Game thread - MU vs Xavier

Buzz can't do it for them. Make the free throws, execute the defense.

Now he says Jamil has been hurt for 3 weeks................

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Originally Posted by Markedman

Now he says Jamil has been hurt for 3 weeks................

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With what? Heart?

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Originally Posted by brewcity77

I see a very sloppy team next year. I see spotty point play, with different guys bringing different positives but no one being able to really be the man for 30 mpg. I also see a decided disadvantage inside, as we simply aren't that big.

We will see a lot of youth minutes. That'll be a double edges sword. I have a feeling the results of this year may be a fond memory come this time next year.

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Sorry the hamster in my head is running on empty- you think we will be considerably worse next year?

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Originally Posted by halo

with what? Heart?

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lame......

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Originally Posted by Markedman

david d. dawson ‏@dddawson1 14m
@Daily_Eagle if Dawson can play now why not play him earlier??? SMH!!!

And I'm SMH at parents who post things like this......

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What is SMH?

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Originally Posted by Markedman

Now he says Jamil has been hurt for 3 weeks................

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Of course he has been. Probably because of the schedule and quick turnarounds.

Look, he could be legitimately hurt. But why play him normal minutes for those three weeks, and bring it up now?

The fact is this year, we had no leaders to take over. Yes Todd stepped up, but he is not a leader. Jamil never became tje player we thought and Derrick hindered the offense tremendously. I do think next year there will be growing pains, but the talent we have coming in and on the bench is very good, i don't see why there is reason to think we won't be better than this year. We will actually have guards who can score, and a lot of switchables. I think we have a bright future. We can let this season get to us for a few days but then turn the page and who knows maybe we can win the NIT.

SMH=shaking my head

Dawson dad is the one who said Jamil is hurt not Buzz....Complaining again on twitter about his kid not getting more minutes

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Originally Posted by WindyCityGoldenEagle

Sorry the hamster in my head is running on empty- you think we will be considerably worse next year?

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Not Brew, but I don't see us being considerably worse next year, but I don't see us being better either. I think we can expect much of the same... You never know though, maybe a few guys blossom during the off season, let's hope at least.

I hope everyone stays. While we will be weak inside, at least for the first semester, I see a potentially very young, and very exciting team that will improve as the season goes on. I think MU should try to play a 40 minutes of hell kind of pace since we will be undersized, and will have a ton of guards and wings if everyone stays. I see Duane, Dawson, and Dwill sharing the point. I see Ahmed Hill, JJJ, Dawson, Mayo all playing the 2 and 3 guard position. I see Burton playing a 3 guard or wing and sometimes as a 4. I see Steve Taylor playing 4 and sometimes 5. The Big kid from out east will play some spot minutes. That will all change second semester when our transfer Center/PF becomes eligible, as I think he will play immediately when eligible. Team should be exciting. However I think they need to play fast uptempo style.

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Originally Posted by MU/Panther

What is SMH?

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Shaking My Head

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Originally Posted by warriorfan4life

Burton will be the best four-year player that Buzz has signed, and I think could be the best player that Buzz has signed period. He just needs to embrace the defensive end as much as he does the offensive end.

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I agree - crazy quick - crazy strong - crazy good. Can't wait to see him develop.

I wish we could get Fischer eligible from day one (there have been worse abuses of that rule), and I expect him to bring some of the best of Chris and Davante in one package. There will be a bit of rust to knock off when he returns, but he will at least have the value of practicing with the team (whereas being totally away from the team destroyed the flow of Mayo's sophomore year). I also look forward to what a healthy Steve Taylor can provide, as it is a distant memory to the strong signs he showed in the second half of his freshman year. Finally, in regards to the frontcourt I expect Buzz to have a JUCO guy up his sleeve (really hoping we can land Willie Atwood).

The backcourt will be similar (mostly young but talented), and I hope that a healthy Duane Wilson and the arrival of Ahmed Hill can add the playmaking dimension that we only had from Mayo. I expect that Derrick Wilson will be a steadying presence, and hope that he has better playmakers around him to help mask his weaknesses (and he can be a 15-25 minute a night guy, not 30+ like this year).

I think we will get manhandled by teams with strong offensive front courts. I see many head scratching moments and inconsistent play occurring next year. At this point I'd expect a similar record to this year unless Duane can grab mins from Derrick and our front court finds a defensive identity in a hurry.

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Originally Posted by Markedman

Dawson dad is the one who said Jamil is hurt not Buzz....Complaining again on twitter about his kid not getting more minutes

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Gotcha, thanks.

He's a piece of work on there, that's for sure.

Pointless to predict records at this point. I just hope for a better edge on the team from day one, not starting when it's basically too late.

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Originally Posted by MUfan12

Gotcha, thanks.

He's a piece of work on there, that's for sure.

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Does he know that he is not doing his son any favors?

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Originally Posted by warriorfan4life

Burton will be the best four-year player that Buzz has signed, and I think could be the best player that Buzz has signed period. He just needs to embrace the defensive end as much as he does the offensive end.

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Agree with all of this.

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Originally Posted by Halo

Agree with all of this.

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I'm pleasantly surprised by Burton. I did not think he would be that good of a college player.

