Where was Lykes towards the end of regulation? My son and I were screaming every time Newton touched the ball. I'm finally ready to admit that Newton is awful. Yes, he's a marginally solid defender, but his offense is awful. He missed 3-4 straight contested lay-ups tonight and still Coach L rode with him. Did I miss an injury to CL or did he foul out? At the very least go offense/defense with Lykes and Newton. Frankly, even though his confidence is shot, I'd rather have seen DJ in there than Newton.
It was tough tonight to watch: (1) the terrible FT shooting; (2) the awful fundamentals on rebounds when they were using one hand or trying to dribble the ball rather than possessing it with 2 hands; (3) the horrible fouls by 2 veterans, first Amp's needless foul when he dove after a rebound that was never going to be his and then Newton's karate chop on the Louisville shooter right in front of the 'Ville bench.
Imma have a coronary watching a few more of these games. You have to wonder what's happened to UM's fundamentals, something you'd expect from a Coach L team. Their FT shooting, fouling discipline, constant reaching on defense, poor rebounding and inconsistent ball movement are not concepts you'd expect to see on a Coach L team. It's clear he needs to ride with his freshmen, Walker and Lykes, and live with the consequences of their youth.