...and bad habits have a nasty habit of coming back.
I'll sum this one up with 3 quick points:
- When you come out to face a desperate opponent fighting for their NCAA lives, coupled with a bad crew, you'd best be ready to play hard and with purpose. We were not. Literally the frst note I jotted down during our first offensive possession was that there was no energy on our end. We half-assed cuts and showed no intensity. Nonetheless, we had ample opportunities to get out to an early lead, but our shots not only missed, they never even looked like they had a chance for the most part. Look, bad shooting nights happen, but they tend to be less damaging when buffered by intensity.
- We did put out some effort on the defensive end, but that eentually deteriorated as well, especially when certain players came in and did the matador thing. and when it became apparent that Tech had a different game-plan this time, we didn't adjust. For example, their backside isos were screaming for doubles. Moreover, it doesn't do much good to wait to start scrambling til when you're down 20.
- Maybe most frustrating was that our transition game was pathetic, and bad habits from early in the season reared their ugly heads again. Sure, I realize we modified our transition approach vs UVA in order to work some early-possession high action, but that was NOT called for here. Our Secondary action was virtually nonexistent, and we didn't hit our lanes worth a crap. And maddeningly, the opportunities were there for the taking, but exactly once did the first Big sprint to the block, and Lordy, it was WIDE open for the taking. That needs to get fixed pronto.
So there it is. For all the excellent play, effort and coaching of the last two games?... welp, tonight was the opposite of that. And if we show up at a NCAAT game and play like this next week? Our asses will be bounced early, no matter where we're seeded. Look, this team has made some impressive progress, especially down the recent stretch, but tonight showed in spades that we cannot afford to be the least bit entitled. So, the staff has one job this coming week --- get these guys back on the track of playing Carolina basketball... and playing it with consistent focus, effort and urgency,
I'll sum this one up with 3 quick points:
- When you come out to face a desperate opponent fighting for their NCAA lives, coupled with a bad crew, you'd best be ready to play hard and with purpose. We were not. Literally the frst note I jotted down during our first offensive possession was that there was no energy on our end. We half-assed cuts and showed no intensity. Nonetheless, we had ample opportunities to get out to an early lead, but our shots not only missed, they never even looked like they had a chance for the most part. Look, bad shooting nights happen, but they tend to be less damaging when buffered by intensity.
- We did put out some effort on the defensive end, but that eentually deteriorated as well, especially when certain players came in and did the matador thing. and when it became apparent that Tech had a different game-plan this time, we didn't adjust. For example, their backside isos were screaming for doubles. Moreover, it doesn't do much good to wait to start scrambling til when you're down 20.
- Maybe most frustrating was that our transition game was pathetic, and bad habits from early in the season reared their ugly heads again. Sure, I realize we modified our transition approach vs UVA in order to work some early-possession high action, but that was NOT called for here. Our Secondary action was virtually nonexistent, and we didn't hit our lanes worth a crap. And maddeningly, the opportunities were there for the taking, but exactly once did the first Big sprint to the block, and Lordy, it was WIDE open for the taking. That needs to get fixed pronto.
So there it is. For all the excellent play, effort and coaching of the last two games?... welp, tonight was the opposite of that. And if we show up at a NCAAT game and play like this next week? Our asses will be bounced early, no matter where we're seeded. Look, this team has made some impressive progress, especially down the recent stretch, but tonight showed in spades that we cannot afford to be the least bit entitled. So, the staff has one job this coming week --- get these guys back on the track of playing Carolina basketball... and playing it with consistent focus, effort and urgency,