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Originally Posted by WindyCityGoldenEagle

I think we will get manhandled by teams with strong offensive front courts. I see many head scratching moments and inconsistent play occurring next year. At this point I'd expect a similar record to this year unless Duane can grab mins from Derrick and our front court finds a defensive identity in a hurry.

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I can see a starting lineup come Big East play with Deonte @ 3, Steve 4, Luke 5, Todd 2, 1 TBD. I'm assuming Steve will be healthy - I sure hope so.

First time this year, I am mad at Buzz for not playing Burton in the final 7 minutes. He said because of defense.

Best part about Burton is that he will be here at least three years because he's only 6-4. I think he a chance to make the NBA despite his size, but he may already be on his way there if he as 6-6/6-7

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Originally Posted by MU/Panther

First time this year, I am mad at Buzz for not playing Burton in the final 7 minutes. He said because of defense.

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So it wasn't an injury?

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Originally Posted by CaribouJim

So it wasn't an injury?

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I was just lifting speculation from Scoop. Could have been way off.

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Originally Posted by WindyCityGoldenEagle

Sorry the hamster in my head is running on empty- you think we will be considerably worse next year?

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I can see this team taking another step back. We are losing 56% of our scoring and 51% of our rebounding. We will have 2 guys over 6'6", one of whom is still struggling with schemes and the other won't play a minute of basketball for Marquette until December. And while we are adding some shooters, we are also losing our best three-point shooter as 65.6% of our three-point makes are leaving.

I'm sure there will be a lot of people trying to compare next year's team to Lazar and the midgets. But there are two things that team had that this team doesn't. The first is a frontcourt of Lazar and Jimmy. I love Steve and Juan, but neither have shown themselves to be at that level. Going into that year, Lazar was a proven star and Jimmy had the look of someone who could be really good. The second is three-point shooting. Lazar, Acker, Cooby, DJO, you could count on all of them to knock down a three at a very high rate. I don't see one guy on next year's team that can do that.

Hopefully I'm just overreacting and trying to prepare myself for a down year. Maybe Todd and Deonte can shoulder the scoring load, maybe Duane and Ahmed can give us some legit outside shooting threats, maybe Fischer will step in from day one and be the offensive/defensive combo center that Gardner and Otule were only in one person. But I think that's a lot to ask from a team that will have 9 freshmen and sophomores.

The years after I see being bright. I think 2015-16 and beyond we should see this team get back to where we want them to be. But next year? I'm already worried that we're really going to miss the guys that are graduating.

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Originally Posted by kneelb4zerg

I was just lifting speculation from Scoop. Could have been way off.

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That's fine.

So IF it was for defense were Deonte's defensive assignments scoring at a rate of a point a minute like Deonte was?

I'm sorry, but I just don't get it. Xavier had not yet come close to solving Deonte.

I love Buzz - I think he is the 2nd best coach ever for MU and he is young enough to move into #1 down the road. But this year has been filled with head scratching.

I just wonder if a Travis Diener or a Steve Novak would have had substantive minutes with this team as freshmen - a .500 team.

And frankly, if it was for defense, it didn't work. Here are the Xavier possessions once Burton came out:

5:28 - Philmore made layup
4:35 - Stainbrook made layup
3:32 - Stainbrook 2/2 free throws
2:32 - Christon missed three
1:31 - Martin 2/2 free throws
0:49 - Martin 2/2 free throws

And that was the last time we played them straight up on defense. 5/6 trips resulted in a score, and 10 points on 6 trips good for 1.67 points per possession. While we did score 5/6 ourselves, getting a robust 12 points, we really needed a stop and just couldn't get it.

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Originally Posted by Markedman

Dawson dad is the one who said Jamil is hurt not Buzz....Complaining again on twitter about his kid not getting more minutes

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Well Mr. Dawson, when your kid comes in and takes an NBA range 3 pointer the first time he touches the ball...and later in the half just runs over the biggest and slowest player Xavier has, you aren't going to see much more of the floor. (Just stop and take the jumper at the FT line.)

It is painfully obvious why John Dawson doesn't play more. Like a lot of freshmen, his decision making is very much questionable. And if you aren't giving much upside, I can see why Buzz went with Mayo as basically his back up point.

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Originally Posted by MU/Panther

First time this year, I am mad at Buzz for not playing Burton in the final 7 minutes. He said because of defense.

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You know, I didn't realize that Burton wasn't in the last seven minutes until I read this. Yeah, I am not sure about that decision. Especially since Jake wasn't doing much of anything on either end of the floor.

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Originally Posted by TheSultan

You know, I didn't realize that Burton wasn't in the last seven minutes until I read this. Yeah, I am not sure about that decision. Especially since Jake wasn't doing much of anything on either end of the floor.

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Believe it was the last time Deonte came out of the game, Jake actually subbed in for him on a defensive play. Guess that tells us all we need to know about Buzz's confidence in Deonte's defensive ability right now.

We had 12 points in 6 possessions after Burton went out. I love the kid, I probably have higher hopes for him that most people here, but he wasn't going to make our offense more efficient than that. We needed to get a stop and couldn't.

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Originally Posted by MUAlphaBangura

Believe it was the last time Deonte came out of the game, Jake actually subbed in for him on a defensive play. Guess that tells us all we need to know about Buzz's confidence in Deonte's defensive ability right now.

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Jake was getting blown off the ball repeatedly though.

Oh well...