+/- for the conclusion against UConn

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

I threw out the last 1:30 after Buie left the court for the final time as a Wildcat.
Mostly grim statistically, but interesting subtexts...

Player	Minutes	NU Pts	Conn Pts	Raw +/-	Player +/-	Game +/-
Ryan Langborg	32	44	68	-24	+8.93	+4.13
Brooks Barnhizer	34.5	52	65	-13	+2.73	+0.13
Justin Mullins	11	23	14	+9	-2.10	-0.30
Luke Hunger	29.5	45	54	-9	+0.48	-1.33
Blake Preston	9.5	11	18	-7	-0.15	-1.55
Blake Smith	9	12	9	+3	-2.58	-1.98
Nick Martinelli	30	37	60	-23	-1.25	-5.85
Boo Buie	39	56	72	-16	-6.05	-9.25

Our starting lineup got buried in this game. 33-12 to be exact. In 11.5 minutes.
It wasn't that bad when Preston was in for Hunger with the other 4 starters.
It was still bad, though. 16-9 deficit in 7.5 minutes.

Ryan Langborg played well on the offensive end of the court. He was the best Wildcat statistically.
His raw +/- of -24 jumps off the screen, however, along with Martinelli's -23.
It is difficult to know who was getting torched the most on the defensive end.

Collins replaced Martinelli with Mullins with 9:41 to play, Cats trailing 62-37.
That group then put up a 19-10 "win" over the next 8 minutes, making the final score less frightening.

A few thoughts... after Ty Berry was injured, Blake Smith began to get playing time and Nick Martinelli was suddenly playing 35+ minutes a game.
Martinelli's performance declined - almost certainly due to fatigue. His last two games against Wisconsin and FAU were not good.
On the other hand, when Blake Smith was on the court, NU played surprisingly well.
Ryan Langborg missed a few games due to injury but otherwise really stepped up his performance.

In Ty Berry's absence, the lineup that had really been successful had been
Buie/Barnhizer/Langborg/SMITH/ with either Hunger or Preston.
They had posted a 42-17 advantage in about 15.5 minutes thru the FAU game.
Unfortunately, that lineup never saw the court against UConn.
Smith's minutes were all in relief of Langborg and Barnhizer.
In a game where we really got crushed, the lineup of Hunger/Martinelli/Barnhizer/Smith/Buie put up a 12-4 victory in 2 segments totaling 6:40.

All of that leads me to the conclusion that were were somewhat defenseless when Martinelli and Langborg were in the game together.
We got outscored 56-25 in 23 minutes.

Regardless, losing to UConn is no embarrassment. It was a very good year that could have been much more had we been able to stay healthy.
Sorry to see Buie go out on a sour note, but thats how it goes - you tend to lose when your best player has a bad night.

Thanks to all who have read these "+/-" discussions this season. I've enjoyed looking at the team thru this lens.

 

[SimpsonElmwood]

Thanks for this throughout the year. It was odd that Martinelli left and didn’t return after the 9 min mark. He was doing ok on the offensive side but things on D must have been bad. Those numbers with him and Langborg are bad.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

Thanks for this throughout the year. It was odd that Martinelli left and didn’t return after the 9 min mark. He was doing ok on the offensive side but things on D must have been bad. Those numbers with him and Langborg are bad.

Nick was torched on Defense. The good news is he is gradually improving on both ends of the court and NU has themselves a player for two more seasons.

 

[WestCoastWildcat]

Is Blake Smith getting a scholarship? I think he’s earned it stepping in and stepping up at the end of the season. Thoughts?

 

[Just Gary]

I think after the performance against FAU, UConn did their homework and tied up Boo and Langborg. That is just great coaching with only a day between games. We definitely missed both Berry (another shooting option) and Nicholson (to tie up their center). But I think this shows that we need to get more depth and talent.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Is Blake Smith getting a scholarship? I think he’s earned it stepping in and stepping up at the end of the season. Thoughts?

Personally I think they should give him a scholarship.
That would be the "right" thing to do from a team chemistry perspective.
But he did apply to NU as a regular student, got whatever tuition break he was offered (if any) and he (and his parents) accepted that arrangement. So NU/Collins don't really "owe" him anything.

I'm not sure what the rules are but with NIL, it seems like it would be pretty easy to just have somebody pay his tuition and expenses.

Collins should talk to Smith and his parents and acknowledge the situation, reach some sort of agreement.

 

[EagerFan]

I think after the performance against FAU, UConn did their homework and tied up Boo and Langborg. That is just great coaching with only a day between games. We definitely missed both Berry (another shooting option) and Nicholson (to tie up their center). But I think this shows that we need to get more depth and talent.

Call me crazy, but I doubt they spent a lot of time preparing for Stetson and had already had coaches reviewing tape on both FAU and NU by the evening of the 17th. I'm sure they also reviewed some Stetson tape.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

Personally I think they should give him a scholarship.
That would be the "right" thing to do from a team chemistry perspective.
But he did apply to NU as a regular student, got whatever tuition break he was offered (if any) and he (and his parents) accepted that arrangement. So NU/Collins don't really "owe" him anything.

I'm not sure what the rules are but with NIL, it seems like it would be pretty easy to just have somebody pay his tuition and expenses.

Collins should talk to Smith and his parents and acknowledge the situation, reach some sort of agreement.

