Ah,

[4everwarriors]

who's going to check Blair?

15pts, 20 bounds, 3 blocks--awesome vs. Dukies

[ChicosBailBonds]

who's going to check Blair?

15pts, 20 bounds, 3 blocks--awesome vs. Dukies

I don't know, we'll have to find a way....just like we have in the last 5 years against players more talented and bigger...UCONN, UL, Pitt, Wisconsin, etc.

[denverMU]

Burke, Barro, Hazel, Hayward...

[ecompt]

who's going to stop DJ? Or Jerel? Or Fitz? We'll be just fine. We are quicker, smarter and better-coached.

[79Warrior]

who's going to stop DJ? Or Jerel? Or Fitz? We'll be just fine. We are quicker, smarter and better-coached.

DJ and Jerel will be tough to stop, Fitz will get tossed around like a wet rag.
Pitt is an excellent team, very strong. Great win for them tonight. I think Dixon is a very good coach. The matchup with MU will be very interesting.

[Pardner]

For a team that only goes 8 deep with their rotation, losing Cook and his double figure points hurts Pitt big time.  Blair is a beast but our guards are head and shoulders better and deeper.  Press, press, press....run, run , run.  Game of attrition to wear them out.  Pitt will want to slow it up to a half court game, but key for us is to pressure the ball to force the action.  Burke and Ooze match-up better with Blair than Singler who was muscled around tonight.  Scheyer was a brutal 1-10 tonight for Duke, with 12 rebs...so much for being a sharp shooter.

[Mayor McCheese]

you realize that Pitt had Gray last year... we did well against him.  Crean will find a way to keep him in check.

[ecompt]

and Fitz killed Pitt at their arena. We have the depth to withstand anything they throw at us.

[77ncaachamps]

and Fitz killed Pitt at their arena. We have the depth to withstand anything they throw at us.

But with no Fitz...

We can eek it out, especially with scorer Cook out.

[spiral97]

and Fitz killed Pitt at their arena. We have the depth to withstand anything they throw at us.

But with no Fitz...

We can eek it out, especially with scorer Cook out.

with the likes of DJ you mean?

[bilsu]

When I heard we were recruiting a 6'7" center I was not impressed. When Blair picked Pitt over MU it did not matter to me, since he was too small anyways. Now I have seen him play and now it matters. Wow' would he be a great addition to our team. Hopefully, Embakwe(sp) will be tough on the boards like Blair.

[Henry Sugar]

Take it for what it's worth, but Blair is making enough noise to be considered freshman of the year.  That's in the whole country.  Considering that the freshman class includes Gordon, Love, Beasley, Mayo.  And this article was written before he pulled down 20 boards against Duke.

Not that he has trouble staying on the court because he's 6'7" and 250 lbs.  That right there is how you beat DeJuan Blair...

http://www.basketballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=73

"DeJuan Blair Is the Best Freshman in America

He's probably not, but a slim possibility exists that this headline could be written soon. At this point, it appears he's no worse than third best in this historic freshman class, behind UCLA's Kevin Love and Kansas State's Michael Beasley. Unlike Beasley, Pittsburgh's Blair has the advantage of having four other offensive weapons surrounding him most of the time, so the Blair's scoring is probably not the most impressive part of his game. However, the 6'7" Blair has been an outstanding rebounder on both ends of the court, can block shots well for his size, and currently owns an amazing steal rate--seventh in the entire country. Rate stats do Blair more justice that the per-game stats because as usual, Pitt is playing significantly slower than the average D-I team and Blair, with his 250 pounds, is having trouble staying on the floor, averaging barely more than 20 minutes per game. Considering all aspects of his game Blair deserves to be mentioned as one of the best freshmen in the nation, but he'll get a reality check tonight against Duke. A nice performance against the Blue Devils will no doubt get him that attention."

[ecompt]

Maybe the way to beat them is have Ooze take him coast-to-coast a few times on the break. Tire him out. The guy is a moose. One good thing: He's gone after this year.

[muarmy81]

One good thing: He's gone after this year.

Really?  You think?

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

It'll be an interesting match-up... every player has his Kryptonite.

His is probably stamina and different types of double teams (I have never seem him play, I'm just basing this off of what a lot of young big men struggle with).

I don't know if MU can neutralize him or not... but I do think MU can beat PITT. Sometimes letting a guy "go off" isn't the worst thing if MU is still dictating the tempo and limiting the other players' good looks.

