What about Hayward's Miss from 1' out people?

[Niv Berkowitz]

For those out there that want to lay every loss at the feet of Dom, look to Hayward and his 1' put-back miss at the end. That was a gimme.

Nobody on the team played well except for Butler. 10-23 at the free throw line? You kidding me?

Also....AWFUL announcing. Criqui needs to stick to N.Dame football.

[79Warrior]

I do believe some posters were concerned our free throw shooting could be a problem. In a 1 point game like this, we lost it on the line.

[muPARTY]

if memerory serves, that was more of a tap back than a set shot.  charged the lane and tried the put back.  not easy, especially when down one with time expiring and the lane clogged.

certainly not the high percentage shot of a Free Throw or the wondering why a 28% 3pt shooter would continue to fire away ending 1-9 when he's best part is dishing or driving the lane.

[Niv Berkowitz]

He caught it with two hands, and gently put it back. It wasn't a flying one-handed tip attempt. Clear look from 1' out.

[nyg]

No dishing from DJ tonight, he had one assist.

[chapman]

I'd rather look at a whole game than one missed shot.  That said, 5 points on 2-9 shooting and 1-3 free throws says more than the one missed shot.

[g0ldmember42]

game tape could suggest hayward use the glass if he could do it all over again, but honestly, we got the ball to the right guy at the right time with a lane to the hoop to win the game. the shot doesn't fall, and so now we sit here and count what ifs rather than missed free throws.

remember, this is a senior-laden team. one of the most experienced in the country. these guys compete night in, night out and they will be hungry in philly next week. teams don't learn lessons as well when they win vs. when they lose. it's been almost 2 months. let's refocus and get after it over the next 8 games. To those jumping off the bandwagon so quickly, it's probably for the better. Don't want to share sweet victories with such flippant fans.

FIRE UP MARQUETTE!!!!

[VegasWarrior77]

I do believe some posters were concerned our free throw shooting could be a problem. In a 1 point game like this, we lost it on the line.

2/3/09 - What concerns me is we seem to be playing to the level of our competition.  Also, in a close game our poor FT shooting may spell doom!

[ecompt]

When Hayward gets the same number of shots as DJ does 3-point attempts, something is seriously wrong. Zar hasn't showed up on offense for two games now.

[bamamarquettefan]

My biggest concern is that none of the Fab 4 sat on the bench once until Jerel fouled out.  Can we really leave all four of them on the court the whole game with just Burke, Acker and Butler rotating as the 5th player?  I just worry we are going to wear down.

We do continue to play to the level of our competition, but that won't be a bad thing the rest of the way.  I just pray Villanova beats Syracuse tomorrow, because that would give us a chance for quick redemption Tuesday night.  I'd rather lose a 1 point game where the last two shots just don't drop against a poor team on the road, then get destroyed like the two teams ahead of us in the polls, Louisville and Wake Forest, did.

As for Lazar, worked his butt off for 14 rebounds as part of the effort that allowed only 5 offensive rebouds to USF.

I love Dominic James, it's the only 1 assist to go with the 8 3-point misses that was a problem - but obviously the bigger problem was the free throws.  Count up the missed front ends of one-and-ones and we probably got 10 of a possible 26 points.  Obviously this was the worst all-around shooting night we could have had, and we almost snuck out of the gym with a win by picking up the hustle.

This makes the Villanova game huge, but if the beat Syracuse and we beat them, we'll be right back where we were.

[willie warrior]

James' defense has deteriorated over past several games. he looks tired out there. the minutes are getting to him.

he is absolutely the worst shooter on the team. Burke could do as well from behind the arc. He also is the poorest FT shooter on the team. he will be a huge liability in close games.

I blame Buzz for allowing him to keep putting up 3's.

[bilsu]

When Hayward gets the same number of shots as DJ does 3-point attempts, something is seriously wrong. Zar hasn't showed up on offense for two games now.

I think that is because Buzz is making him play center when Burke is out. He has trouble against big guys. That is one of the reasons why the failure to utilize Otule is so disappointing. Sure he is going to make mistakes, but some of that would be offset by Hayward being able to stay at power forward instead of playing center.

[Pardner]

My biggest concern is that none of the Fab 4 sat on the bench once until Jerel fouled out.  Can we really leave all four of them on the court the whole game with just Burke, Acker and Butler rotating as the 5th player?  I just worry we are going to wear down.

+1
In retrospect, the Rutgers game may have scared Buzz away from his bench.  Tired legs=low FT and FG %.  A short bench on the road makes sense, but use your time-outs more effectively to stop runs then.  Digging back from 10 down in the 1st  on the road takes alot out of a team.  We struggled against the zone--as Bilsu said, Otule (and Fulce) could have given us some energy, and more so, spacing on offense.  Yes, we would have given up something on D, but we needed some minutes tonight from the bench.  If not now, when?

