Nathan Fenno of the AA News reports.

This is huge news, aside from the fact that Michigan is retaining two great players, in that both Manny Harris and Alex Legion have specifically mentioned these two guys as reasons to stay committed to Michigan.

Posted under Basketball

In case you have been in a cave the previous day (I was kind of in a green beer induced cave) Amaker has been fired. While the response from some Michigan bloggers can only be described as euphoria, some people feel differently.

Tom Izzo spits some righteously indignant fire in Bill Martin’s general direction.

I feel bad for our profession that guys with 20 wins are getting fired in programs that I don’t think they stressed basketball there.

It is true that Amaker had 20 wins going into the Big Ten Tourny, but look at the schedule. I think a good IM team at Michigan could have beaten Wofford. Numbers mean nothing without context, and Izzo’s point isn’t salient when you put it in the context of playing a schedule that would make Kansas State’s AD blush.

An interesting article from the recruiting angle. Some highlights are Legion with:

“I’m surprised, shocked and disappointed,” said Legion, a third-team Parade All-American who this past season averaged 21 points, 10 rebounds and five assists as Wilson, Va.-based Oak Hill finished 40-1. “Coach Amaker is the coach I wanted to play for.

“He and I were real close. And he was real close with my mom (Annette Williams), too. He was a father-figure to me. It hurts that they fired him.”

And the President of the Detroit Public School League Coaches Association had some an opinion on the firing:

“It’s terrible,” said Washington, who plans to write a letter expressing his disappointment. “They didn’t give him enough time. You need more time to rebuild a program than they gave him.”

So… watch out for a strongly worded letter Bill…

Michael Rosenberg chimes in with his article actually supporting the decision and giving some (predictable) thought on the future.

Finally there is a great interview with Bill Martin by Jim Carty and Nathan Fenno (via Maize ‘n Brew). Definitely worth the read. You can really tell Bill Martin really didn’t want to fire Tommy Amaker, but really had no choice, which was kind of surprising for me. I figured that Amaker had enough support from the administration, especially Mary Sue Coleman, to get through the offseason, especially with the recruits he has (or had?) coming in.

While unequivocally mediocre as a coach, Amaker was the right guy for the Michigan job six years ago. He restored the credibility of the program, but now Michigan needs someone to restore the luster, the excitement, the pride of the basketball program that was around in the Fab Five days, but with the added challenge of a lower salary cap. I hope Bill Martin can find the right fit and make Michigan basketball relevant again.

