MU back to earth

[1990Warrior]

I'm sure those that were claiming we would come close to running the table will now be saying we're NIT bound...

Now we see what it's like to play a road game that isn't in our own backyard.  I would be surprised if we do any better than 4-5 on the road.  If we go 8-1 at home the conference record is still 12-6. 

Some problems that stuck out...
-Huggins outcoached Crean.  By the time we adjusted to any defensive look we had to crawl out of a hole.
-Rebounding in the second half was atrocious.
-Hayward is much improved, but still has a long way to go.  His defense was pretty poor, and getting multiple fouls on the offensive end doesn't help either.
-We're deep, and still nobody stepped up.  None of the bigs that got in played particularly well against a team that isn't very big itself.  Fitzgerald had the opportunity to step up with Hayward always in foul trouble and he didn't do anything at all.

If I had to say anything positive, McNeal still looks like he can carry the team at times if needed.  The game would have been over much sooner if McNeal didn't carry the team after the bad start to the second half.  He was all-out on defense, scoring, passing while playing with fouls and still shaking off the flu.  However, to win the game he needs someone else to come alive.  It would also help to have a call goes his way once in awhile.

Thanks for the info on McNeal's flu status - I thought he played a bad first half.  At least he has a valid excuse.  I don't think anyone mentioned unforced turnovers.  We only had two more TOs than WV so this doesn't come out in that stat.  But I thought that there were a lot of these, especially in the first half.  The only positive to me is that this game should definitely get our attention about how to prep and get the right attitude for a road game.

[muwarrior87]

Yes, Lazar is MUCH improved and yes, I believe he might be our best player, but I don't think he showed it today.  Though he shot well from the outside, he hurt us at times offensively.  Particular with charges, a key missed layup and dumb fouls.  He had 5 fouls, but I feel like he could have been called for 8.
Heck of a player, but today wasn't his best.  I anticipate a strong game against SH

He also could have been called for 3 if they let both teams play! Some of the crap the refs were pulling was terrible, and I agree with the above poster that mentioned the one ref being injured yesterday and still coming out for this game. Ok, it shows he wants to be out there but when you aren't in a condition to run the court, stay off of it. There was no reason for a guy that couldn't move or keep himself in position to be out there. And the Jerel foul that WAS a clean steal was absolute bull. There's no way around that.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

I agree. I'm a pretty big pessimist when it comes to losses like these, but can anyone give me a positive to take away from this game??

It's a conference road loss to one of the better teams.

No team in the Big East will go undefeated.

With that said, I wish MU had played better... but realistically it's only one loss (on the road), so you can't be that disappointed.

Relax boys, relax.

MU will probably win a couple of games they "shouldn't have", but they will also probably drop 2 games they could/should have won.

[ecompt]

What bothered me (and I was there) was the offensive foul call on Lazar was made by the white-haired official 35 feet from the play. The ref under the basket made no signal. The Jerel call, which was right in front of us, was absoluytely ridiculous, too. Jerel tipped the ball away and a second later was held as he was going for it. Then the whistle blew and the foul was called on him.
Whatever. They deserved to win, we deserved to lose.

[IAmMarquette]

Wes Matthews???

seems like a lot of players are being mentioned for having a bad performance, but watching that game for me proves that it is clear that Wes is the biggest disappointment for this team right now.

dont let the 2 threes at the end of the game fool you, he missed open shot after open shot at many critical points during the game, to the point that wvu started leaving him wide open.

I just cant get over how much we expect from him and how little he is giving. Fitz didnt play well defensively, but he didnt take many shots cause they knew his strenght. We also dont expect a ton from him. ooze was ooze, burke was burke, etc, etc.

Ive said before that if DJ isnt a star this team doesnt have a successful year. So far he has, today he wasnt but he wasnt terrible. Its clear that if hes not on the floor and running the team we struggle.

