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Upon Further Review: Northwestern

Half 1

1st half differential
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 6:55 17-11 +6
Douglass, Lee, Harris, Novak, Gibson 1:05 0-0 0
Douglass, Lee, Harris, Shepherd, Gibson 1:29 0-2 -2
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Shepherd, Gibson 2:33 7-3 +4
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 2:50 4-4 0
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 2:05 0-2 -2
Merritt, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims :16 2-0 +2
Merritt, Douglass, Harris, Wright, Sims 1:44 0-2 -2
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Wright, Sims 1:03 3-0 +3
Total 20:00 33-24 -4

Half 2

2nd half differential
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 2:33 6-7 -1
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Gibson :56 0-0 0
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims :59 0-3 -3
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims :42 2-3 -1
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Gibson 2:41 3-2 +1
Merritt, Douglass, Harris, Wright, Gibson :42 5-0 +5
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Wright, Gibson 1:20 0-2 -2
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Gibson 2:00 9-5 +4
Douglass, Lee, Harris, Novak, Gibson 1:57 0-3 -3
Douglass, Lee, Harris, Novak, Sims 1:03 0-0 0
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims 4:05 5-5 0
Grady, Lee, Harris, Novak, Sims :22 4-2 +2
Grady, Lee, Harris, Novak, Gibson :46 1-3 -2
Total 20:00 35-35 0

Game totals

Lineup Totals
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 12:17 27-25 +2
Douglass, Lee, Harris, Novak, Gibson 3:02 0-3 -3
Douglass, Lee, Harris, Shepherd, Gibson 1:29 0-2 -2
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Shepherd, Gibson 2:33 7-3 +4
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 2:05 0-2 -2
Merritt, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims :16 2-0 +2
Merritt, Douglass, Harris, Wright, Sims 1:44 0-2 -2
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Wright, Sims 1:03 3-0 +3
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Gibson :56 0-0 0
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims 4:47 7-8 -1
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Gibson 2:41 3-2 +1
Merritt, Douglass, Harris, Wright, Gibson :42 5-0 +5
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Wright, Gibson 1:20 0-2 -2
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Gibson 2:00 9-5 +4
Douglass, Lee, Harris, Novak, Sims 1:03 0-0 0
Grady, Lee, Harris, Novak, Sims :22 4-2 +2
Grady, Lee, Harris, Novak, Gibson :46 1-3 -2
Total 40:00 68-59 +9

Individual players:

Manny Harris 33min +3

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1 0/2 0/1 2/2
Midrange 0/1
3-point 0/1 0/1

Tough day shooting, but he did a lot of other stuff (including a game-high 12 rebounds).

Laval Lucas-Perry 16min 0

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 0/1 1/1
Midrange
3-point 0/1 1/1 0/2

Less playing time than he’s been getting, and probably a reflection of how well he’s been shooting. Another long-ish break between games can hopefully get him back on track.

Zack Novak 31min +3

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 0/1
Midrange
3-point 0/4 1/1

Tough day shooting, but so many gritty white guy rebounds.

DeShawn Sims 25min +4

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1 0/1 4/4 1/2
Midrange 0/1
3-point

Owned the beginning of the game, then seemed to fade.

Kelvin Grady 26min +5

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1
Midrange 0/1
3-point 0/1 3/6

Standard performance from Kelvin. I’d like to see him shoot fewer 30-footers.

Zack Gibson 15min +5

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1 2/3
Midrange 1/1 1/1
3-point 0/1

With Sims in foul trouble, he really carried his own weight.

Stu Douglass 23min +9

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1/1
Midrange
3-point 1/2 1/2

Decent day. Obviously, there’s room for improvement.

CJ Lee 11min +1

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point

Standard CJ Lee.

David Merritt 11min +9

Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 1/2

Standard Dave Merritt

Jevohn Shepherd 4min +2
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 0/1

Got sparing playing time following a fairly strong perfomance against Penn State.

Anthony Wright 5min +4
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 1/2

Anthony Wright made a shot. This is a noteworthy event.

What This Says…

The offense was working best when they weren’t shooting exclusively from the outside. I’m not going to sit here and say “throw it inside and see what happens” because I’m well aware that’s not Michigan’s offense. On top of that, Michigan doesn’t have a Shaq in the paint. DeShawn Sims is a good post player with a midrange game, but he is undersized at center. What I’d like to see is the team make more of the backdoor passes, and be a little more patient than they sometimes are in launching longbombs from three. Taking the opportunity to probe the inside every now and then will open things up for the whole offense.