Posted under Basketball

1:04 OSU inbounds the ball. They go right to Oden, who essentially walks right around Courtney.
1:06 Oden loves to block weak attempts at basket. Well, it’s his lucky day, becaue he’s playing against Courtney Sims.
1:08 Petway fouled before the shot, but the more foul trouble for OSU, the better. Turnover on the inbounds, of course.
1:09 Again, Michigan looks pretty lost on offense. Let’s see some (get this) “motion.”
1:10 Courtney blocks Oden WTF. Also, Dion airballs a WIDE open three. WTF again.
1:11 Petway needs to dunk in any tip opportunity he gets. TV Timeout. 42-32 OSU 15:54 2nd Half
1:14 C Sims with a curiously strong move, drawing the foul. Mike Conley’s dad was an olympian is the new Tom Zbikowski is a boxer is the new Jeff Samardzija also plays baseball is the new Matt Trannon plays two sports.
1:16 Hey guys, let’s give up wide open three.12 point lead for OSU. The game might be starting to slip away (for real this time).
1:17 Abram stems the flow, thankfully. Nice D by Dion.
1:18 More fouls on OSU. Muahaha. The more bigs they have in foul trouble, the better for us.
1:19 Lavin is inadvertently calling Conley Sr. a gangsta, as Jerret bombs a three, Lead is back down to 6.
1:20 Oden back in w/ 2 fouls, and a Udoh sighting for the first time in a while as well. He hits a shot. Hooray.
1:22 Scramble for the ball, Dave O’Brien decides it isn’t important to let us know what the call is before the commercial. I’m assuming timeout OSU. 46-41 OSU 11:33 2nd Half
1:28 I had other shit to do, and missed a 4-point barrage by OSU. They currently lead 50-41. Oden forces a jump ball, but it stays w/ Michigan.
1:29 Though I went out of my way to defend Jerret Smith at halftime, he takes a lot of really shitty layups in traffic. Now he turns it over, but Conley charges on the break.
1:30 Steve Lavin hilariously lauds the Big 10 officials, who are actually really bad (though they’re doing all right this game). Jerret hits a big 3 to bring it back within 6.
1:31 TERRIBLE foul call on Courtney, guarding Oden. There was almost literally no contact. Steve Lavin is still retarded. Sims with another block, and Matta picks up a T. Reminiscent of yesterday, when a UM fast break was stopped to T up Minny’s coach.
1:33 Dion hits both, now UM has the ball with a chance to get within one score. Prediction: turnover. Nope, foul on Jamar Butler. His 3rd.
1:34 Abram misses the front end of a one-and-one, proving that he actually can’t effectively contribute from anywhere. Another AWFUL ticky-tack foul on Sims (which they haven’t even come close to calling on the other end). Even Lavin is laying into the refs, whom he and O’Brien were recently sucking off verbally.
1:35 Oden with a chance for the old fashioned 3-point play, as Petway commits the foul, but the free throw isn’t close. Udoh takes an ill-advised jumper, then is mauled on the defensive glass, again with no call.
1:36 THEN COMES L.A. MR. CONSISTENCY. He is so hilariously inconsistent, but it’s been mostly good in this game.
1:37 TERRIBLE FOUL CALL ON UDOH. I am seriously going to assassinate a Big 10 ref. They are awful at their jobs, with stunning consistency that is lacked by Lester Abram. 54-49 OSU 7:14 2nd Half
1:40 Another missed offensive opportunity by UM. They’re going to have to start converting some of these if they want to have a chance at the end.
1:43 Dion Harris goes up strong and is fouled.
1:44 Petway makes the rare wise decision to not go for a crushing block, but the OSU player hits the 3 anyway.
1:45 Oh Jesus. Awesome OSU alley oop. Dion turns it over on a 5 second call.
1:47 Call me a homer, but this officiating isn’t even close to fair. There have been bad calls on both ends, but anything even remotely resembling an OSU player being approached by a defender draws a foul. Nice +1 by C Sims on the hard foul by Terwilliger.
1:49 GRRRRR Jerret makes a good pass to Dion on the break, and he can’t handle it for the easy deuce (and probably a foul as well, if he goes up with it). 66-56 OSU 3:47 2nd Half
1:51 Essentially uncontested hook shot by Oden. Time is starting to run out for Michigan. Execution must be at its peak, and now.
1:53 Hey guys, you’re down by 10 with 2.5 minutes left, let’s do something on offense. Michigan timeout. 68-60 OSU Hilariously, Oden whacked Petway on the dunk, and no call!
1:55 OSU gets the ball in, and O’Brien talks about Petway dunking in “multiple hairstyles.” Conley (I hear his dad was an Olympian?) hits both foul shots. Jerret Smith turns the ball over, effectively ending the game.
1:58 71-60 OSU, they have the ball, about a minute to go.
2:01 72-62 OSU Final Score.

HOORAY NIT

Posted under Basketball

(insert NBA Jam Scottie Pippen-Horace Grant hilarity). My apologies for going not-so-live for a while there; my internet connection played a hilarious prank on me.

Michigan has kept it close against a team that should be able to overmatch them, but they’re going to have to get a little more energy going on offense.

Positives: rebounding, Reed Baker has played some minutes, Jerret Smith is limiting his turnovers.

Negatives: other people have made up for Jerret’s turnovers, the offense is really stagnant.

I have also come to a few decisions. People hate Jerret Smith and Tommy Amaker. I have been one of those people. UNTIL NOW. No, Jerret Smith isn’t a great point guard. However, since he has been inserted into the starting lineup, he has definitely gotten the job done. If he would just work harder in the weight room (and on the treadmill), he could be a good PG, rather than a serviceable one.
Tommy Amaker is never going to be mistaken for a great coach. His offenses tend to look terrible. Part of this, however, is the desire of the players to work hard. In the game, he can only do so much. I have criticized him a lot for being emotionless on the sidelines, but sometimes you just have to come to terms with the fact that it’s his demeanor. The coach can only do so much, and it’s up to the players to execute (see: Courtney Sims bricked dunk, DH missed one-and-one last time against OSU).

The people who deserve a lot of the blame for the shittiness of this team are Lester Abram, who has gotten worse every year, and Courtney Sims, who is a decidedly low-ceiling guy.

Posted under Basketball

After letting the Buckeyes off the hook last Saturday, Michigan once again faces off against OState, this time in the Big 10 tournament.

