Texas A&M Basketball: Player grades from embarrassing loss to Michigan
By Jeff Shull
Coaching
The biggest problem yesterday was that Michigan was hitting everything outside, so A&M had to respect it and it allowed Michigan to do whatever they wanted. Their players were blowing by Aggie defenders like A&M had never played defense before. It forced the defense to collapse and continue allowing open outside shots.
It was mind-boggling for a team that ranked in the top 10 for defensive efficiency on the season. Billy Kennedy was thoroughly out-coached by John Beilein, who exploited the Aggies’ lack of speed to perfection.
They were running screens all over the place to get Davis matched on a guard or Wagner matched on Hogg inside. It caused all sorts of problems that Kennedy obviously did not foresee. Ironically, Michigan did exactly what people thought North Carolina would do.
Kennedy eventually went to a lineup that featured Williams with a combination of their small forwards and guards, but not until the second half. The way Michigan was playing truly neutralized Davis and made him a liability. Unfortunately, Kennedy had to keep him on the court as he was the only player worth a damn on the offensive end.
That is not to give Kennedy an excuse. He should have went small without Davis early when Michigan was hitting everything from outside and the lead was getting out of control. It’s a difficult decision to take your leading scorer out of the game in the first half for long stretches. Kennedy doesn’t have the stones to make that decision.
Next: Michigan loss by the numbers
Jeff Shull is a Site Expert for the Gig Em Gazette on FanSided. Follow him on Twitter, and be sure to follow the Gig Em Gazette on Facebook and Twitter.