening at Colorado to see if the Tigers can start the season with two straight wins.

Yeah, it's kind of crazy, this 24 Hours of Hoops on the ESPN networks.

"I'm sure when ESPN called a lot schools and said, 'Do you want to go to Colorado and play at one o’clock in the morning Eastern Time?' They didn’t get a lot of bite," Pearl said. "But the big picture, I want our basketball program part of ESPN’s marathon. I want our basketball program to eventually become a part of some of the better holiday tournament.  You have to start somewhere. And the fact that we get Colorado to come back is a real treat for our fans because they are such a good team."

Colorado is favored, but the Tigers are buoyed by the fact they beat Milwaukee in their season-opener Friday, rallying from a 12-point second-half deficit to win 83-73. Veteran KT Harrell led Auburn with 20 points and two newcomers chipped in with impressive stats of their own. Antoine Mason scored 19 and Cinmeon Bowers had a double-double with 18 points and 17 rebounds. But the victory came with a price, however. Guard Tahj Shamsid-Deen hurt his shoulder — it popped out and back in — and Mason suffered an ankle injury, though he played through it.

"We may be short-handed," Pearl said.

The Tigers weren't exactly a deep team, anyway, with nine available scholarship players before last week's win. Now, it's Colorado.

"Road trips do bring you together," Pearl said. "I love to travel with the team. Part of the college experience and being a student-athlete is seeing the country and even seeing the world. That Rocky Mountain high is going to be beautiful and it’s going to be snow-capped. For our kids to have that different experience, it’s part of the college experience."

This is what Auburn found when it landed Sunday: A Colorado team that returns all five starters, and 13 players overall, from a team that made the NCAA Tournament last season. Tournament experience? Colorado has it, having played in three straight NCAA tourneys. Auburn doesn't have a player who has been in one.

Still, the Tigers are ready, having gone through security and flown commercial to the game.

"We are going to try and win more and spend less," Pearl said. "There are times when it makes sense to fly commercial. We are not pressed for time going out because it’s a weekend for travel; we are pressed for time coming back because we are missing classes. We will travel out commercially and fly back privately. For us to be able to get the guys back early Tuesday morning to at least get them back in most of their classes."

[Buzz Killington]

Rob Chubb says fudge you, Chad

[Snaggletiger]

I'll probably be up.  I quit mixing alcohol, muscle realaxers and pain killers late at night so until my system gets  regulated again there won't be much sleep.

[Tiger Wench]

I'll probably be up.  I quit mixing alcohol, muscle realaxers and pain killers late at night so until my system gets  regulated again there won't be much sleep.

Those DTs right there are a bitch, ain't they...

[WiregrassTiger]

I'll probably be up.  I quit mixing alcohol, muscle realaxers and pain killers late at night so until my system gets  regulated again there won't be much sleep.

How's the weaning off of the cocksucking coming along?

[ssgaufan]

How's the weaning off of the cocksucking coming along?

He had a relapse.

[chinook]

Game 3 is tonight. 

Auburn hosts Louisiana Lafayette at 8 p.m. Friday inside Auburn Arena. The Cajuns (1-1) are coming off a 64-53 loss at Tulsa.

TV pleasure... ESPN Full Court or ESPN 3.   

Mason looks unlikely to play tonight but I could not confirm.