Morris didn't play in 2nd half yesterday

[BleedGopher]

I didn't realize this until I read 1500's "24 Second Shot Clock" of tid-bits:

15 - Which brings us to Carlos Morris. You'd like to think that an athletic, 6-foot-5 swingman might be able to stick with a guy like Newbill at least for a possession. But here's a telling stat: Morris played 13 minutes as the Nittany Lions raced to 43 points and a nine-point halftime cushion. Morris did not play a minute in the second half.

14 - Carlos Morris is what he is - an offense-first, scoring-focused player who can carry you when he's feeling it and does literally nothing else. Expectations for his senior year must be tempered.

http://www.1500espn.com/sportswire/...t_clock_from_Gophers_loss_to_Penn_State030815

Go Gophers!!

 

[station19]

This time you only beat me by 5 minutes Bleed. Was just going to post it.

Good article.

 

[station19]

I didn't realize this until I read 1500's "24 Second Shot Clock" of tid-bits:

15 - Which brings us to Carlos Morris. You'd like to think that an athletic, 6-foot-5 swingman might be able to stick with a guy like Newbill at least for a possession. But here's a telling stat: Morris played 13 minutes as the Nittany Lions raced to 43 points and a nine-point halftime cushion. Morris did not play a minute in the second half.

14 - Carlos Morris is what he is - an offense-first, scoring-focused player who can carry you when he's feeling it and does literally nothing else. Expectations for his senior year must be tempered.

http://www.1500espn.com/sportswire/...t_clock_from_Gophers_loss_to_Penn_State030815

Go Gophers!!

Also from the article:

17 - That Mason, a 6-foot-1 freshman, was the only logical choice to guard the 6-4 senior, also says a lot about the Gophers' defensive struggles. Senior Andre Hollins is only an inch taller than Mason and a couple steps slower. DeAndre Mathieu is giving up seven inches - conservatively - to Newbill.

16 - When Pitino drew up scenarios like this in the offseason, he probably envisioned Daquein McNeil playing an important role. The lanky 6-foot-3 sophomore was set to play a lot of minutes this season, but an arrest for domestic assault in late November put an end to that plan. Not trying to make an excuse for Pitino, who did the right thing and cut ties with McNeil, but keep in mind that Nate Mason: Defensive Stopper was not what anybody originally had in mind.

 

[bga1]

I didn't realize this until I read 1500's "24 Second Shot Clock" of tid-bits:

15 - Which brings us to Carlos Morris. You'd like to think that an athletic, 6-foot-5 swingman might be able to stick with a guy like Newbill at least for a possession. But here's a telling stat: Morris played 13 minutes as the Nittany Lions raced to 43 points and a nine-point halftime cushion. Morris did not play a minute in the second half.

14 - Carlos Morris is what he is - an offense-first, scoring-focused player who can carry you when he's feeling it and does literally nothing else. Expectations for his senior year must be tempered.

http://www.1500espn.com/sportswire/...t_clock_from_Gophers_loss_to_Penn_State030815

Go Gophers!!

Maybe that's a message for next year to Carlos. Return ready to play defense and within the team scheme on offense or suffer the EE treatment. I'm not giving up on Carlos yet- lots of talent. But he needs to become a more complete player. We need him.

 

[Holy Man]

Maybe that's a message for next year to Carlos. Return ready to play defense and within the team scheme on offense or suffer the EE treatment. I'm not giving up on Carlos yet- lots of talent. But he needs to become a more complete player. We need him.

Carlos' poor defense exacerbated the loss of Austin Hollins as a defensive stopper. Few, if any, would have reasonably expected Austin's defense to be replicated, but it would have been nice to see at least average defense from him this season. I agree we need him and he certainly has the physical attributes to be a good defender if he wants to. Pitino needs to figure out how to motivate him.

 

[Unregistered User]

14 - Carlos Morris is what he is - an offense-first, scoring-focused player who can carry you when he's feeling it and does literally nothing else. Expectations for his senior year must be tempered.

I literally believe that this writer does not know the meaning of literally.

