MBB Game #19, (L, 76-69), Mon, 1/21 @ Rutgers (#125) (8-8) (1-5), 7:00pm CT, BTN

[djlhuskerfan]

I guess I wasn't so optimistic about this year. We always have been inconsistent on offense as far as outside shooting and not creative enough to score going to the rim. Palmer and Watson don't get set when they shoot. Watson seems to fall backwards and Palmer fades to the right and shoots flat. Roby has good mechanics but lacks confidence in his shot. Copeland needs more shots as does Allen.

 

[Farmer Jake]

In response to the 1st bolded above, I feel the opposite, actually. We started great, beat Clemson, beat some good teams but have tanked in the last 5-6 games. Indiana (our last win in the last 4 or 5 games) is not a good team and our win, IMO, was a fluke as they haven't won much lately (and just lost, again, a few nights ago). I feel like it has been the opposite of football, whereas we are getting worse as the year goes on.

The 2nd bolded above is exactly how I am feeling, hence my "make or break" for this year......if we tank it or not the rest of this season, we will not be winning many games next year. JMO, but unless we play with our hair on fire the rest of the year and make some serious noise in the B1G Tourney and make the dance, Miles should be gone. He has had more than enough time and has very little results to show, besides the occasional upset win.

It seems you are right in the immediate trending being the opposite of football. Hopefully, we get back to and improve from where we were earlier in the season. But we need to get our act together. I have no idea what has gone wrong since the season started out well.

I know one of the reason Miles was hired was his ability to build teams that he had coached. I don't know why, but it just doesn't seem to have worked that way here.

 

[Farmer Jake]

I guess I wasn't so optimistic about this year. We always have been inconsistent on offense as far as outside shooting and not creative enough to score going to the rim. Palmer and Watson don't get set when they shoot. Watson seems to fall backwards and Palmer fades to the right and shoots flat. Roby has good mechanics but lacks confidence in his shot. Copeland needs more shots as does Allen.

I appreciate the knowledge some of you can provide. I wasn't ever a part of a coached team (we just used trial and error, found what worked until it didn't) so what I know is limited. You explain it well.

 

[NUinID]

I guess I wasn't so optimistic about this year. We always have been inconsistent on offense as far as outside shooting and not creative enough to score going to the rim. Palmer and Watson don't get set when they shoot. Watson seems to fall backwards and Palmer fades to the right and shoots flat. Roby has good mechanics but lacks confidence in his shot. Copeland needs more shots as does Allen.

Shooting has always been a problem with Nebraska teams under Miles and frankly under Sadler and Barry. Palmer, Copeland and Watson can get hot but they also can be very cold at times. They shoot for a decent percentage but it is usually very good or pretty bad. I would take 4-5% points less if it was pretty consistent from them all.

Miles love's the idea of the athletic 6'5" to 6'8" slasher with long arms. That is what this team is made up of, but the inconsistent shooting and rebounding kills this team. Having a guy that can consistently knock down 3's and a big body that can get 8-9 boards a game is a must in this league.

 

[BGRed]

Those few times we actually come up against a really dominating big are not the reason we are floundering. I need to remind you that our 'bigs', outside of Borchardt can step out and shoot a 3. Our bigs are much faster running the floor than most. Our bigs are some of the best shot blockers in the conference. We aren't being beaten because we don't have a big, we are beaten because we can't reduce or eliminate scoring droughts, or remember to actually checkout when we go to the boards, or driving 1 on 3 isn't considered a smart play.

Boxing out is something you learn from being a "big" most of your life. I agree you don't have to be big to be effective; but, there seems to be a correlation between games in which we struggle and the "bigness" of the opponents center.

I agree that this is not the only reason that we've been struggling; but, I do think it's a factor. Palmer's game is based a lot on driving...driving into 3 guys or one "big" guy doesn't fit his game. He continues to force that while the other guys stand around not getting open.

 

[FullbackTrap]

Miles love's the idea of the athletic 6'5" to 6'8" slasher with long arms.

Honestly, I like the idea of this as well ... mismatches are created with this type of athlete, and if he also can shoot 80%+ from the stripe it adds another element to the offense. I love how Palmer gets to the rim, and then to the line, the problem is Nebraska can tend to stagnate waiting for him to do it.

I appreciate @Red Don posting the stats after each game. One thing that continues to stand out for me is the lack of bench. Miles either doesn't trust who/what he has, or is too stubborn to spell his starters. I don't necessarily have any issues with him going only 3 deep into the bench, but those guys combined for 30 minutes last night. Total. Forget the 6 points on 6 or 7 shots (whatever it was), I'd love to see how many times each guy subbed in and for how long. Production comes in more forms than scoring, and there has to be more available from that bench in a 40 minute game.

Such a Jekyll and Hyde team.

 

[NUinID]

Honestly, I like the idea of this as well ... mismatches are created with this type of athlete, and if he also can shoot 80%+ from the stripe it adds another element to the offense. I love how Palmer gets to the rim, and then to the line, the problem is Nebraska can tend to stagnate waiting for him to do it.

I appreciate @Red Don posting the stats after each game. One thing that continues to stand out for me is the lack of bench. Miles either doesn't trust who/what he has, or is too stubborn to spell his starters. I don't necessarily have any issues with him going only 3 deep into the bench, but those guys combined for 30 minutes last night. Total. Forget the 6 points on 6 or 7 shots (whatever it was), I'd love to see how many times each guy subbed in and for how long. Production comes in more forms than scoring, and there has to be more available from that bench in a 40 minute game.

Such a Jekyll and Hyde team.

Who doesn’t like guys like that. But as good as Palmer is he isn’t Romeo Langford, or Miles Bridges. He is too inconsistent.

As far as the bench goes I think it is both. I don’t think he trusts the bench and is too stubborn to take his starters out. I mean Nana and the kid with mono are Palmer clones physically.

 

[LarstheRed]

Boxing out is something you learn from being a "big" most of your life. I agree you don't have to be big to be effective; but, there seems to be a correlation between games in which we struggle and the "bigness" of the opponents center.

I agree that this is not the only reason that we've been struggling; but, I do think it's a factor. Palmer's game is based a lot on driving...driving into 3 guys or one "big" guy doesn't fit his game. He continues to force that while the other guys stand around not getting open.

Brother, every position needs to box out. So many poor habits get created by this ‘flowing’ offense, and if you don’t coach it, checking out is one. Bigs spend nearly as much time out of the lane as they do in, and they get into the habit of ‘walking to the basket’ when a shot is going up. Roby and Copeland have been rebounding since they first played in a Y league, they just get sloppy and tired, not to mention I’m guessing they aren’t hammered on it in practice. Our rebounding margin as a team against Maryland and MSU weren’t horrible, yet they were 2 of the stronger inside teams.

I’m not suggesting we match up great with everyone, but we don’t have to, because they can’t match up with us either. If we would simply do the little things, play with solid fundamentals, not vapor lock when we struggle, we’d be winning most of these close games. And I hate to harp on it, but that’s something that should be addressed in our preparation, which means coaching.

 

[LarstheRed]

points in the paint rutgers 42
neb. 24
second chance pts. rutgers 17
neb. 7
BENCH POINTS rutgers 31
neb. 6
after seeing this i cant believe it was that close with 2 min. left.

These numbers are absurd. It shows we were a far better team from a starting 5 and talent standpoint. Several of these categories are related to hustle and being hungry.