Basketball GAME THREAD: Rutgers Hoops vs. Michigan

[Caliknight]

This team has to play near perfect to win. They have to make free throws and they can't turn the ball over. They must rebound and limit second chance opportunities.

If they don't do these things, they aren't going to win. It's that simple. The window for a W is very narrow with this team.

 

[fluoxetine]

@Scangg is qualitatively right about everything to do with Mag but is quantitatively wrong, because he doesn’t believe in the spreadsheets

 

[anon_0k9zlfz6lz9oy]

we overachieved record wise and are even only a bubble team because of the win at Purdue. This is not a tourney team period

this. To me this is all gravy. This isn't a great team. I thought we'd be 8-3 OOC and 8-12 in B1G play. The rest here is gravy. We basically just need to beat minny to get in. Pike overachieved with this team IMO. I had very low expectations coming in. Issue is some had unrealistically high expectations. I was called a moron (by 90% of the board) for saying I didn't think we'd finish top 5 in the big ten.

 

[FinalFourOrBust]

The definition of protection. There's a reason no one takes you seriously

Lol one day you’ll grow up and stop making excuses

 

[RUfromNJ]

Nutless and gutless performance. From Pike on down. Subbing patterns and miserable offense turning the RAC into an ordinary building.

 

[bethlehemfan]

We are 1-4 without mag and the one we won was by 1 point.

 

[RedTeam1994]

This team just isn’t very good. Esp without mag now. We overachieved

Unfortunately I think you summarized the season in two sentences

 

[Barnaby&Neill]

2 games before mag got hurt he got absolutely shredded defensively at iowa. Again people forget that.

The comparison isn’t Mag vs perfection, it’s Mag vs the guys eating those mins. I also don’t think it’s just the loss of Mag, it’s the loss of cohesion this group developed in the pre-injury rotations

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

Agree

Embarrassingly outcoached

not adding ANY value on the sidelines. ANY. Coaching and motivation matters.

 

[RedTeam1994]

Michigan defense quite strong and frankly better than Rutgers.

Give them credit.

Yes RU sucked on offense but part of that was that Michigan was playing good tough defense with players that are obviously much more athletic

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

45 in a game. Make it like a bad high school girls' offense,

THATS WHAT MY WIFE SAID LOL.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

The amount of B1G teams that haven't made the tourney with a .500 record is almost nil.

I'd take that bet.

Didn’t a 13-5 Nebraska team miss?

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

Give them credit.

Yes RU sucked in offense but a big part of that was the Michigan was playing good tough defense with players that are obviously much more athletic

not too hard when guys just dribble with their back to the basket by themselves and guys trying to throw cross court passes and entry passes to NOBODY!

 

[Rokodesh]

Give them credit.

Yes RU sucked on offense but part of that was that Michigan was playing good tough defense with players that are obviously much more athletic

We just suck. They did nothing special. Caleb throwing hail Mary's doesn't help either.

 

[FinalFourOrBust]

The comparison isn’t Mag vs perfection, it’s Mag vs the guys eating those mins. I also don’t think it’s just the loss of Mag, it’s the loss of cohesion this group developed in the pre-injury rotations

Again, 2 games before mag got hurt we gave up 93 (93!) points to iowa 2 games before that we got killed at Michigan state. Our two best wins this year mag had very little to do with.

 

[BOCA93]

not adding ANY value on the sidelines. ANY. Coaching and motivation matters.

Substitutions killed a great start but Pike wasnt the one missing 11 free throws or forcing countless ridiculous passes.

 

[jerzeyguy]

We loss Mag and don't even have guys we can put on the floor. Pike could've made better use of some of his scholarships, but he choose to keep reiber, plam, and miller.

 

[Rokodesh]

Lol who thinks we win at Penn St?

Nobody

 

[Rokodesh]

Substitutions killed a great start but Pike wasnt the one missing 11 free throws or forcing countless ridiculous passes.

Pike is the type of coach to take a time out with a 10 point lead to silence the crowd

 

[bethlehemfan]

Substitutions killed a great start but Pike wasnt the one missing 11 free throws or forcing countless ridiculous passes.

Correct. His coaching allows this roster to compete

 

[RedTeam1994]

not too hard when guys just dribble with their back to the basket by themselves.

