Recently, I had the great pleasure and honor of interviewing a living artist, Karen Guancione. The purpose of my time with Karen was to document her work currently on display at Rutgers University's Alexander Library and ask her about her experience as an artist. Earlier on this blog, I featured Michael Joseph, the curator of the exhibit (and Rare Books Librarian) talking about Karen's work. However, having the artist herself describe in detail the nature of her works in the context of her life opens up an entirely different window into the art on display.
I'd like to share with you these enlightening, revelatory, and amusing videos I recorded last month. The playlist is available on YouTube at the following link: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB889D867E48C3884&feature=plcp. Photos of the individual works will be forthcoming.
20 Eylül 2012 Perşembe
Tour of Westchester County Archives and Record Center
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Tucked into the pretty little Village of Elmsford, N.Y., not far from the Hudson River and historic Sleepy Hollow, is the very large records building that houses the Westchester County Archives and Records Center. Shown above is the sizable reading room that the Archives shares with the Westchester County Historical Society. The archives holds the official history of the county dating back to the beginning of its recordkeeping in 1683. The collections include photographs, maps and atlases, architectural drawings, naturalization records, court book minutes, marriage records, supreme court records, land records, licenses and permits, voter enrollments, incorporations, World War I military naturalization petitions, state census records, the Department of Public Works’ records, some of Rye Playland’s early records, and much more.
The Archives’ Reading Room Manager is the very knowledgeable and easy-going Jackie Graziano. We met while attending the remarkable “Exploring Maps: History, Fabrication and Preservation” conference at the Center for Conservation of Art and Historic Artifacts in Philadelphia last November, and became fast friends. Recently, Jackie treated me to a tour of the archives and showed me some of its most valued and most used items. I was impressed by the depth of the collections and by the quality of recordkeeping at the site.
Note: Due to state law, I was unable to photograph the interior of the vaults. However, Jackie kindly pulled select items from the collections for me to photograph and share with you.
About the Archivist
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For nearly five years, Jackie has been working at the Westchester County Archives, answering all the incoming research questions. She also scans fragile records for preservation -- currently the early incorporation records of religious societies and large, historic maps from the Department of Public Works. Most of those maps are concerned with land acquisitions of parklands, and contain valuable information for surveyors. Her favorite collections are the maps and atlases. “Most are beautifully drawn and tell a particular story about a part of the county at a particular point in time, and they provide context and scope to other types of records. When someone comes in to research a family, I usually take them to the 1858 map of the county on the wall in the Reading Room and ask them to show me where the family lived. The location sometimes helps me determine which series of records will be of use to them,” says Jackie.
She also likes the early Parks Department Annual Reports from the 1920s. She says, “They tell a large part of the story of how 20th century Westchester developed, why the county looks the way it does now, why certain populations migrated to certain areas, and why areas developed the way they did.”
When I asked her why she became an archivist, she replied, “I have a passion for the written word (one of the pillars of our culture) and its history, how it shapes and is shaped by the culture. I want to be part of the tradition of the sharing of the written word and its preservation, and I like playing with old books.” It should come as no surprise that Jackie was an English literature/history major in college. She received her MLS from Queens College, with a certificate in Archives and Records Management. She recommends the Queens program highly, and suggests that folks interested in the field should volunteer and learn from established archivists. Previously, she served as a librarian in local libraries in Dobbs Ferry, Peekskill, and Montrose, New York. The part of her job she enjoys the most is learning “something new every day.”
About the Archives
Since 1985, the Westchester County Archives has collected non-active records from county departments, if they are determined to have historical value. Personal papers are not collected, unless they originate with a prominent county employee and pertain to their work for the county. The vaults mainly contain the county’s official archives, however, some space is dedicated to the collections of the Westchester County Historical Society.
While I can’t show you photos from within the vaults on site, I can tell you that the collections are vast. More than 6,000 cubic feet of records, 60,000 photographs, and approximately 75,000 maps are preserved onsite. In my work at Plainfield Public Library, I’ve seen what 14,000 sets of architectural drawings (stored in boxes) look like, but seeing row upon row of archivally tubed and labeled maps along the length of two stories of the Westchester County Archive was impressive, to say the least.
Ten full-time staffers and three archivists care for the records housed on site, and they are supported by 30 volunteers per week. The Archives are used by genealogists, journalists, county employees, local historians, teachers, students, surveyors, and individuals researching their land. Typically, 9-10 visitors come per week. “We [also] have one student with a summer project who is researching relations between the African-American and Irish populations in Westchester in the 19th century,” says Jackie.
Notably, the archives are funded through the county’s IT department budget. The county archives are preserving information, so why shouldn’t they be funded under the Information Technology line? Further, the amount of digitization that takes place at the county is quite large, therefore having IT support at that level is more seamless than you might see elsewhere. But when it comes to complex conservation and preservation efforts, the Westchester County Archives sends their materials up to the Northeast Document Conservation Center in Andover, Mass.
About the Collections
The most popular collections in the Westchester County Archives are the naturalizations, marriages, and surrogates (wills and estate files). Jackie says, “People get very excited over the naturalization records, because they link generations, and the records after 1906 provide a good amount of information on the person.” Below is an example of bound naturalization papers from 1865-1885.
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There are many, many more records and record types at the Westchester County Archives than the sample I’ve shared with you here. I encourage you to visit the web site (http://archives.westchestergov.com/), explore the collections, and visit Jackie and her colleagues. The Archives is open to the public on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Contact Information
Jackie Graziano
Westchester County Archives
2199 Saw Mill River Road
Elmsford, NY 10523
Tel: (914) 231-1500
Fax: (914) 231-1510
http://archives.westchestergov.com/contact-us
Summer Hiatus and Upcoming Posts
I didn't expect to take a month off from posting here, but sometimes life events take precedence over creative endeavors. However, while on a recent trip to the West, I had the opportunity to tour the wonderful Book Arts Program at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. Earlier in the season, a good friend from the MLIS program at Rutgers, Jen Fitzgerald and I visited Longwood Gardens for the Bruce Munro Light exhibit. I'll be posting about both those trips in the coming weeks.
Until then, I'll be editing my photo backlog, working on another home renovation project (updating all the bathrooms at once), and preparing for some big events at my Chester Library job. One event centers around The Map. It will be returning from a summer at the Center for Conservation of Art and Historic Artifacts in Philadelphia, and it will receive its share of fanfare when it arrives.
Speaking of Chester, I made the local papers. There were a couple of articles on the World War II newsletters I processed and later digitized with the help of the Morris County Library pros. One of the articles is here. If you scroll down a little, there's an image of the newspaper. The story begins on page 2.
Stay tuned for more tours and travelogues.
Until then, I'll be editing my photo backlog, working on another home renovation project (updating all the bathrooms at once), and preparing for some big events at my Chester Library job. One event centers around The Map. It will be returning from a summer at the Center for Conservation of Art and Historic Artifacts in Philadelphia, and it will receive its share of fanfare when it arrives.
Speaking of Chester, I made the local papers. There were a couple of articles on the World War II newsletters I processed and later digitized with the help of the Morris County Library pros. One of the articles is here. If you scroll down a little, there's an image of the newspaper. The story begins on page 2.
Stay tuned for more tours and travelogues.
Interview with the Artist, Karen Guancione -- "In Stitches"
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| From Karen Guancione Art |
Bolsas de Mandado © Karen Guancione, Mixed media installation, machine sewn plastic bags, grommets, size: 900 square feet, photo © Bruce Riccitelli. All rights reserved.
Introduction
It's difficult to be objective when I'm such a big fan of Karen Guancione and her art works. However, I made an effort during our second interview when we visited her "In Stitches" exhibition at the Long Beach Island Foundation for the Arts and Sciences, that ran from May 10 through June 18, 2012.
The large-scale installation is a different format than that of "A Portable Constant Obsession." The interview is different as well. Karen not only speaks about her work, but also of her relationship with her mother, a woman who has had a profound influence on her life and art.
Prior to the interview, I photographed the exhibit from a variety of different angles and heights. It's difficult to convey the size of her Bolsas de Mandado (the hanging panels of sewn plastic bags), but this opening video shows the exhibit from the vestibule of the building. As Karen walks diagonally through the installation, she helps to show the scale of the work.
The Nature of the Bolsas de Mandado
In the next video, Karen talks with me about how she fashions the panels and works within a space to mount an installation. Following the video is a close-up of a panel's grommets.
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| From Karen Guancione Art |
Bolsas de Mandado © Karen Guancione, Mixed media installation, machine sewn plastic bags, grommets, size: 900 square feet, photo © Debra Schiff.
The name Bolsas de Mandado originates from the Mexican shopping bags used to carry groceries, small items, laundry, and so forth. Below, Karen tells me about the bags and what it was like to sew them into the panels. The video is followed by a photograph of the panel she uses to explain the name.
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| From Karen Guancione Art |
Bolsas de Mandado © Karen Guancione, Mixed media installation, machine sewn plastic bags, grommets, size: 900 square feet, photo © Debra Schiff.
Karen's Favorite Panels and Bags
In the next series of videos, Karen and I talk about the panels that have special meaning for her. I'm especially interested in her stories of the people who have donated bags from all over the world, even under extreme circumstances. Because the videos fit together so nicely, I won't interrupt them with text.
A Mother's Role in Creating Art
In this final video, Karen talks about her very first Bolsas de Mandado panel. She also talks about her mother's bag folding, and enduring influence on her art and life. If you're like me, you'll need a tissue when you watch this piece.
