I Love Stanley Burrell

I love Stanley Burrell. My man crush on him does not quite reach the same limits as one of my good friends man crush on him does, but it is in full force nonetheless. If you read this blog with any regularity, then you probably peruse the Xavier message boards as well and have read or heard Stan’s comments about the regular season awards that were just announced today. These are my favorite exerts. (Taken from Dow’s blog)

“I’ve never been so upset. You’d think after getting the awards I got, I’d be happy right now. I’m really upset about how things turned out. I called this after the Dayton game, and no disrespect to Brian Roberts, but I said things like this are going to happen; we’re going to be left out. I’ve got champions in that locker room. B.J., C.J., Derrick. Those guys shouldn’t have been left out like that. No way. Those guys are champs. Where would we be without them? I’m so upset.”

And….

“I’m sick of people overlooking us. I’m sick of us being labeled as a mid-major; we don’t get no respect, man.“

And….

“You talk about not having motivation? We got plenty now. I’m really looking forward to Atlantic City now.”

I mean, I’m just speechless. I’m not even mad, I’m amazed. I was a bit apprehensive about playing Dayton a third time. But you know what? Screw it. Bring em on. We’ve been down this road before. Remember? It was last year. I didn’t wanna play Dayton a third time then, but now, let’s throw caution to the proverbial wind. Stan may have given them (and the entire conference) some bulletin board material but who gives a damn. We’ve already been getting everyone’s best shot and with the added incentive of an automatic NCAA tournament bid what other motivation do the other A-10 teams need?

Stan is the Man

All of a sudden, I couldn’t be looking more forward to the A-10 tournament. Obviously, Drew’s ankle is still a major concern, but my optimism about the postseason has definitely gone up a few notches all because of Stan.

Oh by the way….Sean is your A-10 Coach of the Year. Stan is you’re A-10 Defensive Player of the Year and third team all-conference. Josh is your 6^th Man of the Year and 2^nd team all-conference. Seriously, what a year this has been. Congratulations guys! You deserve every accolade that comes your way.

Sean shouldn’t be surprised at winning A-10 Coach of the Year.

I am listening to Sean’s radio show right now and he says Drew showed that quickness he relies so heavily upon during practice earlier in the day. Said that is a huge confidence boost for Drew. Also, with Drew sitting out during Saturday’s game, Sean said he gained a different perspective and that should only fuel his fire to play the rest of the season. It was nice to see us get back to establishing ourselves at the line. We had shot a combined 23-42 from the foul line against GW and St. Joes. Saturday night, the fellas shot 36-43. This has been a cornerstone of our success this year and it was great to see the free throws stroking once more.

It was also nice to see Adrion play for an extended amount of time with Drew sitting on the bench. Call it a hunch, but if we are to have an extended stay in the NCAA Tournament I think Adrion will have to hit a couple big threes for us because he obviously isn’t going to be a major part of the opposing team’s scouting report.

A big shout out and congratulations are in order for Brad Redford who was named Mr. Basketball for the state of Michigan. He has averaged 37.2 points this season and has Frankenmuth in the Class B state quarterfinals. In case you need to be reminded of his lights out shooting, here ya go.

 

I’d also be very remiss if I didn’t mention the Lady Muskies winning their second straight A-10 tournament title. I caught most of the second half and it’s hard not to be impressed with this group. The great thing about this team is that there are NO seniors and only two juniors. Amber Harris and Ta’Shia Phillips are blue chippers who provide the base for the success of the Lady Muskies. You know the men’s and women’s sides have to have friendly wagers on who does better during the course of the season. I’m sure the women will make sure to tell the guys they expect them to win the A-10 tournament and make it a clean sweep for Xavier.

Overall, a great day to be an X fan.

Be back Tuesday or Wednesday with the prospect of playing Dayton or St. Louis being the primary subject.

Holy Crap! Brad Redford Can Shoot!

This little slice of heaven was linked by flintbball on Musketeer Madness. The video is amazing. Kenny Frease is definitely our big time recruit for next year, but the numbers Redford continues to put up simply cannot be ignored. As it says in the very first part of the video, he is averaging 39 points per game while shooting 50% from the field, 46% from the three-point line plus 98% from the foul line. He recently had his consecutive free throws made streak snapped at 102, which is good for second all-time in the country! EVER!

Enjoy!

Having this kind of shooting would get me all giddy under normal circumstances. But with the three point line being moved back next year I believe this kind of shooting will become that much more invaluable. (Obviously, range is not an issue for this kid) The three point line being moved back means spacing will become a much bigger issue. Teams with good three point shooting will become even more difficult to guard because it forces the defense to extend itself that much more which will leave post players that much more room to operate. Concurrently, vis-a-vis, Frease to Redford and vice-versa (all things go according to play) will be a combo we Xavier fans will grow to love during the coming years. Also, that release is lightning quick. It will have to be because of his height, but it certainly doesn’t look like he’ll need much space to get his shot off. Even against taller more athletic players.

Regardless, we here at the MB cannot wait to see Mr. Redford in a Xavier jersey next year.