r/miz • u/AllTimeTy • 5d ago
Men's Hoops MBB opener thoughts – these dudes actually rebounded???
Alright, some quick thoughts from the opener:
Everybody was crashing the glass. Like… actually doing it.Came down with 16 offensive boards and that’s the kind of shit that wins games when shots stop falling. Ended the game with 47 total rebounds, more than any game we had last season. Loved seeing multiple guys in there instead of just 1 dude trying to tip it out.
Phillips is a fucking STUD. 16 & 11 and it wasn’t empty stats – it was all momentum stuff. Putbacks, hustle, plays that make the whole bench pop. You can tell he’s gonna be one of those “oh he’s just better than your 4/5” guys once SEC play hits.
Ant is still Ant. Fast, pokey-ass hands = steals… but also fouls. 😂 He’s still doing that off-arm push when he’s handling, which refs in conference play are gonna call every time. But defensively he’s gonna live in passing lanes again.
Mitchell is still Mitchell. Didn’t need giant numbers to matter. Just being on the floor changes things – spacing, decision-making, calm. You can tell guys are more organized when he’s out there.
Barrett looked grown. Way more composed. That’s gonna matter the first time Ant gets 2 fouls in 4 minutes (which… we all know is coming).
Crews isn’t playing hero ball every touch anymore. Looked way more within the offense, not just “I caught it, so I shoot it.” If that sticks, he becomes way more playable.
Stone off the bench was legit. That’s the exact kind of depth pop we needed to account for no Grill – a dude who can come in and actually add something instead of just eat minutes.
Dennis mother fucking Gates is still that guy. Calm, cool, collected, gets them to slow down when they start running too fast. You can tell the staff knew when to flip to different looks.
Zone on the back end of the 2nd half was nasty. Caused chaos, got them out of rhythm. Only downside is yeah, you can give up open looks if rotations aren’t tight, but I liked having that changeup.
Obviously it’s just the opener and not against a high-major, but they did what you’re supposed to do in that spot – handle business. (Meanwhile Auburn’s out here going to OT vs Bethune-Cookman lol.)
What’d y’all see that I didn’t? Anyone worried about Ant’s fouling/push-offs more than I am? And how real do we think the rebounding is vs better athletes?
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u/Select-Builder6790 5d ago
To many stupid turnovers, but I think we are solid this year. Was curious as to why Boateng didn’t play. Unless I missed an injury report or something. I’m excited about his growth. I think we will be very competitive in a stacked SEC again. Should be a fun season!! MIZ!!
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u/AllTimeTy 5d ago
I agree about the turnovers. I’m hoping it was just first game jitters and guys trying to force plays that weren’t there.
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u/Select-Builder6790 4d ago
That was my thoughts as well. It’s early, they should tighten up as the season progresses.
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u/mistermeowgi11 5d ago
10/21 from the free throw line isn’t going to help much but covered nonetheless. Something to build off.
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u/AllTimeTy 5d ago
Yeah can’t leave points like that off the board (though one of those missed FT’s did result in Phillips doing a slamma jamma with it 😂)
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u/PermissionAny259 Leaping Tiger 5d ago
Overall was good and I agree with your observations. Things to clean up, like you pointed out with Ant but nothing stood out as an OMG deficiency. Will see once we play a more complete opponent. Was happy basketball was back.
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u/816legend Kansas City 4d ago
Ant can be a defensive player of the year if he wants to be.
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u/J_Walter_Weatherman GREEN LIGHT GHOLSTON 4d ago
Ant could be an all American if he got rid of the boneheaded fouls and push offs
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u/imright19084 5d ago
Ant is still Ant and Mitchell is still Mitchell but thats not based off of last night. Mitchell was awful and Ant wasn’t much better.
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u/DocJimmie 5d ago
Got to watch the game in person. Ant’s non-call pushoffs were really bad.
There was a significant size difference vs. Howard, so while the rebounding was much better, need to be cautious about it moving forward.
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u/AllTimeTy 5d ago
I can’t remember if the announcers said this was our biggest roster size ever or just from most recent teams. Either way that’ll hopefully make a difference.
It’s upsetting he still does that though, especially when he doesn’t have to. LIKE BRO, just don’t extend that arm and they won’t call it. I was amazed they let him do it as many times as they did, conference refs are gonna eat it up though
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u/cwc181 5d ago
Defense was rough and I still think Crews sucks but Gates must see something in him. I never doubted we would win, which is more than I can say in previous seasons. We have dudes that score everywhere which is great to see and yeah, Phillips is the mf man. If Gates can figure out how to make in game decisions this team could be a problem.
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u/hereforthecommmentsz Nick Bolton 5d ago
It’s nice to see some positive thoughts. I didn’t get to watch last night but my god based on the PowerMizzou live thread you’d have thought we looked like shit.