Bleacher Report - Manhattan Basketball

Manhattan-Florida Atlantic: Jaspers' Fluid Attack Sinks Owls

Ari Kramer — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 23:07:01 -0500

Florida Atlantic 66, Manhattan 73

Finally!

The lethargic "pass...dribble...dribble...pass...dribble...dribble" motion set vanished and Barry Rohrssen finally let his Manhattan College Jaspers play a fluid up-tempo offense fueled by constant movement and screens.

It's much easier, as the Jaspers proved, to put points on the board when you spend less time standing around on the perimeter.

Also, it's not a coincidence that Manhattan's free-throw attempts skyrocketed in this game plan. Fouls will be drawn when players attack the basket. The Jaspers hit 23-of-31 foul shots.

Florida Atlantic had some pesky guards who suffocated Manhattan defensively at points, but the new-look offense helped the Jaspers prevail.

Defensively, Manhattan still struggled on the perimeter, but they didn't surrender as many open looks as they did in Saturday's game. The Owls shot 8-of-23 from long range.

Individual Player Analysis

Rohrssen chose Antoine Pearson as his primary point guard tonight, and the senior produced his second straight stellar game offensively.

Pearson only took eight shots from the floor, but he converted on four. He didn't tally any treys after connecting on 5-of-6 in Saturday's match, but he was just as effective on offense by penetrating the lane and either getting fouled or making a flashy pass to a teammate.

Pearson only had four assists, but a combination of fouls and mishandles detracted from his potentially high total. With phenomenal court vision, quickness, and handles, Pearson should run the point even when Rico Pickett—who should move to the two—returns from his suspension. His 18 points and nine boards tonight helped his cause.

Andrew Gabriel still should not be anywhere other than the low post, but because of the fast pace of the offense, his presence on the perimeter was not detrimental. Manhattan would benefit from a more active Gabriel—he's there to corral rebounds, yet his meager total of 17 rebounds in four games is insufficient.

Darryl Crawford might have forced a few too many shots en route to his second straight bad game from the field (4-of-15). That being said, Crawford took many good shots, but simply got unlucky with the roll. He's probably Manhattan's best scorer—Pickett hasn't shown much yet—and the Jaspers can expect him to be resilient.

Patrick Bouli is Manhattan's best defender and continued to be more aggressive on the offensive end tonight. The guard has a great stroke on his jumper, which the Jaspers would love to see six or seven times per game.

The "King of the O-Board" had a relatively quiet night on the offensive glass until his second half tip-slam. Plagued by foul trouble, Laurence Jolicoeur played a solid game. The 6'9" center scored nine points on 4-of-5 shooting and grabbed six rebounds, two of which were offensive.

Manhattan's best hustler, Brandon Adams, received his first minutes of the season tonight and played very well. He was a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe and, as usual, provided defensive intensity.

One suggestion for Adams: he forces too many shots—yes, he only took four shots and hit two of them, but the two misses and even the one make were forced—and should look to kick to a shooter when he has two defenders on him.

The Owls subdued the sharp-shooting Nick Walsh tonight, but the 5'9" guard helped the Jaspers by grabbing five rebounds.

George Beamon is very athletic. He was a prolific scorer in high school. Although he hasn't shown much statistically, it is clear that he is talented and will be a reliable contributor in years to come. He just needs to be more assertive on offense.

Other

Raymond Taylor's only 5'6" but he is a player. A very good, quick player. Manhattan didn't have an answer for Taylor's speed, and if the Owls could hit their open shots, Taylor would have recorded a double-double.

Mike Jarvis has a really, really, really, really, really shiny head.

Jarvis always looks angry—maybe the fact that his Owls never possessed a lead tonight could account for that.

Photo from Stockton Photo

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What Manhattan Jaspers Can Learn From Loss to William & Mary

Ari Kramer — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:57:12 -0500

William & Mary 75, Manhattan 70

Game Analysis

The motion set that head coach Barry Rohrssen prefers rarely leads to anything better than a forced jumper as the shot clock winds down.

In the motion offense, the Jaspers lack fluidity. It's always pass...dribble...dribble...pass...dribble...dribble (times seven)...shot. The lethargy expressed by Manhattan in this offense completely defeats the purpose of implementing it; it's called MOTION for a reason!

However, when the Jaspers improvise—think Antoine Pearson or Darryl Crawford driving and either finishing or dishing to an open big or shooter—they put points on the board.

The two best plays Manhattan ran today involved a Pearson crossover, which fooled the defender, forced the defense to shift, and enabled a wide-open Jasper to receive Pearson's pass under the basket for a layup.

If Rohrssen continues to insist on using his motion offense, the Jaspers need to move quicker in order for it to be effective.

It's clear that Manhattan does not have confidence in its big men, who combined for 13 of the team's 57 field-goal attempts. Today, the Jaspers flourished from the perimeter (11-of-25), but their hands won't always be this hot.

