MUScoop
MUScoop => Hangin' at the Al => Topic started by: JWags85 on November 04, 2021, 08:02:12 PM
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I’m doing this at halftime cause Marquette will likely win by 50 and the second half will likely be a disjointed mess for a variety of reasons.
As I said in the game thread, this team looks entirely different. Very long, much more active on both ends.
Offensively the main difference is movement without the ball. A refreshing lack of standing around
Defensively, picking up 3/4 court with pressure that maintains in the front court. There is pressure up top, often from the back or weak side from help defense. Once in the lane, the approach seems to be wait back and then collapse. Multiple blocks from players being swallowed up once they got deep.
As for players:
Lewis: Put on a good amount of weight. He appears a bit slower, but once he’s moving but with the ball he’s fluid. He’s clearly the Man for now.
Kolek: At the risk of stating the obvious, he reminds me of the Nova PGs, in the way handles the ball, passes, moves. Great vision nice stroke.
Kuath: Dude is fearless. Very athletic, multiple times went at the rim without abandon. He’s still very active and an asset defensively.
Mitchell/Jones: Look fluid and confident for freshmen. Mitchell has great instincts and is just in the right spots. Jones is super smooth and has an eye for the basket
OMP: super raw but man he has exciting tools and potential
Oso: still super raw as well but he’s been everywhere and is really long
Ellis: I’m still excited about him and he has great size but he’s been HORRID. Kind of as reported at practice. Just tentative, overthinking, and playing reckless
Bowie State is awful so it’s hard to tell anything but there is a clear change in culture and identity. Some fun pieces. At the very least, there is no way you could say “more of the same”
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Ty JWags. I think we're on a good path even though we obviously can't glean much from playing Bowie St.
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Thank you!
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Overall quicks/speed of our team? 8/10?
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Thanks for the analysis.
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Overall quicks/speed of our team? 8/10?
Quicker than fast id say. Need to see more from Mitchell and Jones, they seem the quickest. OMP is a bit.
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Excited to watch these guys (on TV) next week.
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Oh I forgot, Shaka wearing a shirt so long it could be a smock. The anti-Buzz.
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Thanks for the summary.
But…movement without the ball? What’s that? Won’t we get tired?
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Thanks for the info, Wags.
I'm just so psyched we're done with the former regime.
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Thanks for the info, Wags.
I'm just so psyched we're done with the former regime.
Yes. I think psychologically fans are in a much better state of mind. Regardless of what happens record-wise this season.
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Thanks, JWags!
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Thanks for the info, Wags.
I'm just so psyched we're done with the former regime.
I think MU was a bit surprised how truly fed up fans were until they made the move.
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Feels like we're gonna go where Kolek and to some degree Mitchell go. Came away super impressed with Kolek. Seems to have that "make your team better" x factor. The pass to Oso was a thing of beauty.
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I think MU was a bit surprised how truly fed up fans were until they made the move.
That may be because a lot of us, me included, wanted to believe that the coaching might finally match the recruiting. I turned, vehemently, against Wojo last year. As did many of us.
But forget all that, this is a "WAYY To Early Impressions" thread, and I'm enthusiastic yet realistic about this year. I expect many, many ups and downs. Tonight was a glimpse (even via radio) that showed both. Against a weak opponent that allowed MU to thrive. Yum.
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Feels like we're gonna go where Kolek and to some degree Mitchell go. Came away super impressed with Kolek. Seems to have that "make your team better" x factor. The pass to Oso was a thing of beauty.
Kolek impressed me the most. He is tough. And nothing he did was like “oh well it’s a bad opponent”. He shot well, saw the floor, made the right passes, filled lanes on D. He’s gonna be a real asset.
Easy to see why Mitchell was Mr BB in PA. I think he’s gonna be a better version of what they used to get from a healthy Greg Elliott off the bench in his younger years
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Kolek impressed me the most. He is tough. And nothing he did was like “oh well it’s a bad opponent”. He shot well, saw the floor, made the right passes, filled lanes on D. He’s gonna be a real asset.
Easy to see why Mitchell was Mr BB in PA. I think he’s gonna be a better version of what they used to get from a healthy Greg Elliott off the bench in his younger years
Mitchell's handles and strength?
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Too early against too poor of an opponent to judge anything. Biggest takeaway is that is was fun to be back at the forum in person.
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Kolek is going to be the glue for this team, IMO. He is going to create a lot of easy looks. Should help us get to 60ppg
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Any concerns until Nov 15th?
