Conference championships are won on the road.

[GGGG]

I agree he's not an ideal PG.  But he is far from as terrible as some people here claim him to be. 

[Mr. Sand-Knit]

Gbiggest weakness on the team rught now is the 2 guard.  Cain and bailey havent gotten it yet and sacar is running iut of time.  Sacar really does nothing well, defense, rebounding, passing, ball handling and shooting are all well below average.  He drives ok but finishes poorly and then good Lord if he gets fouled.
It could  be easily argued we are the weakest team in the BE at that spot.  Its a black hole for this team and our achilles heal.  Greg Elliot, if u watch his play in the BE from last year, would have been a massive improvemnt.

[muwarrior69]

Now I'm concerned about our visit to Omaha. If the Blue Jays get hot shooting 3s  and double team Markus it could be another long night. We have to show we can win without Markus.

[MU82]

I agree he's not an ideal PG.  But he is far from as terrible as some people here claim him to be.

I certainly agree with that. He is a "score-first and score-second point guard," and he's the best we've got. He's a huge net positive for us.

[MU82]

Greg Elliot, if u watch his play in the BE from last year, would have been a massive improvemnt.

One could say the same about Cain's play in the BE last year.

[Cheeks]

Can you link the presser/quotes?  Ponds broke us down off the dribble and got to the rack about 4 times prior to launching the bombs against Cain too.  He was effective going to the rack, so that strategy wasn't exactly effective.

It is in the Steele article in JS.

"I mean, he had 40 against us last year," Wojciechowski said. "When he starts to jab and when he starts to play with the ball - he's going to shoot.

"And we didn't remember that from the scouting report. And we need to remember better."

[Floorslapper]

It is in the Steele article in JS.

"I mean, he had 40 against us last year," Wojciechowski said. "When he starts to jab and when he starts to play with the ball - he's going to shoot.

"And we didn't remember that from the scouting report. And we need to remember better."

Thanks.  Think Wojo's off here - he's not exactly throwing our guys under the bus with the quote, but think it would have been more legit/appropriate to just tip the cap to Ponds (much like Buffalo coach did about Markus.). 

Did you feel Cain didn't defend well on those possessions?  How much closer do you want him/expect him?  And, when Ponds blew by everyone else prior to those and got to the rack for several AND 1 conversions, what else could Cain have done?

[Mr. Sand-Knit]

One could say the same about Cain's play in the BE last year.

Disagree, cain shot 3s well and nothing else.
Greg did manythings well

[Cheeks]

Thanks.  Think Wojo's off here - he's not exactly throwing our guys under the bus with the quote, but think it would have been more legit/appropriate to just tip the cap to Ponds (much like Buffalo coach did about Markus.). 

Did you feel Cain didn't defend well on those possessions?  How much closer do you want him/expect him?  And, when Ponds blew by everyone else prior to those and got to the rack for several AND 1 conversions, what else could Cain have done?

When I watched the replays I felt he could have been up on him another foot or so, but what struck me was the "tell" that Wojo is talking about.  If Ponds has that striking of a tell that when he starts making love to the ball he isn't putting it on the deck, but shooting...well we need to listen to the scouting report until Ponds does something different.

From what I recall, Ponds did his drives purposefully wither in transition or coming from a cut.  What he did with those three pointers is a bit of lulling and setting up, but always shot.  I can't recall one where when he was top of key with the ball doing his sway dance where he put it on the deck, maybe he did.

[Herman Cain]

Sam was never explosive. Sometimes, it appears to me he has not yet recovered fully from his hip.  More importantly, with Joey next to him, Sam is being guarded by the smaller, quicker forward, as opposed to the taller, slower forward.

The experience our family has had ,competing in D1 sports , is that the recovery time for the major surgery like Sam had is split into two parts. The first  is the actual healing and rehab which is about 6 months. The second is the getting your body and muscle memory back in elite form. Several different trainers told us younger  people muscle memory is not as long as older people .  Our experience is it is another 6 months before a kid is fully back to where they were prior to surgery.

[tower912]

(pulls pin in grenade, starts inching toward the door as he lobs the grenade)   SJU last night reminded me of some of Buzz's teams.   No size, not a ton of depth, strong guards who can defend multiple positions, sharing the ball, exploiting mismatches and driving and dishing for the open 3's.  (with grenade tossed, runs outside before it explodes)

There is more than one way to build a winning basketball team and program.    Now, 18 hours later, I am reminded of a Buzz MU team beating a Bo Wisconsin team.   

[TheyWereCones]

When I watched the replays I felt he could have been up on him another foot or so, but what struck me was the "tell" that Wojo is talking about.  If Ponds has that striking of a tell that when he starts making love to the ball he isn't putting it on the deck, but shooting...well we need to listen to the scouting report until Ponds does something different.

