A scintilla of respect from the mothership

[tower912]

http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/109212/marquette-interrupts-the-ben-simmons-show

[Benny B]

Not sure if I get the same halftime show on WatchESPN, but the opening line was "one of the worst teams in the country" from the moderator.  At least the guys on the panel called him out, but seriously?  One of the worst in the country?  Come on, mouse.

[MomofMUltiples]

Newsflash: Marquette didn't win this game; LSU lost it because Ben Simmons didn't take all 51 shots.

Ok, we got a little credit at the end, I guess.

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

Not sure if I get the same halftime show on WatchESPN, but the opening line was "one of the worst teams in the country" from the moderator.  At least the guys on the panel called him out, but seriously?  One of the worst in the country?  Come on, mouse.

He said they looked like one of the worst teams in the country against Iowa. A bit of hyperbole, but can't really argue.

[BallBoy]

Newsflash: Marquette didn't win this game; LSU lost it because Ben Simmons didn't take all 51 shots.

Ok, we got a little credit at the end, I guess.

I think the point was more how can the best player on the team not take the last second shot in exchange for a long distance 3pt shoot.  They made the comparison to Lebron for the entire game and then said another aspect of Lebron's game that is similar is will to win.  MU won but LSU should have gotten a better last shot if not a make a loss on the other end. 

[Dr. Blackheart]

Simmons was 6-14 from in the paint with Henry and Luke in foul trouble most of the game.  Heck Sandy was guarding him for a good portion.   He got just about every call to,score 9 from the free thre line. If Simmons was going to do real damage, it was the long stretch with Luke out, but MU built and held its lead.

[warriorchick]

I think the point was more how can the best player on the team not take the last second shot in exchange for a long distance 3pt shoot.  They made the comparison to Lebron for the entire game and then said another aspect of Lebron's game that is similar is will to win.  MU won but LSU should have gotten a better last shot if not a make a loss on the other end.

I got Mom's sarcasm without the teal.  I guess you didn't.   

[BallBoy]

I got Mom's sarcasm without the teal.  I guess you didn't.   

It is an over exaggeration to demonstrate a sentiment that MU is disrespected on the national stage.  Its the same on every thread.  So and so (ESPN) doesn't respect MU.  If you take the MU glasses off, the story is why Simmons, best player on the floor, didn't take the last shot.  Simmons played a spectacular game and accounted for 35 of their 80 points yet at the end he passes up the last shot twice. 

I was replying to the "little brother" sentiment in the subject of the thread and all to often permeates the entire message board.

[MomofMUltiples]

It is an over exaggeration to demonstrate a sentiment that MU is disrespected on the national stage.  Its the same on every thread.  So and so (ESPN) doesn't respect MU.  If you take the MU glasses off, the story is why Simmons, best player on the floor, didn't take the last shot.  Simmons played a spectacular game and accounted for 35 of their 80 points yet at the end he passes up the last shot twice. 

I don't usually buy in to the "MU is disrespected" hype, but I really believe that throughout the commentary and in this article Marquette was treated as an afterthought. This was not about why Ben Simmons didn't take the last shot.  It was about why LSU lost.  Breaking down the paragraphs, they essentially make the following points:
1. Simmons' amazing stats were marred by the fact that LSU lost.  Why did they lose? Because:
2. Simmons did not take the last shot ("too unselfish")
3. LSU didn't give Simmons the ball enough.  Gosh, his teammates had the audacity to shoot 37 times while he only shot 14!
4. Oh, Marquette played a small role in LSU's loss. But they had 22 turnovers, so clearly this win was simply a case of Simmons' failure to take over the game.

Who knows why Simmons didn't take the last shot? Maybe he didn't think he had a good enough look. Maybe he thought a teammate had a better look.  Maybe, in the grand scheme of things, he's a freshman in the toughest college matchup he's had to date and he wasn't thinking clearly in the last seconds of the game (hey, it's been known to happen!).

This piece literally treats Marquette's win as merely a blemish on Ben Simmons' otherwise studly night. If that isn't disrespect, I don't know what is.

[BallBoy]

I don't usually buy in to the "MU is disrespected" hype, but I really believe that throughout the commentary and in this article Marquette was treated as an afterthought. This was not about why Ben Simmons didn't take the last shot.  It was about why LSU lost.  Breaking down the paragraphs, they essentially make the following points:
1. Simmons' amazing stats were marred by the fact that LSU lost.  Why did they lose? Because:
2. Simmons did not take the last shot ("too unselfish")
3. LSU didn't give Simmons the ball enough.  Gosh, his teammates had the audacity to shoot 37 times while he only shot 14!
4. Oh, Marquette played a small role in LSU's loss. But they had 22 turnovers, so clearly this win was simply a case of Simmons' failure to take over the game.

Who knows why Simmons didn't take the last shot? Maybe he didn't think he had a good enough look. Maybe he thought a teammate had a better look.  Maybe, in the grand scheme of things, he's a freshman in the toughest college matchup he's had to date and he wasn't thinking clearly in the last seconds of the game (hey, it's been known to happen!).

This piece literally treats Marquette's win as merely a blemish on Ben Simmons' otherwise studly night. If that isn't disrespect, I don't know what is.

Here is the teaser for the article
With all eyes on Ben Simmons, LSU's super freshman put up some impressive numbers, but Marquette came away with an 81-80 win.

The story going into the game was Ben Simmons' first true test.  He is considered the #1 pick in the next draft and people want to see him in his first nationally televised game.  MU just got blown out by 28 to Iowa at home.  Not much of a story.  If MU doesn't want to be an after thought, don't get blown out at home.  Go into the game undefeated with two good wins.

With 22TOs, MU didn't play a flawless game.  If you want respect, take the ball up the court under pressure.

As it relates to this story, again read Ben Simmons coming out party, he played great but they still lost why?:
1.  He should have taken the last shot but didn't.  They aren't going to call him out and say he peed down his leg.  He had a shot to win but he didn't take it.  See bolded above.
2.  It wasn't that they didn't give him the ball but they were taking bad shots.  Patteron, Blakeney, and Sampson were 4-19 from three and many of those were bad shots.  Quarterman had some big makes but he also suffered from heat check syndrome.  There is a player on the team who was taking control of the game but you settle for the bad three point shot.  How do you lose to a team you should have beaten...bad shots (and though not mentioned bad defense)?
3.  He states MU was a factor and MU had a good game plan and some players stepped up but it isn't everyday that a team with 22 TOs and 14-24 FTs (min. 4 missed front-ends), an ill-timed shot, etc. wins the game. 

When you mix a guy who should shoot but doesn't with players who do but shouldn't and a team that does just enough you get an opinion piece focused on what most general sports fans are curious about. 
 
Here is the game recap which is not the Simmons first test opinion piece. 

http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=400827731

The story for tomorrow's game could be which MU team shows up 1.  young team spanked by Iowa 2.  The hunger team lead by Luke and Henry.  That isn't disrespect but a valid POV.