What else seems clear is that if Wes doesnt turn it around here quickly and become more efficient, he needs to lose some of his minutes. However, I dont know if this team with this system, the guards and lack of height, can afford that because he defends and he rebounds. He cannot keep this up offensively though...

Hes basically like that piece of property you keep on waiting to apprciate in value, or that girl you keep on waiting on to take it to the next step...c'mon wes

Hate to call you out, but you're just wrong in this case.

Wes' line:
4-8FG, 3-4FT, 1-OREB, 2TREB, 0AST, 3PF, 13PTS in 28MIN

Lazar's Line:
3-8FG, 4-4FT, 1-OREB, 4TREB, 0AST, 5PF, 13PTS in 17MIN

Jerel's line:
4-8FG, 2-2FT, 1-OREB, 3TREB, 3AST, 5PF, 10PTS in 30MIN

James' line:
4-12FG, 0-0FT, 0-OREB, 0TREB, 5AST, 3PF, 10PTS in 35MIN

Wes was actually more efficient than any of the 5 starters, and you can't discount the 2 "garbage time" 3's at the end of the game. They count as much then as they do at any other point in the game.

As for missing "open shot after open shot," how about Lazar and Ooze missing CRITICAL no-footers when the game was still in reach? Or Ooze going 0-2 from the stripe when the game was still in reach?

DJ didn't shoot a free throw? didn't have a rebound? and 4-12FG? And it's not like he "wasn't on the floor leading the team," he played 35min, more than anyone else.

As others have mentioned, this game came down to hustle. WVU beat us to just about every long rebound/loose ball all day. For whatever reason (quick turnaround? overconfidence? whatever) our guys just didn't bring the intensity required to win in the BIG EAST, especially on the road to a very good WVU team.

Wes may not have been the team's top performer in the non-conference season, but, like last year, I expect him to turn it on and provide consistent effort throughout the regular season. Since when can you pin a loss on a guy who shoots 50% from the floor, 75% from the line and scores 13PTS in 28minutes? I could be wrong, and feel free to call me out if I am, but it seems like you have it out for Wes.

[Doctor V]

Wes Matthews???

seems like a lot of players are being mentioned for having a bad performance, but watching that game for me proves that it is clear that Wes is the biggest disappointment for this team right now.

dont let the 2 threes at the end of the game fool you, he missed open shot after open shot at many critical points during the game, to the point that wvu started leaving him wide open.

I just cant get over how much we expect from him and how little he is giving. Fitz didnt play well defensively, but he didnt take many shots cause they knew his strenght. We also dont expect a ton from him. ooze was ooze, burke was burke, etc, etc.

Ive said before that if DJ isnt a star this team doesnt have a successful year. So far he has, today he wasnt but he wasnt terrible. Its clear that if hes not on the floor and running the team we struggle.

What else seems clear is that if Wes doesnt turn it around here quickly and become more efficient, he needs to lose some of his minutes. However, I dont know if this team with this system, the guards and lack of height, can afford that because he defends and he rebounds. He cannot keep this up offensively though...

Hes basically like that piece of property you keep on waiting to apprciate in value, or that girl you keep on waiting on to take it to the next step...c'mon wes

Hate to call you out, but you're just wrong in this case.

Wes' line:
4-8FG, 3-4FT, 1-OREB, 2TREB, 0AST, 3PF, 13PTS in 28MIN

Lazar's Line:
3-8FG, 4-4FT, 1-OREB, 4TREB, 0AST, 5PF, 13PTS in 17MIN

Jerel's line:
4-8FG, 2-2FT, 1-OREB, 3TREB, 3AST, 5PF, 10PTS in 30MIN

James' line:
4-12FG, 0-0FT, 0-OREB, 0TREB, 5AST, 3PF, 10PTS in 35MIN

Wes was actually more efficient than any of the 5 starters, and you can't discount the 2 "garbage time" 3's at the end of the game. They count as much then as they do at any other point in the game.

