Red Flags from Marquette Game

[muskiefan92]

Well said, Oldhoopster2. I hope X can take Villanova to the wire also but, like you, fear they will put it to them on their home floor. They just look like the more complete team offensively and defensively.

[kyzrex]

I’m less concerned about the “matchups” than most, I guess. Xavier has shown that they don’t matchup well with teams that have multiple small quick good shooting guards, but other than those type of teams (and how many of those are there actually?), they seems to be able to handle any other type of team. They have a lot of options, and a lot of depth. X has several players that are matchup problems for other teams, and Bluiett has the ability to put a team on his shoulders and carry them. How many teams have a player like him? Very few.

There are more than 2 months left in the season. X needs to stay healthy and improve in a few areas. It needs to peak in March, not in December.

Just enjoy the show....

[xu koop scoop]

. Being a Florida follower & busy cleaning up my daughters house mess from Hurricane Irma, I admit last night was 1st game I watched all year. Scruggs seemed energetic on D and 4 assists, 0 turnovers was awesome. He didn't seem to force any passes at all & had a nice driving layup. Kanter only had 11 minutes & I would like to see him take it to the hole more, yet he is the 1st 3 ball threat as a Big in recent years. Amongst our 3 bigs, Jones seems best on D, then Kantner & lastly Omara.. Those 3 bigs did log 51 minutes, so obviously 2 at a time are on the floor quite a bit. I suppose Gates is sort of a big & his D presence is pretty awesome. So who are the biggest D deficiencies on this team?, Count on the coaches to continue adjusting defensive schemes to better fit the personnel we have to work with. When you are in the Top 5 in the country in FG Pct & FT Pct it would seem that is because of Great Shooters, but doesn't good D also contribute to good shooting Pct. (ex: steals for breakout layups,etc...)
.

[Pierre Dracot]

What you're forgetting is that Mack is a maestro--a Fellini or Toscanini. He's in control of almost every situation.

[yellow20xd]

What they are today isn't what they'll be in a couple of months... Mack and the boys will work to improve... Sit back an enjoy... Dan

[bleedXblue]

You know things are good when we just beat a pretty good team on the road in the BE opener and we still have fans not happy.......unreal.

Lets not forget:

1. The other teams wants to win too
2. We cant and wont play great in every possible category every game
3. We want to peak....."peak" in late February/early March
4. 13-1 with the next two at home

Enjoy it!!

[X-lucidity]

Well said BleedX...
I have been updating myself on this thread now on & off all day. Ok, I get it, never hurts to analyze. Plus, what would we all do if not able to pontificate on this board about the sport we love. That said, dudes, get a freaking grip.... Most teams, even really talented teams that have legit Final Four aspirations have a few flaws. OldHoopster did a nice job detailing ours. You put us up against a squad with multiple quick slashing guards that can also drain 3's and X will have their hands full. To minimize what X was able to do last night, on the big stage, in front of a frenzied crowd, is just silly. Is 'Nova playing well...? Yes. Will they be tough to beat..?? Duh.. Kind of foolish though to be preoccupied with that match-up just yet. X is a solid college D-1 team that right now legitimately has earned a top 10 ranking among most experts. We, like all teams in late December, are a work in progress. I like the progress I see. Just a month ago most of you were calling Kanter a waste - and deriding Scruggs. Both played well last night and roles are being solidified. Y'all can choose to come away from last night's game and fret about what we could have done better. What I witnessed was an extremely strong-willed unit taking body blow and right hooks, only to keep getting up off the mat and hitting back. When the dust had settled, the more talented group with the upper class poise got themselves a nice hard-fought road win versus a top 70 team in a very hostile environment. Marquette gives out schollies also, FYI.......

[ChitownSteve]

Attended the DePaul-Villanova game on Wednesday night, while DVR'ing the Musketeer-Marquette game.

Yes, Villanova is #1 for many reasons, including exceptional, unselfish team play. Yet, there was something which is worth watching as X takes on the Blue Demons this Saturday. Marin Maric, a 6'10" grad school transfer from Northern Illinois, scored 17 points and snared 10 rebounds for DePaul. Maric is a nice ball player, let's see how he fares against X's bigs.

DePaul outrebounded Villanova 50-32, with DePaul dominating the offensive glass 22-9. Villanova pressured DePaul into 17 turnovers (seemed like more) to offset that disadvantage. Maybe Villanova had an off night down low, then, maybe that is an area where X finds its niche to compete.

That said, let's first have X defeat DePaul on Saturday and focus on playing each opponent and one game at a time until the matchup in Philadelphia.

[tacitus]

Xavier will struggle with any team that has quick slashing guards and multiple 3 point shooters. It is what it is. X is not fast defensively and that won't change. Yes, in some games the help defense is better than others. I hate that with quick teams we still have our bigs switching out on guards at the top and no one down under, but that's just me. The thing is, despite this, X got the win. Marquette averages 40% from 3 so last night was not a super night for them, but pretty normal. But they'll live and die by that 3.

Precisely. They hit some big threes down the stretch that kept them in the game, and we struggle getting out on the shooter on drive and dish or a good sequence of passing. But we could just as easily argue that they died by the three against us. That Rowsey kid had his career high against us with 31 points, making 6 threes. But he shot 17 of them...

Mack's game plan was to let them die by the three, to contest their known threats, and put pressure on their freshmen to make up the slack. It is always disappointing in the 1-3-1 when we let an opponent get so many open looks from the far wings. But the game plan worked in the end (and Mack recognized when it was time to switch it up), and we edged out a talented and energized team on their home court. Mack has become an expert at using the 1-3-1 as a disruptor.

There is nothing you can do about the pull-up NBA-range threes. Once you start guarding those, you're going to give up a lot of points in the paint. And the 3 or 4 open threes on the wing don't bother me so much, as they did not happen when the game was on the line.

But we cannot let a team like Marquette get 12 offensive rebounds, most of which resulted in second chance points. That is the only blemish I saw, and the real reason they kept it so close.

[nolife]

First let me get my usual negative comment out of the way: it's "nitpick" and refers to picking lice eggs out of the hair. Sorry, can't help it.

On a more positive note, this team worries me. Haha. Thing is, sometimes the distribution of talent seems to translate to a lack of focus or indecision. Also the meaningless, early-season, high ranking motivates the opposition. The last time we were ranked this high, Wisconsin happened. Hope I'm wrong.

What a world away from the days of Byron Larkin and upsetting Missouri in the tournament. Poor little rich boys eh?

But I do love J.P. If he were to go down, that would be far more devastating than was losing Edmund last year.