Forgive us our Cintas.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

No one said it was a “moral victory.”  Pointing out positives in a loss, and negatives in a win, isn’t making excuses or anything. You can be sure that coaches do the same.

[panda]

Right. But they most definitely “let us back in the game.”  Unless you are saying that down 1 and with the ball isn’t “in the game.”

We had the opportunity to take the lead for one possession in the second half. You are correct.

[Dr. Blackheart]

This was MU's best start of the year (+7 in first ten minutes). In fact, MU has only led after the first quadrant in three games (SIUE +1 and NIU +3).

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I'd have to watch the game again Muggsy but I didn't come away with the same impression that you did that our press was getting shredded. We held Xavier significantly under their average 2P%, 3P%, and eFG% and most of those "uncontested" layups happened after they had gotten across half court and initiated their half court offense. The one place I saw us getting "shredded" was that Odom was able to stop and shoot in the mid-range short of our shotblockers' reach and went 6/6 on those attempts. Other than Odom, every other player on X shot under 50% from except Kunkel and Hunter who both went 1/2.

Where I saw concern again was on the boards. They beat us up on the offensive glass and a good chunk of those fouls called on us were rebounding fouls. I don't think a single rebounding foul was called on X but our guys needed to foul because they were getting beat to the ball.

I saw superior offensive team getting matched by a superior defensive team, but winning because of foul trouble and rebounds.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I'm surprised (well it's Scoop so not actually that surprised) by how negative people are after this game. It's a loss, so it sucks but I came away encouraged which was different from the previous losses. Xavier may be the best team in the Big East (I think they've been the best so far), we played them on the road, the game was always in question until the final 30 seconds, and we were down 1 with a chance to take the lead with 2:30 left, despite our starting PG only playing 22 minutes due to foul trouble.

[tower912]

I don't get it, either TAMU.  Vegas had MU as a 10 point underdog.    The majority of the board expect MU to be under . 500 in conference on February 9.   MU played a ranked team on the road and was competitive.   MU did not get embarrassed.
 The nature of this team didn't suddenly change.   They fought.   They lost to a more experienced, ranked team in their arena.   

[brewcity77]

I appreciated the resilience yesterday. Xavier could've put us away multiple times, but we wouldn't let them. The fouls really hurt. Not just the quantity, though a 10-0 foul disparity in a 15:01 stretch seems a bit ridiculous, but who they were on. Greg fouled out, Oso and Kolek were limited by fouls, and no one other than Tyler could reliably create.

Tyler reminds me a lot right now of upperclassman Junior Cadougan. A bit better defensively, don't really trust his shot, and turns it over too much, but also the only guy that can make a shot for anyone else on a team where not many guys can get their own shot.

Anyway...good performance in a tough environment. We're going to win some of these as the year goes on. eFG% defense was better, and was also good against UCLA. This team is improving. And we need to make some hay starting now. 5 of the next 7 at home, both road games look winnable. Need to build on a good performance and knock out some Ws.

[dgies9156]

This is the way I look at yesterday's game:

1) Next year, this is a game that, all things being equal, we win. We lost this one because of our youthfulness going up against a very battle hardened team. As I said earlier, we'll learn.

2) I don't get all the Kolek criticism. The guy plays his heart out every time he hits the floor. He had an open shot and took it. In retrospect, probably not a good idea, but out of 100 of us, how many would have done exactly the same thing. I doubt Coach Smart got down on Kolek for taking the shot.

3) Suppose Kolek passed to someone else and they missed? This board would be going nuts on Kolek for passing up an open shot. Probably just as angry.

4) The most disappointing aspect to yesterday -- and I'm sure our players and coaches agree -- is that we need to steal one or two to make it to the NCAAs this year. Yesterday was a great chance to steal one on the road against a very good team, and we did not complete the heist.

