Thank you TiVo for being invented. After attending the Pitt-Georgetown game, I was able to catch three more games on TV due to that wonderful little tool known as DVR.
Kansas 92, Tennessee 85: The first game I watched was Kansas hosting Tennessee. Kansas jumped out to a 25-9 lead and never 
looked back as the Jayhawks knocked off the Volunteers. The Jayhawks did just about whatever they wanted to on the offensive end. Tennessee tried multiple defenses (man-to-man, zone, pressure) and none of them slowed down Kansas. More than anything, Kansas was able to build their lead because Tennessee had terrible possessions on the offensive end. They were taking quick, contested three's and forcing penetration. The long rebounds allowed Sherron Collins to get out and run the floor. Collins played like an all-american yesterday as he finished with 26 points and 9 assists. There were three of four times were he took a rebound or an outlet pass and dribbled through the entire Tennessee team en route to a lay-up on the other end.
It was mind-boggling how poorly Tennessee played defensively. The first seven shots Kansas made were either wide open lay-ups or dunks, and that continued through out the game. When a team is getting a lot of dunks, it usually is a result of defensive breakdowns, either blowing an assignment in the half court or losing track of someone in the full court. For Tennessee, the biggest issue they were having was against the pick-and-roll Kansas was running. Collins was coming off of a high screen (beyond the three point line) at the top of the key which was set by one of the Morris twins. Not only were Collins and the Morris twins each effective scoring options out of this screen, it also opened up space for Cole Aldrich inside. Let me explain: at least twice that I can remember, both defenders involved in the screen went at Collins, the ball handler. He would find the Morris (I seriously have a hard time telling them apart, although I think in both instances it was Marcus) twin around the foul line wide open, which set up a 2-on-1 situation with Morris and Aldrich going up against the guy guarding Aldrich, both times ending with Aldrich finishing an oop with a dunk.
Speaking of Aldrich, he was outstanding. The big fella finished with 22 points, 10 boards, and 6 blocks, although I don't think a single one of his points came on a post move. Another example of the lack of focus for Tennessee defensively was that they left Aldrich, who is known as a very good perimeter shooter, open from about 17 feet straight away three or four times, with Aldrich knocking down the shot every time. Other than that, I think every single one of his baskets was him finishing off a play with a dunk.
This win was very important for Kansas, as they have finally beaten a 'name' opponent after losing to Syracuse, UMass, and Arizona. Kansas is really young and inexperienced, which means that they are going to get a lot better as the season progresses. But right now, they need performances like this from Collins and Aldrich to be successful.
The two bright spots for Tennessee were Tyler Smith (21 points, 9 boards, 3 assists) and Wayne Chism (17 points, 8 boards, 6 blocks). One thing of note about Chism - he is a horrendous decision-maker. Case in point: Tennessee had just cut the lead to eight points with under four minutes to go when Chism, who had knocked down a three two possessions earlier, got the ball on the first pass on the wing. He made a few pump fakes, then fired up a contested three that bricked, leading to a Kansas fast break and lay-up that all but sealed it.
Florida 68, NC State 66: The Gators were down 10 at halftime, but Nick Calathes had an amazing second half scoring 24 of his 32 points to lead the Gators back. Is there anyone else is the country (save maybe Ty Lawson) better at leading a fast break than Calathes? Over and over again, he beat NC State down the floor, finishing numerous run outs himself while also consistently setting up his teammates.
Florida looked flat in the first half. NC State plays a much slower style than Florida wants too, mainly because NC State has some really good big men and not as many good guards. NC State won the battle of styles in the first half, but Billy Donovan turned up the pressure in the second half. Florida used a very effective full court trapping defense to wreak havoc on the NC State guards, which forced a bunch of turnovers and got Florida quite a few easy baskets. The Wolfpack eventually figured out the press and began attacking it, which got them quite a few easy buckets as well, but the press succeeded in increasing the tempo of the game to a pace that Florida likes to play at.
This was also the most exciting game of the day. The teams traded baskets for the last four minutes of the game before Alex Tyus was called for goaltending (a questionable call) on a Brandon Costner jump hook with 28 seconds left which gave NC State a one point lead. But at the other end Calathes got NC State big man Ben McCauley switched onto him, and showed off a little bit of his street ball handle as he shook the Wolfpack center and got himself free for a jumper, which he hit with 11 seconds left. Farnold Negand turned the ball over on the next possession and Calathes hit a free throw for the final margin.
It was the first time I got to see NC State play this year, and it is too bad that they don't have much guard play because their front line is fantastic. McCauley is an excellent back-to-the-basket post scorer. He is patient on the block, reads double teams well, and showed off a couple of nifty moves during this one. They also have Brandon Costner, who Gus Johnson and Greg Anthony kept comparing to Michael Beasley. Similar skill sets, except Costner is no where near the talent that Beasley was (and I'm saying this after watching him score 24 points). Yes, he can put the ball in the basket a variety of ways (he knocked down two three's, scored from the post, and went to the rim off the bounce), but he finished the game with just one board, one assist, and five turnovers. They also have a kid named Tracy Smith, who is one of the most productive scorers in the country - he averages 9.7 ppg in just 12.9 mpg (over 30 pp/40).
But as I said, they have a very limited back court. Negand and Julius Mays, the two point guards that play, both are very average players. Courtney Fells, who starts at the two, is more of a small forward and slasher than a ball handler. Any team that plays some sort of pressure defense against NC State is going to give them trouble.
