UCF Basketball – The Young Veteran

The Life of a Freelance Basketball Scout – Game 14 & 15 – Saturday Doubleheader

The Life of a Freelance Basketball Scout – Game 14 & 15

Saturday Doubleheader

March 2 – Game 1 – New Hampshire vs UMBC

So, I was fortunate enough to get to sleep in before my big day of basketball. I slept until 10:30 or so. Now granted this was after I had already been woken up by my kids countless times, but the wife got up with them this time! My morning was pretty basic. I had some coffee, cinnamon toast crunch and a shower before I left for UMBC around 12:30. Tip-off was at 1 p.m. I arrived literally during player introductions. I am getting pretty good at timing things. Or so I think. See what happens later…..

This game was the last placed team in the America East, which is New Hampshire; against UMBC, who is battling for third place. UMBC was struggling all game long. A couple of journalists that were sitting next to me were expecting a 15-0 patented UMBC run. Well, they sure took their time to do so. New Hampshire went scoreless for like eight minutes mid way into the second half, to about the two minute mark. UMBC was down by as much as 18 at one point. Brandon Horvath, a slender 6’10 200 forward, led the charge. Horvath 13 points and made nine free throws to close the gap. The game was capped off by Jose Placer. Placer hit a game winning three with just 2.4 seconds left. Before that UMBC was 2-19 from three. During this span UMBC pressured New Hampshire and they had no answer. They turned the ball over 20 times and struggled to get into their offense. New Hampshire is a young squad and it showed. Leading the way for them was point guard Marque Maultsby. Maultsby had 15 points, four steals and four turnovers. Senior guard Jordan Reed had 10 points, five rebounds and three turnovers.

UMBC escaped in this one. They have been battling injuries all year, but the consistent senior Joe Sherburne was once again the main constant. Sherburne finished with 15 points, six rebounds and three assists.

After the game, I left as soon as I could. Of course it was raining. I believe it has during every trip to UMBC this year. I rushed home so I could eat some of the wife’s loaded bake potato soup. I had to pick up some sourdough bread on the way home. I stopped by Panera Bread and they were fresh out, so I went to Food Lion, which is closer to where I live. Objective complete. I got home and watched some of the UCF vs Houston game I had recorded. Then I ate some soup while watching some Kid’s Baking Championship with the family. I watched more of the UCF vs Houston game, then departed around 6:15 for the nightcap at Loyola MD.

Game 2 – Lehigh vs Loyola MD

So, I thought I would have plenty of time to get to this game. Remember earlier in the day I was thinking man I’m good at this timing thing…… Wrong. Loyola is located in the middle of Baltimore city. There is no easy way of getting there. Waze, my gps friend, took me right through the middle of downtown. I was supposed to arrive at 6:57 for the 7 p.m. tip. Well, I did arrive around that time. I had to park, then go to will call to pick up my credential. Needless to say, I walked in 25 seconds after the tip off. Objective not complete.

Lehigh came into the game looking to end the season tied at the top of the Patriot League standings. Loyola was trying to finish top eight. Well, Loyola played extremely well on senior night. They controlled the game from the start and won by a final of 92-73.

Lehigh was led by their normal trio of guards. The two seniors, Kyle Leufroy and Lance Tejada, combined for 30 points. Leufroy is a steady shooting guard that has the ability to play some point in small doses. He has a solid three-point jumper and is a good mid range shooter as well. Tejada likes to use his quickness to blow by defenders and cause chaos in the lane. He also has the ability to shoot from three. Junior point guard Jordan Cohen displayed his great vision all night. He is a knockdown shooter as well. Cohen finished with 16 points and four rebounds. Lehigh has a solid trio on the perimeter. They just lack overall size as a team. However, big man Nic Lynch did provide solid minutes in the paint. He had 13 points, twelve rebounds and three blocks.

