Some brief thoughts from Barclays

[ricko654321]

1) the Cats played really well tonight, especially on the defensive side of the ball. That might have been the best 40 minutes of team defense I can recall seeing - on ball D, screen defense, and rotation and recovery were all excellent. A lot of the fouls called against us were questionable.
2) BMac was very good tonight. Didn't shoot great, but made a fair number of floaters in the lane, played solid D, was comfortable against the press
3) Tap gave us a lot of good minutes - and he played better on D than he normally does.
4) Wasn't Pardon's best game, but still pretty good. Especially on the boards. He's gotten a lot smarter on defense. And on offense when he gets the ball near the hoop he finishes more often than not.
5) Skelly was solid. Lindsey was hot and cold, didn't shoot great, but gave us good energy.
6) the same story for Brown continues - made some big shots and isn't afraid of the ball - but also had a couple questionable decisions. That said, pretty happy with his defense so far, which has been useful.
7) Vic just continues to be a solid, efficient player on both sides of the ball.
8) once again, Sanjay's defense was a game changer. Shaka (or someone) didn't do his scouting properly - in the second half they repeatedly attacked 34 one on one - either with their stud 31, or when he was guarding wings. I wasn't counting scientifically, but I think they scored about 1 out of 7 possessions that they challenged him in man to man. And he had a nice short stretch on offense too early 2H. He's not flashy, but his ability to play shutdown defense against nearly any position is huge.

All in all - just an excellent defensive effort by the Cats. And that was likely what made the difference, because of that all their runs fell apart rather quickly. We did enough on offense to secure a dominant win. On to Notre Dame.

Go Cats

 

[mikewebb68]

Echo he comments about Tap. His foot injury was so bad last year sometimes he looked as he was stuck in quicksand. His foot must be better since the improvement was noticeable. Since you were there this evening, did you notice whether Falzon was in uniform or street clothes? I kept looking for him on TV, but the camera angles were bad....

 

[JournCat]

If Tap can stay in the game on D, his 3-point shooting will be a huge weapon. Just need one or two a game for the threat of his shooting to stretch the court. And with Falzon out, good minutes from Nathan at the 4 are critical to lineup flexibility, so that Skelly can spell Pardon and Lumpkin can play some time at SF.

The good news about Vic's foul trouble is that he should be well rested for ND.

 

[MC_Cat]

Great team win, so many guys stepped up. This is the type of depth we've always dreamed of having, it's fun to see it in action. The confidence and swagger are good to see as well, this team knows they're good and want to show their opponents!

 

[Ubermorgen]

Falzon was in uniform and on the bench. Saw him during a timeout. Greene and Golic should have some fun on tonight's matchup - if they are on air today.

 

[Deeringfish]

[QUOTE="

The good news about Vic's foul trouble is that he should be well rested for ND.[/QUOTE]

That was my first thought.

 

[chicagocatfan24]

My thoughts:

1. Brown is cocky AF, and I love it. He'll eventually learn how to harness said cockiness into efficiency
2. There were a lot of stupid fouls and turnovers. Coulda won by 30
3. Benson has a lot of work in the weight room to do
4. B Mac is the best player I've seen at NU
5. I think Skelly might be the best passer not named B Mac on the team

I hope they curb stomp the Irish tonight

 

[Medill90]

And my thoughts....

Pardon's play was key, 11 rebounds and 36 minutes. And he sure didn't look like a mid major player mixing it up with a bunch of 4 and 5 stars;
Sanjay fxxxxxg Lumpkin! Amazing defense in his 26 minutes. Just frigging amazing. Able to body guys four inches taller and also defend smaller players further away from the basket. And it was shut down defense. I know there are a lot on this board who look at his points and ask how he can on the floor....well, there are two ends of a basketball court and Lumpkin is the best NU player on one of those ends;
Experience. I remember a couple years ago reading an argument here where one poster posited that there are good players and bad player, age and experience means nothing. Well, last night was exhibit A in how age and experience can mean a shit ton in college basketball. Glad we played this uber athletic team early in the year and not in March;
Talent. No huge drop off even when subbing was forced as in the case of Law. The entire roster can play at this level;
Buy in. The coaches have this team completely bought in to defense and offense. That stumbling offense in Collins' first year is a distant memory. They execute at a fairly high level and they are unselfish;
Shooting looks good. This team needs to shoot from distance at a high percentage to make noise. Law coming back and the addition of Brown help. Brown has one of the nicest shots I've seen from an NU guard. Effortless and still waiting to see the limits on his range.

(Thanks Fitzfile for catching my error)

 

[ricko654321]

Echo he comments about Tap. His foot injury was so bad last year sometimes he looked as he was stuck in quicksand. His foot must be better since the improvement was noticeable. Since you were there this evening, did you notice whether Falzon was in uniform or street clothes? I kept looking for him on TV, but the camera angles were bad....

Yeah someone already said but think he was in uniform. Didn't look like he expected to play though really. Will try to watch his movement tonight some.

 

[NJCat]

Benson's play was key, 11 rebounds and 36 minutes. And he sure didn't look like a mid major player mixing it up with a bunch of 4 and 5 stars;

Pardon?

 

[TheC]

Falzon was in uniform and on the bench. Saw him during a timeout. Greene and Golic should have some fun on tonight's matchup - if they are on air today.

He needs to just sit for the month and see if he can get ready for league play. If not, then put a redshirt on him and hope for no more injuries this season.

