So close…

[RhabdoWildcat]

This feels like one of those years we are decent but just can’t catch the 50/50 breaks that make us a tourney team versus a bottom dweller. Love the heart of this team but just doesn’t seem meant to be.

Go Cats

 

[eddie_gocats]

To support the NU is to suffer…

 

[MCC_Cat]

Still plenty of chances left but you HAVE to snag good wins on the road to impress the Committee, not just play close. Plenty of chances today even after Leach's ejection. Ty had two open looks and I feel if either drops we win. Missed FT's hurt too but Matt hit two to tie and 75% for the game so not fair to say it's the reason we lost. Defense was outstanding and we need to acknowledge that.

 

[PurpleFaze]

2-5 and we could very easily be 5-2 in conference. Team just doesn’t have a lot of room for error. The OT games are especially tough on us with the mins being played by guys like NM and BB.

 

[1830 Sherman]

Just too many games slipping away at the end. It's starting to evoke the pre-tourney years. Close, can't finish.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

I don’t think we played poorly. Overall, our defense was good at most crucial times. It wasn’t overly great at times. Thought it was a rough game on defense for Nick and Big Matt. Michigan was picking on them, though Big Matt got it together late in the game. Seemed Gelo and KJ for the little time he was in there did pretty well on the defensive end. Night and day from the start of the season. Shooting wasn’t there and obviously, the ridiculous flagrant 2 on Leach decided the game.

 

[CappyNU]

We focused on stopping Danny Wolf, and we did completely. He had his worst game of the season - despite playing 40 minutes he had 4 points, all on FTs, and shot 0-7. He had 13 rebounds, but 10 were defensive. He only had 2 assists, because the ball was barely in his hands. Unfortunately that focus meant that Goldin was able to get his points, but Michigan is a good team, someone was going to be scoring for them.

Tre Donaldson had his 2nd-worst game of the year, needing 12 shots to score 10 points with 3 turnovers. Nimari Burnett had his 2nd-worst game of the season - he came in shooting 50.7% from 3-point range and went 2-8 plus he fouled out. Will Tschetter had been playing 17mpg off the bench while shooting 40.8% from 3 - he was so bad he only played 9 minutes and took 1 shot.

We played well, and we got screwed. We are still a good team that's had an impossible schedule to start the conference year.

 

[Secho99]

Still plenty of chances left but you HAVE to snag good wins on the road to impress the Committee, not just play close. Plenty of chances today even after Leach's ejection. Ty had two open looks and I feel if either drops we win.

Yeah those were 2 great looks and your best shooter has to knock one of them down. There’s a lot of things to point to as far as what went against us, but there were plenty of chances.

I also think we run should’ve run something at the end of regulation to get up a 3, just win or lose the game right there. Didn’t really think we’d be able to hold up in OT.

 

[Secho99]

2-5 and we could very easily be 5-2 in conference. Team just doesn’t have a lot of room for error. The OT games are especially tough on us with the mins being played by guys like NM and BB.

The 2 wins were in OT so we could reasonably be anywhere from 5-2 to 0-7 right now. 3-4 probably would be a fair reflection of where the team is at but they’re going to need to find ways to be good enough to not let a bad call or lucky shot beat them. Missed FTs late in this game and against Iowa were costly, and that’s something you can control.

 

[GatoLouco]

I thought there were 2 late moments where we just did not deliver: when Martinelli misses 2 free throws with like 3 minutes to go, and when Berry misses a wide open 3 with 90 seconds to go.

When Berry’s shot did not go in, someone around me said “oh, that would have been so bad”. And a couple of others voiced that they agreed. I mean he was wide open. And points were hard to come by.

 

[CatManTrue]

I thought there were 2 late moments where we just did not deliver: when Martinelli misses 2 free throws with like 3 minutes to go, and when Berry misses a wide open 3 with 90 seconds to go.

When Berry’s shot did not go in, someone around me said “oh, that would have been so bad”. And a couple of others voiced that they agreed. I mean he was wide open. And points were hard to come by.

Points are hard to come by because CCC does not run an offense.

We have only made the tournament in years when we had insanely good point guard play (McIntosh & Boo Buie x 2).

I theorize this is because CCC’s offenses - and I’m not sure what we’ve seen this season even counts as a system- are lost without an elite experienced PG.

I love CCC and what he has done for the program. His defensive system, recruiting, and strength treating programs are beautiful. But it is painful to watch this offensive system - pun intended, @CappyNU !