[Uncle Rico]

I'm surprised (well it's Scoop so not actually that surprised) by how negative people are after this game. It's a loss, so it sucks but I came away encouraged which was different from the previous losses. Xavier may be the best team in the Big East (I think they've been the best so far), we played them on the road, the game was always in question until the final 30 seconds, and we were down 1 with a chance to take the lead with 2:30 left, despite our starting PG only playing 22 minutes due to foul trouble.

They could have won by 30 and people would have still been here complaining about something

[Miss Katie’s]

Solid thread title. 

[MarquetteDano]

2) I don't get all the Kolek criticism. The guy plays his heart out every time he hits the floor. He had an open shot and took it. In retrospect, probably not a good idea, but out of 100 of us, how many would have done exactly the same thing. I doubt Coach Smart got down on Kolek for taking the shot.

It seems like Kolek is going to be in that long line of guards we as a fanbase, underappreciate.

If Kolek stays around 3 years he is going to be really good.  I think over time the mistakes  go down and the three point shooting will go up.

[CTWarrior]

He's got very good court vision, which really can't be taught.   Seeing the floor and be able to find the open man is a real talent, and he's got it.

He's got to tighten up that shot, and get a little better at avoiding turnovers on those long cross-court passes, but I think is a legit Big East level player now, and will get better.

[MuggsyB]

I'd have to watch the game again Muggsy but I didn't come away with the same impression that you did that our press was getting shredded. We held Xavier significantly under their average 2P%, 3P%, and eFG% and most of those "uncontested" layups happened after they had gotten across half court and initiated their half court offense. The one place I saw us getting "shredded" was that Odom was able to stop and shoot in the mid-range short of our shotblockers' reach and went 6/6 on those attempts. Other than Odom, every other player on X shot under 50% from except Kunkel and Hunter who both went 1/2.

Where I saw concern again was on the boards. They beat us up on the offensive glass and a good chunk of those fouls called on us were rebounding fouls. I don't think a single rebounding foul was called on X but our guys needed to foul because they were getting beat to the ball.

I saw superior offensive team getting matched by a superior defensive team, but winning because of foul trouble and rebounds.

We're all entitled to our opinion but I disagree about the press.  There's a reason Odom was 8-9.  That said I'm not saying Shaka's system is bad or that it won't pay dividends in the future when we have the right personnel.  But we cannot overlook long stretches of time in games we have lost where good teams have exploited our traps.  What I see is a team very capable of sound fundamental defense in the half-court.  Where we struggle most is in transition and on the defensive glass.  My belief is that solid teams generally get good shots versus our 2-2-1 and that we need to adapt.

We have a UCONN team coming in that laid an egg yesterday.  I only watched the last few mins but I know they were like 8-30 from distance and couldn't score despite having a lot of weapons.  I assume Sanogo is still out, we really need to take advantage.  Regardless of my criticism I am very bullish on Shaka and our future.  I think things will come around quickly and we will compete with every BEast team this year.  It's the poise and execution where we have to ge better and hopefully we will.  But I flat out disagree with scoopers that think our talent level is far inferior to the predicted top of our league.  I've watched enough BEast teams and feel we have the pieces to be right there with all of them. 

[dgies9156]

If Kolek stays around 3 years he is going to be really good.  I think over time the mistakes  go down and the three point shooting will go up.

Exactly.

If Tyler's having the problems his senior year that he does now, his playing time will go down because Coach Smart will have recruited over him. Scoop probably will be carping, "Why doesn't Shaka play Kolek more?" as we break in a new point guard.

I agree with you. Coach Smart saw something in Tyler when he recruited him. It's his court sense, as others have pointed out, his hustle and his willingness to assume the roll as point guard. In my decades of following Marquette, I've seen more than my share of extremely talented basketball players who don't hold a candle to Tyler Kolek because they were, frankly, L-A-Z-Y!! This kid gets it and rather than bashing him for a decision most ballplayers would make similarly in that circumstance, let's commend his hustle and what he brings to the table.

I'm confident the shooting will come.

[Miss Katie’s]

U

I assume Sanogo is still out, we really need to take advantage.