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Muggsy
My only concern, I need 8 good tickets for the 15th.
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Any concerns until Nov 15th?
Hopefully not! Even the stats sites that aren't favorable to MU (going < .500) have them winning the next 2 games *relatively* easily (-17 to SIUe, -12 to New Hampshire).
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I think the thing I liked the most was seeing the offense spread out without the pointless weaving 30 feet from the basket.
I was surprised that they hoisted up so many early threes, but maybe that was just because the defense backed up and left that open.
Also liked the effort to get the ball and get it up court quickly.
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I think people are sleeping on OMP a bit...wouldn't surprise me if he was 2 or 3 on the team in scoring.
Liked what I saw from Kam...similar to the scrimmages.
Kur is going to struggle to finish anything other than a dunk...but lots to like about him from rebounding, block shots, clogging the lane, running the court, etc.
Going to need Morsell to give us something on offense.
Tyler was good...though he was better today than in the scrimmage. Not sure how much he'll be able to do against BE competiton off the dribble.
Oso is very active on defense and the glass...again not much on offense.
Greg...WTF. Give Shaka credit for setting a precedence.
I think MU will struggle to score...especially to get any bench scoring.
Having Shaka on the bench and not having to watch a Wojo coached team...priceless.
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I like this team so much more than last year’s team. Defense, effort, length, depth. Honestly don’t believe there will be drop off at all in the backcourt. Great job by coach Smart in restocking the shelf in year 1.
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It sounds like the major worry is this team getting buckets. Can we get three double digit scorers? Maybe someone on the perimeter emerges? In our half-court offense where are options one and two?
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As for players:
Lewis: Put on a good amount of weight. He appears a bit slower, but once he’s moving but with the ball he’s fluid. He’s clearly the Man for now.
I was told from someone directly affiliated with the team that JLew has dropped over 20 Lbs from his playing weight last year and worked extremely hard on his body all off-season to get quicker and in peak shape.
It was apparent to me at the STH practice and tonight that his body is more defined than last year.
Completely disagree that he put on weight and is slower this year. He is more muscular but not slower.
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I think people are sleeping on OMP a bit...wouldn't surprise me if he was 2 or 3 on the team in scoring.
If that is the case, he either takes a HUGE leap, or this is a terrible team. I really like OMP and think his ceiling is really high. He's got the tools, but he's just raw and still doesn't seem to know how to best use his body yet.
I was told from someone directly affiliated with the team that JLew has dropped over 20 Lbs from his playing weight last year and worked extremely hard on his body all off-season to get quicker and in peak shape.
It was apparent to me at the STH practice and tonight that his body is more defined than last year.
Completely disagree that he put on weight and is slower this year. He is more muscular but not slower.
I didn't mean he put on weight and looked fat, but he's noticeably bigger. That could be tons of muscle and definition, but he was definitely lankier last year.
And I said he appeared slower until he moved with the ball. I don't think he looked slow at all in actual action, but he just appeared bigger in size and a bit heavier of foot. I didn't mean it as a negative at all cause he did a lot nice tonight.
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Mitchell was the most impressive to me. Kolek a close second. Mitchell is an absolutely pest defensively and has some great speed and explosion. Makes everyone better.
Individual defense is great. Team defense there are still some lapses. There were a lot of times that Bowie state was left with open looks that they either didn't make or didn't take. A D1 team would have taken all those open shots and a Big East team would have made most of them.
We are very good when we can push the ball, which we attempt to do every change we get. When it gets into the halfcourt offense...you can see what they are trying to do but they aren't executing at a high level yet. More than a few miscommunications that led to careless turnovers.
Excited to see how they look against a D1 team on Tuesday! One thing I can say with certainty is that we won't be boring to watch!
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Thanks Wags, TAMU and others for sharing your observations.
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Some empty calories tonight, for sure. Halfcourt offense got them some good looks they just missed. On defense they did a decent job of staying connected, making the right switches, but the halfcourt zone looks were pretty rough at times in the second half.
The smarter basketball minds will have to correct me if I'm way off... but the zone press look they showed tonight, while exciting, could be a real issue if Kur is unavailable. He covered up some gaps that BSU found fairly easily (when they didn't turn it over).
In terms of the players... I really loved what Kolek and Mitchell did. Both read the game well and made good decisions. Kolek's vision and passing ability surprised me.
But overall... Man, that was fun. The ball moved. They played with great energy and enthusiasm. It was exciting to watch. And it'll be great for Shaka and staff, since there will be plenty of teachable moments on film.
