When the thrill of the win wears off

[MU1980]

What strategy and tactics would you deploy that Wojo hasn't?  We had a ton of open looks last night that didn't fall.  Creighton packed the lane and game planned to eliminate Luke, what tactics would you use to counter act this?  What is your concern with Wojo's offense?

Honestly, while the results haven't always been pretty, my biggest concern was Wojo's game planning and in-game adjustments.  I think he has exceeded my expectations and has shown an ability to learn and adjust.  I'm confident that 3 years from now we will look back on posts like yours as a thing of wonder that we ever doubted him.

Very well said.  It would be nice that when you put someone on ignore that you didn't have to see their posts when someone quotes them, but at least everyone who replied to and quoted Texas Western's post had a great comeback.  I have been very impressed with every facet of Coach Wojo's young head coaching career so far, not just his recruiting.  He has done a great job with a team that he did not put together and unfortunately he has to adjust for many things including a team that can't shoot consistently well.  Wojo's one big addition has been Carlino and I can't imagine how this team would be doing without Carlino and his outside shooting or just his threat of outside shooting.  Still find it funny how a few posters believe Carlino is such a cancer to this team and is a big reason two guys transferred that were probably not in the long range plans of this team anyway, since defense and rebounding are something Wojo feels are important.  This team will most likely remain inconsistent the entire season simply because they will have bad shooting nights, but  their intensity and tough defense seems to be the one constant and that comes from the head coach and his excellent leadership.  It was nice to see Duane break out of his shooting slump a little because that can give you at least three outside scoring threats, with Duane, Carlino and Cohen.  It would be nice to see Jujuan find his outside shot and with Derek shooting better than last year, they can be a decent shooting team on certain nights. 

[Niv Berkowitz]

I'm not expecting us to go making the tourney and all, but man, a win is a win and I'll take it.

Sometimes sh!t just happens in a game. I know coaches (and many here) are always in search of a perfect game but nobody ever wants to give another team credit for anything. It's either "we sucked" or "we were great" or "we let that guy score at will". Sometimes, other people are just better.

Last night was one of those games. And you know what? The team with six scorers (sorry, Steve) won. It was ugly but I'll take it.

Everyone forgets that two years ago, we were looking at a bad season. We were not playing well, had UConn at home and we were THIS close to losing and derailing the season. Then this happened.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k378Ag1Tc30.

I'm not saying it will happen again - nor do I expect it - I'm just saying...sometimes games like this happen. They are young. inexperienced. Short staffed......And they won. Deal.

[UticaBusBarn]

Most Warrior games will be "ugly", because defensive orientated teams are by definition ugly. (Hello Al!)

I thought Coach Wojo handled the closing minutes rather well. He let the Warriors play. That is the way a coach allows a team to build confidence in itself.

Wojo is all about positive energy. Good for him. Good for the team.

[MUMonster03]

The problem I saw last night is when Fischer is in the game other players need to step up. Every team and every coach in the Big East now knows that Fischer is a threat inside. McDermott said his game plan was to take away Fischer and every time he touched the ball two to three defenders were crashing onto him. If Carlino and some others can start hitting shots and taking some of the defensive attention away from Fischer he won't have many more 2 point games. He also needs to cut down on the cheap fouls so he can stay on the court but its still only his 8th game after a year of only practicing.

[GooooMarquette]

A crappy team only wins when they play well.  We generally played poorly last night and won.

Plenty of teams that went from a double-digit lead in the first half to a four-point deficit in the final minutes would pack up and go home.  We found a way to pull it out.  Says a lot about Wojo and the guys.

[MerrittsMustache]

Fischer needs to be more decisive with the ball. When he gets the ball in the lane, he needs to turn quickly and go up with it. If he's on the block, he needs to hold the ball high and when the double-team comes, get rid of it so it can swing around the perimeter. His first move should NEVER be to put the ball on the floor.

[MUfan12]

Also worth mentioning... it was tough for the guards to get Fischer the ball because Stephens and his two stooges allowed Creighton to beat Luke up in the post.

[GooooMarquette]

Also worth mentioning... it was tough for the guards to get Fischer the ball because Stephens and his two stooges allowed Creighton to beat Luke up in the post.