Conclusion
As ever, I am privileged to be able to help document Karen's work. She makes it very easy by articulating her techniques and purposes in a lively and educational way. I look forward to the next opportunity to experience her art and ask the questions I don't normally get to ask an artist when spending time with her/his work. But that will have to wait until she returns from her rejuvenating trip to Nice.
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| From Karen Guancione Art |
Travelogue: Longwood Gardens and Bruce Munro's Light Exhibit
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| From Longwood Gardens |
Introduction
Earlier in the summer, my friend Jen and I drove down to Kennett Square, PA to visit the lovely (and quite large) Longwood Gardens. Aside from visiting the legendary gardens, we specifically went to see the Bruce Munro exhibit, Light. The works (on display until September 29) use light and color to express the artist's exhilaration felt while visiting the gardens.
The history of the gardens can be traced to the end of the 18th century, when Joshua and Samuel Peirce established an arboretum on their nearly 100 year-old family farm. By 1906, economic concerns put the arboretum in danger of being sold for lumber. Enter our hero, Pierre S. du Pont, a wealthy industrialist and renaissance man who purchased the land just to save the trees.
As you might have surmised, Pierre was a descendant of Eleuthère Irénée du Pont, founder of E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (gunpowders). Pierre used his wealth, knowledge, and energy to create the marvelous fountains, conservatories, and gardens found at Longwood today. It's an impressive place, but even more impressive is the fact that Pierre spent more than 30 years designing the garden's elements and overseeing the work, all while reorganizing, and later serving as President of DuPont. He also served as Director of General Motors from 1920-1928.
Jen and I toured nearly all of Longwood Gardens, staying from mid-morning until nightfall to see the changes in the Light installations as well as the water shows. Below are just a sample of the many photos I snapped of our visit. I hope you'll enjoy them and visit Longwood Gardens before the end of September to enjoy Bruce Munro's Light.
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
89.9 mi (140,000 m) bare optic fiber, 80 halogen light sources with hand painted colour wheels. Longwood Gardens. Artwork © Bruce Munro. Photograph © Debra Schiff. All rights reserved.
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| From Longwood Gardens |
89.9 mi (140,000 m) bare optic fiber, 80 halogen light sources with hand painted colour wheels. Longwood Gardens. Artwork © Bruce Munro. Photograph © Debra Schiff. All rights reserved.
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
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| From Longwood Gardens |
If I coached the team next season
By Chris Dokish
Just for fun, this would be my ideal lineup next season.
Starting PG- Travon Woodall. I was never one who thought he would be excellent at Pitt, and I still don't, but he is the closest thing to a real point guard they have right now. He needs to shoot less and distribute more, and he needs to get more steals because he is capable of getting two steals a game if he has his mind set on it. But most of all, he needs to be more in control. It's time for him to mature as a player.
Starting SG- Ashton Gibbs. Obviously this is a no brainer. Hopefully he realizes that he won't make it in the NBA and that he's going to live 40 more years after he retires from playing overseas, so he should get in as much education as he can.
Starting SF- J.J. Moore. I have heard straight from the staff's mouths that while Moore is the most talented SF in the program, he was not ready to see the floor much as a freshman. With a year under his belt, hopefully he learns the nuances of being a Panther, especially on the defensive front. If he's not ready, then replace him as a starter with Lamar Patterson.
Starting PF- Khem Birch. This is another no brainer. His length, quickness, shot blocking, and rebounding are lottery pick caliber. True, he has no moves on offense, but neither does Nasir Robinson and he can score. Birch will score the same way, by hustling, put backs, and sheer athleticism. He is by far the most talented player on the team and if he sits behind Robinson then Jamie Dixon will get the criticism he deserves.
Starting C- Dante Taylor. The time has come for Taylor to show that he is a good player. Even though Pitt fans wildly overhyped him (despite many warnings), Taylor can be a good player, and should be a big upgrade over Gary McGhee on the offensive end. He is also a better rebounder than McGhee, and he needs to be aggressive in that department. He needs to play at least adequately on defense, however, or the offensive upgrade will be negated.
Top four off the bench:
Nasir Robinson- No way, no how should he be starting, but that doesn't mean he isn't a huge plus for the team. At the three and the four, Robinson can be a huge spark plug with his hustle and enthusiasm. He will get many minutes and on one of his good days, he can stay in the game and help a lot.
Lamar Patterson- The jack-of-all-trades type that Dixon loves. He can do a little bit of everything, and has great potential as an outside shooter. Must improve on defense, though, and keep his weight down. Will definitely see time at the three, and could even start, but it would be ideal if he could be an effective sub at both the three and the two, especially since there is a huge experience void at the latter.
Talib Zanna- He obviously has the potential at the four to be a good player, but it hasn't come together for him yet. Rebounding is his forte and if he is focused on that aspect of his game, he will get minutes.
J.J. Richardson- I know this will surprise many Panthers fans because most have him transferring, but as far as I know he will be back next season. In fact, if you talk to Pitt coaches, they never fail to mention him when talking about the front line next season. Ideally, Birch and Zanna are effective enough at the four to stay primarily there. Birch can see some minutes at the five, but Richardson can also suck up some minutes down low. He's not great, and at 6'8" he's not tall, but for a few minutes a game he can use his big body to be effective enough.
Others:
Cameron Wright- The most likely on this list to see time, but only because of the need for a SG reserve. If Robinson stays at that four, then Patterson will have to stay at the three. When Woodall sits down, Gibbs will probably have to take over the point, and when Gibbs sits down, somebody else has to take his place. Wright is not ready to make a big impact but he's long and athletic so at least he can provide something.
Isaiah Epps- Ideally he would be the back up PG for the Panthers this season but that may be asking a lot for player who was a huge disappointment for most of last season. If he sticks around, then he should get minutes early in the season to see how well he can do.
Durand Johnson- He was brought in for mainly one reason- he can flat out shoot the three. If he proves in practice that he can translate that skill immediately to this level, then he could see time this year. Otherwise, he is a redshirt candidate.
Malcolm Gilbert- Has little offensive game but is a legit 6'11" kid who can rebound. His best attribute, however, is his shot blocking which is at an NBA all-star level. Ideally, he can redshirt, but his shot blocking is so good that he may have to play. Don't count him out. He could be a factor this season.
John Johnson- Maybe the heir apparent to Woodall at the point but grades are a major issue. Even if he does somehow become eligible, he needs to be coached up a lot. No matter how you look at it, he is a major candidate to prep.
Just for fun, this would be my ideal lineup next season.
Starting PG- Travon Woodall. I was never one who thought he would be excellent at Pitt, and I still don't, but he is the closest thing to a real point guard they have right now. He needs to shoot less and distribute more, and he needs to get more steals because he is capable of getting two steals a game if he has his mind set on it. But most of all, he needs to be more in control. It's time for him to mature as a player.
Starting SG- Ashton Gibbs. Obviously this is a no brainer. Hopefully he realizes that he won't make it in the NBA and that he's going to live 40 more years after he retires from playing overseas, so he should get in as much education as he can.
Starting SF- J.J. Moore. I have heard straight from the staff's mouths that while Moore is the most talented SF in the program, he was not ready to see the floor much as a freshman. With a year under his belt, hopefully he learns the nuances of being a Panther, especially on the defensive front. If he's not ready, then replace him as a starter with Lamar Patterson.
Starting PF- Khem Birch. This is another no brainer. His length, quickness, shot blocking, and rebounding are lottery pick caliber. True, he has no moves on offense, but neither does Nasir Robinson and he can score. Birch will score the same way, by hustling, put backs, and sheer athleticism. He is by far the most talented player on the team and if he sits behind Robinson then Jamie Dixon will get the criticism he deserves.
Starting C- Dante Taylor. The time has come for Taylor to show that he is a good player. Even though Pitt fans wildly overhyped him (despite many warnings), Taylor can be a good player, and should be a big upgrade over Gary McGhee on the offensive end. He is also a better rebounder than McGhee, and he needs to be aggressive in that department. He needs to play at least adequately on defense, however, or the offensive upgrade will be negated.
Top four off the bench:
Nasir Robinson- No way, no how should he be starting, but that doesn't mean he isn't a huge plus for the team. At the three and the four, Robinson can be a huge spark plug with his hustle and enthusiasm. He will get many minutes and on one of his good days, he can stay in the game and help a lot.
Lamar Patterson- The jack-of-all-trades type that Dixon loves. He can do a little bit of everything, and has great potential as an outside shooter. Must improve on defense, though, and keep his weight down. Will definitely see time at the three, and could even start, but it would be ideal if he could be an effective sub at both the three and the two, especially since there is a huge experience void at the latter.
Talib Zanna- He obviously has the potential at the four to be a good player, but it hasn't come together for him yet. Rebounding is his forte and if he is focused on that aspect of his game, he will get minutes.
J.J. Richardson- I know this will surprise many Panthers fans because most have him transferring, but as far as I know he will be back next season. In fact, if you talk to Pitt coaches, they never fail to mention him when talking about the front line next season. Ideally, Birch and Zanna are effective enough at the four to stay primarily there. Birch can see some minutes at the five, but Richardson can also suck up some minutes down low. He's not great, and at 6'8" he's not tall, but for a few minutes a game he can use his big body to be effective enough.
Others:
Cameron Wright- The most likely on this list to see time, but only because of the need for a SG reserve. If Robinson stays at that four, then Patterson will have to stay at the three. When Woodall sits down, Gibbs will probably have to take over the point, and when Gibbs sits down, somebody else has to take his place. Wright is not ready to make a big impact but he's long and athletic so at least he can provide something.