Posted under Analysis, Basketball

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Recruiting Update 1-26-09

Scout headline watch: “Deerfield Coach optimistic on Robinson, Witty.” Posted by GBW, the interpretation is pretty simple: optimistic of Michigan’s chances to land 2009 prospects Denard Robinson and Adrian Witty.

2009 LA LB Barkevious Mingo‘s best friend has accepted a preferred walkon opportunity at LSU. He’s trying to convince Mingo to join him in Baton Rouge:

Glynn added that he hopes to share a dormitory room with teammate Barkevious Mingo should his best friend and Blue Chip prospect choose LSU. “We hang out every day. Coach (Les) Miles told us we could room together if Barkevious decides to come there. It should be a fun four or five years if Barkevious decides on LSU.”

Glynn may get to live out his dream, as Mingo is likely to become a Tiger.

2009 SC OL Quinton Washington visited Tennessee this past weekend, will head to Miami this upcoming weekend, and entertained Rich Rodriguez and co. in-home last week.

Muck fluff featuring a cameo from 2009 RB commit/enrollee Vincent Smith:

“Life is a struggle,” said former Pahokee running back Vincent Smith, now playing at Michigan. “It’s a learning experience because you have to be able to adapt quickly or you can easily get into trouble. Playing sports helped put me on the outside of some of the circumstances and struggles in the town.”

LA WR Travante Stallworth is down to Auburn, Michigan, and South Carolina. He had his Auburn official last weekend, which probably determined whether or not he’ll recommit to the Tigers.

Removed 2009 GA S Darren Myles from the board:

Until recently, OSU was hopeful of adding Atlanta Carver safety Darren Myles — ranked among the nation’s top 10 safeties — to its 2009 class (signing day is Feb. 4).

Myles was supposed to be up for an official visit last weekend, but never came, reportedly because of inclement weather. He now says his decision is between Alabama and Louisiana State.

He’ll also take a Kentucky visit, but all of those options are still distinctly non-Michigan.

Also removed 2009 OH CBs Dale Peterman and Mike Edwards, who committed to Syracuse and Tennessee, respectively. OLs Khalil Wilkes and Henry Conway committed to Stanford and Sparty, respectively. LA DE Bennie Logan committed to LSU, which has to help Michigan (if ever-so-slightly) with SC DE Sam Montgomery.

2010 OH WR Jerald Robinson visited Ohio State for their recent junior day. He is hearing from most schools around the midwest, but has only visited Michigan, Ohio State, and Sparty.

Added to the 2010 board: OH DE Derrick Bryant and MI Ath Daniel Easterly, at the recommendation of commenter Griffin Fraley. Also added: FL OL Chaz Green, a high school teammate of QB prospect Christian Green who has been garnering some pretty good attention himself.

Posted under Football, Recruiting

An Open Letter

An Open Letter to MSU Director of Athletics Mark Hollis,

Mr. Hollis,

As I’m sure you are well aware by now, two of your university’s hockey players, Corey Tropp and Andrew Conboy, were involved in a disgraceful incident Friday night in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Both of them participated in actions that were immoral; the actions by Mr. Tropp can be described by no less severe terms than absolutely inhuman. I can only imagine your embarrassment, the embarrassment felt by the parents of these two student-athletes must be unbearable.

Following the game, Men’s Ice Hockey Head Coach Rick Comley stated that he would discipline each player following their actions. While the effort of Mr. Comley is certainly a start, there is no possible way that it is enough. The Central Collegiate Hockey Association will undoubtedly suspend Mr. Conboy, and Coach Comley may choose to discipline him further. This is acceptable punishment. Mr. Tropp, on the other hand, should likely be tried in a court of law for assault with a deadly weapon. If you are a man of integrity, Mr. Hollis (and none of your previous actions would imply otherwise), Mr. Tropp should be kindly informed that his services with a hockey stick (be they scoring goals or attempting to murder an opposing player as he lay prone on the ground) are no longer welcome in East Lansing, and if he would like to continue as a student at Michigan State University, he may do so without the benefit of a grant-in-aid from the athletic department.

