Detroit Post game interviews

[rocky_warrior]

Wesley Matthews

- Team was able to bounce back after last night, shows maturity in the team this year after having a poor night last night.  They had faith in each other and made plays.

- Crean didn't have to say anything at halftime.  The team knew they were going to play with the same intensity in 2nd.

- Mentality is for defense - which sparks offense.

- McNeal did a great job with deflections, and has good hands.

- Matthews had open looks and was able to knock them down.  He felt bad after last night, and a lot of it was mental.  Mac mentioned that WM did spend some time shooing after the game last night (at the BC).

- Lawrence doesn't want to be called "Trend" - played great, didn't think he'd catch the ally-oop that he threw down.  The team plays off his energy - he may not know that - but they do.

- WM was worried about his back (he fell down on it), but thinks it's ok.

[rocky_warrior]

Official Boxscore

http://gomarquette.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2006-2007/03det06.html

[rocky_warrior]

Tom Crean

- Guys did a great job for 2 halves tonight, had great confidence, and the build from rebounding and defense. Defense got offense going, extra pass and spacing were good.  Making and missing can be contagious.  Proud they came back and had a good second half. Ended up +18

- Cotton was a focus on defense.  Jerel did a good job - Cotton does a good job and MU had to make adjustments on the fly - the players were calling out adjustments which was good.

- 3s were an important aspect. MU knew they'd see zone early, the extra pass was good. They fed post much better, fed angles and were more efficient.  The team responded well from watching film and a short practice.  They had a great mindset.

- TC explained to Kinsella about not playing more (Kinsella is a little down about it), that you have to play on demand and depending on situation.  Marquette needs to get   some guys experience, including Lawrence, Lazar, and David. 

- Guys have made a ton of progress. MU has a great coaching staff helping to build and isolate skill.  Also, the crowd is great, they've recognized that Lazar is not where he needs to be.  The crowd has driven energy the past two night, and the players are gaining experience in this.

- Great honor for MU to be going to KC, glad to be representing the city & school this way.  Caused the organizer (Rick ???) some heart troubles last night (joking).  MU will center all their attention on Thur & Fri for Eastern Michigan - want to get on the plane to KC as a 4-0 team.

- The team is growing, the young guys really want to do well.  Growing pains have been apparent, but the guys want to do well and are applying what they are learning as they go.  James played well the past two nights, even though he's played a lot of 2 guard.

[NYWarrior]

good stuff, rocky, thanks

[mviale]

If James is playing 2 guard, who is at the point?

[rocky_warrior]

It'd be good if someone who saw the game chimes in here, but since Cubillan has 20 min in the box score, I'm assuming that means that DJ only payed about 1/2 of his time at PG.

[mviale]

any story on how well Bell looked tonight?  He would have been our starting PG last year.

[maxpower773]

Matthews also played guard a bit, but mostly Cubillan if he was in with either James or Matthews.

[maxpower773]

any story on how well Bell looked tonight?  He would have been our starting PG last year.

I wasn't impressed.  Then again, he only played for 13 minutes, so it'd be hard to tell if he could have done well for us.  To me, he really didn't seem to make an presence out on the court, no shots really and no drives to the hoop.

[shaquilvaine]

Not to be harsh, but Bell is where he belongs... the Horizon league.  He played around 13 minutes and had one bucket and a few turnovers and was clearly overmatched guarding James.  He doesn't start for Detroit but comes in as a backup PG. 

[muhoosier260]

being at the game, cubillan seemed to have quite a positive impact on the game. he didn't really turn the ball over and took pressure off james, mcneal, matthews, and even opened up some options for hayward. only playing in his 3rd game he looks like a very dependable 2nd string 1/2 guard

[NYWarrior]

I am VERY impressed with Cubillan..he's played three solid games in a row, and seems to have gained TC's trust.   In the first three games of the season, he's played roughly 57 minutes  -- and has two turnovers. 

That's effective in my mind -- and if he can hit a few treys along they way its gravy.  Look, TC wants to play Dom at the 2 more this year -- now he can do that

[mu_hilltopper]

I was also surprised to see that basically .. DJ is no longer our PG.  That position is now done by committee.

[mu03eng]

I think we will see DJ at the 1 more often than not in the BE.  I think early on TC is trying to get some different ball handlers some experience in running the offense and bringing the ball up.  This is especially important when it comes to running the break and making sure we can handle full court pressure.  Plus its just sound coaching to get game experience when its not the "hardest" game in case injuries happen and someone has to become the full time 1.

[NYWarrior]

I think DJ is still the PG....and we'lll see him there more often than not.  But if TC can move him over to the '2' this team will be tougher to defend - TC will have many more options.  Instead of putting in a backup PG simply to rest James on the bench, now Crean can reduce the wear/tear on DJ while still leaving him on the floor -- and open up more possibilities offensively.