As for missing "open shot after open shot," how about Lazar and Ooze missing CRITICAL no-footers when the game was still in reach? Or Ooze going 0-2 from the stripe when the game was still in reach?

DJ didn't shoot a free throw? didn't have a rebound? and 4-12FG? And it's not like he "wasn't on the floor leading the team," he played 35min, more than anyone else.

As others have mentioned, this game came down to hustle. WVU beat us to just about every long rebound/loose ball all day. For whatever reason (quick turnaround? overconfidence? whatever) our guys just didn't bring the intensity required to win in the BIG EAST, especially on the road to a very good WVU team.

Wes may not have been the team's top performer in the non-conference season, but, like last year, I expect him to turn it on and provide consistent effort throughout the regular season. Since when can you pin a loss on a guy who shoots 50% from the floor, 75% from the line and scores 13PTS in 28minutes? I could be wrong, and feel free to call me out if I am, but it seems like you have it out for Wes.

I dont agree with you one bit.

I have watched almost every single game this year, as im sure you have, and have no doubt that the biggest disappointment on the team is Wes. Forget the stats, i dont even really bother with those i watch the games. Wes, for whatever reason, has lost much of his ability on the offensive end. He can no longer create for himself, he is a terrible shooter despite the 2 late 3's, he now turns the ball over and makes poor mistakes fairly often it seems... quite simply he looks to me to offer very little offensively.

My comment here takes into account what we expect from certain players, and please dont tell me certain players dont have more expectations than others. remember ooze 4 years ago? remember wes 3 years ago? Looking at what i expect from players and how they are performing thus far he is clearly underachieving up to this point, more so than anyone else this season.

That said: 1-hes a good kid and a leader, 2-he plays solid defense and the team needs his size, 3- he has the potential to turn it around and get hot at some point

Its that untouched potential that makes him so disappointing thus far

[NateDoggMarq]

I'm sure those that were claiming we would come close to running the table will now be saying we're NIT bound...

Now we see what it's like to play a road game that isn't in our own backyard.  I would be surprised if we do any better than 4-5 on the road.  If we go 8-1 at home the conference record is still 12-6. 

Some problems that stuck out...
-Huggins outcoached Crean.  By the time we adjusted to any defensive look we had to crawl out of a hole.
-Rebounding in the second half was atrocious.
-Hayward is much improved, but still has a long way to go.  His defense was pretty poor, and getting multiple fouls on the offensive end doesn't help either.
-We're deep, and still nobody stepped up.  None of the bigs that got in played particularly well against a team that isn't very big itself.  Fitzgerald had the opportunity to step up with Hayward always in foul trouble and he didn't do anything at all.

If I had to say anything positive, McNeal still looks like he can carry the team at times if needed.  The game would have been over much sooner if McNeal didn't carry the team after the bad start to the second half.  He was all-out on defense, scoring, passing while playing with fouls and still shaking off the flu.  However, to win the game he needs someone else to come alive.  It would also help to have a call goes his way once in awhile.

12-6 got will get us and 8-7 seed!!!  That is UNACCEPTABLE for the talent on this team.
If your happy with that fine.

We lost because we acted like the ball was a freaking hand grenade.  I can count numerous times when they would miss a one-one and we would get our hands on an unpressured rebound and just literally fumble the ball out of bounds.  On three occassions they hit a three pointer right after that play.

[NateDoggMarq]

refs were pretty poor, but have got to expect that on the road.  James needs to stop bombing so regularly, and frankly fitzgeralds minutes should be cut back significantly- if he ain't gonna shoot he is worthless.  Haywood should be in the games as much as mcneal/James.  He might be the best player on this team.

I was blasted on the other board for saying I felt we were a better team when Fitz was hurt. Gave the othersore minutes. I believe Fitz is a one trick pony at best.

Thank god I wasnt the only one thinking this same thought!!