Do you really want to send the message to prospective athletes that Michigan State is a school that not only condones, but champions thuggery and criminal acts? No school, much less an esteemed academic institution like Michigan State, should ever accept behavior like this from any of its students, and student-athletes are more accountable than any others. For the athletic department to not only allow such acts, much less pay a student to commit them, is unconscionable. I know this is a difficult decision for you to make, Mr. Hollis, but there is a right choice and a wrong one. Please, for the sake of a student at a neighboring university who had to be taken to the hospital in a neck brace on a backboard, make the right one.

Sincerely,

Timothy Sullivan
sullivti@umich.edu

The link to Hollis’s e-mail address is there for a reason. Let him know how you feel.

Posted under Hockey

Big Ten 2009 Recruiting Class Rankings 1-25-09

Action since last rankings:
1-16-09 Illinois loses commitment from Craig Drummond. Northwestern gains commitment from Davon Custis.
1-17-09 Penn State gains commitment from John Urschel. Penn State gains commitment from Shawney Kersey.
1-18-09 Indiana gains commitment from Damon Sims.
1-19-09 Michigan State gains commitment from Kevin Muma. Northwestern gains commitment from Damien Proby. Minnesota loses commitment from Taikwon Paige.
1-22-09 Michigan State gains commitment from Henry Conway. Penn State gains commitment from MIke Wallace (Not That Mike Wallace). Wisconsin loses commitment from Conor O’Neal.
1-24-09 Illinois gains commitment from Eric Watts.
1-25-09 Illinois gains commitment from Akeem Spence. Iowa gains commitment(!) from Micah Hyde.

New Rankings:

#1 Ohio State – 24 commits
LB ***** Dorian Bell
CB ***** Corey Brown
RB **** Jaamal Berry
DE **** Melvin Fellows
CB **** CJ Barnett
WR **** James Jackson
MLB **** Storm Klein
MLB **** Jordan Whiting
RB **** Jordan Hall
OG **** Corey Linsley
OT **** Jack Mewhort
S **** Jamie Wood
WR **** Justin Green
RB **** Carlos Hyde
WR **** Chris Fields
CB **** Dominic Clarke
WR **** Duron Carter
DE *** Jonathan Newsome
TE *** Reid Fragel
DT *** Adam Bellamy
FB *** Adam Homan
LB *** Zach Boren
OL *** Sam Longo
DT *** Johnny Simon

Up: Duron Carter (from 3*)

#2 Michigan – 20 commits
DT ***** William Campbell
CB **** Justin Turner
QB **** Tate Forcier
OL **** Taylor Lewan
RB **** Fitzgerald Toussaint
S **** Vladimir Emilien
WR **** Jeremy Gallon
OL **** Michael Schofield
DT **** DeQuinta Jones
DE **** Anthony LaLota
DE **** Craig Roh
DT **** Pearlie Graves
WR **** Cameron Gordon
S *** Isaiah Bell
RB *** Teric Jones
S *** Mike Jones
LB *** Brandin Hawthorne
RB *** Vincent Smith
S *** Thomas Gordon
K ** Brendan Gibbons
#3 Michigan State – 21 commits
RB **** Edwin Baker
RB **** Larry Caper
SLB **** Chris Norman
OL **** David Barrent
WR **** Donald Spencer
DT **** Blake Treadwell
QB **** Andrew Maxwell
OL **** Nate Klatt
LB **** Jeremy Gainer
TE **** Dion Sims
WR *** Dana Dixon
LB *** Tyquan Hammock
OL *** Micajah Reynolds
WR *** Patrick White
DE *** Dan France
LB *** Denicos Allen
WR *** Bennie Fowler
OL *** Henry Conway
K ** Kevin Muma
TE ** Derek Hoebing
DE ** Corey Freeman
#4 Notre Dame – 17 commits
RB **** Cierre Wood
WR **** Shaquelle Evans
OL **** Chris Watt
RB **** Theo Riddick
DT **** Tyler Stockton
OL **** Alex Bullard
LB **** Dan Fox
OL **** Zach Martin
LB **** Zeke Motta
S *** Nyshier Oliver
S *** EJ Banks
TE *** Tyler Eifert
MLB *** Carlo Calabrese
P *** Ben Turk
K ** Nicholas Tausch
TE ** Jake Golic
OL ** Jordan Cowart

Down: Cierre Wood (From 5*). Up: Jordan Cowart (From 1*)

