Our team is playing very tough defense but we definitely need shooters that can score. I think next year might be very close to this year but that 2018 could be much better if we can land Naz Reid and a couple of other really good recruits. If we ever bring in both Doucoure and Reid we might be on our way. The Mathis kid from Baltimore seems like he could be a great addition as well. Pikiell and his staff are recruiting harder than any RU staff has ever done. I hope many of our fans do not get down on our team for our remaining games this season or next season. Most said they would be happy to see a strong effort but now I see too many people wanting instant satisfaction. We knew this season would be difficult. We need to look at the big picture. We are so much better on defense & rebounding than last year.
I think Baker and Mensah can help at PG next year and Corey can play more 2G backed up by Johnson and Williams. We might play 3 guards often next season. I think Eugene needs to play more minutes this season and he can be a bigger contributor next season. I might be wrong but I think Bullock just might see some minutes next year at SF. Thiam needs to find his condidence again from three. The staff is working hard. I hope that Doucoure does reclassify as some have speculated as we will need another center for next season. I firmly believe that as hard as our staff is working they will bring in four good player for the 2018 class. Just "Stay the Course" please. Be patient. Too many of our fans are becoming too critical. I see a team working hard every game. Hopefully there will be some rewards down the road.
Knights, really frustrating game last night. Up 28-19 withthe ball with 1.44 to play in the first half after Nigel hits 2 from the line , then back to back possessions allowing offensive rebounds , 2 missed bad shots by Nigel and Corey and then COREY's questionable block at the buzzer , all changed the complexion of the game. Instead of taking a double digit lead or at least 9 point lead into the half , 28-25 lead, seemed minuscule considering how we dominated the half. Thought that was the turning point of the game. Lack of shooting continues to kill us, whether it is open shots, or our bigs not strong enough to go up and dunk or be fouled and instead blocked at the rim, or timely foul shooting. We are close but lacking consistent scorers . Corey's been scoring more, Nigel leads us in scoring , but Mike has slumped . Deshawn has stepped up last 2 games but prior to that not so much. We cannot get the whole team clicking again and cannot afford off shooting nights from Nigel or Mike if we are going to win these games.
So many positives but again any team in this league not scoring between 65-70 will lose.
Some of the random observations:
1) Thought our defense for the first 18 minutes of the first half was as good as possible. Nigel's tremendous pressure on Macintosh , disrupting Northwestern's sets were outstanding . Collins in his post game said the same thing ;
2) Thought we tired in the second half, and thought COACH could have switched defenses , switch to zone, or a trap because Northwestern got into a rhythm and started posting Law down low. Also thought he waited too long to press full court. I think Coach has to switch up defenses more because as the game progresses teams are getting into rhythm. Michigan State ran high pick and roll for 7 straight possessions for layups or dunks. Coach should have switched that game and last night. I think our length makes our press effective and we need a way to get another 6-10 points on offense and this seems the best way.
3) Thought on the road trip to Iowa and the Wisconsin game, we spaced the floor more letting our guards break down their guards and setting up for good shots. Last night, especially in the second half our spacing was too tight allowing Northwestern to collapse on a Corey and Nigel too easily. We failed to get the ball down low enough to D Shawn or to CJ on the block. Really disappointed in CJ missing a lot down low in the first half or on followups.
4) The shooting woes as everyone knows are killing us. Another tough game for Mike , 2-8, 0-3 from three and Nigel 2-14, and 0-5 from three. We are the worst in the Big 10 averaging 4.8 threes. If we just make 4instead of 1, we likely win last night . A little disturbing was Coach's post game almost admission that he doesn't want us taking more than 10 threes a game( I think on the heels of too many against Penn State and not good from there), which is not a winning formula. It has appeared the guys since Penn State are very tentative , especially early in the shot clock, and are passing up good open looks for forced shots later in the clock. Laurent and now Issa are not even trying to shoot from three and it is hurting us badly. If we got 10 points from them a game , we likely win a few more games. I have said repeatedly that if we hit 6 three pointers a game we likely win 6-8 conference games . Now we have had a few games not hitting even 4-5 per game and it is costing us games. I really think we have to make a conscious effort to go inside / out to get Mike or Nigel or Corey or Issa in rhythm. We are attacking the rim but not under control or not using our bodies to draw more fouls.
Really was a body blow losing to Northwestern last night but we have to continue to keep the faith and hope the entire team can play well on a few nights instead of only 1or 2 different guys every night.
