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MaroonGopher

MaroonGopher

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There is a lot at stake against the Wolverines. First, it's time for Tubby to exact some revenge against the team the thoroughly embarassed Minny last season...twice. Second, getting above .500 would be huge and stealing a win on the road is GIGANTIC, no matter who you're playing.
Third, for some reason, Northwestern makes me extremely nervous. I'm not sure the Gophers are going to be able to defeat them at home next Wednesday. I hate that damn zone and John Shurna -- despite looking like a Division III small forward -- is an offensive dynemo.

But then again, every game in conference play is huge, so....
 

HUGE road game and the type of game upper tier Big Ten teams should win. Michigan has beat us up lately and played Kansas very tough. This will be a huge road test for us.
 

Agree with you Maroon - a lot at stake. The two losses to Michigan nearly derailed the entire season last year. Getting a road win at Michigan shouldn't be as difficult as other places, given that Crisler Arena is a morgue, and their student support is modest at best.

We can beat NU and that damn 1-3-1 IF we attack it, instead of just passing it back and forth for 30 seconds and then forcing a bad shot.
 


Michigan looked horrible against Indiana.
 


^ yet they looked great againist 3 teams in the top 5. OSU, syracuse, Kansas by 14 pts combined
 

For whatever reason we always play like garbage against Michigan, doesn't help that it's in Ann Arbor. They have a few solid players in guys like Morris, Hardaway, etc. Definitely not one to look past.
 

The one thing is that the Gophers style of defense doesn't mesh well with Beilein's offense. They shoot a lot of 3 pointers and 3 point defense is a weakness.
 

Line for the Michigan Game

I would be surprised if the Gophers are favored by more than 2 for the Michigan game despite being a top 25 squad in next weeks poll.

Its amazing that the line for Iowa was 10.5 and the game ended in 10? The line always seems to be close to reality, so the Michigan game will be extremely difficult to win.
 



Michigan was due to have an off game - they're just too young (and bad) to play well consistently. They were trying to make their season against Kansas and OSU, and played their best for those games. They were due to have a let-down game against IU. Will they have two off games in a row? That's what you don't know, and something you can't know at this point.
 

Here are some rules Tubby Smith should follow in order to win this game.

(Note: Please be aware that due to Tubby's history of coaching style and philosophy there is only a small chance he will follow any of these rules, which will no doubt lead to 3-point opportunies for Michigan and a lot of yelling at the TV by yours truly).

1) Never Double-team anyone named Jordan Morgan in the post - even if Blake H. is guarding him.

2) Never Double-team anyone named Jon Horford in the post - even if Blake H. is guarding him.

3) The person guarding a player by the name of Zach Novak may NEVER leave him to help out on a double-team.

4) The ONLY person Michigan has that can drive to the basket and consistently finish is Darius Morris. If anyone else besides him decides to drive, let them and never come over with a double-team.

5) Stu Douglass, Zach Novak, Tim Hardaway Jr., Evan Smotrycz, and Matt Vogrich are all capable of hitting a three, but are incapable of driving to the basket and scoring at the rim consistently. You must treat these guys like other teams treat Blake Hoffarber. You cannot let them shoot. Get right in their grill and make them drive around you.
 

They won't "have" a bad game. The Gophers can give them a game that makes theirs a bad game. It's what makes our bb team so exciting, we never know what the heck team will show up for us.
 

josh087 said:
Here are some rules Tubby Smith should follow in order to win this game.

(Note: Please be aware that due to Tubby's history of coaching style and philosophy there is only a small chance he will follow any of these rules, which will no doubt lead to 3-point opportunies for Michigan and a lot of yelling at the TV by yours truly).

1) Never Double-team anyone named Jordan Morgan in the post - even if Blake H. is guarding him.

2) Never Double-team anyone named Jon Horford in the post - even if Blake H. is guarding him.

3) The person guarding a player by the name of Zach Novak may NEVER leave him to help out on a double-team.

4) The ONLY person Michigan has that can drive to the basket and consistently finish is Darius Morris. If anyone else besides him decides to drive, let them and never come over with a double-team.

5) Stu Douglass, Zach Novak, Tim Hardaway Jr., Evan Smotrycz, and Matt Vogrich are all capable of hitting a three, but are incapable of driving to the basket and scoring at the rim consistently. You must treat these guys like other teams treat Blake Hoffarber. You cannot let them shoot. Get right in their grill and make them drive around you.
Click to expand...

And cue someone saying you shouldn't give your opinion because you're not Tubby Smith in 5-4-3...
 



It won't be easy to win there as OSU & Kansas learned when both those games were in question in to the final minute or overtime (KU). It is an intriguing match up because we have such a mismatch inside but we'll likely struggle to guard them on the outside. Strength on weakness for both teams.
 

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