CMU MBB Preview

So, to Mt. Pleasant in the last game before Snowpocalypse, the world-ending epic that will unfold in the middle of the week.

This was not shaping up to be a big year for the Chips and they have lived that out. After winning 7 games last year, they discharged Keno Davis and brought in Tony Barbee.  The new coach is a Calipari guy--as a player and assistant--and took UTEP to the NCAAs before a not-so-great time at Auburn, with point-shaving and rampant dismissals and transfers of players...on top of a 40% winning %.  He went back to being an assistant at Kentucky.

The first thing he did was revise the scheduling practices, taking the Chips from 4 non-D1 games a year to 0. On the contrary, they have played Kentucky, Gonzaga and Xavier.  Having said that, they are 3-13 and 2-3 in MAC play, after some COVID hold-ups.  They played only 4 games in January.  They beat Eastern Illinois--the 4th worst team in D1--along with @ Kent and @ NIU.  Their Kenpom started at 301 and has fallen to 303...in December they lost to Western Illinois, Youngstown State, UIC and Detroit Mercy, all teams in the 200s.

He brought only 3 scholarship players back and added 10 new players.

BG has won 4 out of 5 over CMU, including 2 of the last 3 at McGuirk.

On one side, this one shapes up much like the Kent game.  CMU is the #12 offense and BG is the #12 defense.  In the Kent game, the Flashes ended up looking like the Lakers from the 1980s and that was on our floor.  If that happens here, the result will be the same.  Meanwhile, BG is #2 in scoring and CMU is #8 on defense.  Kent was really good on defense, so BG has an opportunity to score here.

CMU is the worst shooting team in the MAC.  This is interesting since BG is the easiest to shoot against.  They are actually really good from 3FG--#3 in the MAC--but are dead last in 2FG and one of the 10 worst in the country. They take decent care of the ball and arent terrible on the offensive boards or getting to the line.  They take 36% of their shots from 3FG, which is slightly below average.

Aside:  The MAC is #28 as a conference making 3FGs, out of 32.

On the other side, CMU plays poor defense and not nearly as good as Kent, for example.  Their are average at the shot, but force no turnovers and allow a lot of FTs.  They are very good on the offensive boards.  They lead the MAC in 3FG% defense but are last in defending the 2FG.

CMU has used 12 starting lineups this season.  In MAC play, they have been led by Cameron Healey, who is scoring 13.7 PPG on 73% 2FG shooting and 32% 3FG shooting.  He's a native Australian and grad transfer from Albany.

Harrison Henderson is scoring 13.8 PPG on 41% and 43% shooting...very few 3FGs though.  He adds 4.2 RPG.  He's a grad transfer who played at USC, Milwaukee and Southern before heading to CMU.

Ralph Bissainthe is their third-leading scorer at 12.4 PPG and 7.6 RPG.  He's shooting 41% from 2FG (unusual for your top rebounder) and 50% on limited 3FGs.  He's 6'7" and a JUCO transfer who is in his 2nd year at CMU.  Started his career at UIC.

Their fourth-leading scorer was Jermaine Jackson, Jr, but he left the team in January to start his professional career.  He went from Detroit Mercy to LIU to CMU, to the "pros."