Who Starts Going Forward?

[The Great Wall]

Obviously

Ulis
Murray
Briscoe

A healthy Willis has to start in my opinion but I think we may have a dilemma when it comes to our 5th starter. It appears that Skal and Poythress are similiar in that if we do not get them going early they disappear. I like how Skal said he felt good to get to start and his play reflected it.

I know people are going to quickly bash Skal and discount any future production from him but Marquis Teague was able to turn it on come tournament time. A little confidence can go a long way...

Would you guys rather stay with Ulis, Murray, Briscoe, Willis, and Poythress or give Skal a chance or even Lee?

I am hoping that Skal emerges as at least a 15 or 20 minute guy like Cal hopes, and we see less Humphries. I really like Humphries but I do not think he is ready yet. Lateral quickness is his greatest deficiency. Humphries gives max effort which I greatly appreciate but he seems to really be struggling lately.

 

[sefus12]

It is a bit of a tough dilemna. I think our line-up with the highest ceiling is the following:

Ulis
Murray
Briscoe
Willis
Skal

The problem is that Skal has had one good game in about three months, so it may be tough to start him at the 5. Regardless, I think you go with the three guards, Willis, and either Skal/Lee with Poy and the non-starting big getting plenty of minutes at the 4 and 5.

 

[caneintally]

You have to start
Ulis
Briscoe
Murray
Willis
SKal .

Have to. Lee likes coming off the bench for energy and Poythress is kept a little out of foul trouble this way. If Skal can play 15 minutes a game and average 12 pts 6 rebs like I expect we have a top 10 front court all of a sudden especially with the Hump who is super skilled just needs time.

 

[Jazzycat]

Keep Skal in the starting lineup. There are going to be games where he cannot match up with the opponents 5 and in those cases you go with Lee or Poythress. Give him a shot, I say.

 

[The Great Wall]

I agree with both of you. I think we can agree that with Ulis, Murray and WIllis we are iffy on if that is enough fire power to pull this off. Anything extra we can squeeze out is certainly welcome.

 

[CatPhight_rivals65113]

Depends on the matchup IMO.

 

[docholiday51]

Alex seems to need to get off to a quick start to be effective but there is not room for him,Skal and Willis to start.It is a tough call,maybe Skal should come off the bench early.If he can post back to back games like last night then rethink the process.

 

[Dablueman]

I say same starting line up for a couple of games and ease Willis back then. Skal starts the game

 

[Graves51]

Skal? LOL

 

[BBUK_anon]

jmo but I think Poy has a better mind-set coming off the bench. Just an observation. I think he stays focused better. (Again just my observation.)

 

[spotter34]

Some of you have said it already but:

Ulis
Murray
Briscoe
Willis
Skal

All of these guys but Briscoe can shoot and Briscoe has his moments, like last night. Skal responded well last night being in the starting lineup but still only played 15 minutes. I think getting him closer to 18 minutes would be ideal. Bring Poy and Lee in off the bench and get most of the time but this keeps them out of early foul trouble and potentially lights a fire under both.

This starting 5 has some offensive fire power. Rebounding is the big question mark and toughness inside.

 

[fisherscat]

Tough choice...Poy and Lee do have tourney experience with big games where they stepped up. They are inconsistent but Im thinking the experience helps us at some point.

 

[Hoskins91_rivals]

I'd put him in the starting lineup again to keep his confidence high. If he's not producing, yank him.

 

[wall2rondo]

Someone had the stat on pre game show yesterday

It was something with poythress scoring early.

It was night and day but don't remember the exact numbers

 

[BourbonBalz]

Someone had the stat on pre game show yesterday

It was something with poythress scoring early.

It was night and day but don't remember the exact numbers

The stat was if Alex scores in the first five minutes of a game, he averages almost 14 points a game. If he doesn't, his average drops to 6 ppg. That's just a ridiculous stat. It clearly shows that he loses focus if he doesn't make an early impact.

 

[wall2rondo]

The stat was if Alex scores in the first five minutes of a game, he averages almost 14 points a game. If he doesn't, his average drops to 6 ppg. That's just a ridiculous stat. It clearly shows that he loses focus if he doesn't make an early impact.

Thanks

 

[CharlieT71059]

Give Skal his minutes, pull him if not producing

 

[The Great Wall]

Ya that is what the dilemma is. It is not so much that Alex deserves to start or that Skal deserves to start. It has everything to do with both players not having good games unless they get off to a good start.

I think I like the idea of easing Willis back in and having him come off of the bench Saturday. Skal and Poy start and whoever has the better game gets to start alongside Willis for our first game of the SECT.

