WBB & MBB: Exhibition Double Header Thursday, November 1st The Aggie men won their exhibition game against Dominican University 87-59 but the Aggie website hasn't even posted the final score so I don't think their will be any recap or final stats. That seems strange to me since our opener against USF is next Tuesday and you would think they would want to get as much press as possible to get the attention of Aggie fans.
The game itself was a bit strange in several ways. First, TJ Shorts, Joe Mooney and Matt Neufeld were all in street clothes and AJ John was nowhere to be found at the start of the game. He finally showed up with about 10 minutes to go in the first half but only stood by the trainer's table for the rest of the game. He appeared to be favoring his left leg. I'm hoping that we aren't going to start off the season with a bunch of players ailing.
Secondly, the Ags started the game with two true freshmen: PG Damion Squire and SG Caleb Fuller along with Siler Schneider, Rogers Printup and Garrison Goode. Coach Les was his usual self pacing the sideline and giving direction with intensity. Then in the second half he sat quietly on the bench seemingly not all that engaged. It just seemed odd to me because Les is usually demonstrably animated no matter what the score or who we are playing.
I will say this though. If our opponents had any scouts in the stands they went home without a lot of insight about the Aggies since so many of our experienced players were not playing. What they did see was that the Ags have a lot of young players with good potential. It looks like the Ags will have a deep bench this year and several of our new players will be able to contribute immediately.
So here are a few of my thoughts:
1. Siler Schneider looked as good as ever. His shot was falling and he was flying around like he always does. He will be one of the leaders of this team this year.
2. Rogers Printup looked very good on both ends of the court. He was draining his 3's with a quick catch and shoot.
3. Damion Squire and Caleb Fuller are impressive for true freshmen. Squire will be able fill in for TJ when needed. He can drive the ball and create his own shot.
Caleb Fuller has the potential to be a major talent for the Aggies. He's listed at 6'5 and 210 and he is physically very strong. He has a lot of international basketball experience and it shows. He appears to be ready to step in an play good minutes as a true freshman.
4. Stefan Gonzalez, a Jr G transfer from St Mary's, is a deadly shooter from distance. Gonzalez along with Printup, Schneider, John and Mooney make the Ags a serious threat from downtown.
5. True freshman G, Cameron Ba, came off the bench late and hit several shots including a couple of 3's.
6. As would be expected with so many new players in the mix on the floor the Ags were not a well oiled machine. You can certainly see the potential that is there and this team may have the most overall talent of any Aggie team yet. It's just going to take a while for everyone to get on the same page and sync together.
There were break downs defensively and you know that that won't fly with Coach Les. He prides his teams on being hard nosed defenders first and foremost and if you don't get after it defensively you won't be seeing the playing floor. So the Ags have some work to do there. Oh, and the FT shooting was awful. Hopefully, that was an anomaly.
7. It's hard to get much of a read about this team with so many players sitting out this game. We'll know a lot more when USF comes to town next Tuesday. The Ags will need to hit the floor running with their A game right away because their out of conference schedule is so difficult. The team will need to come together quickly or they could get exposed by some of the power schools on the schedule this year. The talent seems to be there but just how well and how fast they come together are the big questions.
Go Ags!