Maryland 62, Illinois 56 POSTGAME

[txillini11]

0 basketball IQ from JCL in the second half. Couldn't hit the broad side of the barn from 3 and kept chucking it up. If you're ice cold from there either take the ball to the hoop or have someone else Drive the ball to the hoop. Maryland was begging for us to get back into the game at the end and we just chucking up bad shots.

That's basically what Groce's offense is. Just chuck jumpers up and hope they go in. There is almost no effort to drive the ball for layups, except from Malcolm sometimes.

 

[stlillinifan]

I haven't enjoyed watching Illinois basketball since Groce's first year

The man simply can't coach - good guy, people like him, decent recruiter - but can't coach

 

[Illini1221]

0 basketball IQ from JCL in the second half. Couldn't hit the broad side of the barn from 3 and kept chucking it up. If you're ice cold from there either take the ball to the hoop or have someone else Drive the ball to the hoop. Maryland was begging for us to get back into the game at the end and we just chucking up bad shots.

But we have no one who can take the ball to the hoop.

 

[txillini11]

But we have no one who can take the ball to the hoop.

Malcolm can.

 

[CasualObserver05]

You can keep looking at it in the macro, but the micro matters too, and tonight we got killed because Turgeon adjusted at halftime and whether we did or not, we were entirely uneffective in the 2nd.

Also, what wins do we have over a team we shouldn't this year?

Well the selection committee tends to look at the macro so I guess I'll look at it from their perspective.

As far as win we have over a team we shouldn't? I'm not quite sure where you're going with that question, unless pointing that you don't see us getting a road win this year.

I think Michigan was a win a lot of people didn't feel great about getting, VCU and BYU as well? However, wouldn't that be looking at the "macro" as you like to call it?

 

[ejam21]

But we have no one who can take the ball to the hoop.

That doesnt mean hyou should come up the court full speed and chuck a 3 25 seconds into the shot clock the way he did during their run.......and that was right after he airballed a 3 the previous possesion.

 

[kuhl84]

Zero inside offense all game. Eventually we start missing shots and squander a lead that should have been bigger. Seen this movie before.

Groce won't do it but should seriously consider benching Tracy. AJ couldn't play any worse.

I think at this time, Tracy is the worst on the ball defender of all guards. He can't keep anyone in front of him and had some horrendous close outs.

If isn't a plus on offense, he just can't be on the floor.

 

[FatGreg]

A big problem with this offense is that we take tons of mid-range jumpers. Part of the reason is that Hill, Black, and Morgan are good mid-range shooters. The other part is we have no one who can get to the basket consistently. We end up in a situation where our best shot is frequently an 18-footer, which is a huge issue because that shot is inherently a low points-per-possession proposition. It's just not a good way to play basketball.

 

[cmrfrd7]

An at-large bid looks extremely unlikely. If Vegas were to handicap the rest of the Illini schedule it would most likely look something like this -

@Purdue - dog
@Michigan - dog
Iowa - favorite
@ Penn St - dog
Wisky - dog
Minny - pick 'em
@NW - dog
Penn St - favorite
@Iowa - dog
NW - pick 'em
@Nebraska - pick 'em
MSU - dog
Rutgers - favorite

underdog - 7
favorite - 3
pick 'em - 3


Does anyone think this team wins all three of the 50/50 games and 1-2 of the games we're not favored to win? Me neither.

 

[ejam21]

Well the selection committee tends to look at the macro so I guess I'll look at it from their perspective.

As far as win we have over a team we shouldn't? I'm not quite sure where you're going with that question, unless pointing that you don't see us getting a road win this year.

I think Michigan was a win a lot of people didn't feel great about getting, VCU and BYU as well? However, wouldn't that be looking at the "macro" as you like to call it?

Yea we were dogs vs michigan and i think VCU
If you go by Kenpom....shouldnt have beat michigan, osu, vcu, nc state, byu

but not sure in what way that poster was defining "should not win"

 

[WesterveltVictoryCigar]

I think at this time, Tracy is the worst on the ball defender of all guards. He can't keep anyone in front of him and had some horrendous close outs.

If isn't a plus on offense, he just can't be on the floor.

His injuries have caught up with him. He's toughing it out but yes, he's a liability right now. And I think that as much as Tate is why TJL is playing now. No choice.

 

[Ulysses Everett McGill]

Malcolm can.

Not tonight; not against the red-haired frosh MD threw at him.

 

[Illini1221]

Malcolm can.

Against poor defensive teams, like Indiana.

 

[GortTheRobot]

I feel sorry for Tracy, he came in on fire and looked like he was going to be a difference maker. I just wonder if he is getting worn down by by having no faith in the system anymore. It probably takes a toll on a man who has worked so hard to get back to the game.

