MBB Michigan vs. Clemson, and NO Harbaugh or RR will be coaching!!
So our basketball team has a very important game tonight in the ACC/Big 10 challenge.
After coming off a disappointing 2 losses in the Legends Classic how will this team respond to another tough challenge.
How about we discuss this, a game that is happening TONIGHT (9pm ESPN) rather than predicting what will happen in the coming months.
My prediction based off of almost nothing (like most the other predictions going on now) is a M win.
66-62
Other predictions?
November 30th, 2010 at 11:30 AM ^
Were not going to win this one. The offense is identical to last year's, and we don't make our shots.
65-52 Clemson
November 30th, 2010 at 11:32 AM ^
A perimeter based offense with poor shooting skills is a great idea.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:35 AM ^
62-57 michigan gets hot
November 30th, 2010 at 11:43 AM ^
I can tell you guys are TOTALLY watching the games, since our offense and defense are doing the exact same things as they have the last two years.
We're an extremely young team and played Syracuse to within 3. They have already exceeded expectations, but feel free to continue to be SERIOUS EXPERTS BROS.
November 30th, 2010 at 12:00 PM ^
November 30th, 2010 at 12:49 PM ^
*****THIS IS AN IMPORTANT POST TO READ BECAUSE IT'S 'THE' TRUTH*****
#1) Michigan is NOT Jim Harbaugh's 'dream job.' He wants an NFL job, because him and his brother are so competitive. SD, SF, Oak and Car (and maybe even Dal and Min) are all going to be fighting over him this off-season.
#2) Dave Brandon is going to be doing absolutely everything he can to convince him to come to Michigan over the next month.
#3) In all likelihood, Rich Rod will be brought back (signing a two year extension after the bowl game), and Greg Robinson will be replaced (along with the 3-3-5). Ron English is supposedly an early DC candidate.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:35 AM ^
The real question here is can Harbaugh coach basketball?
November 30th, 2010 at 11:35 AM ^
What? Are you serious? No RR / Harbaugh talk in this post? Are you nuts? You are going to get negged like no other.
/s
All kidding aside, I am just glad that I will get to see them play tonight for the first time this season. I have yet to have a chance to watch them.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:55 AM ^
There are torrents of 3 of the 5 games this season (including the Syracuse game) at BigTenTracker.com, if you're interested.
Also, if you're interested in the basketball team in general, make sure to check out UMHoops.com, I actually had a stream of the games in Atlantic City up that they linked to in the open threads, so people who didn't have HDNet could watch.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:38 AM ^
After over a year of terrible shooting the statistical law of averages says we're due.
Michigan 255 - Clemson 0
November 30th, 2010 at 11:38 AM ^
I would like to see the Michigan team that played Syracuse, not the one that played UTEP.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:41 AM ^
I'm excited about this game.. i don't know why but i am.
November 30th, 2010 at 2:23 PM ^
The game's actually on ESPN2--not ESPN as stated by the OP. (Also available on ESPN3.)
According to the Game Notes, Michigan is 3-0 all-time vs. Clemson, but all three previous matchups were on neutral floors during in-season tournaments (in 1987 and 1998) plus, of course, the 2009 NCAA Tournament.
I like Michigan's chances in part because Clemson has a new coach who's implementing a new system. Here's a brief scouting report from the Game Notes:
CLEMSON: WHO THEY ARE
Wolverine fans remember Clemson as the team U-M took down in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament. The Clemson Tigers look to build on their 21-11 record from 2009-10, which included a bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers have a veteran roster returning, with 12 letterman coming back to play in 2010-11. However, there are some fresh aspects to this team that must be noted. First is new head coach Brad Brownell, who comes from Wright State where he amassed an 84-45 record in his four seasons at the helm of the Raiders. Next, the Tigers must fi nd a way to replace the production of Trevor Booker, one of three players in Clemson’s history to record at least 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career. The Tigers are led this season by senior guard Demontez Stitt, averaging 13.7 points per game. Currently, Clemson is 5-1 after fi nishing third in the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam, which included wins against Long Beach State and Seton Hall.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:42 AM ^
My question is why is Brandon so behind the basketball team? Not trying to be a douche, but they are terrible, i know they are young, but damn. I have seen a lot less progress on the bball courts than the football team thats for sure.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:46 AM ^
FIRE BIELEIN!!! HIRE JOHNNY DAWKINS!!!!