Isaiah Epps- Ideally he would be the back up PG for the Panthers this season but that may be asking a lot for player who was a huge disappointment for most of last season. If he sticks around, then he should get minutes early in the season to see how well he can do.
Durand Johnson- He was brought in for mainly one reason- he can flat out shoot the three. If he proves in practice that he can translate that skill immediately to this level, then he could see time this year. Otherwise, he is a redshirt candidate.
Malcolm Gilbert- Has little offensive game but is a legit 6'11" kid who can rebound. His best attribute, however, is his shot blocking which is at an NBA all-star level. Ideally, he can redshirt, but his shot blocking is so good that he may have to play. Don't count him out. He could be a factor this season.
John Johnson- Maybe the heir apparent to Woodall at the point but grades are a major issue. Even if he does somehow become eligible, he needs to be coached up a lot. No matter how you look at it, he is a major candidate to prep.
Possible assistant coaching candidates
By Chris Dokish
I've been fortunate enough that when Dave Wannstedt, Todd Graham, Tom Herrion, and Pat Skerry were hired, I had all on my list of potential candidates. The only major Pitt hiring I did not have was Michael Haywood, who I investigated and did not list because I didn't think Pitt would make such a bad hire. Enough said on that one. This time it's a little more difficult because there is no one obvious hire.
The top contenders:
Dave Leitao- Will be 51 next month. Native of Massachusetts. Played for Jim Calhoun at Northeastern, then became an assistant for his former coach at both Northeastern and UConn. Later became the head coach at DePaul and then Virginia. Considered one of the best recruiters in college basketball over the last twenty years and recruited extremely well everywhere he's been, including DePaul where he had one of the top five recruiting classes in the country one season. The downside? Not everybody loves his personality. "Arrogant beyond belief," according to one college basketball insider who prefers to remain anonymous. "Gotta be somebody better. Dixon would regret that one". That may be why he just lost out on the starting job at Fairfield last week, a job that he is more than qualified for. But the fact remains, he was Dixon's first choice before Pat Skerry was hired so you would think he would ask again. Ed Cooley, new head coach at Providence, wants to land Leitao for his first chair, but you would think Pitt would be a better option for him.
Barry Rohrssen- Will be 51 in June. Native of New York City. Recently fired as the head coach of Manhattan after five seasons. "Slice", as everybody in college basketball knows him, was at Pitt from 1999 to 2006, starting as Director of Basketball Operations and ending as the Associate Head Coach. Most prized recruit at Pitt was top 50 prospect Chris Taft, but also landed the likes of Carl Krauser, Ronald Ramon, Keith Benjamin, and Levance Fields. He recruited well at Manhattan, too, but he proved to be overmatched as a head coach. Still, though, many in NYC were upset at his firing because his players graduated and he brought professionalism back to the program that his predecessor, Bobby Gonzalez, sucked away. The downside of hiring him back, however, is that he only recruits the NYC area and the city has been down in talent for a few years. Plus, Brandin Knight is already strong in northern New Jersey and could handle the city, too. At the end of the day, it just may come down to whether or not Dixon wants to go back to a guy he knows or if he wants to get new blood.
Leitao could turn down an offer if made, just like he did last year. Rohrssen probably would not turn down an offer. If the job does not go to either of the above two, then it's because Dixon wanted to go a completely different route. In that case, these are some possibilities:
Jeff Battle- 50 years old. Native of Philadelphia. Currently the top assistant at Wake Forest where he has been for the past ten seasons. Was an assistant at Xavier with Skip Prosser then followed him to Wake Forest. One of the top recruiters and assistant coaches in the country. Was passed over for Dino Gaudio when Prosser suddenly passed away, then was passed over again for current coach Jeff Bzdelik after Gaudio was fired. Bzdelik is currently on the hot seat and Battle may think if he stays around then he will eventually be named the head coach for the Demon Deacons. Was my personal favorite the last time (Skerry was second), but like last time, there may be extenuating circumstances that keeps him from leaving Wake Forest. His wife died of cancer three years ago and Battle didn't want to move his son away to a different place. That son is 17-years old this year. His top notch reputation as one of the best assistants in the country, as well as his ties to Philadelphia, would make him a huge hire.
Dino Gaudio- 54 years old. Native of Ohio. Like Battle, he followed Prosser from Xavier. Has a lot of head coaching experience, with Army, Loyola (MD), and three years at Wake Forest. A great recruiter who brought in the likes of Jeff Teague and Al-Farouq Aminu. He's currently an ESPN analyst and he's in no hurry to get a job. He'll probably wait to see if he can get a head coaching job somewhere but he's definitely worth a phone call. His recruiting skills and vast coaching experience would benefit Dixon greatly.
Sean Kearney- 52 years old. Native of suburban Philadelphia. Longtime right hand man for Mike Brey both at Delaware and Notre Dame, and has been responsible for recruiting and/or developing the likes of Troy Murphy, Ryan Humphrey, Torin Francis, Chris Thomas, and Luke Harangody. Replaced Ralph Willard as head coach of Holy Cross (over Tom Herrion, then at Pitt), but was fired after just one season. While the Crusaders finished 9-22 after being named the Patriot League favorite, many college basketball observers were appalled at the quick firing. Kearney was out of basketball last year, but his great reputation in college basketball, his Philadelphia roots, and the fact that he is a friend of Dixon makes him a viable candidate.
Scott Spinelli- 44 years old. Native of Massachusetts. Current top assistant at Texas A&M under Mark Turgeon. Also was the top assistant at Wichita State, also with Turgeon, and at Nebraska when Steve Pederson was the AD. But that doesn't mean he doesn't have ties to the east. Not only is he from New England, but he also started the program at The Winchendon School in MA, which just happens to be one of the best prep schools in the country for basketball talent. He also was a scout for one year for the Philadelphia 76ers and covered the Big East and northeast high school basketball. He is a well known and highly respected recruiter and assistant who is very close to landing a head coaching job.
Kenya Hunter- 37 years old. Native of Virginia. Former Duquesne guard is currently an assistant at Georgetown where he is quickly developing the reputation as one of the best young recruiters and assistants in the country. Between his first stop at his alma mater and the Hoyas, he was also the Director of Basketball Operations under Herb Sendek at NC State, and an assistant at Xavier, under Sean Miller. His ties to the Washington, DC area would be a great addition.
Matt Langel- 32 years old. Native of southern New Jersey. If Dixon decides that he wants to go for a rising young star instead of a longtime veteran, he may look to this former Penn star. Langel started at his alma mater under Fran Dunphy then followed him to Temple. He showed he was a great recruiter when he went all out to land Owls' star Juan Fernandez all the way in Argentina. With his connections in Philadelphia and by learning the trade from one of the best in the business, his future is extremely bright. He was recently one of the finalists for the Cornell job and being an assistant at a Big East power would be a no brainer for him for his resume. Now he just has to be asked.
I've been fortunate enough that when Dave Wannstedt, Todd Graham, Tom Herrion, and Pat Skerry were hired, I had all on my list of potential candidates. The only major Pitt hiring I did not have was Michael Haywood, who I investigated and did not list because I didn't think Pitt would make such a bad hire. Enough said on that one. This time it's a little more difficult because there is no one obvious hire.
The top contenders:
Dave Leitao- Will be 51 next month. Native of Massachusetts. Played for Jim Calhoun at Northeastern, then became an assistant for his former coach at both Northeastern and UConn. Later became the head coach at DePaul and then Virginia. Considered one of the best recruiters in college basketball over the last twenty years and recruited extremely well everywhere he's been, including DePaul where he had one of the top five recruiting classes in the country one season. The downside? Not everybody loves his personality. "Arrogant beyond belief," according to one college basketball insider who prefers to remain anonymous. "Gotta be somebody better. Dixon would regret that one". That may be why he just lost out on the starting job at Fairfield last week, a job that he is more than qualified for. But the fact remains, he was Dixon's first choice before Pat Skerry was hired so you would think he would ask again. Ed Cooley, new head coach at Providence, wants to land Leitao for his first chair, but you would think Pitt would be a better option for him.
Barry Rohrssen- Will be 51 in June. Native of New York City. Recently fired as the head coach of Manhattan after five seasons. "Slice", as everybody in college basketball knows him, was at Pitt from 1999 to 2006, starting as Director of Basketball Operations and ending as the Associate Head Coach. Most prized recruit at Pitt was top 50 prospect Chris Taft, but also landed the likes of Carl Krauser, Ronald Ramon, Keith Benjamin, and Levance Fields. He recruited well at Manhattan, too, but he proved to be overmatched as a head coach. Still, though, many in NYC were upset at his firing because his players graduated and he brought professionalism back to the program that his predecessor, Bobby Gonzalez, sucked away. The downside of hiring him back, however, is that he only recruits the NYC area and the city has been down in talent for a few years. Plus, Brandin Knight is already strong in northern New Jersey and could handle the city, too. At the end of the day, it just may come down to whether or not Dixon wants to go back to a guy he knows or if he wants to get new blood.
Leitao could turn down an offer if made, just like he did last year. Rohrssen probably would not turn down an offer. If the job does not go to either of the above two, then it's because Dixon wanted to go a completely different route. In that case, these are some possibilities:
Jeff Battle- 50 years old. Native of Philadelphia. Currently the top assistant at Wake Forest where he has been for the past ten seasons. Was an assistant at Xavier with Skip Prosser then followed him to Wake Forest. One of the top recruiters and assistant coaches in the country. Was passed over for Dino Gaudio when Prosser suddenly passed away, then was passed over again for current coach Jeff Bzdelik after Gaudio was fired. Bzdelik is currently on the hot seat and Battle may think if he stays around then he will eventually be named the head coach for the Demon Deacons. Was my personal favorite the last time (Skerry was second), but like last time, there may be extenuating circumstances that keeps him from leaving Wake Forest. His wife died of cancer three years ago and Battle didn't want to move his son away to a different place. That son is 17-years old this year. His top notch reputation as one of the best assistants in the country, as well as his ties to Philadelphia, would make him a huge hire.
