The effort was there, the shooting and stamina were not
- Thread starter MCC_Cat
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Right now we are too young. The effort was there but they expended so much energy on D that it took it out of there legs and they went 1-13 in the second half from 3. The young players will add a lot of muscle and a lot of those situations don't end in fouls, shots inside don't get blocked and they hit the threes and the outcome is different
Proud of what we saw. They need to get stronger
When a couple whistles go against you and a few good looks don’t fall, you can feel the energy drain out of the group. The ball loses zip, cuts lose their sharpness, and suddenly you are playing on tired legs. Shots start coming up short because there is no lift, and that only compounds it. Instead of generating paint touches and playing through your reads, guys start forcing contested looks trying to manufacture momentum. That is how an offense goes from connected and purposeful to stagnant in a hurry.
In fairness, Mara has done that to everyone this year. The disappointing thing is how big of a jerk he is.
Page and Singleton (before foul trouble) really helped mitigate him on both ends. They played great.
You could really see the physical fatigue toward the end. There were drives in the first half by our guards that were ending in points, especially Reid hitting step back jumpers. Those shots were all short down the stretch. Michigan could run ball handlers at us in waves and so they were much fresher in the end. Reid and Jake were just worn out and it showed in their shots.
We need to keep every one of these rotation guys for next year and then hope we can replace the Claytons and Mullens and, sad to say, Windhams of the group with contributing bodies.
Fatigue being a factor isn’t good when only two guys played more than 28 minutes. A guy like Reid has no business being gassed at the end of a game he played 28 minutes.
It’s very noticeable live how much more physically mature they were. Michigan has grown men. It’s not just height but more importantly width. We played very hard, but it’s not more bodies we need, it’s more developed bodies. AP and Reid both played well.
Couldn't agree more. Michigan played 9 guys we played 8. And Tschetter only played 7 minutes for them. Fatigue is an excuse when each team played about the same amount of guys and same amount of minutes.
I think it comes down more to them having old guys and us having young guys. And the whole Collins rotation thing this year, which has been very strange.
Generally there are places you can catch a breath, Last night there really wasn't They expended tremendous amounts of energy on D. Reid as well. The whole team was playing against guys 3 inches taller and 30 lbs heavier that were older and stronger and had greater depth. They could and did come at you in waves. NU was flying around on D expending a lot of energy. But then they had to also do it on O when Mich employed Full Court Press and just bringing the ball up became a challenge. And remember for the most part these guys were Frosh and Sophs.
The legs are the first to go and their legs were gone so those 3 pt shots came up short In the second half we went 1/13 from 3 and overall and only hit 50% of our layups. Can't remember seeing so many blocks. Only credited with 8 but sure seemed like a lot more
He was expending a ton of energy on D last night as well, And Mich also had a pretty effective Full Court press that took away the opportunity for them to catch a breath at least when they were bringing the ball up the court,
I would argue because we have so few ball handlers, Reid and West have to expend a ton of energy on offense. They had the ball in their hands most of the time, trying to create.
Over the final 12 minutes of the game:
Lendeborg and Cason played 12 minutes, Johnson and Mckenny played 11 minutes and 25 seconds, Mara played 9 minutes and 20 seconds, Gayle played 2 minutes, and Tschetter and Burnett played 35 seconds. Michigan was not throwing waves of players at us as they blew us out 38-15 over those 12 minutes.
Lendeborg and Cason played 12 minutes, Johnson and Mckenny played 11 minutes and 25 seconds, Mara played 9 minutes and 20 seconds, Gayle played 2 minutes, and Tschetter and Burnett played 35 seconds. Michigan was not throwing waves of players at us as they blew us out 38-15 over those 12 minutes.
We started 3 true Frosh and a Soph. They started 1 Soph and all the rest of the starters, were Jrs and Srs. (they did have one Frosh and a Soph come off the bench and half of their time was in last 12 minutes) Going up against that all night will wear you down
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I would suggest that they had to expend a lot of energy on D going up against bigger stronger guys. West a true Frosh was out there 35 minutes, That is a lot to ask of a true Frosh. Had to expend it on O as well with the full court press
Michigan and Illinois are going to go out and buy new teams every year. It’s mercenary ball. I hope the NCAA does something to stop teams from recruiting professional European players. Maybe cap the age at 21. That part has the potential to get way out of hand at certain schools.
There is also mental fatigue. For someone like Nick who gets beaten up constantly with no foul calls it takes a toll mentally.
Carson and McHenny both played almost half of their total time in the last 12 so they were pretty fresh, Mara played about 1/3 of his minutes
Playing extended hard minutes takes its toll on the legs, They go first, Then instead of a solid D play, you get there a small fraction of a second late an it becomes a reach and a foul. Shots are a fraction of an inch off and hit the rim instead of going in and on and on.
Thought he should have been called for a flagrant 2 on the play against Nick and thrown out. We have seen NU guys thrown out for a lot less
It is not just on O. And when Mich employed the FC press, that meant even more effort just bringing the ball up the floor
This. Looked bad live, looked even worse on replay. Clearly not a play on the ball and made contact with both forearms to Nick's head. Totally understand why Nick got up from the floor fired up and wanting a piece of Mara.
Sad thing is that I don't think this was the worst officiated game that we've had to endure this season. Tells you what we've had to deal with in terms of the refs all year long.
Not really arguing about the rest of the game, But that play was egregious . It got a flagrant 1 but deserved a 2. Still have not seen the replay on another play of how we went from Mara fouling to them getting two FTs and the ball. It would mean that either a flagrant or technical was called but I could not understand what was being announced. I did not see them replay that at the game and have not had a chance to rewatch that part of the game
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Stadium operations are the biggest pansies on the planet. Anytime there is an official review, the screen goes dark!
We got Earl Walton'd again. We're now 1-13 in the last 14 games he's officiated us since he became a Big 10 ref during the 2023-24 season.
Yeah, sounds a hell if a lot like their guys just remembered they’re a lot bigger and better. The far superior team putting the pedal down and burying an inferior opponent isn’t new and doesn’t require fatigue.
No point in having a young team. That way you'll never beat the teams that are old every year.
The NCAA is struggling to maintain some kind of order, it seems like there are daily lawsuits to enable players to extend their college careers with all the $$ available. The foreign players seem particularly problematic with some having a level of pro background. Many top coaches are frustrated and have spoken out about the challenges of age and experience esp regarding foreign players. Pressure on Congress to pass laws to restrict who can participate in college sports esp basketball will increase but will any new laws be effective and withstand the onslaught of legal challenges that would be inevitable?
I see the Mississippi quarterback got a sixth year of eligilbility due toa court ruling. This has gotten ridiculous.
What does a court ruling have to do with the ncaa. NCAA ruling should trump all. Makes no sense.
They called Kroft for a hook and hold which overturned the Mara foul. While Kroft did grab Mara's arm and did pull it down, this was after Mara threw his forearm into Kroft's neck. I don't know how you can overturn the initial contact and then penalize the guy who was just trying to protect himself.
That call swung the entire second quarter. We were up 16 at the time I believe and had all the momentum.