+/- for the win over Dayton

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

The Wildcats faced a quality opponent in just their 2nd game of the season, taking down Dayton 71-66. Here are the numbers for the victory...

Player	Minutes	NU Pts	Dayton Pts	Raw +/-	Player Adj	Net
Martinelli	19	43	27	+16	+1.55	+17.55
Barnhizer	38	69	61	+8	+3.95	+11.95
Langborg	39	67	66	+1	+4.34	+5.34
Nicholson	24	40	35	+5	-2.29	+2.71
Buie	32	57	53	+4	-2.39	+1.61
Berry	26	46	46	+0	-2.34	-2.34
Preston	15	27	28	-1	-2.83	-3.83
Clayton	6	6	14	-8	0.00	-8.00

Martinelli only played 19 minutes, but NU thrived when he was on the court. 4 of 6 from the field, with 3 steals (the official scorer gave him a 4th as time expired, but I didn't count that).
Barnhizer had a strong game, with Langborg playing a team-high 39 minutes. All 3 of those guys are not afraid to shoot.

Not too surprisingly, NU was most successful when Martinelli played the 4 and Barnhizer played the 3. In almost 18 minutes of action, NU outscored Dayton 41-22. Thats rather remarkable.
Of course the flipside of that is when Barnhizer played the 4, NU got outscored 39-28. When the frontcourt was Preston/Barnhizer we got smoked 17-5. When the frontcourt was Nicholson/Barnhizer, we held our own, winning 23-22. I mentioned before the season that I thought Preston/Barnhizer might not be big enough for Big Ten competition... Something to keep an eye on.

Justin Mullins and Luke Hunger did not play at all.
Jordan Clayton did not play in the 2nd half, even when Buie went to the bench with 4 fouls. In the first half, when Clayton was in the game, Dayton scored 14 points in 6 minutes.

It was a nice win, even though Dayton lost their starting point guard in their season opener. He was their 2nd best player.

At this point in the season Matt Nicholson looks a half-step slow and a little heavy compared to last season.

Coach Collins only has 7 players he trusts currently... Going to need 1 or 2 more by the time January rolls around.

 

[freewillie07]

Great observations, thank you.

 

[CoralSpringsCat]

The Wildcats faced a quality opponent in just their 2nd game of the season, taking down Dayton 71-66. Here are the numbers for the victory...

Player	Minutes	NU Pts	Dayton Pts	Raw +/-	Player Adj	Net
Martinelli	19	43	27	+16	+1.55	+17.55
Barnhizer	38	69	61	+8	+3.95	+11.95
Langborg	39	67	66	+1	+4.34	+5.34
Nicholson	24	40	35	+5	-2.29	+2.71
Buie	32	57	53	+4	-2.39	+1.61
Berry	26	46	46	+0	-2.34	-2.34
Preston	15	27	28	-1	-2.83	-3.83
Clayton	6	6	14	-8	0.00	-8.00

Martinelli only played 19 minutes, but NU thrived when he was on the court. 4 of 6 from the field, with 3 steals (the official scorer gave him a 4th as time expired, but I didn't count that).
Barnhizer had a strong game, with Langborg playing a team-high 39 minutes. All 3 of those guys are not afraid to shoot.

Not too surprisingly, NU was most successful when Martinelli played the 4 and Barnhizer played the 3. In almost 18 minutes of action, NU outscored Dayton 41-22. Thats rather remarkable.
Of course the flipside of that is when Barnhizer played the 4, NU got outscored 39-28. When the frontcourt was Preston/Barnhizer we got smoked 17-5. When the frontcourt was Nicholson/Barnhizer, we held our own, winning 23-22. I mentioned before the season that I thought Preston/Barnhizer might not be big enough for Big Ten competition... Something to keep an eye on.

Justin Mullins and Luke Hunger did not play at all.
Jordan Clayton did not play in the 2nd half, even when Buie went to the bench with 4 fouls. In the first half, when Clayton was in the game, Dayton scored 14 points in 6 minutes.

It was a nice win, even though Dayton lost their starting point guard in their season opener. He was their 2nd best player.

At this point in the season Matt Nicholson looks a half-step slow and a little heavy compared to last season.

