Willis played no D

mike57

Redshirt
Mar 8, 2004
15
2
0
Who on the team did after giving up 100? Did his man get all of the 100 off of him as he did not play that much
 
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kyboy1998_rivals34276

All-American
Mar 20, 2006
9,339
8,773
61
I get what you're saying. You're not very good at articulating a point and probably not the best spokesman for a cause that has an arguememt that needs to be made.
 

Untouchables22

All-Conference
Mar 5, 2013
2,359
3,129
0
After re-watching the game twice I can assure you Gabriel played even less and nearly cost us the game twice late with the missed alley-op and he really sucked on a block out and allowed a tap out for an offensive rebound with one minute left in the game. Somebody has to play at PF.
 
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kyjeff1

Heisman
Sep 8, 2012
50,651
70,960
113
We can't give up on WG and DW, they both played poorly yesterday, but Willis did hit a three and WG got a tough rebound at the end. Small steps, I hope they figure it out soon.
 

uk78_rivals88018

All-American
Feb 6, 2003
12,401
8,783
0
Willis will play well during the SEC season but that might be problematic in terms of others developing through real game action. I am just so concerned that he prove me wrong but in big games he just seems to disappear. Where was he when needed against Indiana last season? Zero points. Against UNC last game hit one 3 and cost a lot on defense. I am not saying he was terrible, but he is not historically reliable in the big games and defense is poor. He does try. Gabriel seems like the better option to develop but SKJ needs those minutes to develop too.
 

Lukasz0brzut

All-Conference
Oct 3, 2011
7,106
3,432
90
UK needs Willis to step up and provide minutes that are + to the team- in order to have a run in the tournament Willis will have to play big.

Look at him last year against IU. That type of performance can't happen again. Nonexistent
 

WonderBraa

All-Conference
Feb 19, 2012
4,317
1,247
0
I'll say this...nobody on this team can keep their man in front of them. That's why Mulder not playing is bullsh**. NC got to the basket at will. So did UCLA. And instead of just accept the mistake, most of the time Fox will try to make up for it and gets a blocking foul called. We suck at defense. Willis and everyone else.
 

Elliott Tim

All-American
Dec 10, 2005
10,122
6,290
0
Who on the team did after giving up 100? Did his man get all of the 100 off of him as he did not play that much
Hard to be defensive minded with both teams running up and down the court. Loved it!
Sure miss those half court offenses from a few years back. Not!
We'd have recruits knocking our doors down to come play here. Yeah buddy!
 
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WonderBraa

All-Conference
Feb 19, 2012
4,317
1,247
0
Hard to be defensive minded with both teams running up and down the court. Loved it!
Sure miss those half court offenses from a few years back. Not!
We'd have recruits knocking our doors down to come play here. Yeah buddy!


This is a head scratcher. Youre excusing a lack of defense because UNC runs the ball up and down the court?
 

LadyCaytIL

Heisman
Oct 28, 2012
32,699
34,033
113
Which guys were responsible for berry and Jackson again? LoL. And some of you think you're intelligent enough to be talking basketball and blaming 100 points on our 4 position pfffft
 

dstroya

Freshman
Jan 28, 2016
71
71
0
Willis is what he is, a spot up 3 point shooter or pick and popper. He is not a good defender and below average rebounder. Hell if he gets a pass and is not open for a 3 you would think he was playing hot potato. Almost never makes a move toward basket or try to feed post, just get rid of ball back out top. I would try giving his minutes to Mulder and Jones and see what happens. Mulder is not a good defender either but he is quicker and more suited to playing the 3 than Willis and better rebounder. And Jones at least tries to defend and rebound, Willis just stands and watches shots most of the time. Been waiting for DW to show some consistency for 3+ years and besides 6-8 game run last year in early conference play we are getting more Skal quality of play.
 

K_TIME

Heisman
Jan 2, 2003
18,373
25,648
113
I just shake my head at stuff like this...did you watch the game and not realize Briscoe guarded Jackson 80% of the game. Jackson shot over him with his height plenty of times. And to be fair, UNC ran alot of stuff for him and our bigs didn't always help.

But the constant yammering in Willis is legit to a degree but Gabriel is far worse a defensive player from what I'm seeing out there. Briscoe and his guaranteed 34 mpg is as bad a decision as playing Willis.

I don't get it...but it is what it is.
 

dstroya

Freshman
Jan 28, 2016
71
71
0
Never said Willis give up Jackson's points, though a few baskets did come against him. Was speaking more on Willis's play for most of his career here. He is not a good defender, never gets in defensive posture, always straight legs and bent at the waist. Got blowed by 4-5 times by heel players in the game, for a guy that played 19-21 minutes with 3 points and 1 rebound that was unexceptable play.
As far as thinking playing Briscoe is as bad a decision as playing Willis is laughable. Briscoe is averaging 16 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 30 minutes not 34 guaranteed. Willis is averaging 7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 19 minutes, which is comparable to Skal's 6.6, 3.1 and 0.3 numbers in 16 minutes last year.
 