Dino Gaudio- 54 years old. Native of Ohio. Like Battle, he followed Prosser from Xavier. Has a lot of head coaching experience, with Army, Loyola (MD), and three years at Wake Forest. A great recruiter who brought in the likes of Jeff Teague and Al-Farouq Aminu. He's currently an ESPN analyst and he's in no hurry to get a job. He'll probably wait to see if he can get a head coaching job somewhere but he's definitely worth a phone call. His recruiting skills and vast coaching experience would benefit Dixon greatly.
Sean Kearney- 52 years old. Native of suburban Philadelphia. Longtime right hand man for Mike Brey both at Delaware and Notre Dame, and has been responsible for recruiting and/or developing the likes of Troy Murphy, Ryan Humphrey, Torin Francis, Chris Thomas, and Luke Harangody. Replaced Ralph Willard as head coach of Holy Cross (over Tom Herrion, then at Pitt), but was fired after just one season. While the Crusaders finished 9-22 after being named the Patriot League favorite, many college basketball observers were appalled at the quick firing. Kearney was out of basketball last year, but his great reputation in college basketball, his Philadelphia roots, and the fact that he is a friend of Dixon makes him a viable candidate.
Scott Spinelli- 44 years old. Native of Massachusetts. Current top assistant at Texas A&M under Mark Turgeon. Also was the top assistant at Wichita State, also with Turgeon, and at Nebraska when Steve Pederson was the AD. But that doesn't mean he doesn't have ties to the east. Not only is he from New England, but he also started the program at The Winchendon School in MA, which just happens to be one of the best prep schools in the country for basketball talent. He also was a scout for one year for the Philadelphia 76ers and covered the Big East and northeast high school basketball. He is a well known and highly respected recruiter and assistant who is very close to landing a head coaching job.
Kenya Hunter- 37 years old. Native of Virginia. Former Duquesne guard is currently an assistant at Georgetown where he is quickly developing the reputation as one of the best young recruiters and assistants in the country. Between his first stop at his alma mater and the Hoyas, he was also the Director of Basketball Operations under Herb Sendek at NC State, and an assistant at Xavier, under Sean Miller. His ties to the Washington, DC area would be a great addition.
Matt Langel- 32 years old. Native of southern New Jersey. If Dixon decides that he wants to go for a rising young star instead of a longtime veteran, he may look to this former Penn star. Langel started at his alma mater under Fran Dunphy then followed him to Temple. He showed he was a great recruiter when he went all out to land Owls' star Juan Fernandez all the way in Argentina. With his connections in Philadelphia and by learning the trade from one of the best in the business, his future is extremely bright. He was recently one of the finalists for the Cornell job and being an assistant at a Big East power would be a no brainer for him for his resume. Now he just has to be asked.
Roster continues to be in flux
By Chris Dokish
Pitt's low post, already a question mark for next season, lost their depth when 6'7" PF/C J.J. Richardson announced he was transferring from the program. I reported recently that the Panthers coaches were looking forward to Richardson providing some minutes in reserve next season, but apparently Richardson has had enough of being a Panther. And make no mistake about it, this was Richardson's decision, not Pitt's decision.
The absence of Richardson now leaves four genuine low post players on the team in Dante Taylor, Talib Zanna, Khem Birch, and Malcolm Gilbert. All four, however, have question marks as of now.
Taylor, a former Parade All-American, will start at center, but he has been considered a bit of a disappointment thus far in his career, averaging 4.6 ppg over his freshman and sophomore seasons. His development next season is arguably the single most important one in the program.
Zanna has very good length and athleticism, but when given the opportunity to wrestle the starting power forward job off of an injured Nasir Robinson early in the season, Zanna disappointed many at Pitt by not taking the job by the reins. This forced the Panthers to continue to play the overmatched Robinson. Zanna did have some very good games early on and the Pitt staff is hoping that he can regain that level, then be more consistent.
Birch and Gilbert are both true freshman with excellent potential, but both also have some potential barriers. Birch is not yet eligible and until he gets his situation settled, the Pitt staff will have many sleepless nights. If he is eligible, he will be a major factor in the season. Without him, Gilbert will be forced to play a lot of minutes. As it is, with the departure of Richardson, the staff will likely have to burn any potential redshirt for the seven footer. That may not necessarily be a bad thing, however. Seven foot shot blockers, not matter how raw offensively, find themselves in the NBA sooner rather than later, and it may be better to get him on the court when they still can.
Even worse, the roster problems are not limited to the big men. On the perimeter, Ashton Gibbs is testing the NBA waters, and while he hasn't hired an agent yet, it's far from a foregone conclusion that Gibbs will return to the school. His chances of being in the NBA, and probably even being drafted, are virtually nil, but there is always the opportunity to play overseas.
If Gibbs leaves, the starting shooting guard will probably be Cameron Wright, a redshirt freshman. Needless to say, the drop off would be huge. To make matters worse, there's a good chance that incoming combo guard John Johnson will not see the floor next season. Johnson's eligibility is a major concern, and a prep school year is very possible, but even if he does somehow make it to Pitt, he is considered too raw to see much, if any, time as a true freshman.
For those counting at home, the Panthers went from two over their scholarship limit, and still recruiting players for 2011, to being back to even, and perhaps still dropping even more. As much as anybody, I know how great Jamie Dixon can coach in the regular season. More than once he has had teams overachieve. But next season could turn into a roster that even he may have problems succeeding with. If the likes of Gibbs and Birch are not with the team, it's hard to imagine that even Dixon can win a lot of games with a potential starting five of Travon Woodall, Cameron Wright, Nasir Robinson, Lamar Patterson, and Dante Taylor, but it's not out of the question that that's exactly the hand he is dealt.
On the other hand, if Gibbs returns, and Birch becomes eligible, the Panthers should have yet another top 15 season with 25+ wins. And the future may be even brighter than that, especially in the spot we started- on the blocks. In 2012, the low post could feature three top 50 prospects in Taylor, Birch, and the incoming Steven Adams, as well as Zanna and Gilbert. The five, potentially, could be the deepest and most talented big man corps that the Panthers ever had. If the Panthers could develop a good point guard, and could land either Omar Calhoun or Amile Jefferson, 2012 could be the year that the Panthers are, for the first time since Paul Evans coached, truly loaded.
Pitt's low post, already a question mark for next season, lost their depth when 6'7" PF/C J.J. Richardson announced he was transferring from the program. I reported recently that the Panthers coaches were looking forward to Richardson providing some minutes in reserve next season, but apparently Richardson has had enough of being a Panther. And make no mistake about it, this was Richardson's decision, not Pitt's decision.
The absence of Richardson now leaves four genuine low post players on the team in Dante Taylor, Talib Zanna, Khem Birch, and Malcolm Gilbert. All four, however, have question marks as of now.
Taylor, a former Parade All-American, will start at center, but he has been considered a bit of a disappointment thus far in his career, averaging 4.6 ppg over his freshman and sophomore seasons. His development next season is arguably the single most important one in the program.
Zanna has very good length and athleticism, but when given the opportunity to wrestle the starting power forward job off of an injured Nasir Robinson early in the season, Zanna disappointed many at Pitt by not taking the job by the reins. This forced the Panthers to continue to play the overmatched Robinson. Zanna did have some very good games early on and the Pitt staff is hoping that he can regain that level, then be more consistent.
Birch and Gilbert are both true freshman with excellent potential, but both also have some potential barriers. Birch is not yet eligible and until he gets his situation settled, the Pitt staff will have many sleepless nights. If he is eligible, he will be a major factor in the season. Without him, Gilbert will be forced to play a lot of minutes. As it is, with the departure of Richardson, the staff will likely have to burn any potential redshirt for the seven footer. That may not necessarily be a bad thing, however. Seven foot shot blockers, not matter how raw offensively, find themselves in the NBA sooner rather than later, and it may be better to get him on the court when they still can.
Even worse, the roster problems are not limited to the big men. On the perimeter, Ashton Gibbs is testing the NBA waters, and while he hasn't hired an agent yet, it's far from a foregone conclusion that Gibbs will return to the school. His chances of being in the NBA, and probably even being drafted, are virtually nil, but there is always the opportunity to play overseas.
If Gibbs leaves, the starting shooting guard will probably be Cameron Wright, a redshirt freshman. Needless to say, the drop off would be huge. To make matters worse, there's a good chance that incoming combo guard John Johnson will not see the floor next season. Johnson's eligibility is a major concern, and a prep school year is very possible, but even if he does somehow make it to Pitt, he is considered too raw to see much, if any, time as a true freshman.
For those counting at home, the Panthers went from two over their scholarship limit, and still recruiting players for 2011, to being back to even, and perhaps still dropping even more. As much as anybody, I know how great Jamie Dixon can coach in the regular season. More than once he has had teams overachieve. But next season could turn into a roster that even he may have problems succeeding with. If the likes of Gibbs and Birch are not with the team, it's hard to imagine that even Dixon can win a lot of games with a potential starting five of Travon Woodall, Cameron Wright, Nasir Robinson, Lamar Patterson, and Dante Taylor, but it's not out of the question that that's exactly the hand he is dealt.
