[Rosiak's Blog] Greetings from Maui

[ToddRosiakSays]

Greetings from Maui



Lahaina, Hawaii -- Aloha.

Even though this is the fourth time I've been here, it's still hard to get used to saying it.

As I write this on my patio at the Westin I'm watching a group of flamingos wade around in a koi pond just about 20 feet away. It's about 80 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. If I had a softball I might be able to throw it onto the beach from here. Just thought I'd let you all know that.

Anyway, got back from the press conference not too long ago and it was pretty low-key, which is to be expected here. It was MCd by ESPN's Jay Bilas, and included all eight of the coaches. All pretty much just sound bites and the usual stuff you'd hear in such a setting.

Perhaps the highlight of the event was the coaches' charity free-throw shooting contest afterward, in which each coach was paired up with a youngster. Both got three shots.

Best shooter among the coaches? Princeton's Sydney Johnson, hands-down. He played at Princeton back in the late 1990s and calmly drained all three, which wasn't an easy task considering the always-strong trade winds blowing the ball to the right.

Worst shooter? Oklahoma State's Sean Sutton. I thought the guy played at Kentucky and Oklahoma State. Couldn't tell by the way he shot - he almost knocked the backboard over with his bricks.

Duke's Mike Krzyzewski won, thanks in large part to a strong effort from his younger cohort.

MU's own Tom Crean hit 1 of 3, swishing the first before having the last two rattle out.

"Lack of practice time," he quipped. "I took a couple but I didn't take any outdoors with wind by a beach. No excuses, though. Made my first one and got comfortable. I thought it would be easy."

Not again:  Late last week EA Sports, the sponsor of the Maui Invitational, played the tournament out on an Xbox 360. MU and Duke, the top two seeds, advanced to the championship game with Duke eventually winning out, 91-81.

Art once again imitated life on Saturday in Maui, when players from all eight teams squared off in a tournament-style setting, playing each other for three minutes apiece on the video game.

MU's Maurice Acker wound up advancing to the championship game, where he ultimately went down to Duke's Jon Scheyer.

"Maurice lost in the championship," Crean said. "He rolled through the competition, just rolled through it, until he got to the championship. Then he couldn't buy a bucket, and he couldn't stop the Duke break. So we changed our plans to send him home on the red-eye and we're allowing him to stay."

Seeing the sights: The name of the game is winning for MU, as it is for all the teams in Maui. But Crean is mindful of letting his players enjoy what for many will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in a tropical paradise.

"We want them to enjoy themselves," he said. "They're in an area where if they want to go snorkeling, go onto the beach...I'm not really into guys learning how to surf right now. But we kind of want them to go at their own pace. We want them to watch their sun intake, and if they're out at the pool I don't want them paying attention to me getting burned."

MU will take part in a traditional Hawaiian luau as part of their Thanksgiving celebration prior to heading back to Milwaukee later that night.

Gearing up: Crean made specific mention of trying to get ahead of the game with regards to cramping, and has been getting some sound advice from assistant Tim Buckley, who coached Ball State to upsets over Kansas and UCLA in 2001 here.

"We've talked a lot about hydration, especially after Tom Izzo coming out here a couple years ago and having a lot of cramping issues," Crean said. "We've tried to just push the Gatorades and water as much as we can."

Crean was referring to Michigan State's ill-fated decision to schedule a game at Hawaii a few years ago on the way to Maui. He lost a handful of players in that game to cramping, most notably Shannon Brown, who had to be carried from the floor as a result.

That should resonate with MU, especially considering the cramping problems junior Dominic James has had in each of his first two years.

Illinois, interestingly enough, took a page from Izzo's book and played at Hawaii on Friday. The Illini won, 79-77, but it will be interesting to see how they respond.

Along for the ride: The team's medical staff cleared both Scott Christopherson and Trevor Mbakwe (knee surgeries) to make the trip to Maui.

Christopherson, in fact, is already doing some light running and shooting, a sign his recovery is going along smoothly.

Storyline scuttled: If MU and LSU both win in the first round, it will set up an intriguing game.

It also would have set up an intriguing storyline, with former Golden Eagles guard Dameon Mason having transferred to play for the TIgers a few years ago. But Mason is suffering from a viral infection in the muscles surrounding his heart and won't play.

He did make the trip, however. I'll see if I can get a few words with him sometime before the end of the tournament to see how things are going for him in Baton Rouge.

Teams/players to watch: As a basketball junkie I'm looking forward to checking out the other teams in the tournament as well. Here's a few things I'll be looking at:

Arizona State: Although he doesn't play an exciting style of basketball, Herb Sendek can still coach. He's also got some amazing frontcourt talent in 6-foot-9 junior Jeff Pendergraph and 6-10 Eric Boateng, a transfer from Duke. Should Arizona State knock off Illinois on Monday night, there'll be a storyline there with Boateng going up against his old team and Coach K. The Sun Devils also have a player to watch in 6-4 freshman guard James Harden.

Duke: The core of this team is almost the same as a year ago when it lost to MU in the championship game of the CBE Classic in Kansas City. But it has even less size with the loss of Josh McRoberts to the NBA, and more youth - although that youth is a couple of McDonald's All-American forwards in Kyle Singler and Taylor King.

Illinois: Shaun Pruitt, a former high-school teammate of Mason's at West Aurora, Ill., has finally developed into a solid big man. I love Brian Randle's do-everything game, although he's been brittle in the past. It'll be interesting to watch Jeff Jordan, son of the great Michael Jordan, and also to see if His Airness made the trip to Maui to watch him. The world-class Kapalua Plantation golf course is right down the road; perhaps that'll lure him, too.

