The Art of the Technical Foul

[RuffRuff]

Let's just put it this way, Blaney is no picasso.

If you're going to get on the ref's to try and inspire your team, don't do it looking like you had to just drop trou for a prostate exam and kill what was actually some decent momentum. That may have been the most poorly timed T I've seen. You could sense he was trying to pull one out of JC's bag of tricks - epic fail. Can we please make sure Georgie doesn't see anything resembling the HC role again at UConn.

 

[hooskies]

I wonder what JC's success rate is on the 'intentional' technical. its gotta be above 50%

 

[mauconnfan]

JC would have caught a T during thei halls run late 1st half when our guys were being manhandled.....george's was not very well timed or acted out.

 

[DogMania]

LOL! I was thinking the same thing at the time. I was screaming for Blaney to do something to get T'd up at about the 10 minute mark of the 2nd half when SHU was hacking away at our players like a lumberjack goes after a Redwood.

When the camera zoomed in on George's face after he got T'd up, I said, "Boy does he look fired up!" Sarcasm implied there. I've seen more life from a corpse. At one point I was begging for one of the assistants to kick George in the ass so that he'd fall into the court during the action and get T'd for that.

That T came about 20 minutes too late. Not that the game would have turned out differently, but that was a horribly managed game. I would have liked to see how Ollie would have done during one of these games, but I understand the pecking order.

 

[RuffRuff]

I do sometimes wonder what Blaney's place is on the coaching staff. Clearly his in game thoughts aren't exactly mensa. I can't see him and that poker face of his in the living rooms of today hoops youth winning them over - not burning up the recruiting trail. Not sure he inspires a whole lot of passion on that bench. He's probably a bit more in touch with basketball players from an era where you could see the outline of their scrodum in their fruit of the loom tight shorts. Is he there to keep an eye on Jimmie's prostate? A sounding board? The ying to Jimmie's yang?

 

[willie99]

he was T'd on a play there was no foul

I thought Hall was allowed to push us around, but that was a clean defensive stop

 

[champs99and04]

I don't think George's disappointing coaching record over the last couple years should diminish his importance to this staff. Clearly, he is not suited to be a head coach. That's not what he signed up to do. IMO, he is the perfect complimentary piece to Calhoun. Believe it or not, he does know a lot of basketball, and while he won't be chosen to ignite the troops when they are down 15, he does provide valuable insight.

One thing we can agree on, is that watching this game only shows how imporant JC is. These three games without him on the sidelines have felt like months. I promise you, that game would have been different with him on the sidelines. For starters, he wouldn't have inexplicably taken Lamb out of the game after he came out of the gates hot. Secondly, he would have taken a timeout around the 12 minute mark when Seton Hall was starting to make a run. As DM mentioned, he likely would have been T'd up also, which would have swung some of the calls in our favor.

A veteran team like the 09 squad can handle the absense of Calhoun, but this team is made up of mostly freshman and sophmores still learning to play together. They also need a good kick in the ass at times. I wouldn't want anybody else coaching this team.

 

[RickyMoore21]

^^^^ excellant point

 

[hooskies]

I don't think that he's not suited to be head coach, just for over the last decade he has been an assistant...and a damned good one.

 

[nomar]

I don't think that he's not suited to be head coach, just for over the last decade he has been an assistant...and a damned good one.

It's kind of annoying that every year when JC gets the ts or has stress or whatever, we're resigned to having Blaney coach and basically splitting our games. We're 11-10 without Calhoun? That's bad. I'm sorry. That's bad. It really shows how important coaches are.

I have on numerous occasions stated my opinion on Blaney's in-game coaching "skill" (as well as my opinion that he's a valuable asset to JC otherwise), but tonight really cinched it for me. He has no business calling the shots in a game. He has little feel for the flow of the game, makes little to no adjustments, and while tonight obviously there was no need for it, his end-game decision-making is highly questionable. Hey, the team plays stupidly and/or lazily with JC coaching from time to time, but you'll see the team play hard 30 times for every one of those.

Could we have done worse tonight with Ollie, Hobbs or Miller coaching? How about K-Free? Could he have gotten this team less ready to play and made fewer adjustments? I think we could have snuck by USF, lost our focus against SJU before outlasting them, and gotten blown out by SHU if the team had been coached by any of those other guys.

