Big East Tournament- Monroe and Butler Standout Friday Night
Posted on 13. Mar, 2010 by Nolan Shulman in NBA Draft, Tournaments
We're here at the mecca of basketball, Madison Square Gardens, home of this weeks' deepest and most exciting conference tournament in the country. We'll be here all week discussing the Big East's top prospects, outlining who's improved their draft stock and who's let a golden opportunity pass them by.
Follow us on Twitter for live updates from Championship Saturday night.
Day 4 Standouts
Greg Monroe, Georgetown
Monroe seems to have come alive at this years BET. He's put his entire arsenal on display this week. He's made plays from the low post, gotten to the rim off the dribble, demonstrated his superb ability to pass, attacked the glass, and defended multiple positions. Simply put, there is nothing Monroe hasn't done this week at the Mecca. We've spoke to some scouts who all came away very impressed, and he'll be elevated in our next mock draft. Georgetown hasn't lit up the Gardens like they did a few years ago with Greene, Hibbert, and Wallace, but Monroe has taken the torch and run with it. He dominated Lazar Hayward last night, holding him to 5-16 shooting and limiting him to just 3 rebounds. Offensively Monroe went for 23 points on 9-15 while pulling in 13 rebounds, handing out 7 assists, and blocking 2 shots. It was the most impressive game all week (sorry Jamine).
Da'Sean Butler, West Virginia
Butler has been outstanding all week in NYC. He's made dramatic shots, shot a high percentage, chipped in on the glass, and put West Virginia on his back. Friday night was no different than Thursday. DaSean made 9 of his 15 attempts, pulled down 7 boards, handed out 3 dimes, and made 3 triples. He's been the best player in this tournament and has elevated his stock with his performance. He can stroke it, he plays well in transition, makes big shots, passes it well, and takes pride defensively. Those are the traits scouts look for in a player coming off the bench, and DaSean has certainly proved worthy of making a team.
Day 4 Flops
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
For most of the game, the Irish were scoring less than a point per minute. They couldn't guard the post, they got killed on the glass, and the tempo and lack of scoring almost put Madison Square Gardens to sleep. They shot 34% from the field, got nothing out of Harangody, took 23 three pointers (made just 7), and looked lost on the offensive end. The slow down approach worked for the last few weeks, but it was awful to watch and unsuccessful last night.
Lazar Hayward, Marquette
Hayward went head to head with Monroe and got man-handled. He gives up a lot of size and did give maximum effort, but he was outclassed Friday night. Monroe went for 23, 13, and 7 while Hayward went for 15 and 3. Considering Hayward is the engine of the Golden Eagles, it was the difference in the game. Hayward was great Wednesday and Thursday, but we live in a "what have you done for me lately" world, and the last impression Lazar left at the Gardens was a flop.