On the other hand, if Gibbs returns, and Birch becomes eligible, the Panthers should have yet another top 15 season with 25+ wins. And the future may be even brighter than that, especially in the spot we started- on the blocks. In 2012, the low post could feature three top 50 prospects in Taylor, Birch, and the incoming Steven Adams, as well as Zanna and Gilbert. The five, potentially, could be the deepest and most talented big man corps that the Panthers ever had. If the Panthers could develop a good point guard, and could land either Omar Calhoun or Amile Jefferson, 2012 could be the year that the Panthers are, for the first time since Paul Evans coached, truly loaded.
Panthers nab Marshall assistant
By Chris Dokish
Tom Herrion was an excellent assistant coach for Pitt before leaving to be the head coach of Marshall prior to this past season. Now Herrion keeps giving to the program as his right hand man at Marshall this season, Bill Barton, will be named shortly to Dixon's staff. According to a source close to the situation, "It's a done deal." It is expected to be announced officially on Monday.
Barton, who will be 51 in July, is a Boston native who coached for just one season at Marshall. Prior to that he spent three seasons under Ron Everhart at Duquesne. The Dukes were the first college position for Barton, who previously was the coach at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, MA, which just happens to be one of the most talent rich prep schools in the country. Players at Notre Dame that Barton coached include Michael Beasley, Carl Krauer, Ryan Gomes, Paul Harris, and Lazar Hayward. For the 2011 class, Notre Dame features top prospect Ricky Ledo, who the Panthers have recruited mildly over the past year, as well as Myles Davis, a sharpshooting guard that is the cousin of Brandin Knight, and who the Panthers have recruited for over a year.
Tom Herrion was an excellent assistant coach for Pitt before leaving to be the head coach of Marshall prior to this past season. Now Herrion keeps giving to the program as his right hand man at Marshall this season, Bill Barton, will be named shortly to Dixon's staff. According to a source close to the situation, "It's a done deal." It is expected to be announced officially on Monday.
Barton, who will be 51 in July, is a Boston native who coached for just one season at Marshall. Prior to that he spent three seasons under Ron Everhart at Duquesne. The Dukes were the first college position for Barton, who previously was the coach at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, MA, which just happens to be one of the most talent rich prep schools in the country. Players at Notre Dame that Barton coached include Michael Beasley, Carl Krauer, Ryan Gomes, Paul Harris, and Lazar Hayward. For the 2011 class, Notre Dame features top prospect Ricky Ledo, who the Panthers have recruited mildly over the past year, as well as Myles Davis, a sharpshooting guard that is the cousin of Brandin Knight, and who the Panthers have recruited for over a year.
Pitt to the ACC looks like a sure thing
By Chris Dokish
With the news that both Pitt and Syracuse have applied for membership to the ACC, it looks like Pitt and the Big East will be no more. There's no way that both schools would apply for membership without already getting the word that they will be accepted. Consider it a done deal.
In my opinion, the Pitt fans should be ecstatic with this news. While it's sad to see the Big East basketball conference change forever, Pitt will still be in the best basketball conference in the country. It will just be a different conference that was best the past few seasons. North Carolina and Duke in a conference game? Now that's exciting.
But the real benefit for this move is for the football program. True, the ACC is not a good in football as it should be, but it's still better than the Big East. Games at Heinz Field against Cincinnati, UConn, and Rutgers, or home games against Florida State, Miami, and Virginia Tech. Is there any doubt which is better?
More money means a better football program and this will be more money. I don't know how much, or how little, kudos should go to Pitt's administration. The truth is, they would have to be idiots not to find a better fit in this current state of conference realignment. On the other hand, Pitt made themselves a good fit to go to a better conference by having strong football and basketball programs, both on and off the field, as well as the great academics that the ACC requires.
LATE NOTE: From a source at Pitt (meaning NOT Tom Herrion so you people can stop emailing me that question), who is very close to Dixon, Dixon is NOT happy about this at all. This is not surprising as Jim Boeheim was very much against leaving the Big East a few years ago. For Dixon, it was something that he has mentioned in the past and that's that the NYC market was very important to the Pitt basketball brand, and now that will change. Don't take this as saying that Dixon is going to leave, just that he's not happy about it.
With the news that both Pitt and Syracuse have applied for membership to the ACC, it looks like Pitt and the Big East will be no more. There's no way that both schools would apply for membership without already getting the word that they will be accepted. Consider it a done deal.
In my opinion, the Pitt fans should be ecstatic with this news. While it's sad to see the Big East basketball conference change forever, Pitt will still be in the best basketball conference in the country. It will just be a different conference that was best the past few seasons. North Carolina and Duke in a conference game? Now that's exciting.
But the real benefit for this move is for the football program. True, the ACC is not a good in football as it should be, but it's still better than the Big East. Games at Heinz Field against Cincinnati, UConn, and Rutgers, or home games against Florida State, Miami, and Virginia Tech. Is there any doubt which is better?
More money means a better football program and this will be more money. I don't know how much, or how little, kudos should go to Pitt's administration. The truth is, they would have to be idiots not to find a better fit in this current state of conference realignment. On the other hand, Pitt made themselves a good fit to go to a better conference by having strong football and basketball programs, both on and off the field, as well as the great academics that the ACC requires.
LATE NOTE: From a source at Pitt (meaning NOT Tom Herrion so you people can stop emailing me that question), who is very close to Dixon, Dixon is NOT happy about this at all. This is not surprising as Jim Boeheim was very much against leaving the Big East a few years ago. For Dixon, it was something that he has mentioned in the past and that's that the NYC market was very important to the Pitt basketball brand, and now that will change. Don't take this as saying that Dixon is going to leave, just that he's not happy about it.
Monmouth Post Game -- King Rice's Debut
Opening Night
Monmouth cashiered 13 year head coach Dave Calloway last spring, the culmination of a frustrating five year run of sub 0.500 seasons. Calloway's successor, King Rice, racked up 19 years through four stops before picking up the reins at Monmouth. His first order of business was fulfilling a return date obligation to Villanova, the result of a (nearly...) Christmas Eve game at Monmouth last season. The Wildcats' downed the Hawks in 36 point, 106-70 rout highlighted by a career-high 27 points by junior wing Dominic Cheek, nearly matched by a career-high 24 points by junior center Mouphtaou Yarou. The 106 point outburst was the second most scored in opening night game, a distinction I am sure Rice will remember.
The University site posted their AP wire story. The official website also posted the boxscore, thank heaven. The breakdown by halves
| Opponent | Monmouth | |||||||
| 1st | 2nd | Game | ||||||
| Pace | 37.8 | 41.9 | 79.6 | |||||
| Offense | Defense | |||||||
| 1st | 2nd | Game | 1st | 2nd | Game | |||
| Rating | 145.7 | 121.8 | 133.1 | 90.1 | 85.9 | 87.9 | ||
| eFG% | 61.8 | 65.6 | 63.6 | 50.0 | 34.8 | 42.2 | ||
| TORate | 18.5 | 21.5 | 20.1 | 21.2 | 19.1 | 20.1 | ||
| OR% | 58.8 | 31.3 | 45.5 | 21.1 | 26.9 | 24.4 | ||
| FTA/FGA | 41.2 | 37.5 | 39.4 | 19.4 | 51.5 | 35.9 | ||
| FTM/FGA | 38.2 | 28.1 | 33.3 | 9.7 | 39.4 | 25.0 | ||
| ARate | 64.7 | 57.9 | 61.1 | 57.1 | 77.8 | 65.2 | ||
| Blk% | 14.7 | 9.4 | 12.1 | 6.5 | 6.1 | 6.3 | ||
| Stl% | 13.3 | 9.6 | 11.3 | 7.9 | 14.3 | 11.3 | ||
| PPWS | 1.35 | 1.35 | 1.35 | 1.00 | 0.88 | 0.93 | ||
| 2FG% | 52.9 | 62.5 | 58.5 | 73.3 | 22.2 | 45.5 | ||
| 3FG% | 47.1 | 50.0 | 48.0 | 18.8 | 33.3 | 25.8 | ||
| FT% | 92.9 | 75.0 | 84.6 | 50.0 | 76.5 | 69.6 | ||
| %2FG | 32.7 | 58.8 | 45.3 | 64.7 | 22.2 | 42.9 | ||
| %3FG | 43.6 | 23.5 | 34.0 | 26.5 | 41.7 | 34.3 | ||
| %FT | 23.6 | 17.6 | 20.8 | 8.8 | 36.1 | 22.9 | ||
This one is very simple -- just a sea of green (positive stats) on both sides of the ball. If there is room for improvement, look to the Hawks' first half shot efficiency (eFG%), a strong 50% based entirely on an 11-14 two point conversion rate, and largely offset by a brutal 3-15 three point conversion rate. A 51.5% free throw rate (FTA/FGA) in the second half may well be credited to a lead that fluctuated between 20 and 40 points through virtually the entire second half. Especially strong on the night, offensive shot efficiency and rebounding -- at both ends of the court.
Half Time Adjustments
If the Wildcats' scorching offense, responsible for nearly 1.5 points per possession, cooled off a bit in the second half, the 'Cats were able to turn up their defense, holding the Hawks to an even tighter 0.86 points per possession defense, down over 0.024 points per possession over their first half. Those looking for a clue on the relative importance of shot efficiency (eFG%) versus the other three factors -- offensive rebounding rate (OR%), turnover rate (TO%) and defensive fouling (FTA/FGA) can come to only one conclusion -- that the eFG% is the strongest determinant of the defensive efficiency rating. Though Monmouth registered improved numbers in turnovers, rebounding and getting to the line, their conversion efficiency declined due entirely to the dramatic decline in shot efficiency (eFG%).
