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Michigan Thoughts

bac2therac

bac2therac

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Best game of the year on both ends by Rutgers particularly the defensive end poking their hands in the lane and disrupting the Michigan offense and taking away the backdoors. Offensively I thought RU was patience and didn't get into the foolishness of pushing tempo. Yes the air was taken out of the ball somewhat. It has to if RU is to be competitive and no Michigan isn't a running team but I don't really recall RU getting beat in transition tonight. I felt unlike Ohio State first half which relied on a flukish one on one game and the Iowa game which RU still gave up too many open looks, tonight really was the team playing at its peak.

Still even with that, this game wasn't in doubt, Michigan was doing just enough to stay in front comfortably without sweating it out and I never got the sense there was going to be some final run from RU to win that game. But that's okay. At this point its not about winning, its about competing. RU went from being blown out 40-50 points for two games to playing to fairly competitive games against NCAA team...and yes those teams didn't play their A game but so what. The last two games have shown progress in decision making, roles, and effort. That's all people wanted to see in Big 10 play. The addition of Laurent seems to really make a difference but its a big difference when you are giving full effort from the get go. Sanders was wonderful tonight on both end of the courts and Willaims showed more toughness in this game than he did in about half the games this year. Eddie did a good job motivating and preparing his team tonight

Michigan State figures to be ugly, just not a good matchup to me but Illinois looms large next week as a game that RU needs to approach with confidence that they can win. Its a big test for this team and Eddie to see if these past two efforts are an indication that they are on to something or just a fluke.
 
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Good analysis. Thought we were one 3point shooter away from legitametly competing tonight.
 
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Had the same feeling watching this game. I did think Sanders took a few ill-advised shots, but I liked the way he took control of the offense and made a ton of terrific passes. More and more he seems to be taking on the leadership role. And I thought Michigan played pretty well (announcers agreed), were lights out shooting 3's -- many with a hand in the face.

Team played hard throughout. Team could be mailing it in for the remainder of the season, they aren't. Bishop played within himself. If only Lewis had hands. I don't know because I just haven't seen them play much this year, but if Dorson or Diallo (Too bad they've lost so much on the learning curve) can have any presence under the basket, Sanders passing will make a phenominal difference for next years squad. As will Laurent's experience.

I know it's only one game, but I probably feel the best I've felt about the team in a long time. I'd love it to grow.
 
I was not impressed with Michigan .They seemed to be mostly reliant on the 3 pointer and there were times during the game where they couldn't make a basket.Unfortunately, Rutgers didn't take advantage of Michigan cold streaks when they had the early lead.It was only a matter of time before Michigan would make the 3 pointer which ultimately gave them the cushion for a double digit win.
 
bac2therac said:
Best game of the year on both ends by Rutgers particularly the defensive end poking their hands in the lane and disrupting the Michigan offense and taking away the backdoors. Offensively I thought RU was patience and didn't get into the foolishness of pushing tempo. Yes the air was taken out of the ball somewhat. It has to if RU is to be competitive and no Michigan isn't a running team but I don't really recall RU getting beat in transition tonight. I felt unlike Ohio State first half which relied on a flukish one on one game and the Iowa game which RU still gave up too many open looks, tonight really was the team playing at its peak.

Still even with that, this game wasn't in doubt, Michigan was doing just enough to stay in front comfortably without sweating it out and I never got the sense there was going to be some final run from RU to win that game. But that's okay. At this point its not about winning, its about competing. RU went from being blown out 40-50 points for two games to playing to fairly competitive games against NCAA team...and yes those teams didn't play their A game but so what. The last two games have shown progress in decision making, roles, and effort. That's all people wanted to see in Big 10 play. The addition of Laurent seems to really make a difference but its a big difference when you are giving full effort from the get go. Sanders was wonderful tonight on both end of the courts and Willaims showed more toughness in this game than he did in about half the games this year. Eddie did a good job motivating and preparing his team tonight

Michigan State figures to be ugly, just not a good matchup to me but Illinois looms large next week as a game that RU needs to approach with confidence that they can win. Its a big test for this team and Eddie to see if these past two efforts are an indication that they are on to something or just a fluke.
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Another game, another loss. That's all that needs to be said. After 25 years of nothing, no more moral victories ever.
 
T2Kplus10 said:
Another game, another loss. That's all that needs to be said. After 25 years of nothing, no more moral victories ever.
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All very true. It's better than losing by 50 though.

Jordan needs to break the losing streak in Feb/Mar. He's got a bunch of games that are much more manageable. But I think losing out will be trouble for him.
 
ruman said:
All very true. It's better than losing by 50 though.

Jordan needs to break the losing streak in Feb/Mar. He's got a bunch of games that are much more manageable. But I think losing out will be trouble for him.
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agree, the improvement the last two is certainly noticeable but 6-26/0-18 is an abyss that you cant excuse yourself out of
 
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An effort like this may gives us wins against the bottom part of the league at the end of the season.
 
Is it just me or did Zac Irvin have one of the worst games you have ever seen for a guy that almost had a triple-double?