They should be embarrassed to post this on their site.

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

I literally believe that this writer does not know the meaning of literally.

They should be embarrassed to post this on their site.

I'm literally at the end of my rope with people who misuse "literally".

 

[Dr.Don]

I'm literally at the end of my rope with people who misuse "literally".

I literally agree with you.

 

[Costa Rican Gopher]

Morris is so, so bad. If he was a great offensive player then he'd just be a liability on one end of the floor, but his turnovers, decisions to attack when nothing's there, unneccesarily jacking up shots and doing it so early in the shot clock all make him a liabilty on both ends of the court.

One sequence against Wisconsin really stood out to me. Wisconsin missed a shot, Morris failed to block out, Dekker came out of no where for the offensive board, then he pulled back to the top of the key with Carlos following him before going baseline to posterize Morris with a massive dunk....and one, from a pointless reach in by Morris.

 

[Moonlight]

I noticed this while at the game, and it did not displease me.
I was however encouraged by Masons defence, and his offense. I am going to enjoy 4 years of him.

 

[Bad Gopher]

I noticed this while at the game, and it did not displease me.
I was however encouraged by Masons defence, and his offense. I am going to enjoy 4 years of him.

Listening to the people around me at the game, everybody in the building knows that if Carlos gets the ball and starts shaking and baking, there is no chance he's ever going to pass it. If every single fan knows this, the other team does, too.

 

[Moonlight]

Listening to the people around me at the game, everybody in the building knows that if Carlos gets the ball and starts shaking and baking, there is no chance he's ever going to pass it. If every single fan knows this, the other team does, too.

Good point. I've had the same experience at the games, and I was hoping it was our little secret...

 

[justthefacts]

I literally believe that this writer does not know the meaning of literally.

They should be embarrassed to post this on their site.

For some reason the clip of Vince Vaughn winking and saying 'figuratively' after he sees himself in an ad saying "I'll give you the keys to the store. Literally" isn't available on YouTube. But if it was I'd post it and it would be perfect. You'll just have to imagine.

 

[jamiche]

Morris is so, so bad. If he was a great offensive player then he'd just be a liability on one end of the floor, but his turnovers, decisions to attack when nothing's there, unneccesarily jacking up shots and doing it so early in the shot clock all make him a liabilty on both ends of the court.

One sequence against Wisconsin really stood out to me. Wisconsin missed a shot, Morris failed to block out, Dekker came out of no where for the offensive board, then he pulled back to the top of the key with Carlos following him before going baseline to posterize Morris with a massive dunk....and one, from a pointless reach in by Morris.

There are many things that contributed to a subpar year but I would start with Carlos Morris. I've been following the team closely for a long time and he's the least disciplined, most selfish player that I can recall. (I thought Malik Smith was pretty bad but he did play some defense and it was Pitino's first year.) I think his style of play infected the team on and probably of the court.

 

[jovs]

Pitino adjusts, he fully understands the importance and role defense is going to play in the success of the Gophers. This is also why the McNeil debacle hurt this team, really need a SF that is ready to contribute in the late signing period.

 

[Costa Rican Gopher]

There are many things that contributed to a subpar year but I would start with Carlos Morris. I've been following the team closely for a long time and he's the least disciplined, most selfish player that I can recall. (I thought Malik Smith was pretty bad but he did play some defense and it was Pitino's first year.) I think his style of play infected the team on and probably of the court.

In a perfect world you'd have Seniors that would straighten a guy like this out, but I don't think Dre Hollins has it in him, Mo doesn't even care and Elliot doesn't count.

 

[jamiche]

In a perfect world you'd have Seniors that would straighten a guy like this out, but I don't think Dre Hollins has it in him, Mo doesn't even care and Elliot doesn't count.

Pitino was the one who controlled the amount of time he got on the court. He didn't hesitate to take Elliott's PT away (and embarrass the kid on Senior Day) for whatever sins he committed while Carlos got significant minutes most of the season for playing me ball.