Notes & Observations
1. A worrisome 40% possession rate by point guard Maalik Wayns was much lower versus the Hawks (25.2%), accompanied by an improved offensive efficiency rating for the junior point guard (109.7).
2. The staff emptied the bench, running all 12 rostered players through the game at one point or another. The juniors and James Bell logged at least 60% of the allocated time, with JayVaughn Pinkston getting a 21 minutes run (53.5% of the available minutes on the wing).
3. Markus Kennedy's promising outing lasted a too brief 16 minutes, due no small part to the four fouls he picked up...that's about one every four minutes.
Random Thoughts After First Friday
As I Was Scanning the Scoreboard, Twitter, Messageboards, etc
A progessional obligation kept me away from the TV set (ie ESPN) as Division I resumed with a vengance Friday night. Though the season "started" with a dribble of games -- mostly campus site games for early season invitational tournaments -- Friday brought a whopping 131 games. I have not checked to see if all those games involved two D I opponents, we can guess that nearly 246 of Division I's 348 teams (69.5%) saw action. After streaming the Villanova-Monmouth game (a 106-70 rout) I started a wider search for comments/scores. Sifting through the scoring summaries and catching a few tweets, I found a handful of games that caught my eye...
What a Difference a Year Makes (part 1)
Big 5 fans followed the progress of Saint Joseph's freshmen class from a very uneven start in 2010-11 to a brief florish close the season. Western Kentucky, a Sun Belt Conference power over the years, thumped the Hawks 98-70 to open last season at the Hagan. This season the Hawks opened in Western Kentucky and returned the favor as they beat the Hilltoppers by 11, 72-61 in Bowling Green, KY. Guards Carl Jones and Langston Galloway did their thing (16 and 19 points respectively with three assists and five steals), but not seeing sophomore forward Ron Roberts in the starting lineup was a bit surprising (Hofstra transfer Halil Kanacevic got the nod and logged eight minutes before fouling out). Roberts did get a 31 minute run, recording his first double-double of the season -- 10 points and 11 rebounds. The really good news was C. J. Aiken's 35 minutes. The 6-9 center blocked five shots, scored 12 points, and drew only three fouls. Coach Martelli's charges will see Georgia Tech Thursday night in the Charleston Classic. This will be a reunion of sorts, as the Yellow Jackets are now coached by former Dayton head coach Brian Gregory. It should be a great opportunity for the Hawks to draw some national attention.
Oops, Wrong First Impressions...
An extremely enthusiastic tweet from Chris DiSano of College ChalkTalk about Rhode Island's freshman forward Jon Holton (and a follow up about senior guard Jamal Wilson's awesome 38 point outburst) sent me on a search for the Rhodi-George Mason boxscore. The game went into overtime with the Runnin' Rams dropping a two point (90-92) decision on the road. My first check on possessions had the game (overtime included) at around 92 possessions. I was wrong (I'll blame the unofficial box score for that...yeah, that's the ticket, it was the unofficial box score...), the calculation from the official box score puts the possessions at 87...which means my first thought -- Rhode Island needs more offense -- was off base. The Runnin' Rams gave up 1.06 points per possession to the Patriots, and handed the CAA another win over the A-10 (a problem come Selection Sunday). Granted Coach Baron is going to have a reliable second and third option, Wilson is not going to shoot 13-22 (1-2, 12-20) to go with an 11-12 from the line every night, but he has options now in his front court with senior Orion Outerbridge and sophomore Nikola Malesevic if the two forwards can exercise better judgement on their three point attempts. Combined they hit 3-14 from beyond the arc (nine points on 14 attempts), while shooting a combined 4-8 inside (eight points on eight attempts). Wilson by the way, posted a 61.4% eFG with a 1.39 PPWS, both will be noted elsewhere when I file my first report. Holton will need to work on his shot (2-11 from the field, 7-10 from the line), but he will see minutes because he is a rebounding monster -- he snagged a stunning 34.7% of the available defensive rebounds when he was on the court. URI might be able to get a bit more offense when Auburn transfer Andre Malone and Virginia transfer Billy Baron become eligible late next month. For now Coach Baron may have to rely on freshman Mike Powell to handle the point guard duties. For Powell GMU was something of a baptism of fire as he shot an underwhelming 3-11 from the field while handing out six dimes (nearly negated by five turnovers).
Wow, What a Difference...(part 2)
Saint Louis fans suffered through a multitude of basketball-related problems in 2010-11. I wondered going into the season how the Billikens would react to the log jam in the back court and whether they would find an offense to go their their lock-down defense (the Billikens were ranked #47 by Ken Pomeroy last season). Majerus is not reputed to be an especially "user friendly" coach, so losing one or more of the freshmen back court players before the season started would not have been too surprising (sophomore Christian Salecich did transfer out during the summer). The Bills struggled against the Carleton Ravens on their Canadian Tour this summer, losing red shirt junior guard Kwamain Mitchell at the end of their fourth exhibition, not the best sign going into the fall semester. Friday night they demolished Tennessee State of the Ohio Valley Conference, 71-37 (yup, the defense is back) before 6,400+ fans at Chaifetz. My numbers (unadjusted) show a 61 possession game (typical of Majerus), which means the defense is in mid-season form -- they held Tennessee State to a measly 0.60 points per possession), but the offense is still a work in progress. Mitchell started and coupled a horrific 3-11 outing with 40% shot rate in his 27 minute (66.7% of the playing time) run. Mitchell will get better (or take a seat on the bench, Majerus is not the most patient coach) to be sure. Conklin, along with sophomores Mike McCall and Jordair Jett compensated with very efficient shooting nights (combined they went 10-15 from the field). Limiting a team to 37 points is impressive. Saint Louis is headed off to the 76 Classic later this month, with a matchup versus Villanova a distinct possibility.
Speaking of Defensive Showcases
Buzz Williams' Marquette squad shut down Mount St. Mary's Friday night too, handing the Mountaineers a 54 point loss (91-37) to open the season. The offensive/defensive display was impressive, as the two played for about 71 possessions, thereby scoring about 1.28 points per possession, while limiting Mount St. Mary's to 0.58 PPP. The starting five Jae Crowder, Chris Otule, Darius Johnson-Odom, Vander Blue and Junior Cadougan (note the three guards?) did a nice job of distributing shots and possessions, which reminded me a bit of the Syracuse team from 2010. Blue in particular struggled late last season, but had an efficient outing (a 62.5% eFG on 5-8 shooting from the field, which computes to a 1.25 PPWS). Cadougan struggled a bit with his shot (4-9, 44.4% eFG), but made his double-double the hard way, 10 points to go with 10 dimes in 24 minutes of play.
Amidst the Blowouts
The Big East finished off their eight opponents -- home games all -- Friday night by an average of 25.3 points. Two exceptions to the exhibition of BCS muscle-flexing came in Morgantown and Piscataway. True West Virginia led from the opening tip, but Coach Bob Huggins' squad had to withstand a furious closing rush by the Golden Eagles to perserve a 78-71 win. The Scarlet Knights, like West Virginia, broke on top early, but needed free throws at the end to hold off Big Green. Coach Mike Rice's squad struggled on offense, converting possessions-to-points at a 0.98 rate (about 62.7 possessions). The shot conversion (50.0% eFG%) was fine, but turnovers (a 25%+ rate) undermined the effort. A 40.9% assist rate was not especially impressive either. If this is a representative game (at least until the freshmen catch up), expect the front court, powered by junior Dane Miller and sophomore Gilvyda Baruta to provide the points. Among the freshmen two guards, Jerome Seagears and Eli Carter posted nine points apiece on relatively efficient shooting. West Virginia played a predictably high 73 possession game with seniors Kevin Jones and Darryl Bryant providing a good deal of the offense. Surprisingly the staff started freshman Jabari Hinds at the point, and the 5-11 spark plug did not disappoint, scoring nine points to go with five assists. Freshman forward Miles Keaton also got the starting nod (a message to Kevin Noreen?) and snagged two rebounds and five steals in 21 minutes of play.
Guest Contributor Ray Floriani: Champions Classic Recap
by Ray Floriani
NEW YORK CITY -- A very attractive way to start the season. The first Madison Square Garden doubleheader, in the newly renovated arena, featured four 'Fortune 500' programs. The Scores:
The under card (Duke vs. Michigan State) was a drag-it-out two and a half hour affair. Duke opened a double digit lead in the second half but had to withstand a late Michigan State surge. The Blue Devils never lost the lead in the stretch and gave coach Mike Krzyzewski his 903rd win, a mark that broke his mentor Bobby Knight's record.
#903 in the books
Coach K meets the press
Possession and efficiency:
Why eFG is important (to really know what is happening). Duke shot 41% from the floor. Not a very good showing. Calculating their eFG the Blue Devils were 56%. Quite a difference. The breakdown shows Duke was 7 of 18 (39%) from two point range but 10 of 21 (48%) from three. The hottest hand belonged to Andre Dawkins, 6 of 10 beyond the arc, en route to a game high 26 points.
Blue Devil ft rate (ftm/fga) was off the charts. Duke was 30 of 41 from the line giving them a FTR of 77%. Thirty free throws made to 17 field goals made for the Blue Devils. It was that type of night.
