Pac 12 Friday 1/19

[triaddukefan]

I have been there twice for games vs USC in 2011 and 2014. I love going to those old buildings, and Gill is old. If Duke ever makes the trip out west you should go. Good atmosphere and I had a great time with a win and loss. About an hour south of Portland on I-5.

Well they came to Durham this season... not sure if that was a one time thing... or if Duke will return the favor next year. There is a charm to an old building..... the Pac 12 has several good ones.... Washington, Oregon State, Cal.

 

[nwhoopfan]

A few other random thoughts. I think McWilliams is closer to being a PG than Pivec is. Pivec has mostly been handling the job this year but it looked like McWilliams took over more last night. Keep in mind she started at the PG for a 7 or 8 game stretch during her Fr. year when Wiese was out w/ an injured hand, and did a credible job. They have a Fr. this year, Goodman, who is supposed to be a PG, but mostly she's been a 3 point sniper. Haven't been particularly impressed w/ her play making or ball handling thus far.

OSU has run a 3 guard lineup for most if not all of Rueck's tenure. At least a year or two previous to the Final 4 run. The 2 and the 3 are fairly interchangeable, doesn't really matter which is which. McWilliams is kind of a jack of all trades, she could play 1-3, and maybe even a bit of stretch 4 w/ her length. I thought she was going to have a break out year last year, but by this point have accepted that she's just not an aggressive player on offense. Tudor on the other hand is developing a scorer's mentality.

Having Slocum available next year will be a big bonus, but Gulic is going to be very hard to replace. I don't think many people realize how good she is. She is WAY better than Hamblin was at this point. They'll have to rely on either the JC transfer Grymek, who looks fairly raw, or one of the pair of incoming freshmen. They'll have a ton of size (all 3 6-6 or taller), but none will be nearly as skilled as Gulic.

 

[nwhoopfan]

I dont remember Oregon State being #1 in basketball.... what year was that?

Just looked at the Box Score for the Duke game earlier in the season.... what has happened to Kaymer? I saw she played 30 minutes vs Duke. Dont remember seeing her in the game last night.

Kalmer was in briefly. Both teams shortened their rotations significantly last night.

 

[triaddukefan]

1980-81 Men's basketball. For 8 weeks they were number 1.

No wonder I didnt remember that.... I was 8 I was in my early years in terms of watching college basketball. I do recall an Oregon State Player in the NBA named Steve Johnson.... was he on that team?

 

[nwhoopfan]

Well they came to Durham this season... not sure if that was a one time thing... or if Duke will return the favor next year. There is a charm to an old building..... the Pac 12 has several good ones.... Washington, Oregon State, Cal.

OSU has had home and home series w/ Tennessee and Notre Dame in recent years, I would assume there will be a return game w/ Duke next season, but I don't know that for sure.

I've been in Hec Ed a bunch of times, I like the atmosphere there. Been in Gill once. Haven't been to any of the other Pac 12 arenas. UCLA and Stanford have been playing in their current homes for quite a while. I think Arizona's been in the McKale Center for decades.

 

[nwhoopfan]

No wonder I didnt remember that.... I was 8 I was in my early years in terms of watching college basketball. I do recall an Oregon State Player in the NBA named Steve Johnson.... was he on that team?

Yes. Some good guards, Mark Bradford, Ray Blume, Lester Conner. Conner was in the NBA for a while.

 

[DefenseBB]

Rueck can flat out coach. The dread of us would be if Tenn woke up, let Holly go and brought him in. One shade of orange for another. With Tenn resources and recruiting, he would be a perennial Final Four participant. Slocum will add to the team next year and these Civil Wars will be really interesting!

 

[triaddukefan]

Yes. Some good guards, Mark Bradford, Ray Blume, Lester Conner. Conner was in the NBA for a while.

I remember the name Lester Conner... didnt know where he went to school.

 

[Plebe]

Perhaps. I think it is tough for a team when they lose a starter, especially that 1st game. Team chemistry changes. I remember when OSU lost Sydney Wiess for 8 games in the middle of her junior year.