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Can they stop at scoring 59 and save points for future games?
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If that is the case, he either takes a HUGE leap, or this is a terrible team. I really like OMP and think his ceiling is really high. He's got the tools, but he's just raw and still doesn't seem to know how to best use his body yet.
Good size, a nice stroke, and a year's experience at Clemson. I think he and JL are the only two players that can consistently hit from 3 but also get to the rim and finish. We'll see...he played really well in the scrimmage, which was obviously against better talent. I do think MU will have issues scoring this year. Not sure what Shaka had planned for GE but his absence likely hurts in the scoring category as well.
JL has put serious work in on his game. Euro step, improved 3 ball, etc... He's easily their best option on offense.
Did I mention how great it was to have Shaka on the sidelines and not Wojo.
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Good size, a nice stroke, and a year's experience at Clemson. I think he and JL are the only two players that can consistently hit from 3 but also get to the rim and finish. We'll see...he played really well in the scrimmage, which was obviously against better talent. I do think MU will have issues scoring this year. Not sure what Shaka had planned for GE but his absence likely hurts in the scoring category as well.
JL has put serious work in on his game. Euro step, improved 3 ball, etc... He's easily their best option on offense.
Did I mention how great it was to have Shaka on the sidelines and not Wojo.
It's a concern if we cannot get consistent scoring from our backcourt. We need our top four/five perimeter players to net somewhere close to the 40 ppg number imo. It sounds like this could be a challenge and an issue. Can either Kolek or Morsell drop 12 to 14 ppg?
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Just one exhibition game vs poor opponent but love the way Kuath plays. Hope he continues to disprove the Theo theory that rebounding and blocking shots must be mutually exclusive
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Did Joplin play?
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Yes.
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Did Joplin play?
Yes, looked very much like a freshman but he's got good size and wasn't completely lost out there.
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Could have broken the hundo mark but the walk ons couldn't get it in on the last possession. Cameron Brown had an open 3 in the corner and missed, Kennedy got the rebound but couldn't make the putback go in, Joplin (IIRC) got the board and kicked to an open Carney on the wing for a three and it missed. Was really hoping that they would get their bucket
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Oh I forgot, Shaka wearing a shirt so long it could be a smock. The anti-Buzz.
Was it tucked in?
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And it'll be great for Shaka and staff, since there will be plenty of teachable moments on film.
there is no film
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Is there a box score anywhere?
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Is there a box score anywhere?
https://gomarquette.com/sports/mens-basketball/stats/2021-22/bowie-state-exhibition-/boxscore/9061
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I take nothing from this game
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MU did well in the most important statistical category, FT%.
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I take nothing from this game
Awesome, thanks for the input!
Much more fun to quibble about hypotheticals or repeat the same stale tropes rather than discuss actual on the court play with a hefty grain of salt (which everyone here has clearly noted)
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14-41 from 3. Mostly open looks.
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It's a concern if we cannot get consistent scoring from our backcourt. We need our top four/five perimeter players to net somewhere close to the 40 ppg number imo. It sounds like this could be a challenge and an issue. Can either Kolek or Morsell drop 12 to 14 ppg?
Morsell played 4 years at Maryland with pretty similar numbers in years 1-4...9 ppg.
I didn't see Kolek get to the rim once last night against crap competition. He'll hit the open 3...not sure if he can score inside the arc.
I think they will play 4 out, and at times, 5 out. I see OMP scoring for us...but others don't agree with that.
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I take nothing from this game
I said something similar to my teenager who followed with, well it sure is nice to crush the teams that we are supposed to crush. Sure beats only winning by ten or even losing.
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Was it tucked in?
No tuck
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Oh I forgot, Shaka wearing a shirt so long it could be a smock. The anti-Buzz.
A nod to Crean's long ties perhaps? Is Shaka subtly honoring our history?
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My take away theme is "velocity".
Shaka employed a lot of different line-ups to start, all very different, which provides him situational flexibility. He will go deep into his bench.
Next was defense. He showed many different schemes and looks. All with high energy to be applied in the fluidity of the game. I was a bit surprised with so many looks this early (there is a lot to clean up), but I am excited that a MU team will play a "stop" pressure defense this season.
So if velocity is speed over time, this game achieved its goal. A deep bench who consistently play with high energy. The previous regime would go (too often) many possessions without stops or many games in a row without wins or start second halves with long opponent runs.
Offense: We'll see after Illinois.