Duke's Ryan Kelly was impressive. He scored 14 points in 30 minutes with perfection as a shooter. Kelly was 3 of 3 from the field (2 for 2 from three) and 6 for 6 from the charity stripe. The 6-11 junior also did a fine defensive job on Draymond Green of Michigan State. Green scored 10 points but committed 5 turnovers and shot 4 of 15 from the field.
Michigan State was paced by sophomore guard Keith Appling with 22 points. Appling provided the offensive surge allowing the Spartans to make a late run.
The Spartans still must assess and address the turnovers situation. They had 21 for a ridiculously high 26% TO rate. "Duke's defense pressures you," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said. "But some of those turnovers were our own doing."
Numbers also included 19,979. That was the attendance -- a sellout.
Kentucky players take the floor
getting well wishes
from their adoring fans
The Over Card
The Kentucky-Kansas battle was the proverbial tale of two halves. The Wildcats did a lot of good things defensively but the story of the game was their explosion on the offensive end. The following chart breaks down the efficiencies of the halves and ultimately the game.
The final possession total saw Kentucky with 76 and Kansas 72. A rather brisk pace indeed. Wildcats had a 25% turnover rate but did shoot the ball well (58$ eFG percentage) while limiting Kansas to a paltry 37% mark. Doron Lamb led Kentucky with 17 points and was 3 of 5 beyond the arc. Wildcats used some good ball movement the second half to give perimeter shooters some uncontested looks. Tyshawn Taylor of Kansas led all scorers with 22 points. Taylor penetrated well and got to the line. The junior guard did his damage on the line going 15 of 17. From the field he was only 3 of 13. Kansas, in fact, did a good job of penetrating but had virtually no mid-range or deep perimeter game to speak of.
John Calipari's club shared the wealth as five Kentucky players were in double figures. In addition , 56% of their 26 field goals were assisted.
Block Party...
Kentucky rejected 13 Jayhawk attempts with 6-10 freshman Anthony Davis leading the way with 7. The blocked shots doesn't even consider the attempts not sent back but altered.
The season is underway.
Ray and the Kansas cheerleaders
in the first shot of the season
NEW YORK CITY -- A very attractive way to start the season. The first Madison Square Garden doubleheader, in the newly renovated arena, featured four 'Fortune 500' programs. The Scores:
| Duke | 74 | 69 | Michigan State | |
| Kentucky | 75 | 65 | Kansas |
The under card (Duke vs. Michigan State) was a drag-it-out two and a half hour affair. Duke opened a double digit lead in the second half but had to withstand a late Michigan State surge. The Blue Devils never lost the lead in the stretch and gave coach Mike Krzyzewski his 903rd win, a mark that broke his mentor Bobby Knight's record.
#903 in the books
Coach K meets the press
Possession and efficiency:
| Duke | Mich. St. | |
| Possessions | 72 | 80 |
| Offensive Efficiency | 103 | 86 |
Why eFG is important (to really know what is happening). Duke shot 41% from the floor. Not a very good showing. Calculating their eFG the Blue Devils were 56%. Quite a difference. The breakdown shows Duke was 7 of 18 (39%) from two point range but 10 of 21 (48%) from three. The hottest hand belonged to Andre Dawkins, 6 of 10 beyond the arc, en route to a game high 26 points.
Blue Devil ft rate (ftm/fga) was off the charts. Duke was 30 of 41 from the line giving them a FTR of 77%. Thirty free throws made to 17 field goals made for the Blue Devils. It was that type of night.
Duke's Ryan Kelly was impressive. He scored 14 points in 30 minutes with perfection as a shooter. Kelly was 3 of 3 from the field (2 for 2 from three) and 6 for 6 from the charity stripe. The 6-11 junior also did a fine defensive job on Draymond Green of Michigan State. Green scored 10 points but committed 5 turnovers and shot 4 of 15 from the field.
Michigan State was paced by sophomore guard Keith Appling with 22 points. Appling provided the offensive surge allowing the Spartans to make a late run.
The Spartans still must assess and address the turnovers situation. They had 21 for a ridiculously high 26% TO rate. "Duke's defense pressures you," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said. "But some of those turnovers were our own doing."
Numbers also included 19,979. That was the attendance -- a sellout.
Kentucky players take the floor
getting well wishes
from their adoring fans
The Over Card
The Kentucky-Kansas battle was the proverbial tale of two halves. The Wildcats did a lot of good things defensively but the story of the game was their explosion on the offensive end. The following chart breaks down the efficiencies of the halves and ultimately the game.
| Efficiency by... | |||
| 1st | 2nd | Game | |
| Kentucky | 76 | 121 | 99 |
| Kansas | 80 | 100 | 90 |
The final possession total saw Kentucky with 76 and Kansas 72. A rather brisk pace indeed. Wildcats had a 25% turnover rate but did shoot the ball well (58$ eFG percentage) while limiting Kansas to a paltry 37% mark. Doron Lamb led Kentucky with 17 points and was 3 of 5 beyond the arc. Wildcats used some good ball movement the second half to give perimeter shooters some uncontested looks. Tyshawn Taylor of Kansas led all scorers with 22 points. Taylor penetrated well and got to the line. The junior guard did his damage on the line going 15 of 17. From the field he was only 3 of 13. Kansas, in fact, did a good job of penetrating but had virtually no mid-range or deep perimeter game to speak of.
John Calipari's club shared the wealth as five Kentucky players were in double figures. In addition , 56% of their 26 field goals were assisted.
Block Party...
Kentucky rejected 13 Jayhawk attempts with 6-10 freshman Anthony Davis leading the way with 7. The blocked shots doesn't even consider the attempts not sent back but altered.
The season is underway.
Ray and the Kansas cheerleaders
in the first shot of the season
Guest Contributor Ray Floriani -- St. Peter's at FDU
by Ray Floriani
Teaneck, NJ - In women's basketball, FDU defeated St. Peter's 55-46 on Tuesday at Stratis Arena. The efficiency and pace (kind of tells it all):
Visiting St.Peter's of the MAAC pushed the pace on both ends as the mid-seventies possession count shows. FDU, with point guard Amanda Andrades out with an ankle injury, struggled at the lead guard spot. FDU was guilty of 24 turnovers. Coach Peter Cinella credited St. Peter's defense but did admit his club needs work on cutting down on turnovers. Part of the problem was FDU accelerating when there was need to sporting a double digit lead and just under ten minutes to go. The TO rates are as follows:
Not an artistic gem of a game on either end. FDU entered the game with a 31% TO rate, so there is work to be done.
Mariyah Laury of FDU (3-5) led all scorers with 14 points. Laury did have 4 assists, but 8 turnovers as she was making the transition from two guard to the lead. Laury came through in the clutch, scoring two crucial baskets as St. Peter's rallied to get it to a one possession game in the stretch with two minutes to play. Jesika Holmes led St. Peter's (0-4) with 13 points.
Shooting, was a sore spot for St.Peter's. They shot 26% for the game including 9.5% (2 of 21) from three. The foul line wasn't much better as St. Peter's was only 44%. It was that kind of night for the Peahens.
Stat Stuffer: FDU forward Desiree Crawford with a Manley efficiency of 17. Crawford scored 7 points (3 of 8 shooting) but offset the under 50% shooting with 11 rebounds, 'only' two turnovers (not bad considering FDU's TO woes) and 7 blocks.
Stratis Arena interior during the game
Teaneck, NJ - In women's basketball, FDU defeated St. Peter's 55-46 on Tuesday at Stratis Arena. The efficiency and pace (kind of tells it all):
| Off. | ||
| Poss. | Eff. | |
| St. Peter's | 75 | 61 |
| FDU | 73 | 75 |
Visiting St.Peter's of the MAAC pushed the pace on both ends as the mid-seventies possession count shows. FDU, with point guard Amanda Andrades out with an ankle injury, struggled at the lead guard spot. FDU was guilty of 24 turnovers. Coach Peter Cinella credited St. Peter's defense but did admit his club needs work on cutting down on turnovers. Part of the problem was FDU accelerating when there was need to sporting a double digit lead and just under ten minutes to go. The TO rates are as follows:
| TO% | |
| St. Peter's | 21% |
| FDU | 33% |
Not an artistic gem of a game on either end. FDU entered the game with a 31% TO rate, so there is work to be done.
Mariyah Laury of FDU (3-5) led all scorers with 14 points. Laury did have 4 assists, but 8 turnovers as she was making the transition from two guard to the lead. Laury came through in the clutch, scoring two crucial baskets as St. Peter's rallied to get it to a one possession game in the stretch with two minutes to play. Jesika Holmes led St. Peter's (0-4) with 13 points.
Shooting, was a sore spot for St.Peter's. They shot 26% for the game including 9.5% (2 of 21) from three. The foul line wasn't much better as St. Peter's was only 44%. It was that kind of night for the Peahens.
Stat Stuffer: FDU forward Desiree Crawford with a Manley efficiency of 17. Crawford scored 7 points (3 of 8 shooting) but offset the under 50% shooting with 11 rebounds, 'only' two turnovers (not bad considering FDU's TO woes) and 7 blocks.
Stratis Arena interior during the game
Guest Contributor Ray Floriani -- Siena at St. Peter's
by Ray Floriani
Jersey City, NJ- The MAAC opener for both Siena and St. Peter's was played Thursday night at St. Peter's in Jersey City. While it is still early, the conference teams play two games prior to the new year. Getting off to a good start in league play is vital.
St. Peter's took advantage of home court and some outstanding defense posting a 51-44 victory. The pace and efficiency:
Basic grind it out style of play as noted by the extremely low count of 54 turnovers. The key for St. Peter's in this one…
Defense.