Agreed. It runs a lot deeper than whether she's hitting her shots. Floor balance and team chemistry gets altered. Defensively it requires a big adjustment. Starting a big lineup with Hebard-McGwire-Sebally was probably to Oregon's detriment in terms of perimeter defense. The two teams that have beaten OSU in conference were very effective in limiting OSU's 3-point attempts. OU was unable to do that.

 

[nwhoopfan]

I had to google some of the Pac 12 arenas. Maples and Pauley date back to the 60's. McKale early 70's. Gill opened in 1949. Hec Ed opened in 1927!

 

[ochoopsfan]

I had to google some of the Pac 12 arenas. Maples and Pauley date back to the 60's. McKale early 70's. Gill opened in 1949. Hec Ed opened in 1927!

Pauley was gutted and rebuilt about 3-4 years ago. Much nicer building than the older one.
I think Galen center is the most comfortable building to watch a game in, just nobody goes unless it is one of those events for young kids and sometimes vs UCLA.

 

[LoTrader]

Rueck can flat out coach. The dread of us would be if Tenn woke up, let Holly go and brought him in. One shade of orange for another. With Tenn resources and recruiting, he would be a perennial Final Four participant. Slocum will add to the team next year and these Civil Wars will be really interesting!

Amen. Fortunately for OSU, Rueck loves the State of Oregon, attended OSU as a student, and is incredibly supported by fans, players, administrators, etc. Rueck leaving for another university would be a dagger to OSU's current trajectory is Women's basketball. I don't even like to type these words.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Rueck can flat out coach. The dread of us would be if Tenn woke up, let Holly go and brought him in. One shade of orange for another. With Tenn resources and recruiting, he would be a perennial Final Four participant. Slocum will add to the team next year and these Civil Wars will be really interesting!

I think he's already got his dream job. He's an OSU alum, he was born and raised in Oregon and has spent his entire coaching career in the state. Has great community support for the team, probably without the wacko fanaticism that plagues the Vols. I don't think he gets death threats or calls for him to be fired every time they lose a game. Plus he's proven you can get to the Final 4 w/ OSU. I obviously can't speak for him, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him stay in Corvallis for the rest of his career.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Pauley was gutted and rebuilt about 3-4 years ago.

Hec Ed was refurbished in the early 2000's. I don't know what it looked like before, but I'm pretty sure it was a significant face lift. It really doesn't seem like a nearly 100 year old building when you are inside it.

 

[LoTrader]

Kalmer was in briefly. Both teams shortened their rotations significantly last night.

Was surprised Kalmer didn't play more minutes. Rueck was asked about his short bench, and he said he just felt it was working so well with the starters, that he was stingy with substitutions. He also commented how UO substituted very little in the game. I think Rueck will have to substitute more in the game tomorrow. Overtime games and a quick turnaround against a quality team like UO will be hard for OSU starters (UO starters as well). I think it will be a coaching chess match tomorrow, but UO is very, very good in their building. Hate to say I'd be happy with a split with UO, after winning last night. OSU won a game that most pundits felt they would not win (even at home). They are operating with house money in a sense. But I know Rueck wants to sweep. It means a lot for future recruiting. I am contemplating going to this game tomorrow (4 hours of driving--ARGH) vs watching on the couch. Hmmmmm.

 

[jonson]

Regarding the impact of Bando's absence from the game, she's been in a bit of a shooting slump lately. She's almost exclusively a spot up 3 point shooter, if she's not hitting them she doesn't contribute much. It's impossible to say since she didn't play, but she might not have had much effect on the outcome if she was on the floor.

It is impossible to say, but I think she would have made a difference. For one thing, Bando has expanded her game this year by driving to the basket and/or shooting some mid range jump shots. (Not a lot, but a lot more than in the past.) But, even if she doesn't score, her presence spreads the floor and opens things up for the other players, since someone has to cover her on the perimeter, and Oregon looks completely different, and is certainly quicker, with her on the floor vs. McGuire. She is also the only senior starter.