LineSkiCat14

Heisman
Aug 5, 2015
38,887
60,971
113
Can we atleast put the game in perspective? It was against a very polished and experienced UNC team that just came off of a title appearance.

The defense wasn't there, but people are expecting wayyy to much, especially with how fast the game was played.

We seem to say this every year at this time.. A half dozen players who are awful at defense. It's a learning curve. Cal has these guys working on so many new things there are going to be lapses, especially in a marquee matchup. Wenyen is one of the better defenders in the 2016 class, it's well documented.. And he isn't the first defensive minded guy that Cal recruited. It's a process. It takes time.

It's been 7 years under Cal.. I'm a bit concerned that many Kentucky fans haven't figured out the early-goings and growing pains yet. Next year will be no different, with guys like Bamba, Knox, Richards, Diallo, etc.. who we all think are infallible right now. You gotta remember this.
 

keefsopeng

All-Conference
Mar 23, 2005
5,015
2,068
0
we don't have any inside presence at all besides bam and he's not a shot blocker, so we have no one to clean up ur mistakes. what people aren't talking about is that a big part of Cal's strategy has always been to funnel players to the basket and have them face AD, KAT, Nerlens, even guys like Lee, and Boogie provided good interior D. Bam is just lost out there and so when our guys get beat there is no helping hand and we struggle on the defensive glass a bit so it's not a great combo. that's the reason i want mulder to be playing more. forget his shooting or what not it's the fact that he's probably the 2nd best rebounder on the team.
 
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Ukbrassowtipin

Heisman
Aug 12, 2011
82,232
90,160
113
Who on the team did after giving up 100? Did his man get all of the 100 off of him as he did not play that much
Nope. Overall the defense wasn't that bad. Maybe you didn't notice...those were two uptempo teams. UK took a shot every 12 seconds on average. Both teams offense was that efficient. I'm guessing your one of those ppl that thinks there's no defense in NBA games..no the offense and execution is that good.

But that's no reason to protect Willis just bc you have favoritism towards him. Learn the game, there's more than just man on ball. Willis has no awareness for defensive rotation. You know when Cal was talking about a few people owed Monk a hug. Willis was one of them. Jackson made a great curl cut to get around Briscoe and to the goal, causing Briscoe to have to foul to recover.....guess who was on the opposite block and had no idea where the ball and cutter were...didn't even think about sliding over. You guessed it...your boyfriend. That gave unc the lead. And when he tried to hard the post...lol, automatic 2. That's why he didn't play much. There's no shame in living in reality...he is an atrocious defender, the worst on the team, and doesn't seal his man off for rebounds either. Gabriel, yeah he struggles too..but at least we know he'll attack the glass..he did get the rebound and the end of the game to set Fox up for free throws.

It's 5 on 4 when he's in on the defensive in against elite teams. And if he can't learn to put the ball on the floor...he's not going to play much unless we starting seeing zone.
 
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Ukbrassowtipin

Heisman
Aug 12, 2011
82,232
90,160
113
I just shake my head at stuff like this...did you watch the game and not realize Briscoe guarded Jackson 80% of the game. Jackson shot over him with his height plenty of times. And to be fair, UNC ran alot of stuff for him and our bigs didn't always help.

But the constant yammering in Willis is legit to a degree but Gabriel is far worse a defensive player from what I'm seeing out there. Briscoe and his guaranteed 34 mpg is as bad a decision as playing Willis.

I don't get it...but it is what it is.
Briscoe...you talking about the guy who lead the team in rebounds last game...you know the guy that collapsed the defense to get monk open several times. I didn't see the 6'9 ky kid who can't put it on the floor and can't box his man out do it.
 

Schwagg

All-American
Feb 4, 2003
2,729
5,127
0
Jackson used Briscoe like a diaper. Briscoe, obviously is also very limited offensively against good teams. It is time for Mulder to eat some of his minutes. Pretty soon Monk will be seeing a box and one, & UK will need an outside shooter. Willis is to soft defensively & Gabriel gets pushed around inside. I believe Mulder needs to play the 3 in order for this team to reach its potential.
 

Stonewall12

Heisman
Nov 15, 2009
24,527
13,405
66
Because nobody else can guard Justin Jackson and unlike Willis and Wenyen Briscoe helped the team in other ways
Briscoe did not do much.
Willis needs to be on the floor we need his shooting. Monk is not going to be super man every big game we play.
 

kyjeff1

Heisman
Sep 8, 2012
50,651
70,960
113
Jackson used Briscoe like a diaper. Briscoe, obviously is also very limited offensively against good teams. It is time for Mulder to eat some of his minutes. Pretty soon Monk will be seeing a box and one, & UK will need an outside shooter. Willis is to soft defensively & Gabriel gets pushed around inside. I believe Mulder needs to play the 3 in order for this team to reach its potential.
We have a large group of fans that do this every dam day.
You guys look at the game and think you know more than Cal about the game and his players.
This is about as dumb as the "Charles Matthews is the missing piece" bullsh*t thread from last night.
If Cal plays Mulder and the kids screws sh*t up, you will come on here and ask why the heck he's on the court.
You guys have to let these young guys figure it out. You're spoiled, and seeing performances like what Monk and Fox have been putting on is not helping people like you, because you think it's normal. Well, it's not, and whether you want to believe it or not, Briscoe is still a young player and is still figuring this out.
The only way they are going to get better is repetition, taking players out because captain Schwagg said on a message board that he sucks is not how Cal is going to run his team.
 