Correct.  Whether or not they were fouling, Creighton did a great job of surrounding Luke in the post.  They were basically forcing us to beat them from the perimeter...and fortunately we hit just enough shots to do it.

[Golden Avalanche]

Also worth mentioning... it was tough for the guards to get Fischer the ball because Stephens and his two stooges allowed Creighton to beat Luke up in the post.

Fischer got hammered a few times early and shrunk after that. Could see in the second half when he did get the ball, tentative was written all over face and movement including one time where he dribbled the ball straight into Krenkeneklenenelow's (sp?) hands.

[avid1010]

amazing how different people's views can be:

1. i didn't see fischer shrink after getting popped a few times.  i saw a kid that couldn't get in the flow of the game because of foul trouble, and certainly couldn't bang back because he couldn't afford to pick up a cheap foul.  he put his nose in the middle of things without being able to be overly aggressive.  that's not "shrinking" and banging back was exactly what creighton was trying to get him to do.  the kid has played tough all year and deserved respect.

2. the original post talks about creighton getting its shooters open.  the results weren't good enough to win (against a team you're essentially ripping), so you have to question the plan.  exactly who did you want MU to run plays for.  you have to have 2 guys on the court that can hit from outside to do so.  wojo talked about it after the game, said they just need to keep putting up shots, and that the game plan was to get the ball to luke.  they dared MU to shoot from outside all night.  they didn't need to run plays to get guys open...creighton just left them open.  other than carlino, no one was closely guarded.  

3.  MU has run plenty of sets to get guys good looks against a zone...it looks much more obvious against a zone than against man.  

4.  MU played about as poorly as they are going to play on offense, with 8 guys, and they won against a team that really needed a BEAST win.  wojo's defensive scheme held up..."to all those great plays" creighton ran only to miss the shot.

5.  MU is 30th in assists (but according to some they don't know how to move the ball), 61st in field goal percentage (but wojo doesn't know how to run good plays), and 325th in rebounding (the result of having to play a zone because of lack of high and 8 players on the team).

Amazing that MU is where it is
amazing that wojo has the team playing defense as well as they are in a zone given he didn't come from a system that ran one
amazing that we have stellar recruits coming in next year
amazing that derrick wilson is starting to play a bit better
amazing that we won any games without luke
amazing that wojo's graduate transfer has won us at least 2 games this year
amazing that people get on here and criticize him, when he has crap to work with and is 2-2 in the 2nd best RPI conf in the nation

[dgies9156]

Luke needs to stop putting the ball on the floor and go right to the basket.

Enough turnovers from him dribbling last night to cause me to want to spend most of my night drinking beer and hoping it would stop.

Davante learned the same thing. Use your body and your reach and forget this dribbling garbage.

[Golden Avalanche]

amazing how different people's views can be:

1. i didn't see fischer shrink after getting popped a few times.  i saw a kid that couldn't get in the flow of the game because of foul trouble, and certainly couldn't bang back because he couldn't afford to pick up a cheap foul.  he put his nose in the middle of things without being able to be overly aggressive.  that's not "shrinking" and banging back was exactly what creighton was trying to get him to do.  the kid has played tough all year and deserved respect.

Fischer had zero impact on the game. He scored 15 seconds into it and never was heard from again. Lowest amount of rebounds on the team. Derrick blocked/affected shots more than Fischer did. Still waiting for Luke's first FT of the game.........

Foul trouble? Fischer got whistled straight away and then again with about five left in the half. Not even sure he got whistled in the second. This was the only Big East game to date where Fischer wasn't in foul trouble where Wojo had to monitor minutes.

Also, as dgies points out above, avoiding a straight path to basket for putting the ball on the floor is indicative of tentative play. Fischer just didn't have it last night which isn't a shock considering he's played half the games everyone else has on the roster. In time, he'll become a consistent presence.

[avid1010]

Luke needs to stop putting the ball on the floor and go right to the basket.

Enough turnovers from him dribbling last night to cause me to want to spend most of my night drinking beer and hoping it would stop.

Davante learned the same thing. Use your body and your reach and forget this dribbling garbage.

luke have the same problem in the previous games or did he just learn this bad habit over the long break?

[avid1010]

Fischer had zero impact on the game. He scored 15 seconds into it and never was heard from again. Lowest amount of rebounds on the team. Derrick blocked/affected shots more than Fischer did. Still waiting for Luke's first FT of the game.........