 

[andreIGUODOLLAsigns4UK]

Ulis
Murray
Poythress
Willis
Skal/Lee

 

[G-PIP]

You have to start
Ulis
Briscoe
Murray
Willis
SKal .

I don't think UK should play a front court of Willis and Skal together a whole lot. Skal on his best day (at this point in his development) might provide that 2nd rebounder for brief stints, but he's really not that yet. Willis has shown he can be a fine 2nd rebounder, but you shouldn't ask him to be the primary force in the middle. I don't think that's really fair to put on Willis, but that's what you would be asking of him if he's playing with Skal. Being able to get contested rebounds is crucial. Put all the shooters you want on the floor, but if you can't rebound you can't win. Briscoe is a beast, and the other guards have shown they'll do their part (or more); but you can't expect them to bang with bigs.

It's tournament time and now, more than ever, it's a "man's game"; and the only "man" we have in the frontcourt is Poythress. Humphries and Lee will give you some strength/effort on the boards too, which helps; but none can give you the package of strength & explosiveness that Poythress can. I know you don't always get the numbers from Poythress that fans want or think he should be able to give you every game, but he's able to hold his position and rebound in traffic much better than anybody else on the team. I don't think you can win very often without that element. So, I think that one of Poythress, Lee or Humphries needs to be on the floor almost all the time. Just my opinion.

 

[Anon1712931820]

One game and everyone is hyping Skal as the definite starter lol.

Ulis
Murray
Briscoe
Willis
Poythress

 

[spotter34]

One game and everyone is hyping Skal as the definite starter lol.

Ulis
Murray
Briscoe
Willis
Poythress

That's just because of how well he responded to starting (unexpectedly) last night. Why would you not start him now? Plus it keeps Alex and Lee out of early foul trouble. Skal has clearly had a horrible year but if he can routinely put up numbers similar to last night then he will definitely help us from here on out.

 

[sefus12]

The real truth is that all three bigs will have to play a lot of minutes, and it's hard to argue with the team's success with Willis in the starting line-up. So three guards + Willis + rotating big is the likely go-to.

 

[SilentsAreGolden]

Since Cal, I came to the conclusion it just doesn't matter who starts.

 

[WeWant9]

The locks are Ulis, Murray, and Briscoe. I think on the frontcourt you just look at potential match ups and who's playing hot at that time. Right now I would roll with Poy and Skal, having Willis and Lee coming off the bench, with Humphries as the wild card. But at the end of the day, I think our frontcourt is interchangeable depending on our opponent.

 

[yabbadabbadoo_rivals213851]

Ulis
Murray
Poythress
Willis
Skal/Lee

This is the lineup I like to start a game.
Good foul shooting across that lineup.
Good length.
Gain outside shooting ability.
Might lose a little in the defense dept. but the offense trumps it I believe.

Come in with Lee, Briscoe, Hawkins at spells, then rotate as needed. Humphries needs decent minutes as well. His size can't be overlooked.

 

[fisherscat]

I think against better competition you have to have Willis on the floor as much as possible. Better defensive teams and coaches will use Briscoe to their advantage without Willis.

Without Derek Id play triangle in two against the Cats all day long. With Derek it makes junk defenses less effective.

 

[Federal Cat]

We need production from them all going forward, just in case one or two have an off night, the others can pick up the slack, Go Cats

 

[caneintally]

Alex seems to need to get off to a quick start to be effective but there is not room for him,Skal and Willis to start.It is a tough call,maybe Skal should come off the bench early.If he can post back to back games like last night then rethink the process.

Actually the key to Poy playing well is NOT getting in foul trouble so I think he has to sit to begin the game . Skal , Willis , Ulis and Murray have to start for various reasons Briscoe is the one who might be able to go to the bench and we could start Lee at center with Skal , Willis and the 2 amazing guards.

 

[UKSanders_rivals37733]

Considering the stat on Poythress, I think one of these 2:

Lineup #1:
Ulis
Murray
Briscoe
Willis
Poy

OR

Lineup #2
Ulis
Murray
Briscoe
Poy
Skal

I'm still in the "show me" mindset with Skal, but #2 potentially allows for a lot of versatility.
I know foul trouble, matchups, etc will prevent the substitutions from being so straightforward, but it could look something like this:
Willis to come in off the bench for either Briscoe, Poy or Skal a la Darius Miller a few years ago.
Then, you still have Lee to sub out for Skal (similar build) and Humphries (for Poy if more beef is needed) to give minutes in the frontcourt and Hawkins to give a breather to either Ulis, Murray or Briscoe.