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Next was defense. He showed many different schemes and looks. All with high energy to be applied in the fluidity of the game. I was a bit surprised with so many looks this early (there is a lot to clean up), but I am excited that a MU team will play a "stop" pressure defense this season.
Offense: We'll see after Illinois.
I was a little surprised as well, but I guess you want to see how it looks against different uniforms. The halfcourt zone looked bad. Saw a variety of ball screen coverages based on personnel, which I don't know if we saw in the last 7 years. They did well with those. Kuath chased at the perimeter more than I'd like on occasion. Good teams would punish that.
In the press defense I couldn't tell if it was meant to be a 1-2-1-1 like he played at VCU, or a 1-2-2. Either way, they're gonna have to tighten some things up. It forced turnovers, but there were some jailbreaks as well. Kur snuffed a few out.
Agree on the offense. They got away with some passes that would have been pick sixes against HM opposition. Got some good looks, moved it well. I'd zone the crap out of MU, personally. Outside of Kolek none of them are terribly reliable outside shooters. Only hunted mismatches a few times with Justin and O-Max.
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Like others, I'm excited that defense will be key.
Regarding Shaka's goal of 32 deflections/game, this was interesting:
During the game a team manager held up a sign with the number of deflections during every timeout.
The Golden Eagles far surpassed the expected number.
"We had 54 deflections," Smart said. "Which is, I think, the highest number I've ever had.
"Now, it is an exhibition game against a Division II team, so we'll see how many deflections we have on Tuesday. Our goal is 32, so anytime our guys are that active it really affects the defensive end and the offensive end for us."
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Very nice student turnout last night. Let's hope that continues.
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Very nice student turnout last night. Let's hope that continues.
My niece told me since they game wasn't streamed they had to go!
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My niece told me since they game wasn't streamed they had to go!
Yet, I'm willing to bet most students wouldn't have by the book stream.
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My niece told me since they game wasn't streamed they had to go!
All the Vesties didn't show as there was no parking.
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I looked at the box score and noticed that Kam Jones is a chucker.
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It will be odd to lose games this year due to lack of scoring, but that is what I expect, especially if Morsell isn't able to score consistently. We are going to need him to be a scoring threat as others on the floor won't be scoring threats already. Can't have someone playing a guard or SF position who doesn't score.
Still the energy on the floor should make it exciting and result in some fan engagement that has been missing. Having some defensive take aways and stops and the pushing the ball in transition will be nice. Intense energy like some of Buzz's teams will be nice.
I really liked the Cubby/Lazar team with the great ball movement. It will be nice to see constant effort and movement like that team (not at that level, I realize, and not with the same ability to shoot the 3, but still the effort and movement). And, my favorite all time MU player is Diener. Have a guy (Kolek) with a little bit of Diener in him will be fun to watch. It has been a while, a gamer. Everyone always underestimated Diener. Even when he had proven himself, it was well how good will he be without Wade etc. He's too small. He's too slow, etc. He was just a gamer. I hope for some version of that from Kolek, even if not at the same level. We shall see.
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I looked at the box score and noticed that Kam Jones is a chucker.
Shaka "the only time i pulled Kam was when he passed up an open shot."
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https://gomarquette.com/sports/mens-basketball/stats/2021-22/bowie-state-exhibition-/boxscore/9061
Thank you.
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Oh I forgot, Shaka wearing a shirt so long it could be a smock. The anti-Buzz.
the days of coaches wearing suits is going away after last year. I just hope he doesn't wear a garbage bag like Huggins.
Ralph Willard not a fan of the casual dress but when Jay Wright says it's good, the other coaches listen: https://www.nj.com/setonhall/2021/11/seton-halls-willard-wants-to-wear-suits-but-jay-wright-big-east-coaches-are-leaning-toward-casual-dress.html
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Too early against too poor of an opponent to judge anything. Biggest takeaway is that is was fun to be back at the forum in person.
boooooooooo
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We should reserve judgement for at least 5 years.
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the days of coaches wearing suits is going away after last year. I just hope he doesn't wear a garbage bag like Huggins.
Ralph Willard not a fan of the casual dress but when Jay Wright says it's good, the other coaches listen: https://www.nj.com/setonhall/2021/11/seton-halls-willard-wants-to-wear-suits-but-jay-wright-big-east-coaches-are-leaning-toward-casual-dress.html
Is Ralph still alive?
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Is Ralph still alive?
Don’t know about Ralph Willard but Fred Willard died.
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Don’t know about Ralph Willard but Fred Willard died.
