Debacle in Cincinnati ThoughtZ™

[RichZ]

1. Somewhat limited ThoughtZ™ for last night's game, as I missed a good portion of it, figuring I'd catch up on the details later, but couldn't bring myself to watch it again. Heck it was depressing enough just scanning the box score.
2. Early on, I noted that they were beating us at our own game. Collapsing into the paint when the ball went there, deflecting passes, and hitting the boards hard. But I think we also allowed them to dictate the tempo and pace of the game.
3. The Xavier student section was really active and vocal. Haven't seen a UConn student section that into it since, I don't know... Bazz's senior year?
4. When we resorted to running a weave around the perimeter for 15 plus seconds on what seemed like every possession, without pressing for an opening into the paint or setting a solid screen for a shooter, I swear I could feel any confidence and hope I still had evaporating.
5. Sanogo has trouble with height - specifically with the combination of length and mobility. This is a bad thing (see last night) and a good thing (will keep him here longer, as it will affect his draft stock.)
6. Hawkins is fantastic when he's ON, and a liability when he's not. I guess you could say that about most players, especially those whose skillset revolves around shooting (see Tyler Polley). But he did grab a few boards and made one three, which was a lot more than Polley contributed.
7. At least during the parts of the game I saw, I thought that Ajax was being very tentative. I don't know how many open looks he passed up.
8. Gaffney had more than his customary one positive contribution per game. He went 3 for 3 from the field, including what was at that moment, a very timely three.
9. Watching the early part of the game, it appeared that the early fouls on Sanogo and Cole really impacted the way the whole team played. I can't say they were bad calls, but they were definitely the same calls that were not being made at the other end. 23 to 15 is a pretty stout foul disparity.
10. Whaley shot miserably, but led or tied for the lead in boards, dimes, steals and blocks.
11. I know it's stating the obvious, but we're not going to do much winning shooting 38% from the floor.

 

[uconnfan68]

Re:#9, we fouled a lot to try to cut the lead. It wasn’t overwhelming until then. It’s the early ones on the wrong guys that cooks us.