 

[ORCAT]

One game and everyone is hyping Skal as the definite starter lol.

Ulis
Murray
Briscoe
Willis
Poythress

You read my mind. Everyone on here has just been dumping, big time, on Skal for awhile now. He has one decent game last night and all of a sudden he should be back in the starting lineup and be a big contributor for us the rest of the way. Now, while I really hope he has suddenly found his game and does give us some great quality minutes I'm still of the mode that he has to prove it over more than just one game before I'm buying into the new found Skal hype on here. Having said that, however, I do think Cal will stick with the same starting 5 he had last night against UF just because I feel he will want to bring Willis back into the lineup gradually to see how he is. So, I see Willis coming off the bench against LSU and then maybe working his way back into the starting 5 in SEC Tourney with Skal heading back to the bench. If Skal can prove himself again this Saturday then I think he deserves to see his minutes increased. Just the way I see it but let's see what Coach Cal ends up doing.

 

[Rhavic]

Skal's play yesterday warrants having him in the starting lineup against LSU, and if his good play continues, he starts going forward. If Skal plays that way, it gives our team the best chance at winning the title going forward (having the best backcourt in the nation, and with the floor being spaced out as widely as it would be would make our offense tremendous).

Also lets us have 2 of our better shot blockers on the floor in Skal and Willis. They just have to play hard, rebound the ball, and do what they do on offense.

 

[Rhavic]

You read my mind. Everyone on here has just been dumping, big time, on Skal for awhile now. He has one decent game last night and all of a sudden he should be back in the starting lineup and be a big contributor for us the rest of the way. Now, while I really hope he has suddenly found his game and does give us some great quality minutes I'm still of the mode that he has to prove it over more than just one game before I'm buying into the new found Skal hype on here. Having said that, however, I do think Cal will stick with the same starting 5 he had last night against UF just because I feel he will want to bring Willis back into the lineup gradually to see how he is. So, I see Willis coming off the bench against LSU and then maybe working his way back into the starting 5 in SEC Tourney with Skal heading back to the bench. If Skal can prove himself again this Saturday then I think he deserves to see his minutes increased. Just the way I see it but let's see what Coach Cal ends up doing.

I get that Skal still has to prove himself, but you can't start a player one game, and after he plays really, really well, you pull him from the starting lineup. He should get the chance to start for as long as he produces at a high level.

 

[Graves51]

give me a break, we were really rolling with Willis and some of you want to not start HIM? Skal wasn't even present on defense, how many dunks did the Florida big man have? He didn't look much stronger than ever. Remember, everyone said it didn't matter how much you score if your man gets twice that many. Or does that not apply to Skal?

 

[CatsIndy2010]

I think we start Skal and Lee........while making sure Willis is 100%. If he is 100%, we should start Lee and Willis.

 

[Anon1712931820]

That's just because of how well he responded to starting (unexpectedly) last night. Why would you not start him now? Plus it keeps Alex and Lee out of early foul trouble. Skal has clearly had a horrible year but if he can routinely put up numbers similar to last night then he will definitely help us from here on out.

I trust Cal if he says that Skal has earned the spot, but one decent performance does not erase his play for 29 other games. I hope Skal turns it on and if he proves it in practice then he deserves to start, but with shoe ins of Ulis, Murray, Briscoe and a healthy Willis you have to have some muscle in there to grab boards and Skal is far from muscle. When on Poythress can play like the best PF in the country. When off he is the 3rd or 4th best big on our team lol.

 

[andreIGUODOLLAsigns4UK]

T

give me a break, we were really rolling with Willis and some of you want to not start HIM? Skal wasn't even present on defense, how many dunks did the Florida big man have? He didn't look much stronger than ever. Remember, everyone said it didn't matter how much you score if your man gets twice that many. Or does that not apply to Skal?

For as much as Skal has been weak, you can't blame it on Skal a lot of that was from help defense leaving him open. Skal actually fought for rebounds yesterday, and played damn good defense, something he hasn't done all season. If he plays like he did yesterday for the rest of the season then I'm hella content with that.

 

[JerseyCat84_rivals57050]

No way should Skal start over Willis, in any situation.

 

[kyboy1998_rivals34276]

Ulis
Murray
Willis
Poythress
Lee

Why not play the best, and most role defined line-up and try to win this thing? Or are we afraid to admit that Briscoe shouldn't start and would be a great back-up guard and situational sub?

 

[marshalfan]

Poythress has to play as much as possible. He is our 3rd leading scorer and rebounding leader. Briscoe has to play as well. He is a solid defender and rebounder.


Ulis
Murray
Briscoe
Willis
Poythress.