@DoubleDD said:
Man LUcas is playing like a man
Yessir after the rocky start
BeddieKU23
31745 posts
Vick came to play!!!!
yup so typical playing here. Guys r playing free tho
Great response that last 4 minutes first play all year bragg took it to someone
So that's a foul on Jackson come on
Is Jackson smart enough to stay on the floor after that stupid call 20 seconds in?
@approxinfinity said:
@BeddieKU23 Well, we don't look hopeless, just sloppy. Thats good right? :smile:
Of course just dumb turnovers svi has to make that open 3 on the road
Wow that's about as bad as start as you can think of!
Well Reece thinks we are playing Oklahoma and Jay and Seth only think one team is playing tonight.
Oh and the Jay diss not listing mason as a POY nominee when talking about Josh hart
Game will start on time!!! Maybe unc should play before every KU game.
@Texas-Hawk-10 said:
AAU has ruined American basketball.
Is it any worse then the countless basketball factories that are opened that front as academic schools?
SurprisIngly KU signed a kid this year who didn't play much AAU ball.
@BShark said:
Porter will be an NBA allstar I don't think it's fair to hold other HS players to that standard even Preston who MIGHT be an NBA player.
Agreed but it's no secret that Preston's defense is already being detailed as a big weakness. Hopefully the way he rebounded today would be representative of his ability in college
@Crimsonorblue22 said:
@BShark heard porters bro might reclassify so he can play w/michael
Interesting. Does not surprise me
Interesting that Nova jumped us but I'm okay with it. That east coast polling coming in effect again
Trae Young also in the game.
BTW Preston played today on ESPNU. The replay should be up on the Watch App if anyone wants to see him play. He put up 17 and 16 rebounds against Michael Porter's team. Again those who watched him had some interesting things to say.
I see a lot of AAU "fake hustle" on defense. He can make a layup on an offensive rebound...so I guess he has that going for him over Bragg
Definitely a mixed bag in the first half. Finished well in traffic through contact (that wasn't called), but also a pair of ill-advised shots in addition to a banked 3-pointer. Defensive effort is uneven at best
I love Preston's ability to grab the ball off the defensive rebound and beat the other team down the court as he leads the break. He's able to penetrate deep and dish to open shooters.
He can't defend Michael Porter. But, then, NOBODY can defend Michael Porter.
I think we'll see plenty of our players on other guys as we tend to switch as many screens as we can. It will be interesting to see how we defend their action.
Mason- Morris, Graham- Thomas, Svi- Long, Jackson- Burton, Lucas- Bowie
I could see Graham switching on/off Long because Svi has not defended as well recently.
Shaka convinced Matt Coleman to play at Texas. Pray for the kid but maybe both sides feel with a legit ball handler that things will turn around. Good for the conference to gain some talent!
Good point about Landen. I would say that Landen shouldn't worry about Bowie or Young launching shots outside unless they make one early. I'm sure ISU is going to run pick and roll action with Morris to draw Lucas out and draw in help side defense. Oklahoma St did this and got a lot of those easy looks in the paint off of it. If Landen was quick enough to guard the perimeter I would suggest we switch all screens to negate that option where Morris exploits that pick.
It will also be interesting to see who Vick covers in this game. All of ISU's perimeter guys are streaky 3 point shooters but Vick has made a habit of helping too much and losing his man who sits in the corner wide open. My biggest fear is that ISU makes enough 3 pointers to negate all the advantages KU has in this game.
After I saw yours I thought we must have started writing this around the same time! And I agree a lot of good points going into tonight's game. Big game, I hope these guys play like they know its a big one
Very good point, a win tonight gives us 3 road victories with 6 to go (7 if we count the biggy in Rupp Out of Conference). If we can finish 5-4 in conference play on the road there is a good chance we get #13. If our record is better than that, the conversation starts changing to by how many games we win by as well as talk of this team being Elite. All teams lose on the road unless you become a machine. We'll see starting tonight whether this team is capable of winning the hard one's
Really good points. I bet if we sat with Self and asked him "did you ever think Mason would get this good" I'm sure we'd get an interesting answer from him.
Opportunity is also a big equalizer in this whole equation with Frank.