Foul trouble? Fischer got whistled straight away and then again with about five left in the half. Not even sure he got whistled in the second. This was the only Big East game to date where Fischer wasn't in foul trouble where Wojo had to monitor minutes.

Also, as dgies points out above, avoiding a straight path to basket for putting the ball on the floor is indicative of tentative play. Fischer just didn't have it last night which isn't a shock considering he's played half the games everyone else has on the roster. In time, he'll become a consistent presence.

the way i remember it, he sat for most of the first half with two fouls, then picked up a 3rd early on in the second half and wojo decided to sit him down again rather than risk 4 early in the second half. 

zero impact in the game isn't possible...wojo said MU's game plan was to get fischer the ball.  you could tell creighton spent all their time trying to figure out how they would swarm him, and the open looks he creates while just being in game helps, not to mention the way he clogs the lane on defense.  go back and watch the game, and note who was/wasn't on the floor when creighton got the majority of their points and when MU scored the majority of theirs. 

[MerrittsMustache]

Fischer had zero impact on the game.

Go to the 0:56 mark in this clip (thanks to Ellenson_toMU) and then try to argue that Fischer had zero impact on the game. That's a much easier shot with Steve or Juan guarding the post.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOgVw6Nqjo4&feature=youtu.be

[21rooster]

Fischer had zero impact?  I agree about his role in opening up shots for everyone else (do you think we shoot that three-point percentage without him?) and he set the screen that freed Carlino up.  Because MU made the mistake of not fouling at the end, Fischer's man got the ball with plenty of time to shoot. While his man still got a decent look, Luke did a great job of making it difficult without giving the refs an opportunity to blow the whistle...he played excellent defense to seal the win.  Was it his best game?  No.  But he certainly made an impact on the game.  

[Golden Avalanche]

the way i remember it, he sat for most of the first half with two fouls, then picked up a 3rd early on in the second half and wojo decided to sit him down again rather than risk 4 early in the second half. 

zero impact in the game isn't possible...wojo said MU's game plan was to get fischer the ball.  you could tell creighton spent all their time trying to figure out how they would swarm him, and the open looks he creates while just being in game helps, not to mention the way he clogs the lane on defense.  go back and watch the game, and note who was/wasn't on the floor when creighton got the majority of their points and when MU scored the majority of theirs. 

On the first part he didn't pick up his second foul until six minutes left in first half. If he was sitting for most of the first half in your memory bank it certainly wasn't due to foul trouble until the last few minutes. This was hardly the toughest foul situation for Fischer in his eight games.

On the second part, I'll write that I knew the frothing mouths would jump and down at the literal base of my words. Yes, we've already established on Scoop that the actual living presence of the human being named Luke Fischer has an impact on how this particular Marquette squad plays. Since established, we now move on to actual accomplishments.

Defensively, he had moments of impact but by no means was an iron dome constructed. Sure the last play will sit in everyone's mind and tremendous job there but it was the exception that proved the rule last night (remember, Artino dropped a circus shot on Fischer's dome just a minute prior to missing his last shot of the night). Offensively, it's telling that three people jump on me for "zero impact" but no one jumped to refute "shrinking". Surely, even in their worst game of being clogged down like a toilet after a frat party, a 6'11'' center would find themselves being fouled at least once on an offensive rebound to get to the line.

We'll stop here before we pollute the airwaves even more: you guys will continue to tell me I don't see the subtlety of the game and just how important Fischer is; I'll tell you I not only know that but now expect more of a scoreboard impact from Fischer as he burns the rust off. In the end, we're all fools.

[MUMonster03]

Foul trouble? Fischer got whistled straight away and then again with about five left in the half. Not even sure he got whistled in the second. This was the only Big East game to date where Fischer wasn't in foul trouble where Wojo had to monitor minutes.

Um he got whistled with his third 1:09 into the second half and then spent a significant amount of time on the bench. Also, in the first half after his 2nd with 5:29 left I don't believe he returned to the game. So I would consider those pretty long stretches.

[MU1980]

Golden Avalanche, you said it right at the beginning of your post that Fischer had ZERO impact.  Several people refuted that and we most likely lose that game if he doesn't play.  Not necessarily one of his better games, but I don't ever envision a game in which he has zero impact, which were your words.

