Pac 12 Friday 1/19

[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".

 

[nwhoopfan]

If they wanted next year they could roll out a front line that was 6'7", 6'8" and 6'9".

They "could" but I don't think it will ever happen. Probably only rarely see two of them on the floor together. Hamblin and Gulich played at the same time occasionally and Gulich and Grymek were on the floor for a few minutes on Friday. But those big players aren't real mobile and I don't think Rueck likes the implications defensively. He's got 6-3 stretch 4 Corosdale that is only a Fr. and Washington gets a few minutes, she's kind of a combo forward, I think she's 6-1 or 6-2. Rueck really likes his 3 guard lineups. He'll have a ton to choose from. There are the 5 players in the rotation this year, none of them are Sr., plus Slocum will be eligible and they have another combo guard w/ good length coming in from Australia.

 

[jonson]

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.

It's too bad McGwire and Giomi couldn't swap some pounds. It might help McGwire's defense a bit and keep Giomi from getting bounced around down low. I agree that Giomi has a lot of upside, and I think that Graves sees that as well. She runs well and is very quick for her size. I think the issue (with minutes) is not so much her offense, but her lack of strength, which hurts her defensively and--especially--rebounding. So I think she's a year away. But the potential is there.

McGwire does bring very good mid-range scoring to the table, but she's not good defensively and isn't the rebounder one might expect given her size (I don't think her hands are what they should be). Replacing her in the starting lineup with Sabally was a major improvement imo. That said, I also think Sabally has hit the proverbial freshman wall: she had a good game against Arizona State, but played very few minutes in the two games preceding due to early fouls. What has definitely improved--and this was evident against OSU--is her rebounding. If she can get her confidence back as a scorer, it will be a major plus for the Ducks, especially with Bando out.

 

[willtalk]

It's too bad McGwire and Giomi couldn't swap some pounds. It might help McGwire's defense a bit and keep Giomi from getting bounced around down low. I agree that Giomi has a lot of upside, and I think that Graves sees that as well. She runs well and is very quick for her size. I think the issue (with minutes) is not so much her offense, but her lack of strength, which hurts her defensively and--especially--rebounding. So I think she's a year away. But the potential is there.-------------------------.

I believe Giomi is stronger than you think. From what I have observed she lowers her center of gravity and uses leverage in blocking out. They problem with her type of body is when she becomes more upright or leaves the ground she looses her leverage and is easily moved. With her feet on the ground she is not that easy to move. I saw that when she blocked out Gulich far from the basket. They called a foul on her as Gulich attempted to get around her, but she maintained positions. I don't think officials has ever seen any one being blocked out so far from the basket. I thought Greaves really missed an important in game adjustment against Miss State. McCowan killed them underneath because the players he put against her were just too short. She was tall enough to rebound and put back shots even when they had positions. I mean who gets 12 offensive rebounds. From what I have seen Giomi is very effective at getting position. She is tall enough that McCowan would not have been able to get those rebounds and put backs like he did over Gildon and Malley who he often used in an attempt of blocking her out.. Most of those rebound were over Gildon. Against a player like her or Baylors Brown Giomi is his best defensive option. She would have also been mobile enough to also play help defense on Vivians as well.

My point about him not using Giomi because of her offense. I stand by that. I am not saying she is a bad offensive player, only that Greaves seems to value offense over defense. This is why he interjected McGwire into the starting line up despite the fact that she is a liability on defense. he loves what she provides in her mid range game offensively and is willing to accept the defensive liability trade off. When Sabbally came on the scene she replaced McGwire not only because she provided a significant defensive advantage but because the offense loses nothing with her on the floor. Her all around game makes her even a greater offensive threat. There was no trade off. This would not be true if Giomi was in the line up.

There is nothing wrong with coaches having different criteria's as to which they value more- offense or defense. However, it is often necessary to make in game adjustments when one becomes more important than the other. The Miss State was one such case. McCowans dominance required a trade off favoring defense, but his offensive minded nature made him loath to comply. It is not unusual for coaches ( even very good ones ) to get locked into their own system, that it takes after the game reflection to help them recognize the need to adjust. I do thin Greaves recognizes that need, but something within him is still resisting the fact. He seems to be trying to talk himself out of it.