The 2 guards tonight

[BCHoopster]

I am not sure what talent Buzz sees in Jake, I do see what Derrick can do, but getting 3 points from there 2 starting guards does not cut it in major college ball.  For that matter, has
Juan improved or Steve Taylor, a really bad night for MU.  Now think of this next year without Devante, MU will be really interesting, it might have to be Buzz's best coaching job next
year.  Derrick just does not know how to make offensive plays.  Duane Wilson is needed right away, he might play some 2 guard and put Mayo on the wing.  It will be interesting to see
how this team improves as they will be doubling Devante leaving open shots for lots of players.  I will give some credit to Southern, they at least had some players who could put the
ball in the hoop.  It is good they have Grambling next, as they need to get over there jitters. 

Last point, Wisconsin will be fun to watch this year, all 5 starters can shoot the ball.  St. Johns is a bunch of good athletics but Bo can coach.  Nice victory for the Badgers, Decker is
really good.

[brandx]

I am not sure what talent Buzz sees in Jake, I do see what Derrick can do, but getting 3 points from there 2 starting guards does not cut it in major college ball.  For that matter, has
Juan improved or Steve Taylor, a really bad night for MU.  Now think of this next year without Devante, MU will be really interesting, it might have to be Buzz's best coaching job next
year.  Derrick just does not know how to make offensive plays.  Duane Wilson is needed right away, he might play some 2 guard and put Mayo on the wing.  It will be interesting to see
how this team improves as they will be doubling Devante leaving open shots for lots of players.  I will give some credit to Southern, they at least had some players who could put the
ball in the hoop.  It is good they have Grambling next, as they need to get over there jitters. 

Last point, Wisconsin will be fun to watch this year, all 5 starters can shoot the ball.  St. Johns is a bunch of good athletics but Bo can coach.  Nice victory for the Badgers, Decker is
really good.

Get over the drama - it's just one game.

Buzz does this every year and every year the rotation gets settled and we play better as the year goes on.

[BCHoopster]

Get over the drama - it's just one game.

Buzz does this every year and every year the rotation gets settled and we play better as the year goes on.

Just stating the facts, no drama, those 2 guards are not the answer.  Jake can not take it to the hoop nor can Derrick, both play below the rim big time.  Derrick will get better, not
sure about Jake.

[brewcity77]

Get over the drama - it's just one game.

Exactly right, but someone had to have the overdramatic post. People were up in arms when we barely beat SELA last year, I'm actually a little relieved there isn't more Chicken Little mindset tonight.

We beat a team that made the NCAAs last year and came close to knocking off 1-seed Gonzaga. Even when the game was close, it was never in doubt. Nothing to worry about.

[brandx]

Exactly right, but someone had to have the overdramatic post. People were up in arms when we barely beat SELA last year, I'm actually a little relieved there isn't more Chicken Little mindset tonight.

We beat a team that made the NCAAs last year and came close to knocking off 1-seed Gonzaga. Even when the game was close, it was never in doubt. Nothing to worry about.

+1

The freshmen will get better and Jake will play less. My biggest worry was determining if Todd could be the 3rd scorer that we need along will DG & Jamil. He looked very comfortable in the offense.

[wadesworld]

+1

The freshmen will get better and Jake will play less. My biggest worry was determining if Todd could be the 3rd scorer that we need along will DG & Jamil. He looked very comfortable in the offense.

He looked very comfortable because he didn't have to worry about passing the ball.  I think I counted the number of times he passed the ball while I was throwing up the peace sign to a friend today.  It will be interesting to see what happens when he isn't shooting the ball well and when better teams (the Wisconsin's and Georgetown's of the world) are keying in on him a little bit more.  We'll see if his look at the hoop 1st, 2nd, and 3rd mentality will disrupt any flow on offense that we may get or if he'll learn that while he has an ability to put the ball in the hoop, he may not be able to get off a good shot every time he touches the ball this year.  But he does bring something that not a lot of players on this team bring to the table, and that is the ability to create a shot for himself.

[Dawson Rental]

He looked very comfortable because he didn't have to worry about passing the ball.  I think I counted the number of times he passed the ball while I was throwing up the peace sign to a friend today.  It will be interesting to see what happens when he isn't shooting the ball well and when better teams (the Wisconsin's and Georgetown's of the world) are keying in on him a little bit more.  We'll see if his look at the hoop 1st, 2nd, and 3rd mentality will disrupt any flow on offense that we may get or if he'll learn that while he has an ability to put the ball in the hoop, he may not be able to get off a good shot every time he touches the ball this year.  But he does bring something that not a lot of players on this team bring to the table, and that is the ability to create a shot for himself.

Something else, as well, the ability to blow a defense that can't arm or hand check him anymore.

[TallTitan34]

It wouldn't be
the start
to a Marquette basketball season
without the early panic
after a close win in a buy game.

[NersEllenson]

He looked very comfortable because he didn't have to worry about passing the ball.  I think I counted the number of times he passed the ball while I was throwing up the peace sign to a friend today.  It will be interesting to see what happens when he isn't shooting the ball well and when better teams (the Wisconsin's and Georgetown's of the world) are keying in on him a little bit more.  We'll see if his look at the hoop 1st, 2nd, and 3rd mentality will disrupt any flow on offense that we may get or if he'll learn that while he has an ability to put the ball in the hoop, he may not be able to get off a good shot every time he touches the ball this year.  But he does bring something that not a lot of players on this team bring to the table, and that is the ability to create a shot for himself.

Not sure why, but you've dogged Mayo in a few posts over the last few months.  You may not like the guy personally - but not sure why you are complaining about him not passing the ball.  Would much rather he be shooting the ball than the other guard options we have.  Todd's got game...I've said it for a long time...but it would not surprise me in the least if he puts up numbers like Vander did last year.