 

[ricko654321]

My thoughts:

1. Brown is cocky AF, and I love it. He'll eventually learn how to harness said cockiness into efficiency
2. There were a lot of stupid fouls and turnovers. Coulda won by 30
3. Benson has a lot of work in the weight room to do
4. B Mac is the best player I've seen at NU
5. I think Skelly might be the best passer not named B Mac on the team

I hope they curb stomp the Irish tonight

I agree on a couple stupid turnovers, I recall a few - but overall only 11 for the game which isn't bad against the press. And we forced 14 with our D so I'll take it. On the fouls- mostly just looked like the typical early season touch stuff, I thought our guys maintained good position mostly. Seemed like more of the touch ones went against us but who knows, I'm sure my perception could have been biased. Regardless just keep playing through it.

 

[HawkCat]

I agree on a couple stupid turnovers, I recall a few - but overall only 11 for the game which isn't bad against the press. And we forced 14 with our D so I'll take it. On the fouls- mostly just looked like the typical early season touch stuff, I thought our guys maintained good position mostly. Seemed like more of the touch ones went against us but who knows, I'm sure my perception could have been biased. Regardless just keep playing through it.

IMHO, one of the major factors is the team's vast improvement in handling the press since last year. Texas pressed for large stretches of the game, and NU beat the press pretty handily the vast majority of the time. We didn't necessarily make UT pay for the press, but we beat it.

 

[Medill90]

Texas pressed for large stretches of the game, and NU beat the press pretty handily the vast majority of the time.

Once NU players saw they could pull the defense to the sides and flash a guy into the gap it became pretty automatic. I thought Shaka would throw in a wrinkle at the end but it never happened.

Tough to tell who was more confident with the ball deep in the press...BMac or Brown. Brown was completely ok putting the ball on the floor and dribbling past guys. I still don't know how good his handle is but the kid has guts.

 

[TerraCat]

IMHO, one of the major factors is the team's vast improvement in handling the press since last year. Texas pressed for large stretches of the game, and NU beat the press pretty handily the vast majority of the time. We didn't necessarily make UT pay for the press, but we beat it.

I completely agree. Shaka's teams are coached to press and they do it well. Watching our guys comminicate and break the press consistently was evidence of a well coached team. BMac and Brown and Pardon in particular worked constantly together and well.

 

[ricko654321]

Once NU players saw they could pull the defense to the sides and flash a guy into the gap it became pretty automatic. I thought Shaka would throw in a wrinkle at the end but it never happened.

Tough to tell who was more confident with the ball deep in the press...BMac or Brown. Brown was completely ok putting the ball on the floor and dribbling past guys. I still don't know how good his handle is but the kid has guts.

Yeah I was thinking the same thing- we just flashed a guy to the FT line and then beat it from there. Good scheme by CC, but they never really adjusted to stop it. I guess a few times if they leaned too much there we threw it to Pardon further up on the sideline.

 

[hdhntr1]

I completely agree. Shaka's teams are coached to press and they do it well. Watching our guys comminicate and break the press consistently was evidence of a well coached team. BMac and Brown and Pardon in particular worked constantly together and well.

Likely it was key having a second solid ballhandler. We were a little short in that department last year. Plus likely worked on specifically because of the problems we had last year.

 

[willycat]

I completely agree. Shaka's teams are coached to press and they do it well. Watching our guys comminicate and break the press consistently was evidence of a well coached team. BMac and Brown and Pardon in particular worked constantly together and well.

Guess this guy, Collins can coach, huh? Also looks like Pardon is not to small and can score down low. Will the Cats be ranked after beating nd ?

 

[DaCat]

Lumpkin is vastly underrated and gets pooped on by many on this board, but he is an important piece for this team. In addition to his lock down defense, he'll hit the open 3 and get some key buckets.

This team looks much better than last year's team. McIntosh is a year older, stronger and bearded.

Between Brown and Law, they will more than cover for the graduated Tre Demps. If Pardon keeps improving, he'll be a better college player for NU than Olah. Pardon did well against the Texas 4- and 5-stars: 10 pts, 11 reb, 2 blocks, 0 turnovers, and only 3 fouls while playing 36 minutes. I will take that all year long.

 

[NUCat320]

Lumpkin is vastly underrated and gets pooped on by many on this board, but he is an important piece for this team. In addition to his lock down defense, he'll hit the open 3 and get some key buckets.

You can never test it, but I think Mc + four guys matching Lumpkin's profile exactly would win a ton of games. Beat the hell out of you. Work harder than you. Make threes. Beat the hell out of you. Work harder than you. Give you some lower body bruises.

I love him. Game and name and hair.

 

[Hungry Jack]

Has there ever been a Wildcat team this deep and well-rounded? We do not have a guy who can take over a game and go off for 30 points, but it seems we have the basics covered well enough: ball handling, perimeter shooters, inside presence, perimeter defenders, some length, and some athleticism. I'm no guru, but Wildcat teams of the past always seemed to have some pretty glaring holes. I am not sure we have any right now.

 

[IdahoAlum]

I'm pretty sure we have SOME holes, and they will be exposed over a long season. But the Cats are off to a fine start. Will be interesting to see the Lumpkin-Bonzie Colson matchup today. Colson is ND's 6-5, 225-pound forward who is averaging 20 points and 9 boards.

 

[FeralFelidae]

I'm no guru, but Wildcat teams of the past always seemed to have some pretty glaring holes. I am not sure we have any right now.

The biggest hole I've seen was all the offensive rebounds we gave up to Butler.