71.4% shooting in the 2nd half by NC State

[LastWarrior]

I'm as upset as anybody but NC State shot 71.4% (20 for 28), including 4 for 4 from three-point range in the 2nd half.  Hard to overcome that type of shooting no matter how good you are.

[Blackhat]

Porous d is the only way that will ever happen.   Need more length.   It will be fun watching every clueless joe melting down after every loss.   Hope they have their blood pressure meds.....this is a rebuilding year.   Lots of bad losses ahead, suck it up. 

[NickelDimer]

Much of that had to do with poor D. I have no idea why we didn't front the post in the second.  We were totally flat, uninspired.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Porous d is the only way that will ever happen.   Need more length.   It will be fun watching every clueless joe melting down after every loss.   Hope they have their blood pressure meds.....this is a rebuilding year.   Lots of bad losses ahead, suck it up. 

The sad part is in the first half, with the same size team we had, we played great defense.  Did we get smaller at halftime?   

[LastWarrior]

The sad part is in the first half, with the same size team we had, we played great defense.  Did we get smaller at halftime?   

Chicos... I was thinking the exact same team.  NC State's & FSU's height did not seem to bother us in the 1st half of either game.

[NickelDimer]

  Did we get smaller at halftime?   

Mentally and emotionally.

[Blackhat]

Chicos... I was thinking the exact same team.  NC State's & FSU's height did not seem to bother us in the 1st half of either game.

FSU's length and strength most certainly did wear down MU especially in the second half which makes sense.    Contested shots, had to fight for everything. 

It's not like I'm stating some earth shattering theory that length helps defensive performance, although we do need better fundamentals regardless.

Hopefully we see that going forward from Buzz otherwise it's not a good sign but I'm  wondering just what people were expecting out of this team in early December?  Two wins in Old Spice might have been the worst thing for this young team.   

[4everwarriors]

The sad part is in the first half, with the same size team we had, we played great defense.  Did we get smaller at halftime?   

Quite easy for an opponent coach to make halftime adjustments when we're limited to both the personnel available and style of ball we're able to play.

[LastWarrior]

FSU's length and strength most certainly did wear down MU especially in the second half which makes sense.     

So what it sounds like you're saying is that their size eventually wore MU down.  That i'll buy but then doesn't that lend to the argument that our guys were fatigued and we don't have any depth?  Just not sure that we can blame the last two losses on us being a smaller team.

I also agree with you that those two wins last week may have raise everyone's expectations for the season.

[Daniel]

71.4% shooting in half two is just about the same as having no defensive team on the floor - a team might shoot marginally better than 71.4% without an opposing team.

We knew we were going to lose some we should win.  This was one of them.  Facts are facts: we are small, and I fear that the FSU game showed everyone how to go at us.  Next year sizewise we improve slightly at the guard spots, but basically the same unless the last scholie goes to a good, ready to play big.  We need height.  No more 6.6 guys, we need 6.9 or better who can defend and shoot.

[mug644]

We knew we were going to lose some we should win.

I agree with that idea when you talk about the whole season or about going into a game. But, it is two games now that we were in solid control--in the second half!--only to have the wheels completely fall off (it might be more honest and true to say that we drove off a cliff).

If we had lost to Grambling St. or if we beat Villanova, then yes, we are losing and winning some unexpectedly.

But today and last week can be classified as choking.

We are young and we will be happily and unhappily surprised during this season. Doesn't change how frustrating these two losses are.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Quite easy for an opponent coach to make halftime adjustments when we're limited to both the personnel available and style of ball we're able to play.

Well, FSU didn't really make any, we just fell apart.  I thought the same thing today.  We dominated both games in the first half, but when you're asking guys to play that many minutes, they get fatigued and make mistakes, especially the more tired they get.

I can't imagine how deep Williams must be in Buzz's in doghouse to not play a single minute.  But I guess that's the deal. 

[MUfan12]

Now that I've calmed down, here are my thoughts.

-Tired legs had nothing to do with it, they had the momentum into half, and tried to coast. Got lazy with the ball on offense and were just terrible on defense. The game was lost by the time they got tired.

-I can't believe how bad they looked covering a high ball screen. If they can't deal with that, UW is gonna hand them their asses on a platter with how disciplined they are with screening and cutting.

-Agree completely on Williams. I don't care how "bad" he must be, at the very least he can get a hand up or actually FOUL a guy going in for an easy layup. I'd say at least half of their FGs in the second half were layups or short jumpers. It's awful tough to be worse than what I saw in the second half.

-I'll catch heat for this but I don't care. Lazar has to freaking wake up. He was terrible today on both ends. His shot selection was terrible,  and he tried to split post double teams resulting in turnovers. On defense would it kill him to put a freaking hand in someone's face? He's short enough, and playing a guy with his arms down is useless. That really pissed me off.

-DJO has to get more touches in the second half. Between our resident chuckers (Lazar and Mo) and Jimmy, DJO barely sniffs the ball. It's ridiculous. Buycks has to be more solid with the ball as well.

Unfortunately, it's looking more and more like the first 5 halves in Orlando were fools gold.

[GGGG]

-I can't believe how bad they looked covering a high ball screen. If they can't deal with that, UW is gonna hand them their asses on a platter with how disciplined they are with screening and cutting.

Yep.  They better get a lot more disciplined by next Saturday or my trip to Madison is going to be miserable.

[LastWarrior]

-Agree completely on Williams. I don't care how "bad" he must be, at the very least he can get a hand up or actually FOUL a guy going in for an easy layup. I'd say at least half of their FGs in the second half were layups or short jumpers. It's awful tough to be worse than what I saw in the second half.

-I'll catch heat for this but I don't care. Lazar has to freaking wake up. He was terrible today on both ends. His shot selection was terrible,  and he tried to split post double teams resulting in turnovers. On defense would it kill him to put a freaking hand in someone's face? He's short enough, and playing a guy with his arms down is useless. That really pissed me off.

-DJO has to get more touches in the second half. Between our resident chuckers (Lazar and Mo) and Jimmy, DJO barely sniffs the ball. It's ridiculous. Buycks has to be more solid with the ball as well.

Well said... completely agree on all those statements.

[77champs]

In both losses we can out totally flat in the second half like we were not expecting the opponent to come out guns blazing.   Its almost like we expect them to roll over.   NO, they are always going to make adjustments and go to the bigs and set up plays for the outside shooters etc.

Start of the second half is the time to either redouble the effort or throw them a curve like a zone trap or a real full court press.   Something to make them have to adjust as opposed to us having to adjust to them as that has us back on our heals.   Take it to them to blunt their adjustments.   We seem to come out in the same old same old and tired and tentative at that.   That is strategy and half time coaching and focus.