 

[nwhoopfan]

McGwire played well last night, especially in the 2nd half. She hasn't been logging big minutes coming off the bench recently, and she was on the floor most of the game. Sabally had to adjust to being a wing player again, like earlier in the season, instead of being used as a big as she has since entering the starting lineup. She struggled it appeared.

I'm sure every coach wants to win every game, but I think both Rueck and Graves REALLY wanted the W last night. Playing starters such heavy minutes, the game had more of a feel like an NCAA Tourney game where there is no tomorrow rather than a mid January game, not even at the midpoint of the conference schedule. I would guess both teams will go to the bench a bit more on Sunday.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Nice post game w/ Rueck, Tudor and Gulic.



Rueck mentions he hates the back to back games against a rival. I'm sure every Pac 12 coach agrees with him. Also I've seen several mentions that it was REALLY loud in Gill Coliseum. Like people went home w/ their ears ringing or a headache it was so loud.

 

[Plebe]

Nice post game w/ Rueck, Tudor and Gulic.



Rueck mentions he hates the back to back games against a rival. I'm sure every Pac 12 coach agrees with him. Also I've seen several mentions that it was REALLY loud in Gill Coliseum. Like people went home w/ their ears ringing or a headache it was so loud.

I'm just curious: Is there a reason you always write "Gulic"? Everywhere else I've seen her name as Gulich (or, more properly, Gülich).

 

[nwhoopfan]

I'm just curious: Is there a reason you always write "Gulic"? Everywhere else I've seen her name as Gulich (or, more properly, Gülich).

Wow, that's embarrassing, I've been spelling her name wrong all this time. I don't know how to get the accent marks over the u but I can certainly add the h at the end where it should be. Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[Plebe]

Wow, that's embarrassing, I've been spelling her name wrong all this time. I don't know how to get the accent marks over the u but I can certainly add the h at the end where it should be. Thanks for pointing that out.

Ha, well I'm a language guy so I have a thing for diacritics. All of the news stories just write Gulich without the umlaut, but I notice that the umlaut is present on both the team's roster and on her jersey.

 

[MilfordHusky]

I think he's already got his dream job. He's an OSU alum, he was born and raised in Oregon and has spent his entire coaching career in the state. Has great community support for the team, probably without the wacko fanaticism that plagues the Vols. I don't think he gets death threats or calls for him to be fired every time they lose a game. Plus he's proven you can get to the Final 4 w/ OSU. I obviously can't speak for him, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him stay in Corvallis for the rest of his career.

It sounds as if it’s as likely that Scott goes to Knoxville as it was for Jon Gruden. The Tennessee jobs are not THAT desirable.

 

[willtalk]

I completely agree with you that OSU desperately needs a true point guard (Destiny Slocum). Even Sydney Wiess was a wing that had to play point last couple of years. My point is that after seeing every game this year, in person or televised, the OSU coaches have adjusted well since the debacle weekend in Los Angeles (as have the players). OSU's offensive scheme is how it "should be" without a true point guard, and, the Beavers are improving in their offensive execution. It may not look like it to you, but trust me, it is getting optimized for their top 8 players in the rotation. This team can flat out shoot from distance, and have a very, very good BIG in Marie Gulich who's game is giving OSU a balanced inside-outside offense. The teams that give the Beavers fits, are those teams that can keep OSU from getting their offense started early enough in the half court. Beavers had 15 turnovers vs UO which would drive Geno nuts, but the Beavers had 25+ turnovers vs UCLA & 27 turnovers vs USC. OSU has improved their Turnover/Assist ration dramatically in the past 3 games. I wish we had Destiny Slocum in uniform this year, but the Beavers (and Destiny) are getting the benefit of her practicing with the team this year.

963

Good Post! I also took my own advice and rewatched the game. I had to wait for the replay on Pac 12 though. I totally agree with you about Mc Williams. She played a solid game at the point and generally good defense except for the couple times Sabrina has her going in the opposite direction. My main complaint was about Pivec at the point. I hope they keep McWillams as the primary point. Her problem is that she really isn't a threat to drive. Maybe with more experience Goodwin will start to gel. Another issue I have with Pivec is that she is a liability on defense. As an example, in this last game she followed Sabrina around a screen by McGuire instead of cutting underneath. Unbelievable! Scott made some good adjustments since LA and I hope they work next time they face an athletic team.

