Golden Nugz 11.30.09

by GopherNation on Nov 30, 2009 4:00 AM CST in Golden Nuggets Comment 19 comments

So the 76 Classic began with such high hopes but ended in a 1-2 dud. Hopefully more recap to follow, although I think that first sentence pretty much wraps it up. We collectively now are HUGE Butler fans. Our resume isn't as strong as it should be after beating a #10 ranked team.

Interesting that Nolen and Westbrook didn't play in the first half. Myron explains to us that it was "an internal attitude-type thing." This is starting to get out of hand. Three guys suspended indefinitely and two more who were benched for a half. I have great respect for Tubby and what he is trying to instill in his players, but at some point I'd really like to see all this stop and we can get a full roster of guys playing basketball.

Gopher Volleyball has made the NCAA Tournament as the #11 overall seed. The good news is that they are in the Minneapolis Regional, the bad news is they have to win a couple matches to get back home.
Here is a Q&A with Mike Scanlan.
Kind of early but here are five keys for Gopher baseball to make a successful run to the Big Ten title and an NCAA Tournament run.
The Dagger gives us the 10 best NCAA hoopsters of the past decade. No Gophers but a fun list nonetheless.

0 recs | Comment 19 comments |

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

I think my hunch

might be confirmed——Westbrook is not only a ball-hog on the court but a disruptive influence off of it as well. This team never plays with any sort of chemistry when he is on the court—-my vote goes to bench him. I also think we should go with the Joseph/Cobbs combo at PG. Nolan is not going to materialize into the PG needed. I am not crazy about Joseph at PG, but I like him better than Nolan and let’s see what Cobbs can develop into.

by Texas Gopher on Nov 30, 2009 7:28 AM CST reply actions

Nolen is our best PG

He isn’t a scoring PG but he does everything else very well.

22 Ast
6 turnovers
14 steals

He’s a floor leader, great defender and he pushes the ball up the floor. He’s not a shooter and not a great scorer but he is a solid PG.

what you say here can, and will, be used against you

by GopherNation on Nov 30, 2009 9:35 AM CST up reply actions

I will buy the

“great defender” part but I don’t see the floor leader or pushes the ball part at all.

by Texas Gopher on Nov 30, 2009 9:46 AM CST up reply actions

he clearly pushed the ball in the Portland game

he’d get the inbound and sprint up the floor with the ball, it didn’t lead to fast-break points because that is pretty hard to do after a made basket but he was absolutely pushing the ball.

what you say here can, and will, be used against you

by GopherNation on Nov 30, 2009 1:25 PM CST up reply actions

Could be

I did not catch the Portland game. My picture of Nolan is him walking the ball up the court and taking 15 seconds just to get it in someone else’s hands and they are usually 30 feet from the basket. Back at work has me in a grumpy mood.

by Texas Gopher on Nov 30, 2009 1:38 PM CST up reply actions

Agree on Nolan

I think he was at his best (even in the loss) on Friday – when he plays the shutdown defense we’re used to seeing and then drives the lane to either get layups, get to the free throw-line, or dish the ball to a wing. If he could keep that up I’d like to see him continue starting and play 25mpg while Cobbs gets the other minutes (or Joseph if Nolen gets in early foul trouble)…

Joseph should start over Westbrook at SG – you can always keep Westbrook in if he shows a hot hand off the bench, but right now he just isn’t with it.

Can these guys shoot at all? I can understand having off days from 3, but the free throw shooting is atrocious and IMO cost them at least the Portland game. These guys are college athletes, they should have shot over 50K practice free throws by now. And how can a team like Portland have so many good outside shooters and we seemingly have none (unless they are wide open)

Right now they have too many holes to suggest they are better than last year’s team.

by mraveling on Nov 30, 2009 11:17 AM CST up reply actions

Further evidence

after 6 games Westbrook, remember a guard now, has 5 assists on the season.

by Texas Gopher on Nov 30, 2009 8:32 AM CST reply actions

not surprised

and don’t forget his 10 turnovers. Westbrook is capable of scoring in spurts but I think the team would be best served with coming off the bench as instant offense.

PG – Nolen
SG – Josepn
SF – Williams
PF – Johnson
C – Sampson/Iverson

If Mbakwe ever makes it back I’d move Johnson to SF and have Williams off the bench as well.

what you say here can, and will, be used against you

by GopherNation on Nov 30, 2009 9:32 AM CST up reply actions

Frustrating

because the frontcourt is solid especially if someone will get Sampson energized. The backcourt, especially the PG spot, is the weak link.

by Texas Gopher on Nov 30, 2009 9:48 AM CST reply actions

More Bullish on Westbrook

I don’t really understand the dislike for Westbrook. He is our best scoring threat on a team very needy for scoring. Does he take some wild undisciplined shots? Sure. Does he have a poor A/T ratio? Sure, but he is a SG, not a PG. He definitely has his shortcomings, but he is still our best player right now and there is no reason he shouldn’t be starting (off court issues aside).