 

[Winnipegopher]

In a perfect world you'd have Seniors that would straighten a guy like this out, but I don't think Dre Hollins has it in him, Mo doesn't even care and Elliot doesn't count.

Isn't that the coach's job? That is why players get pulled when they are selfish. Pitino may end up being the answer but he has had an awful year and pretty much pushed all the wrong buttons all year long.

 

[HOOP DREAMS]

He didn't hesitate to take Elliott's PT away (and embarrass the kid on Senior Day) for whatever sins he committed

Anyone else at the game notice how pissed off EE's father looked on the court?

EE also seems upset at halftime, probably learning he wasn't starting the second half and that those 2-3 mins he got were probably the end of his college career.

 

[Costa Rican Gopher]

Pitino was the one who controlled the amount of time he got on the court. He didn't hesitate to take Elliott's PT away (and embarrass the kid on Senior Day) for whatever sins he committed while Carlos got significant minutes most of the season for playing me ball.

Pitino had the luxury of having Mo and Bakary along with Elliot. Behind Morris he had a walk-on and the opportunity to teach the notoriously slow learning Charles Buggs a new position. If McNeil hadn't imploded I don't think Morris would have seen more than 5-10 minutes a game. Still, the dynamic within a team usually involves pecking order and seniority. That is to say, Coach can tell a player to do something, but it's often the leaders on the team who enforce it. We didn't have a single Senior with those type of quality's. Frankly I wish Morris, Buggs and King were graduating along with the Seniors.

 

[scher215]

Anyone else at the game notice how pissed off EE's father looked on the court? EE also seems upset at halftime, probably learning he wasn't starting the second half and that those 2-3 mins he got were probably the end of his college career.

I said multiple times before the season started and I will say it again, I am pretty surprised EE came back this year. Maybe he hadn't graduated, not sure, but he probably should have taken advantage of the head transfer rule.

I think it was pretty clear Mo was going to be the starter. Thought he would have moved on for more playing time.

 

[bga1]

Pitino was the one who controlled the amount of time he got on the court. He didn't hesitate to take Elliott's PT away (and embarrass the kid on Senior Day) for whatever sins he committed while Carlos got significant minutes most of the season for playing me ball.

Okay coach- who were you going to put in for Morris? Carlos has Buggs (who I like for the future but who is as big of an X factor as Morris) behind him and nothing else except for going with three guards 6-1 and smaller. EE had Walker clearly in front of him and Bakary who has more potential by a mile than EE was starting to perform better than EE on both ends of the court. Two totally different situations.

Have you seen Elliot's attitude on the sideline? I don't know for sure, but if somebody wants to look at the problem with the seniors- that would be a really good place to start poking around for clues. Here's a kid who never seemed to make himself better from year to year in terms of skills and who was always seen whining about every call. He didn't lose his playing time for nothing and I'm not quite sure how he got embarrassed on senior day. He got to start right?

 

[bga1]

Pitino had the luxury of having Mo and Bakary along with Elliot. Behind Morris he had a walk-on and the opportunity to teach the notoriously slow learning Charles Buggs a new position. If McNeil hadn't imploded I don't think Morris would have seen more than 5-10 minutes a game. Still, the dynamic within a team usually involves pecking order and seniority. That is to say, Coach can tell a player to do something, but it's often the leaders on the team who enforce it. We didn't have a single Senior with those type of quality's. Frankly I wish Morris, Buggs and King were graduating along with the Seniors.

10 man recruiting class!!

 

[fryguy22]

Pitino had the luxury of having Mo and Bakary along with Elliot. Behind Morris he had a walk-on and the opportunity to teach the notoriously slow learning Charles Buggs a new position. If McNeil hadn't imploded I don't think Morris would have seen more than 5-10 minutes a game. Still, the dynamic within a team usually involves pecking order and seniority. That is to say, Coach can tell a player to do something, but it's often the leaders on the team who enforce it. We didn't have a single Senior with those type of quality's. Frankly I wish Morris, Buggs and King were graduating along with the Seniors.

