(01-07-2018 08:31 AM)bricksnivy Wrote:  Why is the Duke game a better indication of his coaching abilities than losing to Notre Dame by 30 (without their two best players)?

I think one thing that has been overlooked for this State team the past month or so is the fact that starting PG Markell Johnson has not played since it was announced he was suspended prior to the UNCG game. In the six games since then, you could truly see the growing pains that comes with playing two true freshman guards who are main ball-handlers for 20-35 minutes in your backcourt rotation and are still learning the game at this level. Johnson is both State's best passer and best overall defender, and without much depth to begin with it was going to take time for this team's chemistry to gel together without him. That Duke game Saturday night was one of the first times this lineup has truly played unselfish offensively and always looked for that extra pass, and you can tell Keatts stressed that leading up to Saturday night. Another thing that was apparent was that Keatts got those young guys to believe they could win and beat a team that was playing five future NBA draft picks, and they did it despite Bagley having 31 and 10.