Ditto Willard Scott.
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Thoughts...
- Offense will be a challenge, but 72 of the 74 shots were either threes or twos in the paint. Those are high percentage shots. Both mid-range shots were missed, which will help Nevada Smith reinforce the threes and dunks/layups offensive plan. I don't think this is a great offensive team, but a great offensive strategy will minimize their deficiencies.
- The defensive intensity was something else. Totally different than Wojo. They were still pressuring and diving with a 40+ point lead. I saw Joplin go to the floor with about 4 minutes left. Once they get the team concepts, they'll be really good.
- Kur Kuath is a difference maker. Uses his length well, smart shot blocker, tries to dunk everything. He's never averaged more than 17 minutes, but he platooned with a very good Brady Manek last year. I'm hoping he can average 25 mpg. In games where he played 25+ mpg, Kuath averaged 9.2 ppg/4.7 rpg/2.5 bpg with 4/6 games at a 119 ORtg or better.
- The most ready freshmen on this team are Wojo's recruits. Both Mitchell & Jones look like day one contributors. Joplin, Ellis, & Itejere (RS) aren't there yet.
- O-Max needs to find consistency. He was average at best last night after being great in the open practice. He started, so I assume he is at least showing flashes in practice too.
- This team is fun to watch. The quick inbounds, constantly looking for a good shot, pushing the pace, creating turnovers, this team plays the modern game, just need the experience and talent to deliver results.
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- Offense will be a challenge, but 72 of the 74 shots were either threes or twos in the paint. Those are high percentage shots. Both mid-range shots were missed, which will help Nevada Smith reinforce the threes and dunks/layups offensive plan. I don't think this is a great offensive team, but a great offensive strategy will minimize their deficiencies.
Great observations, but this one needs a call out. Many of us may be sleeping on MU’s offense, but the Nevada Smith NBA philosophy, focused on efficiency, will be interesting to see play out. The fact that only two of 74 shots were mid-range against a cupcake where garbage time can get sloppy, shows the focus of the coaching staff on efficiency. Shaka was not pleased with 13 turnovers, but MU had only four after halftime once the nerves settled down.
This is something to track as the opponents get better in November. We mostly all wanted a modern day coaching staff focused analytics and efficiency, and we got it. Let’s see if it’s a difference maker.
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I looked at the box score and noticed that Kam Jones is a chucker.
Write a letter
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I thought I read/heard during the radio broadcast that MU never once fed the post. Is this accurate?
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I thought I read/heard during the radio broadcast that MU never once fed the post. Is this accurate?
Seriously? There may be some concerns in our h-c offense.
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I thought I read/heard during the radio broadcast that MU never once fed the post. Is this accurate?
Not a priority unless a dunk
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I thought I read/heard during the radio broadcast that MU never once fed the post. Is this accurate?
Hopefully.
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Thoughts...
- Offense will be a challenge, but 72 of the 74 shots were either threes or twos in the paint. Those are high percentage shots. Both mid-range shots were missed, which will help Nevada Smith reinforce the threes and dunks/layups offensive plan. I don't think this is a great offensive team, but a great offensive strategy will minimize their deficiencies.[/color]
- The defensive intensity was something else. Totally different than Wojo. They were still pressuring and diving with a 40+ point lead. I saw Joplin go to the floor with about 4 minutes left. Once they get the team concepts, they'll be really good.
- Kur Kuath is a difference maker. Uses his length well, smart shot blocker, tries to dunk everything. He's never averaged more than 17 minutes, but he platooned with a very good Brady Manek last year. I'm hoping he can average 25 mpg. In games where he played 25+ mpg, Kuath averaged 9.2 ppg/4.7 rpg/2.5 bpg with 4/6 games at a 119 ORtg or better.
- The most ready freshmen on this team are Wojo's recruits. Both Mitchell & Jones look like day one contributors. Joplin, Ellis, & Itejere (RS) aren't there yet.
- O-Max needs to find consistency. He was average at best last night after being great in the open practice. He started, so I assume he is at least showing flashes in practice too.
- This team is fun to watch. The quick inbounds, constantly looking for a good shot, pushing the pace, creating turnovers, this team plays the modern game, just need the experience and talent to deliver results.
I realize we played a D2 team, but scoring 90+ points does not appear to be a team that is offensively challenged; or is it that our perimeter game needs to improve. I hope Kolek can find his shot.
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Well, 5 of 8 from downtown isn't too shabby.
