(Mother Wolowitz voice) Howard!

[tower912]

1.  First half sucked.
2.  Biggest play of the game was Like returning.
3.  Sam started so bad... But pulled it together.
4. Heldt, Cohen, more is required.
5. It is really good to have to face an active zone this early in the year.  It will pay off later.
6. KR CAN shoot.
7.  The team gets 3 happy.
8.  Two games, not getting to the line much.
9.  Consistent defensive effort.
10.  If Howard can get offensive rebounds against us......
11.  As many ugly things as good things. 
12.  Michigan on Thursday.  We'll have a pretty good idea after that.

[PGsHeroes32]

On the plus side...Even tho it means next to nothing

As sloppy as we played we did win by 32 against a team Michigan beat by 17.

[Frenns Liquor Depot]

Good game - was never worried - basketball is fun again

[brandx]

7.  The team gets 3 happy.
8.  Two games, not getting to the line much.

I think these two points go hand-in-hand. You don't get fouled a lot raining treys.

[jesmu84]

I missed most of the Vandy game. But I've been really happy with our team and coaching staff in the 2nd halves so far this season. We seem to have made all the proper in-game adjustments and the players are understanding and executing those adjustments.

Of course, maybe this is all just Wojo mind games. Players have no confidence with him at the helm, right?

[brandx]

Sam will be on the all-freshman team in the BE.

[GB Warrior]

1. We haven't put together a full game yet.
2. This isn't a team that is big or strong and going to feast at the line.
3. They could give themselves more chances, though - stop going soft to the rim.
4. More turnovers in the first half than we want, but credit the young guys for re-composing themselves.
5. Sandy is an end of the bench player, but he's still a pest in spots on defense.
6. I feel like this team knows the balance between 3s and 2s. Just hope they don't fall too in love with their own 3 pt shooting (unless they keep dropping all year).
7. We were getting abused on the boards early. We recovered thru team board crashing and creating loose balls, but still a concern for 1 on 1 match ups.

Last, we aren't going to win a lot of the ugly games, but we're gonna win a lot of sexy ones

[Smokin' Jae]

Most telling thing to me was that when Luke got hurt Wojo went to Sam to play the 5, Heldt just not there yet.

[forgetful]

1. We haven't put together a full game yet.
2. This isn't a team that is big or strong and going to feast at the line.
3. They could give themselves more chances, though - stop going soft to the rim.
4. More turnovers in the first half than we want, but credit the young guys for re-composing themselves.
5. Sandy is an end of the bench player, but he's still a pest in spots on defense.
6. I feel like this team knows the balance between 3s and 2s. Just hope they don't fall too in love with their own 3 pt shooting (unless they keep dropping all year).
7. We were getting abused on the boards early. We recovered thru team board crashing and creating loose balls, but still a concern for 1 on 1 match ups.

Last, we aren't going to win a lot of the ugly games, but we're gonna win a lot of sexy ones

Don't disagree with anything you wrote, but it is a god thing if all the above are the faults, and we are still winning by over 30 pts a game.

[GB Warrior]

Most telling thing to me was that when Luke got hurt Wojo went to Sam to play the 5, Heldt just not there yet.

Not reading too much into it yet. Could be more matchup and flow. That said, interior D against teams that have brute force 4s is going to be rough

[Dr. Blackheart]

Fast tempo:  Check
High eFG:  Check
Low Turnover Rate:  Check
Pressure Permeter Defense:  Check

Lose on OReb% and FT Rate: Check

[brandx]

I'll repeat what I said after the vandy game.

Ain't it nice to have upperclassmen?

12 turnovers - 7 were by the two freshmen. The 3 seniors had ONE combined turnover in 69 minutes.

