-This is what I wrote in the prediction section of my preview today: "The Tigers are either red-hot or ice-cold, and you’re never quite sure which version of them you’re going to see. This is a game they should win in a landslide, but another shooting slump could make it tight again." It's beautiful when all pistons are firing and it's pretty ugly when the machine sputters. Mizzou was lucky Loyola didn't have another big run in them.
-I wrote in my column this week that the Noah Carter small-ball lineups aren't doing well, and they continued that trend today. The complexion of the game changed when Jordan Butler got in the game and used his size to be a disruptor. I also don't really understand why Carter had to come out for Butler to come in - Loyola had a bunch of offensive rebounds because Gates was going with Caleb Grill and Tamar Bates and Curt Lewis at the four a ton. Maybe Gates thought that playing a four-guard lineup was the only way to pen things up on offense, but I felt like that was a secondary concern.
-Ant Robinson came to the rescue. He notched his season-high in steals, had his second game scoring 10 points and came out of this one without a turnover. I don't know if he can't keep racking up steals like D'Moi Hodge, but the game definitely changes when he can (the team had 14 as a whole, very good). I also mentioned this in the game thread on Wednesday: his speed stands out. He's always in the right place at the right time because he can beat everyone there.
-15-24 at the free throw line. Yeesh.
-The three-game, mid-major homestand is over and I don't think they looked great in any of the three outings. Last year's squad played to the level of its competition a lot last year, and maybe that's the case with this group too. But the quality of opponent is about to skyrocket over the next couple of weeks. This should've been a stretch of the schedule that built up the Tigers' confidence. It definitely didn't do that.
-I wrote in my column this week that the Noah Carter small-ball lineups aren't doing well, and they continued that trend today. The complexion of the game changed when Jordan Butler got in the game and used his size to be a disruptor. I also don't really understand why Carter had to come out for Butler to come in - Loyola had a bunch of offensive rebounds because Gates was going with Caleb Grill and Tamar Bates and Curt Lewis at the four a ton. Maybe Gates thought that playing a four-guard lineup was the only way to pen things up on offense, but I felt like that was a secondary concern.
-Ant Robinson came to the rescue. He notched his season-high in steals, had his second game scoring 10 points and came out of this one without a turnover. I don't know if he can't keep racking up steals like D'Moi Hodge, but the game definitely changes when he can (the team had 14 as a whole, very good). I also mentioned this in the game thread on Wednesday: his speed stands out. He's always in the right place at the right time because he can beat everyone there.
-15-24 at the free throw line. Yeesh.
-The three-game, mid-major homestand is over and I don't think they looked great in any of the three outings. Last year's squad played to the level of its competition a lot last year, and maybe that's the case with this group too. But the quality of opponent is about to skyrocket over the next couple of weeks. This should've been a stretch of the schedule that built up the Tigers' confidence. It definitely didn't do that.