#5 Penn State – 26 commits
QB **** Kevin Newsome
LB **** Gerald Hodges
OT **** Eric Shrive
CB **** Darrell Givens
S **** Derrick Thomas
LB **** Glenn Carson
DE *** Sean Stanley
S *** Stephen Obeng-Agyapong
S *** Malcolm Willis
C *** Ty Howle
CB *** Stephon Morris
WR *** Brandon Felder
OT *** Adam Gress
OL *** Nate Cadogan
RB *** Curtis Dukes
ATH *** Devon Smith
K *** Anthony Fera
WR *** Shawney Kersey
CB ** Mike Wallace
OL ** John Urschel
QB ** Curtis Drake
OG ** Frank Figueroa
WR ** Christian Kuntz
OT ** Mark Arcidiacono
DE ** Garry Gilliam
DE ** Jordan Hill

Down: Sean Stanley (from 4*)

#6 Illinois – 22 commits
WR **** Kraig Appleton
DT **** Lendell Buckner
OT **** Leon Hill
QB **** Nathan Scheelhaase
RB **** Bud Golden
WR **** Terry Hawthorne
DT *** Akeem Spence
ATH *** Eric Watts
OL *** Jamar Bass
OL *** Andrew Carter
OL *** Aaron Gress
FB *** Greg Fuller
OL *** Hugh Thornton
DT *** Tank Carradine
WR *** Steve Hull
S *** Tommie Hopkins
CB ** Joelil Thrash
OL ** Jake Feldmeyer
LB ** Darryl Lee
TE ** Justin Lattimore
DE ** Tom Kynard
Ath ** Walt Aikens

Up: Tommie Hopkins (From 2*), Tom Kynard (From 1*)

#7 Wisconsin – 18 commits
DT **** Jared Kohout
DE **** Shelby Harris
DE **** David Gilbert
RB **** Montee Ball
LB *** Conor O’Neill
DE *** Tyler Dippel
OG *** Ryan Groy
QB *** Jon Budmayr
OT *** Zac Matthias
TE *** Brian Wozniak
MLB *** Chris Borland
OL *** Travis Frederick
LB *** AJ Fenton
WR *** Jeff Duckworth
DE *** Pat Muldoon
OL ** Casey Dehn
S ** Jason Peprah
CB ** Darious Thomas
#8 Minnesota – 18 commits
RB **** Hasan Lipscomb
WR **** Hayo Carpenter
QB *** Moses Alipate
C *** Ed Olsen
OT *** Josh Campion
WR *** Victor Keise
OL *** Brooks Michel
LB *** Kendell Gregory-McGhee
DB *** Kerry Lewis
TE *** Ra’Shede Hageman
DT *** Joey Searcy
DE *** Matt Garin
OL *** Jeff Wills
S *** Kenny Watkins
Ath *** Bryant Allen
LB *** Brent Singleton
DE ** Nick Rengel
K ** Dan Orseske
#9 Indiana – 16 commits
QB *** Edward Wright-Baker
DT *** Adam Replogle
WR *** Jamonne Chester
WR *** Duwyce Wilson
OL *** Charles Chapman
QB *** Dustin Kiel
OL *** Colin Rodkey
CB *** Lawrence Barnett
K *** Mitch Ewald
S *** Nick Zachery
S *** Demetrius Carr
S *** Ted Bolser
OL *** Pat McShane
DE ** Javon Cornley
OL ** Aaron Price
LB * Damon Sims
#10 Northwestern – 18 commits
OL **** Patrick Ward
QB *** Evan Watkins
DE *** Davon Custis
LB *** Damien Proby
RB *** Mike Trumpy
DE *** Anthony Battle
LB *** Will Studlien
OL *** Taylor Paxton
DB *** Davion Fleming
RB *** Arby Fields
LB *** Roderick Goodlow
OL ** Brian Smith
WR ** Drew Moulton
LB ** Tim Riley
LB ** Tyler Scott
DE ** John Plasencia
K ** Jeff Budzein
S ** Cooper Gerami

Up: Cooper Gerami (From 1*).

