Lineup decisions?

[MDCowboy]

I simply do not understand how JL takes Prosser out of the game last night and BU is up by 6 and then HE NEVER PUTS HIM BACK INTO THE GAME while Northern Iowa goes on a huge run.

By doing this, he lets UNI play small and have 4 good shooting guards in the game with Koch, thereby having nobody you can help off of. I know JL says that playing Prosser would force Egolf to guard one of the small guys on their team, but how about pounding them on the boards or going inside. In fact, I think UNI would have subbed a big guy in and not played Sonnen at the 4 spot like we allowed them to do.

I'm ok with trying the 4 guards and matching up with them, but let's face it - their 4 guards were better than ours. How about we adjust and try to take it to them inside with our big guys, who honestly had a better game than the UNI big guys. Egolf had a strong first half and Prosser was solid, when he was allowed to be in the game.

After Prosser's dunk, JL takes him out and doesn't put him back in to atleast try something different to stem the tide? To me this shows getting outcoached and that is becoming UNFORGIVEABLE.

[Dallas Brave]

I'm ok with trying the 4 guards and matching up with them, but let's face it - their 4 guards were better than ours. How about we adjust and try to take it to them inside with our big guys, who honestly had a better game than the UNI big guys. Egolf had a strong first half and Prosser was solid, when he was allowed to be in the game.

As posted in the PJS
Prosser didn’t play the final 13 minutes of the game because of a bad matchup once Austin Pehl and Chip Rank were subbed out, Les said. “They were spreading the floor and playing small and we were back on our heels,” Les said. “I was more worried about the defense.”

In military strategy, the adage is, "don't do what the enemy wants you to do." UNI wanted us to match up small and, by golly, we accommodated them.

[it's boogie time]

That was frustrating to see Prosser on the bench as BU gave up offensive rebounds in the second half to extend possessions for Northern Iowa.

[MDCowboy]

Correct - to me the lineup decisions in game last night were unforgiveable. I'm all for trying something different and trying to match up, but when you see their smalls are better than our smalls, go back to what was working in the 1st half playing 2 big guys.

For the record also, I think UNI had Dunham in the game, not Rank or Pehl when JL took Prosser out. Once they saw Prosser was out, UNI subbed in Sonnen for Dunham and got their 4 guard lineup in like they wanted. Dallas Brave called it perfectly - we gave them exactly the matchups they wanted.

[TheAsianSensation]

As posted in the PJS
Prosser didn??™t play the final 13 minutes of the game because of a bad matchup once Austin Pehl and Chip Rank were subbed out, Les said. ???They were spreading the floor and playing small and we were back on our heels,??? Les said. ???I was more worried about the defense.???

In military strategy, the adage is, "don't do what the enemy wants you to do." UNI wanted us to match up small and, by golly, we accommodated them.

Interesting. It always seems like Les will try to spot the matchups the other teams present and then adjust his team to try and match up with it. He usually doesn't operate the other way around - present a matchup and try and get the other coach to match up with it.

It brings up an advanced poker idea that applies to this thinking - the metagame, and being one level above your opponent. You always want to make moves that leaves the opponent confused, and not allow yourself to make a tough decision based on an opponent's action. Along the same lines, you always want to be a level above your opponent - you detect an opponent's strategy and have a gameplan to counter it. That way you're one step ahead.

I feel like Les needs to be more willing to try and be the aggressor, to try and be that one level above your opponent. He doesn't try the "metagame", so to speak.

[squirrelgotdead]

I agree, TAS, although that is one area where I would argue JL has largely improved on starting with the 2006 turnaround. He fooled everybody in 2007. I might argue he though he is good at recognizing strengths in his team, but he stops short of seeking ways to maximize them (with the primary exception of 2007).

But it has been stated and is largely recognized basketball is a game of surprise in many regards. And we tend to be quite predictable or at least expose our weaknesses too much, and then we end of being surprised (sic) when those are attacked repeatedly.

That said, I don't think Prosser being pulled from the game had near the impact as Dunson picking up his 4th foul with 11+ minutes. UNI did a good job of marginalizing Prosser. I would have kept our best perimeter defender in at that point. Dodie's smart enough to back off a bit at that point, but still would've been effective.

[ph]

What bothers me is JL's postgame comment about JP not being in at the end. "In 2 years he'll (JP) will be the guy in"

What does JL think he owes someone else instead of playing JP more?

[thefish7]

I understand where he's coming from, but by the time UNI had closed the gap with a big run you need to try to change it up- get some rebounds and pound it inside.

[OrangeandBlack74]

As posted in the PJS
Prosser didn??™t play the final 13 minutes of the game because of a bad matchup once Austin Pehl and Chip Rank were subbed out, Les said. ???They were spreading the floor and playing small and we were back on our heels,??? Les said. ???I was more worried about the defense.???

In military strategy, the adage is, "don't do what the enemy wants you to do." UNI wanted us to match up small and, by golly, we accommodated them.

Exactly!! JL never considered the fact that UNI is weak inside, and we could have forced THEM to make an adjustment to our lineup...unbelievably bad coaching!!!!!

[bugregshu]

And it's not like we were going to do a worse job defending the 3 if Prosser was out there instead of a 4th guard. JL can't say that he wanted to match up with UNI because what he did was not working AT ALL, and any coach should have recognized that and made a change. Also, with only 7 players playing last night, the fact that Prosser was on the bench for the last 12 minutes of the game gave us only 6 players, which means 1 sub. How do you think that effects legs and stamina at the end of the game when we need to shoot some 3's and get some rebounds. There is honestly no legitimate reason I can think of for the lineup in the 2nd half last night.

[real fan]

Prosser should ha ve stayed in the game, as far as matchups go, all we had to do was guard 2 players Ahelegbe and James, stop one of them and we win the game, does not take 4 guards but just 2 good defenders to stop them, how about making them try to stop our inside game which I felt was the best of the season when Egolf and Prosser were on the floor at the same time. Les"s substitution patterns have been bad for a long time and have cost this team several wins this season.

[LittleBrave]

how about making them try to stop our inside game which I felt was the best of the season when Egolf and Prosser were on the floor at the same time. Les"s substitution patterns have been bad for a long time and have cost this team several wins this season.

I felt that way too about our inside play (9-12 from the floor) and getting rebounds.

I can think of at least 5 games that we could have won, but a combination of substitution patterns, technicals, and poor defensive schemes (and not adjusting) may have cost us. Last night, all 3 were at play.