Exhibition: St. Michael's

St. Michael's 63 Vermont 61

Wait everybody...take a deep breath...and don't panic.

It certainly never feels good to lose an exhibition game to a sub D1 team but this is no ordinary match-up. St. Mike's is a very good team. They won this game because they are a better team. They have experience and the drive to win. This was the most important game on their schedule. Many of the Purple Knights players have had this date circled because they knew this was the year they had a chance. They executed a game plan and clamped down when the game was on the line like experienced seasoned veterans do. They are going to have a very successful season and have a great chance to make the D2 tournament. Before you say, but they are D2? I would like to remind everyone that UMass Lowell with a completely D2 roster went 8-8 in the America East last year and finished 5th.

On to the Cats. This is the beginning of separation in the some on the playing time battles. Due to Vermont being shorthanded many players were counted on to play bigger roles. There was definitely a Duncan effect in this game. It is already very apparent that he is a college ready point guard and the other freshman are not quite there yet. Ernie Duncan's health will be the difference for Vermont this year. Trae Bell-Haynes does a lot of nice things but he was exposed against the more experienced guards on St. Mikes. He tends to dribble too much and has not yet learned when to change speeds. He is always going a mile a minute and that created many, many turnovers. Until he adjusts to the college game he is much better suited as a backup guard. Brandon Hatton is going to have to work very hard to get minutes this year as he is a significant defensive liability. I love his shooting stroke but he is too slow to cover college guards. Cam Ward looked very good but he is too small to be an effective defender right now as well. With a smaller, quicker lineup for St. Mike's, Becker really needed Kilpatrick and McRoberts to effectively match-up. Urquhart and Pierson were to slow on defense. Kilpatrick's constant injury issues are definitely a concern. The biggest thing that concerned me in this game was Kurt Steidl's demeanor on the court. He was frustrated for much of the Concordia game and again against St. Mikes he never got in the flow. He yelled at several teammates and showed a general lack of maturity. As a guy I believe to be a future star, he has thus far not been demonstrating the mental fortitude he needs to do so. Time will tell.

As far as team performance, I am not going to over analyze the game. Without Duncan this team is different. All of the possible success of this team and the excitement surrounding it, is definitely with him a the point guard, There are going to be games where this team turns the ball over a ton. Right now everyone on this team is adjusting to the speed of the game, even the veterans, The entire pace of the offense is different than in years past and there is going to be an adjustment period. Right now there is a ton of one on one because everyone is moving an no one is sure who is going to take the shots. The other major takeaway is that with all of these new found shooters, Vermont can't fall in love with the three. In the second half the Cats settled for jump shot after jump shot. This game will help Becker reign these guys in and give him evidence to drive home the point of what needs to improve.

I will be putting out my season preview on Wednesday or Thursday of this week.