12:00 Coverage begins. More Lavin. Dave O’Brien is his partner. Obligatory wrong soccer team reference.
12:03 First glimpse of hideous OSU uniforms. I thought I’d get used to them when I saw them in action, but it didn’t happen.
12:04 Petway controls the tip. Jerret Smith eventually turns it over. They let the clock run down far too low before getting anything going, but it could have just been the good OState D. Coming back down, Dion Harris feeds Smith on the break, drawing first blood.
12:06 Ohio State answers with a fast break of their own. Also, somebody please inform Dave O’Brien that Lester Abram IS left-handed. His finish with left hand is considerably less impressive when taking this into account.
12:07 Good entry pass by Jerret, fumbled by Courtney. Eventual shot clock violation as Abram passes up an open three. Seriously. Tommy. Bench Abram. Seriously.
12:08 I could have witnessed his birth 18 years ago, and still not believe that Oden is under 30. Lame Dave O’Brien Oden dicksuck.
12:10 Conley steal, fouled by Jerret. TV Timeout. 8-6 OSU 16:03 1st Half
12:11 5 Point lead bucks. That might be the game already. 2 Consecutive turnovers for Michigan, including an offensive foul on Dion.
12:12 11-6 OSU 15:04 1st Half
12:14 Dave O’Brien is talking about being high. what.
12:16 Missed Alley Oop by OSU that C Sims REALLY should have rebounded. Udoh enters the game. Good things will likely happen. Abram passes up another open 3.
12:17 Udoh forces a missed layup on the break. I love him. OH MY FUCKING GOD I DO NOT DISLIKE PETWAY EITHER. My god, he draws a charge, too. He will be missed by many (namely me).
12:18 Lavin and O’Brien are making fun of how stupid Coleman is. Why don’t they just talk about how bad he is at basketball? At least his wrist is OK to play. Lavin is talking about how much better UM is playing today over yesterday. Maybe he hasn’t noticed that they only have 8 points. Harris fouled going to the hoop. TV Timeout. 13-8 OSU 11:27 1st Half
12:23 Jerret Smith is beat up and his wallet is taken on the way to the hoop, but the foul is not called. REED COMING IN BITCHES! Tommy trying to stop the Bucks from playing zone, I assume.
12:24 Speaking of players I love, make it rain, Reed. I think announcers always call Oden “Mr. Oden,” likely because he’s as old as their parents. D Sims battles for an offensive rebound, earning a trip to the stripe, where he makes one.
12:27 Jerret Smith is actually doing a pretty good job driving and forcing the defense to react. He draws another OSU foul (though he did just commit one on the other end).
12:28 A visit from our good friend turnoverus. Also, Reed doesn’t do anything on defense. Abram passes up another wide open three. I seriously want to injure him.
12:29 D. Sims putback and a foul on Oden. It’s like Christmas! 20-14 OSU 7:40 1st Half
12:32 Analysis of UM tournament chances. It’s fairly obvious we must win today, and I think probably tomorrow (which will be a winnable game no matter who wins Iowa v. Purdue). Abram contributing the only place he can: the free throw line.
12:35 OMG he actually doesn’t pass up an open three, and lo and behold he hits it! Harris lob to Petway, with a beautiful finish. Can;t wait to see him in a dunk contest.
12:36 Jamar Butler misses another shit, UM with a chance to tie it. TERRIBLE offensive foul called on Jevohn Shepherd. Lavin thinks Shepherd is a freshman.
12:38 Jevohn Shepherd, offensive liability turns it over, but luckily the OSU player lands on the baseline. Holy christ, Oden missed a shot, hell must be freezing over, Lavin. Harris hits a 3 to bring the score within 1.
12:40 Lewis responds on the other end, to open the lead back to 4. Courtney Sims gets pounded by Oden on the way up, of course no foul called. I’m ready for Tommy to start throwing items of clothing (start with Courtney’s bra). 31-25 OSU 2:11 1st Half
12:43 Long jumper from D Sims with an expiring shot clock. Me likey the shot, not the situation.
12:45 Harris misses a rainbow three, Coleman gets the rebound, and Harris draws a shooting foul. Lavin and O’Brien are comparing coaching styles between Matta and Amaker. I don’t think they realize they just have to say “good vs. bad.”
12:47 D Sims misses the front end of a 1-and-1. Halftime 34-29 OSU

Posted under Basketball

Halftime: After discussing McCulloch v. Maryland and Gibbons v. Ogden, I ran back to my house and turned on the game. It was an impressive display of the “Motion” offense. I watched the last 5 minutes and saw a total of 8 points, four each. This is going to be tough to watch, but I’ll be here on the front lines.

19:26: I’ve become a fan of Jarret Smith lately. He makes a smart drive to the lane, draws the foul. Then he hits one of two, gets his own rebound, which he then summarily gives to Minnesota, but still… you like the hustle.

18:38: Could Harris be heating up? 2 straight threes. This one off of good penetration and kicks by Smith and Abram.