To little surprise St. Peter's limited Siena to an 82 offensive efficiency, the Peacocks forced a 26% turnover rate and limited the visitors to a 38% eFG mark. Siena shot 3 of 18 (16.7%) from three point range.
Siena trailed by 16 early in the second half but was able to tie it in the stretch. They never were able to get a lead which was significant from a momentum standpoint.
The Saints excelled at…offensive rebounding. They enjoyed a 39-25% edge in that area.
Chris Prescott of St. Peter's paced the scorers with 16 points. OD Anosike led Siena with a strong 12 point 10 rebound effort.
Manley efficiency leader.
Yvon Raymond of St. Peter's. Raymond put up a 'Manley' number of 18. He scored 15 points, pulled down 9 rebounds, had 2 assists, one block and only one turnover.
St. Peter's improved to 2-4 while Siena fell to the same won-lost record.
The coveted MAAC Championship Banner
Hangs in the Yanitelli Center in Jersey City
Jersey City, NJ- The MAAC opener for both Siena and St. Peter's was played Thursday night at St. Peter's in Jersey City. While it is still early, the conference teams play two games prior to the new year. Getting off to a good start in league play is vital.
St. Peter's took advantage of home court and some outstanding defense posting a 51-44 victory. The pace and efficiency:
| Off. | ||
| Poss. | Eff. | |
| St. Peter's | 54 | 94 |
| Siena | 54 | 82 |
Basic grind it out style of play as noted by the extremely low count of 54 turnovers. The key for St. Peter's in this one…
Defense.
To little surprise St. Peter's limited Siena to an 82 offensive efficiency, the Peacocks forced a 26% turnover rate and limited the visitors to a 38% eFG mark. Siena shot 3 of 18 (16.7%) from three point range.
Siena trailed by 16 early in the second half but was able to tie it in the stretch. They never were able to get a lead which was significant from a momentum standpoint.
The Saints excelled at…offensive rebounding. They enjoyed a 39-25% edge in that area.
Chris Prescott of St. Peter's paced the scorers with 16 points. OD Anosike led Siena with a strong 12 point 10 rebound effort.
Manley efficiency leader.
Yvon Raymond of St. Peter's. Raymond put up a 'Manley' number of 18. He scored 15 points, pulled down 9 rebounds, had 2 assists, one block and only one turnover.
St. Peter's improved to 2-4 while Siena fell to the same won-lost record.
The coveted MAAC Championship Banner
Hangs in the Yanitelli Center in Jersey City
Hello Facebook, Hello Twitter!
Hello Xi Gamma Members! Hope that you are all enjoying your summer! We just wanted to inform all of you that Xi Gamma has made it's entrance into the Facebook and Twitter World. We are very excited about these advances and hope you are too. By "liking" our Facebook Page and following us on Twitter, you will be able to get the most up to date information about our Chapter and stay informed about what is happening next. Below you will find the links for both. Facebook Twitter :)
KDP Program - 5 Honor Stole Pts
Author Robin Rosenberg will present her children's book, Brookie Cookie Bookie, and how it can be used in the elementary classroom to discuss and celebrate diversity.
Date: Wednesday, October 5th
Time: 7 PM
Location: Chancellor's Suite, University Center
Refreshments will be served and book purchase available. KDP Xi Gamma T-shirts will also be available for purchase ($15)
5 KDP Honor Stole Points and Professional Development Hours available for full attendance
Xi Gamma Meet & Greet/Fundraiser at Stony's
Xi Gamma will be hosting a Meet & Greet/Fundraiser at Stony's so treat yourself to dinner at Stony's! Be sure to mention Kappa Delta Pi's name and 15 % of your purchase will go to our chapter!5 KDP Honor Stole Points will be awarded for participation. Please be sure to sign in to receive credit if you so wish.
Date: Thursday, November 17th
Time: 5:00 - 9:30 PM
Location: Stony's Restaurant, 10 Sloan Street, South Orange, NJ
Check out Stony's Website: http://www.stonysburgers.com/index.html
Volunteers Needed for H.S. Visits
A few undergraduate education majors are needed for Thursday, December 1st and Friday, December 2nd to talk about their SHU/CEHS experience with high school seniors over lunch at the buffet section of the cafeteria.
If interested, please contact Omayra Arocho at omayra.arocho@shu.edu and refer to this post. Please include your major/program, contact number, and e-mail address as well.
5 Honor Stole Points Awarded
Here's What is Coming Up...
R U Digitally Aware? This award winning and nationally acclaimed solution based live event will provide you with a greater awareness of negative, irresponsible, and malicious digital behaviors and trends ─ beyond the common issues of sexting, cyber bullying and sextortion ─ and the method to reduce the risk of becoming a victim of a cyber-crime, bullying, or digital exploitation. | 5 Honor Stole Points will Awarded for AttendingWant More Info? http://www.iroc2.org/ |
Metropolis Algorithm: Discrete Position Probabilities
I was asked by a reader how I created Figure 7.2 of the book, reproduced at right, which shows the progression of discrete position probabilities at each step in a simple Metropolis algorithm. I couldn't find the original program, so I made a new one, reported here, with an additional example that illustrates a bimodal target distribution.The main point is mentioned in the middle of p. 128: "At every time step, we multiply the current position probability vector w by the transition probability matrix T to get the position probabilities for the next time step. We keep multiplying by T over and over again to derive the long-run position probabilities. This process is exactly what generated the graphs in Figure 7.2."
The code consists of two main parts. First, build the transition matrix. Second, specify an initial position vector and repeatedly multiply by the transition matrix. Here is the code:
# For Figure 7.2, p. 123 of Doing Bayesian Data Analysis.
fileNameRoot = "DBDAfigure7pt2"
# Specify the target probability distribution.
pTargetName = "Linear" # for filename of saved graph
nSlots = 7
pTarget = 1:nSlots
pTarget = pTarget/sum(pTarget)
# Uncomment following lines for different example
#pTargetName = "Bimodal" # for filename of saved graph
#pTarget = c(1,2,2,1,3,3,1)
#nSlots = length(pTarget)
#pTarget = pTarget/sum(pTarget)
# Construct the matrix of proposal probabilities.
# Row is from position, column is to position.
proposalMatrix = matrix( 0 , nrow=nSlots , ncol=nSlots )
for ( fromIdx in 1:nSlots ) {
for ( toIdx in 1:nSlots ) {
if ( toIdx == fromIdx-1 ) { proposalMatrix[fromIdx,toIdx] = 0.5 }
if ( toIdx == fromIdx+1 ) { proposalMatrix[fromIdx,toIdx] = 0.5 }
}
}
# Construct the matrix of acceptance probabilities.
# Row is from position, column is to position.
acceptMatrix = matrix( 0 , nrow=nSlots , ncol=nSlots )
for ( fromIdx in 1:nSlots ) {
for ( toIdx in 1:nSlots ) {
acceptMatrix[fromIdx,toIdx] = min( pTarget[toIdx]/pTarget[fromIdx] , 1 )
}
}
# Compute the matrix of overall move probabilities:
moveMatrix = proposalMatrix * acceptMatrix
# Compute the transition matrix, including the probability of staying in place:
transitionMatrix = moveMatrix
for ( diagIdx in 1:nSlots ) {
transitionMatrix[diagIdx,diagIdx] = 1.0 - sum(moveMatrix[diagIdx,])
}
show( transitionMatrix )
# Specify starting position vector:
positionVec = rep(0,nSlots)
positionVec[round(nSlots/2)] = 1.0
# Loop through time steps and display position probabilities:
windows(height=7,width=7) # change to x11 for non-WindowsOS
layout( matrix(1:16,nrow=4) )
par( mar = c( 2.8 , 2.8 , 1.0 , 0.5 ) , mgp = c( 1.4 , 0.5 , 0 ) )
for ( timeIdx in 1:15 ) {
# Display position probability:
plot( 1:nSlots , positionVec , xlab="Position" , ylab="Probability" ,
type="h" , lwd=5 , col="skyblue" )
text( 1 , max(positionVec) , bquote(t==.(timeIdx)) , adj=c(0,1) )
# Update next position probability:
positionVec = positionVec %*% transitionMatrix
}
# Plot target distribution
plot( 1:nSlots , pTarget , xlab="Position" , ylab="Probability" ,
type="h" , lwd=5 , col="skyblue" )
text( 1 , max(positionVec) , bquote(target) , adj=c(0,1) )
savePlot( filename=paste(fileNameRoot,pTargetName,sep="") , type="jpg" )
For the linearly increasing target distribution, the transition matrix looks like this:
[,1] [,2] [,3] [,4] [,5] [,6] [,7][1,] 0.50 0.5000000 0.0000000 0.000 0.0000000 0.00000000 0.0000000[2,] 0.25 0.2500000 0.5000000 0.000 0.0000000 0.00000000 0.0000000[3,] 0.00 0.3333333 0.1666667 0.500 0.0000000 0.00000000 0.0000000[4,] 0.00 0.0000000 0.3750000 0.125 0.5000000 0.00000000 0.0000000[5,] 0.00 0.0000000 0.0000000 0.400 0.1000000 0.50000000 0.0000000[6,] 0.00 0.0000000 0.0000000 0.000 0.4166667 0.08333333 0.5000000[7,] 0.00 0.0000000 0.0000000 0.000 0.0000000 0.42857143 0.5714286The row is the "from" position and the column is the "to" position. For example, the probability of moving from position 4 to position 3 is 0.375.
The resulting graph looks like this:
If you uncomment the lines that specify a bimodal target, the resulting graph looks like this:
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