WSU at OSU Game Thread

[Slykryck]

Duff is solid on the defensive end. Once he is 100%, put him at the 3 and Kelly at the 4 and commence kicking ass. ZB first off the bench.

I like ZBs defense to start the game. I would start him at 3 and MM at the 4. I would bring DW if the bench for the spark on offense and slide MM to 3. Having to defend a lineup of LS, CF, MM, DW and SM for even a few minutes would probably drive most coaches nuts.

[Bluzrover]

I believe ZB's knee is definitely effecting his play. Granted, his offensive output has never been stellar, but I would think a bum knee would not help either. And it seems his defense is not quite what it was and again, I'd point to his injury. He's no Tekele Cotton (who is?) but he's an angry hyena and I expect he could use a week off before having to play again.

As for Markis, it seems some on SN have short memories, but his defense was top notch last year. He's got such great length that helps clog the passing lanes and just generally makes the opponents struggle to run their offense, especially when we've got LS on the court as well. What Conner lacks in size and length he makes up for with grit and determination and quickness. This team's defense will get much, much better when Markis gets back on the court.

[Dan]

ZB gets a lot of publicity for his defense, but, IMO, Rashard Kelly is just as good, we if not better. MM is up there too and has a height/wingspan advantage over Brown. Brown has major deficiencies in parts of his game, as does Rashard, but Rashard seems to keep his shot selection more in check. I can see Rashard and MM playing together as a really good thing and are interchangeable at the 3/4,whereas ZB is only a 3.

[Shockm]

It's amazing to me how we soon we forget. Zach Brown's offense struggled during the year last year but he worked hard in February to improve. If not for his torrid outside timely shooting, we would not have beaten Dayton nor would we have been close to Kentucky. Go back and watch. I have. I'm certainly not saying his court time should not be altered some but let's not forget. Marshall having a feel for his team is important. He sees them during the entire week, not just game day.

[wufan]

ZB and RK would both be 15 ppg guys in the Turgeon era. For Marshall, they are grinders. Our current grinder talent is much improved over Wessel, Hatch, and Aaron Ellis.

[proshox]

Crazy talk... guys like Ryan Martin would show as evidence that there were important grinders on that team with similar skill

[ShockerPrez]

The only 2 guys that I never have a problem with when they shoot a 3 is LS and CF. Everyone else seems to take them at just SMH times. Nurger isnt too bad, he seems to be wide open at the top of the key when he takes them.

I dont mind SM, DW, ZB and certainly not AR taking them, as long as it isnt our first option through the offensive set. If the are wide open though, its hard to complain. Just depends on whats going on in the game.

[WheatShock]

What i'll be interested to see once MM comes back is how much we see ZB & RK on the court at the same time.

[wsushox1]

Great point. I would say not very much.....if at all.

[Aargh]

If DW, SM, or RN never took a 3 early in the shot clock, that would be scouted and they'd never be guarded on the perimeter early in the shot clock. Sometimes things that don't seem to make much sense turn out to make a lot of sense. Post players sometimes shooting from deep early in the shot clock forces rim defenders away from the rim early in the shot clock. That creates the possibility for a better percentage shot at the rim early in the shot clock.

Sometimes plays and possessions are run to set up the opponent for what's actually intended.

[WheatShock]

If DW, SM, or RN never took a 3 early in the shot clock, that would be scouted and they'd never be guarded on the perimeter early in the shot clock. Sometimes things that don't seem to make much sense turn out to make a lot of sense. Post players sometimes shooting from deep early in the shot clock forces rim defenders away from the rim early in the shot clock. That creates the possibility for a better percentage shot at the rim early in the shot clock.

Sometimes plays and possessions are run to set up the opponent for what's actually intended.

You have to keep the opponent honest. That's why ZB needs to keep taking 3s when he's open. He'll break out of his funk eventually and get hot for a while.

[wsushox1]

Yep....

[im4wsu]

If DW, SM, or RN never took a 3 early in the shot clock, that would be scouted and they'd never be guarded on the perimeter early in the shot clock. Sometimes things that don't seem to make much sense turn out to make a lot of sense. Post players sometimes shooting from deep early in the shot clock forces rim defenders away from the rim early in the shot clock. That creates the possibility for a better percentage shot at the rim early in the shot clock.

Sometimes plays and possessions are run to set up the opponent for what's actually intended.

Analagous to football running off tackle for 0, 1,0,2,-1,0 yards to set up the outside or deep pass.

[im4wsu]

How about for defense, LS, MM, RK, ZB and RN. Length, tenacity and speed.

[Aargh]

Analagous to football running off tackle for 0, 1,0,2,-1,0 yards to set up the outside or deep pass.

I was going to make that exact point. It's easier to see in football because of the way the plays are run. Sometimes, in football, a team will even block (weakly) the same way they block for a run up the middle. When the defender beats the "block" and moves into a spot in the middle of the play, the back breaks it to the outside. The announcers praise the back's ability to read the defense and break it to the outside. That's not always what happened. Sometimes it's all deception and that's the way the play was designed.

I'm certain the same thing happens in basketball, but it happens at a much faster pace and is a lot harder to see.

A good friend of mine (6'3", 190 or so) was a Fr starting tight end at WSU. North Texas State had a guy named Mean Joe Greene playing opposite him in WSU's game against North Texas. I loved this comment from my friend:

"I tried to block him, but he just picked me up, threw me across his body and stepped into the hole. I figured I'd just block him the other way. Sure enough, he picked me up threw me across his body and stepped into the spot where I was supposed to block him. After that he just picked me up and threw me back and forth across his body until he figured out where the play was going".

[shocker3]

The OSU-Shocker basketball game on Saturday drew 515,000 viewers on espn2. As a comparison our game last year against OU (same weekend, same network, same time slot) drew 396,000 veiwers. Another comparison, the KU-ASU game on Sunday drew 421,000 viewers, almost 100,000 fewer than our game against OSU: http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/article...9-10-2017.html

[AndShock]

The OSU-Shocker basketball game on Saturday drew 515,000 viewers on espn2. As a comparison our game last year against OU (same weekend, same network, same time slot) drew 396,000 veiwers. Another comparison, the KU-ASU game on Sunday drew 421,000 viewers, almost 100,000 fewer than our game against OSU: http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/article...9-10-2017.html

Upsets usually get a healthy boost, too. KU is only important in their own little JoCo bubble.

[Aargh]

Great picture!

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[AndShock]

Props to the guy for having the balls to try but I’m really curious as to what he thought was the best case scenario there.

[Pigman]

It wasn't a foul!

[wsushox1]

AndShock I think he got the best case scenario