Tharpe didn't pan out and Mason was eating his minutes early in his Sophomore year. We also whiffed on every top PG target for the past 4 years- the staff admitted Frank was option #4 which really meant "fell into our lap" at the right time. What if we had signed a PG that was talented enough to challenge Frank for that spot. Graham ended up being that guy but Self figured out those 2 could play beside each other because of the bond they had formed. Frank in a way has been very lucky that he could capitalize on his unheralded beginning into now becoming a favorite for POY honors. Nothing short of amazing, you never know what a player has under the hood until you get him playing under your watch.
Someone almost did get hurt, Jamari Traylor. It's sad that it would take a player getting hurt for change. That would be the most unfortunate set of circumstances. Most people see it as meaningless fun until there is a stern example of why it shouldn't happen. I think if there was a serious threat of fans being arrested that might work. Or if they wanted to let it keep happening, at least wait until the opposing team has left the court then fans can celebrate with their own players.
Until that day happens every KU road loss will be celebrated like it was the greatest day in history
Your counting a lot of chickens before they even happen don't you think? KU will get a good seed in the tournament, you can book it now. We all want the cozy Sprint Center spot and I'm sure we'll have every chance of getting it. It's also not the end of the world if we don't get it. Your taking too much of a pessimistic point of view at this point. Games right now don't mean as much as they do in February/early March.
Kentucky & Gonzaga are the only teams that look like they have a cakewalk for the rest of the year. They might have a shiny untarnished record but its also going to work against them if the rest of the SEC is mediocre & Saint Mary's doesn't stay ranked. If KU wins the game in Rupp, there is really no way Kentucky will be seeded higher than us if KU finishes the regular season the way its expected to. Again its way to early to project the seeds right now, bracketology is pointless right now until we get to within the last few weeks of conference play.
I have to ask, is there a team in the Big-12 that won't storm off after beating us at this point?
It's a way of life for Big-12 teams when they knock off KU, to them its that big of a deal. I don't see it stopping unless the penalty for storming the court was stiff
Yes 3 point shooting will have to be better than 5 of 20. I imagine it will be we had a lot of quality looks against OSU and they just didn't go down. I can't imagine we go cold for a 2nd straight game.
Another good point about maintaining poise.
This game doesn't mean much for tournament seeding unless ISU becomes a ranked team by the end of year. A win in Rupp, Morgantown and Waco would do much more for us. Usually ISU would be a solid resume building win on the road but as it stands right now ISU is a fringe tournament team.
By the end of the year our potential resume is going to stack up with almost any team out there. 5 potential top 10 games (and more) still on the horizon.
And had Giles ahead of Jackson while Giles played what 2 minutes of High School ball his senior year.
That is funny Lewis over Garrett.
I highly doubt it unless Lucas & Bragg were in foul trouble. If they are in foul trouble we should be really upset with our perimeter defense because they have zero post players. Young & Bowie are basically SF's playing the post. Jackson should have a huge night if he brings his game on the road (something he hasn't done yet in Big-12 play).
I think your right about the ESPN ranking. They had Post next to his name and ranked him a 3 star. Even if his ranking was just at that time they clearly missed the ball on him. It happens all the time, its just crazy it might be happening for the 2nd straight year with a POY favorite. Hield while a 4 star prospect wasn't exactly a household name. Mason has worked his way above what any KU fan could have imagined this year.
It goes without question that tonight is the biggest game of the season so far.
Likely #1 going into Ames where the fans suck and we have yet another game of listening to Fran talk about his favorite team. Over/Under on how many times Fran compares Monte Morris to Frank Mason, or talks about how good ISU's back-court is compared to KU's. Or, well, you get the picture, the list goes on for this guy. This game will feel like a 6 on 5 (or 9 on 5) contest if you include the ref's for most of the night.
So what's it going to take for KU to win tonight?
- Get off to a fast start.
Lately we've walked out of the gate and found ourselves in deficits. It's a good thing most KU fans missed the first 11 minutes of Saturday's game. I expect the first 7-8 minutes to be fast paced and emotionally charged for ISU. Making shots will keep the crowd level down, forcing misses would do even more. We need to be either ahead at half our within a few baskets.
- Honestly this should be #1, Transition defense.
