U of M MEN'S BASKETBALL 2016-2017

[hack]

FI-RE BEI-LEIN!! Clap-clap; clap-clap-clap.

[WM Wolverine]

This isn't the same team that we saw in January, night & day difference on the defensive end.

[The Oracle]

Yeah, when you evaluate a coaching position on a week to week basis, you're bound to look like a fucking idiot.

[Hannibal]

Huge win. We had to beat two teams today.

[Hannibal]

We really needed this one. And with that the shitty losses to Illinois, OSU, etc are hereby erased

[WingsFan]

Winning in the opposite fashion Michigan is used to. Have to be able to win multiple ways in a tourney setting. Going to Kansas City....

[Detroit Dan]

Yes, Michigan beat Purdue in the B1G tournament even though Walton had an off day. We did the same today. This team is well balanced, with a lot of weapons.

The only thing we're missing is a lock down defensive rebounder.

[Hannibal]

This feels a lot more sustainable than previously. That is what I thought after the SMU win too. The optimism at the time was well founded. But for some reason they sucked ass for a couple of months after that. Sweet Sixteen IMHO was the right goal for the team and we made it. Elite Eight and we're playing with house money again. This team is playing like a legit one or two seed now.

[Kstat]

Rhode Island looks really good. We might have better odds against a floundering Oregon team.

[hack]

Refs whistled it fair in the second.

[Kstat]

Not according to Louisville fans.

[hack]

Sky's blue.

[Da Geezer]

Refs whistled it fair in the second.

It seemed to me that the B10 teams got the short end of the stick in a lot of their games. Northwestern was the worst in terms of missing an obvious call.

[hack]

This feels a lot more sustainable than previously. That is what I thought after the SMU win too. The optimism at the time was well founded. But for some reason they sucked ass for a couple of months after that. Sweet Sixteen IMHO was the right goal for the team and we made it. Elite Eight and we're playing with house money again. This team is playing like a legit one or two seed now.

Exactly. It was really hard to figure out this team. Really up and down with effort issues until after that OSU win. But the talent level suggested Sweet 16 and that's what happened. Those OSU and Illinois and Va Tech games were shitty, and called into question whether it was ever going to come together. Maybe it happened a bit late but the bottom line is that it did.

Not sure what you mean about sustainability. For this year, yes. We've seen them win raining in 3s and without relying on them as well. And they've won with Walton putting them on their back and with Walton playing a relatively quiet game too. They have really and truly come together. It's all house money from here, but they are plenty good enough to beat Oregon and probably should be favored in that game. Beating Kansas in Kansas City sounds like a really tall order. I'd defer to folks who have seen them more than a time or two this year for opionions there. But it looks to me like they have little depth in the frontcourt, and that's at least an opportunity for Michigan.

If you mean sustainability beyond this year I sure hope so. Somebody else needs to step up and be the leader, and if that happens, I won't worry. I think Beilein didn't just wake up last year and suddenly realize what to do. He's always known the drawbacks of his style, and it just took him longer than I would have liked to find the right solutions.

[WM Wolverine]

Kansas is really athletic, better than any team we've played this season. Before we talk about them we've to worry about the Ducks who we could and should beat if we play our game.

NW wasn't just one bad call as the media made it to be; it was one team getting all the calls, for most the game. Northwestern outplayed them imo.