Keondre Kennedy – The Young Veteran

Originally my game eleven was supposed to be Towson @ Coppin State. But, my wife went out of town for a girls weekend in the Poconos. So, I had a weekend with my three kids. Needless to say a lot of pizza, ice cream and popcorn were eaten. We also watched… Jingle All the Way and both Home Alone 1 & 2. It was a good weekend.

Back to this game. I had a feeling it would be a close game throughout. It really was up until it was 54-51 UNCG with 3:01 left in the game. UMBC never scored again from there.

UNCG dominated the boards 37-28 and played better team ball in the closing minutes. I was most interested in seeing De’Monte Buckingham. However, his impact was limited until late in the second half, when he hit a couple high arcing three’s and made several key passes to open cutters to the basket. Buckingham is a solidly built 2 guard that possesses good vision and can contribute on both ends. He finished with eleven points, six rebounds and two assists. He is shooting the three ball very well this year at over 42%.

The rest of the scoring and impact for the Spartans was spread out. Everyone chipped in here and there. They had seven players with six or more points. Kobe Langley had a nice game as well. He was steady at the point. Not forcing the issue and making sure the offense was being run. He showed nice poise after going scoreless in his previous two games. He finished with ten points, four rebounds and three assists.

UMBC struggled shooting in every facet. They shot just 40% from the field, 28% from 3 and an abysmal 53% from the foul line. Those stats right there are why they lost. Normally they shoot the ball much better and score a lot more points. This was just one of those games. The Spartans aggressive pressure defense on the perimeter really bothered the Retrievers shooters and they closed out well also.

Keondre Kennedy led the Retrievers with 14 points, but he was just 1-5 from three. Jacob Boonyasith was in foul trouble the whole game and was just 1-5 from three. He did chip in six rebounds and four assists though. L.J. Owens ended up fouling out with nine points. I thought he could’ve been more aggressive to score.

Two guys that just struggled in general were, Yaw Obeng-Mensah and Darnell Rogers. Yaw just seemed out of control to me. Forcing shots. Fumbling passes and ending up on the floor a lot. I was surprised Dimitrije Spasojevic didn’t get more playing time. He looked like he would’ve made a more consistent impact. Rogers had a really bad final ten minutes or so of the game. He had multiple turnovers in the final minutes. He was pressing and trying to do too much for his squad. He over penetrated throughout the game. He really should incorporate a floater to his game. Rogers finished with six points and five turnovers.

Not a great streak for UMBC as they have now dropped four straight. UNCG on the other hand just stopped a two game skid.

Up next for me is game 12 – Radford @ UMBC

I had some decent expectations with this game. I was interested in seeing UMBC for the first time this season, with their roster that is loaded with seven seniors. American is intriguing as well. My main focus was going to be on Stacy Beckton Jr. He is a fifth year guy with plenty of tools and has potential to carve out a solid career overseas. Well tonight wasn’t his night, or any of the American Eagles for that matter. UMBC shot 65% from the field including 16-23 from three. So yeah, UMBC won 98-67.

For American, Johnny O’Neil and forward Matt Rogers played well. O’Neil had 15 points, five rebounds and made 3 three pointers. Rogers showed a solid motor and an ability to be effective in the dribble hand off situations. He finished with 14 points, five rebounds, on 7-11 from the field. Another player of note was Jaxon Knotek, a senior wing who played three years at North Dakota State. Knotek has a nice shooting stroke and is built solidly. I think he will be a better pro than college player if he choses to pursue that.

Beckton made zero impact on the game. He was 1-7 from the field and finished with just four points.

UMBC shot the ball quite possibly the best I have ever seen a team shoot in person. Keondre Kennedy was the main source of offense throughout the game. He was hitting from three going 4-5, as well as showing the ability to score in transition as well. At 6’6 180, Kennedy has the physical tools and abilities to effect the game positively on offense and defense. He did just that in this game. I am still not sold on his three point shot. He tends to short arm it some and lacks a consistent follow through. Keondre had a game high 21 points and three rebounds.

Darnell Rogers is a lot of fun to watch. One of the refs before the game I guess saw him for the first time and said to the other ref he was shocked how small Rogers is in person. Well at 5’2 150 Rogers plays more like a 6’2 190 pound guard. He uses angles well and his quickness to cut off defenders. He is a lot stronger than he looks as well. Rogers was causing issues for American all night. He gets in the lane at will and has the ability to find others for open perimeter shots. He had ten points and seven assists.

UMBC has a ton of depth at guard. L.J. Owens, ex American guard Jacob Boonyasith and Ray Salnave. Owens is a smooth and slithery mid range shooter. He still has to develop from three and tends to lack arc at times, but he is solid overall. Boonyasith definitely came out with more energy this game. He was playing his old squad and played with an edge and intensity. He has deep three point range and is a physical defender as well. Salnave was very efficient off the bench. He plays with intensity and provides another veteran piece that is needed for teams looking to win their conference title.

Szymon Wojcik, a 6’9 220 big, stepped up big for the Retrievers. He had seven points, five rebounds and two tone setting blocks in the paint.

I went to this game Wednesday November 24th. I am posting this today November 29th, because I have been busy with Thanksgiving and all that good stuff. Since then UMBC defeated Pittsburgh 87-77. Yes, Pitt is not good. But, UMBC seems to be pretty solid because beating a power conference team on the road is a big deal for any lower conference team.

Up next for me is Virginia Tech @ Maryland on Wednesday.

Tag: Keondre Kennedy

Game 11 of 37 – UNCG pulls away late defeating UMBC 62-51

Game 7 of 37 American @ UMBC