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I realize we played a D2 team, but scoring 90+ points does not appear to be a team that is offensively challenged; or is it that our perimeter game needs to improve. I hope Kolek can find his shot.
That game was about getting on the court and getting a sense of each other while competing against players who aren't your teammates.
Statistically and artistically, nothing that happened in the game matters.
I'm glad they got to run around and play some hoops. And I'm glad nobody got hurt.
Reality starts tomorrow night. For that matter, it might be 2 weeks -- after Illinois and Charleston -- till we get a sense of whether this team can be any good. And even then, I like to think this will be a team that improves as the season goes along.
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That game was about getting on the court and getting a sense of each other while competing against players who aren't your teammates.
Statistically and artistically, nothing that happened in the game matters.
I'm glad they got to run around and play some hoops. And I'm glad nobody got hurt.
Reality starts tomorrow night. For that matter, it might be 2 weeks -- after Illinois and Charleston -- till we get a sense of whether this team can be any good. And even then, I like to think this will be a team that improves as the season goes along.
Absolutely! I was just wondering why Tower thinks the team will be offensively challenged base on what he saw in that game.
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I thought I read/heard during the radio broadcast that MU never once fed the post. Is this accurate?
Not entirely accurate. But they got so much off of transition it was hard to tell what they are gonna do in the halfcourt.
That said, with guys like Lewis and O-Max, they should be actively hunting switches and getting those dudes posted up on smaller guards.
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Absolutely! I was just wondering why Tower thinks the team will be offensively challenged base on what he saw in that game.
Didn't 'see' the game. Bowie state was a macaroon. Not even a cupcake, just higher sugar content.
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Not entirely accurate. But they got so much off of transition it was hard to tell what they are gonna do in the halfcourt.
That said, with guys like Lewis and O-Max, they should be actively hunting switches and getting those dudes posted up on smaller guards.
I've seen MU play bully ball a few times with different players...not necessarily looking to post up...but to get points in the paint with your back to the basket. They've done it out of the high post or in isolation. As someone referenced it will be 3's and lay-ups/paint points...which makes perfect sense. A lot is being made of Kolek being more than just a shooter and being able to make plays with the ball in his hands. IMHO, if he can do this against BE level talent MU will exceed expectations. I always love watching scrimmages because guys know how to defend their teammates (watching Wade in practices/scrimmages was unreal). Kolek struggled a bit in the scrimmage. That could have been a bad day, or it could be a sign as to what is going to happen when he plays against teams that are well prepared for him/MU and athletic. I think we know what we have in Lewis, Morsell, and Kuath...if OMP and Kolek have a strong year...we're in good shape. Greg should eventually give us some additional 3pt shooting...the freshmen and Oso need to be "stars in their roles."
Having a coach that doesn't call for an intentional foul a the end of the game when the score is tied should be icing on the cake... Can't wait for tomorrow night!
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I've seen MU play bully ball a few times with different players...not necessarily looking to post up...but to get points in the paint with your back to the basket. They've done it out of the high post or in isolation. As someone referenced it will be 3's and lay-ups/paint points...which makes perfect sense. A lot is being made of Kolek being more than just a shooter and being able to make plays with the ball in his hands. IMHO, if he can do this against BE level talent MU will exceed expectations. I always love watching scrimmages because guys know how to defend their teammates (watching Wade in practices/scrimmages was unreal). Kolek struggled a bit in the scrimmage. That could have been a bad day, or it could be a sign as to what is going to happen when he plays against teams that are well prepared for him/MU and athletic. I think we know what we have in Lewis, Morsell, and Kuath...if OMP and Kolek have a strong year...we're in good shape. Greg should eventually give us some additional 3pt shooting...the freshmen and Oso need to be "stars in their roles."
Having a coach that doesn't call for an intentional foul a the end of the game when the score is tied should be icing on the cake... Can't wait for tomorrow night!
Good stuff. And I laughed at your reference to the intentional foul ... even if it wasn't very funny at the time!
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I realize we played a D2 team, but scoring 90+ points does not appear to be a team that is offensively challenged; or is it that our perimeter game needs to improve. I hope Kolek can find his shot.
brew, not tower ;)
I don't think it will be nearly as easy to do what we did last week against legit competition. Strictly from an offensive standpoint, there were a number of times we bullied them going inside, either with physical force or blow-by speed. That will be a lot harder against teams that have D1 strength and quickness. While a number of players have some solid offensive attributes (Kolek can shoot, Morsell can drive, etc) I'm not sure anyone other than maybe Justin Lewis has a versatile offensive package that will make them tough for other D1 defenses to guard.