Of course you are going to have assists when you have a jump shooting team, but I almost thought he kind of slept-walked throughout the game.

He came up way short on few foul shots also.

Best of Luck,
Groz
 
The 3 pt shot is still overrated compared to players that can drive to the hoop. You get open 3 pt looks by having players do just that-attacking the hoop. A good 3 pt shot seems to come from a good driver a lot of the times.

What happened to foreman?Had to do career work. Gotta stay focused!

Bishop Daniels passing more. Good for him. I would like to see more passing from Williams.
 
Sure, the trend is three point shooting, but efficient basketball always comes from driving to the hoop and having good finishers. Just my opinion though. Get to the paint and dandy things happen.
 
Good recap Bac. 16% from 3-point range for RU was the difference. If only a couple of more 3s go down, it would have been interesting. It's really a shame that Goode is a bust.
 
Just saw the missed 1 and 1 where they miss and we throw the ball back to the ref. Classic.
 
Best game by far defensively. Not so good offensively. The ball stuck in Sanders hands way too much. Corey took 1 step back offensively and 3 steps forward defensively. Played 40 so even more kudos.

I stand by my point I made after last game. Can't play a guard who can't shoot from permitter and needs the ball in his hands to be effective. I will say Daniels did seperate himself defensively from Grier (terrible defensively last night) and what Goode normally gives. There were spots where Daniels had a catch and shoot 3, but he doesn't have the skill.
 
So let me get this straight, every game we play from here on out that is competitive part of the reason will always be the other team did not bring their "A" game? Diminishing the credit to the effort by our players and coaches. I heard the same thing after the Iowa game and do not think it is fair.
 
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jcrutgers said:
So let me get this straight, every game we play from here on out that is competitive part of the reason will always be the other team did not bring their "A" game? Diminishing the credit to the effort by our players and coaches. I heard the same thing after the Iowa game and do not think it is fair.
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Michigan beat Maryland with their A game..did you see that game, I did. Michigan clearly didn't bring their A game last night. They came out flat, picked things up a bit before halftime and coasted. I CREDITED the team for their effort and performance in both games sp I am not sure what you want and they battled hard but don't fool yourself into thinking that Iowa and Michigan were giving A or B efforts against RU. This game wasn't in doubt neither was Iowa. Better results than losing by 40-50 but lets not throw a party either.

RU has less talent than any other Big 10 school, RU can pick up wins over Illinois, Minnesota, or Penn State if RU brings its A game and these teams take RU a little lightly. These 3 schools are the other bottom feeders in the conference so they represent the best chances for RU to get wins but RU still has less than talent than them. Are you arguing that RU should be beating these teams and that they are better? Cant have it both ways.
 
RU-ROCS said:
Good recap Bac. 16% from 3-point range for RU was the difference. If only a couple of more 3s go down, it would have been interesting. It's really a shame that Goode is a bust.
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Dont write him off. Also, he is 19 years old. Give the kid a break. Someone needs to talk to Goode and tell him to let it fly, every time he gets the ball. Why not?Everyone else is doing it.
 
Greene Rice FIG said:
Best game by far defensively. Not so good offensively. The ball stuck in Sanders hands way too much. Corey took 1 step back offensively and 3 steps forward defensively. Played 40 so even more kudos.

I stand by my point I made after last game. Can't play a guard who can't shoot from permitter and needs the ball in his hands to be effective. I will say Daniels did seperate himself defensively from Grier (terrible defensively last night) and what Goode normally gives. There were spots where Daniels had a catch and shoot 3, but he doesn't have the skill.
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Daniels hasn't been shooting the 3 ball well, and it hasn't been in his arsenal his whole RU career. Has made steps though, so we can give credit. I'd rather a strong defensive effort than a great offensive effort. Just shows the team has a little grit, even when shots aren't falling. Sanders and Grier are the only reliable 3 point shooters at this point. We can hope that Dailey is as advertised, and can help our 3 pt shooting out. To be honest, I expect him to be a decent player but we have been told we had shooters coming in and it hasn't translated in the college game. I just hope Dailey competes well defensively and finds his spot offensively by his 2-3 year. Still really like the driving of Laurent.

Ever watch Jerian Grant?Plays and dribbles with his head up the whole time. Lost art these days. Most players that make a drive from 3 have their head down and have one intention on this team-to shoot by themselves. Maybe it changes. No need to say names. One of the main parts of the dribble drive is to open up players or get to the rim and draw a foul.
 
G- RUnit said:
Another silly cliche like, "Defense wins championships." You are not too dependent on three point shooting...You need to be a good three point shooters.
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Do we play the basketball equivalent of meathead football we have experienced under Flood? Line it up and run between the tackles 3 times and punt? Caught inbetween underdog strategy and playing better recruited teams straight up. Undersized but can't hit a 3?
 