Well that’s a different issue -this team not running an offense a lot of times - don’t disagree

Michigan was VERY disruptive on D. They were cutting off drives, blocking shots, getting in passing lanes, getting steals, etc. they played really good D. And part of that was cause they are more talented. Yes we made a lot of bone headed plays on offense but Michigan possession-after-possession was taking away opportunities from us with their defensive execution.

Not making excuses, but the other team is trying as well

 

[RedTeam1994]

We just suck. They did nothing special. Caleb throwing hail Mary's doesn't help either.

Yes we do suck.

Michigan was better. They shut us down repeatedly AND we made a lot of boneheaded plays

Not mutually exclusive

 

[Rokodesh]

Hopefully they stop with these stupid ****ing gimmicks and then completely embarrassing themselves on the court. What a waste of time to attend this ****ing humiliation.

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

this. To me this is all gravy. This isn't a great team. I thought we'd be 8-3 OOC and 8-12 in B1G play. The rest here is gravy. We basically just need to beat minny to get in. Pike overachieved with this team IMO. I had very low expectations coming in. Issue is some had unrealistically high expectations. I was called a moron (by 90% of the board) for saying I didn't think we'd finish top 5 in the big ten.

Sorry. Players have to play better. The stupid shit we have been doing and the lack of figuring out how to play an offense or a defense or rebound, pass, shoot foul shots isn't a function of playing worse teams end of season. Teams are supposed to improve. Every team I've ever been on knows who does what well and how to focus and play together. Led by demanding coaches who were smart and didn't put up with this lazy unfocused crap especially when it matters most. Coaches are supposed to figure things out. This team looks like it has given up because we lost MAG? Really? That's the entire secret to the season? I guy that just started to turn it on a few games prior to his injury?

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

Substitutions killed a great start but Pike wasnt the one missing 11 free throws or forcing countless ridiculous passes.

That is very true. Who's face did he get in and try to light a fire?

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

Well that’s a different issue -this team not running an offense a lot of times - don’t disagree

Michigan was VERY disruptive on D. They were cutting off drives, blocking shots, getting in passing lanes, getting steals, etc. they played really good D. And part of that was cause they are more talented. Yes we made a lot of bone headed plays on offense but Michigan possession-after-possession was taking away opportunities from us with their defensive execution.

Not making excuses, but the other team is trying as well

They wanted it more. You are right sir.

 

[BIGRUBIGDBIGredmachine]

It started unravelling when Hyatt threw a couple air balls, bungled one or two at the bucket and blew 2 ft's. He had a horrible game. Need at least 8 pts from him every game. He had zero. Get those 8 pts and hit our ft's we R right in it. I like Hyatt and really root for him to succeed but he had his worst game at the worst time tonight. We need a big bounce back game from him at State Penn.

 

[bethlehemfan]

It started unravelling when Hyatt threw a couple air balls, bungled one or two at the bucket and blew 2 ft's. He had a horrible game. Need at least 8 pts from him every game. He had zero. Get those 8 pts and hit our ft's we R right in it. I like Hyatt and really root for him to succeed but he had his worst game at the worst time tonight. We need a big bounce back game from him at State Penn.

Hyatt Reibs Derek all were brutal. In the second half the whole team was brutal. We had a chance to get back into and just fumbled it away.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

2 games before mag got hurt he got absolutely shredded defensively at iowa. Again people forget that.

It’s not that Mag is a super star. The issue is we don’t have a reliable PG other than Paul and we have no frontcourt bench depth whatsoever.

Pike seems to be married to the idea of resting 2-3 of his starters (including Cliff) all at once. With Mag in the frontcourt rotation, we could withstand it. Now we can’t. In the first half after we went up 13-3 the line up we put out to unload the bench changed the whole tone of the game. If your going to try your luck with a frontcourt line up of Hyatt, Oskar and Reiber, there is no excuse for sending Paul to the bench. In that case, we’re hoping to hit some 3s to withstand a couple minutes with Cliff sitting. We don’t have any other ball distributors though besides Paul. How did pike think we would possibly score without a true PG in there to get shooters the ball? It wasn’t a fair ask to have Simpson and Caleb (who hadn’t even practiced all week no less) run the point without a post presence. And even worse on the defensive end, it was like handing Michigan points inside. We had no answer.