Mikey D

Game Thoughts:

~Defense was pretty poor, but I suppose that's to be expected for the first game of the season. Guys have to get used to playing with each other and the different line-up combinations, as well as work on the rotations, switches, etc. Still, there were way too many uncontested shots. Lapses on defense are understandable at this point, but putting a hand in a guy's face isn't too hard, is it? That said, we did have 10 blocks and 9 steals. I'll take that every game for sure.

~Draymond Green got tore up on the defensive end by EMU's Brandon Bowdry. Even though Green lost some weight, he's still going to struggle at the small forward spot against quicker players. All the analysts are pretty spot on in saying that this is where we are going to miss Raymar Morgan the most. He may have made dumb fouls and have been invisible on the court from time to time (okay, a majority of the time), but he would have never been blown by the way Green was last night. We'll see how Izzo adapts to this weakness going forward.

~Payne and Appling were in regular rotation last night, and will be for the remainder of the year. Those two are the real deal. Appling had 14 pts, on 3-4 shooting, 1-1 from 3pt, and was 7-7 from the free throw line with 2 blocks and 3 assists to boot. He also committed 5 turnovers, but they weren't "what are you doing!?!" turnovers- just nervous first game freshman turnovers. Payne is pretty special. He can do things that no one else on our roster can do because he is such a freak athlete. He has a lot of learning to do (he made many dumb fouls), but he still had 10 points and 7 rebounds...in only 14 minutes of play. I already love watching the guy, and he's going to be a definite spark off our bench this year.

~My goodness, is it possible Derrick Nix has regressed? He no-showed last night. He missed a couple of shots and was just 2-4 from the free throw line in 15 minutes of play. Garrick Sherman far and away out played him (and so did Payne). I think the thing that was most disappointing was the way that Nix looked down low. Both of his shots were off balance and awkward. For a guy his size, he should be imposing his will, not trying to get cute with spin moves and head-fakes. And to be fair, the game was very up-tempo last night, which definitely does not favor Nix's game. Perhaps he'll be better in the Big Ten slug fests, but he better get it together right quick or he'll be lost in the rotation behind Roe, Sherman, and Payne.

~Austin Thornton remains my favorite Spartan through the first two exhibition games and first regular season game. 10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 4-4 from the free throw line. He did a little bit of everything last night. He could be that guy that is a difference maker come March. The guy who when we play teams of equal starting talent that puts us over the top with his stellar contribution off the bench. At the very least his contributions last night made me forget all about the absence of Chris Allen.

~Speaking of absence, Korie Lucious and Mike Kebler were both out last night. The team will only get deeper.

~Lucas was awesome again last night. Any worries about his Achilles are over. He's back. Now lets hope he doesn't pull a Hummel and hurt himself again now that he's back.

~Summers made his presence known last night with 17 points (3-4 from 3's). That was the big question going into the season: Would he contribute like he did in the tournament, or would he fade into the background? He was very assertive and made it a point to take shots when he was open. He has such a sweet stroke that I don't mind if he shot the ball every time down the court. It was nice to seem him unleash his game (and not just for alley-oop passes).

~Even though Roe is healthy, I don't think he's ever going to be that offensive force down low. He'll definitely be a beast on the defensive end though, and I'll take that.

~Next game: Tuesday at 10:00pm, at home against South Carolina, on ESPN (part of their marathon college basketball day, hence the late start time). Big Ten-SEC clash, but I'll be disappointed if we don't beat them by at least ten.

~Mikey D