From what I recall, Ponds did his drives purposefully wither in transition or coming from a cut.  What he did with those three pointers is a bit of lulling and setting up, but always shot.  I can't recall one where when he was top of key with the ball doing his sway dance where he put it on the deck, maybe he did.

I'm in the camp of you have to get up in him more, especially on the second one.  Make him put it on the deck.  If he beats you that way so be it, but to act like there is literally nothing else we could have done is inaccurate.  You get up in him, pressure him, and try to make him uncomfortable any way you can (throw a double team at him if you have to).  It may not work either, but you have to try other things (like when we tried zone second half) instead of just tipping the cap with a victim mentality saying, "Go ahead and hit 3s in our face all day because there is NOTHING we can do about it."  Cain just stood there.  Sure he was in ok position, but Ponds was in control, had all the time in the world, and did whatever he wanted to.

I will say at least half the blame is on Wojo.  If his team is forgetting the scouting report, that's on him too.  Clearly he didn't drill it into their heads enough.  Furthermore, he could have been shouting from the bench to get up in him.  OR, maybe call a timeout after the first 3 like Mullen did when Markus hit his first 3?  It's on both Cain & Wojo.

[GGGG]

(pulls pin in grenade, starts inching toward the door as he lobs the grenade)   SJU last night reminded me of some of Buzz's teams.   No size, not a ton of depth, strong guards who can defend multiple positions, sharing the ball, exploiting mismatches and driving and dishing for the open 3's.  (with grenade tossed, runs outside before it explodes)

Switchables. 

[mu03eng]

Now I'm concerned about our visit to Omaha. If the Blue Jays get hot shooting 3s  and double team Markus it could be another long night. We have to show we can win without Markus.

If there is something to the road woes yes there is reason to be concerned.....but Creighton's defense is garbage compared to St John's, they are in the bottom third of all of D1 in Defensive eFG%. They are basically our defense from last year. Yes, their offense is very good but if our defense can chase them off the 3pt line and limit them to one and done we should be able to out score them.

But your point isn't a bad one, this game will be the tell of whether or not MU's defensive improvement is legitimate.

[tower912]

Switchables.

Absolutely.  Hoped Cain and GE were a step toward returning to that idea.  McEwen and Akanno could be even more.

[g0lden3agle]

I'm in the camp of you have to get up in him more, especially on the second one.  Make him put it on the deck.  If he beats you that way so be it, but to act like there is literally nothing else we could have done is inaccurate.  You get up in him, pressure him, and try to make him uncomfortable any way you can (throw a double team at him if you have to).  It may not work either, but you have to try other things (like when we tried zone second half) instead of just tipping the cap with a victim mentality saying, "Go ahead and hit 3s in our face all day because there is NOTHING we can do about it."  Cain just stood there.  Sure he was in ok position, but Ponds was in control, had all the time in the world, and did whatever he wanted to.

I will say at least half the blame is on Wojo.  If his team is forgetting the scouting report, that's on him too.  Clearly he didn't drill it into their heads enough.  Furthermore, he could have been shouting from the bench to get up in him.  OR, maybe call a timeout after the first 3 like Mullen did when Markus hit his first 3?  It's on both Cain & Wojo.

Didn't Wojo take Cain out as soon as that 2nd three went in?  Putting half the blame on the coach for the player forgetting the scouting report seems extreme.  Calling a TO after the first three is an interesting thought though. 

[Johnny B]

Getting into a 'who is a bigger fan' debate is unproductive.    Try to find some balance in your life.

Balance? Speak for yourself. You live on this website. 

[skianth16]

Gbiggest weakness on the team rught now is the 2 guard.  Cain and bailey havent gotten it yet and sacar is running iut of time.  Sacar really does nothing well, defense, rebounding, passing, ball handling and shooting are all well below average.  He drives ok but finishes poorly and then good Lord if he gets fouled.
It could  be easily argued we are the weakest team in the BE at that spot.  Its a black hole for this team and our achilles heal.  Greg Elliot, if u watch his play in the BE from last year, would have been a massive improvemnt.

It seems like both Sacar and Jamal have taken steps back from last year, which I don't understand. And then Bailey, at this point, still looks like he's getting used to the faster pace of D1 hoops, so I don't think he's going to be the contributor many hoped he would be back in November. If we could get more PG minute out of Chartouny and let Markus play the 2 more often, that would be ideal, but I'm not betting on this option right now.

Sacar is a guy I've really been pulling for this year, but I have to agree that he's not playing up to what I see as his potential right now. I still think he's our best on-ball defender, but he's been too inconsistent so far this year to be a consistent game-changer from the defensive end. If he can start converting some of his drives to the hoop, he could be an effective scorer at times, so hopefully we'll see his FG% improve throughout conference play. As a fourth year guy, this is the time for him to step up.