 

[ejam21]

An at-large bid looks extremely unlikely. If Vegas were to handicap the rest of the Illini schedule it would most likely look something like this -

@Purdue - dog
@Michigan - dog
Iowa - favorite
@ Penn St - dog
Wisky - dog
Minny - pick 'em
@NW - dog
Penn St - favorite
@Iowa - dog
NW - pick 'em
@Nebraska - pick 'em
MSU - dog
Rutgers - favorite

underdog - 7
favorite - 3
pick 'em - 3


Does anyone think this team wins all three of the 50/50 games and 1-2 of the games we're not favored to win? Me neither.

the only "dog" games where i think we have a shot are @psu, @iowa, @NW, but i wont commit to thinking we can win a couple of those until i see a decent road performance from this team

 

[kuhl84]

Jcl, Hill, Abrams were bad today. Kipper and tjl saw major minutes. You want Groce to play the walkons??

When Tracy is as bad as he was today, he should get zero minutes at the 2. Either play Jordan (clearly better as a defender right now...at least has length) or slide Hill to the 2 and play DJ at the 3.

I love Tracy's heart, but he can't be ok physically.

 

[txillini11]

Not tonight; not against the red-haired frosh MD threw at him.

The problem is these players are not coached to take the ball to the rim. They are coached to settle for the first jumper that comes on every possession.

 

[LurkLongandProsper]

Well the selection committee tends to look at the macro so I guess I'll look at it from their perspective.

As far as win we have over a team we shouldn't? I'm not quite sure where you're going with that question, unless pointing that you don't see us getting a road win this year.

I think Michigan was a win a lot of people didn't feel great about getting, VCU and BYU as well? However, wouldn't that be looking at the "macro" as you like to call it?

Well, if we want to look at it from a macro, then Purdue is really a must win to have a shot at the tournament that doesn't include winning every game in the month of February or winning the BTT, because we don't have any really great wins yet to boost us over other bubble teams, and 0 road wins.

I got that question from:

With the streaky shooters we have, we're going to win some we shouldn't and lose some we shouldn't, everyone knew this back in October, just get into the midst of the schedule and people seem to think it comes down to lack of adjustments.

When's the last time we really did that?

 

[Ulysses Everett McGill]

I feel sorry for Tracy, he came in on fire and looked like he was going to be a difference maker. I just wonder if he is getting worn down by by having no faith in the system any more. It probably takes a toll on a man who has worked so hard to get back to the game.

He looks absolutely disgusted out there most of the time IMO.

 

[coltjames03]

Everyone complaining about guard play now have to realize the guard or guards are coming next season. Sure it would be great to have Watson but if we went hard after Watson the same group would be whining and complaining Groce didn't go after the guards he went after and got close on.

 

[Applegate20]

I'm not a Groce hater, not a Groce lover. With that said, how does any coach think Malcolm Hill is going to beat Melo full court off the bounce? As great of a player as Hill will go down as, he certainly has his liabilities. Quickness, speed, and ballhandling are a couple. Yes he is your best player, but you can't put the ball in his hands and expect him to go coast to coast w/ pressure against anyone, let alone Trimble. Saw that pick coming a mile away. And that huge momentum shift set the stage for the 2nd half


Why not give it to Lucas and tell him get to the hole, finish, draw a foul, or kick to open shooter?

 

[t7nich]

A big problem with this offense is that we take tons of mid-range jumpers. Part of the reason is that Hill, Black, and Morgan are good mid-range shooters. The other part is we have no one who can get to the basket consistently. We end up in a situation where our best shot is frequently an 18-footer, which is a huge issue because that shot is inherently a low points-per-possession proposition. It's just not a good way to play basketball.

Bingo!

 

[TooHot4Tots]

Everyone complaining about guard play now have to realize the guard or guards are coming next season. Sure it would be great to have Watson but if we went hard after Watson the same group would be whining and complaining Groce didn't go after the guards he went after and got close on.

just stop. It's year 5. Either get the studs or develop guys you get. Not rocket science

 

[GortTheRobot]

THIS!! College basketball is basically guard driven and ours are inferior in almost every case. Illinois hasn't head good guard play since Self left.

I think McCamey was a good guard, but he was hampered by a coach and a system. While I agree that we have not had a great guard under Groce, that is certainly not the only issue. I know it's probably not what your suggesting, but we can't give Groce a pass just because he hasn't gotten the guard that helped his run in the NCAA at Ohio.

 

[jmwillini]

How bad has this gotten? I completely forgot the game was on. Started watching NFL and kept watching. Never used to happen. Even in the doldrums of the later Weber years. Groce seems to be such a good guy. I want him to win, but I just don't see it happening.