So far so improved--
Since my tirade a couple weeks back I have seen marked improvement in The RAMBLERS

Improvement---We are starting to make our freebies--really important
---starting to Board better
---Our Bigs--and Chritian counts as one--with O'Leary and Osborne --way better--clogging middle, passing off and scoring some
---Based on last game only--We took care of the ball--way better--Keep it up
---Overall Defense gettin' better--must do better guarding the Three
---PM and the Coaches are really doing better in-game.

Now then--Since the start---
Doyle is where its at --AND he is getting even better
KeKe is rolling along--and will be even better in his job
Crisman---Does little thing well---note late game long pass--He sees the floor
Turk will keep hitting threes in key spots
We can hit for high percentage and have since onset---even getting better--We have a lot of scorers--This will make it harder for MVC to guard
--Although they will be better than what we have faced--BUT not all of them

We are looking like a real Hoops team--Are we ready to whip the Shockers ?? Not on your life--yet ! But soon.

WE should be able to handle, SIU. Bradley, Drake, Evansville, Ill St--The rest , well ---Maybe a win or three here and there.

The fact remains --Milton and Keke with Thomas are beasts. The rest are coming on fast-like.

GO RAMBLERS

Pretty good analysis, Brot. I wouldn't disagree, although I'm a little more cautious with the improvement notes. It's easier to look improved when you're playing at home against UIC and Campbell.

I'd say that Osborne hasn't found his stride at all yet because of getting into early foul trouble and inconsistent playing time. O'Leary looks like he's figuring things out-- he's not a flashy player, he can't post up or make his own shot, but he's pretty solid fundamentally and deceptively capable as an opportunistic scorer.

You're absolutely right about taking care of the ball. We're a pretty good shooting team-- currently 2nd in the MVC in field goal shooting percentage. But we had 17 turnovers against UIC, which allowed them to stay in the game through the final seconds in what should have been a 10-12 point win. UIC got 20 points off those turnovers, and a more confident and experienced team would have buried us on the TOs. As it was, UIC got 11 more field goal attempts than we did. We'll get demolished in the MVC if that situation isn't corrected. When Jeff White has a better than 1.0 assist to turnover ratio, we're 5-0. As a very good shooting percentage team, we've got to treasure each possession and control the tempo to our own dictates.

The last missing element, to me, is on court team leadership. Generally, a team looks to seniors or point guards for that. We don't have any seniors, and White is a sophomore who can't be on the court all the time. In terms of personalities, Thomas is a hard-working, quiet, soft-spoken guy who looks like he'd prefer to avoid a vocal leadership role. White is slowly growing into it, but he may not be brash enough to take that on quite yet. As a junior, Crisman might have that ability-- maybe he gets as many minutes as he does specifically because of the need for someone to fill that role.

It might end up becoming red shirt freshman Milton Doyle, who seems to have the confidence, if not perfect decision-making abilities yet. He looks to be learning and adapting quickly, though-- he's currently second in the conference in minutes per game, and he's averaged 24 ppg on 63% field goal shooting in the last three games. He's had 19 assists over the past five games (3.8), and shot 77.4% from the free throw line in 31 attempts over the past three games. Overall, he's 5th in scoring in the MVC (16.5 ppg), and the only freshman in the top 15. Watching him closely in some games, you can see exactly when he detects a mismatch or vulnerability. He knows exactly how to exploit it-- mostly on his own, because of his quick first step and finishing ability, but sometimes by passing off to another player or spreading the defense to give himself more opportunities down the road. He's only 10 games into his college career, but he would probably be a starter on 8 out of the 10 MVC teams, and the go-to guy on half of them. He's really going to impress some people in the league this year, especially since he's on a team that most fans know little or nothing about and haven't been following.

Dead on here. I think if we had that 'leader' we wouldn't have blown some (and probably all) of those double digit second half leads earlier in season. Need someone who steps up and tells the guys - "hey, I'm not having this. We're not losing this game. Get it together" and holds his peers accountable.