I have read he will most likely return this week vs. MU or Xavier.  I guess we will see!

[Big Papi]

I appreciated the resilience yesterday. Xavier could've put us away multiple times, but we wouldn't let them. The fouls really hurt. Not just the quantity, though a 10-0 foul disparity in a 15:01 stretch seems a bit ridiculous, but who they were on. Greg fouled out, Oso and Kolek were limited by fouls, and no one other than Tyler could reliably create.

Tyler reminds me a lot right now of upperclassman Junior Cadougan. A bit better defensively, don't really trust his shot, and turns it over too much, but also the only guy that can make a shot for anyone else on a team where not many guys can get their own shot.

Anyway...good performance in a tough environment. We're going to win some of these as the year goes on. eFG% defense was better, and was also good against UCLA. This team is improving. And we need to make some hay starting now. 5 of the next 7 at home, both road games look winnable. Need to build on a good performance and knock out some Ws.

We should get used to the foul disparity because it's going to happen the rest of the year playing against tough competition.  We play too fast, jack up ill advised bad 3s very early in the shot clock, don't really have an inside presence and play an aggressive style defense that will get called for more fouls than most.  Add to the fact that as a losing team, we will undoubtedly be forced to foul more.

I came away a little more discouraged after this game.  We continue to play way too fast.  We continue to chuck 3s when we are not a good 3-point shooting team.  We can't rebound.  I actually like our half-court defense, but teams easily get past our full court defense.  I expected some more adjustments at this point in time.  Limit the 3-point shooting early in the shooting clock if you can't step into the shot.  You can shoot a contested 3 later in the shot clock with the same shooting efficiency.  Adjust the defensive pressure such that teams like X don't have an easy pass to the middle at the top of the key.  We were beat way too easily on that press and Odom had a career day.  Where was our 4/5 playing that tighter?  We actually play decent half-court defense.  Rely on that and create opportunities for traps.

If it wasn't for Kolek's foul trouble, Elliott's minutes certainly would have been a lot less.  If we are going to continue to chuck 3s, Elliott needs to be on the floor as much as possible.  He is by far and away our best 3-point shooter.  If our offensive philosophy is going to be the same and unchanged, then Elliott needs to start and play 30 plus minutes. 

We are second in conference in 3 point attempts and 10th in 3pt %.  Teams with similar 3 pt % in conference have shot about 7 less 3 pt attempts/game than us.  Our best chance for increasing our 3 point % is to get more paint touches either by pass, or by dribble and with this team it is by dribble.  Limit some player's 3-point shooting privileges and figure out ways to get Elliott more looks.

I'm hoping for the best but expecting a battle to finish out of the cellar.

[Newsdreams]

This is the way I look at yesterday's game:

1) Next year, this is a game that, all things being equal, we win. We lost this one because of our youthfulness going up against a very battle hardened team. As I said earlier, we'll learn.

2) I don't get all the Kolek criticism. The guy plays his heart out every time he hits the floor. He had an open shot and took it. In retrospect, probably not a good idea, but out of 100 of us, how many would have done exactly the same thing. I doubt Coach Smart got down on Kolek for taking the shot.

3) Suppose Kolek passed to someone else and they missed? This board would be going nuts on Kolek for passing up an open shot. Probably just as angry.

4) The most disappointing aspect to yesterday -- and I'm sure our players and coaches agree -- is that we need to steal one or two to make it to the NCAAs this year. Yesterday was a great chance to steal one on the road against a very good team, and we did not complete the heist.

Brother dgies I guess most people here have not listened to Shaka's presser, one of the first things he says is he wants Kolek to take that shot every time.

[Newsdreams]

We should get used to the foul disparity because it's going to happen the rest of the year playing against tough competition.  We play too fast, jack up ill advised bad 3s very early in the shot clock, don't really have an inside presence and play an aggressive style defense that will get called for more fouls than most.  Add to the fact that as a losing team, we will undoubtedly be forced to foul more.

