Any one else having problems getting onto Hoos Next?

It makes me keep logging on. GRRRRRRRR. And sometimes I cannot log on at all.

Maryland hired Pete Lembo as Assistant Head Coach and ST coach. Gives them three coaches with head coaching experience, including both an Associate HC position and an Assistant HC position. And they have an offer to Locksley to remain in an unnamed position.

I'm not sure I want to put my first time HC in that position. Sure, you want to give him people with some experience, but he better have a firm idea of his scheme and coaching philosophy and the resolve to stick firm in his decisions.

Also Oakland beating #1 Michigan St 24-12. (Oakland is our next opponent) Wake beating Xavier 26-15.
Great basketball tonight, of course the premier game is UVA vs Cal at 9pm
Buzz Peterson should becoming under pressure soon. He hasn't had any better results then James Johnson whom they quickly pulled the plug and they are paying Buzz 3 times as much!

Greetings from Charlottesville where No. 5 UVa will host Cal in about an hour and 40 minutes. I'll be back in a bit once the team takes the floor. But thought you guys would enjoy the following info.


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As always, have at it folks...

Oakland, our next opponent, leads Michigan State by thirteen at the half.

Only five players scored for UVA.. I thought that we might have a little more depth this year. I was wrong.

You gotta give alot of credit to coach Soderberg for his required "3-on-3" work this past summer with the team. You have to think that has at least been a contributing factor to our improved offense, especially in clutch moments of games. I know I was a little apprehensive when Coach McKay left, but as it turns out, it may have been serendipitous.

Just looked at the schedule again as I was perusing the latest RPI numbers (up to 16) ... a thought struck me. Previous years, UVa had a couple of "we should win these six in a row no problems" sandwiched between "these four are brutal" type stretches. This year is much more two tough, one easier or three or four "medium" difficulty games.

Case in point is the current stretch which had two really tough games vs. WVU and Nova, then the really solid games against Cal and Oakland (currently 86 and 87 in the RPI). The ACC season starts with top 50ish Notre Dame, road games against the Techs, and so on, where we seem to alternate winnable versus tougher games. There is one stretch I see starting with the Cuse game and lasting about six or seven games, but it's nowhere near the Tobacco Road + Louisville stretch from last season.

Do you folks see that as good or bad for the Hoos?

Because of the generosity of Paul Tudor Jones and some other donors, UVA has a basketball arena that has impressed virtually all who have seen it. The John Paul Jones Arena was built in 2006. Three years later UVA hired Tony Bennett to rebuild the basketball program. The combination of a beautiful arena and a wonderful coach has made basketball a source of enjoyment and pride for UVA fans everywhere.

It says on the site that will call opens 1.5 hours before game time for basketball, but during the week isn't it opened during the day? I'm hoping to pick up tickets when I arrive in town around 6:30 and run to grab dinner before the game instead of trying to run to will call right before the game and risk there being any sort of mix-up. Can anyone with will call experience provide any info?

I'm kind of assuming that it will close at 5pm and then reopen at 7:30pm

We all know that defense has been the staple of UVA basketball, and last year we became accustomed to seeing teams only scoring in the 40s. We were suffocating, but struggled offensively. This year we are scoring in bunches. You can certainly teach the movement that creates open shots, but offense is still based on "you either have it or you don't." This year we have it! Numerous shooters who can kill the opposition from anywhere - deep outside or banging low. Defense, on the other hand, is all about intensity and movement. We have been a bit sluggish in some of our movement and we can see that some of our new guys are often a step behind. Replacing Atkins and Mitchell on that end of the floor is a tall order, but my main point is that our defense will only continue to improve, and it's already top-10 in terms of efficiency. Just imagine the current team with a defense that will only get better and better as our new guys learn the system. If this happens without having a negative impact on our offense, I would really question if anyone can beat us unless we have a very off night. Sit back and enjoy! This ride is just at the start!

I had predicted that they would be around 5 or 6 after the loss of Kentucky, Duke, ISU and my buddies thought that Kentucky and Duke would drop maybe one or two spots; boy are they surprised!

how about his staff?

Predicting?

My Predictions going forward:

Philly loses today against Arizona, then against Washington next week in a close loss then lose to NY.

Washington beats them in a close one in Philly and wins a revenge game against Dallas.

Giants loses to Vikings. I'm hoping/betting on league reviewing his antics and #13 being suspended by the league for his abusive multiple attacks, especially the running up trying to lead with a helmet on a dead play on another player's head. He should have been ejected for it and if the league rules superstar status over rules then they have zero integrity. Without Beckham, NY will lose in Minn. but they beat Philly last game if he returns.

Dallas loses to Bills in Buffalo and to Washington at home. I predict Dallas will play Moore the remainder of the season to see what he has to offer and makes rookie/first year player mistakes that really wouldn't matter except better draft picks come April!

I am also predicting Dallas goes after the Memphis QB. San Antonio kid that Jerry will use to sell Jerseys especially in Texas and Romo is at the end of his career. The other QBs are more than likely on the way out. Depending on what Moore does going forward if he stays on as a third string down the road.

Washington 9-7
New York 7-9
Philly 6-10
Dallas 4-12

Just my humble opinion.

Well, it's coming from more than one guy vs JA last year.

All the worries about being better than last years team? Maybe not on defense, but on offense it's showing more and more

The final score was 85-64. In spite of being double teamed, Huff led Voyager with 19 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 blocks. Voyager's record is now 11-1.

Question - I'm going to the subject game. Where is the best place to 'tailgate' before home basketball games?

Getting started with UVa's Tony Bennett...

Asked about the offense, Bennett said they turned the ball over too much but guys made shots and that was the difference. They made the next pass, got in the paint, and hit the 3-point ball well.

On the patience UVa showed to run its offense early, Bennett said they had to try and wear Villanova down. He didn't like the way Virginia started the second half. "It was hard to get the ball shifted against them," he said, adding that UVa had to take advantage of the inside plays as well as moving the ball. Guys had to make plays off the dribble to get there.

More coming...

I went to yahoo.com to log into my yahoo email account and one of the headlines streaming across the top of the webpage is "Virginia's Potent Offense". Hoo would have ever thought that this would be headlines? The article went on to address the inside (Gill) and outside (Parrentes, Brogdon, and Thompson) threats... Good stuff.

Paige and London with Malcolm in the back court.

When do Mendenhall & assistants hit town?