Very encouraging stuff.

Cubillan looks like a steal to me

[spiral97]

any thoughts at all that maybe crean might be putting DJ into the 2 for parts of games to make him more well-rounded, reduce his exposure to the nba somewhat, and prolong his college career maybe?  even a very small sliver of a thought? hmmm... after all, many people on this board now question whether he should go pro at all.. (and I personally feel that if he was left in his role from last year he would be shining much more - though the team as a whole may not be doing as well).

[Big Papi]

I think we will see DJ at the 1 more often than not in the BE.  I think early on TC is trying to get some different ball handlers some experience in running the offense and bringing the ball up.  This is especially important when it comes to running the break and making sure we can handle full court pressure.  Plus its just sound coaching to get game experience when its not the "hardest" game in case injuries happen and someone has to become the full time 1.

Ughh. You mentioned different ball handlers and I had a flashback of the TCU tourny game where we had what an 8 point lead or something in the final minutes and lost the game because we couldnt get the ball past the center line when TCU put on their press.  Thank God we know have a lot of decent ball handlers and a team that should be able to punish any team that attempts full court pressure.

[muhoosier260]

spiral- maybe crean has some evil scheme to not put james at pg in order to keep him at marquette longer, although i highly doubt that is the reason james is playing less and less pg FOR NOW, its a theory that i could come to terms with. dj had a nice game last night, but its looking like he will be here for a junior year unless he really shapes up his shooting and starts eating his vegetables

[rocky_warrior]

any thoughts at all that maybe crean might be putting DJ into the 2 for parts of games to make him more well-rounded, reduce his exposure to the nba somewhat, and prolong his college career maybe?

Actually, I think it's quite the opposite.  While DJ would undoubtedly be a PG at the pro level, putting him at the 2 guard gives him a change to showcase his scoring talents a bit more - and hopefully become more attractive to scouts.  Just my opinion.

[PuertoRicanNightmare]

Holy crap...now I've heard it all. This is EXACTLY how Crean used James last year. After his injury, Matthews often brought the ball up the court. Now, with a solid alternative in Cubillan, he's handling the duties. It has NOTHING to do with any NBA aspirations. Are you joking spiral? It's simply a way to get James the basketball somewhere other than at the top of the key. I believe that Crean thinks he can get to the basket easier from the wing than from on top.

Incidentally, I believe Matthews should have been named the MVP of the little 4-team regional, not James. Matthews is just a solid, solid player and always plays within himself. James was the high scorer, but I didn't think he was the best player on MU last night. At least 8 of his 20 were scored on wide open layups, caused, for the most part, by McNeal steals.

[spiral97]

Are you joking spiral?

Nope wasn't joking 

And I wouldn't call it "evil" either (no worries muhoosier ).. maybe I worded what I was trying to say slightly wrong but I meant more from the perspective that maybe Crean personally feels that DJ needs to become more well-rounded in the game before he is unleashed onto the NBA.  Working him at the 2 would certainly accomplish this.  Making him more multi-dimensional role-wise will definitely lessen the possibility of getting into the NBA and riding the pine as Diener and Novak have been doing (very unfortunately in my opinion).  This could be the difference in him being a starter and a backup and increase his long term aspirations.  In my view what rocky said about letting him shine in other roles is not at all opposite to what I was saying but rather in support.  If he can shine in that role this year and get enough interest to enter the draft then he passes Crean's personal litmus test of going pro.  If not and he should stay another year to improve some more then that would be better to find out before playing for his first NBA team and having that truth come out then.
I do not, for a minute, believe that Crean would do that out of malice or selfishness at all.  Rather, Crean is certainly trying to work for DJs best interests (as well as the team's of course).  After all, "father knows best" and that's basically what coaches tend to become to many of their players - a second father.

As for Matthews getting the MVP over James - I could agree with that.  But then you could make a strong argument for McNeal too.  Regardless, this trio will be a fun group to watch!

[Jandern7]

Just a thought about James at the 2.

The 76ers moved Allen Iverson to the 2 gaurd for the offense to flow better (not just have AI jack up a shot with no passes).  Maybe Crean is playing DJ at the 2 ifor similiar reasons in order for the offense to get in a groove moving the ball around before a shot.

[mu03eng]

Actually I think Nightmare has it right for the most part.  We did see this last year, I had forgotten about that.  I don't know that we saw it as much as we have so far this year but I have a feeling that this is a move to get Daveed use to ball handling at the college level as well as saving some wear and tear on DJ.  I think in critical situations you will see DJ bring it up.