Coach Collins only has 7 players he trusts currently... Going to need 1 or 2 more by the time January rolls around.

I think you’re spot on regarding Big Matt. He did not look like himself tonight. He seemed a bit sluggish; a step slow if you will. Hopefully he’ll round into form soon as we will obviously need him at his best during the B1G season.

 

[NCPurplecat]

Barnhizer's rebound stats are impressive. Berry also grabs a lot of rebounds for his size. Both have good instincts and get to the ball. Rebound margin has not typically been NUs path to wins but that and fewer turnovers helped beat a quality team. NU with some good free throw shooting and ability to handle a press will win some games that slipped away in the past. Still a bit thin at PF but have some strengths to offset that. The team is easy to root for. Nice to see students turn out as well. Good Job Cats.

 

[Hungry Jack]

Coach Collins only has 7 players he trusts currently... Going to need 1 or 2 more by the time January rolls around.

Free Gus Hurlburt!

 

[clarificationcat]

I think you’re spot on regarding Big Matt. He did not look like himself tonight. He seemed a bit sluggish; a step slow if you will. Hopefully he’ll round into form soon as we will obviously need him at his best during the B1G season.

Unfortunately, he was not able to develop any moves around the basket in the off season. If he can’t dunk, he is not a good option under the basket even when he has great position. That puts some stress on the offense. I feel like his passing and decision making have gotten better. I was impressed with both yesterday. And obviously he anchors the defense and is a pretty good rebounder. But the vast majority of guys with his size and strength are pretty deadly scorers 2 feet from the basket. Even if they can’t jump.

 

[ballerog711]

MN is MN, for his skill set he performs his role NU

Clayton played like Martinelli did last year when teams got better. Took Martenelli a little bit to adjust and he was fine. Think same can hold true here.

 

[1830sherman]

I think we all were hoping for a step up from MN. Disappointing so far, but it's early. Just looked at his line from Dayton, and it's even worse than I thought: 1-4 FG, three rebounds. Plus had a shot blocked, ugh. He did go 2-2 from the line, so there's that.

Maybe it's just early-season doldrums, and he finds his footing soon.

 

[freewillie07]

I think we all were hoping for a step up from MN. Disappointing so far, but it's early. Just looked at his line from Dayton, and it's even worse than I thought: 1-4 FG, three rebounds. Plus had a shot blocked, ugh. He did go 2-2 from the line, so there's that.

Maybe it's just early-season doldrums, and he finds his footing soon.

Rematch with Edey on 12/1 should motivate him to step things up.

 

[PurpWildCatNation]

What's the story on Hunger? Does the coaching staff not rate him or is he hurt?

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

I think we all were hoping for a step up from MN. Disappointing so far, but it's early. Just looked at his line from Dayton, and it's even worse than I thought: 1-4 FG, three rebounds. Plus had a shot blocked, ugh. He did go 2-2 from the line, so there's that.

Maybe it's just early-season doldrums, and he finds his footing soon.

In his defense, the guy Nicholson was guarding (Holmes) is very good. Not many people have posterized Nicholson - Holmes joins a select group.

Nicholson's passing and ballhandling were fine and he was active on the boards, batting and tipping the ball around. On offense, Ty Berry tried twice to drive and dish to Nicholson, but both passes were pretty bad. Nicholson got his layup blocked by a much shorter guy - should have dunked that for sure. He also bricked a left-handed baby hook off the backboard without touching iron.
.
In offensive sets, NU went into the paint a lot. Barnhizer and Martinelli back their guys down and use crafty moves to finish. Its a welcome improvement. We only attempted 14 three pointers, making 5. (Last year our low was 15 attempts, our high was 33) We made 20 of 39 from inside the arc against Dayton. Certainly more efficient on the offensive end, but we also looked more active and less stagnant.

Loved the backdoor cut by Langborg and bounce pass by Nicholson to open the scoring.

 

[loyolacat]

while + - is really interesting it can be misleading as you do not know who the other team has in...are our starters playing against 2nd string for awhile...or are our backups playing against theirs???? Or is a key player for the other team out for awhile? still think the box score with turnovers vs assists...rebounds, steals, shooting % are more significant of course the same thing applies who was playing for the other team and how good are they defensively....