[Silkk the Shaka]

Fast tempo:  Check
High eFG:  Check
Low Turnover Rate:  Check
Pressure Permeter Defense:  Check

Lose on OReb% and FT Rate: Check

Yep. We certainly are seeing a pretty obvious style develop. There are weaknesses to exploit for sure, but this team has the look of one where the strengths are so strong that whene they're playing their game & maximizing those strengths, the weaknesses get masked a bit as a result and they can play with anyone. Barring injury, this should safely be a tournament team. Exciting!

[dgies9156]

Looking at this game and Friday's game against Vanderbilt, it is evident we're a very different team. We're playing as a unit rather than a collection of individuals and we're making passes we would not have made last year -- unless it was to Henry. That said, here's the takeaways.

1) We play defense. We're so much improved over  last year it is exciting to watch. Granted, we're not in the Big East season yet, but the deflections, steals and points off turnovers is a new element of our game we did not see before.

2) We hit 3s. This is both an opportunity and a problem. In both of our games, we dropped 'em at a pretty good clip. It's going to open lanes and force our opponents outward. They will not longer be able to pack the lane and dare Reinhardt or Hauser to fire away. They will. The problem is that we will become too reliant on the 3 for offense. Against Howard, we took 'em because that was we were given. God help us the night we have an off night shooting.

3) Luke???? Against Vanderbilt, he was a world beater. He was awarded the coveted Stud award for obvious reasons. Against Howard, we saw last year's Luke. That foul near the top of the key that sent him to the floor and almost to end the season scared the daylights out of me and was unnecessary. Staying out of foul trouble isn't preferable. It's a necessity. Good news is he has yet to foul out.

4) Rebounding. Looks OK. Shows signs of toughness and boxing out. Lot of our smaller guys did the little things that helped. We were scrappy and aggressive against both teams and it seems to be working.

5) The "Small" Line-up. With Luke out for significant periods against Howard, we saw what may become more of a staple than we might think -- the small line-up. Offensively, it looked good. Defensively inside, not as much. Liked watching Traci Carter and Duane Wilson drive the basket, but guys, please, let someone else shoot the three-ball!

[Class71]

This game highlights we need a real test or two before we can tell where this team is going.

[brewcity77]

As far as the threes, I'm not too concerned about the team going cold. There will be some cold strings, like the first half against Vandy, but we have so many shooters that score the three in so many different ways (set shot, step right, jab step, step back) that I think it will be tough for anyone to force us into a team off night. Right now we're shooting it so well as a team that no one is mentioning the guy who won the three point contest at Madness and is regarded as maybe the best shooter on the team (Rowsey) hasn't made one yet.

Further, we've seen Johnson, Cheatham, Reinhardt, and others all able to get to the rim. When we are off for a stretch, we'll still be able to score.

[GoldenDieners32]

Played a little sloppy in the first half and they were getting way to many offensive rebounds

[GGGG]

Two slightly negative thoughts and one prediction:

1. I didn't think the perimeter defense was all that good.  They were late on rotations.  A team that can hit shots (like Michigan) would have had a field day.  They will need to tighten that up.

2.  Either Wilson or Rowsey is going to be unhappy with their role by the end of the year.  They are basically the same player and one of them will emerge as better than the other and get the minutes. 

3. I already see this breaking down into a rotation where 8 guys get the bulk of the time (Luke, Haanif, JJJ, Katin, Traci, Markus, Sam and Duane/Rowsey), with either Rowsey or Duane getting less than those, and two guys just getting spot time (Matt and Sandy)  Matt might get more in certain situations but after two games, I must admit that I was expecting a little more.  We will see how it plays out.

[MUfan12]

Two slightly negative thoughts and one prediction:

1. I didn't think the perimeter defense was all that good.  They were late on rotations.  A team that can hit shots (like Michigan) would have had a field day.  They will need to tighten that up.

Yep. The closeouts were really poor last night. Howard beat the perimeter guys off the bounce, leading to fouls galore.

[Juan Anderson's Mixtape]

Heldt had 5 boards in 10 minutes.  Only easy rebounds?