FML
November 30th, 2010 at 11:50 AM ^
You have to realize, Switch26 (great @aol.com e-mail, btw), that comments like this make us look like idiots. Brandon has been around for a year and is overseeing a total revamp of our basketball facilities. This will significantly improve recruiting, which is even more important in basketball than football. Our team is extremely young and, though they fell flat against UTEP, has played as well as anyone could have hoped this year.
But hey, I think this board has been screaming for more ignorant comments with terrible punctuation, so great work!
November 30th, 2010 at 12:22 PM ^
I'm a big fan of Beilein, but I don't think the comment was that ignorant. It is interesting that the basketball team's anticipated performance seems acceptable to some because they are young, but when it comes to football, the question is "whose fault is it that they are they so young?"
November 30th, 2010 at 12:37 PM ^
You must have missed his comment, which was:
My question is why is Brandon so behind the basketball team? Not trying to be a douche, but they are terrible, i know they are young, but damn. I have seen a lot less progress on the bball courts than the football team thats for sure.
He's blaming our AD, who's been around for a year, for our "terrible" basketball team that has had one bad game all year, and it was against a very solid UTEP team. They were picked last in the Big Ten and played Cuse to within three. So I think labeling his comment as "ignorant" is reasonable, and labeling it as "LEARN TO CAPITALIZE AND HAVE COGENT THOUGHTS" might have been fair as well.
November 30th, 2010 at 1:03 PM ^
How is that comment blaming the AD?
November 30th, 2010 at 2:09 PM ^
Perhaps more fairly, it suggests he's completely behind the basketball program and not the football program. Beyond the fact that there is no evidence of this, it implies that the basketball and football programs are in any way similarly situated right now other than having young players. That's a ridiculous premise if you've paid any attention for the past decade. And it's framed by a series of comments attacking our "terrible" basketball team that's playing fairly well.
I can't believe I had to attack this moron's post three times, and even if there were some rational basis for agreeing with his "thoughts," his was a terribly written post on a board slowly becoming overrun by terribly written posts. Why are you so concerned?
November 30th, 2010 at 5:15 PM ^
I'm concerned because I think this board is being overrun by people like you - self-righteous individuals that think they have to insult people to get their point across.
You personally attacked someone by calling him a moron and calling his comments ignorant with terrible punctuation. At the same time, you can't decide whether his comment was “blaming our AD, who’s been around for a year, for our ‘terrible’ basketball team, or only suggesting that the AD is “completely behind the basketball program and not the football program.” What Switch26 lacks in writing skills, you, unfortunately, do not make up for in reading comprehension.
And now I am the self-righteous one.
November 30th, 2010 at 6:10 PM ^
you're the one with reading comprehension and a lack of a knee-jerk. also note his thinly veiled thread regarding knowing the poster's email address.
kudos to you for being succinct in your rebuttal
November 30th, 2010 at 6:17 PM ^
he's made a significant number of statements praising Beilein, lauding his extension and saying Basketball is moving in the right direction.
how about this in particular:
http://isportsweb.com/2010/08/29/youre-all-in-qa-with-michigan-ad-david-brandon-part-3/
I wasn’t here when he was coming in. I was observing as a fan. I don’t think anybody needed to tell John Beilein you got to have the players. John knows that, but I’m sure to a certain extent that John had to play in the conference and size up how these teams play. The style of play in the Big Ten is different than in the Big East. I’m sure there was a learning process for him as there is for any coach who comes into the Big Ten from outside the conference. Listen, he is a smart, experienced guy who came here to win and I have every confidence that he will.
November 30th, 2010 at 6:58 PM ^
now how in the hell can you say that it would seem terribly odd to say one coach needs time and development to put a product in bc they had to learn the difference between the Big Ten and the Big East and the players needed... and then not give that same pattern to a football coach?
Because despite Brandon paying lip service to treating all sports and coaches at Michigan equally, football is still king, and there's no way he's going to apply the same standards/expectations to the football coach that he does to the basketball coach or the coach of any of the other sports.