Manhattan's perimeter defense was beyond abysmal this afternoon. When the Jaspers allowed 32 three-point attempts against N.J.I.T., they did not suffer. Unfortunately for Manhattan, William & Mary was a much better shooting team than N.J.I.T. and connected on 12-of-26 treys.

In order to prevent so many open threes, Manhattan needs to become more organized defensively. There were too many unnecessary double teams and switches, leading to a countless number of uncontested treys.

The full-court press was worse than ineffective. The Tribe had no difficulty breaking the press, which led to plenty of fast-break points. When Manhattan didn't let William & Mary pervade the press, the Jaspers committed foolish fouls. The Jaspers need to work on the press because an effective—at least not ineffective—one could have reversed today's outcome.

Individual Player Analysis

The suspended Rico Pickett is deeply missed. Yes, he did not play well in his first two regular season games, but his passing and shooting ability are desperately needed in order for the Jaspers to be successful. Dressed in a black warmup suit, Pickett was enthusiastic while sitting out. Hopefully his suspension will be lifted soon.

Knocking down 5-of-8 threes and scoring 24 points, Antoine Pearson was the star for Manhattan. There aren't many—if any—MAAC guards quicker than the 6'2" Pearson.

Nick Walsh provided a hot hand off the bench. In 29 minutes, the Riverdale native established career highs in three-pointers made (four) and points (16). His defense cost the Jaspers some points, but he's a much needed instant scorer with Pickett out.

Entering the contest averaging 15.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game, Darryl Crawford struggled immensely today. He shot 2-of-11 from the floor before receiving a double technical foul, which ejected him from the game. Hopefully, the senior won't be suspended—he is an essential part to the Jaspers' offense.

Patrick Bouli, who scored nine points on 3-of-7 shooting, is slowly becoming more aggressive on the offensive end. The Cameroon native has a pretty soft stroke from beyond the arc, and Manhattan will need him for consistent offense while Pickett endures his suspension.

Defensively, there is no Jasper better than Bouli. He was the lone tenacious defender on the perimeter today.

After corralling six of his 10 rebounds off the offensive glass, Laurence Jolicoeur is still the King of the O-Board. The 6'9" center's foul trouble limited his playing time, but he managed to contribute eight points and recorded a key block down the stretch.

Andrew Gabriel needs to become more active on offense by asserting himself as a low-post presence. His defense was hampered by a combination of laziness and foul trouble—he eventually fouled out—and cost Manhattan some points.

Djibril Coulibaly was a non-factor on offense and his defense was relatively mediocre today. Like the rest of his team, he was occasionally responsible for leaving a member of the Tribe wide open.

Other

Crawford's ejection ignited the Jasper Jungle, which was inappropriate and hilarious as usual.

Bizarrely, the cheerleaders did not realize that Manhattan wore its home white uniform and William & Mary wore green, so they still chanted, "Let's go Green." I'm not saying that was the reason for the loss, but come on.

Photo from GoJaspers.com

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Rico Pickett Suspended: Another Reason Manhattan Should Fire Barry Rohrssen

Ari Kramer — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:22:33 -0500

Six days.

Junior college transfer Rico Pickett couldn't even make it through a week of the regular season at Manhattan without "violating a team rule."

Pathetic.

Jasper coach Barry Rohrssen knew he wasn't signing a saint when he beat out Jim Calhoun and Billy Donovan for Pickett, who endured two suspensions as a freshman at Alabama, but, although Rohrssen never verbalized the following statement, the coach embraced the point guard as his last life-line.

Rohrssen knew his back was against the wall.

After three full seasons at the helm, his team still fit the mold of a rebuilding squad, which was an acceptable label in 2006-07 and 2007-08, but definitely not in 2008-09 or the present.

He struggled to live up to recruiting expectations, and, when he did sign highly-rated high school seniors, they transferred after a year or two.

Pickett was Rohrssen's last chance to prove that he was the recruiter Manhattan thought he would be. From April until November, the "Fire Barry" sentiments evaporated into the Riverdale air because Jasper fans hoped Pickett, who was ranked No. 46 in ESPN's 2007 recruiting class, could revive the program.

Now, the hope is gone.

Pickett's violation had not been disclosed to the public as of Friday night. As a result, Manhattan fans are speculating the worst—the vagueness of his suspension implies an offense much worse than a late arrival to practice.

Given Pickett's history, it is fair to assume he brought the suspension on himself. However, Rohrssen knew he would need to monitor Pickett's lack of discipline, yet he failed to do so. Therefore, this violation is, ultimately, the coach's fault.

The suspension joins Rohrssen's poor recruiting, limited player development, and ineffective coaching on the growing list of reasons for Manhattan to fire its coach.

There is no doubt that Rohrssen is a nice, moral person. Unfortunately, though, he was never cut out to be a mid-major head coach.

This is his fourth year at the helm. He was given a chance to rebuild, but his players, under his reign, have not carried Manhattan back to the top of the MAAC.

If firing a coach in-season was acceptable in college basketball, you know what I'd say. But, it isn't.

Regardless, Rohrssen should not be walking the sidelines at Draddy Gymnasium come November 2010.

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