What if Femi was healthy?

[Billiken75]

Just back from the game - great atmosphere and fun game - tough to take that loss.

Crawford was amazing, he can score but driving and shooting. I was wondering if a healthy Femi could have been a better option to guard him. Any thoughts?

I admire the effort by Kyle, just thinking Femi might have been a better match-up.

Let's have the same crowd Sat night.

[slu72]

Just back from the game - great atmosphere and fun game - tough to take that loss.

Crawford was amazing, he can score but driving and shooting. I was wondering if a healthy Femi could have been a better option to guard him. Any thoughts?

I admire the effort by Kyle, just thinking Femi might have been a better match-up.

Let's have the same crowd Sat night.

I don't think Josh Fisher could shut that kid down. Give him his points and jam their inside guys. Love was the guy that killed us and a whole mess of junk they threw up.

[Quality Is Job 1]

What if Coach Majerus would have been more willing to play a 1-3-1 matchup zone or 2-3 zone on occasion to throw Xavier off stride and reduce their inside advantage? Or play box-and-one with the one shadowing Crawford?

[The Dude]

Did anyone find it odd that in the course of defending the Muskies best player that Cassity had 0 fouls. ZERO FREAKIN FOULS!!!

And they miss Femi's shot big time. And his defense - not necessarily over Cassity's but certainly over Jordan's.

[Box and Won]

We were thinking the same thing re: Femi.

[GOSLU68]

What if Coach Majerus would have been more willing to play a 1-3-1 matchup zone or 2-3 zone on occasion to throw Xavier off stride and reduce their inside advantage? Or play box-and-one with the one shadowing Crawford?

Give credit: the Xmen did not give up tonight; the Bills came up short. As to zones that is not who we are?

What we are is a very scrappy team with 3 guys who can play for anyone, offensively.

There is no quit in this Saint Louis University team.

Announcers said both teams played well. Jason Love was the real difference maker. The good news is he graduates this year.

[Billiken75]

What if Coach Majerus would have been more willing to play a 1-3-1 matchup zone or 2-3 zone on occasion to throw Xavier off stride and reduce their inside advantage? Or play box-and-one with the one shadowing Crawford?

I don't really ever question Majerus and his decision making. It takes time and practice to make those zones work and I am sure we are still in basketball 101 with this team.

[MB73]

What if Coach Majerus would have been more willing to play a 1-3-1 matchup zone or 2-3 zone on occasion to throw Xavier off stride and reduce their inside advantage? Or play box-and-one with the one shadowing Crawford?

Do not think so, we win 6 in a row, on a roll, SLU "D" among the national leaders, zone "D" is not our style, kids trained to play "D" a certain way and played it well.

Tough loss, you can nit-pick a few issues, it was a physical game, refs let contact go... maybe RM should have had Cassity handcheck Crawford to see what he could get away with... no fouls by Cassity. But Cassity is quality player, cannot look at it that way.

SLU kids played well, cannot look back, no regrets. Played best team in A-10 to the wire, to the last few seconds.

[Billikan]

Did anyone find it odd that in the course of defending the Muskies best player that Cassity had 0 fouls. ZERO FREAKIN FOULS!!!

And they miss Femi's shot big time. And his defense - not necessarily over Cassity's but certainly over Jordan's.

For the most part, Cassidy played him very tough and most shots were hit over the defense or after Kyle was screened by one, two or even three guys. You act like this was just a one on one game. If Femi were completely healthy he might have helped a bit but not with his knee still hurt.

[Quality Is Job 1]

I don't really ever question Majerus and his decision making. It takes time and practice to make those zones work and I am sure we are still in basketball 101 with this team.

Of course they would have to prepare it during the course of the year in practice! But it's a nice tool to have in your belt from time to time. I recall hearing Coach Majerus say on his show last year that "next year" (meaning this year), for the first time in his coaching career, he would play a 1-3-1 matchup zone — because he would have personnel suited to playing it. That hasn't materialized. It might not have mattered tonight, but you never know. He's also said this year that next year he will have Coach Moser install a 2-3 zone defense. We'll see if that materializes.

Please don't read this as a complaint or criticism. I'm just wondering, like many fans do, if the outcome might have been different if this or that.

