For all the discussion of the tournament, and then the bubble, this team has played like a bad high major team since the best win of the season over Michigan which occurred over a month ago.
Some of the things that go on with this team just baffle me. Eric Curry trying to split a double team at the top of the key? Tre Williams going between the legs step back jumper like he's James Harden (I believe he's like 1-7 on that shot in the last 3 games and bobbed his head all the way back down the court on the one he did make). Guys telegraphing passes and throwing them with no zip or purpose (looking at Mashburn, Williams, and Robbins here in the first half). Defensively, you had guys just dying on screens and forcing Robbins on a bad ankle to switch with them out on the perimeter. Then at some point everybody quit. You can argue when that happened, and I'd argue it was before the half court heave went in but they certainly were done after it.
One major frustration I have with Pitino basketball is his refusal to go small. Now with the injuries and defections this year it would have been difficult to do it today. Illinois second biggest guys was 6'6, Maryland started nobody taller than 6'6, I believe Purdue often was "small" at the 4, Iowa often plays Weiskamp there, etc, etc. What happens with us the past two years is we keep two bigs on the floor but we have no advantage because of it. We're not physical or skilled enough inside to take advantage of the size and we give up spacing and then on the other end of the court we're at a speed/skill disadvantage when trying to defend. With Robbins this year and Demir last year we have a guy who is not a strong rebounder and arguably at least a little soft manning one of those two front court positions. If you are going to stay big, you need to dominated the paint stats and we simply don't do that.