[Floorslapper]

Didn't Wojo take Cain out as soon as that 2nd three went in?  Putting half the blame on the coach for the player forgetting the scouting report seems extreme.  Calling a TO after the first three is an interesting thought though.

Yes he did pull him out right after that.  Go back and watch the game.  Cain was about as close to Ponds as you'd want.  Worst thing you can do is foul a 3-point shooter.  Ponds already had scored 4 layups on us by that point (a couple of which were and 1's.) 

Pretty sure the Buffalo coach didn't pull his guys when Markus was hitting contested 23-footers.

To expect more from Cain there IMO is asking quite a bit..perhaps 6-12" closer on the contest (but more than likely that wasn't going to make a difference given that the shots were pretty darn well-contested as it was.)

[muguru]

Again, where are you when the team wins?  Conspicuously absent. 

What you are displaying is not passion. 

I'm not going to freak out about a poorly played game on the road against a solid team because, well, that would be stupid.

Losses should bother you...and every one. That's my whole point. Just because you may have "expected" it, doesn't mean you should like it, or be "ok" with it. You should want them to win every game. I can't say i EVER EXPECT them to lose going into a game. I definitely realize it's a possibility, but can honestly say I don't EXPECT it. To be honest this was one I really thought they SHOULD win. SJU hadn't impressed me to this point against poor competition. I also understand it's hard to win on the road in CBB...yet, to hear some people talk about it, it's virtually impossible...well it's not, teams win on the road all the time.

I just can't ever EXPECT them to lose any game(while fully understanding it's possible), because to me personally, expecting a loss is a loser's mentality. I'm just not wired that way.

[muguru]

It seems like both Sacar and Jamal have taken steps back from last year, which I don't understand. And then Bailey, at this point, still looks like he's getting used to the faster pace of D1 hoops, so I don't think he's going to be the contributor many hoped he would be back in November. If we could get more PG minute out of Chartouny and let Markus play the 2 more often, that would be ideal, but I'm not betting on this option right now.

Sacar is a guy I've really been pulling for this year, but I have to agree that he's not playing up to what I see as his potential right now. I still think he's our best on-ball defender, but he's been too inconsistent so far this year to be a consistent game-changer from the defensive end. If he can start converting some of his drives to the hoop, he could be an effective scorer at times, so hopefully we'll see his FG% improve throughout conference play. As a fourth year guy, this is the time for him to step up.

See, the above actually surprises me as to why Wojo hasn't inserted Chartouny into the starting lineup yet..I honestly thought that was going to happen several games ago already. He's as good of(if not better) on the ball defender as Sacar, so he can't say they lose to much defensively. The ONLY reason i can think of that Sacar is still starting ahead of Chartouny is because Sacar has been in the program, and Wojo feels like he's earned that right. That's the only thing that makes sense(and a VERY poor reason), but it can't be from a "on the floor" performance perspective.

[GGGG]

I think it's simply because he would like a ball handler coming off the bench.  Chartouny's minutes have been trending up, except for Buffalo, and Sacar's have been trending down.  So we will see how it ends up.

[BM1090]

I just watched the highlights and I have 3 thoughts.

1. Most of Clark's and Ponds' early shots were contested. Both of Ponds' and 1s were good defense, good finishes, and very weak foul calls. Clark's first 2 threes we had guys there and they just went in. It happens.

2. Cain's defense on Ponds' two threes at the end of the half was much worse than I originally thought. His hand was up and his positioning was fine but he was just beyond flat footed. A player as experienced and as skilled as Ponds knows Cain has no chance of actually altering that shot.

3. The uncalled technical on Heron following his dunk was even more absurd than I remember it. Textbook technical.

Overall I'm a bit more encouraged after rewatching. We got clobbered and SJU outplayed us in every facet but I didn't think our defense was too bad until the last 10 minutes. It will be fine. Expecting a big bounce back on Sunday.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Four factors from the game:

Efg%:
MU: 46.8%
SJU: 63.4%

TO%:
MU: 16.5%
SJU: 15.2%

OR%
MU: 25.6%
SJU: 19.4%

FTR:
MU: 29%
SJU: 42.9%

Hot shooting for St. John's, below average shooting for MU. MU owned the boards, turnovers are pretty much a wash. Big advantage for SJU at the charity stripe. Someone else pointed this out but MU was the aggressor with a lot more drives and 2P FGAs. SJU was more of the jumpshooting team. Typically that would result in a free throw advantage for MU.

[MU82]

Pretty sure the Buffalo coach didn't pull his guys when Markus was hitting contested 23-footers.

If you think Cain was contesting those two shots to the same degree that Buffalo's guards were contesting most of Markus' 3s, you need to go back and watch the Buffalo game.

I'm sticking with Cain was surprised by the first one but shouldn't have been by the second one.