Seriously, who do you trust more with the ball? You could make the case for Nolen, but don’t count on him to score. When we most need a score, Westbrook is our best option. Joseph has a very nice shot, but he still needs work to create his own, not to mention actually make more shots. Cobbs is inconsistent—he has a nice stroke on one shot and then airballs a wide open look the next.

The frontcourt is hard to figure out. Last year before conference play, Iverson definitely looked like the better player. As we got into conference play, he disappeared and Sampson emerged. This year so far, it looks like Iverson is again the better player.

Unfortunately, I still see all sorts of problems with our offense. I don’t really get what we are trying to do. It seems like we dribble and pass rather aimlessly and end up with horrible shots because nothing is ever created in terms of space. When I watch our opponents, there seems to be ball movement that creates opportunities. Furthermore, we play better when we have a sense of urgency. Somehow, Tubby needs to instill that urgency and energy throughout the game rather than when we are behind with our backs to the wall. The offense is still very troubling.

We play Miami on Tuesday and that is a MUST win. It is our last out of conference opponent that means anything at all. If we lose that game, we are going to probably need at least 11-7 in the Big 10 to get into the NCAA tournament and we won’t face a quality opponent again until January 5 on the road against Purdue.

One thing I HATE. Why does the Big 10 have to have an unbalanced schedule? We play Wisconsin and Illinois only once this year. For football, I can kind of understand why we don’t play everyone. But in basketball, there is no excuse. The whole conference would be better off playing two more Big 10 games and getting rid of Utah Valley and Morgan State.

One final thing while I’m on my soap box. Has there been a Thanksgiving anywhere in the history of America where the amount of gravy made was proportional to the amount of mashed potatoes and turkey? It is so frustrating that gravy is always gone before those two items are fully consumed and I have to eat them sans gravy.

by rencito on Nov 30, 2009 10:09 AM CST reply actions

I'll respond

I get that Westbrook can score but nothing infuriates me more than terrible shot selection and turnovers. He epitomizes both. A good scorer gets his points within the offense (at least a little bit). Westbrook just has no understanding of when to shoot and when to move the ball. I’m not calling for him to be benched but I think a role off the bench would suit him and the team best.

I think the problem with our offense is that we just don’t have any scorers. Our best players excel in areas other than scoring. Johnson and Nolen are our two best players and both of them are defenders. I have some qualms with the offensive system but for the most part we are just missing a key ingredient or two that would make the rest of the parts that much better.

Schedule – until a couple years ago we only played 16 games so the 18 game conference schedule is an improvement. Teams don’t want anymore they’d rather have a couple extra Ws over Utah Valley and Morgan St.

what you say here can, and will, be used against you

by GopherNation on Nov 30, 2009 1:23 PM CST up reply actions

If Westbrook comes off the bench

Our scoring average per game would go down. Who is going to fill his shoes? Whoever you choose will not score as much as Westbrook and will not play better defense. You said it yourself, “I think the problem with our offense is that we just don’t have any scorers.” And then you want to relegate our best scorer to the bench???

I think Westbrook has a better idea of when to shoot than most other players on our squad right now. At least he creates some shots and gets to the line. That is more than I can say for most of our other players on offense. He is far from the only player that makes some bad decisions on when to shoot. At least he rarely passes, which is a good thing considering how many of our passes from other Gophers seem to be easy steals for the opposition. That is more infuriating to me than seeing Westbrook try to make something happen when no one on the offense is moving without the ball

by rencito on Nov 30, 2009 6:07 PM CST up reply actions

BB is a game of chemistry

the best coaches play the best formula. Westbrook can only create his own shots at the expense of the team. I wish Westbrook had graduated or left last year. This offense is tough enough to watch without #20 thinking he is Allen Iverson.

by Texas Gopher on Nov 30, 2009 11:44 AM CST reply actions

I'm glad we aren't in meltdown mode here.

We lost some games to some of the top teams in the nation. I don’t know if you guys remember all of the coverage the 76 classic was getting, but it had some great teams. Take a look at the kenpom ratings (http://kenpom.com/rate.php). Just to summarize, the tourney had teams ranked 2, 7, 8, 10, 20, etc. We will get another test on the road at Miami.

I am anxious to see how they respond, and come out with more time to prepare for the team.

by eazydp on Nov 30, 2009 1:37 PM CST reply actions