[The Lens]

When I heard we were recruiting a 6'7" center I was not impressed. When Blair picked Pitt over MU it did not matter to me, since he was too small anyways. Now I have seen him play and now it matters. Wow' would he be a great addition to our team. Hopefully, Embakwe(sp) will be tough on the boards like Blair.

This is exactly why I cringe when I hear measurements like wingspan.  Give me Blair 7 days a week.  Given our low post situation, we should be recruiting basketball players not measurements.  Some apologists will argue that we don't have a bigman b/c they all go pro or go to UCLA but Harangody & Blair show that you don't have to be Duke, or Kansas to get a decent prospect at the 4 & 5.

[Coobeys Oil Depot]

When I heard we were recruiting a 6'7" center I was not impressed. When Blair picked Pitt over MU it did not matter to me, since he was too small anyways. Now I have seen him play and now it matters. Wow' would he be a great addition to our team. Hopefully, Embakwe(sp) will be tough on the boards like Blair.

This is exactly why I cringe when I hear measurements like wingspan.  Give me Blair 7 days a week.  Given our low post situation, we should be recruiting basketball players not measurements.  Some apologists will argue that we don't have a bigman b/c they all go pro or go to UCLA but Harangody & Blair show that you don't have to be Duke, or Kansas to get a decent prospect at the 4 & 5.

See, that's pretty funny because when Marquette recruits a 6'7'' player with an unreal wingspan people, including yourself apparently, moan that he really isn't a true "big". But when other teams recruit that and the kid has a great game on TV all of a sudden it's okay to have a 6'7'' kid playing the 5.

Neither of them are bigs. A 6'7'' player can't be a big for another program and not considered a big at Marquette. Either we shift the definition of big and get with the times (some of us have been there for a few years) or we realize that Crean has been recruiting, and landing, bigs but his just haven't been surefire Division I players like Blair and Harangody.

Onto Blair and the Marquette game, missing Cook will hurt Pitt a bit as teams can now drop down and double Blair and not fear too much from the perimeter. Guys like Brown and Benjamin will have to step up and they can do so defensively but they're not known as shooters quite like Cook. The other thing MU can do is bang with Burke and run with Ooze. It was very effective the last 2 years against Gray and perhaps MU can take advantage of that some of that remaining baby fat on Blair. Finally, Blair plays with a lot of emotion and enthusiasm and MU can look to exploit that a bit if they can frustrate him into losing his head.

[PuertoRicanNightmare]

When I heard we were recruiting a 6'7" center I was not impressed. When Blair picked Pitt over MU it did not matter to me, since he was too small anyways. Now I have seen him play and now it matters. Wow' would he be a great addition to our team. Hopefully, Embakwe(sp) will be tough on the boards like Blair.

This is exactly why I cringe when I hear measurements like wingspan.  Give me Blair 7 days a week.  Given our low post situation, we should be recruiting basketball players not measurements.  Some apologists will argue that we don't have a bigman b/c they all go pro or go to UCLA but Harangody & Blair show that you don't have to be Duke, or Kansas to get a decent prospect at the 4 & 5.

I once heard Kevin O'Neill talk about this and say, and I quote, "I'd rather have a 6'7" guy who can play than some 7 foot turd."

[The Lens]

When I heard we were recruiting a 6'7" center I was not impressed. When Blair picked Pitt over MU it did not matter to me, since he was too small anyways. Now I have seen him play and now it matters. Wow' would he be a great addition to our team. Hopefully, Embakwe(sp) will be tough on the boards like Blair.

This is exactly why I cringe when I hear measurements like wingspan.  Give me Blair 7 days a week.  Given our low post situation, we should be recruiting basketball players not measurements.  Some apologists will argue that we don't have a bigman b/c they all go pro or go to UCLA but Harangody & Blair show that you don't have to be Duke, or Kansas to get a decent prospect at the 4 & 5.

See, that's pretty funny because when Marquette recruits a 6'7'' player with an unreal wingspan people, including yourself apparently, moan that he really isn't a true "big". But when other teams recruit that and the kid has a great game on TV all of a sudden it's okay to have a 6'7'' kid playing the 5.

Neither of them are bigs. A 6'7'' player can't be a big for another program and not considered a big at Marquette. Either we shift the definition of big and get with the times (some of us have been there for a few years) or we realize that Crean has been recruiting, and landing, bigs but his just haven't been surefire Division I players like Blair and Harangody.

