hoops game recaps
in the face
2014-15 ohio state #1

Ohio State 71, Michigan 52 Comment Count

Ace


File photo, but whatever. [Patrick Barron/MGoBlog]

Shannon Scott pickpocketed Zak Irvin in the backcourt after a lazy crossover. Caris LeVert tossed an inbounds pass directly to an awaiting Buckeye, not even bothering to look at his intended target.

Michigan's top two scorers spent much of the second half on the bench, not because they weren't needed—the Wolverines were, in fact, getting blown out—but because whatever minuscule chance of a win they'd give the team wasn't worth John Beilein not sending a message. This team would've had a hard enough time upsetting the Buckeyes with everything clicking; instead, after some hot shooting from Irvin kept M in it early, sloppy mistake after sloppy mistake compounded the familiar offensive woes that have plagued this team for much of the season.

Lengthy scoring droughts in both halves led to OSU doubling up Michigan early in the second half, and even the final 19-point margin wasn't representative of the gap between the two teams for most of the game. Before M even scored a point in the second half, they trotted out a lineup of Derrick Walton, Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman, Aubrey Dawkins, Kam Chatman, and Max Bielfeldt. It was no longer a contest, but a learning experience.

Let's hope the lesson sticks, because that was hard to watch.

Comments

93Grad

January 13th, 2015 at 9:41 PM ^

You answered your own question. The NBA drafts on potential and measurables, not production. The NBA also penalizes kids who stay in school. Some team will guarantee Caris a first round position and he is gone. Don't get me wrong, I hate the NBA and think Caris should stay but that is not happening.



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ijohnb

January 14th, 2015 at 9:27 AM ^

think he is right.  I don't think Levert is a first rounder right now.  I'm sorry, I like him a lot, but I really don't see that, or how people could possibly consider him a potential lottery pick right now. 

Joined: 09/21/2009

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umfan83

January 14th, 2015 at 9:49 AM ^

If GRIII wasn't a first rounder, there is no way Caris is.  I know the draft is thinner than last year's but Glenn oozed upside and potential.  I don't think I've seen anything this year that suggests Caris has similar intangibles.  I'm not saying he couldn't find a role in the NBA but he's got a lot of risk IMO.  Not worth a 1st.

Joined: 03/10/2012

MGoPoints: 8447

ijohnb

January 14th, 2015 at 10:22 AM ^

are not watching close enough my man.  Caris is an extremely inconsistent shooter with an unfinished release and he is prone to awful turnovers against aggressive defense due to a suspect handle.  He got benched for the entire second half last night and you are sitting there talking about guaranteed money. Man, I like him and I am not trying to hate on him, but I think people got a little carried away last year and are really not understanding what they are seeing.  I thought he was probably the 3rd best pro prospect on the court last night, and that game wasn't exactly Duke v. Kentucky.

Joined: 09/21/2009

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reanimator

January 14th, 2015 at 10:27 AM ^

I think teams will take 40 % on 4.5 attempts from 3.  Only 75 % of those are assisted so he will shoot even better in the NBA when he is shooting off the catch.

" an unfinished release and  a suspect handle" Not sure what you are watching? 

Joined: 02/01/2014

MGoPoints: 826

umfan83

January 14th, 2015 at 9:51 AM ^

Yeah it should piss them off so that they hire elite coaches in football and basketball.  Oh wait we already have that.

OSU gets their night to gloat but how quickly they forget who has had more basketball success lately.  UM has been to a NC game and an Elite 8 the last 2 years while my memory of OSU is Craft on the floor crying after losing to an 11 seed in the 1st round.

Joined: 03/10/2012

MGoPoints: 8447

MichiganMan14

January 13th, 2015 at 9:08 PM ^

TaKing fliers on recruits to make up for numerous early departures has backfired miserably and we are devoid of top level basketball talent. This team could be good in the future. We need another bell cow or two to get back in the national picture. Our collection of bigs is not tournament level. Doyle is promising but he is not high level talent either. He is a grinder and that's okay if complemented. The fact that we've digressed this far in a year is disheartening. The NBA will do that to you I guesss. We suffer attrition like Kentucky but don't recruit top 15. That's a bad mixture.

Joined: 02/21/2012

MGoPoints: 19111

Jonesy

January 14th, 2015 at 4:32 PM ^

Everyone's a year older with a year more experience and a year more practice.  I know that hasn't meant much for our football team lately but it should mean a lot for our basketball team.  And thats not mentioning any freshmen recruits.

Joined: 03/14/2012

MGoPoints: 10534

1974

January 13th, 2015 at 9:31 PM ^

I'd be open to calling MAAR a "flier." Still, how much would you expect in the first year?

Strictly speaking, a few other guys who turned out well (e.g., Hardaway) were flier-esque when they first got offers.