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Nuke99m.

All-American
Aug 30, 2002
8,824
8,021
113
You can't look at the opposing small forward scoring and then say our small forward is a crappy defender when they score.
We switch on every screen. We have two guys on the court at times that can't guard their own man let alone someone quicker they get switched on. Opposing coaches have learned when certain players are in the game to keep UK switching until they get the matchup they want.

BTW. Please play a box and one against UK.
 

Dablueman

All-American
Feb 5, 2003
16,981
5,703
0
It's the pace were playing at people. These kids are mostly good defenders or at least average. There is a huge difference in playing D in a half court game and at 90 miles an hour. Do you guys really think Berry is a bad defender? our defenders are learning how to play D at a break neck pace. And they will get there and when they do look out
 

UK90

Heisman
Dec 30, 2007
31,460
27,814
0
.
Willis needs to be on the floor we need his shooting.

Not if he's giving up more in other areas of the game than his shooting provides.

And, frankly, the hype on this board about Willis' "shooting" is way overblown. The guy is only a 36 percent three point shooter, which ain't particularly good, and he only seems to able to get it off if left wide open with his feet set. Yes, he is a solid outside shooter if given an open look, but he is NOT the great marksmen some posters on this board pretend him to be.
 
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Kats23

All-American
Nov 21, 2007
8,683
5,913
63
The reason why Briscoe and Gabriel play and Willis gets pulled is because potentially they can get better on the defensive end. 4 years later, the defensive flashbulb isn't going to go off for Willis all of a sudden. He'll be fine to play Wednesday and he's fine to be in there probably in the majority of the teams UK plays but people talk about his propensity to disappear during big games. That happens because of the athlete on the floor is better than him and will take away his shot and beat him on defense.

Willis can't drive the lane, isn't a great passer so offensively that makes him limited. If you shut him down he's useless on the floor, so Cal pulls him. Gabriel is a freshman but has a lot more potential to get better on the floor and he needs clock time to do that. That's why he's starting over Willis and has a longer leash. Briscoe can get to the basket, and pass or score. That's why he stays in the game. We don't have a deep bench and the ones that are on there, aren't great.
 

Elliott Tim

All-American
Dec 10, 2005
10,122
6,290
0
This is a head scratcher. Youre excusing a lack of defense because UNC runs the ball up and down the court?
First, just give yourself a good shampoo and the itch will go away.
My point was: I know there was little defense on either side. It was like watching a McDonalds All American game. Fun, fun, fun!
Was not excusing a lack of defense. It wasn't there on either side.
How many greyhounds came here in the post Pitino era till Cal arrived?
Even if there were a few, they were made to play out of their element.
Point made?
Long live Cal's reign at UK!

 

WonderBraa

All-Conference
Feb 19, 2012
4,317
1,247
0
First, just give yourself a good shampoo and the itch will go away.
My point was: I know there was little defense on either side. It was like watching a McDonalds All American game. Fun, fun, fun!
Was not excusing a lack of defense. It wasn't there on either side.
How many greyhounds came here in the post Pitino era till Cal arrived?
Even if there were a few, they were made to play out of their element.
Point made?
Long live Cal's reign at UK!



Bad post
 
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Jan 3, 2003
145,534
15,709
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Willis problem now isn't defense as much as it is offense. He isn't moving to get open, and when he is open and gets the ball he won't shoot it.
He is put in the game mainly to score, you can't score if you won't shoot.
 

bluedog79

All-American
Mar 4, 2008
6,015
5,290
0
I say give Willis a 3ball try every time somebody scores on him. If he makes it he stays in but if he misses it? He better make the rebound lol.

A "make up for it" contract. You fail you sit. Derek's plus\minus must be positive. No way around it.

I guarantee his plus\minus is usually negative. He needs shots to be a positive player. They dont go to Derek at the 3pt line nearly enough to help his plus\minus. He probably needs 3 makes a game and 5 rebounds to be plus all game.
 

Stonewall12

Heisman
Nov 15, 2009
24,527
13,405
66
Not if he's giving up more in other areas of the game than his shooting provides.

And, frankly, the hype on this board about Willis' "shooting" is way overblown. The guy is only a 36 percent three point shooter, which ain't particularly good, and he only seems to able to get it off if left wide open with his feet set. Yes, he is a solid outside shooter if given an open look, but he is NOT the great marksmen some posters on this board pretend him to be.
When monk is the only threat to shoot you need him on the floor. I never seen the hate for a player more than Willis. If he would be able to play for 10 mins without getting jerked his % would be up.

But please hate away
 
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