Stymied
Duke's gameplan was obvious: don't let Nik Stauskas touch the ball, let alone shoot it, and force the rest of the Wolverines to find a way to score. Tyler Thornton and Matt Jones spent most of the game face-guarding Stauskas, limiting Michigan's leading scorer to four points—all on free throws*—on 0/2 shooting while the rest of the team faltered, save for a late push from Caris LeVert.
The 79-69 final score is rather deceptive; Duke led by double-digits for most of the game and pushed the margin as high as 18 points in the late stages, with Michigan unable to get closer than six points behind in the second half. The Wolverines scored 19 fruitless points in the final two minutes to carve eight points out of the deficit; by that time, Duke was content to keep Michigan at arm's reach with their free-throw shooting.
Simply put, this game was a major indictment of Michigan's supporting cast—at this point, it's clear that Stauskas is the offensive star, the rest playing supporting roles. Glenn Robinson III's woes on both ends of the court showed up at the worst time. He was nearly invisible offensively and ineffective when he attempted to get aggressive, scoring eight points on nine shots—with half those points coming after the game was well in hand—and failing to get to the free-throw line. He couldn't create a clean look for his jump shot or get around defenders to attack the basket. On the other end, he was pulled from the game at least once for repeated failures to box out his man, and when Michigan got lost on perimeter switches he was often involved.
Until Caris LeVert decided to put the team on his back in the second half, when he scored 20 of his team-leading 24 points, nobody else stepped up, either. Duke's aggressive hedging against the pick-and-roll made it difficult to get the ball to Mitch McGary in the post; even when he was open, the guards failed to get him the ball in good position—eight of his 15 points came in the final two minutes after Duke basically stopped boxing out. Derrick Walton had a couple very nice takes to the hoop in transition en route to seven points on 3/6 shooting; in the halfcourt, however, he couldn't facilitate the offense, tallying just one assist to three turnovers, one of which was a what-was-that pass deep into the Cameron Crazies. Zak Irvin was limited to 14 minutes and managed five points on five shots.
LeVert was certainly a bright spot in the second half, slicing his way into the lane with regularity, finishing well, and getting to the line; after going 2/5 in the first half with no free throw attempts, he shot 6/13 from the field in the latter stanza and knocked down all seven of his shots from the charity stripe. If there's one positive to take away from this game, it's his apparent willingness to be the go-to guy when Stauskas is rendered ineffective; after waiting on Robinson and McGary to be the guy, he had to step up and did so. Yes, he's occasionally overmatched by bigger players on defense; he's also very effective at the top of the 1-3-1 and is clearly the team's second-best offensive player this year.
His emergence in this game was too little, too late, unfortunately; Michigan needs more than one of their perimeter players to score consistently if they want to beat good teams, and they didn't have an answer when Duke took away Stauskas. I don't think this is a coaching issue; when an opponent is flat-out turning their back to the play and solely focusing on denying one player the ball, the rest of the offense should be able to create open looks while playing four-on-four. Aside from LeVert, nobody could manage this as Duke funneled everything inside—Michigan was 3/13 from beyond the arc—and forced the perimeter players to beat them off the dribble.
A loss to Duke at Cameron is nothing to be ashamed of, but the way this game played out should be very worrisome for Michigan. Stauskas has been identified as the main threat, and now there's a blueprint for stopping the offense cold unless someone else—not just LeVert—raises their level of play. This is still a young team that can improve dramatically over the course of the year; it's clear they're going to have to if they want to compete for a Big Ten title.
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*To further emphasize how much Duke took Stauskas out of the equation, three of his four free-throw makes came after Blue Devil technical fouls, not anything he did offensively.
December 4th, 2013 at 1:08 PM ^
Levert was a bright spot because Duke paid no attention to him. They didn't help on him, because if they did that would mean someone would have to leave GR3, McGary or Stauskus.
I commend his desire and agressiveness though. We need it.
What we need more is something outside of JB's basic offense to get open looks for GR3 and McGary, something other than the desperation pick and roll while the shot clock is winding down.
