Secret Scrimmages

[Old Titan]

So, all you insiders with connections to the current program, any word on how the so-called secret scrimmage with Drake went this past weekend in Kansas City?

[eagle88]

We tied 80-80. I asked how we looked and was told the  offense was really good and defense is better but needs work. Drake is predicted to finish !st in the Missouri Valley so all in all not a bad first outing.

[TrueBlue82]

And, probably the best news of all… no injuries.  

[eagle88]

Patrick Mwamba didn't play due to an ankle sprain but will be back in a week or so. He is one of our better defenders so having him back will help.

[ORob2]

1 hour ago, eagle88 said:

Patrick Mwamba didn't play due to an ankle sprain but will be back in a week or so. He is one of our better defenders so having him back will help.

I wonder what the odds are that he's not feeling 100% for Saint Mary's...  I wonder what the odds are that he plays that night

[eagle88]

I don't think he will play tonight at open practice but I expect a really high probability he will play at St Marys!

[OKC Eagle]

In the practice yesterday, Coach kept talking about numbers "from Sunday".  A few players had to run extra sprints because they missed their number.  That might have been a secret scrimmage.

[Old Titan]

9 minutes ago, OKC Eagle said:

In the practice yesterday, Coach kept talking about numbers "from Sunday".  A few players had to run extra sprints because they missed their number.  That might have been a secret scrimmage.

He was referencing the Drake scrimmage; the next one is this Saturday 10/29 vs. Louisiana Tech in Conway, AR.

[eagle88]

I was told that in the !st half of the Drake game our starters had a sizeable lead. Once the 2nd team came in we lost our lead so in a real game we likely would have won as the 2nd team would not have played as much as they did. Go Eagles!!

[Old Titan]

41 minutes ago, eagle88 said:

I was told that in the !st half of the Drake game our starters had a sizeable lead. Once the 2nd team came in we lost our lead so in a real game we likely would have won as the 2nd team would not have played as much as they did. Go Eagles!!

Would love to know who that starting five was; I guess we'll find out soon enough...

[eagle88]

OT I do know that. It was Max, McBride, Carlos, Kareem and Connor.

[EagleManiac]

2 minutes ago, eagle88 said:

OT I do know that. It was Max, McBride, Carlos, Kareem and Connor.

This is surprising. Our bigs are where we really have our depth - surely we won't start 4 guards  all year long.

I imagine we'll see Patrick swap in there at the 4 spot once he's healthy and have Carlos or Kareem come off the bench. 

[theeagleman5]

We can only hope you are right, Maniac......but we know how much Coach Mills loves his 4 guard offense......perhaps he will adjust that line up depending on the opponent?  But not TheEaglemans' area of expertise...I will leave that to Coach and the basketball experts on this board.....

[ORUJason]

The starters are 4 3-point shooters and a big man who is working on improving his 3-point shot.  This is who Coach Mills is.  This is how he coaches.  This is the type of lineup he likes.  

We have several years of experience now seeing what he wants from his players.  This lineup does not surprise me at all.  

McBride and Abmas both deserve to start because of their skill level regardless of their height.  Any other newcomers will have to earn a starting spot over time.  

Our offense will have to score a lot of points to make up for our deficiencies on defense.  Hopefully Connor stays healthy and alters/blocks a lot of shots to help our defense out.

[Ting]

7 hours ago, OKC Eagle said:

In the practice yesterday, Coach kept talking about numbers "from Sunday".  A few players had to run extra sprints because they missed their number.  That might have been a secret scrimmage.

Something about rebounding %. They also worked in practice on team rebounding and blocking out. 

[GoldenEagleFan]

Once Mwamba is healthy I think we’ll see more traditional Mwamba and Weaver at the 4 and Vanover and Herron and Clover at the 5. 

[ORob2]

Does anyone know anything about the secret scrimmage from tonight?  Might be a little early, but the ORUMBB social media accounts are posting some pictures from the game.

[Old Titan]