MSU might have to rethink the point
Michigan State coach Tom Izzo suggested sophomore point guard Keith Appling’s disqualification after just 19 minutes of playing time wrecked his team’s chance at a comeback, but it might not have been the worst development for the Spartans.
Appling finished with zero assists and four turnovers, never appearing comfortable running the team. Izzo had to exhort Appling merely to enter the ball into the offense; it was the same problem evident when Appling played some point with the Under-19 national team. He doesn’t trust his ballhandling or passing ability enough even to get his team’s attack started.
Appling’s departure, though, bought more minutes for freshman point guard Travis Trice, who passed for three assists and ignited a minor rally in the final 10 minutes.
“He showed me some good things,” Izzo said, “and then he jacked two shots that probably showed me some bad things. But I’m going to have to play Keith at the two some. I know Travis can play.
“I think we got a lot of things we can build on.”
Carolina’s backup point is not a situation
Dexter Strickland played 33 minutes, mostly at shooting guard, but along the way he passed for five assists and committed only one turnover. He was the Tar Heels’ most dangerous player on the break.
Starting point guard Kendall Marshall played 33 minutes. He’s going to average somewhere in that neighborhood. But the seven or eight minutes he doesn’t play should be handled just fine.
John Henson is a power forward
Yes, you already knew this. Except that was just a designation before. He had to play somewhere, and he’d already shown as a freshman he could not be an effective small forward.
It’s not that he’s grown into Charles Oakley. Henson still is pretty lean. He gets his share of rebounds, though — a team-high seven against Michigan State — and is a breathtaking defender. Henson blocked nine shots and flummoxed MSU star Draymond Green into a 6-of-19 shooting effort.
The difference in Henson this season is the blossoming of his offensive potential. He never was comfortable trying to chuck 3-pointers and play like Kevin Durant, however similar their frames. He needed something that would work from the four spot.
Early in the second half Friday night, he spun into a turnaround jumper over Green’s tight defense along the left baseline. Moments later, Green again was in his space on the right baseline and Henson hit a turnaround from there.
“I’ve been working on that like crazy,” Henson said. “It’s something that’s finally coming out a little bit. Hopefully, I can keep it going. That’s just one game.
“I just did it, and hit it, and I said, ‘That’s going to be my little move.’ It took a lot of time. When you’ve got Rasheed Wallace and Brendan Haywood guarding you every day (during summer pick-up games), it’s almost easy now. Hopefully, I can keep translating it on the court.”
The stickers must go.
There was a moment in the first half when Izzo had every reason to believe he’d just lost promising freshman forward Branden Dawson for the year.
Dawson was accelerating into a fast break when he turned to search for an outlet pass and one of his feet slipped on the plastic sponsor’s logo affixed to the center of the court. He went down and stayed on the court awhile, but it turned out to be minor.
No matter. It could have been big. And there’s no excuse. Every year in November and December when special games and tournaments are played, the plastic logos are slapped on the court and players are imperiled.
There has to be a better way to sell mortgages.
“I would like to publicly announce the same thing Mike Krzyzewski did last year: We’ve got to get rid of those logos in the middle of the court,” Izzo said. “We have to. We can put logos on everywhere — I’ll wear logos to support the people that sponsor us. But we have to get rid of them. It’s not about the coaches.
“It’s about the safety of the players.” It was worth the trouble
Marshall acknowledged he could feel the cold and the wind on the court. Izzo called the rhythm of the game “weird” because of the late start and some uncommon delays, including one at dusk to lower the Carl Vinson’s colors. Journalists covering the game had to be in place as much as five hours before tip-off.
But Izzo also mentioned that the U-S-A chanted started by military personnel near the close of the game is something he’ll never forget.
“Besides these two teams, I don’t think anybody’s ever played on a ship,” Marshall said. “Being able to meet Magic Johnson, President Obama, the First Lady — all in a two-day span — that’s something amazing that not many people get to do. I definitely plan on bragging about it some to my friends when I get back home.”
You notice there, Marshall listed Magic’s name before the president’s?
“Of course. You know, I’m a point guard,” he said. “I was a little star-struck getting to meet Magic Johnson. The fact that he knew who I was really made me feel good.”
Mike DeCourcy – Sporting News
Photos: Harry How/Getty Images