Analysis after 3 games

[Pewterschmidt]

Just poured over the stats and here are some things that stand out (positive and negative). I know it's a very small sample size against less than stellar competition but there are interesting tidbits regardless.

On the plus side:

1. Nolen has a 21:2 assist to turnover ratio. That's crazy good.

2. DJ is 3rd in scoring, 4th in boards, 2nd in assists, 1st in blocks, and 1st in steals on the team. That's filling the stat sheet. I'd like to see his rebounding numbers increase but that's really nitpicking given what else he does.

3. Rodney has only 2 turnovers in 66 minutes. That's better than expected for a high-flying freshman.

4. Rodney, Westbrook, DJ, and Sampson are all shooting 58% or better from the field.

5. Rodney is 8 for 10 from the line while Nolen is 9 for 12. Those are good starts for players perceived to be average-at-best shooters.

On the down side

1. While it's only 2 games for Westbrook, he has yet to attempt a FT in 43 minutes.

2. Joseph, Nolen, and Hoffarber are all shooting 37% or less from the field. All have similar shooting % from 3 as well.

3. Iverson has as many shot attempts (6) as turnovers in 52 minutes.

4. Paul Carter has yet to notch an assist in 53 minutes. Everyone else on the roster has at least a couple of assists.

 

[Winnipegopher]

Having seen only two of the three games (last two). I am concerned about our shooting. Just like last year, this team may have to rely on Westbrook for alot of points. Hopefully Rodney can continue to score and Joseph starts to get going.

 

[monk10]

I'm not a basketball expert but when Joseph is running point it kind of looks like a pick up game. I think one time he didn't even pass the ball before he jacked up a shot. Aren't shooters generally better when they are in the flow of the offense?

 

[PeanutButterGopherTime]

I think you'll see Westbrook's FT attempts increase as we get closer to B10 play. He is still playing aggressively so I have no worries there. That and he only played in two of the three games. And let's remember, that first game with Ed Hightower there will probably be about 75 foul calls you can expect to see from benefit there.

 

[GVBadger]

Westbrook is critical to the team. Losing him for any length of time would be a serious problem. Williams looks like a fantastic player. Hard to believe many people thought he should red shirt. He will probably paly 25 minutes a game at this rate.

Sampson looks much stronger, not so much for Iverson. Hoff looks stronger as well.

Joesph looks more confident and if he shoots it better, he will be a very nice player.

Nolen just needs to not turn the ball over and he can be effective because of the defensive pressure he provides.

Johnson is the type of player Wisconsin has built their program on. A four year guy that improves every year and does everything on the floor. He is going to have a great senior year. He may never score enough for some, but more then makes up for it everywhere else. Really like him as a player.

Carter is a great athlete, but Williams looks to be a better athlete and already has better skills.

If I were Tubby, I would get rid of the other rif raf and go with these guys. They are going to be a fun team to watch and should have a nice year. How good? Who knows, but the pieces are certainly there.

 

[MRJ]

Westbrook is critical to the team. Losing him for any length of time would be a serious problem. Williams looks like a fantastic player. Hard to believe many people thought he should red shirt. He will probably paly 25 minutes a game at this rate.

Sampson looks much stronger, not so much for Iverson. Hoff looks stronger as well.

Joesph looks more confident and if he shoots it better, he will be a very nice player.

Nolen just needs to not turn the ball over and he can be effective because of the defensive pressure he provides.

Johnson is the type of player Wisconsin has built their program on. A four year guy that improves every year and does everything on the floor. He is going to have a great senior year. He may never score enough for some, but more then makes up for it everywhere else. Really like him as a player.

Carter is a great athlete, but Williams looks to be a better athlete and already has better skills.

If I were Tubby, I would get rid of the other rif raf and go with these guys. They are going to be a fun team to watch and should have a nice year. How good? Who knows, but the pieces are certainly there.

I agree. Tubby also stated last night that he felt that this group has great team chemistry, which I think is extremely important. As you said, this team has plenty of pieces to be a very good team. But as we've all found out over the years, talented teams also need to have good to excellent chemistry to be successful. And it appears this team has that.

Of course, it all depends upon how we play in the "money" games (76 Classic, Big Ten, likely NCAAs). But I like the mindset of this group. And if they can continue to grow together, I think we can have a really good year.

 

[oleboy41]

The biggest 2 questions on the team are
1- Guard play. We have a lot of them. The problem is that they are responsible for the flow of the offense. They did a very poor job of feeding the post yesterday and didn't have the ball movement you'd like to see.
2- Rebounding - Colt 45 is bigger but he looks very awkward out there. He'll need to get great position because even with his size he's not get boards out of his area and will get out jumped every week in conference. Sampson needs to improve there as well, and without White or Mbakwe Johnson and Carter will have to really fight down low

 

[ncgo4]

I was glad we beat Utah Valley last night and felt about the same way I felt following the football team's defeat of SDSU. UV is in it's first year as a full Div I school. We allowed them to hang on for far too long. We let small players drive to the basket way too often. The number of open 3 pointers, while coming off tough defense elsewhere was a concern. Key, however, was getting killed on the boards by a much shorter & less athletic team.