#11 Purdue – 18 commits
RB **** Al-Terek McBurse
DT *** Eric McDaniel
DE *** Shayon Green
TE *** Gabrison Holmes
WR *** Xavier Reese
DE *** Antwon Higgs
WR *** Eric Williams
DT ** Cody Davis
DE ** Trevor Foy
S ** Ishmael Aristide
WR ** Gary Bush
QB ** Rob Henry
WR ** Josh Johnson
DT ** Brandon Taylor
DB ** Chris Quinn
DT ** Xavier Melton
DE ** Justin Kitchens
QB ** Najee Tyler

Up: Najee Tyler (From 1).

#12 Iowa – 12 commits
WR **** Keenan Davis
RB **** Brandon Wegher
WR *** Jordan Cotton
FB *** Brad Rogers
OL ** Drew Clark
DT ** Scott Covert
OL ** Brett Van Sloten
TE ** Anthony Schiavone
LB ** Tyler Harrell
LB ** Shane DiBona
LB ** Martin Hopkins
CB ** Joshua Brown
QB ** Micah Hyde

Posted under Football, Recruiting

Basketball LiveBlog with WLA

You know this is how you want to spend your Saturday night…

Posted under Basketball, Hockey

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Preview: Northwestern

Or: Tim’s foray into tempo-free statistics.

The Wolverines take on Just Northwestern at 8PM tonight in Crisler Arena. The game can be seen on Big Ten Network.

Tempo-Free and efficiency comparison (if you need an explanation of what any of these things mean, head to KenPom’s website):

Michigan v. Northwestern: National Ranks
Category Michigan Northwestern Advantage
Mich eFG% v. NU eFG% D 125 89 N
Mich eFG% D v. NU eFG% 167 59 NN
Mich TO% v. NU Def TO% 4 14 M
Mich Def TO% v. NU TO% 141 32 NN
Mich OReb% v. NU DReb% 250 261 M
Mich DReb% v. NU OReb% 214 326 MM
Mich FTR v. NU Opp FTR 321 149 NN
Mich Opp FTR v. NU FTR 14 244 MMM
Mich AdjO v. NU AdjD 35 35
Mich AdjD v. NU AdjO 137 73 N

Differences of more than 100 places in the rankings garner two-letter advantages, differences of more than 200 get a third.

Northwestern, despite its reputation and unceremonious start to the season (namely, an 0-4 start in the conference), has reeled off two straight victories over top tiered competition in wins against Minnesota and AT Michigan State. The Wildcats are similar to Michigan, in that they shoot a bunch of threes and play a 1-3-1 defense. That defense was the key to their victory over Michigan State, as they were forcing turnovers left and right, and Michigan State had one of their worst shooting nights of the year. With Michigan facing the 1-3-1 every day in practice, do they have a slight advantage against it? Since Michigan’s slide began (which, in all honesty, began as early as the Wisconsin game, and at least as far back as the nail-biter over Indiana), the Wolverines have been falling fast down the rankings in terms of shooting percentage and opponents’ shooting percentage. Are these issues that can be corrected? For the most part, Michigan has simply been missing open looks, and opponents have been turning that offensive offense into confidence on their end of the court, where they’re making shots both open and ridiculous (Devan Dumes and Danny Morrissey excelling at the latter). If the long week of practice helps Michigan snap out of their funk, this game may not be as ugly as it first appears. If Manny Harris and DeShawn Sims can both play well tonight (something that hasn’t happened in quite some time), and a third player (one of Novak, LLP, ad Harris) can step up, that will go a long way to solving Michigan’s offensive woes.

Northwestern is led by guard Craig Moore, who leads the team in minutes played and eFG%. Sophomore guard Micheal Thompson is also a sharp-shooter for the Wildcats. The primary big man is junior Kevin Coble, who stamds 6-8, and has range not only in the paint, but also all the way out to three-point land. He could be considered something of a less-athletic DeShawn Sims. Most importantly, he gets very few offensive rebounds, but leads the team in defensive rebounding (among those who play significant minutes). The two most important players to shut down are Moore and Coble, but with Michigan’s luck, that just means some unheralded role player will step up and shoot the lights out.

With the three-game slide behind them, and a difficult slate up ahead, this game has become a must-win if Michigan wants to have any chance to win the tournament. If the long week of practice (and playing the role of underdog) can help Michigan, they may just be able to pull one off.

Posted under Basketball

UFR: OSU and PSU

Raw data for both UFRs can be found in last night’s post.

