Hawaiian hangoverNo, this post has nothing to do with Mai Tais or Pina Coladas from Thanksgiving Day. It's actually some of the more interesting tidbits from MU's media availability on Monday in advance of the UWM game.
Not surprisingly, a good deal of the conversation centered around the recently-completed trip to the Maui Invitational.
Perhaps most provocative was what coach Tom Crean had to say about the officiating in the Golden Eagles' 77-73 loss to Duke in the championship game last Wednesday. Or, to be more specific, his lack of reaction to the officiating that night.
Fouls were a major factor in the game; MU was whistled for twice as many fouls as Duke in the first half, 12-6, and finished the game with 27 to the Blue Devils' 16.
“If I had it to do over again, there's no way I would have remained as calm and patient as I was,” said Crean. “That's not what did it; Duke beat us. I'm not saying that at all. But I think in that game I adhered far too much to the bench decorum rules. You can't get away from making sure that you're getting your point across inside of these games.
“But I'm not saying at all that cost us the game.”
The upside: If nothing else, the way MU competed from start to finish with Duke gave Crean & Co. a truer sense of where they are and what they are heading into this next stretch of games.
“We walked out of there knowing that we could compete with one of the top teams in America,” Crean said. “We beat them last year. They were good, we were good. There's no question they're a better team now. I think we're a better team now. But we also know there were numerous things we didn't do that would have given us a chance to win the game.
“It was two really good basketball teams battling it out at the end of November, and hopefully we're both going to be playing a long time.”
Danger zone: This reporter bumped into Dominic James on Thanksgiving Day as the junior guard made his way back from the beach.
Seems he and his teammates had been boogie-boarding and got a little too carried away, winding up beyond what was considered a safe swimming area before some local surfers were asked to shepherd them back closer to shore.
Crean recounted the story Monday, mentioning freshman guard Scott Christopherson as the ringleader, and then James was asked about it.
“Oh man, that was fun,” said James, laughing. “We wanted to see who could go the farthest, but we were getting in dangerous territory. I don't know...black guys in the water? That's not us.”
Fashion plate: Part of the fun of the Maui Invitational is the laid-back atmosphere that carries over into even the coaches' sideline attire.
Most coaches wear either Hawaiian-print shirts or polo shirts in Maui. Crean's staff of assistants wore polos, but Crean took a different route, choosing instead a short-sleeve, royal blue windbreaker that he wore in both the Oklahoma State and Duke games.
“I didn't put any thought into it, I really didn't,” he said. “I'm not big into short-sleeve shirts. I'd have dressed in...sweats and tennis shoes if my wife would have thought it was a good idea.”
Adding depth: Crean has begun the process of looking at prospective players to add as walk-ons, but wouldn't go so far as to call it tryouts.
“Yes and no. (These aren't) the open tryouts,” he said. “We'll do that when we can find a little time, possibly next week.”
Next season: Crean confirmed MU will be taking part in the Chicago Invitational Challenge early next season, an event that will also feature Auburn, Dayton and Northern Iowa and take place in Hoffman Estates, Ill.
The setup will be similar to that of the CBE Classic MU played in last season, meaning that MU would need to win a pair of home games to advance to the final round of four, as would Auburn, Dayton and Northern Iowa.
http://blogs.jsonline.com/muhoops/archive/2007/11/27/hawaiian-hangover.aspx
