Wichita State vs. #11 Houston Game Thread 1-6-21

[WeWillShockU]

Houston handed us our worst lost in 17 years last season and you think this team, that competed all game and lost by 7, looked worse?!?

I think you misunderstood his post. Never mind.

[Shockm]

The thing I liked that IB did different from GM is he wasn’t using many screens and no pick and rolls. That never worked against Houston. But this group of guys is totally different than last year. We now have leaders.

[ShockRef]

Effort was there... execution from 17:35 2nd half on...well, you watched it.
IB has good rapport with his players, but some of his in game decisions, remind me of his mentor.
#1 - JB came in the first half and had good minutes. Couldn't find him with a search warrant in the 2nd half. If he was hurt, then I'll give him a pass.
#2- Whoever is designated to work with the interior players on this team isn't getting it done. The lack of rebounding basics with both MU and IPB is embarrassing and border on HS level.
Case in point - both players watch the ball in flight during a shot instead of moving and working for position.
Every time.
#3 - MU has no explosion off the floor.
As in zero.
Like he has a 110 lb sack of rocks on his back.
And he has the BBIQ of a frog. His intentional foul towards the end was dumb and I mean HS JV player dumb.

Trey Wade is one of those players who will have a good game...and then the next game like tonight. But at least he works hard.

TE better gets used to being grabbed, held, pinched and generally mugged every game. Cause other than some 'O' help from DD, they are not a hard to team to scout.
When you don't have to be concerned with any paint offense, its not hard to call your defense.

Funny thing - last year, WSU saw lots of zone, due to the interior presence of JE. Now, this year with zero inside play, it's all man to man.
And it's not going to change anytime soon.

That is all.

[pinstripers]

1. Houston is longer and they play angry
2. PG AG plays selfish too much
3. Dex needs to learn to dribble
4. JoBu needs more minutes. What's the downside?
5. CJax gets outboarded on a FT, then comes down to shoot a 28-footer
6. we got a bad whistle
7. the Houston announcers were pretty good
8. We don't foul with 40 seconds to go, but we foul with 9 seconds??
9. If we could cut down on bad shots.........

[asiseeit]

The good - team energy
The bad - defensive rebounding especially MU and Wade
The ugly - lack of an inside offensive threat and again, MU and Wade
Have to win the next two at home and at the very least one of the following three
Long term ( next year ) we need at least one quality big man transfer and for JB to develop quickly

[ShockerPrez]

Looking at this game a week after GM left, you would have pencilled in a 20 point loss. Learning with wins is better than with losses, but we aren't the only team gonna lose there. The 2nd half was brutal offensively. Nothwithstanding the late garbage, this didn't really feel like a 20 point loss, but it really was a 20 point loss. We got stomped.

The score will say otherwise, but nothing came easy on offense, rebounding their misses was appauling, our shooting sucked and we lost our focus when we were up 10.

Now, that being said, our defense up until Houston shot was pretty good. We grabbed a lot of offensive boards ourselves, and we were able to make a game of it. So, there is a lot we can learn. We are a good team. We can compete for the conference. I think this was our toghest game of the year. If our toughest game really is a 7 point defecit.....

I think that bodes well.. They are #11.

I really like this team and see the arrow pointed up, for sure

[Maizerunner08]

I was a huge fan of seeing Dex get aggressive. Might not always work out, but we need that energy at times.

[Shockm]

Freedom to make plays means allowing players to be creative, especially if they have the hot hand or are a known shooter. It doesn't mean driving to the hoop by yourself over and over and over and over and over and over and over (* inhale *) and over and over and over and over and over and over to the detriment of your team. If you're wondering, that was 13 "over"s, one for each attempt where he either missed a bucket or turned the ball over -- all to obtain 4 points on the night.

You are talking how to walk the line between freedom and discipline. To do that you have to discuss what a good shot is for each player and when that is a good shot. I know GM talked to them about that. I’m not sure if IB does. He’s described as a players coach.

[1972Shocker]

AG is now 9-36 from three on the year. By comparison RC4, C-Jack, Poor Bear and Jayden are a combined 14-30 combined on threes. OTOH Trey is 5-27 and the Wade brothers are a combined 6-33.

[Shockm]

AG needs to shoot 3s when he’s stepping into the shot while receiving a pass or at the end of the shot. He also needs to drive so he can drive and dish. But he isn’t going to score 10-15 very often

[Kung Wu]

Well we’ve heard a lot of complimentary comments regarding IBs’s handling of his players, allowing them a lot of freedom in making plays. I’ve heard a couple of comments on SNet regarding Alterique Gilbert being selfish.

Question: Is it freedom to make plays or selfishness?

Freedom to make plays means allowing players to be creative, especially if they have the hot hand or are a known shooter. It doesn't mean driving to the hoop by yourself over and over and over and over and over and over and over (* inhale *) and over and over and over and over and over and over to the detriment of your team. If you're wondering, that was 13 "over"s, one for each attempt where he either missed a bucket or turned the ball over -- all to obtain 4 points on the night.

[N Crestway]

We use our full lineup in the first half. Why not continue to use them throughout the 2nd half? Especially when AG and MU were terrible?

Edit...and i can add TW

Thinking the same thing...a little more Bilau in the second half. Also keep wondering where Seymour is in his development.

[ShauXTyme]

I noticed it when Grimes hit back to back shots on RC4, not sure how long he guarded him because he was subbed out for Wade right after. The only thing I can think of is he was tired and IB was trying to rest him for the end of the game, but IDK.

I think if you watch the replay, DD and Trey were both on the bench when Grimes hit those two shots. They both subbed back in at that time.

[BAShocker]

Totally agree. I think IPBC played ok, but MU can shut up. He did nothing tonight. He played like a little scared girl.

Possibly a reason why no one wanted to pick him up when he went into the transfer portal this summer?

[ShockTalk]

Houston is a solid basketball team and I hope for the sake of the conference they make a deep run in the NCAAT this year. Dexter Dennis played his best game of the year for WSU while Alterique Gilbert probably played his worst. Hopefully Dex keeps playing like that and AG returns to his usual form. I know there were too many (frustrating) offensive rebounds but I actually think WSU did a pretty good job on the glass? Not sure if others agree with that. Mo Udeze struggled but Poor Bear, Wade, and Dennis were actually solid on the glass.

That is not nearly enough. He needs to be more of a facilitator, less trying to be "the man".