Post game thoughts

[caw]

I will start by saying I watched the game twice, I haven't read more than two threads since the game started to try and avoid bias and others thoughts seeping in.

UL is a very solid team. There are three possible things holding them back from winning it all, IMO, 1) they bump and grind a lot (I'll come back to this) and 2) Siva can be kind of an idiot with fouls 3) depth.

Dieng is still not 100% but is an absolute animal on the defensive boards and overall defensively. I keyed in on him in the second viewing and he moves excellently for that zone of theirs. He isn't the greatest offensive weapon, nor is he the greatest athlete, but he is a beast defensively.

Behannan is very good offensively, but overall I have been more impressed with him.

Blackshear is their biggest weakness and he's still pretty good.

Siva and Smith took turns abusing UConn.

Ware is a very good bench player and is a huge asset to their depth department.

Hancock is a serviceable player, but I was least impressed with him of the 7 guys UL used a lot. Yes Ware didn't score a point, but his defense was fantastic, Hancock was their weakest link, IMO.

Harrell barely played and he would likely have gotten 20+ at UConn. Van Treese is just there if Dieng has foul trouble, he is no better than Wolf or Olander.

UL plays a fantastic zone and they hustle their asses off. They play like they have all played together for years.

UConn:

Boatright had a so-so game, as did Napier. I don't blame him, he made a few mistakes but UL really doubled him and Napier most of the game.

Napier never looked the same after he was pummelled on the drive to the hoop and had Behannan? landing on top of him. Not a dirty play at all, but Napier looked visibly shaken after that. I hope they checked him for a concussion.

Calhoun, he was fantastic for a freshman against the #1 team in the country. He was my biggest concern (from the guards) going into the game and ended up being the biggest +.

Daniels played very well at the beginning of the game but missed some bunnies the second half. The nice block by Dieng excluded all of his shots seemed to go in and out in the second half. Nothing you can do about that.

Olander and Wolf showed they couldn't help contain UL's guards. How many layups did Siva and Smith have because UConn's bigs either couldn't contain on the PnR or couldn't jump to block the shot. The good news is that there aren't two guards on one team as quick as UL's.

Evans, I love the guy, but he isn't up there athletically against #1 team in the nation quality. He didn't kill UConn, but he couldn't help either.

Giffey, nice effort overall, I can't blame him for anything.

Smith/Siva vs Napier/Boatright. Well it's pretty clear that Smith/Siva won that battle. I do think Siva getting in foul trouble was a blessing in disguise for them, because he was so fresh in the second half. Smith/Siva also benefited a lot from having capable defenders around them. Even when Napier and Boatright did get into the zone, Behannan/Dieng/etc. were there to defend them, lots of focus was placed on Napier/Boatright. Did I mention how well Dieng moves his feet, fantastic job.

I did see people saying Ollie should have gotten into the refs, but honestly, UL did a lot less grabbing than normal. They bump and hit cutters but nothing that should have been a foul. The only three clear calls that were missed against UConn I remember were 1) Daniels breakaway should have been an and one 2) Napiers breakaway should have been foul shots (elbow to the head) and 3) Calhoun's first half (?) three should have been three shots (somewhat debatable).

If anything I think Ollie was on par to Pitino. You can argue that UL won by such a large margin, but Ollie pushed them further than he should have been able to with the frontcourt UConn has. No shot blocker and no big that can hedge worth a damn against the speed of Siva or Smith. I'm not ragging on Wolf or Olander, they should be fine against normal guards but Siva and Smith are really quick. Going small wasn't an option when Behannan and Dieng can just dunk on you if you go small. If this was a game of chess Ollie started without bishops and a queen and still made a good game of it.

 

[Husky68]

Additional comment is players other than Boat/Bazz need to be confident with ball in open court and be willing to take a few dribbles rather than treating it like a hot potato, could have saved a few weak passing turnovers. Saw this in OC, Giffey and Evans. Also, TO needs to make a move to the basket when he has an advantage, several breaks of press or over swinging of zone gave him chances to shoot or drive and he passed up on the opportunities.
Also, liked several of the inside cuts and passes but Uconn missed most of the shots, looked like they were trying to beat the shot blocks.

 

[Senore]

As I mentioned on our board, Harrell was throwing up in the locker room just before game time and was sickly enough that Rick sat him down for the night.

In the end, UofL's conditioning may be their most valuable asset. They play to make others tired, then swoop in for the kill midway through second halves. It's also one of the reasons Pitino uses first halves as tactical rather than the true gamesmanship that shows up in second halves. Our press is always soft in first halves and ratchets up early in the second. There is rarely any resemblance to the fist half Cards in any second half this season.

 

[CL82]

"You can't control events," Ollie said, "but you can control the meaning of events.

Man he's like a quote generator. UConn ought to market the Kevin Ollie Inspirational Quote of the Day calender.

 

[art4life]

"You can't control events," Ollie said, "but you can control the meaning of events.

Man he's like a quote generator. UConn ought to market the Kevin Ollie Inspirational Quote of the Day calender.

"Coach Ollie's Aphorisms" - I'd buy that book or calendar!!

 

[caw]

I should amend my post slightly. #3 is in regards to guard depth. Ware is servicable and very good defensively, and Smith can light it up. However, Ware doesn't provide a ton of offense and Smith can't really create for others. If Siva or Smith get in foul trouble against a good team, esp. Siva, that could be very problematic.

I did miss something also, UConn did a very poor job of attacking after breaking the press in the second half. Too much dribbling it back out and too little passing it ahead. Dieng really dissuaded the attack but they needed to attack more.

 

[TheRogers]

Overall, I thought the game ended up a little worse than expected but nothing to get all bent out of shape.

UL's press is its staple and I'm sure (at least hoping) the team prepared for this but the preperation did not translate to the game (as evidnced by the number of times I saw Calhoun, Giffey, and Daniels end up with the ball underneath UL's basket after so many passes). Bazz and Boat are one of the tandems that can match-up with UL's guards and they have to demand the ball all the time. Hopefully Ollie designs plays to get either one the ball against pressing teams. They were the anchors of this team and they did their best. There was definitely no quit in these two.

Calhoun's offense was much needed. His turnovers though really hurt. To show up the way he did in a game like this bodes well for the team. I hope the coaching staff emphasizes this positive and hopefully coaching and experience will limit the turnovers.

This was a huge learning experience for Wolf and TO on how to work the inside. They can skip the game film and go straight to practice since they did all their watching of the UL's bigs throughout the game. To be fair, UL's bigs will be one of the better competition they will face. Heck the two are still adjusting to more minutes. I have moderate expectations (hopes) this year but will have significantly more next year.

DD, some shots just did not fall and he made some turnovers but he had a really tough match-up. I'm still high on this guy's upside. Next year....watch out!

This was a big game and we know we have thoroughbreds in Bazz and Boat. I hope they stay next year because I see DD being really good and Calhoun and TO upping their game.

I enjoyed the game last night and was proud of the fight in this team.