For Loyola they also excel in guard play. Freshman Jaylin Andrews exploded for 21 points and hit five three-pointers. He will be a player to keep an eye on. He has good size and length at 6’4 for a shooting guard. Point guard Isaiah Hart delivered 18 points and seven assists. Hart cut his turnovers down this season and is going to be a factor for Loyola the next couple of years. The consistent Andrew Kostecka chipped in 19 points. Kostecka seems to shoot better with a hand in his face. Some guys are just like that. He is also a pest on defense. He uses his quickness and anticipation to disrupt passing lanes and ball handlers regularly.

Once the game was over I ran out a soon as possible. I went home and my kids were already put in bed. I got home around 9:45p.m. My kids keep waking up super early on the weekends, like 7 a.m. This is earlier than they wake up for school. Maybe we should let them stay up super late on the weekends…. Nah, sounds too risky. The rest of my night consisted of some IPA’s, leftover Chinese food, “Friends”, “This Is Us” t.v. show, finishing the UCF vs Houston game, watching some of the Saint Mary’s vs Gonzaga game and a little bit of the UFC fights. So, yeah I didn’t go to sleep until 2:30 a.m.!

Tacko Fall Scouting Report

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George Washington Rolls Over UCF 74-59

Washington D.C. – George Washington overcame some first half struggles on offense to pull away from UCF in the second half to win 74-59. Sophomore shooting guard Jordan Roland (6’1 171) caught fire in the second half scoring 22 of his career high 27 points to help close the deal. UCF struggled immensely on the offensive end throughout the night. Without leading scorer and point guard B.J. Taylor, the knights lacked any flow on offense and struggled to get the massive sophomore big man Tacko Fall (7’6 290) involved until late in the second half. Second leading scorer Matt Williams (6’5 215) also struggled shooting going just 4-15 from the field.

This was not a pretty game for the Knights of UCF on either end of the floor. Without a true point guard on the floor they struggled to set their offense and did not get many open looks. When they did score it came off one on one offense and breaking down their man. Big man Tacko Fall did not get much opportunity in the first half. When he did get the ball in the post with position he struggled to make quick moves to score. On several occasions he turned right into double teams and either missed a short shot or got it blocked. The second half was much more encouraging for Fall. He was more decisive when posting up finishing several post ups with massive one handed dunks over defenders. He was also much more active on the offensive glass. Tacko also made an impact as a rim protector making sure that players either pulled up for jumpers or stayed on the perimeter entirely. Tacko is impossible to stop when he has deep post position. His length allows him to shoot overtop of any defender with ease. He is still raw, but his potential is through the roof. Fall finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Matt Williams finished with eleven points, 3 three-pointers and six rebounds.

For GW the second half provided a lot of promise as they will begin conference play at the end of the month. Jordan Roland showed that he can be a huge threat from the perimeter moving forward. In the last three games combined he is 10-18 from three. Roland found himself open often and he did not hesitate to launch from deep. Shooting over 41% from three on the year, he is the Colonials biggest threat from the perimeter. Roland showed an aggressiveness on offense that GW will have to rely on, if star power forward Tyler Cavanaugh (6’9 243) is having an off night. Roland finished with 27 points and five three-pointers.

With an NBA ready offensive skill set Cavanaugh is trying to go out on a high note in his senior year. Cavanaugh can play inside and out causing the defense to have to prepare to play him either way. He has the ability to post smaller defenders, scoring with a polished inside game. Cavanaugh is also the prototypical pick and pop player. He shoots the ball confidently and fluidly when coming off the pick and roll. There are times when Tyler could be more aggressive looking to score to exploit his matchups, but he is an unselfish player always looking to play within the system. Cavanaugh heated up in the second half and finished with 19 points, six rebounds and three assists.

Tacko Fall will be closely watched over for the remainder of this season by NBA scouts. I believe he should play through this year and the next before declaring fro the draft. He will still need a lot of time in the D-League either way.

As for Tyler Cavanaugh he is a late second round prospect this year. He should get an opportunity to play summer league and catch on for a training camp invite with his versatile offensive game.

Up next for GW is Thursday, December 22^nd @ Miami

Up next for UCF is Sunday, December 18 vs Miami (OH)