MIDNIGHT MADNESS FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

[SiouxFallsJack]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

I just got back from Midnight Madness-2 as well. The new scoreboard looked much better in person than the pics on the web, can't wait to see it during a game. This was also my first time and did hear this was by far the largest crowd we have had for Midnight Madness. The student section was pretty full as well as the lower reserved section, my guess close to 1000.


Tough to judge the teams on the first night but it was great watching both the men and women perform. There aren't words to describe how much more athletic the mens team is compared to last year. The mens team will be young and might struggle with the tough schedule but will be very entertaining to watch.

Gilbert won the dunk contest and without playing a game yet is already a fan favorite. Both coaches spoke and welcomed the fans who turned out to watch this seasons mens/womens team. The one comment that Nagy made that I really liked was to the students. With the effort made to schedule good teams at home while students are in class, not on a break, he challenged them to fill the seats.

One last thought, I have a feeling you will see many a cowbell come game time in Frost Arena.

[Charger13]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

I saw the score boards lit up today as well, but missed midnight madness.  They are awesome.  If we could replace the bleachers on the upper level with some with better sight lines, Frost would be such an amazing arena.  I can't wait for the season to start.

I also love increased emphasis on the cowbell. Does anybody know if any other college uses cowbells?

[OK_Jackrabbit]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

If we could replace the bleachers on the upper level with some with better sight lines, Frost would be such an amazing arena.

I'm told that's in the works.

[jackrabbit1979]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

My report from midnight madness:

Scoreboards/Displays =    
I saw the hang down display as i walked up the final steps to the track in the lobby and was taken back immediately.  It really looks awesome and with all the new stuff(boards, murals, etc) i almost got a headache because there was too much to look at.  They also covered up the plywood in front of the end seats which looks really good and was a complaint of mine in the past.  One thing i did miss was having the score, time, etc. in the middle of the gym.  They have four "score" boards in each corner of the lower level but i really think they could still use a couple more maybe above the bleachers and reserved seats on the second deck.  Either way Frost went from being the best arena for basketball in SD, ND etc, to no contest.  It is a great place.

Womens Team = seemed like tons of new players, Scotty K even had a tough time doing the play by play over the PA as he couldn't name all the new faces running up and down the court.  Vogel is still vogel and really will be a leader of the team along with Seiler.  Seiler looked to score a lot more during the scrimmage, she also won the 3 point contest over Jennifer Warkenthien (who is going to be very very good, reminds me of Melissa Pater).  Team will be very young.  It's hard to tell much more from the scrimmage at hand, all of the Freshman did play and looked good.

Men's Team:  There is no doubt in my mind we will have a better team this year than last but i can't guarantee Coach Nagy won't have as many headaches.  The team is so much more athletic it is crazy.  With that, they will be very very young and will probably take their lumps as the season goes on.  Again hard to tell anything from the scrimmage they had, it was very similar to the NBA all star game, up and down the court,  no defense, no set offense, and a lot of attempted ally-oop passes, and some dunks.  Here's my breakdown of a couple of the guys, take it for what it's worth (not much):

Ben Beran: same old Ben, so glad he is on our team and only still a junior...did look a little slender compared to years past...the team's quiet leader?

Cadwell:  already love him, has a way about him that portrays he is ready for business.  Will be a great PG for us in the future no doubt.

Frias:  very entertaining, another quality PG i believe, didn't finish some drives to basket very well, but it was a scrimmage as i mentioned

Cam Hornby:  I don't think there is a pass this kid can't make.  in the dunk contest he led Holdren with a through the legs, behind the back, over his head, off the backboard, pass to Steve to dunk.  Pretty raw but Nagy will make him great.

Mohammed Berte:  Athletic as all get out, showed some good moves on offense, and i thought defense was supposed to be his strength.  I am looking for good things here.  (Tried a dunk in the contest 3-4 times where Hornby threw the ball from the second deck on the track, over the backboard and Berte the last time grabbed it and almost put it down.  It was pretty impressive.)

Holdren:  Took a year, got bigger, grew some hair, and some attitude.  Still going to be a leader for this team as a Soph.  Won't be intimidated this year by any of our D1's i don't think.  

Engen & Bilitz:  very tall....and very skinny.  Definately could use a year or three in the weight room and about 10,000 meals at Larson Commons.  Both in the dunk contest and looked fairly :-/ athletic for near 7 footers.
Bilitz will from now on be known as Bobby, Bobby, Bobby to the frost crowd thanks to Brad Debeer  , it was great.

Gilbert:  So athletic and really smooth.  Has a confidence about him that is unmatched on the team  , showed he could handle the ball, slash to the goal, etc.  In my opinion we are lucky we got him, i don't know how he didn't end up at a more established D1.  Like somebody said a fan favorite, wore a Jordan jersey for his second dunk in the contest, really played to the crowd.  Looks like he has so much fun on the court which is something we had zero of last year.  

Casey, Kleinjan, Loney, etc will all contribute this year again as well.  Yackley and a new kid from Gettysburg (must be a walk on junior) played as well.  All together the team looked like they gel together very well, i think there is an excitement about the upcoming season one can really see.  Loved Nagy's commets after the scrimmage as he said we won't have to worry about seeing anymore behind the back passes from half court the rest of the season.   He also challenged the fans to fill the place up this winter.  Brad and Scotty from the sportsshow said it was their goal to get as many people and cowbells in Frost arena as possible this year.  It was a fun night and i hope the season is even better.  