I assume this was a case of playing down to the opposition. It was not, in any sense, a good game by our beloved rodents. If we play like this against Butler we will make Northwestern's game against them look pretty good. I don't think it will happen, but it sure provided some things to think about as we head into the meat of the non-conference schedule.

 

[Golden Shower]

Just poured over the stats and here are some things that stand out (positive and negative). I know it's a very small sample size against less than stellar competition but there are interesting tidbits regardless.

On the plus side:

1. Nolen has a 21:2 assist to turnover ratio. That's crazy good.

2. DJ is 3rd in scoring, 4th in boards, 2nd in assists, 1st in blocks, and 1st in steals on the team. That's filling the stat sheet. I'd like to see his rebounding numbers increase but that's really nitpicking given what else he does.

3. Rodney has only 2 turnovers in 66 minutes. That's better than expected for a high-flying freshman.

4. Rodney, Westbrook, DJ, and Sampson are all shooting 58% or better from the field.

5. Rodney is 8 for 10 from the line while Nolen is 9 for 12. Those are good starts for players perceived to be average-at-best shooters.

On the down side

1. While it's only 2 games for Westbrook, he has yet to attempt a FT in 43 minutes.

2. Joseph, Nolen, and Hoffarber are all shooting 37% or less from the field. All have similar shooting % from 3 as well.

3. Iverson has as many shot attempts (6) as turnovers in 52 minutes.

4. Paul Carter has yet to notch an assist in 53 minutes. Everyone else on the roster has at least a couple of assists.

Stats are for LOSERS!!!

 

[From the Barn]

I was glad we beat Utah Valley last night and felt about the same way I felt following the football team's defeat of SDSU. UV is in it's first year as a full Div I school. We allowed them to hang on for far too long. We let small players drive to the basket way too often. The number of open 3 pointers, while coming off tough defense elsewhere was a concern. Key, however, was getting killed on the boards by a much shorter & less athletic team.

I assume this was a case of playing down to the opposition. It was not, in any sense, a good game by our beloved rodents. If we play like this against Butler we will make Northwestern's game against them look pretty good. I don't think it will happen, but it sure provided some things to think about as we head into the meat of the non-conference schedule.

Don't let raw numbers fool you, we thoroughly outrebounded them.
http://statsheet.com/mcb/games/2009/11/19/utah-valley-state-51-minnesota-76

 

[Mikie S]

The biggest 2 questions on the team are
1- Guard play. We have a lot of them. The problem is that they are responsible for the flow of the offense. They did a very poor job of feeding the post yesterday and didn't have the ball movement you'd like to see.
2- Rebounding - Colt 45 is bigger but he looks very awkward out there. He'll need to get great position because even with his size he's not get boards out of his area and will get out jumped every week in conference. Sampson needs to improve there as well, and without White or Mbakwe Johnson and Carter will have to really fight down low

Was Colt sick last night? It was perhaps the worst game I've seen him play.

 

[bga1]

Just poured over the stats and here are some things that stand out (positive and negative). I know it's a very small sample size against less than stellar competition but there are interesting tidbits regardless.

On the plus side:

1. Nolen has a 21:2 assist to turnover ratio. That's crazy good.

2. DJ is 3rd in scoring, 4th in boards, 2nd in assists, 1st in blocks, and 1st in steals on the team. That's filling the stat sheet. I'd like to see his rebounding numbers increase but that's really nitpicking given what else he does.

3. Rodney has only 2 turnovers in 66 minutes. That's better than expected for a high-flying freshman.

4. Rodney, Westbrook, DJ, and Sampson are all shooting 58% or better from the field.

5. Rodney is 8 for 10 from the line while Nolen is 9 for 12. Those are good starts for players perceived to be average-at-best shooters.

On the down side

1. While it's only 2 games for Westbrook, he has yet to attempt a FT in 43 minutes.

2. Joseph, Nolen, and Hoffarber are all shooting 37% or less from the field. All have similar shooting % from 3 as well.

3. Iverson has as many shot attempts (6) as turnovers in 52 minutes.

4. Paul Carter has yet to notch an assist in 53 minutes. Everyone else on the roster has at least a couple of assists.

I was thinking two things last night:

1. This club has a lot of streak shooters- Joseph, Westbrook, Hoff to name a few- this will make us unbeatable in some games and dissapointing in others. We don't run an offense with a ton of movement ( I don't like it much) so our outside shooting will be key.

2. Seeing how good Rodney is and thinking that he was rated our third best recruit leaves me wondering how good this club could be if we had all of them. This could have been a historic incoming class- maybe it still will be.

 

[Blizzard]

Was Colt sick last night? It was perhaps the worst game I've seen him play.

That could explain a lot. Myron Twittered earlier in the week, I think, that both Devoe and Bostick had flu type crud.

Once someone on the team gets it, it's pretty hard to keep it away from everyone else.