MBB: Duke 79, Michigan 69 Post-Game Thread

[Duvall]

Jabari went below 20 for the second straight game. Is it time to hit the panic button?

Why?

[Ichabod Drain]

Sorry but this isn't a good team we beat...
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bask...gan-wolverines

Kenpom disagrees slightly

[subzero02]

This team will take a while to find its identity... If it starts on the defensive end and finishes on the offensive end we'll be a top 5 team by the end of the year

[mr. synellinden]

Yeah, this was a 68-50 game with less than 2 minutes left. The rest of the game was a foul fest (by UM) and we were focused on not fouling more than playing defense or rebounding.

[CameronDuke]

The following stood out to me:

The absolute lock down defense that was played on Stauskas from Matt Jones and Tyler Thornton. I think that was the story of the game.

Very good rebounding effort from our bigs Jefferson and plumlee. The first and second points I just made were obvious focal points in practice.

Quinn was sensational passing and scoring. If he improves his assist to turnover ratio he will complement Hood and Parker on offense nicely.

We still got beat for a few easy dunks and messed up a few switches on dribble penetration at the top of the key that led to layups but defense was a lot better.

Matt Jones needs to play more. He is fundamentally outstanding and plays solid defense.

Marshall looked serviceable and Dre looked brilliant in spurts.

Parker is a stud.

[dukelifer]

Sorry but this isn't a good team we beat...
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bask...gan-wolverines

Probably right but they are a still a solid team who will make the tourney. Small steps.

[jipops]

Why?

Sarcasm

[jipops]

Nice board work from Amile tonight. Very nice D too.

Even Andre had a nice defensive play where he rotated over in the lane and deflected a pass. Maybe it's contagious?

[mgtr]

Very happy to see MP3 get some burn tonight. He made some positive contributions during his brief stint.

[Duvall]

Kenpom disagrees slightly

Top 20 in Kenpom and Sagarin predictor, but are we really sure this was a good win?

[SCMatt33]

Quick Rundown.

The Good:
Stopping Stauskas - Seriously, this was huge. There's been a lot to disparage about the defense this year, but taking away a team's number one option like that has always been a trademark of a Coach K defense. Great job by the guards.

Ball Handling - ESPN box score only has us down for 7 turnovers in the game. Michigan's defense can be complex at times switching from the man to the 1-3-1 trap and back very quickly, but Duke handled it pretty well. They didn't always get a great shot, but they almost always got a shot off.

Role Players - Jones, Jefferson, Plumlee, and Dawkins all made contributions to the game. Duke doesn't need these guys to play lights out, but a few plays a game like that can make a huge difference.

The Bad:
Passive Play - Especially on offense Duke was very passive. As good as they did to not turn it over, you have to question whether some of that was because they were not aggressive enough off of the dribble. Of Duke's 18 free throw attempts, 12 came once Michigan started fouling on purpose. There were only two plays in the game where someone did not try to avoid contact (a Jones drive in the 1st half and a Cook drive in the 2nd). Every other time, it was a floater or a spin move or a pull up. The refs are calling these games tight, and Duke did not take advantage of it.

Hand down, man down - There was a lot of great things to admire on the defense tonight, and you could even see improvement in some things that have been a struggle, like helping back in the lane on ball screens. One nit-picky thing that I keep seeing this year is that guys (especially Hood) won't put a hand up to challenge a jump shooter. It's such a simple thing, but it makes the game so much easier for shooters. Anyway, not to be too hard, because the defense really was great tonight.

The Ugly:
Please stop fouling - Beilein just did not give up at the end. On the one hand, it's hard to blame him for the strategy, because when you're down 16 with two minutes left, the only chance you have is to start fouling sooner rather than later. Most coaches wait until it's too late to make any difference, but that strategy won't get you on many Christmas card lists. On a related note, great job with the late game free throws (11-12) with Cook going 8-8 down the stretch by himself. Throw in that 3 of those were 1-and-1 situations which are always nerve wracking, and it was an impressive display that really kept the game from getting a little too close for comfort.

[wallyman]

Top 20 in Kenpom and Sagarin predictor, but are we really sure this was a good win?