The Smith situation isn’t all that complex. He gets the Scholarship if we can’t find a better player to transfer in. If we find better players he doesn’t. Maybe they can reward him in some back door way through NIL or FA. Sure it happens at many places.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

The Smith situation isn’t all that complex. He gets the Scholarship if we can’t find a better player to transfer in. If we find better players he doesn’t. Maybe they can reward him in some back door way through NIL or FA. Sure it happens at many places.

I don't know about it being so simple.
If Smith's parents are footing a hefty NU tuition bill, they might feel very differently.
If Collins is building a culture, part of that culture is (often) treating your players like family -- like you actually care about them...

The way you state the situation sounds callous and cheap - like a business decision.

The solution will reflect on Collins and the program...

 

[SmellyCat]

If Collins is building a culture, part of that culture is (often) treating your players like family -- like you actually care about them...

The way you state the situation sounds callous and cheap - like a business decision.

I agree with this. I think it even sounds like a fantasy sports situation, where you don't ever have to look your players in the eye or talk to them.

I know we all want three transfer studs to come in but only have room for one if no one transfers out and Smith gets a schollie, but he has definitely earned it. Now, if Collins says to him, "we appreciate the sacrifice you've made so far and are asking you to hold on for one more year so we can keep this momentum going," maybe Smith and his family are the types of people who can accept that. If Collins has a promise to make him whole at some point (maybe some NIL now, a schollie next year), that could be good enough. If Smith is the good team-first guy we all know he is, I could see him agreeing.

One last thing: I think the day Blake Smith gets a scholarship for NU will be a wonderful day for the whole team (particularly for him) and NU fans. I hope it's not clouded by some who think "player X from Y school would be better." This is OUR guy, and I will celebrate him staying our guy.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

I agree with this. I think it even sounds like a fantasy sports situation, where you don't ever have to look your players in the eye or talk to them.

I know we all want three transfer studs to come in but only have room for one if no one transfers out and Smith gets a schollie, but he has definitely earned it. Now, if Collins says to him, "we appreciate the sacrifice you've made so far and are asking you to hold on for one more year so we can keep this momentum going," maybe Smith and his family are the types of people who can accept that. If Collins has a promise to make him whole at some point (maybe some NIL now, a schollie next year), that could be good enough. If Smith is the good team-first guy we all know he is, I could see him agreeing.

One last thing: I think the day Blake Smith gets a scholarship for NU will be a wonderful day for the whole team (particularly for him) and NU fans. I hope it's not clouded by some who think "player X from Y school would be better." This is OUR guy, and I will celebrate him staying our guy.

Sure it is a great story and sure the team will be happy for Smith to get rewarded. We all like him. The question remains is Smith a D1 caliber player? You can argue he is defensively, but there is no way you can argue he is offensively. It’s a feel good move, not a move that makes your team better. If Smith enters the portal and finds a team where he can both contribute and receive the scholarship, God Bless him. We will be happy.

I played a non-revenue sport where probably half the team was walk on’s or partial scholarships. The walk on’s were as respected as anyone and were some of the most popular guys due to their love of the game. We were very happy when they were rewarded with funds. However, we all knew(including the walk on) that reward normally only happened if there was a “left over” scholarship. The Coaches job is to do what puts his team in the best position to win. That generally means getting the best players you can. Players win games. Don’t have players and Head Coaches become Analysts on FS1.

 

[SmellyCat]

However, we all knew(including the walk on) that reward normally only happened if there was a “left over” scholarship. The Coaches job is to do what puts his team in the best position to win. That generally means getting the best players you can.

You make a good point. My guess is Smith's eyes are wide-open.

 

[IGNORE2]

Personally I think they should give him a scholarship.
That would be the "right" thing to do from a team chemistry perspective.
But he did apply to NU as a regular student, got whatever tuition break he was offered (if any) and he (and his parents) accepted that arrangement. So NU/Collins don't really "owe" him anything.

I'm not sure what the rules are but with NIL, it seems like it would be pretty easy to just have somebody pay his tuition and expenses.

Collins should talk to Smith and his parents and acknowledge the situation, reach some sort of agreement.

I think the better question is do we want Smith. You are correct, he came with no promises, also signed no commitment. No promises either way.

Now, Smith’s stock has risen. He will definitely receive offers which could include academic schools like Stanford. The question, in my mind, is Smith a better option than a transfer candidate.

For one, no guarantees we use the schollie. Transfer recruiting is not always a success. Second, great player from lesser league does not always equate to pretty good player in B1G.

I would argue that we know we have a at least a serviceable rotation member with a much higher ceiling. So, I would recruit him to stay. If he is being asked for his commitment, the facts have changed and we need to offer something. Something better than, say, Stanford could offer.

This is bird in the hand to me.

 

[IGNORE2]

The Smith situation isn’t all that complex. He gets the Scholarship if we can’t find a better player to transfer in. If we find better players he doesn’t. Maybe they can reward him in some back door way through NIL or FA. Sure it happens at many places.

The portal changes that equation. If he is not recruited back with an offer, then he should hit the portal. Of course, we can recruit him from the portal too - but while competing with the world since every coach can call and talk to him at that point.

 

[IGNORE2]

I don't know about it being so simple.
If Smith's parents are footing a hefty NU tuition bill, they might feel very differently.
If Collins is building a culture, part of that culture is (often) treating your players like family -- like you actually care about them...

The way you state the situation sounds callous and cheap - like a business decision.

The solution will reflect on Collins and the program...

I hope we can all agree that if Smith hits the portal, it’s ok. He did great for NU by stepping up and over performing expectations and he deserves to get a scholarship somewhere if that’s important to him. He should be the least despised transfer ever - this conversation wouldn’t happen if he was on schollie.