The American commander did not know the destroyers were returning from resupply, so he considered interception, ambush, and other dangerous possibilities. A wholesale last-minute change could expose the force through radio traffic and confusion. Merrill instead arranged to arrive about five minutes early and warned the Vila-Stanmore group to engage any ships revealed by star shell. Those limited changes preserved the bombardment mission while preparing the force to fire first.
Chapter · 1:09:09-1:12:19
Merrill adjusts the plan without surrendering initiative
Merrill tested several explanations for the Japanese movement, retained the bombardment plan, and made two small changes that put his force in position to fire first.