[avid1010]

On the first part he didn't pick up his second foul until six minutes left in first half. If he was sitting for most of the first half in your memory bank it certainly wasn't due to foul trouble until the last few minutes. This was hardly the toughest foul situation for Fischer in his eight games.

On the second part, I'll write that I knew the frothing mouths would jump and down at the literal base of my words. Yes, we've already established on Scoop that the actual living presence of the human being named Luke Fischer has an impact on how this particular Marquette squad plays. Since established, we now move on to actual accomplishments.

Defensively, he had moments of impact but by no means was an iron dome constructed. Sure the last play will sit in everyone's mind and tremendous job there but it was the exception that proved the rule last night (remember, Artino dropped a circus shot on Fischer's dome just a minute prior to missing his last shot of the night). Offensively, it's telling that three people jump on me for "zero impact" but no one jumped to refute "shrinking". Surely, even in their worst game of being clogged down like a toilet after a frat party, a 6'11'' center would find themselves being fouled at least once on an offensive rebound to get to the line.

We'll stop here before we pollute the airwaves even more: you guys will continue to tell me I don't see the subtlety of the game and just how important Fischer is; I'll tell you I not only know that but now expect more of a scoreboard impact from Fischer as he burns the rust off. In the end, we're all fools.

you said zero impact, we laughed, now you change the story.

i guess you know a heck of a lot more than wojo because he spoke of how difficult it was to operate without luke, and clearly the difference between MU with and without luke hasn't been that great   

he didn't "shrink"...at most he struggled to play with early foul trouble.  but his stats on the year clearly show a different picture than what you're trying to paint.  comes off like you have something personal against the kid.

SEASON   TEAM   MIN   FGM-FGA   FG%   3PM-3PA   3P%   FTM-FTA   FT%   REB   AST   BLK   STL   PF   TO   PTS
2014-15   MARQ   218   41-52   .       788   0-0          .000    12-22   .545   40   11   18   5   27   15   94

[bilsu]

Fischer's production has really shown me how much coaches defensive game plan's can take a player out of a game. It is up to Wojo to design an offensive game plan for Fischer to offset the opponents game plan to stop him. In the post game show Wojo said in the past week they worked on getting Fischer shots and maybe that is why Taylor started, so you could have one on each side. I think what Wojo needs to work on is the players passs to Fischer, because the passing last night was horrible.

[Spotcheck Billy]

Fischer's production has really shown me how much coaches defensive game plan's can take a player out of a game. It is up to Wojo to design an offensive game plan for Fischer to offset the opponents game plan to stop him. In the post game show Wojo said in the past week they worked on getting Fischer shots and maybe that is why Taylor started, so you could have one on each side. I think what Wojo needs to work on is the players passs to Fischer, because the passing last night was horrible.

that was a problem at Georgetown also, too many intercepted passes into the paint

[avid1010]

Fischer's production has really shown me how much coaches defensive game plan's can take a player out of a game. It is up to Wojo to design an offensive game plan for Fischer to offset the opponents game plan to stop him. In the post game show Wojo said in the past week they worked on getting Fischer shots and maybe that is why Taylor started, so you could have one on each side. I think what Wojo needs to work on is the players passs to Fischer, because the passing last night was horrible.

agreed...and on a passing note...i thought luke had noticeably improved how he passed out of the double team prior to the creighton game.  makes me wonder what the coaches and philosophy was.  there were many times last night i thought they should have fed the post better than they did.

[tower912]

Fischer had zero impact on the game. He scored 15 seconds into it and never was heard from again. Lowest amount of rebounds on the team. Derrick blocked/affected shots more than Fischer did. Still waiting for Luke's first FT of the game.........

Foul trouble? Fischer got whistled straight away and then again with about five left in the half. Not even sure he got whistled in the second. This was the only Big East game to date where Fischer wasn't in foul trouble where Wojo had to monitor minutes.

Also, as dgies points out above, avoiding a straight path to basket for putting the ball on the floor is indicative of tentative play. Fischer just didn't have it last night which isn't a shock considering he's played half the games everyone else has on the roster. In time, he'll become a consistent presence.

If you are going to nitpick 'one miracle make', don't cry when somebody nitpicks you.  Hypocrite.