Ohio State:

Half 1

1st half differential
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 4:22 4-9 -5
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 2:32 2-4 -2
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims :06 2-0 +2
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Gibson 4:37 6-8 -2
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 1:02 0-2 -2
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Novak, Sims 2:11 0-0 0
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Harris, Sims :48 2-0 +2
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Harris, Sims 1:20 2-4 -2
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 3:04 7-2 +5
Total 20:00 25-29 -4

Half 2

2nd half differential
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 8:30(!) 15-11 +4
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 2:24 5-4 +1
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Harris, Gibson 2:16 3-2 +1
Merritt, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Gibson :35 0-3 -3
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims 3:44 3-7 -4
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims :55 0-2 -2
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims :40 2-3 -1
Grady, Douglass, Lee, Harris, Sims :19 3-2 +1
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims :35 0-1 -1
Total 20:00 37-40 -3

Game totals

Lineup Totals
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 14:00 21-20 -1
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 2:32 2-4 -2
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Harris, Gibson 2:16 3-2 +1
Merritt, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Gibson :35 0-3 -3
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 6:23 12-8 +4
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Gibson 4:37 6-8 -2
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims 4:59 5-11 -6
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Novak, Sims 2:11 0-0 0
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Harris, Sims :48 2-0 +2
Grady, Douglass, Lee, Harris, Sims :19 3-2 +1
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Harris, Sims 1:20 2-4 -2
Total 60:00 58-65 -7

Individual players:

Manny Harris 37min -7
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1 0/3 0/1 2/2
Midrange 1/1 1/1
3-point 0/2 2/3

Manny was up-and-down. Even when he makes it, I don’t like the hesitation three-ball.

Laval Lucas-Perry 26min +1
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1/1
Midrange 0/1
3-point 0/2 0/1 0/1

Awful. This has been a trend of late.

Zack Novak 37min -10
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1
Midrange
3-point 0/2 1

Had a good day rebounding the ball. Not so much shooting.

DeShawn Sims 32min -4
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 0/1 1/4 2/3 1/2
Midrange 0/1 0/1
3-point 0/1

Bad day. He’d recover against PSU.

Kelvin Grady 27min -6
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1/1
Midrange
3-point 1/1 0/3

Poor effort from three, but did a lot of setting other guys up.

Zack Gibson 8min -2
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 0/1
Midrange
3-point

So bad.

Stu Douglass 21min -9
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 0/1 2/4 2/3

A pretty good day behind the arc.

CJ Lee 6min +2
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 0/1 1/1

Let’s be honest: he’s in there for his defense.

David Merritt 6min -4
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 0/1
Midrange
3-point

Needs to make the few opportunities he’ll get.

What This Says…

Michigan was actually in this game for most of the way. There were a few dry spells toward the end that really did them in, and no personnel combo that Beilein tried could alter the momentum.

Penn State:

Half 1

1st half differential
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 4:32 7-4 +3
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims 3:33 2-7 -5
Grady, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Gibson 3:36 3-9 -6
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Harris, Gibson :01 0-0 0
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Harris, Gibson :24 0-0 0
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Harris, Sims 3:52 4-2 +2
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Novak, Shepherd, Sims :17 0-0 0
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Novak, Shepherd, Sims 1:57 4-3 +1
Grady, Douglass, Lee, Shepherd, Sims 1:52 2-4 -2
Total 20:00 22-29 -7

Half 2

2nd half differential
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 3:08 2-8 -6
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims 2:11 4-5 -1
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Gibson 1:17 2-6 -4
Grady, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Gibson :29 0-2 -2
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Gibson :22 0-0 0
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Sims 1:22 2-5 -3
Merritt, Douglass, Novak, Shepherd, Sims :36 2-0 +2
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Novak, Shepherd, Sims :05 2-0 +2
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Shepherd, Sims 2:37 7-7 0
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 3:29 3-10 -7
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Gibson 1:19 2-0 +2
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Wright, Shepherd, Gibson 1:54 5-1 +4
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Wright, Puls, Gibson 1:09 5-0 +5
Total 20:00 36-44 -8

