aeroxx
New Member
As Boyle said, everyone is hurting right now. The officiating was disgusting, and those refs should lose their jobs for not protecting the players and/or being corrupt--how else to explain Scott being the only one to receive a foul on that play or Dinwiddie being slashed in the face with a full swinging arm later in the fourth quarter in the act of shooting with no call? There were probably 20 terrible calls, and many more just inconsistent ones. Whatever. We can't let ourselves be victimized by it.
When the Buffs heal up they will be a better team. To wit:
The first 15 minutes of gametime saw the best defensive I've seen all year by any team in college basketball. Aggressive denial of entry passes, precision switching of defenders, strong help defensive. This is the stuff of future championships.
There is also an important opportunity for Dre' to continue maturing. He lost his cool several times in the game. After getting hacked and not being able to secure rebounds giving up terrible fouls. Yet he reclaimed his composure by the 4'th quarter and hit a clutch J to tie the game. I don't think he would have had the patience earlier in the year to take the open look, but it was a much better decision than driving, getting fouled, then having to go the foul line, where he struggles. He is really close to being an explosive offensive player, but he needs to keep working on his first step, his dribbling, and getting his legs into his jumpshots.
Scott is giving up 30 to 50lbs in the post, but he has shown a lot of toughness and grit. This is good for the future. I just hope he is feeling ready to go for thursday.
I would like to see some more innovation on offense. More interior screens and passing between Scott, XJ, and Dre'. The weave outside the nba arc is good for Chen and Ski to get a chance to drive to the basket, but it isn't getting Scott and XJ enough touches. It is also not putting the opposing defense under enough psychological pressure early enough in the shot clock.
When the Buffs heal up they will be a better team. To wit:
- Dinwiddie played with great poise and focus and started taking over the game. This is a milestone.
- Booker has matured considerably in the last few weeks. He has pretty much stopped forcing shots, especially in the paint when he knows he can't clear the trees/thugs. The rest of the team can do more to help get good jumpshots where he gets a chance to square himself at which point he can be really deadly (both on the shot or on the fake, then drive). He is also developing as a passer and not just on that extraordinary fast break play against Arizona.
- XJ is much better defensively than in the beginning of the season. Offensively, he is coming into his own. He is fantastic without the ball in his hands on the pick and role, but he can become an elite scorer as he continues to improve his handle and drives to the basket.
- Talton has matured into our 7'th man. Defensively, he is really playing well and has been letting the offensive come to him and not disrupting the offensive flow. (I haven't seen enough of Stalzer to know whether he is a better shooter, but Talton is clearly the more athletic and better defender)
The first 15 minutes of gametime saw the best defensive I've seen all year by any team in college basketball. Aggressive denial of entry passes, precision switching of defenders, strong help defensive. This is the stuff of future championships.
There is also an important opportunity for Dre' to continue maturing. He lost his cool several times in the game. After getting hacked and not being able to secure rebounds giving up terrible fouls. Yet he reclaimed his composure by the 4'th quarter and hit a clutch J to tie the game. I don't think he would have had the patience earlier in the year to take the open look, but it was a much better decision than driving, getting fouled, then having to go the foul line, where he struggles. He is really close to being an explosive offensive player, but he needs to keep working on his first step, his dribbling, and getting his legs into his jumpshots.
Scott is giving up 30 to 50lbs in the post, but he has shown a lot of toughness and grit. This is good for the future. I just hope he is feeling ready to go for thursday.
I would like to see some more innovation on offense. More interior screens and passing between Scott, XJ, and Dre'. The weave outside the nba arc is good for Chen and Ski to get a chance to drive to the basket, but it isn't getting Scott and XJ enough touches. It is also not putting the opposing defense under enough psychological pressure early enough in the shot clock.
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