I agree. But i hope they have a zone in their back pocket if needed. It probably wouldn't have helped much tonight with our entire d being terrible, but i hope we have practiced it
Maryland 81, Illinois 65 Postgame
Damn.....
This was also the point when Omar got out hustled for a defensive rebound
Well, when we match up so badly on D, what are our other options? No one could match up with Scott. Russell was too quick. We were getting killed in matchups.
I agree. These isolation play against our guys is killing us. Great point
Say what you want, but we were playing 4 on 5 offensively most of the evening. (No, I'm not complaining about the officials.)
We didn't get the ball in the paint enough. Not enough dribble penetration and feeding BBV in the post. He is a good enough passer to keep them honest. We also should have been doubling on Scott in the second half. The help defense and rotation in the paint was bad all night. Got to put it behind them and get back on track. GO ILLINI
Why? Bc of personnel or lack of adaptability? I believe he has shown a willingness to adapt, so why is it he will NEVER run a zone? The best teams in the country mix it up from time to time, so why won't he?
GallopingGhost
- Denver, CO
You wanna just come out and blame DMW for the loss? Is that what you’re getting at?
Varied defense against a good 2p offense could help when Kofi is out.
Couple of zone dry runs on Thursday may have made a difference.
GallopingGhost
- Denver, CO
I’m not saying he’s right. I’m just saying he’s never going to do it. I think I’ve seen it once in his tenure here and maybe then I could have dreamed it.
No, not at all, you misread what I was saying. I was actually just saying we never were able to establish an inside presence offensively.
I believe the Freshman got more minutes versus Purdue than in this game
We desperately need downhill players. I'm confused as to why Melendez never gets a shot to make something happen. There's a reason we play games with such a foul discrepancy. We're not forcing teams to play defense with us attacking the rim.
They always seem to match up well with us regardless of where they sit in the standings. It's just one of those annoying basketball things I guess.
Yeah they did. In a double O.T. game on 2 days rest.
DICKnaggie
- Champaign
I agree. RJ has shown some really good stuff. Mostly plays smart, always plays hard and has so much upside.
End of the day, it's a loss on the road, really not a huge deal. This team (as with most teams) will struggle without their All American. Get well soon Kofi! Love this team, they will be just fine!
I agree with this take. Buuuut, i have faith in brad. So if he is limiting the minutes i will accept he knows far more than i do. Especially since he sees alot more than i do
Cook
- Richmond, VA
We could benefit from expanding our tool box some. Not sure about a traditional zone, but some press D and "gimmick" zones like a box and 1 or triangle and 2 here and there could pay big dividends in some of these games where we struggle for whatever reason. Same thing on O, let's get more multiple. Haven't we seen Underwood use the triangle and 2 or box and 1 in the past? With his most experienced team this year he should be able have his full arsenal of options at his disposal.
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It’s a very valid criticism. Underwood was stubborn in running his defense of drastically over-playing the passing lanes in the first two years when it was clear to me after the first few conference games that the defense would never work in the Big Ten. We continued to run that defense and get torched game in and game out, and it took two years of that and someone in his ear about it to actually change.
There’s really no excuse for not even having a basic zone defense. You install a few principles on the wings on how to help and recover off of swing passes. Any D1 player should be able to understand and execute a zone defense even if it’s rarely used or practice with the baseline principles installed. It would have made Maryland do something besides back down 6’3 guards with 6’8 forwards.
The refs? Our effort was… lacking. And that’s being generous.