Game totals

Lineup Totals
Lineup Time on Floor Score Differential
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 7:40 9-12 -3
Grady, Lucas-Perry, Novak, Shepherd, Sims 1:57 4-3 +1
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Sims 5:44 6-12 -6
Grady, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Gibson 4:05 3-11 -8
Grady, Douglass, Lee, Shepherd, Sims 1:52 2-4 -2
Grady, Douglass, Harris, Novak, Gibson 1:17 2-6 -4
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Harris, Gibson :01 0-0 0
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Harris, Gibson :24 0-0 0
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Lee, Harris, Sims 3:52 4-2 +2
Merritt, Lucas-Perry, Novak, Shepherd, Sims :17 0-0 0
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Gibson :22 0-0 0
Merritt, Douglass, Lee, Novak, Sims 1:22 2-5 -3
Merritt, Douglass, Novak, Shepherd, Sims :36 2-0 +2
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Novak, Shepherd, Sims :05 2-0 +2
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Shepherd, Sims 2:37 7-7 0
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Sims 3:29 3-10 -7
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Harris, Novak, Gibson 1:19 2-0 +2
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Wright, Shepherd, Gibson 1:54 5-1 +4
Douglass, Lucas-Perry, Wright, Puls, Gibson 1:09 5-0 +5
Total 60:00 58-73 -15

Individual players:

Manny Harris 26min -10
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 2 1/2 0/1 1/1 0/1
Midrange 0/2 2/2
3-point 0/3 0/1 0/1

I’d still like him to keep trying to draw contact; eventually they’ll have to call fouls.

Laval Lucas-Perry 25min +6
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1/1 0/1
Midrange 1/1
3-point 0/5 0/1

Really bad shooting day.

Zack Novak 28min -24
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1/1 0/2
Midrange
3-point 0/2 1/2

Did the little things well, but not so much on the shooting.

DeShawn Sims 29min -16
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1/2 1/2 1/1 2/2
Midrange 1/1 3/5
3-point

The only god player for the whole team. He didn’t have enough to carry them by himself.

Kelvin Grady 23min -22
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 1/4 0/1

Got much less playing time than usual. He was struggling with his shot, but kept putting them up.

Zack Gibson 11min -1
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1/1 0/1
Midrange 0/1
3-point 1/1

Bad day. Needs to show off his whiteboy athleticism.

Stu Douglass 26min -15
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 2/2 1/4 0/2

Mediocre shooting day.

CJ Lee 12min -11
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 0/1

Poor performance in somewhat limited time.

David Merritt 7min +1
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 0/1
Midrange 0/1
3-point

Very little playing time.

Anthony Wright 3min +9
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point 0/1

Garbage time only.

Jevohn Shepherd 9min +7
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane 1/1 1/1
Midrange 0/1
3-point

Was one of the few guys who played more than just garbage time with a positive number. The team didn’t do too much scoring when he was in, but nor did the opponent. I’d like to see him on the court as a complement to high-scoring players.

Eric Puls 1min +5
Location 0 1 2 3 F
Lane
Midrange
3-point

Garbage only.

What This Says…

DeShawn Sims was the only consistent player all day. The entire team struggled shooting, and they were putting up poor looks. I think that a long week of practice (this team hasn’t had more than a couple days off in quite some time) will help them get back on track. Is it too late, though?

Posted under Analysis, Basketball

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Recruiting update 1-23-09

Tennessee is trying to nab LA DT DeQuinta Jones from Michigan’s evil clutches. Rich Rodriguez was also in-home this week, and DD will visit Michigan and Tennessee over the next two weekends, respectively.

The volunteers’ new staff is also trying to fortify their commitment from PA WR Je’Ron Stokes with in-home visits (commitment swap?). He has visits remaining to Illinois and Georgia Tech over the next two weekends. Without PSU jumping headlong into things, I’d imagine Tennessee and Michigan are the realistic choices for Stokes.

Speaking of elsewhere-committed wideouts, FL WR Willie Haulstead is taking his FSU official this weekend. If he comes out of the visit without reaffirming his commitment, MIchigan’s chances have to look pretty good.

RR also visited with SC DE Sam Montgomery last night. The Wolverines are in Sam’s top group, and most of his in-home visits have taken place over the course of this week.

Sam Webb Freep fluff on 2010 MI CB/Slot Dior Mathis.

“The education is first for my parents and my coach,” he said. “They always stay on me about that, so education first. The second thing is, am I going to be able to play as a freshman? The third thing is I want to win a national championship. Those are really the main three goals right now going into college. I’m just going to take my time, focus on my grades and wait until my senior year (to make a decision).”

Wolverine commitments Teric Jones and Thomas Gordon aren’t shy about sharing their opinions about where they think their young comrade should go. “Every time they come around, they always tell me, ‘Go Blue,’ ” Mathis said.