17:57: Courtney Sims gets the ball and doubled and finds an open Petway for an AG why you doin’ that? Dunk. Sims with court awareness? This could be a good thing, but I doubt that will keep up.

16:52: OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION! 14 points in 3:30 after only 36 in 20 minutes. Michigan has something that looks like offense. This could be encouraging. Michigan needs to play this game like they played against OSU. They can

15:46: Why can’t the Big Ten get good basketball officials. Michigan has an open man past the defense, good pass down, easy lay-up, BUT IT WHISTLED OFF. Why you ask? To call a technical foul on Minnesota’s coach. He’s not a puppy, you don’t have to T him up immediately for him to learn his lesson. Why would you penalize Michigan to penalize Minnesota? Damnit. At least Harris makes both to get it up to ten.

15:33: Karma. Petway makes a tough shot he normally wouldn’t off of the Technical foul.

15:05: With all due respect to Brian @ mgoblog, Minnesota’s PG just threw a post entry pass to Tacopant. Honestly, I think it might have gone over the back board.

13:43: Too bad it’s almost over, but I’m really started to dig this Smith, Petway pick and roll. If they had another year, I could imagine a TON of alley-oops coming off of that set. It just (good?) offense, which is always refreshing to see from Michigan.

11:57: Instead of the Jeff Bowden-esque 3pt shot, with the shot clock running down, Jarret Smith drives and gets a good look and gets fouled. He is really starting to make good decisions. He’s the most pure PG I’ve seen since Amaker has been here.

10:31: Minnesota can’t hit anything. 16pts in the first half, 7pts in 10 minutes in the second. Wow. I thought Michigan was bad.

10:06: What little rhythm there was in this game, the refs have completely removed.

8:34: FINALLY! After missing 9 straight field goals, DeShawn Simms gets a put back and Michigan equals it’s first half (which I thought they would about 3 minutes ago).

8:22: Courtney Sims needs to GO UP STRONG! He gets blocked from behind on a bunny.

7:08: Michigan is doing a good job crashing the offensive glass, but could do better converting, another turnover.

6:02: AGAIN. Michigan does a great job getting the offensive rebound just to turn it over. Michigan needs points, bad. It’s only a six point game.. Michigan hasn’t scored in almost 3 minutes.

5:12: Ronald Coleman (wtf?) nails a three from the corner off a sweet drive and dish by Smith. But Abu-Shamala answers right back.

4:15: Dion Harris shooting the head end of a one-and-one and hits it. Brent Musberger keeps and saying how Dion Harris “lowered the shoulder.” Having watched Harris for four years, I’ve noticed his shoulder on his ball handling side is always low. I think he does it to look gangsta’. But he did not

3:06: Coleman goes up for a rebound and a Minnesota player undercuts him (totally accidental, legal contact, just unfortunate) and he lands hard on his side. It looks like his wrist hit and then his body came on top. Ouch. I bet everyone in the United Center heard the thud. I don’t want to sound like a huge asshole, but at least it’s Ron Coleman.

2:11: Brent Musberger has a crush on Dion Harris? This is verbatim, I swear. “Dion Harris is a cutie.”

1:39: Abram fouls out. For some reason, I’m not immediately fearing for the win. Where has Udoh been this game? I missed the beginning, was there an announcement? I don’t remember him getting hurt in the OSU game.

1:12: Brent Petway is a rebounding machine. He skies up there and grabs the board over everyone else. I was really worried about Graham Brown leaving and who would fill his role. People mentioned Petway, but I was skeptical, but I was wrong. He does a lot of the little things, takes charges, makes blocks, just a good energy guy. But he also has the ability to do some of the most incredible dunks in college basketball.

54.1: Reed Baker SCORES! That’s all really, just thought that was worth noting.

6.1: So fitting. Michigan gets the offensive rebound with the shot clock off and then TURN IT OVER. I wonder what percentage of Michigan’s turnovers came after offensive rebounds.

Final: 49-40. Decent game by Michigan, but it really seemed that they weren’t playing their hardest. It could be understandable that Michigan was looking ahead to OSU, but luckily Minnesota is horrible. Jarret Smith needs to play out of his mind tomorrow, and I think he could do it.

