That was a lot of words to say:
1. You think Pike’s rotations have been poor to date (bad game-day coaching)
2. He did a poor job constructing the roster (you reference “inferior players” yourself)
People are under the impression that I don't get on coaches....but again, people listen to the WRONG people or refuse to acknowledge facts...
A) 2 seasons ago, Mawot Mag, who is a role/complimentary player, was elevated to starter on a roster without other options...he is a 5th starter that did not do anything well on offense....not a dribbler, not a playmaker, not a passer, not a natural scorer and absolutely not a shooter....BUT, fans fell in love with a player willing to hustle, rebound and play defense (as if no one else on the planet could do that).
But when he got injured, he was supposed to be the reason why RU cratered......BUT i posted at least 200 times that the issue was the lack of productivity from Paul Mulcahy after Mag got injured that cost RU a NCAA bid....and even to this day, it is still discussed as a FACT, with no willingness to listen to other facts.
So.....Pike continued to trot Mulcahy out there and RU continued to lose games, when we had an opportunity to elevate Derek Simpson to play more minutes and significantly reduce Mulcahy and his role. BUT no.....Derek was no good, until RU got down a 5th or 6th game in a row at Penn State and he literally killed PSU with a furious rally and win. But the damage was already done and with some timely missed FTs at Minnesota, we coughed up a NCAA bid.....
Was that Pike’s fault?? To me YES, because he rode with Mulcahy, when it was CLEAR to me, that he was around 5PPG over a 8 game span, while playing 32 minutes a game....his productivity declined by a LOT.
But, fans wanted an excuse that it was Mag.....with no support on that other than he got injured.....what has NOT happened since then, has been Mawot Mag posts....?? Why.....?? Because he was never that good to begin with and was made out to be better than reality.....where are Mawot Mag stats today at BYU.....we don't see them because I was 100% right then and it was never acknowledged, until Mag literally shut it down and sat out countless games last year....
So.....to this season.....where else would Zach Martini or Ogbole start in the B1G.....I am not saying they don't have a role on the roster, but we are discussing dedicating MAJOR minutes to players that are simply not playmakers.....they don't start anywhere on UCLA, Illinois, Maryland, Wisconsin or even Minnesota or Washington.
I am just watching basketball and asking myself, can I see Martini starting over Reese at Maryland or over the big man at Northwestern?? Or does he play major minutes on Ohio State??
If the answer is YES, then i would stop complaining.
The answer is NO....so it's amazing that we took a poster who doesn't post here any more, tell others on Twitter and here, how good Ivy League players are.....and because Martini played one decent game, in Trenton vs RU, that he somehow earns starting caliber minutes, with no pattern of productivity on defense or rebounding??
Do I think Lathan Sommerville has things to learn....?? Yes.....but how does that mean he cannot find 26 to 28 minutes a game, if baffling......why can't he get comfortable with Ace and Dylan for a few games.....the kid simply makes plays and creates offense and can score. OR do we expect Ace and Dylan to score 55PPG to win??
Why doesn't JMike suddenly get a free pass, when he was NEVER in eye test or anything better than Simpson.....?? Because Simpson took too many 2 pointers and missed?? Do I think JMike and his defense are far inferior this year vs what Simpson showed us the last 2 years??? YES.....and that's before I get to who runs the floor better and makes FTS.
If you gave opposing coaches choices of who they would select off the RU roster, it would start with the 3 freshman (Ace, Dylan, Lathan) and then a choice of JWill or Derkack 4th, then Grant and Dortch.
I don't see major minutes for any other RU players, anywhere else in the B1G, once you get past...
Ace, Dylan, Lathan, Grant, JWill as your starting 5.
Derkack as the 6th man, Dortch as backup wing defensive player in the Caleb McConnell role.
The only variable is Acuff is clearly the 4th best player, but the broken foot is a monster injury, because he can actually score and help playmake.....it is very likely, without an injury to Acuff, he is the 6th man and paired in the backcourt off the bench with Derkack. Then mix in 8 or so minutes for Ogbole off the bench and see if you can find a few minutes for Hayes and JMike to make good decisions and try to play defense.
Anything short of the starting lineup of Ace, Dylan. Lathan, Grant and JWill, with Acuff and Derkack, Dortch as your 6th through 8th players has ZERO shot of competing over 3+ months against Power 4 competition...it's actually less than ZERO, but it's not going to happen with Martini, Ogbole absorbing 35 to 40 minutes of playing time per game up front.
