Ball State- Post Game Discussion

I agree. They did look like high schoolers.
If Brownlee doesn't score on a couple of offensive rebounds, we lose.

and its sad it has to come down to that poison

The team has not look particularly good. I think Lavin is still feeling out a lot of things, guys adjusting to new roles, and hopefully this is just growing pains. I think we'll learn a lot about this team at the end of this tournament.

I'm cautiously optimistic about this team.  Lavin is definitely bringing some excitement into this program.  They have flashes of excellence but then just hit stagnant doldrums that are just brutal to watch.  However, they have shown over this past few games that they can definitely ball but only in short spurts.  They seam to be playing better as a team and are more selfless than in years past.  They just need to piece a whole game together.  Definitely need substantial improvement in the half court offense.  One player who must become more selfish however is DJ.  He should be looking to score at every opportunity.  Why did DJ get so much time on the pine last night? Sitting him out for such extended periods of time made no sense to me. Hardy, on the other hand, should have his license to shoot at will revoked, at least temporarily.  Horne plays much better D.  If Hardy does not have a hot hand he offers little.  Brownlee looks to be breaking out and is playing on a whole new level but he shouldn't be playing the 5.  This double Malik business has got to go.  Although Stith is playing better, they are both subpar and make our pg position the weakest link in the team which contributes to having a subpar halfcourt game. They should never be on the floor at the same time.  Optimally, we should have a zero Malik system.  Coker must be given more time.  He could be a difference maker this season.  I'd like to sometimes see Coker play the 5 and Burrell play the 4 which could give him more opportunities to score.  I would also like to see Burrell getting more involved. 
New starting lineup:
1.  Booth/Stith
2.  Horne (Hardy)
3.  DJ
4.  Brownlee (Poole)
5.  Burrell (Coker)

I'm cautiously optimistic about this team.  Lavin is definitely bringing some excitement into this program.  They have flashes of excellence but then just hit stagnant doldrums that are just brutal to watch.  However, they have shown over this past few games that they can definitely ball but only in short spurts.  They seam to be playing better as a team and are more selfless than in years past.  They just need to piece a whole game together.  Definitely need substantial improvement in the half court offense.  One player who must become more selfish however is DJ.  He should be looking to score at every opportunity.  Why did DJ get so much time on the pine last night? Sitting him out for such extended periods of time made no sense to me. Hardy, on the other hand, should have his license to shoot at will revoked, at least temporarily.  Horne plays much better D.  If Hardy does not have a hot hand he offers little.  Brownlee looks to be breaking out and is playing on a whole new level but he shouldn't be playing the 5.  This double Malik business has got to go.  Although Stith is playing better, they are both subpar and make our pg position the weakest link in the team which contributes to having a subpar halfcourt game. They should never be on the floor at the same time.  Optimally, we should have a zero Malik system.  Coker must be given more time.  He could be a difference maker this season.  I'd like to sometimes see Coker play the 5 and Burrell play the 4 which could give him more opportunities to score.  I would also like to see Burrell getting more involved. 
New starting lineup:
1.  Booth/Stith
2.  Horne (Hardy)
3.  DJ
4.  Brownlee (Poole)
5.  Burrell (Coker)

Agree with everything.  I also don't like the double Malik lineup, I think he Lavin does it for defense. At the end of the game we had both maliks, DJ, Paris and Brownlee. With both maliks in it was hard to score. But that lineup was fast and did play good defense.   

Like Dave said it's growing pains and a feeling out process, but it's getting painful to watch.

The fact is with Lavin coming in, we (the fans) set certain expectations to the season and as we have seen certain events unfold in the 1st three games, there are a lot of puzzled faces right now.

It seems like the rotation is being fiddled with on a game-to-game basis and roles are still being established. That being said, some continuity needs to be established, I'm assuming this is all a feeling out process and Lavin has his eyes set for Big East play to cement said continuity.

Hopefully we take care of Drake, like we should, so that we don't have to hear excuses about "the travel" and "the snow" etc.

I think that there has not been comments about these things.

Good things:

- 20 assists on 28 field goals.
- Only 8 turnovers in 45 minutes.

Bad things:

- Outrebounded 32-29.
- The fact that Ball State shot 15/22 (.682) on field goals at second half.