Posted under Basketball

12:00 Cold Pizza ends, and there was much rejoicing. Brent Musburger is announcing, and there is moderately less rejoicing.
12:01 Per Steve Lavin, guard play is one of the key aspects of the Big Ten tournament. We’re fucked.
12:04 Le Tip. Courtney wins it, and an early foul is committed by Minnesota. Not a terrible start. Turnover by Abram. My surprise level is 0.
12:05 Holy shit. The ball gets stuck between the rim and the backboard and Jerret Smith can’t jump high enough to knock it loose. Petway fouled, can’t hit the shot. Jesus, this is just comedy hour. According to Musburger, Brent’s “main girlfriend” gave him the winged helmet cut. He missed both FTs.
12:06 Huge Petway block. Abram hits the shot and gets the foul. Scoring opens 1:46 into the game.
12:08 Neither team can hit anything. I guess I should be used to it for Michigan this late in the year.
12:09 Pick and roll with Smith and Petway, that inexplicably ends with Petway shooting (and missing) a 12-footer. Then, TURNOVERPALOOZA!
12:10 Udoh enters the game. Good, Minnesota needed to be shut down on offense a little more. TV Timeout 3-0 Mich 15:46 1st Half.
12:13 AWESOME GARRETT RIVAS JOKE, MUSBURGER!!!! Apparently the ball sucked, which was causing the scoring to be off. I think the announcers and refs just aren’t used to shitty basketball teams. Courtney Sims scores.
12:14 Minnesota draws a foul on Courtney, giving them an opportunity to finally score. They hit both.
12:15 Courtney is doubled every time he gets the ball, but has yet to turn it over. Dion charges, ball to Minn. They get an easy dunk.
12:17 Pretty weak foul called on Courtney, denying the entry pass.
12:18 A Minnesota player humps Smith as he sprawls out for the ball. You can hear boos from the crowd, which one can only assume are coming from State fans. Udoh inexplicably shoots with his feet on the 3-point line.
12:20 Blocking foul on Petway, which is two quick ones. Minnesota is building a good amount of momentum here.
12:21 Ladies and Gentlemen, meet Jevohn Shepherd, offensive liability.
12:22 Jesus, they’re really letting the kids play out there. Deshawn took a pretty good hit on the shot, no call. 9-7 Minnesota 10:47 2nd Half
12:25 Back to the game. Minnesota’s band is full of even bigger nerds than ours. threeball for Minnesota. Abram gets blocked in embarrassing fashion when he was triple-covered. Obligatory Musburger-Oden dicksuck.
12:27 Repeat dicksuck. Steve Lavin Joins dicksuck.
12:28 Jerret Smith tries to dribble with his right hand, with nearly disastrous results.
12:30 Nobody is moving on offense, which is a bad sign in an offense named “motion.” Deshawn gets foul on a shot, immediately resulting in a commercial. 12-11 Minnesota 7:39 1st Half
12:32 Georgetown is apparently really good, which makes me less angry about getting spanked by them earlier in the year. Deshawn hits one of the two FTs.
12:33 Tollackson takes approximately 4 changes of pivot foot before shooting, and the rebound is tied up.
12:34 Smith takes someone off the dribble(!) but promptly misses the wide open jumper.
12:35 My god this offense looks awful.
12:36 MacKenzie pokes Smith in the balls, and is entirely perplexed as to why this is a foul.
12:37 Tommy apparently shows emotion only by shoving his players as they head towards the scorer’s table. Harris easy deuce on the break. 16-12 Michigan 4:37 1st Half
12:39 Tollackson provides some evidence that Udoh really needs to hit the weight room. D. Sims looks to have been fouled, resulting in a turnover, and Minnesota scores an easy breakaway basket on the other end.
12:41 He is fouled again, and this time it gets called. 16-16 3:25 1st Half
12:43 Deshawn goes 1-2 again. Lavin and Musbirger are talking about getting wasted together last night. What. The. Fuck.
12:45 Udoh draws the offensive foul on Tollackson, his 2nd. MORE FOOTBALL JOKES LOL!!!
12:47 Abram travels. PLEASE sit him for the rest of his life, Tommy. Nice box out on the three, Jerret.
12:48 Offensive foul on Mr. Consistency. Seriously, Tommy, if you value your job, you will sit Abram.
12:49 Smith is guarding a post player, but Udoh managees to hop over and get the block for him. Dion hits a 3.
12:50 Zany play at the end that Musborger accurately describes as “volleyball” and the half ends with Michigan leading 20-16. This is on pace to be a 40-32 game. AWESOME!

Class time.

Posted under Basketball

Half Time: If this game was decided by which university had the better PSA, Michigan would win hands down. With my apologies to EDSBS, SPACE BITCHES! Looking at the stats, Michigan is doing a good job of drawing fouls and not getting into foul troubles themselves. Only C. Sims and J. Smith have two fouls while virtually all of OSU front line players have at least 2 fouls.

18:30: Oden gets bailed out as the officials call the foul on Ivan Harris and not Greg Oden. Sims continues to earn my ire as he misses both of his free throws.