With the two I mentioned above, if you know Kolek is trying to get free at the arc, or you know Morsell is going to be doing everything he can to get inside, that makes it easier to guard them than someone with a diverse skillset. That's why Markus Howard was so amazing. He could hit the spot-up three, create space with the step-back, blow by you to the rim, or pull up and hit the mid-range. While Markus was a generational scorer, I think this team will be an easier scout for D1 teams and until these guys prove their versatility, offense will be a challenge.
I do think that limiting them to high percentage looks (the 72/74 shots being paint or threes is encouraging) should help the offense along, but right now you know what pretty much every Marquette player is going to try to do on each possession, outside of Lewis and maybe Mitchell and Jones.
I also think it's worth looking at the 16 steals, 35 points off turnovers, and 41 points on the fast break. D1 teams aren't going to give us that many easy opportunities most nights, so a lot of the defense-to-offense will be more difficult to come by. We will need to be better in the half-court if we are going to have offensive consistency. On the plus side, in the past 11 years, Shaka has had a top-100 offense 8 times. 7 of those 8 were NCAA Tournament teams and the outlier won the NIT. So if we can manage a top-100 offense, there seems to be a decent chance we will keep playing after the Big East Tournament is over. But personally, I think the biggest thing to watch with this team is the offense. I don't expect much, but if they can be top-100 in adjusted efficiency along with meeting Shaka's annual top-40 defense, we'll be pretty good.
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brew, not tower ;)
I don't think it will be nearly as easy to do what we did last week against legit competition. Strictly from an offensive standpoint, there were a number of times we bullied them going inside, either with physical force or blow-by speed. That will be a lot harder against teams that have D1 strength and quickness. While a number of players have some solid offensive attributes (Kolek can shoot, Morsell can drive, etc) I'm not sure anyone other than maybe Justin Lewis has a versatile offensive package that will make them tough for other D1 defenses to guard.
With the two I mentioned above, if you know Kolek is trying to get free at the arc, or you know Morsell is going to be doing everything he can to get inside, that makes it easier to guard them than someone with a diverse skillset. That's why Markus Howard was so amazing. He could hit the spot-up three, create space with the step-back, blow by you to the rim, or pull up and hit the mid-range. While Markus was a generational scorer, I think this team will be an easier scout for D1 teams and until these guys prove their versatility, offense will be a challenge.
I do think that limiting them to high percentage looks (the 72/74 shots being paint or threes is encouraging) should help the offense along, but right now you know what pretty much every Marquette player is going to try to do on each possession, outside of Lewis and maybe Mitchell and Jones.
I also think it's worth looking at the 16 steals, 35 points off turnovers, and 41 points on the fast break. D1 teams aren't going to give us that many easy opportunities most nights, so a lot of the defense-to-offense will be more difficult to come by. We will need to be better in the half-court if we are going to have offensive consistency. On the plus side, in the past 11 years, Shaka has had a top-100 offense 8 times. 7 of those 8 were NCAA Tournament teams and the outlier won the NIT. So if we can manage a top-100 offense, there seems to be a decent chance we will keep playing after the Big East Tournament is over. But personally, I think the biggest thing to watch with this team is the offense. I don't expect much, but if they can be top-100 in adjusted efficiency along with meeting Shaka's annual top-40 defense, we'll be pretty good.
Outstanding, thorough look. Thanks, brewski.
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brew, not tower ;)
I don't think it will be nearly as easy to do what we did last week against legit competition. Strictly from an offensive standpoint, there were a number of times we bullied them going inside, either with physical force or blow-by speed. That will be a lot harder against teams that have D1 strength and quickness. While a number of players have some solid offensive attributes (Kolek can shoot, Morsell can drive, etc) I'm not sure anyone other than maybe Justin Lewis has a versatile offensive package that will make them tough for other D1 defenses to guard.
With the two I mentioned above, if you know Kolek is trying to get free at the arc, or you know Morsell is going to be doing everything he can to get inside, that makes it easier to guard them than someone with a diverse skillset. That's why Markus Howard was so amazing. He could hit the spot-up three, create space with the step-back, blow by you to the rim, or pull up and hit the mid-range. While Markus was a generational scorer, I think this team will be an easier scout for D1 teams and until these guys prove their versatility, offense will be a challenge.
I do think that limiting them to high percentage looks (the 72/74 shots being paint or threes is encouraging) should help the offense along, but right now you know what pretty much every Marquette player is going to try to do on each possession, outside of Lewis and maybe Mitchell and Jones.
