Even Montana...

[4everwarriors]

has some beef up front and in the middle. Don't tell me it's easier to recruit in Montana, than MKE.

[ChicosBailBonds]

has some beef up front and in the middle. Don't tell me it's easier to recruit in Montana, than MKE.

Can I ask a simple question....why haven't we had beef consistently for 25 years?

[Moonboots]

has some beef up front and in the middle. Don't tell me it's easier to recruit in Montana, than MKE.

Not sure how those big guys would hold up in the Big East, though. Not real mobile.

[Doris Burkes Thong]

has some beef up front and in the middle. Don't tell me it's easier to recruit in Montana, than MKE.

Hey, Georgetown has Greg Monroe. What the hell happened to them today and their beef up front to mighty Ohio University? Beef or no beef we just didn't exceute and didn't get a break from the reffing. And Jimmy Butler was horrendous. If he plays better we win. He just looked like he lacked explosiveness off the ground and just couldn't so anything all day. Maybe it had to do with havign to cover Pondexter.

[JimmyLikesBasketball]

And Jimmy Butler was horrendous. If he plays better we win. He just looked like he lacked explosiveness off the ground and just couldn't so anything all day. Maybe it had to do with havign to cover Pondexter.

No Kidding, Jimmy was bad... The Butler didn't do it... probs colonel mustard.

[karavotsos]

We had bigs when Bo Ellis was here (coaching.)  I don't know if he was the one who coached them.  I assume he did.  But he was here with all the big guys from McIlvaine and Key through Jerod Lovette, correct?  Faisal Abraham, Amal McCaskill, Abel Joseph.  All these guys could mix it up.

I think that MU could get bigs that have to be coached to be good at what they're taught to do.  Crean just wanted a big guy to hang out in the alley and cut to the basket.  When Buzz got here Dwight Burke did not even know how to put his butt down and post up.  (Jackson was a ready-made gift.)

The lack of bigs seems to me to be a lack of focus on not only the recruiting level, but also the development level, and also some bad luck.  It'll be interesting to see what Buzz does with Otule if he ever gets healthy because it takes patience to develop bigs.  I don't know yet how this will jibe with Buzz's emphasis on the importance on every possession.

I just think at a certain level guards are easier: there's a lot of them out there, and they can come in ready-made, or closer to ready-made, their gifts may be easier to spot and mold.  Most big men, especially that MU could get, are projects at some level.  You need someone who knows big men to find them and coach them, give them a clear vision to realize.  I think Buzz can do that because he does it for everyone else, but I think Bo Ellis would help.

[JimmyLikesBasketball]

Where is Bo Ellis?

[VegasWarrior77]

has some beef up front and in the middle. Don't tell me it's easier to recruit in Montana, than MKE.

+1
I was watching those big grizzlies with envy...!

[VegasWarrior77]

Not sure how those big guys would hold up in the Big East, though. Not real mobile.

The big east is not the BEast this year...! 

[Moonboots]

The big east is not the BEast this year...! 

True, at least by our showing in the NIT/NCAAs so far. But that doesn't change individual matchups.  Huge, slow white guys vs. Monroe, Onuaku, etc. are really not that much better than a shorter, more athletic, built forward like Lazar.  Just my opinion.

[ChicosBailBonds]

We had bigs when Bo Ellis was here (coaching.)  I don't know if he was the one who coached them.  I assume he did.  But he was here with all the big guys from McIlvaine and Key through Jerod Lovette, correct?  Faisal Abraham, Amal McCaskill, Abel Joseph.  All these guys could mix it up.

I think that MU could get bigs that have to be coached to be good at what they're taught to do.  Crean just wanted a big guy to hang out in the alley and cut to the basket.  When Buzz got here Dwight Burke did not even know how to put his butt down and post up.  (Jackson was a ready-made gift.)

The lack of bigs seems to me to be a lack of focus on not only the recruiting level, but also the development level, and also some bad luck.  It'll be interesting to see what Buzz does with Otule if he ever gets healthy because it takes patience to develop bigs.  I don't know yet how this will jibe with Buzz's emphasis on the importance on every possession.

I just think at a certain level guards are easier: there's a lot of them out there, and they can come in ready-made, or closer to ready-made, their gifts may be easier to spot and mold.  Most big men, especially that MU could get, are projects at some level.  You need someone who knows big men to find them and coach them, give them a clear vision to realize.  I think Buzz can do that because he does it for everyone else, but I think Bo Ellis would help.

Yes, we have sporadically had some bigs that were good players during that 25 years, but what did it get us?  In other words, some people here want to make it out like getting bigs equals automatic success.  It doesn't.  I sure hope we get some, but it's going to take more than that.

As an example, in the last 5 years we have made the NCAA tournament each year with very few bigs.  Barro and Burke.

We've won 2 NCAA games and gone 2-5 in the tournament including 3 losses in the final seconds of the game, so it's not like we weren't right there in all of them except for the Michigan State game.


Even when we had Key, McIlvaine, etc, we had mixed success

2 NCAA tournaments
1 NIT
1 non tournament all together

With McCaskill and that crew of bigs, same deal.  NIT one year.  NCAA twice, including one win and one absolute blowout at the hands of Providence. 

I don't think anyone would argue that we want to have quality bigs and guards and forwards.  Who wouldn't.   But at the end of the day, we've shown through the years that if we don't execute, regardless of the bigs or guards or forwards on the team, it's not going to matter.

[karavotsos]

I completely agree.  Now we have more than we had in the 90's,  Let's keep adding.  When we had those guys we were a mid-major with mid-major recruiting reach and talent that was well-coached.  Now we have major quality talent and coaching, if we have bigs they need to be at that level, so we can play different ways-- big and small-- without losing execution. 

I am confident that we can get 'guys who look like Chris' and work them to become quality bigs.  Especially after watching the teams tonight at the BC --OK St., Tech, and Ohio State-- they're out there, Buzz could get a lot more out of them than Hewitt or Ford, and they add a dimension that we don't currently have. 

Sucks to watch the quality of the games tonight, Wake-Texas last night, and the Wisconsin egg game v. MU-Washington and know that those teams were surviving and advancing.  Gotta take the long view.

[Tugg Speedman]

Not sure how those big guys would hold up in the Big East, though. Not real mobile.

+1

That guy was no better than Dwight Burke.  So if we are going to look at Montana and ask why we can't get big guys, then its been 1 year since we had one.

[Markusquette]

+1

That guy was no better than Dwight Burke.  So if we are going to look at Montana and ask why we can't get big guys, then its been 1 year since we had one.

I don't know if I would go that far.  Qvale would be a more than a  serviceable big man in the big east imo.  Nothing outstanding, but he has the height and bulk to compete and he is competent on offense.  I would certainly welcome a guy like him. 

I can't say I didn't miss a guy like Burke this year, but we all know we need a better upgrade.  Needless to say, Burke was definitely a hard worker and played good D, and was a good rebounder for his size.  I can't wait until we get a post player capable of throwing it down to.  Lazar was our best option in that regard for the last 4 years.

[patso]

That big guy on Northern Iowa is good but most big men are unathletic hulks. I remember marquette from the 1990s had great size but most of it should have been on the wrestling team.

[Big Daddy Z]

Jerome Whitehead