17:07: Big Ten officials <3 Greg Oden. And Amaker gets a technical and loses his coat! He’s just rocking the business casual turtle neck. He’s still yapping. Maybe he’ll get kicked out and Michigan will have a chance.

17:01: Amaker’s words did not fall on deaf ears and puts his coat back on. Petway drives and gets fouled by Oden. Oden may be a 7 footer, but Petway can jump as high as Dwight Howard.

16:06: Decent offense against the zone. Smith gets a little penetration and is able to get it to Sims a foot away from the basket who (just to annoy me) Euro-dunks it. Then Sims follows it up with a block on the other end. I’m liking the play from the seniors (although Abrams has been sitting most of the game), but Smith is really surprising me with good, intelligent point guard play for the most part.

14:42: Michigan is playing inspired defense. They got back and even though OSU had numbers, it looked like Michigan had more on that end of the floor. Eventually they force the bad shot and the OSU rebounder goes out of bounds.

14:09: Did Abram hear me? He’s playing a lot more aggressively now with two drives (one for a block) this one a really nice drive and finish.

12:55: Abram was running around looking for someone to guard. Luckily OSU turned it over stepping out of bounds.

11:49: Michigan is stagnating on offense, but they really look like they’re playing to win. Good hustle for rebounds and loose balls. Michigan has only 2 more turnovers then OSU and has a assist-to-turnover ratio of over 1.00. Weird.

11:22: Harris goes on to the court and breaks a 3-minute scoring drought with an and-1 opportunity which he fails to convert.

10:13: Petway vs. Oden. Petway wins.

9:02: WOW! Lob over the top of Oden to Courtney Sims who goes up strong with arguably the nation’s best shot blocker right over his should. Thad Matta looks like he’s almost to a gum spitting level.

7:54: The Big Ten officials seem to go by the assumption if Oden gets the ball and doesn’t score, there most be a foul. By the by, this might be the first game not against Delaware St. where I have been worried by Courtney Sims going to the bench. He has been playing Oden tough and had gotten it going on the offensive end. With the OSU game plan looking like “feed Oden” I would really like Sims out there.

6:50: Petway hits the deck to get the ball out to Smith on the offensive glass. Abram gets the ball and draws another foul. The seniors are playing like they don’t want to win the NIT.

5:56: I was just about to write how I don’t like Michigan playing the zone and then Smith comes up with the steal which leads to a Dion Harris score after an inbounds.

5:11: I don’t like Michigan playing the zone. They don’t know what they’re doing. People are just running around trying to guard a man or a zone, it’s hard to tell.

4:55: SIMS DRAWS A FOUL ON ODEN. Sims is trying to re-earn my love! Going strong into Oden and gets the freebies. NAILS THE FIRST! AND THE SECOND. Michigan up by two.

4:45: Oden gets it right back against Sims, who has 4 fouls.

4:15: Who is the player wearing #1 for Michigan; I sure don’t think it’s Smith. Honestly, besides the turnovers, which were only early on, he’s been playing out of his mind. Making great passes, great decisions, good drives and that ridiculous three point bomb from the side.

3:54: Sims gets an and-1 thanks to great feed, four fouls on Oden, and the hilariously named Terwilliger hitting his arm.

2:31: Michigan up by 2pts. It seems as though Michigan has been in control the entire game, but OSU could go on a run of 8-20 pts and blow this game wide open.

2:21: Michigan is starting to turn the ball over an awful lot. They need to stop if Michigan has any chance of holding on.

1:54: Michigan is down by 2. The game is going in the wrong direction. Michigan needs a solid offense possesion. If Dion Harris or Jarret Smith could turn the corner and either go all the way or dish it to Sims or Petway.

1:27: Sims misses a dunk. I’m pretty sure there was a foul, but Oden had four, so… no dice.

48.8: Sweet spin move by Harris draws the foul. He better make these…damn. Misses the front end of a one-and-one

10.0: Michigan can’t box out Ivan Harris since there are 6 Michigan players blocking out Oden. Immediate foul and Michigan is down by 3. And 4.

0.0: Smith throws it into the backcourt instead of, you know, shooting. OSU wins. Michigan gears up for another great NIT run.

Final: 65-61. A missed dunk by Sims and Harris missing the front end of a one-and-one with less than 90 seconds to go in a must win game. This, unfortunately, doesn’t surprise me at all. Two seniors, on Senior Day, against the #1 team in the country, playing for their tournament lives fold under the pressure. Now Michigan will have to win AT LEAST two games in the Big Ten Tourney for any chance of a bid. Amaker should try to get a Technical foul each game in the tourney. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

Posted under Basketball

3:59 pm: Winthrop wins Big South Tourney. Importance? At large bid quality mid-major wins conference championship.

