Murphy's Pub: Ranting About the Loss to UIC

I had several ideas today. I was going to write a "Counterpoint" to the well written NCAA post below. I was going to profile Illinois' Sophomore guards (after focusing on them while watching the Illini play UIC). Instead, Illinois loses to UIC 57-54. Given the loss, I decided to do what I would have done in college following a bad Illinois loss: head down to Murphy's Pub for a drink and some ranting.

Those that know me, I hope, will be able to vouch for the fact that I do not put losses on the coaching staff very often. And certainly Bruce Weber did not shoot 32% from the floor today. But when Illinois took a 49-41 lead with 7:32 to play, I was sure that the Illini had weathered the storm and that the game was over. Then, Illinois went through an offensive drought while UIC chipped away.

I like Bruce Weber. I think he is a great defensive teacher, and when his offense is run properly, it is a beautiful thing to watch. Weber has a couple traits that kill me though. The first is that he tends to take the air out of the basketball late in games when he has a lead. The second is that he is a "tinkerer." He over manages in game. Now, I do not think that the former was the issue today (and as I angrily deleted the game from my DVR immediately after the final whistle, I could not prove that point in any event), but the latter was. Two instances in the last thirty seconds of the game prove this point.

The first instance was the play drawn up out of the timeout down 55-54 with 22 seconds left. Illinois ran DJ Richardson off several screens for a three pointer. I like DJ, he is a reliable shooter with one notable exception. He runs so hard on the defensive end all game that he never seems to have his legs with three minutes or less left in games. Honestly, it seems like DJ shoots about 10% at the end of games. But Illinois runs DJ off screens, he gets a decent look at the three, and he misses. Weber needs to recognize his personnel better in that situation and get a better shot coming out of the timeout... or at the very least put the ball in your best player's hands.

The second instance, however, is a bigger problem and a better example of over managing. With three seconds left, Darrin Williams is at the line for UIC with UIC up 1. He makes the first, misses the second, and Illinois immediately calls timeout. Coming out of the timeout, they try to inbound the ball to McCamey at midcourt. McCamey steps out of bounds and turns the ball over.

Now I have watched a lot of college basketball in my day, and I can tell you that three seconds left in the game is more than enough time to get the ball the length of the floor for a good look. There are two important factors that come into play though: (1) don't let the defense get set up and (2) whoever is going to take the final shot needs to catch the ball going forward so that no time is wasted. Otherwise, you are counting on a Christian Laettner miracle.

Here is where Weber made a mistake. He needed to take the timeout before the second free throw. He could have told his rebounders to find McCamey on the outlet off a miss or a make and McCamey has the ball going forward while UIC's defense is scrambling.

Instead, Weber uses a timeout. UIC has their defense set, and Illinois has to inbound catching the ball, under their own basket, with momentum off the pass taking them away from the basket. In this situation, you need to trust your players to make the right play and win the game.

Look, this loss is not all on Weber. Illinois, from top to bottom played terrible and UIC, to their credit, did not quit when they went down 8 late in the second half. But Weber did not put his team in a position to win when the game was on the line. Hopefully this is a learning experience for the Illini, from the coaching staff on down and Illinois will put this loss behind them with a win in St. Louis Wednesday night.