LSU: Injuries have left the Tigers with only eight players for the time being. A couple of those are pretty darned good, though, most notably 6-7 forward Tasmin Mitchell. Coach John Brady quipped today that his team has gone from being 'wide and mean to long and lean.' Mitchell could be a tough matchup for MU in the second round, as he fits that mold of a bigger, athletic 3-man.

Oklahoma State: The Cowboys are really down this year, and were handed a 82-73 loss at North Texas last week. Maybe they invited football coach Mike Gundy along for the ride. If they did, I'll be sure to ask him a question in the press conference afterward.

Princeton: I'm looking forward to seeing the Tigers play in person. Johnson, their first-year coach, was an assistant on Georgetown's Final Four team last season.

http://blogs.jsonline.com/muhoops/archive/2007/11/18/greetings-from-maui.aspx

[muwarrior87]

It's good to hear Chirstopherson is progressing.  If he is able to get healthy relatively quickly, it will be interesting to see if he ends up getting redshirted or will be active for the year.  With the depth we have at guard, his minutes may be limited but at the same time, he is a different type of player than our other guards so that ability to bring something a little different out onto the court when he comes in may end up being the asset that keeps him active for the year.

[downtown85]

It's good to hear Chirstopherson is progressing.  If he is able to get healthy relatively quickly, it will be interesting to see if he ends up getting redshirted or will be active for the year.  With the depth we have at guard, his minutes may be limited but at the same time, he is a different type of player than our other guards so that ability to bring something a little different out onto the court when he comes in may end up being the asset that keeps him active for the year.

I think we will need SC's shooting ability before long.  Also, there is always the possibility of another injury to other players. 

[muwarrior87]

That's my mindset on it as well. Had Mbakwe not been injured, I'd say redshirt him because then we have one more option at the 4 or 5 and that would affect where the likes of Lazar and Fitz got minutes, which would affect the minutes of our guards. But since Trevor is out, I'd say we have to keep Scott as an option off the bench.

LSU is going into Maui with only 8 available players because of injury. That is not a position I want MU to be in at anytime this year.

[rocky_warrior]

But Mason is suffering from a viral infection in the muscles surrounding his heart and won't play.

Yikes - that doesn't sound good!

[Eye]

For someone who has seen both games in person, has DJ had any cramping issues yet this year?

[mu_hilltopper]

As I write this on my patio at the Westin I'm watching a group of flamingos wade around in a koi pond just about 20 feet away. It's about 80 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. If I had a softball I might be able to throw it onto the beach from here. Just thought I'd let you all know that.

I hate you, Todd Rosiak.  I. Hate. You.

[PuertoRicanNightmare]

I don't know how many people on this board have been to Hawaii, but it is absolutely breath-taking.  I echo Rosiak's sentiments.

I am sure the boys are in heaven.

[4everwarriors]

any suntan lotion or his electric beach along?

[mu_hilltopper]

Indeed, once you go to Hawaii, you realize there's no point in going to the Caribbean.  If you can handle the flight, go to Hawaii.

The instant MU announced the Maui trip, my wife and I were eagerly planning to go back to Hawaii for this.  That was before my son was born, and we realized how impossible it was to fly 9 hours with a 1 year old.  Darn kid can't sit still through a 2 hour Bradley Center game.

Apparently, you can't leave a kid that young at home alone with a few open boxes of Cheerios.  Go figure.

[spiral97]

any suntan lotion or his electric beach along?

hrm.. your crean estate responsibilities must be limited to the garden otherwise you'd know.. perhaps you should work towards chauffeuring and/or butlering... then we'd truly have an inside source 

[ZiggysFryBoy]

Indeed, once you go to Hawaii, you realize there's no point in going to the Caribbean.  If you can handle the flight, go to Hawaii.

The instant MU announced the Maui trip, my wife and I were eagerly planning to go back to Hawaii for this.  That was before my son was born, and we realized how impossible it was to fly 9 hours with a 1 year old.  Darn kid can't sit still through a 2 hour Bradley Center game.

Apparently, you can't leave a kid that young at home alone with a few open boxes of Cheerios.  Go figure.

topper, what if we leave a bunch of 1 year olds together.  combined, they should be able to fend for themselves for a week or so.  ZiggysFryBaby is pretty smart for his age, he can say cat and duck and feed himself.  can't walk yet, so that would be an obstacle he'd have to learn to overcome.  Just think of it as a baby version of Kidnation.   

[mu_hilltopper]

There was a story about a mom who had to do a two week stint in a Florida jail .. left her 2 year old at home.  Kid survived 10 days (before being discovered) eating ketchup and uncooked macaroni.  So it can be done!!!

[spiral97]

Survivor Baby Edition!  The baby that gets voted off at Diaper Council has to have its parents come home to pick it up.  Call the networks!

[Seraph]

topper, what if we leave a bunch of 1 year olds together.  combined, they should be able to fend for themselves for a week or so.  ZiggysFryBaby is pretty smart for his age, he can say cat and duck and feed himself.  can't walk yet, so that would be an obstacle he'd have to learn to overcome.  Just think of it as a baby version of Kidnation.   

But is not being able to walk really a problem?  You're so negative.  Not being able to walk means he can't get himself over to the phone to call all his baby friends and throw a massive party while you're gone.  This way the house will stay clean.  Oh, and leave the tv on espn2 so he can watch the game.