4:01 pm: Forget my Blogger password and have to reset it.

4:04: pm: Washington Huskies just bean UCLA… waiting for the Michigan game to come on.

(Switch to time in the game)
18:53: Game comes on and Michigan is up 3. That’s a pleasant surprise!

18:21: Apparently Mich. St. is playing. Love the announcers. And… Jarret Smith loses his shoe as opposed to losing the ball.

17:40: There’s that Jarret Smith turnover!!

17:21: There’s another one!!

16:45: Turnover #3 for Smith in less than 4 minutes! But he makes a 3 pointer… so he’s even I guess?

15:30: First media timeout 8-7 Michigan. Interior defense has looked fairly solid. Lester Abram has drawn at least two fouls so far.

15:12: Petway is awesome. Blocks the ball all the way to the Big House. He also has the winged hair. Pretty sweet.

14:32: Michigan doesn’t do anything that looks like offense until there is 10 seconds left on the shot clock which leads to a Jeff Bowden-esque 3pt shot from Dion Harris.

12:53: Ohio St. leads 11-10. And Harris turns it over. 13-10.

12:00: According to Big Ten Wonk, Michigan turns the ball over on about 41% of their possesions. They might up that average toady.

11:30: Courtney Simms gets a sweet entry pass and actually goes up fairly strong and puts it in. The only reason I’m noting this is because he usually either doesn’t catch the ball or has some sort of magnetic repulsion to the hoop on the catch.

11:08: Michigan and Ohio St. are primary rivals in football only in my opinion. In basketball I would say MSU is a bigger rival, and ice hockey is probably MSU too.

9:21: I like the defense that C. Sims has been playing on Oden. There was a really weak call on him on an Oden post possesion. If the refs are going to let Oden be physical on offense, Michigan defenders ought to be able to push back.

8:55: Jevohn Shepherd scores? That doesn’t happen. Although, it seems as though he should be better. He has good size and made a good move to the basket. I bet it has something to do with the ultimate player development coach we have…

7:48: Petway bricks a 12ft jumper. He should have just dunked it from there. AG why you ain’t doin’ that?

6:35: This zone is killing Michigan. The Wolverines are just tossing it around the perimeter hoping for one of the OSU defenders to die of boredom. With 4 seconds left Dion Harris starts driving (presumably for a hopeful toss) and gets fouled. Maybe they should do that more…

5:23: Jerret Smith can make some great plays (3/4 court lob to Petway/hook pass to Petway down low this game) but then will have the inexplicably dumb turnover. He could be pretty solid if he had a little more consistency

5:00: AG WHY YOU DOIN’ THAT? Huge dunk from Petway off of another GREAT feed from Smith after he broke down the defense going baseline. Michigan up by 8 now.

4:07: The Basketball team looked like the football team’s front seven against Penn St. (don’t get that reference? Ask Anthony Morelli) on the offensive glass.

3:51: For Christ’s sake Dan Bonner! It’s Michigan! They are wearing Yellow which is not close to either White or Green.

2:42: Big OSU run with improbable 3 pointers and some poor defense from Michigan.

2:14: Petway has actually achieved some basketball smarts during his time at Michigan (not classroom smarts as he is routinely in the back of the class with music blaring so loud the lecturer can probably hear it). He catches the lob, stays in bounds and feeds it D. Simms, who can’t convert, but still a nice play by Petway.

1:27: Epke Udoh, much to the chagrin of announcers, draws the charge. He’s going to be a star at Michigan, and is probably the only person on this team who has a chance at getting drafted (obviously not this year). But Dion Harris sure is a deadly shooter when he has space.

0:33: Michigan doing what it does best, running time off the shot clock, and then they turn it over. That might actually be what they do best.

Half Time: Michigan up by 3 playing at a pace that is good for them. Good defense for the most part. They have weathered OSU’s runs fairly well, usually maintaining the lead. I get the feeling we’ll be seeing a lot of OSU’s zone in the second half. Michigan has looked horrible against that defensive look. They got bailed out by some fouls drawn by Harris and did a good job of crashing the boards, but overall Michigan looked very stagnant against the zone. Up two is not bad going in to the half against the #1 (no matter how legitimate) team in the country.

Posted under Basketball

For the sake of full disclosure, I will be drinking during the game, more heavily as it gets out of hand. I apologize in advance if this gets a little incoherent in the second half.