ISU LIVES by pushing the pace off made/missed baskets. I cannot stress how much they play like UNC in regards to transition and secondary break. Naz Long has become their leading scorer as he's become their most consistent player driving to the hoop. With our lack of rim protection and just plain lazy defense sometimes this is a huge key to the game. Last year ISU pushed the pace and got a lot of easy baskets because the team was unaware of how fast ISU changes pace up the court. I believe that was the biggest factor in our loss in Ames last year. We cannot let it happen twice.
- Rebound.
Much like KU they rely on a collection of guys to rebound. Expect long misses off Naz Long 3's, 50/50 balls will be key. Lucas, Bragg & Jackson are key in this game in the battle of boards.
- Lucas
ISU's biggest player tonight is a freshman Solomon Young at 6'8, no bigger than Josh Jackson. I'm not sure what's wrong with Merrill Holden but he's missed the past 3 games. Lucas is huge is this game if we can get him in scoring position and he can make a catch and move to the basket. This has been an area he's really improved on lately which has cut down on turnovers for him. Lucas is also ISU's biggest matchup advantage if Landon is forced to guard Bowie or Young out on the perimeter. Bowie has only take 11 3's all year but at a 45% clip and he has slashing ability to get by Lucas. This could be a game we also look to Carlton Bragg to step up (if that's possible).
- Limit at least 1 perimeter player to below season averages.
A big part of why KU won Saturday which has gone mostly forgotten was KU's ability to shut down Evans, Forte & Carroll in the 2nd half. If Young and Bowie have career nights I'm okay with that because it most likely takes away points Thomas, Long and Morris could be chucking from outside. ISU doesn't shoot a lot of FT's, for reference KU has shot almost 100 more overall. Force this team off the 3 point line and into 2 point jumpers.
Huge game, I think a lot of KU fans are waiting for a reason to believe they really are worthy of being the #1 team in the nation. Tonight, a road win would be a huge statement win for this team.
I don't think any team in the country has a tougher stretch coming up then KU does. @ West Virginia, @ Kentucky and home vs Baylor in a 8 day stretch. Imagine if KU wins all three games, there would be no denying that KU is the #1 team in the country then.
The Next 10 games will shape this team for better or worse. We will truly see how good these guys are. 6 road games, hostile environments, emotionally charged up opponents and fans. We will see how much Heart Frank, Devonte, Josh, Landen, Svi, Carlton, Legerald have. This is what College Basketball is all about right here.
Some good points.
We are the white whale, we get everyone's best shot. Baylor going into KSU and winning is such a different emotional game then KU going into KSU and winning. KSU fans only semi-care about the other 8 home games on their slate. KU comes to town and its the holy grail. That in a nutshell is the issue, KU can have up to 18 emotionally charged games a year in conference play. Everyone wants to knock off Goliath, everyone wants to be apart of the process that knocks KU off the top.
We saw TCU confident with a better coach try their hardest to knock off KU at home- and they still lost.
We saw K-St play their best game of the season in Allen Fieldhouse and maybe their best effort in Allen in 1o years. They still lost whether we got the friendly call or not.
OU down in the ropes also tried their hardest but ran out of gas. Oklahoma St trying to avoid a similar fate in the Big-12 play came with their best effort of the season and still lost.
Tonight we get our toughest challenge to date, likely #1 on the road in a hostile environment against fans that want nothing more then to beat KU and rub it in our faces. Another emotionally charged opponent. Does KU match that intensity and find a way to win yet again? This is a game you hope KU get's "up" for.
I do think that losing Graham and gaining Young are one in the same.
With these top point guards they don't go to schools that don't promise them spots. Not that Young wouldn't earn the spot anyway, I'm just pointing out that in general the top point guards go where they know they will start from day 1. I imagine Self has said he will start at either guard position (most likely Mason's spot). And by all accounts he's good enough to earn the start as a freshman. With the situation we are potentially in, a freshman could be starting at either guard position next year.
If Graham was returning its hard to imagine Young would still be coming here because of the presence of Newman who's a shoe-in for one of the two guard positions. The what if scenario of Graham coming back and Young still going to KU anyway would give Self a lot of options like he has this year. It would seem a bit crowded though with Graham, Newman, Young competing for 2 spots. That's without even mentioning Garrett who is going to be a position-less type guard at KU at 6'6.