Even when we play like crap, this team is fun to watch--there is plenty of fight left.  Let's hope Buzz figures out how to use all his team's energy down the stretch--and to get his bench's confidence back (ex Jimmy who had the only good game tonight).  We'll need every ounce he can harness.

[Tampa Warrior]

Even when we play like crap, this team is fun to watch--there is plenty of fight left. 

Absolutely on the fight. The fun, not so much -- at least not with a huge and loud Bulls fan (one of the few and the proud) behind me all night.

If you told me before the season we'd be 9-1 heading to Nova, I'd take in it a heartbeat. Bummer to get there after being 9-0, though. But seasons are long and there will always be bumps in the road.

I'm still on the bus...

[Niv Berkowitz]

Totally on the bus. These games happen.

But...Buzz HAS to use his timeouts better to get rest for the guys if he's not going to sub them. That's still my one gripe on Buzz - how he uses (or...doesn't use) timeouts.

[reinko]

James' defense has deteriorated over past several games. he looks tired out there. the minutes are getting to him.

he is absolutely the worst shooter on the team. Burke could do as well from behind the arc. He also is the poorest FT shooter on the team. he will be a huge liability in close games.

I blame Buzz for allowing him to keep putting up 3's.

I know you are trying to make a point, but to exaggerate saying that DJ is the worst shooter on the team is stupid.  He took too many shots tonight, he has missed way too many FTs this season.  But c'mon.  His lockdown defense clearly makes up for his lack of shooting prowess.  So ease off pal.

[bma725]

My biggest concern is that none of the Fab 4 sat on the bench once until Jerel fouled out.  Can we really leave all four of them on the court the whole game with just Burke, Acker and Butler rotating as the 5th player? 

Check the box score.  None of them played 40 minutes, and Matthews sat out four minutes of game time when he had to leave the court after the injury timeout.

Regardless, what other choice do we have right now?  You can put Acker in, but his offense is so bad right now that you have to have four other scoring options out there.  Butler can score, but he's a garbage guy at the moment so they can't be in at the same time, and Burke is almost non-existant offensively.

The other bench guys just aren't producing right now, so there isn't much choice involved.  Otule is not Big East ready, and this wasn't the kind of game where you throw him to the fire.  Fulce is a good rebounder, and his offensive game is okay, but he can't guard anyone.   Cubillan hasn't score a point since December, he can't run the offense, and his defense isn't what it used to be.  If anyone of those guys is on the court in a close game, you've got to have the big four in there otherwise you are at a serious disadvantage.

Unless Fulce get's immensely better defensively or Cubillan rediscovers his form of freshman year, there's no other options.

[MUfan12]

Unless Fulce get's immensely better defensively or Cubillan rediscovers his form of freshman year, there's no other options.

Hazel?

I've been as strong of a Buzz supporter as anyone... but a 7 man rotation isn't going to be sustainable. I think the problem is out of Fulce, Otule, Cubillan, and Hazel, none of them have been given a shot to show anything recently.

I said it on the scout board as well.. MU was gassed. Since the Dayton game, I haven't seen them get torched in transition like that this year. They always looked a step slow, especially on the defensive end. I gotta wonder if the short bench is wearing them out.

[77fan88warrior]

I think that is because Buzz is making him play center when Burke is out. He has trouble against big guys. That is one of the reasons why the failure to utilize Otule is so disappointing. Sure he is going to make mistakes, but some of that would be offset by Hayward being able to stay at power forward instead of playing center.

I couldn't agree more. The guy is working his a$$ off on defense and staying out of foul trouble. This guy has sacrificed more than anyone else on the offensive end recently. His offensive game isn't built for the trees but he has done an admirable job.

[MU86NC]

Buzz needs to sit James on the bench  - there is no way he should be allowed to take those 3's.  James lost this game for us....

[NavinRJohnson]

Buzz needs to sit James on the bench  - there is no way he should be allowed to take those 3's.  James lost this game for us....

Nonsense. Did he take too many? Absolutely. Did he lose the game for MU? Of course not. Fact is, if he makes one of those misses, or they put down a couple of missed FTs, it becomes a drastically different game, USF is playing from behind, and MU probably wins with relative ease.

This one was a team effort, from James missing 3's, to everyone missing FT's, to Hayward missing from point blank range. Unless this was the first you've seen of MU this year, the mere suggestion that James should be on the bench is ridiculous. Doing so will result in (many) more games like last night, not less.

[mosarsour]

Buzz needs to sit James on the bench  - there is no way he should be allowed to take those 3's.  James lost this game for us....

Though he didn't help matters, it was our free throw shooting that cost us this game.

To say that Buzz needs to sit James on the bench is idiotic! Would you rather have Acker start in his place? Or Cubillan? Look, he had a bad game...His first really bad game in what has been a stellar season so far for Dominic. He'll bounce back.