RichZ
Fort the ead!
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2011
- Messages
- 5,263
- Reaction Score
- 22,397
- Ugly game with a beautiful outcome.
- All those years out of the Big East, yet we still negate any homecourt advantage St. John's thinks they have at MSG.
- This game was characterized by a few sequences of hilite reel material and some strong efforts by both teams, sprinkled into 40 minutes of poorly officiated, really sloppy basketball.
- Sanogo got called for traveling early and often. To my eye, he does travel pretty frequently when he does that 4 or 5 fakes before shooting at the rim, but he rarely gets called for it. Seemed like the zebras were looking for it today. Travel calls aside, I wish he would stop with the multiple fakes at the basket. Way too often, he ends up going up with 3 defenders on him and missing or getting stripped. Try going straight up and dunking the ball with two hands before the extra help arrives, big fella.
- Polley had some good minutes. Came in the game early and immediately drained a 3, then beats St. John's down the floor and grabs a tipped ball as it's going out of bounds at the other end, dumps it to Martin and the sequence ends with Jackson flying downcourt to stuff the board. Fantastic play all around.
- Felt like dejavu all over again when Sanogo got #2 and had to sit half way through the first half.
- Horrible charging call on Ajax 2:30 to go in the first half. He came to a dead stop, and the guy in front of him flopped. The bogus charge call was immediately followed by a makeup call at the other end four seconds later, when Hawkins slid sideways in front of the driver and it was called a charge.
- Tyrese hurt his knee or lower thigh as he landed on his first score of the game, a minute into the 2nd half. Just a cramp, I guess, because he was en fuego from that point on.
- Some really lousy defense when St. Johns inbounded under their own basket with a second left on the shot clock, and we foul the guy who caught the pass as he went up to shoot it.
- Felt like Ajax should have shot it at 15:25 when he caught the pass under the hoop, instead of dumping it to Cole in the corner. I was looking for a two handed flush from a standing position, not a pass! It would have brought the house down.
- Overall though, I thought Ajax may have had one of his best games despite only attempting 3 shots and turning it over 5 times. Seemed like he was playing at a different speed than everyone else on the floor. Handled the point for much of the game, and did it well, to the tune of 4 dimes. And then there's the matter of 16 rebounds. Let me say that again. Sixteen. Rebounds.
- With seven and a half to go, we are down seven, 48 to 55, and momentum is on St. John's side. The rest of the game amounted to a test of our defense. We outscored the Johnnies 15 to 5 from that point.
It went something like this:
Whaley tipped in Cole's miss at 7:19, then rebounded a St. John's miss at 6:52.
Martin gets his own rebound and gets fouled at 6:40. Makes one of two, then rebounds Smith's missed shot and makes a three at the other end at 5:55.
Good D leads to a poor three point attempt by Smith. Jackson gets the board and we get it to Sanogo under the hoop. Soriano gets all hand (no ball at all) on his "block" but no call. Then Sanogo gets possession and draws yet another travel call. - The last minute of the game -- winning time. Or not.
We have the ball and still lead by two, 59-57. Busted play, shot clock violation. But we quickly get the ball back on Sanogo's block.
Coming out of a timeout with 44 seconds left, RJ drives and misses. Tyrese gets the board and Scores! 61-57.
St Johns finally makes a three. 61-60.
Cole fouled with 14 seconds left. Money. 3 point game. UConn played the most ferocious 14 seconds of defense I've seen out of them this year, and forced a desperation three by Wheeler, who was already 1 for 6 from deep. Game over. - Zay was as active and effective as I've seen him this season. 5 of 6 from the floor. 7 boards, 3 steals, 5 blocks, only 2 TOs and a single foul.
- I was going to comment on Hawkins game, but feeling too good about this afternoon to go down that road right now.