[bub94]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

You can tell these men's team hung out together this summer.  There are some good friendships on this team.  I'll agree with you about Ben being slimmer this year and did you notice him hitting the 3 from the top of the key.  This team is the most athletic Scott has had and people who miss the games are going to miss a quick team with a lot of excitement.  The one thing that wasn't displayed for the men's team last night was the 3-point shooting.  I believe this is going to be improved from last year.  I think Berte is going to be more than just a defensive specialist.  Should be a fun year with a young team. The kid from Gettysburg was sitting at the end of the bench last year in plain clothes.

[jackrabbit1979]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

i thought the kid in plain clothes last year was Keller from Illinois who also played last night. I think the gettysburg kid is brand new. Bub 94, are they done with everything scoreboard wise in Frost? Did you think it was somewhat difficult to see the score, fouls, bonus, etc. or was it just me. I have to think this infor will be displayed somewhere else as well.

[Rabbitden]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

You will be able to see the score and stats on the scoring table.  Wiring wasnt done yet for Midnight Minus Two.

Also the top section of the main scoreboard rotates but the motor was'nt in it yet.

Agree with all of your thoughts as to the new teams.
Got a chance to talk with Mohamed last night before hand.  Very nice well mannered individual.  Should be fun to watch the pure athleticism alone this year.

And yes as Brad Debeer and Scotty Kwas kept reminding us...WE NEED MORE COWBELL! 8)

GO RABBITS!

P.S.
The kid from Gettysburg transferred from Mount Marty, DeBeer said he was prety good in high school. Dont know how he will fare with all the rest of these athletes though?

[twism]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

Yackley is a freshmen from Sulley Buttes.

[bub94]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

About the scoreboard, I was under the impression on the sides of the center hung display was going to be four corner scoreboards. The table display can be used as a scoreboard as well as the center hung displays so maybe that is why there wasn't scoreboards on the center hung.

Keller was in uniform last year for warm-ups as were the other red-shirt freshman. Heien is the player from Gettysburg and he was the one in plain clothes last year. I saw him at Wally-world one day and was going to ask what he was doing on the bench.

I was talking to a friend who went with me to the madness last night and he says the same thing. This team is so athletic. I am going to have to clear up my Tuesdays and Thursdays from bowling so I can make games held on those nights.

[Jacks02]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

I was there last night as well, and Frost looks awesome. I just sat there with a big grin on my face We may not be on par with other college arenas capacity wise, but the atmosphere and quality of arena we have in Frost is something we can definitely take pride in. Daktronics sports marketing and whoever did the decision-making for SDSU did a great job! I can't wait till we see Wis-Milwaukee and Butler in Frost on ESPN.

As far as the actual midnight-2, I pretty much have to agree with what everyone else has been saying. The men's team is leaps and bounds ahead of last season. For comparison's I'd say Frias is bit a Michael Torrence type player, a pretty stout player who should be able to muscle up on some guards, and seems to have a good head on his shoulders. Cadwell reminded of a Austin Hanson/Brian Norberg type, has a nice shooting touch and seemed to have a good drive to the basket. I'd like to make a comparison with Gilbert and Berte, but I don't know that I've seen any comparable athletes to these two players in the 8 years I've been following Jacks basketball. They are going to be a fun couple of players to watch this year. Beran did look noticably more chiseled this year, and as someone earlier said, looks to be the quiet leader on the team. I could keep rambling on about the rest of the team, but I guess those were the players who stuck out the most to me.

The one comment made by Nagy that caught me was when he stated there are no seniors on the roster and how these guys are gonna get a chance to really gel and grow together. You can't get too much out of a 10 minute scrimmage, but from what I saw there, its gonna be a fun ride watching that happen!

The women's roster is also dominated by younger players as there are 8 freshman and sophomores on the team. Vogel and Sieler both looked good as always as Sieler won the 3 point contest and Vogel teamed up with Beran to win the 2-ball competition. Warkenthien was runner up to Sieler in the 3-point competition and impressed me the most of the incoming players.

All in all it was a fun night and it was nice seeing such a good crowd there, the biggest one I've seen for a midnight madness, at least that I remember anyways
Looking forward to the 31st when we get to see the mens team in real action against Morningside!

[OK_Jackrabbit]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

My report from midnight madness:

Scoreboards/Displays =    
I saw the hang down display as i walked up the final steps to the track in the lobby and was taken back immediately.  It really looks awesome and with all the new stuff(boards, murals, etc) i almost got a headache because there was too much to look at.  They also covered up the plywood in front of the end seats which looks really good and was a complaint of mine in the past.  One thing i did miss was having the score, time, etc. in the middle of the gym.  They have four "score" boards in each corner of the lower level but i really think they could still use a couple more maybe above the bleachers and reserved seats on the second deck.  Either way Frost went from being the best arena for basketball in SD, ND etc, to no contest.  It is a great place.  

Good report. Thanks. One thing on scoreboards: Those video boards can display score and foul information as well as video. I'm guessing that when there's not a replay to show, you'll see the score, team fouls, time, etc. up there.

[mitchell]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

Who are the probable starters for the mens team this year? Do we have any players that can shoot the rock, besides kleinjen.

[MNJack]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

I think the main threats from the outside will be Cadwell and Hornby. Those two and Kleinjan can really stroke it from the outside. Gilbert and Holdren are more of the slasher types, and their three-point ability will be second to their athleticism. Also, I think that Beran is able to step out and shoot it from time to time. It all remains to be seen though, I guess in a couple of weeks we will begin to see.

[JACKGUYII]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

You add a year of maturity to this team and beef up the two 6'10 freshman and than add two very athletic players next year in Bassett and Cordova and we have the makings of a competitive team. With no seniors we have everybody back next year.

[89rabbit]

Re: MIDNIGHT MADNESS  FRIDAY OCT 14, 2005

I agree the Scoreboards are better in person (saw them this morning).

Go State! ;D