Maryland vs Miami (Hall of Fame Tip-Off Naismith Classic) on ESPN at 1 pm EST

[Gables Canes]

This team is going to need to run every chance they get. As we all know by now L’s offensive system in the half court is all about knocking down contested shots. When those aren’t falling this O tends to be pretty putrid especially when on the other end we’re getting Abused on the glass.

This offense will likely live and die by pack and Wong on most nights. Both of those guys can get theirs on any given night. Until Pack gets comfortable though I would like to see more off ball sets ran for him.

Pack will be fine in long run

Agreed that we need to look to increase the tempo wherever possible

 

[TheOriginalCane]

Maryland is a really good team, like one of the 5 best we’ll play this year (before the tourney), so fact is they just beat us in every facet of the game, it happens. They were a tough matchup, they’re an athletic team with very good length & depth & got hot shooting.

We definitely played bad, but in BBall sometimes the better team is just the better team.

It’s still very early, literally just 5 games in of a long season & this one game won’t define the team at all.

Overreacting to a game like this is a little over the top if you actually follow CBB.

We’ll have 2 more opportunities this month against UCF & Rutgers to show what we’re made of.

Have some things defensively that we have to go back to the drawing board & figure out, but people really need to really relax with the hyperbole this early in a Basketball season; this ain’t Football, no one goes undefeated in CBB.

Pretty spot on.

Except for one thing, now we will be stuck with 3 months of the Miami-hating "Miami fans" telling us how much we deserve a lower seeding "because Maryland blowout"...

 

[TheOriginalCane]

You are entering MackMiller territory of being one of the worst posters here. It’s game 5 on a back to back against a very good team. Miami beat up Providence yesterday and all of a sudden we suck? Get the **** out then.

Truth. And if you watch the games, we are heavily relying on 6 guys (starters, plus my man Bensley Joseph. I hope we will develop a deeper rotation as the season progresses, we need to have more depth than what we had last year (at times).

 

[Gables Canes]

Also - about tonight - 21-12 is an absurd foul ratio (we never even got to fouling to extend the game) and it ABSOLUTELY had an impact on how we played.

This is one of the alarming trends I pointed on in the previous page. While it appears to biased fans such as us that the refs are ******** us over in every game, we can't keep using the "refs are against Miami" excuse. Thru 5 games, we are averaging 17 fouls a game vs. our opponents' 15, and that's with playing 3 cupcakes. We have some players (Wooga, Joseph, Omier) who commit some dumb and unnecessary fouls. Hopefully L can get that corrected as not fouling is usually a strength of L's teams.

 

[TheOriginalCane]

He hasn’t been stellar yet all year, though it is VERY early. I’m hoping these new pieces can get square. He has way too much talent to continue to be mediocre.

We have a couple of (highly-anticipated) transfers. It took a few games last year for Charlie to become CHARLIE.

 

[Shooter McGavin]

Truth. And if you watch the games, we are heavily relying on 6 guys (starters, plus my man Bensley Joseph. I hope we will develop a deeper rotation as the season progresses, we need to have more depth than what we had last year (at times).

Think Casey and Aire get more time as the season goes on. Would be nice to see Watson and/or Robinson get into the mix too.

 

[AmherstCane]

This is one of the alarming trends I pointed on in the previous page. While it appears to biased fans such as us that the refs are ******** us over in every game, we can't keep using the "refs are against Miami" excuse. Thru 5 games, we are averaging 17 fouls a game vs. our opponents' 15, and that's with playing 3 cupcakes. We have some players (Wooga, Joseph, Omier) who commit some dumb and unnecessary fouls. Hopefully L can get that corrected as not fouling is usually a strength of L's teams.

I understand what you’re saying but respectfully disagree.

21-12 is an absurd margin when NOT ONE SINGLE FOUL was to extend the game.

I saw a BUNCH of phantom fouls called on us and only one phantom foul called on Maryland.

Conversely, Maryland was climbing all over Omier and getting away with the pressure defense and reaches that we were being called for.

I thought L should have taken a T yesterday second half because at some point you gotta put some pressure on them. I’m not saying we don’t foul - but other than in the NCAA tournament we get a pretty consistently awful whistle.

 

[Da_Lucky_One]

 

[jkdood]

Maryland entered AP at nbr 23 (coaches at 25) after wins this weekend. Would be nice if they stay ranked so that the loss won't be a huge blemish at selection time.

 

[Pentagon Cane]

We were not nearly as high intensity as we were against Providence especially on the glass which is obvious as we got murdered on the boards. At our size disadvantage we are going to have to give better effort than Sunday. We also lost a bunch of 50/50 balls. Extending the bench would help. My only complaint is Casey and Aire should have gotten a little more extended burn the first 3 games. I think their play expands before conference play. We need them.

