~2017-18 Big Ten Basketball Thread~

[847badgerfan]

I think <= 10 games is the magic number for a medical since they play 30 this season. I'd have to go and look how many he has played in.

I think Trice could maybe get one too. He didn't use a redshirt yet.

[ELA]

Yes, both played in 10.

I simply meant specifically for King's development.  He looks like a guy who could really benefit from a redshirt year, and it's a bonus he got to play in 10 games.

I think Trice is what he is.  As long as he's out for the season, it's nice to not have it count though.

[847badgerfan]

Gotcha. Although I think Trice could still develop.

[medinabuckeye1]

I think you might have mixed something up there, unless you really believe that OSU will beat North Carolina but lose to Miami (OH).

Second, I learned a loooooooooong long time ago that you don't look ahead on a schedule and start planning for March in December.  There will be games you win that you don't expect and games you lose that make you need to run out an buy a new universal remote and 50" flatscreen.

Yep, I flip/flopped #3 and #4.  My bad.  
I get what you are saying about looking ahead.  I'm definitely not planning on a tournament appearance or buying a new TV, just trying to get an idea of where the team is and what they need to do.  

[betarhoalphadelta]

MSU closed strong to win going away, but that was a 5 point game with about 12 to go.

Perimeter defense is still a mess, even though the interior defense is historically good.  I think I saw they've now held four opponents to below 25% shooting on 2s, and no other team in the nation has done it more than once.  But Southern Utah was like 11-21 from 3 at one point.  And it wasn't one of those games where they were just hitting bad shots, they were good looks.

Eventually MSU just sold out on running them off the line and leaving their bigs on islands to block shots.  They did.  But they can't trust them to do that against better teams.

Granted the way the Big Ten looks, I'm not sure how many good teams they'll play.  Purdue might be it?  Minnesota, Maryland and Michigan look like tourney teams, but not top 25 type teams.

Just interested as I don't get much time to watch teams other than Purdue...
You say the interior D is good. Are you talking specifically about the bigs / in the paint? Or their D on drives off the dribble? Or defending the entry pass?
Just wondering, as the game in East Lansing is undoubtedly the biggest game on Purdue's schedule. And I'm not sure there's anyone in the NCAA who can defend Haas on the block. His game has gotten better this year now that he's "the guy" and it was pretty darn good last year. We obviously like to work the inside-out game, and although we've got some shooters, we like to get the ball into the big man. 
So understanding what you think of that matchup is intriguing to me...

[ELA]

They haven't done as much ball entry denial, relying more on their shot blocking and shot altering.  They are long, and they are deep, which means they can also play without fear of foul trouble.  The communication and help defense has been phenomenal.

They've already held four opponents to below 25% shooting on two point attempts.  No other team in the country has done that more than once.

MSU is allowing opponents to shoot 31% inside the arc.  Next best is Cincinnati at 38%.  The Athletic posted a graphic that I now can't find at just how far MSU is ahead of everyone else in the nation at that.

At their current pace they'll break the school record for blocked shots with nine games to spare.

Perimeter defense, particularly from Winston is lacking.  They've gotten more aggressive at just running guys off the line and taking their chances on the bigs cleaning up the mess, and that has actually worked well.  Guys drilling mid range jumpers, which college players struggle mightily with, is the only thing that will get them out of that.

[MichiFan87]

After the collapse against OSU last week, it was great to see the team have a great comeback against UCLA despite not playing well. That potentially saved the season. Simpson coming through with some great shots in the second half was encouraging.

Apparently Texas is down a starter, so maybe they can the upset in Austin tomorrow night.... If not, the next few games will provide time for Brooks, Livers, and Poole to get more comfortable, since they'll need to play better (and more minutes) in Big Ten play, but also for Abdur-Rahkman and Robinson to find their shot and regain their confidence.... As for Matthews, I don't understand how he's so bad at free throw shooting despite being able to hit tough and critical 3s and long 2s.

[GopherRock]

Gophers survived Drake last night. 

I watched enough of the game last night to see that this team has a major attitude problem. The body language was awful, I can't tell if they're even trying to run set pieces, and it took one hellacious run at the end to win. Pitino has his hands full. 

[ELA]

Yep, I flip/flopped #3 and #4.  My bad.  
I get what you are saying about looking ahead.  I'm definitely not planning on a tournament appearance or buying a new TV, just trying to get an idea of where the team is and what they need to do.  

Still probably 2 weeks away from finalizing tiers, but looking at the composite rankings, MSU is #2 and Purdue is #6, then you drop all the way to Maryland at #35.
KenPom is pretty similar with MSU #2, Purdue #8, then down to Maryland at #37.  Maybe a blank 2nd tier, like we had a blank 5th tier above Rutgers a couple years ago?

• MSU, Purdue
• -
• Maryland, Minnesota, OSU, PSU, UM
• UW, NW
• ?
• ?

Then not sure how to put the bottom 5.  They all seem pretty similar.
Composite has: #84 Nebraska; #89 Illinois; #92 Rutgers; #108 Indiana; #129 Iowa
KenPom: #81 Iowa; #82 Indiana; #90 Nebraska; #98 Illinois; #106 Rutgers

[ELA]

Texas is a complete mess offensively without Jones.  Looks like Michigan's solid bounce back week will continue

[MichiFan87]

Texas didn't play well, and the refs admittedly made some bad calls that went Michigan's way for a change, but in the end Michigan made some critical shots and free throws while Texas didn't. Needless to say I feel much better about the team than I did a week ago.

Wagner rolled his ankle, but the next three games (Detroit, Jacksonville, Alabama A&M) are all bad teams so he should just rest to give Teske more minutes along with giving Davis some minutes.

Michigan still needs to get better on offense as it relates to shooting, so hopefully they'll get some confidence in the next 3 games, which shouldn't be close.... The defense is actually as good can be expected except for some dumb fouls, especially if they continue to get defensive rebounds like they did tonight.

[847badgerfan]

UW with another critical game tonight against Western Kentucky.

Western Kentucky beat Purdue so they are no slouch. We'll see what the kiddies are made of tonight.

[betarhoalphadelta]

Louisville appealing their sanctions from the hooker scandal. Just when you think it'd be time to try to maintain a VERY low profile, they're trying to poke the bear. 

[847badgerfan]

Louisville appealing their sanctions from the hooker scandal. Just when you think it'd be time to try to maintain a VERY low profile, they're trying to poke the bear.

They see almost everyone else getting off light - or getting off completely (UNC) - and probably think why not try?

They did fire the coach, so right there they admit to something...