 |
|
Some random thoughts from this weekend's games
Posted on: November 27, 2017 at 08:49:03 CT
FIJItiger MU
Posts:
142072
Member For:
21.35 yrs
Level:
Moderator
M.O.B. Votes:
0
Overall, I was really pleased with the results of this weekend. People need to remember we are now 7 games into a massive rebuild from which we got 14th in the SEC 3 years in a row, and it has left some feeling frustrated that we lost in the championship game of a non-con tourney to a Hall of Fame coach and his top 25 team after dominating them most of the game. We are also without a 1st Team All American and our expected go to player. The results of this weekend were overtly positive and a great sign of things to come.
To that end, Harris and Tilmon are certainly among our most talented players and we have yet to figure out how to use them. And Jontay has tremendous room for growth. We are going to be a lot better at season’s end than we are right now.
I’m typically wary of teams that are so reliant on 3 point shooting, that isn’t a very reliable characteristic. However for the most part we are taking good shots and they are the result of good ball movement and good looks, so its not surprising to see us converting at such a high rate. The propensity to share the ball when things are going well is quite impressive, we have a lot better ball movement and spacing than I expected thus far early on in Martin’s tenure.
This team has the potential to be formidable on the defensive end, to the degree of being a dominant defensive unit. We built our lead because W. Virginia could not get any good looks and we were completely locking them down.
Geist didn’t melt down (and to a lesser degree neither did Phillips). He is being way over exposed, but he has made tremendous strides of improvement this season to the degree I would not have believed was possible. He is a much better player this year than I would have thought he had the capacity to be. That said, he is a guy who went JUCO with no academic or qualification issues but because it was the best option he had available and he selected MU when they were arguably the worst program in the nation over no other real alternative options. That guy he was playing against last night was at least twice as good as he is, he didn’t fall apart so much as the other guy elevated his play. Geist has been amazing this year, but he is simply not the kind of player that can be effective in such a major role against very high level competition.
Robertson looks so much better playing off the ball. That was a huge pickup this offseason.
I don’t know how many of you remember Tim Duncan as a very young player, but other than his 3 pt shooting that is what Jontay Porter looks like. Defensively, on the glass, moving the ball, his positioning around the court, impacting the game, even a lot of his mannerisms and facial expressions.
Barnett still has lapses where he doesn’t box out well weakside, and he at times doesn’t give great defensive effort, but offensively he is becoming a complete player and he is really understanding how to use his athleticism. He took a lot of not great shots in the first half, but honestly I’d rather see him be more aggressive than less given our need for a go to scorer. He has played 72 minutes over the last two games.
Just wanted to mention that we completely outclassed Long Beach, and that was a legit team we beat in St. Johns. Those will both end up being good wins, and MU was impressive in both.
W. Virginia is a good team. We should have taken advantage of their lack of interior, we should have exposed Carter’s early foul troubles, and we should have handled their pressure much better in the second half. We looked like a young team, in the early stages of a rebuild with some promise and nice pieces playing against a veteran team with an established program. Would have been a tremendous victory, but instead it becomes a learning lesson unfortunately.
UCF will be a good test for our young frontcourt, and we may need our outside shooting to stay hot to carry us to a win. I’m expecting that to be a very tough game. Then we have 3 easier tune ups in advance of the Braggin Rights game. Blake Harris plays at a different level and brings a different component to the table with his penetration and ability to break down a defense. That, and having a lock down perimeter defender is the piece that we are missing he can do. We need to take advantage of those three games to build up his confidence and get him some exposure. And we need to similarly work the ball inside to Tilmon in those games on the blocks consistently and see if we can develop that. Really, really good things happening with MU basketball though and even if you are frustrated remember that means you care again and have expectations.
To that end, Harris and Tilmon are certainly among our most talented players and we have yet to figure out how to use them. And Jontay has tremendous room for growth. We are going to be a lot better at season’s end than we are right now.
I’m typically wary of teams that are so reliant on 3 point shooting, that isn’t a very reliable characteristic. However for the most part we are taking good shots and they are the result of good ball movement and good looks, so its not surprising to see us converting at such a high rate. The propensity to share the ball when things are going well is quite impressive, we have a lot better ball movement and spacing than I expected thus far early on in Martin’s tenure.
This team has the potential to be formidable on the defensive end, to the degree of being a dominant defensive unit. We built our lead because W. Virginia could not get any good looks and we were completely locking them down.
Geist didn’t melt down (and to a lesser degree neither did Phillips). He is being way over exposed, but he has made tremendous strides of improvement this season to the degree I would not have believed was possible. He is a much better player this year than I would have thought he had the capacity to be. That said, he is a guy who went JUCO with no academic or qualification issues but because it was the best option he had available and he selected MU when they were arguably the worst program in the nation over no other real alternative options. That guy he was playing against last night was at least twice as good as he is, he didn’t fall apart so much as the other guy elevated his play. Geist has been amazing this year, but he is simply not the kind of player that can be effective in such a major role against very high level competition.
Robertson looks so much better playing off the ball. That was a huge pickup this offseason.
I don’t know how many of you remember Tim Duncan as a very young player, but other than his 3 pt shooting that is what Jontay Porter looks like. Defensively, on the glass, moving the ball, his positioning around the court, impacting the game, even a lot of his mannerisms and facial expressions.
Barnett still has lapses where he doesn’t box out well weakside, and he at times doesn’t give great defensive effort, but offensively he is becoming a complete player and he is really understanding how to use his athleticism. He took a lot of not great shots in the first half, but honestly I’d rather see him be more aggressive than less given our need for a go to scorer. He has played 72 minutes over the last two games.
Just wanted to mention that we completely outclassed Long Beach, and that was a legit team we beat in St. Johns. Those will both end up being good wins, and MU was impressive in both.
W. Virginia is a good team. We should have taken advantage of their lack of interior, we should have exposed Carter’s early foul troubles, and we should have handled their pressure much better in the second half. We looked like a young team, in the early stages of a rebuild with some promise and nice pieces playing against a veteran team with an established program. Would have been a tremendous victory, but instead it becomes a learning lesson unfortunately.
UCF will be a good test for our young frontcourt, and we may need our outside shooting to stay hot to carry us to a win. I’m expecting that to be a very tough game. Then we have 3 easier tune ups in advance of the Braggin Rights game. Blake Harris plays at a different level and brings a different component to the table with his penetration and ability to break down a defense. That, and having a lock down perimeter defender is the piece that we are missing he can do. We need to take advantage of those three games to build up his confidence and get him some exposure. And we need to similarly work the ball inside to Tilmon in those games on the blocks consistently and see if we can develop that. Really, really good things happening with MU basketball though and even if you are frustrated remember that means you care again and have expectations.
Please explain why this message is being reported.
MESSAGE THREAD
Some random thoughts from this weekend's games - FIJItiger MU - 11/27 08:49:03