Both Sabrina and Kat are from my neck of the woods and I have watched them since they were freshman.in high school. Except for her freshman year Sabrina has always had to carry her team. Having to do that especially against nationally ranked teams she developed the skills that make her a constant triple threat today. Kat, on the other hand played for St Marys Stockton which has always been loaded with very quick skilled D1 level athletes, so because of her quick release, they put her in the corner on offense. In AAU it was the same story. She played with Sabrina, Westbrook, Minyon and Mariya Moore among others so she wasn't going to be handling the ball too much. She developed her quickness and speed later in high school after she got a rep as a shooter. I believe Rueck recognizes that and is attempting to transition her into more of a ball handler. She certainly has her off shooting days as well, but when she is on she is very dangerous because she only requires a very small window to get off her shot. The thing is that someone has to get her the ball.

Interestingly enough as Freshman Kat was invited to the USA try outs (she declined) while Sabrina wasn't and thus had to pay her own way.

 

[willtalk]

McGwire played well last night, especially in the 2nd half. She hasn't been logging big minutes coming off the bench recently, and she was on the floor most of the game. Sabally had to adjust to being a wing player again, like earlier in the season, instead of being used as a big as she has since entering the starting lineup. She struggled it appeared.

I'm sure every coach wants to win every game, but I think both Rueck and Graves REALLY wanted the W last night. Playing starters such heavy minutes, the game had more of a feel like an NCAA Tourney game where there is no tomorrow rather than a mid January game, not even at the midpoint of the conference schedule. I would guess both teams will go to the bench a bit more on Sunday.

McGwire is deadly at midrange shot. I can not remember her missing one in quite a while. I think that is why she was put into the starting line up last year. The thing is that she is not that good on defense. She is too slow to cover her man and also provide any help defense. I think that is why Sabally has taken her place. Especially how bad the Miss State center made the Oregon defense look. I think you might also want to give Oregon state some credit for the defense they played on Sabally.

I am glad to see Graves giving Giomi some minutes in games that matter. They will need her if they face either Baylor, Miss state or any teams with centers like them. She didn't stay in long but long enough to draw a foul for putting a body on Gulich about 9 feet from the basket. I didn't think that was a foul. She had position but I don't believe officials have ever seen someone successfully boxing out any one that far from the basket. That gal is also quick and covers a lot of ground. But she isn't as effective offensively and the coach is Graves so that sort of will limit her time on the floor.

 

[willtalk]

A few other random thoughts. I think McWilliams is closer to being a PG than Pivec is. Pivec has mostly been handling the job this year but it looked like McWilliams took over more last night. Keep in mind she started at the PG for a 7 or 8 game stretch during her Fr. year when Wiese was out w/ an injured hand, and did a credible job. They have a Fr. this year, Goodman, who is supposed to be a PG, but mostly she's been a 3 point sniper. Haven't been particularly impressed w/ her play making or ball handling thus far.

OSU has run a 3 guard lineup for most if not all of Rueck's tenure. At least a year or two previous to the Final 4 run. The 2 and the 3 are fairly interchangeable, doesn't really matter which is which. McWilliams is kind of a jack of all trades, she could play 1-3, and maybe even a bit of stretch 4 w/ her length. I thought she was going to have a break out year last year, but by this point have accepted that she's just not an aggressive player on offense. Tudor on the other hand is developing a scorer's mentality.

Having Slocum available next year will be a big bonus, but Gulic is going to be very hard to replace. I don't think many people realize how good she is. She is WAY better than Hamblin was at this point. They'll have to rely on either the JC transfer Grymek, who looks fairly raw, or one of the pair of incoming freshmen. They'll have a ton of size (all 3 6-6 or taller), but none will be nearly as skilled as Gulic.

Agree with you about McWilliams. I also saw the 6'9" commit Aguirre play two game during a MLK tourn. She still looked pretty raw but she has a nice shooters touch and a big upside. If they wanted next year they could roll out a front line that was 6'7", 6'8" and 6'9".