With all due respect to all here...can we talk about the game??

I'm with Mac on this one. Look, none of us want Buzz to leave, we all hope he doesn't, but it won't do us any good to speculate on things that may never be, and won't be as long as he's still coaching this team. I understand the angst, I have it to, but right now I'm focused on this team of Warriors trying to advance to the Elite 8 against what I feel is a very beatable Miami team down a big guy and with no depth.

What does everyone see as the keys?? You know Buzz will have a good game plan against Larkin, as he's the key. Illinois showed MU some things on film as to how to slow him down at the very least. Pressure him 40 ft from the hoop, and double team him. My worry is, that at least from the get go, Buzz will have faith in Junior to Guard him one on one, same with Dwill. I think Dwill will do a better job, but he can't do it himself. i'm sure buzz realizes that, but it also took them a half to realize what to do against Rotnei Clark. If Buzz does decide to "D" him up mano e mano, I hope it won't take but a time or two of Junior getting burned before he adjusts. Can't risk it. I also think some zone might be effective. Specifically his "bigger" zone with Jwill, Davante and Chris roaming the back line.

I know Buzz is into being "who we are."

That being said, I would not be at all surprised if Buzz pulls something out of his hat we haven't seen all year.

Maybe we'll see MU employ a box-and-one (or diamond-and-one)? Play Larkin straight up with everyone else in a zone.

Might we even see a triangle-and-two with one defender on Larkin and one on Scott?

I remember Huggins playing the triangle-and-two against Crean one year, and it really threw MU for a loop. And Huggy Bear was a staunch man-to-man advocate (though his last Cinci team played zone). Remember what Rick did to Kentucky with his surprise triangle-and-two?

I'm not saying it will happen, only that I won't be surprised if Buzz does something pretty unorthodox to throw Larkin and Miami off kilter, at least initially.

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Originally Posted by Phantom Warrior

I know Buzz is into being "who we are."

That being said, I would not be at all surprised if Buzz pulls something out of his hat we haven't seen all year.

Maybe we'll see MU employ a box-and-one (or diamond-and-one)? Play Larkin straight up with everyone else in a zone.

Might we even see a triangle-and-two with one defender on Larkin and one on Scott?

I remember Huggins playing the triangle-and-two against Crean one year, and it really threw MU for a loop. And Huggy Bear was a staunch man-to-man advocate (though his last Cinci team played zone). Remember what Rick did to Kentucky with his surprise triangle-and-two?

I'm not saying it will happen, only that I won't be surprised if Buzz does something pretty unorthodox to throw Larkin and Miami off kilter, at least initially.

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You know phantom, for whatever reason i have had that feeling as well. That MU is going to have a new "wrinkle" tomm night to slowdown Larkin. I don't know why I feel that, i just do.

I think we will defend Larkin the same way we defended Tu Holloway in '11. The "wrinkle" will be saved for when we match up with IU. Buzz will coach circles around TC and bring us his head on a platter.

In the second half against Butler, we shadowed Clarke quite a bit more than in the 1st half. Won't call it a box in one of course, but they really tried to deny him the ball. That did two things, reduced his touches but also made him work harder to get the ball in his hands, which wore him down. May have contributed to the air ball at the end of the game.

I for one am terrified of Larkin. Not sure how we are going to stop him.

I don't think IU is beating Syracuse.

That being said, I think they are going to defend Miami pretty much how they defended Butler. Pressure full court, wear down their ball handlers, weather the storm and win the game late. I don't think you can double Larkin too much because they move the ball too well and have too many decent shooters. I would run them off the perimeter, force them to put the ball on the floor, and guard the basket with Otule.

Larkin is scary and is similar with the ball to Dominic James. He can shoot better than Dominic, so do you pick your poison and back off him a little to see if he can hit the jumper or possibly double team to get him to get rid of the ball? I'm not sure you can defend him one on one as he'll get into the lane for layups, dumpoffs or kickouts and you run the risk of more three pointers and foul trouble.

Clark has nowhere near the quickness of Larkin. Shadowing Clark was easier for that reason. Plus Clark does not penetrate as well as Larkin does. With Clark we tried to take away the good looks from the perimeter. With Larkin I'm more concerned about his ability to drive. If we play Larkin extremely tight 25-35 feet from the basket, he will blow right by anybody we have and break down our defense leading to wide open shots by either the bigs or the wings.

Larkin is quicker, taller, and a better passer/creator than Clark. He presents a much greater variety of challenges.

Having Johnson out might close up some lanes for Larkin to drive, I think MU needs to attack the hoop early and try and get fouls on their two remaining bigs. We could also try the mentality of letting Larkin get his and try locking down everyone else. Larkin is good, but he isn't perfect, gotta find a way to exploit his weaknesses and hope he might have an off game.