I also think it's worth looking at the 16 steals, 35 points off turnovers, and 41 points on the fast break. D1 teams aren't going to give us that many easy opportunities most nights, so a lot of the defense-to-offense will be more difficult to come by. We will need to be better in the half-court if we are going to have offensive consistency. On the plus side, in the past 11 years, Shaka has had a top-100 offense 8 times. 7 of those 8 were NCAA Tournament teams and the outlier won the NIT. So if we can manage a top-100 offense, there seems to be a decent chance we will keep playing after the Big East Tournament is over. But personally, I think the biggest thing to watch with this team is the offense. I don't expect much, but if they can be top-100 in adjusted efficiency along with meeting Shaka's annual top-40 defense, we'll be pretty good.
While individual players on this team may be easier to defend than a Markus Howard (duh, the guy was literally the best scorer in the history of the best basketball conference ever created), having a team concept on offense should help offset some of the "specialization" of the individual players.
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While individual players on this team may be easier to defend than a Markus Howard (duh, the guy was literally the best scorer in the history of the best basketball conference ever created), having a team concept on offense should help offset some of the "specialization" of the individual players.
I think the optimistic take for this offense is top-100. I think the pessimistic take is around 150. I'm hoping the focus on high efficiency shots will have us in that 75-100 range, which (if Shaka's defense delivers) will have us fighting for a bid. But I also think anyone looking at the Bowie State game and thinking "the offense is good" is very misguided.
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I think the optimistic take for this offense is top-100. I think the pessimistic take is around 150. I'm hoping the focus on high efficiency shots will have us in that 75-100 range, which (if Shaka's defense delivers) will have us fighting for a bid. But I also think anyone looking at the Bowie State game and thinking "the offense is good" is very misguided.
Agreed. I take nothing away from the exhibition. I love the staff’s focus on athletic long big men who look to dunk everything. I hope it results in them drawing many fouls.
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brew, not tower ;)
I don't think it will be nearly as easy to do what we did last week against legit competition. Strictly from an offensive standpoint, there were a number of times we bullied them going inside, either with physical force or blow-by speed. That will be a lot harder against teams that have D1 strength and quickness. While a number of players have some solid offensive attributes (Kolek can shoot, Morsell can drive, etc) I'm not sure anyone other than maybe Justin Lewis has a versatile offensive package that will make them tough for other D1 defenses to guard.
With the two I mentioned above, if you know Kolek is trying to get free at the arc, or you know Morsell is going to be doing everything he can to get inside, that makes it easier to guard them than someone with a diverse skillset. That's why Markus Howard was so amazing. He could hit the spot-up three, create space with the step-back, blow by you to the rim, or pull up and hit the mid-range. While Markus was a generational scorer, I think this team will be an easier scout for D1 teams and until these guys prove their versatility, offense will be a challenge.
I do think that limiting them to high percentage looks (the 72/74 shots being paint or threes is encouraging) should help the offense along, but right now you know what pretty much every Marquette player is going to try to do on each possession, outside of Lewis and maybe Mitchell and Jones.
I also think it's worth looking at the 16 steals, 35 points off turnovers, and 41 points on the fast break. D1 teams aren't going to give us that many easy opportunities most nights, so a lot of the defense-to-offense will be more difficult to come by. We will need to be better in the half-court if we are going to have offensive consistency. On the plus side, in the past 11 years, Shaka has had a top-100 offense 8 times. 7 of those 8 were NCAA Tournament teams and the outlier won the NIT. So if we can manage a top-100 offense, there seems to be a decent chance we will keep playing after the Big East Tournament is over. But personally, I think the biggest thing to watch with this team is the offense. I don't expect much, but if they can be top-100 in adjusted efficiency along with meeting Shaka's annual top-40 defense, we'll be pretty good.
Thank Brew and my apologies to Tower.
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Thank Brew and my apologies to Tower.
Finally game day! For those of us on EST. Looking forward to see the boys play. Hopefully it’s an exciting team that develops over the course of the season. Lets do this!
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Finally game day! For those of us on EST. Looking forward to see the boys play. Hopefully it’s an exciting team that develops over the course of the season. Lets do this!
I'm technically still waiting for game day, but earlier today when I realized in 24 hours I could turn on the TV and watch college hoops, it made me happy. I'd like Marquette to be successful, but I'll accept progress (and a bunch of other good hoops).
I'm thinking tomorrow is a half day of work though...