Posted at 6:00am — 1/6/2011
GBMWolverine: Michigan Basketball — Big Ten Basketball — The Hopefuls — Part III
The next part of the Big Ten basketball season overview involves the hopefuls, the teams hoping to get a 7th tournament spot, or hoping one of the probable qualifiers falls on hard times. It is not out of the realm of possibility for these three teams, Northwestern, Michigan and Penn State to obtain a spot. But the chances are certainly less than the second tier teams discussed previously.
Throw the three teams in a hat, because there is parity between them. The final difference in the standings between the three may come down to head to head play.
Northwestern had the best chance ever to make the tournament last year and just could not stand the thought of finally getting over the hump. After a bunch of early season upsets, the Wildcats faded, blowing several big leads late in the game, given away a golden invitation.
There is good experience back for Northwestern and there are some good sharpshooters on the court. When this group is collectively hitting, the Wildcats are a threat to about anyone, especially at home.
The Wildcats still employ a classic high post backdoor cut offense, but can also successfully set up and shoot on the perimeter. If the shots fall, Northwestern is in the game. For purists, watching Northwestern is a fun time that brings back good memories.
Junior John Shurna, a 6’ 8” front-court player, is blistering the nets at a pace of over 22 per game. He is also collecting over five rebounds and three assists a game.
Solid and sometimes flashy guard, Michael Thompson is hitting over 14 points a game and dishing out almost five assists. When he is successful in controlling the game, the Wildcats are even better.
Drew Crawford, a 6’ 5” sophomore, has, like Shurner, demonstrated solid all around play by hitting over 14 points a game, garnering over 5 rebounds, and posting almost 3 assists
a game. Those are nice numbers.
The Wildcat version of a big three is supported by 6’ 11” Luka Mirkovic who is hitting at about 8 points a game but also contributing 7 rebounds a game. Also in the mix is freshman Jeshon Cobb, hitting about 7 points per game and Alex Marcotullio and Davide Curletti, both hitting about five points a game.
So, Northwestern has some depth and is dangerous enough to hurt a good team on a bad night. Rebounding is made difficult by the strategy Northwestern employs of falling back if the rebound is not almost a certainty.
The Michigan Wolverines are shorter and less experienced than Northwestern, but much faster. Michigan does not have a big three like Northwestern, but does have a developing star in sophomore point guard Darius Morris. Morris is up there in scoring, assists, and game management, only an occasional bad pass, usually unfundamental, is negative. After Morris Michigan relies on the flavor of the night. It might be Stu Douglass, or Zac Novak, or Tim Hardaway Jr, or even Jordan Morgan. Before the season is up Evan Smotrycz will likely join the group of players enjoying a big game or two the rest of the season. The good news is Michigan can have a number of guys be the 2nd or third option on any given night. The bad news is there is not a consistent 2 or 3 guy. This team is very young and needs to have toughness, mental and physical, throughout the year. There are plenty of guys who can come in off the bench and the team should focus on just getting better. If an opportunity presents itself later on, then pounce.
Penn State has three players averaging in double figures this year, led by Big Ten notable senior guard Talor Battle, a physical Big Ten type of guard averaging over 20 points per game. He is one of the few Big Ten players capable of controlling a game. The second option for the Nittany Lions is senior forward Jeff Brooks. This very good second option is averaging over 13 points and nearly 8 rebounds per game. A third senior (red-shirt) is forward David Jackson, hitting over 10 points a game and gathering nearly 5 rebounds. After the first three options, several players are contributing enough scoring to provide some bench help, including Taran Buie, Senior Andrew Jones, Tim Frazier, and Billy Oliver.
The Lions have good but not great size and good but not great speed. They do have Battle, a player who can go 1on 2 and win. The Lions will play tough defense and contest the boards. Like many Big Ten teams, the Nittany Lions are a clearly better team at home and can give most teams at least solid competition in Happy Valley.
All three of these teams will win games at home and lose games on the road. Again the difference between 7th and 9th might just be head to head between the three.
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Written by GBMWolverine Staff
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