who is more panicked right now, Mac or the hardcore fanbase? I'm exaggerating a bit below, but I thought some of the post-Mo injury issues should have their own thread:
From what I can tell, Mac is in full bunker mode right now (and to be fair to him, I’m sure Mo’s alleged sexual assault has added to his woes). Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t he publicly say something early this season about injuries being the one thing that could derail his offense and his optimism about this team. Whether my memory is correct or not, he surely began to panic when it was clear that Mo was out for the season. That panic must have exploded after Marquette put up 100. Pretty much the worst possible result for that first game without Mo, because it probably confirmed for Mac his suspicion that a Mo-less squad could not just let it fly and outscore most anyone besides Nova.
Whatever happened in terms of practice and film review after that game, it was followed up with the offensive disgrace in D.C., a performance that gave all appearance of a team that had just had its confidence shattered and was trying to refocus on tightly holding on to what was left of the season. So far, that looks like the low point of the season in terms of 2 straight really, really bad efforts, but I’ve sensed ever since then that Mac has a death grip on his various security blankets and is just hoping that either Marcus can get on a roll in NYC and the NCAAs or the 3s go in at a high clip.
I see no evidence of any long-term strategy or attempt to maximize the talents of this squad. It’s all about avoiding the embarrassment of the Marquette and @Georgetown games and relying on chance. Since those games, we’re 2-0 against DePaul, 1-0 at home against a sad-looking Hoya team thanks to Marcus, and 1-3 on chance (the 3s were falling in Indy, but the hunker down efforts @ Seton Hall and against XU and PU failed).