McGary had a guy lighter and around 3 inches shorter than him guarding him most of the game. We threw it to him on the block early in the 2nd half where he turned and put it in. When there's that big of a mismatch, you don't need your post player to have post moves to score on a kid completely undersized. Get him the ball somewhere other than the top of the key JB. Thank you.
End of rant. Now go beat Zona.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:18 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 2:30 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 2:48 PM ^
McGary looks to be trying out for that role. He took several loooong two's and only made one. That's a look we can get anytime but not a winning strategy.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:00 PM ^
December 5th, 2013 at 1:19 PM ^
Having Robinson shoot a jumper is a scary thought right now.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:20 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 2:21 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 2:31 PM ^
kudos to Levert, and Stauskas' injury may have added to the fact that Duke went all out to stop him. The most dissapointing part of this game is how soft Michigan played the whole game, especially Horford and GRIII and it has become a trend for these 2. Even McGary plays soft at times, but has shown more ability to take over with aggressive play.
You had to assume Duke being the team they are would do what they could to limit Staukas and McGary, but you would think that would open things up a bit for Horford and GRIII, but they are just bodies on the floor most of the game. Our defense was atrocious too. Duke missed a lot of wide open 3's that lead to some easy reounds for us, and every other team seems to make shots when they attack the basket aginst us, however we don't do the same with any consistency. We miss a lot shots inside 10 feet because we are not aggressive. McGary has been in spurts, as have Stauskas, Levert, and Walton, everyone else on the team is playing soft consistently. Only wide open layups being made. Iowa State, FSU and Charlotte's big dude really exposed our total lack of agressiveness. It is our achilles heel. We could be 7-1 if we were more agressive, especially GRIII, Horford, and Morgan. No one on Duke looked like a role player, our whole team looked like role players last night.
Our problem is not just losing Burke and Hardaway (that was inevitable). Our problem is something that can be fixed and that is the tenacity and agressiveness of our guys that play around the rim a lot. We will lose 10 games in the B1G if we play as soft as we have been.
This team will easily lose 12-14 games if it doesn't get its act together.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:33 PM ^
offense is struggling - fire Borges
December 4th, 2013 at 2:43 PM ^
I continue to have no idea what the NBA hype around GRIII is. He doesn't really do anything well outside of dunk. He's like a plus version of Brent Petway. He's just super athletic and that gets you nowhere in the NBA without a high motor. And he definitely doesn't have that.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:49 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 3:19 PM ^
GRIII doesn't even deserve to be starting.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:29 PM ^
He might be the kind of guy that's better in shorter and more focused bursts. And you might even see him bring more energy in that role. Maybe. But I don't think there's a good alternative to swap him out for in the starting lineup.
December 4th, 2013 at 6:34 PM ^
or Lavert. They can't continue to waste valuable minutes on the Invisible Man.
I'd rather see what Irvin can do than go with a known factor that isn't getting it done. Maybe being a 6th man would be good for GRIII because being a starter doesn't seem to fit his skills/personality.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:26 PM ^
He just seems to float around out there most of the time. I chalked it up to freshman jitters or whatever last season, but this is year two man. If you're floating around at the college level and don't have at least one trademark talent (shooting, passing, defense, rebounding, hustle, etc.) then there's no way you're going to cut it in the NBA.
And you're right. Rebounding would be an easy one for him to focus on. Take that athleticism and be the best rebounder you can be.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:46 PM ^
but the officiating was horrendous early in the game. When it was 12-5 Duke, the officials had handed the Dukies 7 points by missing calls (travelling, ball hitting Duke out of bounds, etc.).
Having to listen to Vitale say "Jabari Parker, Jabari Parker, Jabari Parker, Jabari Parker, Jabari Parker, Jabari Parker, Jabari Parker" every time the kid farted was too much. He is a very talented freshman, but cumong man...
December 4th, 2013 at 4:42 PM ^
Can't forget that egregious shot clock violation that wasn't called.