[Bishop]

Femi is a great defender, but Kyle played great defense on crawford all night and he still buried shots. There is a reason many thought he was the most important player at the end of his freshman year on an Indiana team that included Eric Gordon and DJ White, As an IU fan, there were few players I was more excited to see progress than crawford. Unfortunately, my excitement is being realized against my own team...

Kyle did everything and anything he could. Crawford is just that talented.

[Quality Is Job 1]

Femi is a great defender, but Kyle played great defense on crawford all night and he still buried shots. There is a reason many thought he was the most important player at the end of his freshman year on an Indiana team that included Eric Gordon and DJ White, As an IU fan, there were few players I was more excited to see progress than crawford. Unfortunately, my excitement is being realized against my own team...

Kyle did everything and anything he could. Crawford is just that talented.

So Crawford transferred from Indiana? Did he have to sit out a year? If he sat out a year, then I hope he gets his degree this May and has nothing stopping him from turning pro. I don't want to have to deal with that guy again after this March!

-Sincerely,

Kyle Cassity and all of Billiken Nation

[Bishop]

So Crawford transferred from Indiana? Did he have to sit out a year? If he sat out a year, then I hope he gets his degree this May and has nothing stopping him from turning pro. I don't want to have to deal with that guy again after this March!

-Sincerely,

Kyle Cassity and all of Billiken Nation

Yes, he sat out last year and the only reason he is still at X after the Sean Miller coaching switch is because he didnt want to sit out another year. God I wish he was still in a Hoosiers uniform.

Odds he leaves are 50-50 as teams are split as to whether or not he is ready to contribute right now. The league can always use scorers however. LETS PRAY.

[slu72]

Yes, he sat out last year and the only reason he is still at X after the Sean Miller coaching switch is because he didnt want to sit out another year. God I wish he was still in a Hoosiers uniform.

Odds he leaves are 50-50 as teams are split as to whether or not he is ready to contribute right now. The league can always use scorers however. LETS PRAY.

Hey, he dunked on KING LEBRON. He's ready... please go... we don't want to see him again next year. On the Fox Sports pregame they had a piece on his highlights this year... trust me what we saw last night was just a small sampling of this kid's repetoire. He's that good. If Kell the Cell had cut back on his minutes and was still at IU, Crawford would be all big 10. Can't figure out why Crean let him go though? Wasn't like he inherited a boat load of talent.

[Larry the Legend]

Did anyone find it odd that in the course of defending the Muskies best player that Cassity had 0 fouls. ZERO FREAKIN FOULS!!!

And they miss Femi's shot big time. And his defense - not necessarily over Cassity's but certainly over Jordan's.

Are you kidding me? They miss Femi's shot???? He is shooting 34% from the floor and 28% from 3 this year. That's no good at all. Plus the man is basically playing on 1 leg. I love his attitude and hope he comes back stronger than ever next year and contributes. But to think that he would have done any better than Cassity is simply insane IMO. Cassity played his heart out guarding Crawford and there comes a time when you just need to give the player his due - Crawford is a legitimate player and NBA prospect!

I do agree that his D is better than Jordan's though. JJ needs to improve his D this summer.

[BACKHANDtheRICAN]

Did anyone find it odd that in the course of defending the Muskies best player that Cassity had 0 fouls. ZERO FREAKIN FOULS!!!

And they miss Femi's shot big time. And his defense - not necessarily over Cassity's but certainly over Jordan's.

Yea, the team is better if Femi takes JJs minutes....JJ had an atrocious 5 minutes spurt in the 2nd half

[JMM28]

Odds he leaves are 50-50 as teams are split as to whether or not he is ready to contribute right now. The league can always use scorers however. LETS PRAY.

The league? The D-league. As I was watching that game last night, I could see visions of Mr. Crawford hoisting his NBDL MVP trophy for the 3rd straight year in the Louis J. Tullio Arena for the Erie Bayhawks.

[dneuner]

Femi told me before the game that he thinks he's done for the year. Said he was going to opt for surgery so that he can rehab during the spring and be ready for summer camp and next season.

[moytoy12]

Femi told me before the game that he thinks he's done for the year. Said he was going to opt for surgery so that he can rehab during the spring and be ready for summer camp and next season.

I wonder if surgery should have occurred earlier to get a jump on rehab.