Onto Blair and the Marquette game, missing Cook will hurt Pitt a bit as teams can now drop down and double Blair and not fear too much from the perimeter. Guys like Brown and Benjamin will have to step up and they can do so defensively but they're not known as shooters quite like Cook. The other thing MU can do is bang with Burke and run with Ooze. It was very effective the last 2 years against Gray and perhaps MU can take advantage of that some of that remaining baby fat on Blair. Finally, Blair plays with a lot of emotion and enthusiasm and MU can look to exploit that a bit if they can frustrate him into losing his head.

Those 6'7" guys are usually wings.  The type of guy I'm talking about is an under sized center.  A guy who doesn't pass the looks test but usually understands footwork, positioning etc.  A CENTER, not some jump out of the gym wing.  For instance Trend vs Blair.  Each are 6'7".

[ChicosBailBonds]

When I heard we were recruiting a 6'7" center I was not impressed. When Blair picked Pitt over MU it did not matter to me, since he was too small anyways. Now I have seen him play and now it matters. Wow' would he be a great addition to our team. Hopefully, Embakwe(sp) will be tough on the boards like Blair.

I think this is exhibit A why we can't get so hung up on a guy's size sometimes.  Plenty of 6'9" guys out there that are absolute stiffs if we had to get one, but why.  I'd take a 6'6" athlete over him every time.

[Mayor McCheese]

We are always going to find guys on other teams that I wish MU had... man I would die for a frosh like Gordon, Love, Rose, Beasley... but hell, the team we have now is the best since 2003, and I think they could make the final four the way they have been playing.  To beat Wisconsin in the Kohl Center, no matter if it is a "rebuilding"year for Wisconsin (they have a 7 footer named Butch who was a McDonalds All-American, and besides the criticism, the boy can play, and he puts up numebrs, and Landry who is 6'9" and a D stopper down low or on a wing player), that is a huge accomplishment.  Yeah Blair is good and big, and both times I have seen him (duke and OK St game) he has played very good.  But honestly I think we have bigs that will bang him around more then both those teams.  Duke's center is Singler, really?  That is your center?  I think he might weight 160, maybe.  Duke isn't a very good rebounding team, and to be fair I think MU is just as good/if not better then Duke.  Going into the Big East we knew there were going to be bigs that dominate.  Teams like Pitt, G-Town, Louisville gets them on a consistent basis.  Love the challenge, beats being like Memphis in Conf USA who waltzes through their conference schedule every year, would you rather have that?

And I don't think Blair is one and done... which sucks, because he is really good.

[Coobeys Oil Depot]

When I heard we were recruiting a 6'7" center I was not impressed. When Blair picked Pitt over MU it did not matter to me, since he was too small anyways. Now I have seen him play and now it matters. Wow' would he be a great addition to our team. Hopefully, Embakwe(sp) will be tough on the boards like Blair.

This is exactly why I cringe when I hear measurements like wingspan.  Give me Blair 7 days a week.  Given our low post situation, we should be recruiting basketball players not measurements.  Some apologists will argue that we don't have a bigman b/c they all go pro or go to UCLA but Harangody & Blair show that you don't have to be Duke, or Kansas to get a decent prospect at the 4 & 5.

See, that's pretty funny because when Marquette recruits a 6'7'' player with an unreal wingspan people, including yourself apparently, moan that he really isn't a true "big". But when other teams recruit that and the kid has a great game on TV all of a sudden it's okay to have a 6'7'' kid playing the 5.

Neither of them are bigs. A 6'7'' player can't be a big for another program and not considered a big at Marquette. Either we shift the definition of big and get with the times (some of us have been there for a few years) or we realize that Crean has been recruiting, and landing, bigs but his just haven't been surefire Division I players like Blair and Harangody.

Onto Blair and the Marquette game, missing Cook will hurt Pitt a bit as teams can now drop down and double Blair and not fear too much from the perimeter. Guys like Brown and Benjamin will have to step up and they can do so defensively but they're not known as shooters quite like Cook. The other thing MU can do is bang with Burke and run with Ooze. It was very effective the last 2 years against Gray and perhaps MU can take advantage of that some of that remaining baby fat on Blair. Finally, Blair plays with a lot of emotion and enthusiasm and MU can look to exploit that a bit if they can frustrate him into losing his head.

Those 6'7" guys are usually wings.  The type of guy I'm talking about is an under sized center.  A guy who doesn't pass the looks test but usually understands footwork, positioning etc.  A CENTER, not some jump out of the gym wing.  For instance Trend vs Blair.  Each are 6'7".

Who are your top 5 undersized centers?