Well, I'll tell you one thing: the youngbloods definitely fed off of the energy that was brought by the amazing crowd in attendance. Many highs and many lows in the opener, but nonetheless, a pretty good start to the season against what coach Beard calls a respected team in Eastern Illinois.

I'd like to first give praise for the freshman guard Jahmi'us Ramsey. A natural-born scorer and competitor. Right from the get-go, Ramsey made his presence known by driving to the hoop and putting up some early shots. They didn't fall, but eventually Ramsey got into his rhythm and lit the place up. He's going to be much more than a dunker.

Ramsey led the way with 19 points, which I'm not surprised. I watched this kid in the playoffs last year, and I knew Tech got a real good one in him.

T.J. Holyfield made his presence felt. Yes, another T.J. Second in scoring on the team for the night with 15, also collected 6 rebounds and blocked two shots. Holyfield is definitely what Tech needs guarding the paint and pounding it in offensively. He was also 1-1 on the night from three-point land and 7-8 from the field. Solid night and pickup for the Red Raiders. Going to the NCAA championship for sure helps with bringing in transfers and picking up recruits (duh).

Another freshman that caught my eye in the opener was Terrence Shannon Jr. This dude wanted to make some posters in the first game, missing his first dunk (which was a foul) and had everyone on the edge of their seat for the moment. Eventually found the rim and lived at home.

Clarence Nadolny also played really well. I was impressed with his overall defensive presence, especially for a freshman. From what I saw, he was the that guy clapping on defense after a score, a good communicator, had good closeouts, and never put his head down. Had two fouls, very common calls, but his defense was pretty stellar.

Overall, as a defensive unit, there's much room for improvement. Beard mentioned that in the postgame presser as well, saying that was the main deal. The Red Raiders collected 40 total rebounds, led by GUARD Kyler Edwards (who has a really high vertical for a guard his size).

Speaking of size, the big man Russ Tchewa was a spotlight. Played pretty good minutes, but I think he needs to play bigger. He's like a Norense Odiase times two and looks like he can get the hook shot in the post going when he feels it. So much potential for that dude.

Of course, Davide Moretti. He was off to a quiet start, due to the presence of Shannon and Ramsey, but the early second half was his climax. Hit a couple threes and played superb defense: what they need him to do.

Chris Clarke had a quiet debut at the United Supermarkets Arena posting two points, three rebounds and two turnovers in 19 minutes of action. The Virginia Tech transfer would love to get going and produce more to help the team, perhaps on the defensive end considering he's an athletic forward. Yeah, definitely get more involved offensively, too. He brought up the ball a bit and got in trouble picking up his dribble, but maybe that's how Beard wants Clarke to be involved in this offense.

I'd like to see Kevin McCullar improve. He had a lot of playing time tonight, but didn't protect the ball very well. Had a couple turnovers off of just dribbling and poor arm-bar and on-ball offense.

I'm overall impressed with the leadership I saw on the court. Not once did I see it be all one dude leading the charge and getting guys motivated. A lot of new faces doesn't mean anyone should be one-on-one-ing or doing their own thing (otherwise Beard would probably bench them). Again, off to a good start. Plenty to improve on, but plenty to be happy about.

Also, the banner reveals were pretty cool. Saw a tweet after the game saying, "Banners last forever."