Sam M & Andrew W....

[BradleyBrave]

I like E.M. a lot but he has not played well offensively for quite some time and defenses are starting to back off of him which is making it a lot harder for our other players to get off open shots, he is going to have to start making some outside shots or we will not be able to play him as much.

Kinda reminds me of Dan Ruffin, Rob Dye, and Billy Wright as freshmen...

EM will be just fine, don't worry.

[jeffsu]

Fair enough BB! The only thing usually set in stone is the position these players will play. AW would make a great 2 but will play the 3, TB should play the 3 but will be a 4. It would be sweet if JP or MK come in and show some real game and can start at the 4 and then have the rest of the starters move down in position. Then we would have a starting team of EM, AW, TB, JP, WE.....

As someone has said, "if we go big no one will beat us."

I'd like to see SM in for EM in that lineup (not to get the EM/SM debate going again... I don't care if thats starting lineup or just a commonly used one during the game) but that would be quite the scoring lineup.

[Boiler]

No we haven't

but nobody can deny with a straight face that we haven't been shot over almost the entire season.

It's been our overly aggressive, switching, chasing defense that has left shooters open on the opposite side of the court. Unless you play 'em staight up and BU gets a 6' 5" defensive specialist, Sam's the man to lead the way with his fearless shooting, ball handling, and free throw shooting skills.

[romar]

AW also missed the last month of the season with a broken hand, so he didn't have any 'extra' games. AW was also playing behind all-conference guards in Will Franklin, Jeremy Crouch, and Dan Ruffin, and sharing time with JJ Tauai and Danny Adams as a freshman. The backcourt has been nowhere near that crowded or that talented since Sam has been here.

Also, where was the shooting percentage comparison? Sam is shooting 3's at 33% clip this year, and 41% overall from the field. Last year AW shot 43% from the fied, and 41% from 3 - significantly better than Sam's 33%. As a freshman, AW shot 46% from the field, and 46% from 3. Conversely as a freshman Sam shot 41% from the field and 36% from 3. The numbers clearly speak for themselves here.

Sam will be a solid 4 year guy, and I like his as a player, but a BU great is a big, big stretch. Next year he doesn't project out to start, or even necessarily be the first guard off the bench. AW is twice the talent Sam is, and will have twice the career. If given the choice between the two, 10 of 10 MVC coaches would take AW. This comparison is silly, really.

Your argument of who AW played with and behind cuts both ways - AW has always been the second or third offensive option and has never had the defensive bulls-eye placed directly on his back as SM has much of this year. That may explain the difference in field goal percentages as well. I think any comparison between players can be called "silly" as well as any effort to refute that comparison. I like both AW and SM and can't wait to seem them play together next year. I just think that Big Mike was trying to give SM his just due as his Soph season has progressed.

[braveatheart]

I contend that our best lineup this year is when SM, DD, CR, TW, and DC are on the floor.
Next year, I think our best lineup will be when SM, DD, AW, TB, and WE will be on the floor...until proven otherwise.

I totally agree ER3. Last year I cringed when DR went down and we had to play SM at point but you know what, he did pretty good. Better than I thought he would. Still I wanted DR to get healthy.

This year I was hoping EM would come in and make SM take a seat. I thought he did for a while. I have changed my mind in the last 3 games though and I think SM is our best point gaurd. He does a great job of bringing the ball up the court, rarely turns the ball over, great free throw shooter, fair 3 point shooter, good driver of the lane and good basketball IQ.
EM is a little quicker, better rebounder and a little better defensivley.
That line-up ER3 likes is full of scorers. SM,DD,AW,TB are a lot of guys for the other team to gaurd. They will have to leave somebody open and that open guy will score. If EM is in there, they will just leave him open. I am not getting down on EM as I think he can get better and will get better. But as it stands now SM has the edge.
I think this year that CR has earned a starters role with his play of late. He deserves to play ahead of EM. This all should make georgethedog happy as these lineups are also our biggest.