[Rosiak's Blog] More minutae

[ToddRosiakSays]

More minutae


Jan. 13, 2009  




There's been a lot of talk regarding the distribution of minutes in the West Virginia victory, so that prompted myself and MU's Sports Information Department to do some digging on Monday.

Of course, Jerel McNeal and Dominic James both played all 40 minutes against the Mountaineers. In doing so they became the first duo at MU to go the distance in a regulation game since Feb. 27, 1992, when Ron Curry and Robb Logterman did it in a 70-59 loss at No. 19 Cincinnati.

Prior to that the closest the Golden Eagles came was on was on Jan. 7, 1997, in a 67-64 victory at No. 4 Iowa State, when Chris Crawford played 40 and Aaron Hutchins went 39.

In recent team history, Cordell Henry could be tagged as an iron man for MU, based on a three-game stretch from Feb. 24-March 3, 2001, during which he played 48, 40 and 40 minutes. The Golden Eagles went 0-3 in that stretch, with the first game being a triple-overtime affair in which Brian Wardle played an incredible 52 minutes.

Tony Miller defined the term iron man during his stay at MU, logging an amazing 16 games of 40 or more minutes in his final three seasons for the Golden Eagles, from 1992-'95.

McNeal's previous high was 39 minutes, set earlier this season against Wisconsin. James' high is 42 minutes, set March 1, 2006, in an overtime loss at Louisville.

Through four Big East games, McNeal is averaging 35.8 minutes and James 35.2. Expect those numbers to remain in that area, if not go up, based on coach Buzz Williams' rotation Saturday, which went just seven players deep and saw just one guard - Butler - get off the bench.

That stems in large part from the lesson Williams learned in the victory last week at Rutgers. He tried playing three reserves with two starters with a 21-point lead midway through the second half, only to see the Scarlet Knights pull to within two with 37 seconds left.

Realistically speaking, the West Virginia game was probably too physical for Maurice Acker and David Cubillan, which didn't help Williams' comfort level with his bench, either.

"I think I was probably a little more hesitant than I've been in the past (to substitute) because we were up 21 against Rutgers, then I started trying to give Jerel an extra 30-second game time break, tried to do that with Dominic," Williams said Saturday. "Then they outscored us by 19 points over the next 9 minutes. That was my mistake. I wanted to confirm that I didn't make that mistake again."

-- Delivered by Feed43 service



http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/37488444.html

[WashDCWarrior]

Nice to see Buzz learning from his mistakes.

[Norm]

So I guess he didn't think a time out or two during that Rutgers run would have helped keep things in control?

[ChicosBailBonds]

Nice to see Buzz learning from his mistakes.

Or perhaps one data point isn't enough and he's making an even bigger mistake?   This team is going to be dog tired at the end of the year.  I'd prefer he get some reserves in there.  There has to be some middle ground here.

Not using reserves so two guys play 40 minutes is nuts.  Put some reserves in there, just don't put them in as long as they were for Rutgers.  And put them in prior to the media timeouts so you get an extended breather (i.e with 4:50 left in the half since the media timeout hits at under 4 minutes).

I know, that makes me a Buzz hater.   

[NavinRJohnson]

Or perhaps one data point isn't enough and he's making an even bigger mistake?   This team is going to be dog tired at the end of the year.  I'd prefer he get some reserves in there.  There has to be some middle ground here.

I agree with the general premise...they will need some bench support at some point -- even if only to cover foul trouble. However, I think the upcoming schedule of only 2 games in 2 weeks probably had something to do with the extended minutes as well. Given the week between games, and what happened against Rutgers, I have little problem letting those guys go on Saturday. Seems to be a case of Buzz picking his spots.

He tried to get the reserves in there against Rutgers and look what happened...Seems to be a bit of a damned if you do damned if you don't scenario right now.

[ChicosBailBonds]

I agree with the general premise...they will need some bench support at some point -- even if only to cover foul trouble. However, I think the upcoming schedule of only 2 games in 2 weeks probably had something to do with the extended minutes as well. Given the week between games, and what happened against Rutgers, I have little problem letting those guys go on Saturday. Seems to be a case of Buzz picking his spots.

He tried to get the reserves in there against Rutgers and look what happened...Seems to be a bit of a damned if you do damned if you don't scenario right now.

The problem, IMO, with the Rutgers game was the lineup of reserves he had in there and not using the timeouts quickly enough.  He's still learning, he's doing great....don't get me wrong.