Minnesota 68, Ohio State 59: Before I talk about Minnesota, let me just say a couple quick things about Ohio State. They cannot score the ball right now. I think they are going to miss David Lighty even more than I thought. Who can create on this team? Jon Diebler is a shooter and can't do much more than get an open look for himself. Jeremie Simmons is a freshman point guard that has shown some promise, but is not the answer right now. Evan Turner is a slasher than scores on drives to the rim and on mid-range pull-ups, and while he is very good at that, he can't really create for anyone else. William Buford is a freshman that will be Evan Turner in a year or two. BJ Mullens and Dallas Lauderdale? Don't ask for more than a blocked shot or a tip dunk.
To be fair, Mullens showed some serious potential in this game, on one play specifically. He was being three-quartered in the post (meaning the defender was playing halfway between fronting and playing behind Mullens), and caught a lob entry pass on the right block. When he caught the ball, he faked back to the middle before he spun to his right (to the baseline), took one dribble, and finished from behind the basket with his right hand on a reverse lay-up while drawing the foul. The problem is that while he looked like an NBA center on that play, he is so inconsistent the rest of the time. I'm not sold on Mullens being a great pro just yet (think Spencer Hawes), but I think if he stays in school for two more years, he will be an all-american.
Even when David Lighty returns, he is another guy that can create for himself, but struggles to create for others. Unless someone like Simmons steps up, I see Ohio State being mediocre simply because they are going to have some serious problems putting points on the board.
Now to the Gophers. I finally got to see this team play, and I was very impressed. The biggest thing to note about them is that Minnesota truly is a team. They move the ball very well on offense, which was very important against OSU's zone. They go 10 deep, and each players 1-10 is a threat offensively. But what makes them so good this year is their defense. Yesterday, Tubby Smith seamlessly switched his team between man-to-man, zone, and a press. And to be honest, I am having a tough time deciding which they play the best (the zone was the most effective against the Buckeyes).
The biggest difference in this game came on the boards. Minnesota pretty much coasted to a 12-0 record at the start of Big Ten play, but Michigan State went into the Barn and, for lack of a better term, punched them in the mouth. The Spartans out hustled and out worked Minnesota, especially on the boards, which is a terrible thing for a team that relies on their defense. Against Ohio State, Minnesota looked like a different team. The Gopher's have a young and relatively inexperienced roster, especially if you are talking about having success in the Big Ten, so it seems like they just didn't understand how hard you have to play to win against big time teams. Tubby Smith has a national title, and he understands how a conference championship caliber team needs to play. According to the announcer's on the Big Ten Network, he ran his team through some very difficult practices in between the two games, and the difference showed.
This was a huge win for the Gophers (crazy stat of the day: this was the first time these two teams played when both were ranked since 1972). The Big Ten is going to be tough this year, especially on the road, and it would have been disatrous to the Gophers title hopes if they had started conference play out 0-2 with two home games. They broke the game open with a 19-2 run midway through the first half when the 
Gophers switched from man to a 2-3 zone. The Buckeyes could not figure it out, and the Gophers found their shooting stroke as they turned a 22-15 deficit into a 34-24 halftime lead.
The player of the game was Damian Johnson. He is just the third leading scorer, but he may be the most valuable player for the Gophers. He is athletic, he can defend, but he is also a threat on the offensive end, not only to score but as a passer as well (second on the team in assists). Against Ohio State, Johnson finished with 12 points, 6 boards, 4 assists, 4 steals, and 3 blocks.
Outside of the four games above, there were four Big East conference games, two Big Ten conference games, and one Pac-10 conference game played.
Big East:
Big Ten:
St. John's 71, Notre Dame 65: St. John's got a great defensive performance out of Paris Horne, who held Kyle McAlarney to 10 points on 4-12 shooting and 1-5 from deep (he also added 14 points of his own), as the Johnnies upset the Irish in MSG. Luke Harangody had 28 and 14 for ND, but they could not overcome their poor shooting night. The Irish average almost 10 3's per game, shooting over 40%, but yesterday they shot just 4-17. DJ Kennedy led the Red Storm with 20, 10 boards, and 4 dimes, while Justin Burrell added 18 and 6 boards.
Pac 10:
Wisconsin 65, Penn State 61: Wisconsin got 23 points from Marcus Landry as they hung on against Penn State to improve to 2-0 in Big Ten play. The Nittany Lions went on a 9-0 run midway through the second half to take a one point lead, but they could never create any separation. Wisconsin took the lead for good at 57-54 on a Trevon Hughes three pointer. PSU was able to hang around despite leading scorer Talor Battle struggling throughout the game (6 points, 2-11) mainly due to the hot shooting of Stanley Pringle (26 points, 10-18 from the field, 4-6 from deep).
The rest of the action from Saturday:
Sunday's action:
Wake Forest 94, BYU 87: Jeff Teague had 30 and James Johnson added 22 and 15 as the Demon Deacons overcame an eight point second half deficit to end BYU's 53 game home winning streak. James Johnson tipped in a miss to break an 85-85 tie with 1:30 left, and after a Jonathan Taverneri miss, LD Williams was fouled. Wake would proceed to hit 6-8 free throws down the stretch to ice the game. Jimmer Fredette had 23 and 9 assists to lead BYU, while Taverneri added 18 and 9 boards and Lee Cummard had 17 and 8 rebounds.
There are four Pac-10 games taking place today:
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Sunday Roundup |
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