Lots of folks here are hard to please. Great defense, huge minutes by Andre, Quinn's best game, nice moments from Marshall, great defense by Tyler and Matt, Jabari and Rodney with some big moments. Good rebounding overall. Only two downers were Rasheed not getting in the game and Dickie V, as noted by others, at his very worst. And if you want to find something to complain about there's Josh's shot. Otherwise, heck of a game.

[tbyers11]

Top 20 in Kenpom and Sagarin predictor, but are we really sure this was a good win?

Michigan is nowhere near the level of Kansas or Arizona but they are a youngish team that has a lot of new faces and old players in new roles. I think they were overrated in the preseason top 10 based on their runner-up finish last year but I guess they will be about a 5 seed come March.

So, yes, I vote good win.

As to the game. Very good D until the matador no foul D the last 3 minutes. Much more good Quinn than bad Quinn. Jabari didn't force things as much in the second half. Dre with a great 2 minute stretch that was the difference maker. Great D and rebounding from Amile and MP3

[CoachJ10]

Cook good, Kersey bad.

On a night where we had some very good performances (cook, marshall, dre)...I hate to focus on the refs...but they were atrocious tonight. Just awful. Jabari should have had at least 15 ft attempts (he was getting smacked on every attempt inside the paint).

Some nights refs are more noticeable than others...but if we had been losing this game and the refs acted like this tonight, I would have been irate.

Also...Quinn...good things happen when you drive to the hoop. Remember that!

[wilko]

Top 20 in Kenpom and Sagarin predictor, but are we really sure this was a good win?

I wont talk down a win. We played with lots of energy and verve tonight.
We keep doing THAT; we are in fine shape.

Better decision making and not forcing the issue when it wasnt there...
Defense did some good things. LIKED MP3 getting some action... Jones was doing good things..

There is a lot to like here even if we didnt beat them by 30

[Billy Dat]

This was a good win. Michigan is the 3rd best team we have played and we lost to the other two, regardless of how good you think they are. Winning this game was important.

Our defense and rebounding continue to improve. The offense looked stagnant at times but we were really trying to share the ball. I thought Jabari was great at passing out of the double team. Quinn Cook had a very solid game - the scoring, assists and free throw shooting. He still made a few bad decisions at critical moments, but Andre bailed him out with his 8 point burst with 8 minutes left when Michigan had cut it to 3.

It would be really interesting to examine the playing time, divided by halves, of everyone not named Jabari, Rodney or Quinn. Tonight, no Alex, Semi or Rasheed. MP3 got in early and seemed to do well but got limited run overall. We are so far from a settled rotation, playing time really seems up for grabs in a very fluid way.

I assume Stauskas was way less than 100%, I'd like to think that we shut him down but he was extremely ineffective and I have to think he's not close to 100%. Robinson was invisible, McGarry was pretty ineffective, Levert was really the star, I heard he even sang "Cassanova" before the game.

Good win, we continue to evolve. I look forward to K's post game comments.

[Kedsy]

Good win. Our D played pretty well, totally shut down Stauskas, and most of McGary's production and also Michigan's offensive rebounds came after the game was decided.

If [Quinn] improves his assist to turnover ratio he will complement Hood and Parker on offense nicely.

Quinn's current assist/turnover ratio is 3.56, which if he sustains over the course of the season will be a Duke all-time record (by a lot). How much does he need to improve before he nicely complements Rodney and Jabari?

[HaveFunExpectToWin]

Even Andre had a nice defensive play where he rotated over in the lane and deflected a pass. Maybe it's contagious?

He also got burned on a back door cut, but Andre's offense was definitely needed at that point in the 2nd half.

[GGLC]

Getting a little tired of Josh.

Really liked seeing the quality minutes from Matt; he looks good out there. Andre needs to play more too.

Marshall made multiple good plays!

[Kedsy]

He still made a few bad decisions at critical moments, but Andre bailed him out with his 8 point burst with 8 minutes left when Michigan had cut it to 3.

When Andre came in (just before he hit those shots), Michigan had cut the lead to 6 (not 3). The latest Michigan was within 3 was with Duke leading 12-9.