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Originally Posted by BuzzWilliams4Pres

Having Johnson out might close up some lanes for Larkin to drive, I think MU needs to attack the hoop early and try and get fouls on their two remaining bigs. We could also try the mentality of letting Larkin get his and try locking down everyone else. Larkin is good, but he isn't perfect, gotta find a way to exploit his weaknesses and hope he might have an off game.

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I agree with this. Part of the reason to attack is to make Larkin expend energy and play defense. Junior needs to be strong and smart with the ball. Can't make the foolish turnover that sometimes he makes.

I also think MU needs a game where someone steps up and plays big time. Maybe someone unexpected.

With the time off (anyone think Buzz has slept) I have total confidence in Buzz and the staff, as well as the team, to be prepared to play Miami with a game plan that will give us the best chance to win.

I really liked MU's pressure D against Bulter, really wore them down. Like all have indicated, Larkin is far more quick than Clark, but I think we can still wear him down a bit. We played more than half of the second half like there was a minute to go in the game.

With Johnson out that hurts their front line depth. He averaged 7 boards and about 7 points in 20 minutes per game. Not a starter, but a key backup. We need to pound the glass and win the battle of the boards.

Can we limit unforced turnovers in this game?
Can Davante get Gamble or Kadji in foul trouble early?

I think MU really needs to come out with the attitude they had in the 2nd half of Butler. That was the MU team I remembered during the season. They had a chip. Some energy. A mission. Playing to win, instead of playing not to lose.

Many appear afraid of Larkin. I know he is good, but MU has faced some damn good guards in the BE this season. Some awfully tough matchups as well. Louisville, we did not fair well. The others, though, MU kept the teams in check.

The X-factor to me is that this is MU's 3rd consecutive Sweet 16 and the first for Miami. The last two Sweet 16's, we played teams with more experience than us. NC was a regular in the Sweet 16 and had several players that were to consecutive Final 4's. Florida was in the Elite 8 the year before we played them. MU does have the experience in their favor this year. They have played tough as nails when it counts all season. Hopefully this pushes MU over the edge.

I will be honest, I think if you play this game 10x Miami will win at least 6 of them, that said its one game and anything can happen. All year we have heard how we are just lucky and we have no NBA talent, blah, blah, blah... Our kids are tough, and they will fight to the very end to keep this one close to give themselves a chance to win. I don't see MU blowing away anyone left in this tournament, at this point we need to continue scrapping and hope we get a shot at the end.

Without Johnson Miami may only go 7 deep. A little first half foul trouble will hurt Miami far more than it will hurt MU. Hopefully Vander's driving to the hoop gets rewarded with a few Miami fouls and Davante can draw a couple early ones on the Miami bigs.

I heard Laranaga on ESPN the other morning. He said MU's depth and substitutions makes it really difficult. He said you have to prepare like you are playing more than one team. One minute you are guarding a guy that can shoot from 3 and the next minute you are guarding a player that drives the hoop.

I thought that was an interesting point. Hopefully we can wear Miami down a bit and take advantage of our depth.

I have a very good feeling about this game. Buzz and staff will have MU ready to roll to elite 8.

Marquette will make larkin work a lot on defense. That might have an impact on his offense late in the game. At least that is the prayer.

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Originally Posted by MUMac

I agree with this. Part of the reason to attack is to make Larkin expend energy and play defense. Junior needs to be strong and smart with the ball. Can't make the foolish turnover that sometimes he makes.

I also think MU needs a game where someone steps up and plays big time. Maybe someone unexpected.

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I know he is in a major funk, but I'm still a believer in Mayo so I'm picking him as the "someone unexpected". If it is not him, someone has to bring some incremental value that we haven't yet seen in the tourney. At this time of year it is all hands on deck. Taylor's been kind of quiet. Maybe Derrick throws himself into a few passing lanes that turn into fast break points. Someone, anyone!!!

I think ST could be the X factor, especially since Miami plays 6'10" and 6'11" players at the same time. He is probably better suited to defending Kadji, who likes to shoot from the outside, than either DG or CO. I also think ST could grab some offensive boards. I'd love to see ST get 15-18 minutes in this game.

I had thought Mayo or Taylor when I was writing it. I switched to "someone". I am hopeful one of those two gives something special. They both could tomorrow.

Our bigs will erode Miami. Free throws will be the difference. UM doesn't get them. If they are hitting on the perimeter, MU is in trouble but this is a Sweet 16 game and MU had an extra day to prepare. I expect a MU victory...with Gardner the star.