December 4th, 2013 at 5:50 PM ^
Parker is the best player in the nation, completely dominated us, and thank god he didn't go to MSU.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:48 PM ^
He needs to take control of this team, he needs to be a threat. He still tends to disapear during big games. With his ability he should be the go to man for Michigan.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:54 PM ^
This team is in some relative trouble. Not a woe is me season, but a don't think about getting back to the Final Four season. It might be that GRIII just is what he is, but if McGary doesn't shape back into at least our 2nd best player this team is in real trouble anytime it comes up against some really talented team like Duke. Caris could score because he didn't scare Duke at all; they knew he wasn't going to beat them.
(And is Morgan hurt too? Because I'm not seeing what Horford is bringing that earns him more minutes).
Probably doesn't mean much for the big picture. McGary was getting into shape this time last year, and didn't become an impact till the Tournament. Nik's ankle will heal. Our freshmen will get more experience. It's December, not March. But this team right now is a lot better than the basketball we've seen up until recently, but not a really good team, yet.
Oh, and Duke still sucks.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:04 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 2:54 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 3:04 PM ^
Coach K also ran about 4 specific plays for Parker to get the ball isolated 1 on 1 in the paint right in front of the rim.
JB will not do this. He has never done this. Run specific plays for specific people. If it's not done out of the basic offense, it won't be ran. Watching GR3 run down the court every possession and start off in the corner is so frustrating. You can get mad at GR3 all you want to but for him to do it almost every possession and never get taken out or yelled at, tells me Coach B is content with it. They must practice it.
JB's made a career out of running this system, so I trust him, but I think he's going to find out real quick that he needs to make a few adjustments now that he can't lean on Burke. Just getting to the NCAA tournament as an 8-9 seed and losing in the 1st round isn't acceptable at Michigan anymore. There are now expectations, he set them himself.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:07 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 3:18 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 3:32 PM ^
What?
Go pop in some WVU clips when JB was there. Tell me if there's any difference in the offense? If there is, they are minor tweaks.
December 4th, 2013 at 6:23 PM ^
Are you kidding? He uses way, way more ball-screen action at Michigan than he ever did there.
December 5th, 2013 at 12:01 PM ^
And you think a pick and roll is a major tweak?
We're never going to see eye to eye if you think putting in a ball screen is a major tweak to ANY offense.
December 4th, 2013 at 4:54 PM ^
Sadly, Michigan with all its resources must rely on two mediocre coaches in its major sports. If coach K was coaching Michigan yesterday, the game would have been close. While watching the game, I NEVER felt we would win. It was almost like they were teasing us.
JB system works if the shooters shoot well. If they don't, the games are close or we lose. Good coaches win against good teams when player do not shoot well. The adage good defenses always play well while offenses have good and bad nights needs to be embraced by JB.
December 4th, 2013 at 5:04 PM ^
And now Beilein is mediocre.
Just locking this in for the next time someone questions whether fans are fickle.
If you're really a fan and not just a concern troll.
December 4th, 2013 at 6:26 PM ^
I called it . . . when the season began, I predicted someone would be taking shots at Beilein before long.
Hoke was right - fans are fickle.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:05 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 3:11 PM ^
it's clear that Stauskas is the offensive star
Uhhh... no...
Offensive stars aren't prevented from touching the ball. That he couldn't shake his defender is as much an indictment on Stauskas as it is everyone else. Nobody on this team has a handle except McGary and LeVert and Duke exposed it to great success.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:19 PM ^
Have you ever played basketball on a sprained ankle?
Stauskus could only cut off one foot. He couldn't plant. I saw him limping at times when he didn't have the ball.
Yesterday's game was not an indictment on Stauskus in anyway.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:28 PM ^
Yes, I have. In fact, I would say the majority of the time I play basketball it is with some degree of a turned ankle.
Stauskas was fine and he'd say as much if anyone asked (perfect? probably not. obviously it wasn't that bad if he was playing 34 minutes). And if he wasn't then he sure as hell shouldn't have been on the court considering he did nothing of value.
