Good Team

[NJCat]

This is a good NU basketball team. I never would have believed they could play man the whole game and be in a position to win. Both teams were tired and the quality of play suffered in the second half.

Lots of credit to Tap and Ash who were buried on the bench but were prepared to contribute tonight.

Law and Lindsey played very well. Pardon had a great game and has really gotten his defense together.

BMac just looked tired. Worst game of his career, got it out of his system and will be fine.

Skelly and Lumpkin struggled offensively today but were fine on D.

I take a glass-half-full look at this game and am very optimistic for this season. Even more so for 2018 when the Cats finally make the tournament (and the Browns finally win a football game).

 

[Alan Smithee]

I certainly agree. While ND deserved the win just as much as we did, possibly a bit more, it was painful to again not be able to seal the deal. The supply of opportunities is not infinite. That said, good perspective.

 

[JournCat]

Agreed on all points. We had five real tests in the non-conference (Butler, Texas, ND, Wake, Dayton) and I thought it'd be great if we could win two. So far, we're 1-2. Let's get the game Friday and beat Wake next week.

We have the pieces to compete with anyone in the Big Ten on a given night, and I think we're right on schedule to contend for the NIT and maybe the NCAA. Two guys who really shined in Brooklyn were Lindsey and Pardon. They went a long way to answering the questions most of us had at the 2 and the 5. Law looks totally healthy and increasingly less rusty. Tap had an indispensable 12 points tonight and, hey, he'll never throw a prayer inbound pass with two timeouts in his pocket again.

We do need to figure out a better end-of-game offense than watching Mac try to create. He is one of the best players we've had in a long time, but dating back to last season, it doesn't appear those last-second situations are his strength.

 

[Pete Purple]

I love this team.

Agree w/ this...plus what Medill90 said in another post. The glass is definitely half full. I was in Brooklyn for the tournament and its fun to talk to other fans who are just getting to know NU. ND was the better team. All the more painful bc we had the game won. Missed opportunity for a resume builder.

However, the team has confidence in themselves, is pissed off (good), and they know they can compete in the B1G. Isiah Brown, and BMac were studs in the TX game. Not so much vs ND, but then Vic Law picked it up. This team is solid. Hello Scottie Lindsey! Gavin will contribute more and more, as will others.

Here's the real reason for optimism-instead of one guy (BMac) being the go to guy, we have many weapons. MANY of our guys want the ball. CCC just needs to figure out how to use them, and the guys need to learn how to work together. Chemistry.

 

[Sec.112]

I'll go with the optimistic viewpoint. There's some nice scoring options. This isn't a one-trick pony.

Also, I see turnover as a HUGE issue in both losses and that can be resolved in a matter of weeks.

I wish BB would come around to offer just a little contribution. I think 5-10 mins of defense and rebounding would be a huge help for Pardon.

 

[NJCat]

I wish BB would come around to offer just a little contribution. I think 5-10 mins of defense and rebounding would be a huge help for Pardon.

BB showed positive signs in the Texas game. It will take a while for him to adjust to the speed and physicality of the college game, but with Brian James coaching him up I think he will deliver some solid minutes by Big 10 time.

 

[IGNORE2]

I think this was a winnable game but that this team has made great strides. I am a believer now that Brown can play P5 minutes and contribute - though he is definitely freshman raw and not ready for a large chunk of minutes. But we really have to Mac some rest. He played 37 and 35 minutes. Lindsey has shown that he can handle the ball. Law has shown that he is back and can handle the ball. I think CCC should play most of Brown's minutes sans Mac. Last night, that could have provided up to 12 minutes of rest. If they run Brown, Lindsey, Law at the same time, there should be enough ballhandling and scoring on the floor.

I think we have already run Mac into the wall with PT.

Hey Tap - you have two timeouts! Hey CCC - maybe you could remind Tap that he has two timeouts... No biggie - I think these games established that NIT should be are minimal expectations and that this could even be the year. C'mon Falzon - get healthy!

 

[Medill90]

I don't think Brown has yet shown that he can run the offense for any extended period of time. He'll get there eventually.

I don't understand the desire to make BMac the primary scoring option at the end of these tight games. The ball in his hands, yes. The guy taking every shot, not so much. I'd like to hear the coach talk about this. Maybe what they're going for is getting shut down.

Ash is going to play more minutes. Especially conference minutes when they need his defense.