Plus, we can get away with Hauser at the 5 against undersized cupcakes.  Heldt will get more time against BE teams if he stays out of foul trouble.  Of course, if Luke can play 32 minutes like he did against Vandy then Matt won't be needed in those games.

[HoopsterBC]

Heldt had 5 boards in 10 minutes.  Only easy rebounds?

Plus, we can get away with Hauser at the 5 against undersized cupcakes.  Heldt will get more time against BE teams if he stays out of foul trouble.  Of course, if Luke can play 32 minutes like he did against Vandy then Matt won't be needed in those games.

Good or Bad Heldt needs PT time.  His body has improved, but he just plays slow, one speed.  Has to get into the flow.  MU will need him at times, for sure next year,
but can not see him starting, hope John is ready to play next year.  The last scholarship needs to be a grad transfer.  Getting Carlino, now Reinhardt, really has made
the team, much like Lockett a few years ago.  This team starts 3 seniors, next year will be re-building again, unless Wojo can find another grad transfer.

[Loose Cannon]

Good or Bad Heldt needs PT time.  His body has improved, but he just plays slow, one speed.  Has to get into the flow.  MU will need him at times, for sure next year,
but can not see him starting, hope John is ready to play next year.  The last scholarship needs to be a grad transfer.  Getting Carlino, now Reinhardt, really has made
the team, much like Lockett a few years ago.  This team starts 3 seniors, next year will be re-building again, unless Wojo can find another grad transfer.

If MU continues to play like this, I think Grad transfers will be lining up.

[BM1090]

Irrelevant given the result of the game, but since I haven't seen anyone else mention it anywhere I wanted to make note of it. Between 8 and 9 minutes left in the 2nd half, Howard is in bonus. We commit a foul on the defensive end, there seems to be confusion as to who the foul is on. Mingo from Howard, who was on the bench when the play occured, checks in, walks to the line, makes both free throws.

Nobody noticed it. Not the refs. Not anybody from MU. How does that happen? I was at the game so I thought I may have just made a mistake, but I went home and checked the DVR and sure enough...

If the game was closer, that could have been a brutal mistake.

[Dawson Rental]

Irrelevant given the result of the game, but since I haven't seen anyone else mention it anywhere I wanted to make note of it. Between 8 and 9 minutes left in the 2nd half, Howard is in bonus. We commit a foul on the defensive end, there seems to be confusion as to who the foul is on. Mingo from Howard, who was on the bench when the play occured, checks in, walks to the line, makes both free throws.

Nobody noticed it. Not the refs. Not anybody from MU. How does that happen? I was at the game so I thought I may have just made a mistake, but I went home and checked the DVR and sure enough...

If the game was closer, that could have been a brutal mistake.

The TV announcers said that since the Howard player who was fouled left the game, Wojo got to choose who took the free throws for Howard.  I just assumed that has one of Howard's big guys Mingo doesn't shoot FTs at as high a clip as their perimeter guys.

[Dawson Rental]

Good or Bad Heldt needs PT time.  His body has improved, but he just plays slow, one speed.  Has to get into the flow.  MU will need him at times, for sure next year,
but can not see him starting, hope John is ready to play next year.  The last scholarship needs to be a grad transfer.  Getting Carlino, now Reinhardt, really has made
the team, much like Lockett a few years ago.  This team starts 3 seniors, next year will be re-building again, unless Wojo can find another grad transfer.

I wouldn't call it a rebuild.  Wojo year 1 was a "put anyone whose breathing out there" kind of year, particularly when Carlino got hurt.  Last year was a rebuild with 5 freshmen, 3 of which started.  I wouldn't exactly call next year reloading, but the difference is that the three seniors who leave will likely be replaced with rotation guys, not guys new to the program. Maybe not in the case of Heldt who may not be a rotation guy this year or start next year, but at least we won't by necessity be starting a bulked up SF at the 5.  Wojo has his system in place now, and I expect that most years there will be someone waiting in the wings to replace graduating starters, and we'll only see exceptional freshmen have a shot at starting in the future.