[bilsu]

One of the things that I was disappointed about last year was our lack of ability to create fastbreaks off of turnovers. Having watched this game, we might be even worse in that department this year. Except for a Mayo steal, I do not think we had any fast breaks in this game.  We also did not have any dunk attempts.

[ChicosBailBonds]

We will go as far as our guards take us.

[The Lens]

After seeing Mayo tonight, I know the final four is not just a dream anymore.

Gonna be a fun year.

[keefe]

We will go as far as our guards take us.

Don't let your guard down

[ChicosBailBonds]

Don't let your guard down

Apparently I need to, plus I need to get my hands on whatever Lens is consuming.   

[brewcity77]

After seeing Mayo tonight, I know the final four is not just a dream anymore.

Gonna be a fun year.

I said last night that I thought we'd miss Junior more than Van because in Mayo, we have someone who can directly step into that role. This could very well be a Final Four team. We have the best frontcourt I have ever seen at Marquette and a number of skilled wings. For me, the only question is the point.

If DeWil can facilitate just enough to keep everything going on offense, there's no limit to how far this team can go. At times, Junior was a bit too reckless for MU's own good. I'm hoping with all the options around him, DeWil can be great with a more restrained game.

[muwarrior69]

Southern is a good team. I think the guards are our weak link at the moment. I also believe they are adjusting to the "no contact rule" the officials are now calling and can't play that "in your face" defense. I was surprised that everyone played. I think Buzz would like to go deep this year like he did last year.

[nyg]

I said last night that I thought we'd miss Junior more than Van because in Mayo, we have someone who can directly step into that role. This could very well be a Final Four team. We have the best frontcourt I have ever seen at Marquette and a number of skilled wings. For me, the only question is the point.

If DeWil can facilitate just enough to keep everything going on offense, there's no limit to how far this team can go. At times, Junior was a bit too reckless for MU's own good. I'm hoping with all the options around him, DeWil can be great with a more restrained game.

Even though Junior was reckless at times, at least he was somewhat of an offensive threat.  Junior would make the occasional drive, jump shot and yes, free throws. Defenses had to be on him because he was not the offensive liability Derrick is.  Derrick played 34 minutes last night and didn't have a FG attempt, his free throws are terrible and had 3 assists/2 turnovers.  Not an impressive debut as the starting PG playing significant minutes. This is not his first year here, so he knows the program and what Buzz and the staff expect of him.  Defenses will be slacking off him all year, making it a 5 on 4 for MU on the offensive front and he will not (hopefully) be in a close game because teams will foul him to put him on the line.  Realize it is the first game, so lets see how this plays out.  If it continues, the criticism will be off the charts.  

[brewcity77]

Realize it is the first game, so lets see how this plays out.  If it continues, the criticism will be off the charts.

Agreed on both of these. He needs to be more aggressive, but it's far too early to determine how successful he will be. But also...

Southern is a good team.

This is exactly right. They were SWAC champs last year, nearly took out top-seed Gonzaga in the Dance, and are SWAC favorites again this year. This is not the type of team we usually open the season with. I just want to see Derrick have a chance to get into a groove and see what he can do with it.

[GGGG]

De. Wilson played great on the defensive end though.  No hand check fouls.  Dumb move in fouling the 3 point shooter, and I thought he got a clean block on the shot in the lane.  Not going to bury the guy after one game.

[GGGG]

He looked very comfortable because he didn't have to worry about passing the ball.  I think I counted the number of times he passed the ball while I was throwing up the peace sign to a friend today.  It will be interesting to see what happens when he isn't shooting the ball well and when better teams (the Wisconsin's and Georgetown's of the world) are keying in on him a little bit more.  We'll see if his look at the hoop 1st, 2nd, and 3rd mentality will disrupt any flow on offense that we may get or if he'll learn that while he has an ability to put the ball in the hoop, he may not be able to get off a good shot every time he touches the ball this year.  But he does bring something that not a lot of players on this team bring to the table, and that is the ability to create a shot for himself.

I think this is a silly criticism.  I don't think Mayo took a bad shot all night.

[WarriorFan]

I think some of the criticism of Jake is unfair.  If you really watch the details of the game, the offensive spacing is much better when he's on the floor because the defense has to respect his ability to shoot.  He didn't hurt MU on defense, either.  Of course Mayo is better overall, but when he's on the court he needs the ball.  Jake's a better option when the ball is going low, especially early in the game when that's the plan in order to pick up some fouls on the other team's bigs. 

Jake also had a couple nice "hustle" plays.  In my view he absolutely belongs at this level and contributes a lot of intangibles.

[esotericmindguy]

I don't think its dramatic. We've seen Thomas and D Wilson before, and nothing has changed. We have a PG who can't even make free throws and a 2 guard that can't score the ball. Not exactly a recipe for success in college basketball.

[Dr. Blackheart]

Todd was wearing the team shoes, but Jake wore black.  Clearly the difference.  

I thought Todd was outstanding.  Crowd gave him a warm welcome.  He was playing great team defense, was working within the offense. I said this a long time ago:  I think he will play a lot of PG this season, especially now with Duane on the mend.  He did average 6 assists at NDP as a combo guard.

Worst thing about the game last night was the lack of flow with the stupid foul situation.  The guards could not get into an offensive rhythm, especially the frosh.  Us fans don't know what we got at the 1-3 spots after that debacle of a foul fest.

[mileskishnish72]

I think a little "drama" is OK - got outscored by 20 from the field, and there were a lot of Southern people gone from the NCAA rep. Plus, it's not likely we are going to continue to get 3 and a half times the free throws of our opponent - and we missed 20 of them. Better start practicing free throws.

[The Lens]

Call me drunk, call me high, call me in April.

I'll be in Dallas.