 

[Hungry Jack]

Fat Matt

 

[PURPLECAT88]

What's the story on Hunger? Does the coaching staff not rate him or is he hurt?

Too slow at this point to play the 4, and not good enough to play ahead of MN or Preston at the five. He was a developmental recruit, and with any luck, he’ll be able to contribute if we have injuries or next season.

 

[ballerog711]

Hunger, Mullins, Barkely and Clayton should get some looks against Western Michigan. Provided the starters take care of business,

Hunger and Mullins appear to be more defensive issues, knowing the rotations.
Clayton and Barkley are thinking to much instead of just playing.

Hunger figuring it out this year and getting the coaches confidence would be huge, but not counting on it,

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

while + - is really interesting it can be misleading as you do not know who the other team has in...are our starters playing against 2nd string for awhile...or are our backups playing against theirs???? Or is a key player for the other team out for awhile? still think the box score with turnovers vs assists...rebounds, steals, shooting % are more significant of course the same thing applies who was playing for the other team and how good are they defensively....

Sure, there are a lot of random factors in basketball statistics. Defense is difficult to measure for most guys and its half the game. There are plenty of guys who like to shoot and don't do anything right on defense. They usually play on losing teams.

I incorporate all of the traditional stats in my player adjustment stat. It is intended as "How much this player contributed relative to his teammates when he was in the game."

Last night Barnhizer, Langborg and Martinelli were NU's most impactful individuals, from a box score perspective. They were also the 3 most impactful from an "outscoring the other team" perspective.

To me the "+/-" tells you how well the team did when a guy was on the court. The Player Adjustment indicates how much of that success was attributable to the player himself.

Of course its not perfect.

 

[1830sherman]

FWIW, I find it instructive, and appreciate PWB's doing it. Generally illuminating, sometimes quite surprising.

 

[SimpsonElmwood]

In his defense, the guy Nicholson was guarding (Holmes) is very good. Not many people have posterized Nicholson - Holmes joins a select group.

Nicholson's passing and ballhandling were fine and he was active on the boards, batting and tipping the ball around. On offense, Ty Berry tried twice to drive and dish to Nicholson, but both passes were pretty bad. Nicholson got his layup blocked by a much shorter guy - should have dunked that for sure. He also bricked a left-handed baby hook off the backboard without touching iron.
.
In offensive sets, NU went into the paint a lot. Barnhizer and Martinelli back their guys down and use crafty moves to finish. Its a welcome improvement. We only attempted 14 three pointers, making 5. (Last year our low was 15 attempts, our high was 33) We made 20 of 39 from inside the arc against Dayton. Certainly more efficient on the offensive end, but we also looked more active and less stagnant.

Loved the backdoor cut by Langborg and bounce pass by Nicholson to open the scoring.

MN’s blocks and rebounds are there. His passing, defense and ball handling are all considerably improved. Looking forward to the rest of this year and hope he stays for one more.

 

[Catreporter]

Matt has obviously been working with his left hand. Made a nice layup with it against contact vs. BInghampton. I agree with hoping he stays another year. Bigs often develop late in their careers.

 

[NUCat320]

I haven’t seen either game. Has Nicholson been on the receiving end of any lobs? I believe he got five ‘oops’ from Boo’s ‘alleys’ in the UCLA game.

It’s a flashy play but also hugely effective and easy to forget about because it’s pretty unconventional.

(Tyson Chandler built a 20-year NBA career on dunks, swats, and boards. MN is not TC, of course.)

Also, no need to read too much into two down games, I hope.

 

[FeralFelidae]

I haven’t seen either game. Has Nicholson been on the receiving end of any lobs? I believe he got five ‘oops’ from Boo’s ‘alleys’ in the UCLA game.

It’s a flashy play but also hugely effective and easy to forget about because it’s pretty unconventional.

(Tyson Chandler built a 20-year NBA career on dunks, swats, and boards. MN is not TC, of course.)

Also, no need to read too much into two down games, I hope.

There were a few failed attempts during the Dayton game.

MN was not in top form that game.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Not sure if anybody watches postgame interviews, but this one is worth watching.



Collins used to drive me nuts with his cliches and "just make shots" gameplans. So much better now. He is also fully aware of the Martinelli magic, so that was good to hear.

