MSU umm

Today is, unlike most games against the skunkbears, meaningful. Consider the implications.

1. Senior night for a player that has been confusing, dominant at times, and like others before him -- quite unappreciated. Paul Davis comes to mind. A guy that just went to work, NEVER caused drama* and has career stats any incoming freshman would dream of. Raymar wants this win. His teamates -- most at least -- want it for him just as badly. No one wants it more than Izzo, for the program of course, but mostly for Raymar.

2. This is michigan. You can't lose this game. Ummm hasn't won at the Bres since 1997, hasn't really been close in most of those games, and isn't a contender this year. This would be a BAD loss headin into seeding. And...

3. A win means a piece of the B11 Championship. Banners are Izzo's "footprints."

4. You cannot lose another game at home. The Breslin is dangerously close to be an easy win. And don't blame the fans. In the osu and purdue losses the fans brought plenty of noise and distraction. The players were flat and mentally absent. Another home loss would also set the wrong tone heading into the post season.

5. This should be a scrimmgae to clean up bad habits against a zone defense and 3 point shooting. You will see both in the tourney. Make it far enough and you will likely see Nova or Cuse, which use both heavily. 3 point shooting is funny because a hot team can hit despite the best defense ever and a bad shooting night can make terrible defense look deceivingly good, on paper. Quirky. Bad rotation by the bigs has really been the biggest problem. Against Wisconsin, Purdue, and OSU the bigs stepped out early and gave up layups. Late in the same games they sagged too far and gave up 3's on bad rotation. It will be up to Summers, Roe, Green, and Morgan to find that balance and cut off passing lanes to make a good defense great.

A few observations:

- I HATE Morgan taking long 2's and 3's. First, he is a great rebounder and boxes out consistently. When he is shooting away from the basket there is about a 2% chance we are getting that rebound. Second, it usually comes at the expense of a drive against a slower post player (rarely over a guard). Use your advantages. I get that you should be a jump shooter to play at the next level. You aren't yet. This team doesn't need you to be.

- Teams allow Lucious to get in the lane because he is too small to finish in traffic and doens't have a floater. He realizes this, too late, nightly when he gets trapped down low in the forest and ends up traveling, throwing a terrible pass, or throwing up some garbage. Don't get past your man for the sake of getting by him. Have a plan and a purpose.

- Why aren't we throwing 4-5 lobs per game? Summers isn't the only player that can take a lob. In a pinch, against man, Allen could and has. Roe and Morgan are, in my mind, ideal candidates. Green and Nix can use their bodies to get a man fronting them and then a quick lob would mean a layup. Especially against a zone when there is rotation to the corner. A quick skip pass to the point and an immediate lob to the opposite block would be almost automatic.

- This team, especially its stars, have to get better from the line. Morgan, Lucas, and Summers have been terrible. You can't win that way. This is especially true for a team that misses as many laypus and short jumpers as MSU has recently. It seems as though no one can finish. ESPECIALLY on a fast break. Again, I've never seen a team squander so many fast breaks, with numbers, so consistenly.

- Some of the passes in the last few games that looked terrible were, at least 50%, Summers fault. Lucious and Lucas both have throw a pass out of a trap or to a space hoping that Summers would do the logical thing; try to get open. Instead Summers cuts away from the pass to a space on the floor where 1. no pass could not get to him, and 2. another defender is better able to guard two people without moving. It is basic. Figure it out.

Um is not that bad. They have players to win any game on any given night, at least this year, as college basketball has about 8-12 teams that could win it all. There is no clear head and shoulders team this year. That said, limiting umm to one shot per possession and -- regardless of turnovers -- making each real opportunity count means a win. Think in terms of hockey, shots versus scoring chances. A shot in hockey is not necessarily a scoring chance. Take advantage of scoring chances and let backcourt and loose ball turnovers go. That means finishing on layups, open shots, and free throws. Catch the routine pass. Don't throw the lazy, readable pass.** Wide open on a 3? Don't travel. Finish the dunk.*** Cut to the open space, not to a space where a pass can neither get to you or where you let one defender cover two people.****


MSU -- 71
umm -- 64




* Other than the internal drama necessary to create the most funny faces since Jim Carey.
** Summers
*** Summers
****SUMMERS