Spot on analysis. I really enjoyed the sweaters too and wished more coaches did things like that if they're no longer going to wear the suits. I would disagree a little that I think Holloman is doing pretty well but lacks confidence in his shot which I will assume at this point won't come until next year at the earliest. I also think Kohler will emerge one night in the Big Ten play and look very differently by tournament time.

We can not have Mady, Whitens, and Holomon on the floor at the same time. Not enough offence.

I think it was due to Brooks being benched but that first 12-0 run was with that line up.

@keithjohnson32 Totally agree. No firepower with that lineup and hopefully when Hall comes back there won’t be any combinations like that any more. I’m the past, Hall has disappeared for stretches so he will have to understand that he is critical as the key scoring option depending on floor personnel. That’s part of being a senior leader.

I suspect Izzo has many reasons for inserting these unproductive lineups, even beyond the issue of injuries and foul trouble. I might be way off, but I have wondered about the following: 

• Izzo appears to approach coaching games in which the Spartans are vastly the superior team differently from many other coaches. He uses them as opportunities to give his reserves opportunities, to become battle tested. I also think he puts likes to keep the score close so that his regulars have to play until the end of the game. I see good teams with lopsided wins, like 94-48, but Izzo’s teams don’t seem to have many. He likes his teams to be battle-tested, so he keeps the battle going as long as he can.
• Izzo wants to see how his players respond to different lineups, perhaps to see if someone steps up.
• Izzo doesn’t want to embarrass his friend, Oakland’s coach.
• Izzo uses the lineups to show his reserves why they are reserves. 

Izzo sometimes allows his team to lose a battle (a part of a game, or even a whole game)if it will help them win the war (a game, or the conference).

@hazelmotes true that Izzo approaches the game’s differently. There is definitely more “teaching” done during these games and timeouts called for one missed defensive assignment. It doesn’t allow for blowouts unless the opposing team is really bad. Had Walker hit the open shots early that he usually hits that game would have been a laugher throughout.

Excellent analysis as always!

I few added points from a perspective I normally do not have - courtside:

1.  How fast we push the ball up the floor really hits you when you are right there.  They are moving!  Oakland for the most part did a good job of getting back all night.  You know Kampe harped on it all week.  I've watched a lot of college basketball live, and the way we push it always amazes me.

2.  When Jaxson was in the game, Kampe and his assistants were screaming for post touches for Conley and Townsend.  It was obvious that they saw Jaxson as a defensive liability and someone they had game planned to take advantage of.  They were able to do just that at times.

3.  As an Oxford guy, it was cool to watch Trey Townsend go to work a little.  He has turned into a hell of a player for a guy who only had one offer, a D2 offer at that.  In high school he rarely put a foot in the paint.  Seeing him go to work with some impressive post moves was fun!

4.  Our guys do not communicate on the floor as much as I would like.  Akins, and sometimes AJ, are the exceptions.  Akins is talking the entire time on the D end.  Our post players do not talk nearly enough.  Mady and Joey barely say anything.  Jaxson is a little better at it.  This group has been together for a while, so maybe they can get by without it.  But every good college team I have been around communicates much better, especially on the D end.  I don't think it's a chemistry issue at all, more that we just have a bunch of quiet guys.  Or maybe it was just because it was Oakland.

5.  That strange Oakland zone did cause us to go into some lulls.  It's so odd.  I don't even know what to call it.  But it does work for them at times. 

6.  Sitting directly across from Coach Kampe allowed my 10-year-old to learn some new words I think!  LOL.  I have a friend on the OU coaching staff, so I have been around Kampe at practices and games enough that it didn't shock me at all.  But it was kind of funny to watch my son chuckle as Kampe dropped about his 10th f bomb in the first 5 minutes of the game.

It was a great experience overall for me and the family though.  Great seats for the wife and I and all 4 kids, plus a few friends.  Locker room afterward.  First class night all the way around!  Go Green!

@msu_oxfordstrong that is super interesting analysis. Especially the part about verbal communication on the floor. That is something we can’t see on the tv as well so thanks for pointing that out!