But 40 minutes from McNeal and James in a game that turned out to be a blowout is a bit much.  At some point you have to give your bench some time, even if you don't like doing it.

Number one, it keeps the bench players feeling like they're part of the program.  Gives them a reason to practice hard during the week, keeps them sharp because they feel like they could go in at any time.

If he continues to go with a 7 man rotation, he'll lose the bench entirely and there will be moments when we have to get some production out of them due to foul trouble, injury, etc.  I just wish the Rutgers game wouldn't scare him off as much as it seems to have. He's made comments to the press about it now several times, so it's obviously wearing on him. 

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

Or perhaps one data point isn't enough and he's making an even bigger mistake?   This team is going to be dog tired at the end of the year.  I'd prefer he get some reserves in there.  There has to be some middle ground here.

Not using reserves so two guys play 40 minutes is nuts.  Put some reserves in there, just don't put them in as long as they were for Rutgers.  And put them in prior to the media timeouts so you get an extended breather (i.e with 4:50 left in the half since the media timeout hits at under 4 minutes).

I know, that makes me a Buzz hater.   

I'm inclined to agree with you, but I also think that maybe Buzz was making a statement to his own bench players. I mean, sure, he still could have got them in there for 2min. But, maybe he's proving to them: "If you don't play well, you won't play at all"

I can see value in that.

Now, if he continues a 7 man rotation for the rest of the year... THAT will make me skeptical.

[mviale]

These guys are young and seniors.  They know when to conserve their energy and when to turn it on.  I see this as an advantage too as they are learning to play long spurts together without fouling out and this will prove vital in the Tourney when most teams go 6-7 deep.

[Marquette84]

But 40 minutes from McNeal and James in a game that turned out to be a blowout is a bit much.  At some point you have to give your bench some time, even if you don't like doing it.

While I agree it wound up a blowout, I think the implication that there was plenty of opportunity to get the starters some rest is incorrect.

With under 5 minutes to go it was a 10 point game and WVU had the ball.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/playbyplay?gameId=290100269

I don't think that's when you want your subs in.  If WVU scores to take it to a 7 point game before the 4:00 media timeout, the game takes on a whole different character. 

Now, if MU were up 20 going into that 4:00 timeout, yes, by all means get your starters some rest.  But it was still a tight contest. 

I would suggest that it is very unusual for a game to become a blowout with under 4:00 to go.  In this case, I think Buzz played the 2nd have correctly.  No way would I have taken our starters out ahead of the 4:00 media timeout--not with just a 10 point lead.

[The Man in Gold]

I think Buzz just wanted to stick it to Huggy Bear.  Probably because Huggins never wrote him back.

[DaCoach]

The problem, IMO, with the Rutgers game was the lineup of reserves he had in there and not using the timeouts quickly enough.  He's still learning, he's doing great....don't get me wrong.

But 40 minutes from McNeal and James in a game that turned out to be a blowout is a bit much.  At some point you have to give your bench some time, even if you don't like doing it.

Number one, it keeps the bench players feeling like they're part of the program.  Gives them a reason to practice hard during the week, keeps them sharp because they feel like they could go in at any time.

I'm in agreement. Rutgers scared Buzz and he probably erred on the side of caution. #1, I don't believe we can ever afford to have both Acker and Cubes in at the same time. Neither creates offense. #2 The timing of his timeouts could stand improvement. More than once I've seen him wait on a timeout with an eye to the TV automatics. But Buzz seems to be a quick learner. I'm confidant he's on his way to adapting to the BE and big time competition.

[ChicosBailBonds]

While I agree it wound up a blowout, I think the implication that there was plenty of opportunity to get the starters some rest is incorrect.

With under 5 minutes to go it was a 10 point game and WVU had the ball.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/playbyplay?gameId=290100269

I don't think that's when you want your subs in.  If WVU scores to take it to a 7 point game before the 4:00 media timeout, the game takes on a whole different character. 

Now, if MU were up 20 going into that 4:00 timeout, yes, by all means get your starters some rest.  But it was still a tight contest. 

I would suggest that it is very unusual for a game to become a blowout with under 4:00 to go.  In this case, I think Buzz played the 2nd have correctly.  No way would I have taken our starters out ahead of the 4:00 media timeout--not with just a 10 point lead.

Valid point