I was shocked that Livers only got 17 minutes. Did he tweak his ankle on that fall?
Yeah I was obviously not turned onto tempo-free stats at the time, I just remember Craft being a general irritant and forcing a ton of turnovers along with Shannon Scott. Obviously, racking up steals doesnât necessarily mean youâre a good defender. Itâs not definitive, but if we use the various defensive metrics, Craftâs career goes:
Defensive Win Shares: 2.4, 3.1, 2.5, 3.2
Defensive Box +/-: 5.3, 6.4, 4.6, 6.3
all those are very good - so it would generally confirm the eye test that he was good.
Last year, Simpson had 2.2 defensive win shares, and 4.8 defensive BPM
Both very good numbers that put him 6th in the BT in the marks (it should be said that both metrics greatly prize defensive rebounding so guards donât carry as much value as bigs - the only other guards that hit the top 15 were Dakota Mathias and Josh Reaves).
So I guess the available evidence would say that while Simpson was a very good defender for a guard last year, Craft was generally a bit better.
(I would never want to use these metrics completely in a vaccum - for instance Wagner led the B10 in Defensive Win Shares mostly on the strength of his defensive rebounding - rebounding is obviously a major factor in being a good defensive team, but itâs not exactly what weâre talking about when we talk âgood defenderâ).
I think he just landed really hard on his tailbone. You could see him wince in pain. But I also think it had something to do with his four fouls. Then, too, at the end Coach B wanted to play Brandon Johns. Hopefully Isaiah has a nice bruise but no other problem with his back.
On another subject, does anyone know if the team flew home last night, and will turn around and fly back east tomorrow (Friday) for Saturdayâs game in the tournament, or did they stay out there?
I wasnât able to watch the game last night. But I listened to Matt Shepherd and Terry Mills on the radio.
The compliment they paid to Isaiah regarding his rebounding was he actually boxed people out, rather than gathering rebounds solely with athleticism as so many players do now.
Did anybody else notice that about Isaiahâs rebounding?
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Absolutely, plus anything T Mills says, I believe!
Looks like Burke had a 90 O rating in the first matchup in Columbus, and then a 151 in Ann Arbor. So, mixed results I guess.
Okay, four guys. I like it.
92 and 94 in 2012 also.
Although thatâs going off Torvikâs ORtg (No idea how theyâre different, but he has individual 2012 games while Kenpom doesnât) and the 2013 results were 89 and 145.
Hmm, weird that KenPom individual game logs only go back to 2012. 92 and 94 isnât necessarily insane since Burke was a much less effective as a frosh (only 105 Orating compared to 121 as a soph). Iâd probably have to go back and watch a game. And X has put up some more eye popping numbers than that (holding Brunson to an 80 be like damn)
He hurt his back on that play where he left his feet and landed on his back. He said heâs fine but I think Beilein didnât play him a ton in the 2nd half because they were up a lot so he got Johns some minutes, and also the last time Isaiah checked out he was grabbing his back so it was clearly hurting him.
I was in the same boat i swore he grabbed more than 2. Im assuming the one where he grabbed it with one hand and got fouled didnât count as a rebound. But he was so active around the rim just tipping the ball and boxing out I still felt like he did a good job there.
And I think heâs the best defender we have for switching 1-5 on defense. He can stay in front of most guards on switches as last night showed. And has the physicality to bang inside. He bodied up Paschall several times and forced him to pick up his dribbles. I think he created some travels as well. Not sure if that was on Paschall or not. He does a great job playing angles on ballhandlers and cutting them off before they get to the rim. And also walls up well while doing it. I think heâs an All Conference caliber defender but he may not get the accolades because he doesnât get a huge amount of steals or blocks. I see what he does and appreciate it a ton though!!
I was not expecting much from Poole and Iggy defensively, to be honest. They are both doing well, imo. What do you guys think about Brooks defensively? I would put him in as a top five defender on this team and all around solid. Very quick and stays in front of his man well.
I would rank our defenders:
Matthews
Z
Teske
------------gap
Livers
Brooks
-----------gap
Iggy
Poole
----------gap
Davis
- Simpson easy
- Matthews
- Livers (small gap to me between Matthews and Livers. Can even see Livers above him sometimes)
- Teske
- Poole
- Brooks
- Iggy
- Davis
Davis is still foul prone. Havenât seen enough from Iggy yet to know how good of a defender he truly is.
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They flew back to Ann Arbor and will leave tomorrow for CT.
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Yeah, I think youâre right about the one handed rebound and then getting fouled. He probably didnât get credit for that rebound because the other two were clean and that was the only one that was even questionable. I guess I just donât understand the definition of a rebound these days because, in my opinion, that was clearly a rebound and then he got fouled.
As for Isaiah not having the opportunity to be named as an All Conference Defensive Player. We may have two on this team and there is NO way they would name three from the same team. But, you know what, I really donât think Isaiah even cares. He is all about the team. Thatâs why he is playing the perfect role on this team. Coach B said Isaiah can affect three positions on the team. He can play the four, the three, and he can push someone down to the two (probably Iggy). Well, he can also play the five. Heâs a great sixth man and a great weapon to have. He can affect FOUR positions on the floor offensively. And yes, he can defend multiple positions on the floor, too.
As far as stretching the floor from the five, he only hit one of his two threes last night from the five, but both threes were things of beauty and hit nothing but the bottom! I think, with a shot like that, he can stretch the floor!
Thanks! I was kinda hoping theyâd stay, but knowing JB, they probably had to be in class today! Hopefully Isaiah got treatment for what I assume is a rather large contusion on his tailbone, lower back area!
Actually, I would have Brooks as number five, but JP is defending very well, and thatâs very pleasing! I agree with your other rankings.
And, yes, I thought Iggy defended Paschal very well last night! Listening to X and Charles in the presser last night, Iggy has a LOT of pride, and theyâre (X and Charles) not going to let Iggy take any plays off. He wonât have a choice but to play good D!
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It seems like Zâs defense is ascending. The ability to shut down the other teams PG is so disruptive to the offense.
My hot take is Teske/Livers at the 5 spot this year will exceed our all around play from the 5 spot last year. The only position that will be worse is the 2 Guard spot. Overall, it is going to be a better team this year barring injuries. That doesnât mean they will go as far in the tournament as there is a lot of luck with one and done tournaments. But I think theyâll be better overall.
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I believe in Teske/ Livers at the 5 but I see it as softening the blow of losing Wagner. The exciting thing about our current weakness at the 2 spot is that if Poole figures it out (I think he will) then we become so much better because he has the talent to be such a dynamic player. Throw in the possibility of Johns who might have the most all around upside on this team and we might be better than last year. I will almost guarantee we will be better defensively.
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Anatomy of a Shutdown* I took a detailed look at Michiganâs incredible first half defense against 'Nova. For the X and Oâs lovers, here is the thread: https://twitter.com/eric_shap/status/1063433268912160768
Let me know if you enjoyed and what you think!
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