Joined: 04/17/2011

MGoPoints: 7799

Hannibal.

January 14th, 2015 at 10:12 AM ^

This X 1 Million.  The "Beilein buids national championship contenders and NBA lottery picks out of 3* nobodies" narrative has been wildly exaggerated.  The Novak/Douglass era gets looked at through some extremely rose-colored glasses in these parts.  Those guys were hopelessly overmatched in lots of games and they got run off the court numerous times.  They finished better than .500 in conference play only once in their four years.  Now we are basically back to that level.  Every coach has their hits and their misses and unfortunately it looks like we are seeing a reversion to the mean this year with guys like Irvin and Chatman not living up to their billing while other guys demonstrate why they weren't highly sought after.  The pre-season predictions of being a Top 5 seed in the tourney weren't realistic.  The program has peaked.  It is a program that will make the NCAA tourney probably 2/3 of the time and occasionally go on a deep run.  It's definitely not bad but it isn't great either. 

Joined: 09/09/2008

MGoPoints: 9051

Buddy the Wolverine

January 14th, 2015 at 2:31 PM ^

It is undeniable that Beilein is great at scouting and developing players and putting them in positions to succeed. A common misconception, however, is that individual players or missing shots can be blamed for the woes of this team and Beliein does not shoulder any of that responsibilty. I agree that the Novak/Douglass era was not exceptional, rather the teams exceeded expectations that were low due to the lack of talent and previous years mired by sanctions. I contend that the offensive system Beilein employs relies too heavily on exceptional play from guards and wings and when we don't get the stud recruits, our expectations need to be lowered. I would love if Beilein utilized the post more in this offense and would subsequently be able to recruit bigs that could help erase some of the deficits of the teams on a night by night basis by blocking shots and grabbing offensive rebounds/garbage points. Also, our offense has become a little too predictable and teams have begun to take away what is successful. At least three times last night, Spike or Walton drove the baseline and attempted to pass to a wing in the corner, but the passes were intercepted because people simply watched film and knew what was coming. Rant over. Go Blue!

Joined: 01/04/2014

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B-Nut-GoBlue

January 13th, 2015 at 9:09 PM ^

It really doesn't matter, but it does to me a little bit...why was Doyle on the bench so much and Donnal on the court?!  Watching Donnal play ball on this team is not something I look to do in the future.  He is not a very good at anything, especially his atrocious defense.

Joined: 09/30/2011

MGoPoints: 43652

Trader Jack

January 14th, 2015 at 8:09 AM ^

Ha. If you think Irvin, Walton, and Doyle aren't going to get any better you're crazy. Walton, Irvin, Dawkins, Chatman, and Doyle are all FR/SO who will continue to get stronger and quicker. And I trust Beilein to continue to develop their game. There's also DJ Wilson, who isn't even close to the player he's going to be. These guys are all really young, they'll get better. Stauskas, Burke, Hardaway, Morgan... Those guys weren't the players they ended up being when they first arrived on campus.



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ijohnb

January 14th, 2015 at 9:37 AM ^

to get a feel for what a player is going to be right now though.  By this time last year Stauskus was a high ball screen-pick and roll wizard who was dunking on centers and essentially running the team.  Right now Irvin is forcing threes and making ridiculous passes that result in debilitating turnovers.  By this time in his Freshman year Glenn Robinson III was hitting clutch thress and doing 360 dunks, right now Chapman cannot get a shot off.  Obvioulsy players will improve, but right now, barring some serious work on the recruiting trail, we are setting up as a program that will peak with a Sweet 16 every few years.  I think it is fair to say that most of the fan base expected to have surpassed that level of expectation given recent success.

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Trader Jack

January 14th, 2015 at 10:34 AM ^

I understand what you're saying and believe that you're right in some cases. It's also possible though, for players to get better even after their Sophomore year. Jordan Morgan improved a lot from his Sophomore year to his Senior year. Tim Hardaway, Jr. shot 42% and 28% from 3 his Sophomore year on 6 3 point attempts per game. A year later he was a 1st Round pick. Those are just two very recent examples. Every key player on this year's team except Caris and Spike is a FR or SO. Every bit of evidence in Beilein's player development/coaching career suggests that they'll improve as they get older, even if some of the guys seem disappointing (Chatman, Donnal, Irvin) or are injured (Walton, Wilson) right now.

Joined: 04/27/2010

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ijohnb

January 14th, 2015 at 10:44 AM ^

lies more with issues involving will and instinct.  Hardaway had some struggles, but he was an alpha, his failures only made him more ferocious and intense, same with Stauskus.  I don't see that from anybody on this team.  There is no edge, there does not seem to be any instinct to individually fight back when other teams exert their will.  I am not sure how much of that is taught.

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