Another firsthand view of the Texas game

[Dawg04]

This was emailed to me and I was asked to post it on the board...

I have some information for you that I would like for you to post on the bulletin board about the Texas basketball game. I'd like to give you my firsthand take of the game.

Offense:

1. Tiger just didn't come to play. I read on the bulletin board where several people put that he was being triple-teamed, but the fact is that he wasn't aggressive as he has been in the games earlier this year. Richard even said after the game that Meeking just has to realize that he has to come to play in big games, and this was his worst game of the year. I think if we get a better offensive performance from Tiger (8 points???), we certainly can beat Texas.

2. We still have to find ways to score easy baskets. We don't shoot the ball well. We really only have three shooters on the team in Wilder, Woods, and Brown. Brown stepped up and had a big game as the only double digit scorer, but he still missed 6 threes. Wilder also missed six threes, and is shooting under 20 percent from there on the season. We also have the ability to run the basketball when we pick and choose our times, but we are playing stupidly and turning the ball over on the break. We have to cut down the turnovers and convert easy baskets.

3. It's time for the young guys to see more minutes, particularly Corey Dean. Dean looked extremely aggressive against the Longhorns, but he has to have a chance to get into the flow of the basketball game. He was 3-5 from the field with six points and was well on his way to his first double digit scoring performance of his college career. However, Richard only let him play 11 minutes in the game. Corey had a putback dunk, a spin move for a layup in the lane, and went up and under James Thomas for another layup. He was getting the ball to the hoop for easy layups, yet he was taken out of the game. Wilder played 29 minutes, while continuing to shoot the ball extremely poorly. Granted his overall play stepped up, and I'm not criticizing the way Mike played the game because I am very proud of him, but if we give 10 of his minutes to Corey... I think we upset Texas. Corey did a good job running the point on the 1-2-2 (not a 3-2 as some on the board have said) matchup zone. He hustled and was active on both sides of the floor. I don't understand why he isn't given more minutes. I understand that we are going 10 deep right now and there are only so many minutes to go around, but all of the young guys (Dean, JJ, Eric, Bruce and even Wayne) are improving... and Richard shouldn't be afraid to play them over some of the older guys if they are not performing up to par.

Defense:
1. We just couldn't man up against a team with as much talent as the Texas Longhorns. They have an inside-outside combination that is as good as any team in the nation in Ford and Thomas... as well as several other solid players in Brandon Mouton, Brian Boddicker, Royal Ivey and Brad Buckman, to name a few. They just came out hot in the first four minutes of the game and took it to us for the 11-0 run. Richard's move to the 1-2-2 was a fantastic move to shut down both their inside and outside games. It also took away T.J. Ford's ability to penetrate in the lane and dish off for easy buckets. I think the guys ran the 1-2-2 very well, especially for a team that doesn't run zone, so they don't spend too much time practicing it. It really frustrated Texas and took them out of their game.

2. I don't think we could have asked for a better defensive performace. We held Thomas and Ford to a combined 13 points, while holding Ford to only 5 assists while forcing him into an uncharacteristic 4 turnovers. The effort was really there all night on the defensive end, which shouldn't come as a surprise to many fans considering the system that we run at Tech. The only surprise should be that we were as successful as we were while running the zone. But I don't think you could have asked for more than holding UT to only 58 points and almost completely shutting out their top two players.

3. I would really like to see us run a little more zone throughout the season, given how successful it was ran by the guys against Texas. I would like to see us use it to shut down a penetrating point guard like SMU's Bryan Hopkins or a slashing forward like Hawaii's Carl English. Anytime you can shut down the lane for someone who feels most comfortable in there, you will be successful. I agree with Richard that you wouldn't run the 1-2-2 against a team like Tulsa, a team that is extremely successful in shooting the long ball. But I do think we can use it to create some frustration for slashers, as well as continuing to slow down the basketball game (which we know Richard loves to do). However, Richard said he is not a zone guy, and he doesn't believe in running the zone much. I hope that I am wrong when I say I don't believe he will pull it out again for the rest of the year. But it is good to know that we can be successful on defense running more than just man to man.

4. That being said, I think we are going to continue to improve throughout the rest of the season as a man to man defense. Richard is a low-tempo guy who loves to stress the importance of defense. We have had some defensive lapses so far in this season, but for the most part we have done a very good job in the halfcourt defense. I think we can only look for the defensive pressure to continue to rise as we head into conference play. I don't think we will lose many games because of a lack of effort or execution on the defensive end of the ball.

Overall:

I came away very impressed with the effort of the Bulldogs. There are still many areas of the game in which we can improve, but I like some of the things that I saw. We need to learn to score more easily, and we need to stop turning the ball over so much. But we are playing hard, especially on the defensive end. And we outrebounded one of the best rebounding teams in the nation by 8. So we are working hard on the glass as well. The problems continue to be on the offensive end, and I don't know if we have enough offense to win the conference title. But with the effort we have and the havoc we can create on the defensive end, I don't think we will see any game in conference where we aren't in it to the end. I like the way this team is headed, if the younger guys continue to get the chance to compete for minutes and get the chance to produce. Things are looking up for this team after an abysmal start. The SMU game on Saturday is a big one because we are probably competing for the #3 spot in conference.

[kdaniel72]

Good post.
I was at the game and I never saw a 1-2-2? We ran a 3-2 zone almost all night. Is that what he means by a 1-2-2? Texas had a nice 1-2-2 full cort press they used. And I do not remember seeing Dean at the point? I thought Edwards ran the point most of the night?

But you are right that we are competeing for the 3rd spot. I think our best chance at the dance is going to be the Conferance tourny. Keith did a good job with these kids. They really came to play. If Zack can keep his head in these games we will have a better chance of winning.

I just wonder if they know how to put teams away? That really comes from within. Hard to coach.

[Gooddawg]

I'm not so sure we are playing for 3rd place. I think our team last year wins the conference this year b/c Tulsa and Hawaii are not exactly rolling like us. We are far from the team we were last year too, but I am becoming more and more convinced that this year could be more wide open than we think. Hawaii is beatable and Tulsa lost last night to FSU and no one really expected them to be as good as they might be this year. This should be an exciting year in WAC bball and I think smu, FSU, Hawaii or Tulsa could win the conference this year based on the OOC play and a couple of sneak peaks at early conference games.

[boxerdog]

I agree with your prediction of parity at the top end of the conference this year, Gooddog. I don't see anybody winning this conference with less than 4 league losses. I do think we can play a major factor in the title if we focus. The good teams are those who don't concern themselves too much with what the "other guy" is doing, and just "do what we do".