That may not be fair to Rodriguez, but any Michigan football coach is going to face much higher expectations than any Michigan basketball coach. And the leash is likely to be shorter as well.
November 30th, 2010 at 12:15 PM ^
I have seen a lot less progress on the bball courts than the football team thats for sure.
Yeah I know! It's not like Beilein has shown what he can do with a team of upperclassmen by taking them to the NCAA tournament for the first time in a decade and winning the first game before losing to one of the most dominant NCAA players of the last couple years....
Oh... wait....
/s
November 30th, 2010 at 4:27 PM ^
He says that our football coach is in a program "that doesn't long for anything" while our basketball coach has to recruit with substandard facilitites.
Brandon has said something like "We give you the tools, then we have high expectations" I interpreted Brandon's comments about Beilein as more along the lines of "When we give you the tools (the new practice facility and the $20 million upgrade of Crisler), then we'll have high expectations. I've got your back while our facilities suck."
November 30th, 2010 at 6:19 PM ^
he made a specific comment (pasted above) about basketball having a coach that needed to shift playing style and mentality from the Big East to the Big Ten and find the appropriate players to fit that scheme... sounds familiar.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:48 AM ^
65-59 Michigan, because why the hell not? Busy night, with both Michigan and the Wings on TV. I don't get a chance to see either play very often, other than atdhe, so hopefully they won't let me down.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:55 AM ^
Go Blue
November 30th, 2010 at 12:21 PM ^
I haven't caught the last couple games but from what I have scene I like Hardaway Jr. He has a nice shot with big upside as he develops.
November 30th, 2010 at 12:36 PM ^
I thought Michigan did well vs. Syracuse and against UTEP as well. UTEP is a senior oriented team and we all know what happens to inexperienced teams playing against experienced teams.
I think we'll do well tonight but probably won't pull it off. Though, I sure hope we steal a W and to do that I believe Darius Morris needs another terrific game, Morgan uses his muscles and size to grab rebounds, and obviously our outside shooting needs to be effective.
Darius Morris will be our team MVP this year!
November 30th, 2010 at 2:54 PM ^
I've followed the team closely and have watched all their games this year, last year, etc. This is our first true road game and we start 3 freshman, a soph and a junior. Off the bench is a junior, soph, then all freshmen. This is a young team that will be pretty shell-shocked on the road. Also, we just came off back-to-back losses just 2 days ago and our teams have shown to be less effective when on short rest.
If Clemson bothered to watch the UTEP game then they know all they have to do is faceguard the hell out of us and take away the perimeter. And it's perfectly OK to leave Blake and JMo at the top of the key unguarded. For now, these simple things will destroy us as a young team. We don't have a slasher (Hardaway will be a good one someday) and we don't have an effective post man yet (although JMo shows great potential and abused Melo a few times).
Our shots aren't dropping and we are unable to create good shots against aggressive defenses. The backdoor still isn't there and/or we are unwilling to take it.
68-48.
November 30th, 2010 at 5:51 PM ^
Part of the reason our shots didn't drop against UTEP may have been that we were playing on short rest. It may be a different story now.
November 30th, 2010 at 6:02 PM ^
lol @ the downvoters. Are realistic viewpoints not allowed in this thread? Sorry, we aren't going to be a good team this year. If you are expecting otherwise, you are in for a hell of a winter.
At the same time, I can recognize the young talent on this team and said that this will be a good team someday. MBB is set up for a 2008 UM football season, sorry. We are completely rebuilding right now.
November 30th, 2010 at 5:48 PM ^
Does Clemson still have Pernell as its coach? Beilein owns him.
November 30th, 2010 at 6:38 PM ^
Purnell left Clemson for DePaul after last season. As I posted above, Clemson's new coach is Brad Brownell, who had previously coached at Wright State.
November 30th, 2010 at 7:08 PM ^
No disrespect to Brownell, but OP was as good as they're going to be, and they already had it. It will take years to get back to where they already were. They're in the ACC for Pete's sake; talk about unrealistic expectations for a traditional "football" school.
I hope we beat them tonight, IMO it'd be an upset if we lose.
November 30th, 2010 at 11:20 PM ^