One thing I've enjoyed about Blaney's coaching in the past is that he tends to give chances to players who might be in JC's doghouse. Guys like Marcus White. And this season, Niels. But now I'm thinking it's like a clock getting the time right twice a day.

I realize this is very harsh on Blaney. And I do respect and appreciate what he's done for the program. I just never want him being the head coach again. Tonight was awful. Not the first time we have looked lost without JC. Certainly the players didn't execute; it wasn't Blaney missing the shots and dribbling off his knee. But to me the team looked like a chicken with its head cut off because it was cut off. Luckily the head's getting put back on.

We had numerous threads in the offseason about who would/should coach these 3 games. I was in the "I'd like Ollie but it has to be Blaney" camp. I am firmly of the belief now that Ollie should be the HC the next time JC's tummy is bothering him. Let's not be coy here. Ollie is the heir apparent. Give him the reins.

 

[Kitaman]

I do sometimes wonder what Blaney's place is on the coaching staff. Clearly his in game thoughts aren't exactly mensa. I can't see him and that poker face of his in the living rooms of today hoops youth winning them over - not burning up the recruiting trail. Not sure he inspires a whole lot of passion on that bench. He's probably a bit more in touch with basketball players from an era where you could see the outline of their scrodum in their fruit of the loom tight shorts. Is he there to keep an eye on Jimmie's prostate? A sounding board? The ying to Jimmie's yang?

Jim needs Blaney more than the team. Without him by his side Jim could be subject to an aneurism.

 

[mauconnfan]

he was T'd on a play there was no foul

I thought Hall was allowed to push us around, but that was a clean defensive stop

Actually there was a foul on that play but partially Andre's fault. The big white guy was giving him a forearm shiver all the way down the baseline as Andre beat him there but Andre didn't stop and get strong innstead moving away from the hoop and missing the reverse. Again a no call but not a bad one and no time at all to get the T.

 

[Excalibur]

he was T'd on a play there was no foul

I thought Hall was allowed to push us around, but that was a clean defensive stop

Olander got shoved in the back. There was a foul. But it was an odd time to get T'd up.

 

[dogpause]

I didn't have a problem with GB getting T'd-up, but he sure did waste whatever motivational/momentum changing benefit that might have been gained. He looked like small child who got scolded for taking a cookie.

Now Calhoun really knows how to get a T. He gets his money's worth, whips a little guilt on the refs so they give him a makeup call later, and convinces his players they have to perform well enough to win, 7 against 5. The skill comes in almost, but not quite, getting a second T. Calhouns knows how to get value out of his technicals.

 

[sparky]

GB did a nice job filling in, but he he is not one to inspire the troups. His tech was timed well but his reaction was awful. If he started kicking and screaming he may have made more of an impression.
That being said, I thought his substitution patterns were timely and for the most part good. The 1-3-1 sucked. You need length on the wings and we had JL on top. We didn't finish well at the hoop on several occassions. SH shot very well from the 3, but our defense of the 3 was olay at best. Welcome to the Big East.

 

[prankster]

I didn't have a problem with GB getting T'd-up, but he sure did waste whatever motivational/momentum changing benefit that might have been gained. He looked like small child who got scolded for taking a cookie.

Now Calhoun really knows how to get a T. He gets his money's worth, whips a little guilt on the refs so they give him a makeup call later, and convinces his players they have to perform well enough to win, 7 against 5. The skill comes in almost, but not quite, getting a second T. Calhouns knows how to get value out of his technicals.

1. GB should have collected up that first technical around 10 minutes into the game....
2. If necessary, after that, he should have collected up another, even as short as 5 minutes later....

And then, KO gets to coach....

Absolutely worst outcome for UConn? We would have had the same record, this morning, as we do have.

Best outcome? We would have one more win and one less loss.

 

[Waquoit]

Let's just put it this way, Blaney is no picasso.

Very good point. Reminds me of when Dom was the coach at the start of the Big East and you had all these madmen like Looie and Rollie going crazy. Once in a while when we were getting hosed, Dom would try and the guy just couldn't pull it off. OTOH, we have JC now who, to steal a line from A Christmas Story, works in profanity the way other artists might work in oils or clay.

 

[Prezidint]

The Art of Getting the Technical:

Calhoun: ...................Blaney:​

..............