9:07 Just switching over from Kentucky @ Tennessee. Just in time to see an airballed 3. AWESOME. Game is tied at 3.
9:09 Good defense, bad rebounding, but it eventually results in MSU turning it over.
9:10 Abram misses a terrible look, reminding me why I love BRent Petway. Harris knocks down the three. Nietzel misses a 3, more Petway boards.
9:12 First commercial, 8-7 Michigan with 14:+ in the first half.
9:14 Help Wanted: Michigan State Mascot. Job requirements: Must be douchebag. Petway goaltends a Nietzel layup. It hit the glass before he served it up to be tipslammed.
9:15 Jevohn falls for Hilarious Awesome Wrong Shot Clock Trick; travels. Gray charges to return the turnover favor.
9:16 Petway with a WTF did he hit that? shot.
9:18 Shepherd fouled on what could have been an easy dunk. Goes 2-2 at the line. He looks pretty good guarding Nietzel.
9:19 Deshawn Sims gets hacked going to the rim, no call. Jerret Smith is retarded. 12-9 UM 12:+ in the first. Commercial Break.
9:22 Huge block by Udoh. Me love Udoh. Abram blocked by Suton. Jerret smith blocked by Darwin (L O L!!).
9:23 Abram fouls in the post on a near steal. Terrible entry pass by the Spartans.
9:25 Spartan fans want a travel call on a Petway breakaway. Close call. Offensive foul on MSU. Game is, for some reason, not starting with pain. Ouch, he definitely threw the elbow on the replay.
9:26 Suton misses the open jumper. Keep giving it to him, he can’t hit it consistently. Near over the back on State on the rebound
9:27 Dunk by State. Coleman puts back a Courtney miss. DON’T GIVE NIETZEL THE OPEN THREE, DAMMIT.
9:29 Airball by Suton. TV Timeout 18-14 UM 7:+ 1st.
9:32 Courtney Sims turnover. Color me surprised. Shepherd gets it stripped. Good hustle play by Nietzel. Also, Courtney Sims is terrible.
9:33 Timeout 18-16 UM 6:00 1st.
9:35 Turnover by Reed. 5 seconds forced by Nietzel. Nietzel needs to do well, or UM can win this game. He’s doing it for the Spartans so far. Moving screen on State. I love it when my college basketball is interrupted by NASCAR on SportsCenter.
9:37 Shot clock violation on State. I believe Udoh blocked that shot to force it. Harris hits a deuce when Nietzel tries to force an offensive foul. Nietzel make up for it with a three on the other end.
9:39 Jerret Smith is retarded. TV Timeout 20-19 UM 3:+ 1st.
9:43 Jerret Smith hilariously banks in a three. Three returned on the other end. Under review. Doesn’t actually look like a 3. It’s not.
9:45 Timeout State 23-21 UM 1:+ 1st.
9:46 Shot clock violation State. Jump ball allowed by Dion Harris.
9:47 Nietzel hits an open 3. End of 1st Half, 24-23 State. No halftime analysis because I am “thirsty” if you catch my drift.
10:06 “Interesting” foul on Petway, to say the least. Gamebreak for bonus coverage of VT-UNC.
10:10 Back to the game. 25-23 State 18:20 in the 2nd.
10:11 Good post moves by Abram for the 2. Reverse by Raymar Morgan that you can’t really do a whole lot about. Sims responds at the other end.
10:13 Courtney Sims is a pussy on the defensive end, too! Udoh faces up for the jumper.
10:14 TV Timeout as Nietzel nearly airballs a three. 29-29 16:00 2nd.
10:16 ESPN shows Tom Izzo hurting his hand punch the whiteboard during the timeout.
10:17 Abram misses with 2 on the shot clock, two Wolverines (D. Sims and Udoh) miss the opportunity for rebound. Steal on defense, turnover on offense.
10:19 Another shot clock violation by State. We have had some surprisingly good defense in this game, especially considering that Smith has been guarding Nietzel most of the time.
10:20 At least Jerret Smith doesn’t get hit in the head by passes…
10:21 Sims is a pussy on offense too. Doesn’t go up strong for the easy dunk +1. Out off the Spartans. TV Timeout 31-29 State 12:+ 2nd.
10:23 Shot Clock Violation. Again. It was on us this time. I. HATE. COURTNEY. SIMS! Another TV Timeout. 33-29 State 12:00 2nd.
10:26 I don’t know if you know this, but Courtney Sims fucking sucks. More bonus coverage. At least I don’t have to watch Courtney Sims anymore.
10:32 Back to the game 36-34 State 7:30 2nd.
10:33 Ladies and gentlemen, Air Georgia.
10:33 Ladies and gentlemen, Air Georgia. TV Timeout State about to go up 5, 6:+ 2nd.

A series of unfortunate events has led me to no longer want to watch this game.

Posted under Basketball