BROKEN RECORD ALERT:

The KEY to winning in college basketball is the THREAT of the 3 pointer. It opens up the entire court. If the D covers the shooters on the perimeter, the front court guys will get their shots from down low. If the D packs the paint or covers the drivers, it opens up the perimeter

Of course if you have just 1 player who is a threat and you have no inside game whatsoever than the point is moot, which sadly is where we stand at this stage.
 
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bac2therac said:
Michigan beat Maryland with their A game..did you see that game, I did. Michigan clearly didn't bring their A game last night. They came out flat, picked things up a bit before halftime and coasted. I CREDITED the team for their effort and performance in both games sp I am not sure what you want and they battled hard but don't fool yourself into thinking that Iowa and Michigan were giving A or B efforts against RU. This game wasn't in doubt neither was Iowa. Better results than losing by 40-50 but lets not throw a party either.

RU has less talent than any other Big 10 school, RU can pick up wins over Illinois, Minnesota, or Penn State if RU brings its A game and these teams take RU a little lightly. These 3 schools are the other bottom feeders in the conference so they represent the best chances for RU to get wins but RU still has less than talent than them. Are you arguing that RU should be beating these teams and that they are better? Cant have it both ways.
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I did not see much of the Maryland/Michigan game. I just think that the other teams "game level" should not be part of how we evaluate Rutgers after a game. I think the only way the "game level" can be evaluated is if you watch a team game in and game out like most of us do with Rutgers.

I agree Rutgers has some winable games coming but in all of those games we will have less talent and depth than any of the teams we play. I do not agree we need a team like Penn State or Minnesota to take us lightly in order to beat them.
 
PatrickRU92 said:
BROKEN RECORD ALERT:

The KEY to winning in college basketball is the THREAT of the 3 pointer. It opens up the entire court. If the D covers the shooters on the perimeter, the front court guys will get their shots from down low. If the packs the paint or cover the drivers, it opens up the perimeter

Of course if you have just 1 player who is a threat and you have no inside game whatsoever than the point is moot, which sadly is where we stand at this stage.
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I agree....which is why i believe grier and/or goode needs more minutes.

As you say the THREAT is important.

Last night there were times Sanders didn't see an open man AND there were times Daniels had a catch and shoot 3 point opportunity which he dribbled out of.
 
higgins3 said:
Daniels hasn't been shooting the 3 ball well, and it hasn't been in his arsenal his whole RU career.
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If you can't shoot, you are a below average defender, are turnover prone, and you need the ball in your hands to be effective, and you aren't a PG............bring someone in who may be able to shoot, is a poor defender, is still turnover prone, doesn't need the ball in his hands, and isn't a PG
 
Greene Rice FIG said:
If you can't shoot, you are a below average defender, are turnover prone, and you need the ball in your hands to be effective, and you aren't a PG............bring someone in who may be able to shoot, is a poor defender, is still turnover prone, doesn't need the ball in his hands, and isn't a PG
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I thought you were a big fan of Daniels?Jordan is low on options, and low on people that have a lot of experience.
 
higgins3 said:
I thought you were a big fan of Daniels?Jordan is low on options, and low on people that have a lot of experience.
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I like what he can bring off the bench as the backup to Sanders. Yes i have soured on him...especially watching our half court offense.
 
Greene Rice FIG said:
I agree....which is why i believe grier and/or goode needs more minutes.

As you say the THREAT is important.

Last night there were times Sanders didn't see an open man AND there were times Daniels had a catch and shoot 3 point opportunity which he dribbled out of.
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Yes, I agree. Here is an interesting comment from one of the game announcers I remember from one of a game early this year. Williams had just received the ball on the perimeter and the announcers said he heard several members on the opposing team yell, "SHOOTER", to alert everyone of the threat. Unfortunately, Williams has not hit the threes on a consistent basis and Goode appears scared to even try.
 
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Greene Rice FIG said:
I like what he can bring off the bench as the backup to Sanders. Yes i have soured on him...especially watching our half court offense.
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I hear you. I think he can be utilized but I am not sure how much more time he has to learn. I like Goode even if he isn't scoring. Someone has to tell him to take his chances though and shoot every time he gets the ball. What do we have to lose?Daniels could be a ball player, but he is having difficult learning and unlearning.
 
higgins3 said:
Dont write him off. Also, he is 19 years old. Give the kid a break. Someone needs to talk to Goode and tell him to let it fly, every time he gets the ball. Why not?Everyone else is doing it.
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Fair point, but based on his dwindling playing time on a team in desperate need for players, it appears the coaching staff may already have written him off.
 
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higgins3 said:
I like Goode even if he isn't scoring.
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No. He needs to take and make perimeter shots. he can't be afraid to miss and shouldn't lose PT missing shots. Now losing PT because of defense and being weak with the basketball...that is another story.
 
Another game I missed because I wasn't paying enough attention to notice it was even happening. I don't recall a season in which I had this level of interest (non-interest) in the games. Maybe Littlepage era. You know what's coming every time. Apparently rooting for keeping the deficit in the teens gets old quick.
 
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Hard to compete with 8 players or Goode not playing 7. Duke has one kid hurt and lost 4 out of 5.
 
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