The staff prepared for losing Svi by getting Cunliffe. If Svi returns then we have a really good core of wings in Svi, Vick & Cunliffe who will be eligible in December. More than likely I think Svi will jump, he's having a solid year and his age makes him attractive to NBA teams looking for a 3 point specialist. Svi may end up stashed in Europe for a while if a team didn't think he was ready next year. If Svi does jump then the staff should definitely be on the lookout for another wing. Self should have at least 6 guards on scholarship next year as we've seen 5 this year is just cutting it a little to thin with running a 4 guard offense.
I'm glad your memory works that far back. lol
What I remember from the whole Mason ordeal was that in general- most KU fans overreacted to him being small and a de-commit from Towson. Add in that Mason was basically our 4th choice fallback plan and there was a lot of chatter of why we got this kid. If it wasn't for KU continuing to recruit I believe it was Mclaughin of USC even after he committed we would never have him to begin with. Crazy how that works out.
I do remember Jerry being high on him and I also remember Self saying that he basically got a steal after getting to know him and see his game.
I think kids like Mason are even harder to find these days with how much video is available from AAU ball these days.
Yeah he's ended up dead wrong with lucas and to some extent mason as well. I get the honesty and I respect him not pumping guys up for the sake of it.
Self has an unbelievable success rate with choosing the right guy's. With KJ I do think there is some long term intrigue, not even saying he would ever start here but if he was on a 4-5 year plan anything can happen. It looks like he will be a last resort anyway.
@BShark said:
Since I last posted BHam (I know some may disagree with his KU level player talk but he is fairly connected) relayed that he is a top 50 type talent and a combo guard moreso than a pure point.
I'll take him for whatever position he wants to play, maybe that 2nd ball handler role with whoever is our PG after this yr. Looks athletic enough to play the 2.
BHam usually has some good scoop. I just think he sometimes doesn't open his mind up to how a player will develop in time when the player is not a top 50-100 player
@Crimsonorblue22 said:
@BeddieKU23 Josh would have got one
Exactly Josh has gotten one for less. That kid was having a meltdown and somehow 3 refs just blindly looked the other way
I can't believe that kid Dillard didn't get a T after that play where Josh tried to dunk over him. That right there tells you that officiating will never be consistent.
The play with Waters was just plain stupid. I'm sure KU fans will let him know about it for the next 3 years and rightfully so
yes please, love his size at the pg spot
I think he took coaches words to heart. Self has said recently that he's wanted more from Vick from an energy and hustle perspective. At home he's played better. We need to see him bring it on the road
I'd be very happy if they did jump us but I don't see it happening.
probably a good thing he missed today's game (speaking of Trae) but our back-court did have 43 points and 79 of 87 came from our 5 guards.
I love Vick, he's been really good for most of the year. Lately he hasn't been as great but today he had some great hustle plays as you pointed out. I think he struggles offensively to figure out when he should drive or shoot. He's still getting comfortable with this team. Defense is still a big work in progress as we saw yet again today. He's only going to get better
To reply to the original post, I don't think this team is playing like a typical #1 team in the nation. We've yet to play 40 minutes of consistent dominate basketball. And yet we sit 5-0 in conference play and winners of 16 straight. There is no dominate team in College Basketball so whatever team gets the #1 ranking has earned it for that week and will have to fight like hell to keep it.
Today was a struggle, even when we finally got the lead and kept the advantage we saw struggles every minute. Terrible Free Throw Shooting, sometimes I wonder if they just get up there and close their eyes before they shoot. Some of the misses by Graham & Mason are just out of character. With Jackson, you just pray he can make some. What was he 10-17 today? That's terrible.
We had three 20 point scorers today. When was the last time that happened. I thought Devonte Graham had another strong game, that's now 3 straight strong games from him. That comes at a crucial point because Vick & Bragg are not giving us much on offense anymore. Vick had some hustle plays but Bragg had yet another non-impactful game.
We won by 7 and Frank Mason had an off shooting game. He really missed some easy one's and open shots. Still not his day and he went for 22!
This team has its flaws and it sure is exciting to watch at times. We'll see if we can weather the BOOOO storm in Ames Monday. We'll need to play our best basketball to win in that gym.
Great post!
I really hope that you find a way to enjoy this season because it certainly doesn't seem that way
Solid win. I knew we would get OSU'S Best effort especially for a team that was trying to avoid a 0-5 start. That lose pretty much put them in no man's land now.
Not a perfect game by any means but we saw these guys fight for that win!
Survival that's all that matters
Please jj make something