So, the relevant information is as follows: 1) the other Cass Tech guys are (rather predictably) recruiting him for the Wolverines, 2) he wants to be able to win a championship at his school, 3) and he won’t decide until sometime during his senior year. #3 is good for Michigan in terms of #2, in that they’ll have a chance to prove that 2008 was a fluke by the time Mathis decides.

2010 TX RB Lache Seastrunk may be part of an enormous package deal.

There is talk fluttering around that there is a mega package deal in the 2010 class that involves some of the best players in the entire nation. Oregon isn’t a front runner for the package deal that includes probable overall #1 player Lache Seastrunk, [TX CB] Toney Hurd JR, [TX OLB] Shaun Lewis, and [LA Slot WR] Trovon Reed.

Michigan has consistently been mentioned as one of Seastrunk’s front-runners (in the top 5-ish, behind a top 2 of Texas and LSU), so I wouldn’t be surprised if Michigan gets in on the other guys. They have been added to the board. For his part, Reed (a high school quarterback) liked the way West Virginia used Pat White under RR.

Fluff on 2010 AR RB Michael Dyer.

2010 PA CB Cullen Christian was apparently in the house for Michigan’s hoops loss to Ohio State on Saturday. I haven’t seen any confirmation ex post facto, so take that for what it’s worth.

2010 GA QB Blake Sims and teammate Slot Tai-ler Jones are expecting visitors from some midwest schools this week. There is also mention of junior days, which leads me to ask “when is Michigan having junior days?” I assume, at this point, it likely won’t be until after signing day as the 2009 class gets finished up in full-throttle mode.

Removed from the 2010 board: WI LB Konrad Zagzebski, who has committed to Minnesota.

Posted under Football, Recruiting

Helmet Stickers? Really?

There are few things stupider and more pointless than a blog fight.  One thing somehow incredibly more stupid is judging a player’s charachter who has worked his ass off for five years by his helmet at a meaningless all-star game.  I was actually surprised and a little bit depressed that this is actually an issue.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! IT IS A MEANINGLESS ALL STAR GAMEThe apparently offensive photo is via Spawn of MZone. It shows graduating 5th year and two year starter Morgan Trent with stickers from other teams, including a buckeye sticker, on his helmet. It seems that leading up to the game the players trade these stickers for fun and to show some sportsmanship. It’s some fun that people 21-24 are having in one of the last football games where they will make an impact.

Maize & Blue Nation lives up to it’s reputation of any blog with “Nation” in its name (obvious a gross generalization. See Burnt Orange Nation) hoping that Morgan Trent fails in the pros.  The post on Spawn of MZone is less offensive but managed the same misplaced indignation. WLA as per usual has responded in their… unique… way.

I really can’t imagine that people actually care about stickers on Trent’s helmet.  Yes, Michigan does have the best helmet in college football; it’s an icon. But really?  It’s just Morgan having some fun with guys he’s meeting who have gone through a common experience.  I’ll bet most of the backlash is due to the fact that Trent gave up more big plays than any of us would have liked and wasn’t as good this year as he was last year.

Personally, I never understood disliking players that aren’t good.  There’s only so much a player can do in order to become good.  Sure working out, practicing hard, etc., make a difference, but a lot of it is god-given talent.  Some players just can’t become as good as we’d like them to be.  That doesn’t mean they aren’t working their asses off for their 4 to 5 years at Michigan.  The players that I tend to disregard more are those that have huge talent and don’t do what they need to.

I know we like to pretend that every opinion is a precious, unique snowflake, but that’s not true, especially on the Internet.  While WLA may make their point in a offputting way, that doesn’t change the fact that they’re right.  It’s not about controlling all thought on the Internet or propagating a particular message. It’s a difference between right and wrong, smart and stupid, fan of Michigan and Michigan Man™.  Trent worked his ass off for 5 years. Maybe he wasn’t the CB we wanted him to be or the WR he planned to be as a freshman, but it’s the journey not the destination that makes someone a non-ironic Michigan Man.  He’s earned that distinction and busted coverages and helmet stickers can’t take that away from him.

Posted under Blog News

UFR Data: Ohio State and Penn State

Just the raw numbers for you tonight, actual UFR analysis to come tomorrow.

Ohio State

Penn State

Posted under Analysis, Basketball

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