TERRIBLE showing for the Big Ten but it was somewhat redeemed by winning the marquee matchup of the week with Indiana.
Irvin did great in the first half. Second half was pretend basketball. Many shots he took were bad. Other shots were “good” within the context of the game but were bad insofar as he will never be able to get those kind of looks against a good defense. THis team which lacks elite creators needs to focus on plays that are sustainable against top competition. Run the offense sets please.
IF you DVR’d the game and are interested I noted the shots that I consider bad shot selection for second half by Irvin:
10:44 with 18 seconds on shot clock.
9:42 with 13 on shot clock
6:42 with 11 seconds on shot clock
4:30 with 19 seconds on shot clock
:49 With 20 seconds on shot clock
:08
He made one of those shots. I don’t care. A bad shot is a bad shot.
With the lead, it seemed like Irvin feels entitled to take bad shots. It is not just the missing of the shot that hurts us so much but when Irvin decides to “take over” the game it sucks the life out of the team. I find it hard to believe that any of our players enjoy playing alongside Irvin when he decides to try to act out his “alpha dog” fantasy.
What hurts the most is Walton shooting 6 times with 5 of those 3s. Dj in foul trouble hurt because he looked to have his energy tonight. Our bench scored 15, all from Duncan. We need to get Simpson and Watson on the floor. We are already running our guys into the ground and losing. So it’s not helping playing them 40 minutes.
I’m not really a tempo free expert, so does anyone know if KenPom’s predictions factor in eCHr (effective choke rate) or AdjSft (adjusted softness)?
4 Likes
Lmao I really hope not. Does anyone know why donnal(0 points 2 turnovers) played more than Wagner?
DJ had just made an excellent defensive play in a MUST HAVE Stop situation, and I think shortly after he got that 5th foul. Need him out there late in game no doubt.
I think he’s our best defender and rebounder by a wide margin. Must have him out of foul trouble. Our freshman must play more. Simpson and teske played very well tonight I’d say. One player scorin off the bench isn’t going to do it. Maybe start Simpson and bring MAAR off the bench. I think it’d be worth a try.
The starting guards need to be put in check. If they are not playing the right way with the right energy then JB should not hesitate to sub any of Walton, Irvin, or MAAR out. These guys need to be disciplined.
MAAR really looked lazy on defense tonight and it killed us.
Ditto for the bigs. Screw it. If Donnal can’t play with energy just go with Teske. I enjoyed watching his hustle out there.
Hopefully we are able to get these guys more minutes in the next game. Having the guys play the big minutes and then falling short is killer. We have to assimilate these guys into the flow of the game and get some relief for the starters.
MAAR got destroyed on defense all night. It was hard to watch it happen so much. Donnal has always been a bad defender just sometimes is in the right spot but tonight there is zero excuse for why he played 18 minutes and Wagner played 17, not a single one. Simpson comes in and plays well and never gets back in? What’s that say to a young kid ?
I lov what I’ve seen from teske so far. Simpson has done good things and so has Watson. They both have a big step to take hit teske looked pretty good tonight I’d say.
I agree on Teske. Was impressed at his play and how big he is.
I remember a game awhile back where Amaker took out all the starters and put in the backups versus Army, (I think it was December 2006) because the starters came out with no energy.
This is not an identical situation, but sometimes, you have to have guys watch and give a new guy the chance to bring some energy and some contributions.
The start of the second half could tell you this was headed a bad direction. I strongly feel we need MAAR off the bench badly. Whether it be start Watson or Simpson I don’t care, but his attacking style can really change things for us if our offense goes to shit like it did in the second half. Starting one of the freshman would be risky but what we have now is what we saw all last year, it hasn’t changed. Also, starting Simpson could allow Walton to be in a scorers state of mind and him being a much better shooter than MAAR helps too. One person scoring off the bench is not going to get it done. I’ve never liked Donnal and probably never will because of nights like tonight, it’s so frustrating. Another thing, Wagner was destroying his guy on offense and he played less than a guy who did absolutely nothign but hurt the team tonight. I don’t get it. If Wagner isn’t in foul trouble, he should be playing 30 minutes a night IMO.
What specifically do you like about Simpson so far? I think his on the ball defense is good but he’s pretty much afraid to do anything on the offensive end of the court. Granted, he’s played pretty sparingly but I have been very underwhelmed so far. I agree that Beilein needs to avoid running Walton into the ground by playing 37 mins a game so I would like to see more Simpson but it’s not based on anything he’s shown on the court so far.
If this team is going to be any good though, they have to shoot a lot better across the board. Take away the two 5’s in Wagner and Donnal, who are shooting mostly layups, the rest of the team combined is shooting 39.6% from the field. That’s terrible. Walton and Rahk are both under 40% as is Duncan. Wilson who is 6’10 is shooting 43%. They have been pretty good defensively outside of the 2nd half tonight, but shot making can cure a lot of ills.
I like Simpson on defense a whole lot more than I do MAAR, he has been abused a ton this year so far. Simpson runs the offense pretty well I’d say. He hasn’t gained the confidence yet to attack the rim or attack the paint but that will come. The main reason I want him starting is to shift MAAR to the bench, we need him badly off the bench. It also allows Walton to play off the ball and with Walton only taking 3’s this year, he can focus more on taking shots and being more aggressive offensively vs trying to run the team and get everyone involved. I think at this point Simpson can do that. I’m not saying play Simpson 30 minutes a night, but let him play the first 5 or 6 and bring MAAR off the bench and let him attack. I love MAAR but he is not a play making shooting guard and putting Walton at that spot can really help this offense I think. Last thing, If Walton is going to play 38 minutes a night, At least give him a break on defense where he isn’t guarding the opposing point guard the whole time. I feel Simpson starting helps out Walton a lot and from what iv’e seen so far, We need Walton’s scoring more than anything right now.
You do realize that my “brah” usage wasn’t because I use “brah”, but rather to make fun of another poster her… right?
Why are you still using it to respond to me?
I wasn’t aware posts were made to make fun of others, my bad.
Yes.
You, I, and others are in agreement that South Carolina is a good, NCAA Tournament level, team.
Other poster: “SEC has 6-7 better teams than South Carolina.”
You: “South Carolina is ranked #22.”
Me: “SEC has 6-7 better teams brah”
You: “Lol brah. Well, according to the rankings, they do not.”
Me: “But… But… It has to be true because of preseason SEC rankings!”
Get it?
Responding to you was a mistake. One I won’t repeat.
Why the hostility? I’m clearing up a misunderstanding you seemed to have.