A bigger issue is that we have a point guard who is being guarded tight 40-ft out. Not a good sign.
The good thing is that this is a very, very, ridiculously young team and there will certainly be improvement as we go on.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:35 PM ^
Haha, okay. We'll just agree to disagree about it.
Completely agree about the PG's having to start the offense 30+ ft from the basket. Big Red Flag.
December 4th, 2013 at 6:29 PM ^
You're pretty much the only person who watched that game and thought Stauskas was "fine." The consensus everywhere else is that he gutted it out but clearly had limited mobility.
December 4th, 2013 at 4:17 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 8:12 PM ^
Duke's "primary focus" was to heat every player up and play very aggressive man defense. Stauskas was one of every player that had a Duke player glued to him all night, including our PG 40' from the rack.
December 4th, 2013 at 4:46 PM ^
One bad game on an injured ankle and Nik isn't a top player on the team anymore.
Got it.
December 4th, 2013 at 8:17 PM ^
That's not what I said. I said he isn't an "offensive star." The closest thing this team has to an offensive star is McGary.
Nik's an excellent shooter, very good finisher, good slasher. I've yet to see him create much off the dribble against real competition. Compare that to LeVert who has shown that ability many times.
Again, if his ankle was as "injured" as people here claim, he wouldn't have played 34 minutes. He was shut down and it is a concern. Pretending like it isn't is living in a fantasy land where your expectations have no chance of being met.
I'm not bashing him - but it wasn't a good game from him and I think there's a legit concern about who is going to be able to create offense when we play against real defenses. If Duke can shut us down with tight man pressure, how the hell do we break 50 against MSU?
December 4th, 2013 at 9:06 PM ^
December 5th, 2013 at 2:11 PM ^
I actually think it's hard to come back from the ankle as fast as he did. And a team with Nik playing how he was before can be great. But if Nik is the best player on your team, you're not a great team. The idea was him playing like that, and McGary playing healthy like he did in the NCAA Tournament, and GRIII finally living up to the hype, with a developing PG and some young talent making up for losing 2 1st rounders and being close to what we were last year. I don't think anyone said "when Nik is the go to guy, watch out!"
ALL that can still happen. But the fact that Nik is playing better than anyone else is why we have 3 losses already.
December 4th, 2013 at 5:16 PM ^
it's much easier to get to the ball when you have two functioning legs rather than one.
December 4th, 2013 at 5:59 PM ^
Seriously, sprained ankles don't heal in a week, they dont even heal in less than a month. People need to cut Nik some slack. Must say I didn't enjoy this game when the ref's made it obvious Duke was getting spotted a bunch of points and Nik couldn't do anything. At least Caris entertained for a while.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:37 PM ^
Stauskas' ankle injury was horribly timed. He seemed to be taking control of the team, and has since disappeared. Stausakas and LeVert have both shown extended flashes, we just need game to game consistency.
On the other hand, I didn't expect GR3 to be suddenly creating shots for himself and others but I expected more than this.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:53 PM ^
Coach Beilein is a great coach and his players and teams improve throughout a season. By the end of the B1G season the team will have its leader and going into the NCAA tourney, the team will be a force to be feared.
December 4th, 2013 at 4:02 PM ^
In order to free up Stauskas from a defender sticking to him like glue, wouldn't we have to run multiple off-ball screens till his defender can't keep up, and Stauskas is freed up to catch and shoot? But that's not what we do, is it?
December 4th, 2013 at 4:52 PM ^
Bingo!
Go find some JJ reddick clips in college. Teams focused on stopping him just like Duke focused on stopping Stauskus last night. Coach K knew he was their best scorer so he ran him off of screen after screen to free up jumpers.
JB refuses to do this. He has never done this. Don't get your hopes up. Just have to hope that the growing pains are over before it's too late. Need these guys to start clicking as a unit.
I've always been skepitcal. I think JB needs a Trey Burke for sweet 16's to consistently be the floor for the program.
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