Barnhizer and Langborg are the players answering questions. They seem to know the team is good and speak confidently about Martinelli and Ty Berry. Interesting to hear what the players think. Chemistry seems really good.

 

[CoralSpringsCat]

Not sure if anybody watches postgame interviews, but this one is worth watching.

View embedded media

Collins used to drive me nuts with his cliches and "just make shots" gameplans. So much better now. He is also fully aware of the Martinelli magic, so that was good to hear.

Barnhizer and Langborg are the players answering questions. They seem to know the team is good and speak confidently about Martinelli and Ty Berry. Interesting to hear what the players think. Chemistry seems really good.

Such a difference from the last post tournament team.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

Such a difference from the last post tournament team.

There is no “I” in team!

 

[ballerog711]

I think Collins did a few good things.

Clayton wasn't working on this day, didn't force it.
Martenelli was working and stayed with him
Made some subs when we had the issue with layups and lost the lead in second half, I stead of whining.
Stuck with Berry, but let's admit got a little lucky in that one. That iso 3 he bricked was like the old days and the missed layups.
Rode lanborg and Barnhizor.
Trusted the team when Boo got in foul trouble.

 

[freewillie07]

There is no “I” in team!

But there is an I in Scottie

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

For what its worth, I watched a replay of the game and it was pretty clear that there were a lot of new things going on in the offense.

For one, Buie was dribbling the ball at the top and Nicholson went and screened away from the ball, trying to get Berry (I think) open for a 3 pointer. We saw very little of that last year.

Backdoor cuts with Nicholson holding the ball away from the basket appear to be part of the scheme. One pass to a cutting Langborg along the baseline worked. One pass to Barnhizer down the lane did not work.

Both Barnhizer and Martinelli are backing guys down into the paint when they can. We saw that from Robbie Beran maybe once a month.

Langborg had a sparkling one-on-one move where he attacked his defender from the wing, spun and hit a fade away jumper from the free throw line. It was much quicker and sharper than we are accustomed to seeing.

So, while the offense may be a work in progress, there's definitely progress and its seems that Collins has been trying to add wrinkles, probably because the ball-handling is sharper. And the guys on the floor seem more connected.

 

[Hungry Jack]

For what its worth, I watched a replay of the game and it was pretty clear that there were a lot of new things going on in the offense.

For one, Buie was dribbling the ball at the top and Nicholson went and screened away from the ball, trying to get Berry (I think) open for a 3 pointer. We saw very little of that last year.

Backdoor cuts with Nicholson holding the ball away from the basket appear to be part of the scheme. One pass to a cutting Langborg along the baseline worked. One pass to Barnhizer down the lane did not work.

Both Barnhizer and Martinelli are backing guys down into the paint when they can. We saw that from Robbie Beran maybe once a month.

Langborg had a sparkling one-on-one move where he attacked his defender from the wing, spun and hit a fade away jumper from the free throw line. It was much quicker and sharper than we are accustomed to seeing.

So, while the offense may be a work in progress, there's definitely progress and its seems that Collins has been trying to add wrinkles, probably because the ball-handling is sharper. And the guys on the floor seem more connected.

Sounds a lot like the offense my son's middle school coach wants to run--mostly a 4 or 5-out, motion offense. Trying to teach middle schoolers how to move without the ball is like herding cats.

 

[NJCat]

There is no “I” in team!

But there is a "ME"..........

 

[SmellyCat]

Backdoor cuts with Nicholson holding the ball away from the basket appear to be part of the scheme. One pass to a cutting Langborg along the baseline worked. One pass to Barnhizer down the lane did not work.

I know it's early, but Nicholson actually leads the team in assists right now!

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

I know it's early, but Nicholson actually leads the team in assists right now!

Good because he won’t be close in points.

 

[EagerFan]

There was also a fair amount of Boo mixed in the motion rather than always holding the ball at the top.

 

[TheC]

But there is a "ME"..........

And in this day of NIL, there is also a TM

 

[Figrating]

Really appreciate the analysis by PWB. In the olden days when things weren't going so well, wasn't even sure he was a fan.

CCC's comments about the fans are encouraging, too. They're only showing up because they know the team is competitive. The best teams have a home court advantage and maybe now NU has one too.

Should be a fun season.