MUScoop
MUScoop => Hangin' at the Al => Topic started by: brewcity77 on February 16, 2020, 12:03:54 PM
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I've spent a lot of time laying out the story of why Markus Howard is the 2020 National Player of the Year. The case doesn't argue why he should be, why he might be, or why he's in the mix, it is clear, definitive proof that Markus Howard is the only correct pick. So why hasn't the national narrative caught up to that? We dig into the reasons Markus Howard isn't the clear favorite at this moment, and what has to happen in the next month to change that.
http://www.crackedsidewalks.com/2020/02/why-markus-howard-is-not-yet-npoy.html
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True that. Let's get after it.
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Yup. Solid closing argument and motivation for the team. Make it happen!
(A small, small aside, in hopes of your posts gaining wider recognition...the last sentence in the first paragraph: I think you need to take the word ‘game’ out.)
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Good stuff and I agree we have failed as a team in some very crucial games. I think if we had beaten Villanova this past week we would be creeping up towards the top ten while waiting for Creighton Tuesday. And beating them would have us in the top ten the following week. Now we need Creighton and Seton Hall and cant lose to DePaul and I think we are top ten and have a front runner for NPOY.
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The team element is, unfortunately, a very big part of the award. And in theory, it does make some sense - how can the best player in the country play for a team that isn't even all that good? So while all the individual stats put Markus ahead of the pack, I don't think you can really say he's the "correct" pick just yet. He's got to help his team notch another resume bullet point or two this season before we can say he's comfortably in the lead for the NPOY race.
I'm also not sure I buy Brew's conclusion about a 6 seed being the bar for the team to hit. 10 of the last 15 winners have been on 1 or 2 seeds, with 7 of them coming from 1 seeds. There's a single case for a 6 seed team producing a NPOY winner. That doesn't completely sell me on Markus as a lock.
And then the way the analysis changes timeframes for reviewing key metrics (PORPAGATU focused on last 6 years while team seed goes back 15) feels a little like cherry picking. I think on the whole, the case for Markus is really strong, but trying to say there's no other reasonable choice is a little strong. It might even be off-putting to some voters. Just my two cents on the campaign. Overall, awesome work with great detail. You've sold me, but unfortunately, my vote doesn't count.
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How will last night's less-than-stellar game impact Markus' stats and standings in the NPOY race? I heard/read a few writers last week say Myles Powell's poor game against Creighton didn't sway their opinion of him too much. It seems like Markus has been judged more harshly for some reason, so he may not get the same kind of leeway.
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How will last night's less-than-stellar game impact Markus' stats and standings in the NPOY race? I heard/read a few writers last week say Myles Powell's poor game against Creighton didn't sway their opinion of him too much. It seems like Markus has been judged more harshly for some reason, so he may not get the same kind of leeway.
He’ll have his opportunity when they play Seton Hall
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It helps Markus that the top teams do not have headline grabbing players like Zion.
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He’ll have his opportunity when they play Seton Hall
That will be a big game for both BE and National POY. Hopefully, Markus has a big senior day.
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Hot Take
Markus isn't in real consideration because he's known only for scoring. And in marquee games (Creighton, Nova, Maryland, etc) he either hasn't shown up or shot his team out of the game.
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Hot Take
Markus isn't in real consideration because he's known only for scoring. And in marquee games (Creighton, Nova, Maryland, etc) he either hasn't shown up or shot his team out of the game.
He shot the team out of the Nova game while shooting 40%, 45% from 3 and scoring 24 points in a one point loss?
Counterpoint: 29 in a win over Nova, 35 in a win vs. Xavier, 42 in a win at georgetown, 51 in a win against USC. All likely tournament teams.
Agree he was bad last night and vs. Maryland. Also @ Butler.
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That will be a big game for both BE and National POY. Hopefully, Markus has a big senior day.
I'm sure this will be billed by Fox as a battle for the BEPOY. These kinds of superstar vs. superstar matchups always get built up by the crews covering games.
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Fox pregame has a piece on “ultimate Starting 5”, Jacobsen picks Howard along with Pritchard and Flynn for the backcourt. Lavin bemoans not including Powell. Then brings him up again at the end of the segment. Then again picks him for BE POY for his ability to “provide big moments at the end of game for SH this season”.
SH has lost 3 of 6 and nearly blew it against Butler and Powell didn’t factor into that end of game at all. Hes shooting 22% from 3 the last 8 games but still has the narrative building around him.
Markus still has an uphill battle in terms of perception unfortunately
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I think MU fans should be happy that even if we crap the bed the last four games we will get a bid because of Markus. If they land on the bubble MU will get the nod because of having Markus on the team. The committee would take his ability to score 50 into strong consideration.