I came away a little more discouraged after this game.  We continue to play way too fast.  We continue to chuck 3s when we are not a good 3-point shooting team.  We can't rebound.  I actually like our half-court defense, but teams easily get past our full court defense.  I expected some more adjustments at this point in time.  Limit the 3-point shooting early in the shooting clock if you can't step into the shot.  You can shoot a contested 3 later in the shot clock with the same shooting efficiency.  Adjust the defensive pressure such that teams like X don't have an easy pass to the middle at the top of the key.  We were beat way too easily on that press and Odom had a career day.  Where was our 4/5 playing that tighter?  We actually play decent half-court defense.  Rely on that and create opportunities for traps.

If it wasn't for Kolek's foul trouble, Elliott's minutes certainly would have been a lot less.  If we are going to continue to chuck 3s, Elliott needs to be on the floor as much as possible.  He is by far and away our best 3-point shooter.  If our offensive philosophy is going to be the same and unchanged, then Elliott needs to start and play 30 plus minutes. 

We are second in conference in 3 point attempts and 10th in 3pt %.  Teams with similar 3 pt % in conference have shot about 7 less 3 pt attempts/game than us.  Our best chance for increasing our 3 point % is to get more paint touches either by pass, or by dribble and with this team it is by dribble.  Limit some player's 3-point shooting privileges and figure out ways to get Elliott more looks.

I'm hoping for the best but expecting a battle to finish out of the cellar.

I don't think Shaka is going to change his coaching style he chose to go with this year unless wheels completely fall off, so get use to fast pace, 3's any time available, not a lot of midrange baskets, and almost no back to basket paint touches....

[MU82]

It's not surprising that Shaka is telling Kolek to keep shooting. Several of us said as much earlier this season.

I respectfully disagree with the coach that the shot in question was a good one.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

And x went on a 6-0 run.

So what?  You said they didn't let us back in the game.  They clearly did. 

[Newsdreams]

It's not surprising that Shaka is telling Kolek to keep shooting. Several of us said as much earlier this season.

I respectfully disagree with the coach that the shot in question was a good one.

He is getting $$$ to make those decisions. In Shaka I trust, Shaka wants a fast pace and when 3's are available to take them. I didn't think it was a bad shot and had he made it everyone here would be saying how clutch of a PG he was. Probably nominated for STOG if it led to us winning.

[MU82]

He is getting $$$ to make those decisions. In Shaka I trust, Shaka wants a fast pace and when 3's are available to take them. I didn't think it was a bad shot and had he made it everyone here would be saying how clutch of a PG he was. Probably nominated for STOG if it led to us winning.

If Greg had made his shot, he'd have been the hero. If we had been able to stop Odom instead of letting him score triple his average, our defense would have been the reason we won. If Xavier had a lot of guys with Covid we'd have won by forfeit.

Tyler didn't make the shot -- it was a brick that was nowhere near going in. Statistically, he's the worst shooter on the team overall (.273) and second-worst from 3 (.218 - OMP's at .211). With a tiny bit of patience, we could have had several better shots on that possession; we also were in the bonus.

I'm still glad Tyler's on the team, and I think he'll be a good player for us.

[RushmoreAcademy]

Scooper: picks team to win 8 conference game.
Also scooper: shocked and furious when team loses conference game.

[tower912]

Scooper: picks team to win 8 conference game.
Also scooper: shocked and furious when team loses conference game.

Outraged! 

[Newsdreams]

If Greg had made his shot, he'd have been the hero. If we had been able to stop Odom instead of letting him score triple his average, our defense would have been the reason we won. If Xavier had a lot of guys with Covid we'd have won by forfeit.

Tyler didn't make the shot -- it was a brick that was nowhere near going in. Statistically, he's the worst shooter on the team overall (.273) and second-worst from 3 (.218 - OMP's at .211). With a tiny bit of patience, we could have had several better shots on that possession; we also were in the bonus.

I'm still glad Tyler's on the team, and I think he'll be a good player for us.

Ok, but I'm just saying Kolek is doing what the coach wants.