To put in perspective, we were beaten like a drum against Dayton and Providence before we found our footing. Dayton did not make the tournament and Alabama was gifted a bid.

Maryland has the makings of team who will make a lot of noise in the Big Ten and will find a tournament bid. They certainly were smoking hot this weekend.

Things to work through but this is going to be a very good team.

 

[AmherstCane]

Maryland entered AP at nbr 23 (coaches at 25) after wins this weekend. Would be nice if they stay ranked so that the loss won't be a huge blemish at selection time.

I think Maryland will make some noise but, man oh man the Big 10 looks like a meat grinder this year.

 

[hotshot]

I understand what you’re saying but respectfully disagree.

21-12 is an absurd margin when NOT ONE SINGLE FOUL was to extend the game.

I saw a BUNCH of phantom fouls called on us and only one phantom foul called on Maryland.

Conversely, Maryland was climbing all over Omier and getting away with the pressure defense and reaches that we were being called for.

I thought L should have taken a T yesterday second half because at some point you gotta put some pressure on them. I’m not saying we don’t foul - but other than in the NCAA tournament we get a pretty consistently awful whistle.

Amherst, have you ever seen a game where the refs calls went in the Canes favor? Or, where in your opinion, a Canes loss wasn't attributable -- in full, or substantially -- to poor refereeing?

When I watch a game, I watch the players out on the court. Almost seems like maybe you focus on the refs first and foremost, then the game action. You def don't like those zebras!

 

[AmherstCane]

Amherst, have you ever seen a game where the refs calls went in the Canes favor? Or, where in your opinion, a Canes loss wasn't attributable -- in full, or substantially -- to poor refereeing?

When I watch a game, I watch the players out on the court. Almost seems like maybe you focus on the refs first and foremost, then the game action. You def don't like those zebras!

Sure - every NCAA tournament game last year except Kansas was officiated pretty fairly. Which is ironic because Roger Ayers is generally pretty fair to us.

You understand the influence of officiating, right? Players have to adapt their play to how the game is being called. When the refs ride the smaller team and let the bigger team be more physical - it substantially influences the outcome.

A small quick team that is getting lit up by the refs against a bigger team who the refs are letting play pretty much can’t win without catching fire from outside.

It’s not a close call as to whether some of these games are being officiated evenly. And it’s plenty easy for a fan to say play through the officiating, but fouls put players on the bench and the other team on the free throw line.

And the avoidance of fouls makes players more tentative and less aggressive.

It is a huge enormous impact. Coach L knows it, and has even talked about it in private this season - he’s just too classy to throw tantrums.

Edit: I should add - to address your last point - that focusing on the action is exactly what tells you whether a foul call is legit or not.

 

[hotshot]

Sure - every NCAA tournament game last year except Kansas was officiated pretty fairly. Which is ironic because Roger Ayers is generally pretty fair to us.

You understand the influence of officiating, right? Players have to adapt their play to how the game is being called. When the refs ride the smaller team and let the bigger team be more physical - it substantially influences the outcome.

A small quick team that is getting lit up by the refs against a bigger team who the refs are letting play pretty much can’t win without catching fire from outside.

It’s not a close call as to whether some of these games are being officiated evenly. And it’s plenty easy for a fan to say play through the officiating, but fouls put players on the bench and the other team on the free throw line.

And the avoidance of fouls makes players more tentative and less aggressive.

It is a huge enormous impact. Coach L knows it, and has even talked about it in private this season - he’s just too classy to throw tantrums.

Edit: I should add - to address your last point - that focusing on the action is exactly what tells you whether a foul call is legit or not.

I don't think for a minute that the "refs" have been or are, in any way, out to "get" the Canes.

If I approached games with the opposite viewpoint, I couldn't watch. The games are played to entertain us, and obsessing about referee calls would totally destroy that for me. Playing your best though bad calls is just a part of the game.

 

[AmherstCane]

I don't think for a minute that the "refs" have been or are, in any way, out to "get" the Canes.

If I approached games with the opposite viewpoint, I couldn't watch. The games are played to entertain us, and obsessing about referee calls would totally destroy that for me. Playing your best though bad calls is just a part of the game.

The guy who complains about lack of effort and doesn’t understand that the whistle can have a real impact on defensive intensity and rebounding for an undersized team.

21-12… but yeah play through the officiating.

What does out to “get” the Canes have to do with it. Did I say that?

Also, I enjoy reading about your approach to watching games. It is helpful to me.

 

[hotshot]

What does out to “get” the Canes have to do with it. Did I say that?

Constantly carping about the refereeing going against UM. Your posts are pretty much a running theme, game after game, of refs making calls that go against UM.

So, that being the case, what else could I think? The refs just don't like the colors of our uniforms?