[Taj79]

I haven't seen Femi do anything this year. What makes you think he would add something to the team? Yes, we do hear about his defense but have we actually seen it? He leads the team in DQs and last played ten games ago. At 6'2', I don' tthink he adds much in terms of guarding Crawford. Guarantee he woiuld have had more fouls than Kyle but so what. If you do a search of old posts, you will see where I thought Jon Smith might get more time. Smith played two minutes last night. Where did he go? What di dhe do to get off the startin gline-up and get buried that far down a short bench?????

[willie]

I haven't seen Femi do anything this year. What makes you think he would add something to the team? Yes, we do hear about his defense but have we actually seen it? He leads the team in DQs and last played ten games ago. At 6'2', I don' tthink he adds much in terms of guarding Crawford. Guarantee he woiuld have had more fouls than Kyle but so what. If you do a search of old posts, you will see where I thought Jon Smith might get more time. Smith played two minutes last night. Where did he go? What di dhe do to get off the startin gline-up and get buried that far down a short bench?????

He would have done a better job than JJ. I would have liked to have given a few fouls on Crawford when he was in position to score.

[bauman]

I haven't seen Femi do anything this year. What makes you think he would add something to the team? Yes, we do hear about his defense but have we actually seen it? He leads the team in DQs and last played ten games ago. At 6'2', I don' t think he adds much in terms of guarding Crawford. Guarantee he woiuld have had more fouls than Kyle but so what. If you do a search of old posts, you will see where I thought Jon Smith might get more time. Smith played two minutes last night. Where did he go? What di dhe do to get off the startin gline-up and get buried that far down a short bench?????

Taj I gotta agree with you. When I read the post about needing FJ's shooting I thought about thanking his parents for posting on this Board. I really wonder if we will see Femi returning, coming off surgery. Where will his minutes come from next year? He is too small to play much at the 3, especially with the hoped for improvement of JS at the 3/4 and the possible return of JR. With about 100 minutes of PT (80 for the 1 & 2 spots and 20 for playing a 3-guard lineup part of the time) you have to anticipate KM for 30-35, MM for 25-35, KC for 25- 30 and CS for 20-25. That's your 100 minutes even at the low end for all those guys. Again, considering his injury, I see FJ opting for more PT at another school.

Regarding JS's reduced playing time, he needs to do two things between now and next year: get a lot stronger so he isn't pushed around by heavier 3/4s and develop a shot up to 15-18 feet. He has to become somewhat of an offensive threat, not just a rebounder. He certainly has all the basic tools to be a real contributor in the future.

[The Dude]

Are you kidding me? They miss Femi's shot???? He is shooting 34% from the floor and 28% from 3 this year. That's no good at all. Plus the man is basically playing on 1 leg. I love his attitude and hope he comes back stronger than ever next year and contributes. But to think that he would have done any better than Cassity is simply insane IMO. Cassity played his heart out guarding Crawford and there comes a time when you just need to give the player his due - Crawford is a legitimate player and NBA prospect!

I do agree that his D is better than Jordan's though. JJ needs to improve his D this summer.

Cassity was 2-10 FG-FGA. And yes, I think Femi's a better pure outside shooter than Cassity (he is the team's best free throw shooter if you want to rely on a short sample of stats). Of course that's not saying much. But it's nights like those against Xavier where the stone cold hands of Cassity should have spent more time on the bench if there was another alternative. Femi will be back next year and hopefully able to play a full season. Of course, playing time for guards will get a little tighter next year.

[eastsidejoe]

Cassity was 2-10 FG-FGA. And yes, I think Femi's a better pure outside shooter than Cassity (he is the team's best free throw shooter if you want to rely on a short sample of stats). Of course that's not saying much. But it's nights like those against Xavier where the stone cold hands of Cassity should have spent more time on the bench if there was another alternative. Femi will be back next year and hopefully able to play a full season. Of course, playing time for guards will get a little tighter next year.

i disagree. Femi is a very good defender and attacks the basket well, but I question that he is a "pure outside shooter". He definetely would have helped. I think KC was spent trying to play D on Crawford. I don't know about free throw %, maybe your right but that is a very very short example of stats.

[showthebill]

Femi's shot is broke. He has a huge hitch in his shot because of his injury. If you go back and look at his shots when he was playing at the beginning of the year he would hitch his threes and put a weird spin on it... kind of like a double clutch type thing before he shoots. I completely disagree with whoever said we need his shot.