Grinding out a win on a night of upsets

[willie warrior]

The team from Pleasantville was pretty darned good.   Until they discovered sex.

Lets not forget that Hickory had that great 6th man, (maybe because they only had that many) Ollie, he of the underhanded free throw glory.

[Silkk the Shaka]

I don't think it can be overemphasized how much that time out early in the second half changed the game.

Was that the TO where Sam hit the rhythm three off the pick & pop then was himself again for the rest of the game? Because I loved that sequence

[Its DJOver]

Was that the TO where Sam hit the rhythm three off the pick & pop then was himself again for the rest of the game? Because I loved that sequence

Yep, that was part of the 8-0 run immediately following the TO that tied the game at 37.  Went Sam jumper, Theo 1-2 at the line, Sam 3, Theo hook shot, BU timeout.

[tower912]

http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/boxscore?gameId=401083214

Box.   

[MUBigDance]

The press break is a huge problem.  We would be embarrassed by an elite team with that kind of press break im the tourney. They better figure that out.  Was a huge wound to open up for people game planning for us

I want to be positive...we won and D was really good.
But I totally agree. Can you imagine Duke pressing us...we were worse than Louisville. I hope they make a point of working on this in practice...surprised Wojo really hasn't gotten this part of the coaching together yet....Breaking the press and in a lesser way, pressing.

[MU82]

Can you name another game this season where we had trouble with the press?

Right now, it's a one-game sample size, and Joey wasn't on the court.

As Aaron Rodgers would say ...

[MUMountin]

I want to be positive...we won and D was really good.
But I totally agree. Can you imagine Duke pressing us...we were worse than Louisville. I hope they make a point of working on this in practice...surprised Wojo really hasn't gotten this part of the coaching together yet....Breaking the press and in a lesser way, pressing.

In retrospect, I'm actually glad that Butler pressed us and we struggled a little bit with it.  That'll be great tape and motivation for Wojo and the staff to use to prepare for better teams in a situation where it didn't really matter.  Learning opportunities are great, and even better when they come from wins.

[MUBigDance]

Can you name another game this season where we had trouble with the press?

Right now, it's a one-game sample size, and Joey wasn't on the court.

As Aaron Rodgers would say ...

I'm not going to try to go thru every game and see which ones...but had that thought against Kansas I believe and maybe it was Seton Hall.

I certainly remember thinking that "we need to get better against the press" while playing a couple of the low-lifes in the pre-season for sure.

I know its more than a one-game sample size...and it crystallized with the end of the Butler game. At the end of the season, we *should not* be that dis-organized.

I will say the two games  for Louisville (Duke,Clemson) was worse that what I see from Marquette.

[manny31]

Does anyone have a link to a replay of the game. Stupid CBSSN was crap last night on the computer.
Thanks.

[MU82]

I'm not going to try to go thru every game and see which ones...but had that thought against Kansas I believe and maybe it was Seton Hall.

I certainly remember thinking that "we need to get better against the press" while playing a couple of the low-lifes in the pre-season for sure.

I know its more than a one-game sample size...and it crystallized with the end of the Butler game. At the end of the season, we *should not* be that dis-organized.

I will say the two games  for Louisville (Duke,Clemson) was worse that what I see from Marquette.

I won't doubt that there might have been another game or two where it didn't go great. I simply do not remember any struggles like last night. And, again, we didn't have Joey on the floor -- a tall kid who handles the basketball well, makes good decisions and hits FTs.

My list of concerns includes too many TOs, occasional rebounding lapses, Theo getting into foul trouble and Joey's struggles the last month or so. I am not especially concerned about our ability to handle the press; maybe I will be proven foolish on that.