I am probably in the significant minority here but I'd take 10 more years of Joey King. Makes the most of what he's got, plays relatively smart, owns up when he makes a mistake. He's without a doubt been a positive this year IMO.

 

[scher215]

Pitino was the one who controlled the amount of time he got on the court. He didn't hesitate to take Elliott's PT away (and embarrass the kid on Senior Day) for whatever sins he committed while Carlos got significant minutes most of the season for playing me ball.

This was already addressed, but Pitino had no one to play behind Carlos.

People spent post after post complaining about our size at guard then whine when he doesn't bench Morris for a 6'1" guard. Buggs was the only other 3, and he's always played 4.

Benching Morris wasn't as easy as people make it out to be.

 

[Mulligan]

Anyone else at the game notice how pissed off EE's father looked on the court?

Didn't Pitino simply give the players the framed jersey yesterday in front of the bench and not interact with the families on the court? Can't remember other years and I came in just as Elliot was introduced so I might have missed something. I know Stollings shook hands and posed with Kelly and Hirt on their Senior Day and that seems like the way to do it. Just seemed like an awkward Senior Day all around although the way they played and that ending might be affecting my feeling about it.

I really love Gopher basketball, and I love watching kids develop over their time here. Can't remember a time when I have felt less attachment to a group of seniors, and I've sat through some pretty crappy years. They appear like good guys and did things the right way as far as being a student-athlete, but I'm basically ready to move on from them. If they had graduated last year, I'd remember them fondly as a scrappy bunch of over-achievers who turned it around and showed great character winning the NIT. Now I'll remember them as a group of under-achievers who had a really disappointing season and, "Good luck, guys, in whatever you do, but I'm so looking forward to new players."

 

[HOOP DREAMS]

I said multiple times before the season started and I will say it again, I am pretty surprised EE came back this year. Maybe he hadn't graduated, not sure, but he probably should have taken advantage of the head transfer rule.

I think it was pretty clear Mo was going to be the starter. Thought he would have moved on for more playing time.

Not knowing thier roster, I'm sure he could have been a force at his parents alma mater.

PERSONAL:
Born January 4, 1992 • son of Jay and Lorna Eliason • his father, Jay, played football and his mother, Lorna, played basketball and volleyball at South Dakota State University • majoring in General Business.

Didn't Pitino simply give the players the framed jersey yesterday in front of the bench and not interact with the families on the court? Can't remember other years and I came in just as Elliot was introduced so I might have missed something. I know Stollings shook hands and posed with Kelly and Hirt on their Senior Day and that seems like the way to do it.

Their seemed to be no 'warm' moments between the seniors and Pitino that you expect on a senior day, no photos with the coach, didn't look like many words were exchanged.. here is framed whatever, now get lost.

 

[tinyarch]

Wow, a ton of speculation on this thread. It's stuff like this that makes a coach pull all electronics from his players and isolate them from the public.

This senior class has no one to blame for this years results other than themselves.

 

[Winnipegopher]

Wow, a ton of speculation on this thread. It's stuff like this that makes a coach pull all electronics from his players and isolate them from the public.

This senior class has no one to blame for this years results other than themselves.

I somewhat agree with you but they are also a good reminder. If the coach who recruited you gets fired, transfer to someone, anyone, who wants you.

 

[bga1]

Not knowing thier roster, I'm sure he could have been a force at his parents alma mater.

PERSONAL:
Born January 4, 1992 • son of Jay and Lorna Eliason • his father, Jay, played football and his mother, Lorna, played basketball and volleyball at South Dakota State University • majoring in General Business.



Their seemed to be no 'warm' moments between the seniors and Pitino that you expect on a senior day, no photos with the coach, didn't look like many words were exchanged.. here is framed whatever, now get lost.

I don't know about any of the above, I didn't see anything that odd but maybe I wasn't looking for it. I'd say one guy - Mo Walker- ought to be very thankful for Pitino who in my view - saved his basketball career by asking a lot more of him. Elliot - I can see why he'd be mad, it's no different than every foul that was ever called on him- it wasn't him.