RAPID REACTION - Michigan

[richthedentist]

What is a player supposed to bring to the table with 27 minutes of play....

A) Shooting.....1 of 4 from 3

B) Driving to the basket to score?? Non-existent

C) Driving to the basket to create ahot opportunities?? Non existent

D) crashing the boards for offensive rebounds?? Non existent

E) Good on ball defense.....?? Much better today, but that was a product of 2 stationary players in Golden and Wolf.....Wolf is very sound and understands how to playmake with a pass, which is relatively easy, if guarded by a smaller Martini.....Zach doesn't get any deflections on passes ke rebounds.

F) Zach took some vicious shots and elbows and drew an offensive foul......thats a plus for today.

On the other hand, Martini doesn't offer any other options fo score. He is a good FT shooter but doesn't drive to score, so that's not a factor.....

Can you run a high-low set with Zach Martini??? Not really, he doesn't offer the ability to play above the rim for a lob or dunk, so even with Wolf and Goldeb unable to recover or move, that's not an option.

Michigan was able to exploit Martinti and Sommerville on picks and switches and there's easy baskets given up because of it.

On the other hand, RU runs a high / low set play for Sommerville lobbing the pass to Grant, we get the layup once, but never go back to the set again, to get more points.....that is coaching malpractice, to sit Grant and Dortch, when you don't get any other productivity from Martini.

Its been 3 games since Bryce Dortch somehow starts to play and he is not going to shoot 3s.....which is fine, neither was Ogbole....BUT I got FIVE rebounds in 9 minutes of play from Dortch and 2 consecutive offensive rebounds on the same possession.

I'm just adding common sense to the equation....if Wolf and Golden are not mobile bigs and Dortch with literally no experience grabs 5 rebounds against 2 7 foot players in 9 minutes, what is Martini going to do at 6'6", against either player on the glass??

Dortch could have gotten 8 to 10 rebounds or something with a lob or dunk for a basket or 2, if he even played 18 minutes.

Maybe another 2 offensive rebounds addz some points. Dortch would not have any chance to guard Golden in the low post, but neither does Martini.

You need more than 3 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists in 27 minutes of play from anyone in a Power 5 game on the front line....Grant didn't play well at all today and still stumbled into 2 points and 3 rebounds in 12 minutes. If neither player is knocking down 3s, you just get more rebounding and defense if Martini has his minutes reduced to 10 or so.....that's 17 minutes of playing time that if you split with Dortch and Grant, I come up with more than 2 rebounds in 27 minutes....its probably 6 to 8 more if Grant and Dortch play.

I can say that I would have lobbied for Ogbole to play 18 minutes today and Zach Martini for 9, if we are carving up the 27 Martini played. In either equation, Ogbole if available, Grant and Dortch were clearly better options.

Agreed 100% you needed more Grant and Dortch AND ACUFF!! Acuff should have played 35 minutes; Dercack was all zeros for the first 20 minutes he was in an PJ Hayes really doesn't bring anything at all to the table

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Does this factor in defensive rebounding?

If no, adjust to downgrade Martini

Do you really truly believe that Martini is by far the best defender on the team?

That his defense is so valuable that it doesn't matter that he is bringing nothing else to the table?

All it says is when Martini is on the floor the opponent scores less. THAT IS FACT. We can debate why this is so. Martini is 20% of the team when on the floor so the 80% obviously impacts things.

As far as Martini actually being the best defender on the court? He probably is the smartest. Probably is most equipped to defend 1 thru 5 (harper when healthy might be in consideration along with Ace). Probably the best at making switches and communicating it. I WILL STOP THERE.

 

[richthedentist]

Dusty May basically said in the post game presser that he was allowing anyone but ACE beating him after he watched the Northwestern tape. Pike not getting ACE off of the 3 point line and into the paint or at the foul line , or pin downs to a 12-15 foot paint jumper , or pick and roll with JMike or Acuff were all coaching failures. Sometimes subtle small coaching adjustments are the difference between wins and losses. May would have let RU shoot 50 threes yesterday. We didn’t have to shoot them and not try to drive to get fouled or hit a mid range shot.

We don't make coaching adjustments on offense because we don't run an offense

 

[richthedentist]

All it says is when Martini is on the floor the opponent scores less. THAT IS FACT. We can debate why this is so. Martini is 20% of the team when on the floor so the 80% obviously impacts things.

As far as Martini actually being the best defender on the court? He probably is the smartest. Probably is most equipped to defend 1 thru 5. Probably the best at making switches and communicating it. I WILL STOP THERE.

Reference Princeton he kept switching onto Lee and got absolutely burned time after time in the 5-6 minutes of that game!!!

 

[seansherm]

Ace passing up the most wide wide open 3 on an inside out pass is definitely not the right basketball play. Not at alllll

It makes it worse when he's passing to a shooter who has been ice cold forever

If Ace takes and makes that 3, maybe he gets his rhythm and confidence going and starts going on a scoring streak

Even if I'd like to see him shoot that, I thought it was great to see Ace move the ball to an even more open guy. He's been doing a much better job of making the right play the last few games. If you don't give a ball to Martini in the short corner wide open, you never should give it to him.

 

[seansherm]

Reference Princeton he kept switching onto Lee and got absolutely burned time after time in the 5-6 minutes of that game!!!

That's Pike's D, doesn't require the guards to fight through, just to switch. Not Martini's fault he was getting switched onto someone he can't handle.

 

[goru7]

We don't make coaching adjustments on offense because we don't run an offense

We run an offense so stop it. Most of the country runs pick and roll and iso follows. What PIke doesn’t do enough of is pin downs and multiple motion screens where you get a back screen to a pin down and a guard or in our case it would be ACE coming around to get the ball. Ace could have done that and gotten 4-5 midrange shots in the paint just inside the foul line for a12-15 footer. Maybe if he hit a few mid range shots , seeing the ball go in the basket , that his 3 point shot suddenly is in rhythm again. Disappointed it wasn’t even tried

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Reference Princeton he kept switching onto Lee and got absolutely burned time after time in the 5-6 minutes of that game!!!

Are we sure about this? What was the actual success rate? Was the appropriate help there.

My memory, which is fsr from impeccable, says there were some stops thrown in there

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Even if I'd like to see him shoot that, I thought it was great to see Ace move the ball to an even more open guy. He's been doing a much better job of making the right play the last few games. If you don't give a ball to Martini in the short corner wide open, you never should give it to him.

I agree 100%. Was very happy to see this. Zach needs to knock it down

 

[goru7]

That's Pike's D, doesn't require the guards to fight through, just to switch. Not Martini's fault he was getting switched onto someone he can't handle.

Combination. JMike has been terrible all year at fighting thru screens. JMike didn’t even try hard to fight over the screen. That is on Pike but also on the player too. His defense has been very subpar until the last game or so. Michigan was by far his best effort at putting pressure on the ball so they couldn’t get into their sets and caused some turnovers. JMike was not being switched to another player easily last night. Need to see that every night.