(POST-GAME) Butler, Tues., Jan. 12, 7p, FS-1 / 570 AM WMCA

The box score printout raises the question " How can Anderson justify playing Toro over Roberts for the rest of the season." Of the 13 catagories listed Toro has a 7 in minutes played , a 1 in assist and 11 zeros. Assuming Moore returns there will be less time for either Toro or Roberts and based on the entire season up to tonight there is no justification to play Toro overRoberts,
Roberts is not an elite rim protector but is certainly more adept at that then Toro also. Enough time has gone by for Anderson to realize this. He hasn't giving Roberts a fair shake and his decision is hurting the team. 
 
Much needed win tonight. They were a totally different team tonight as compared to past few games. More of a sense of urgency and energy out there. Our guards (Dunn and Posh) were way more disruptive and active on D. Roberts did well when he was in the game. Thats why they have been so frustrating to watch before tonight. There just seemed to be a lack of energy and sense of urgency on both offense and D. Lazy plkay but looked better tonight. I hope it continues going forward
 
Enright" post=412568 said:
The box score printout raises the question " How can Anderson justify playing Toro over Roberts for the rest of the season." Of the 13 catagories listed Toro has a 7 in minutes played , a 1 in assist and 11 zeros. Assuming Moore returns there will be less time for either Toro or Roberts and based on the entire season up to tonight there is no justification to play Toro overRoberts,
Roberts is not an elite rim protector but is certainly more adept at that then Toro also. Enough time has gone by for Anderson to realize this. He hasn't giving Roberts a fair shake and his decision is hurting the team. 
 
I agree and could not figure out why Roberts was glued to the bench before today, especially w our lack of bigs.
 
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Agree on Roberts.  Do feel we would have been better off relying more on returning players (Dunn, Earlington, Roberts) and phasing in the newcomers.
 
Hoping CMA sticks to a 9 man rotation from here on in: Champ, Williams, Posh, Dunn, Roberts, Cole, Wusu, Earlington & Moore (when he coes back). I had high hopes for Toro coming into the season, but he has shown little to nothing. He and McGriff should only see spot minutes due to injury, foul trouble, blowouts.  
 
NCJohnnie" post=412591 said:
Hoping CMA sticks to a 9 man rotation from here on in: Champ, Williams, Posh, Dunn, Roberts, Cole, Wusu, Earlington & Moore (when he coes back). I had high hopes for Toro coming into the season, but he has shown little to nothing. He and McGriff should only see spot minutes due to injury, foul trouble, blowouts.  
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I am not ready to completely give up on Toro.   I would sit down and let him know he is going to play very limited minutes and he should play uber-aggressive during those opportunities.  Pound the boards, look for putbacks and D-up.  
 
Observations:

I did not think that the defense was much improved over prior games.  We still got hurt in the post and don't stop the ball.  We did do a somewhat better job of closing out on the corner 3-ball.  I think the difference in the points allowed is just that Butler is a more offensively-challenged team than most of the others we've played.  And they still shot over 50% for the first half before they cooled off and game flow hurt their shot selection.

Dunn and Alexander in the backcourt together is a perimeter disaster.  Neither of them can shoot at all, and the whole world knows when they put their head down that they are going to try to get to the rim.  You aren't going to change Dunn at this point, but Alexander really, really, really needs to forget about the jumper until it's something more than a dartboard approach, and he also needs to think of himself more as a distributor and less as a scorer.

Nobody (except maybe Moose) has understood why Roberts gets no run - his production last year was certainly superior to what Toro has delivered this year.  Last night was a good example of that.  Unless Josh has been hurt or there are character or practice issues, it's hard to understand why he doesn't play at least as much time as Toro. 

Moore is not a post defender (he needs to play next to a big man, not be the big man), but his absence hurts the offense and the rebounding.  Hope that situation resolves because we will need him against Marquette.
 
Going to be critical that Posh develops a reliable 3 pointer. He hit a couple yesterday and his stroke looks like he has the capability of developing a reliable jumper. This year is.... a learning experience for Posh- if he is open, id have him shoot it. Would i rather he drive and dish, absolutely, but he'll only be able to do that if he keeps the defense honest. Get the experience this year and confidence of shooting the 3 when open. 

Reason i highlight this....The way the defense sags of Dunn, talking about 4-5 feet.... puts our offense at such a disadvantage when he has the ball on the perimeter. its obvious Dunn has 0 confidence in his 3pt shot or coach has told him not to shoot. 

Posh has shown his ability to atleast hit the 3...but shooting 25% is less than ideal. Get his reps in this year so he can benefit us next. its a terrible thing when a player hesitates or second guesses his shot
 
Posh had one drive and dish last night that resulted in a made 3, perhaps by Champ, although I'm not entirely sure. When I watched  that play, I wondered why it can't be executed multiple times a game. He certainly has the ability to do so.
 
Delaware" post=412604 said:
Posh had one drive and dish last night that resulted in a made 3, perhaps by Champ, although I'm not entirely sure. When I watched  that play, I wondered why it can't be executed multiple times a game. He certainly has the ability to do so.
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Posh has always been more of a score first  driving PG but learning the merits of being pass first type. Imo, he'll never be a dead eye shooter, but seems capable of being more of a perimiter threat.

Again, PG is such a hard role to master in your first year, but despite some bumps in the road, he seems on track to fill the role nicely over his time here.
 
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It was very nice to get back in the win column but let's not get giddy over it. Butler was not very good. We still have major flaws that need to be addressed.

We are still being outrebounded in virtually every game. We also have a difficult time defending in the paint. Not that they are the long term answer, but we have a better chance at addressing both issues when either Roberts, Moore or Toro are on the floor. We are hopelessly outmatched when we play small. Roberts play last night was a gimmer of hope. I hope that Moore comes back from his suspension with a better attitude and a stronger work ethic. He has some potential as well.

 
 
I agree with the point made earlier that we were able to limit the corner 3's . I hopoe that this has become  a point of emphasis for the staff.
 
Just saw a tweet from Zach B. that was encouraging. He said that Roberts has been practicing better lately and had been dealing with a groin injury. Also said that it looks like he'll get a real shot at playing now.

Very encouraging. Roberts is athletic and has good potential. Hoping that he improves and gives us more of an inside presence for the rest of the season.
 
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Appreciate the fact that Toro came here, and he seems like a great kid, but the few things we need from him-some boards and interior D-he is not providing, even in limited minutes. He is not the banger down low that we had hoped for, and he gives us absolutely nothing on offense. Think we've seen enough of a sample size to know what to expect from him moving forward. With what seems like the re-imergence of Roberts, IMO Toro's minutes need to be limited to a minute or two here or there to spell Roberts/Moore, or if we have foul trouble. 
 
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