...and not f***ing bad for a "bubble" team from a "weak" conference..
Before I dive in, lemme lead everyone in a big sincere round of applause for St. Peter's. Y'all accomplished something no other team has, and hey, ya beat the evil that is kentucky, so yer ok in my book. With that said, here we go:
- Honestly, I could almost start and stop right here as to the determinant of the outcome --- DEFENSE. Once this run finally comes to an end, I'll get deeper into the nuance, but suffice to say that, what has become a reallly good 20 defensive team, just outdid itself. OUTSTANDING --- moving feet, covering gaps, help and close-outs. It really was the story of the relatively easy victory. And BTW, after our myriad stops, we CLEANED the defensive glass. Mando was a beast despite being noticably gimpy, and Brady was tough as well.
- Speaking of D, my unsung hero for MOP of the Region was Leaky Black. Again, I'll expound more on his metamorphisis later, but there is no overstating just how good he has been. Totally shut down whomever he guarded today, including mustache-boy who'd been lighting it up.
- Being candid, the offensive end was not as comforting. It was OBVIOUS how to make short work of these guys:
!. Push tempo, and 2. Pound them inside.
We did precious few of the former, and when we did the latter, it was easy pickings. BUT, our shot-selection (even in the first half) left MUCH to be desired. In fact, late in the game (almost at the under-4) our defense had held them to 40 points total, and (this is an estimate before rewatching) I'll betcha at least 20 of those resulted from horrible shot-selection on our end leading to easy transition. There was simply no need for quick-triggers or hero-ball today. That sort of thing just keeps a scrappy under-manned opponent in the game.
- On that note, look... I realize Hubert was playing it safe once we got up 20+, but damn, we reverted to BAD habits: Tooo damn much dribbling and late forced shots. And for pete's sake (no pun intended) let's not get into missing FTs... sheesh! That's been a strength for much of the season and needs to continue --- it can determine a team's fate in the FF. I would've also liked to have seen us sub sooner in the second half.
- Back to the good stuff, I applaud Birdy Manek for something many may not have noticed --- keeping his cool. He went down to the floor more than once, and on closer inspection, it was apparent St P was trying to rough him up, presumably to provoke him into another Baylor situation. I applauded you above, Peacocks --- but that was NOT cool.
- Speaking of Manek, boy, he makes some nice baseline cuts. We missed him a couple of times but he cashed in when we found him. And (provided our Guards give em the chance) he and Mando are developing a good feel for each other.
Anyway, from a coach's perspective, being honest, there's a lot of film to teach with this week... but here's the good news: We've reached the point where our execution is the key, i.e., it's more about us than about the opponent. That might not mean anything to some readers, but it was where Dean Smith always wanted to get to with any given team. Hopefully (after a brief and well-deserved celebration) Hubert and staff can get the guys to embrace that mentality. If so?... who knows? As for now, it's time to prep for the FINAL FOUR, bitches!...
Before I dive in, lemme lead everyone in a big sincere round of applause for St. Peter's. Y'all accomplished something no other team has, and hey, ya beat the evil that is kentucky, so yer ok in my book. With that said, here we go:
- Honestly, I could almost start and stop right here as to the determinant of the outcome --- DEFENSE. Once this run finally comes to an end, I'll get deeper into the nuance, but suffice to say that, what has become a reallly good 20 defensive team, just outdid itself. OUTSTANDING --- moving feet, covering gaps, help and close-outs. It really was the story of the relatively easy victory. And BTW, after our myriad stops, we CLEANED the defensive glass. Mando was a beast despite being noticably gimpy, and Brady was tough as well.
- Speaking of D, my unsung hero for MOP of the Region was Leaky Black. Again, I'll expound more on his metamorphisis later, but there is no overstating just how good he has been. Totally shut down whomever he guarded today, including mustache-boy who'd been lighting it up.
- Being candid, the offensive end was not as comforting. It was OBVIOUS how to make short work of these guys:
!. Push tempo, and 2. Pound them inside.
We did precious few of the former, and when we did the latter, it was easy pickings. BUT, our shot-selection (even in the first half) left MUCH to be desired. In fact, late in the game (almost at the under-4) our defense had held them to 40 points total, and (this is an estimate before rewatching) I'll betcha at least 20 of those resulted from horrible shot-selection on our end leading to easy transition. There was simply no need for quick-triggers or hero-ball today. That sort of thing just keeps a scrappy under-manned opponent in the game.
- On that note, look... I realize Hubert was playing it safe once we got up 20+, but damn, we reverted to BAD habits: Tooo damn much dribbling and late forced shots. And for pete's sake (no pun intended) let's not get into missing FTs... sheesh! That's been a strength for much of the season and needs to continue --- it can determine a team's fate in the FF. I would've also liked to have seen us sub sooner in the second half.
- Back to the good stuff, I applaud Birdy Manek for something many may not have noticed --- keeping his cool. He went down to the floor more than once, and on closer inspection, it was apparent St P was trying to rough him up, presumably to provoke him into another Baylor situation. I applauded you above, Peacocks --- but that was NOT cool.
- Speaking of Manek, boy, he makes some nice baseline cuts. We missed him a couple of times but he cashed in when we found him. And (provided our Guards give em the chance) he and Mando are developing a good feel for each other.
Anyway, from a coach's perspective, being honest, there's a lot of film to teach with this week... but here's the good news: We've reached the point where our execution is the key, i.e., it's more about us than about the opponent. That might not mean anything to some readers, but it was where Dean Smith always wanted to get to with any given team. Hopefully (after a brief and well-deserved celebration) Hubert and staff can get the guys to embrace that mentality. If so?... who knows? As for now, it's time to prep for the FINAL FOUR, bitches!...
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