Georgetown - Marquette 1/2/16 Discussion

[saxagael]

Jan 2, 2016 19:42:16 GMT -5 EtomicB said:

Jan 2, 2016 19:38:33 GMT -5 saxagael said:

Nice seeing Princetown Georgetown offense again, and they are running it well with the young guys.

Fixed it for you, recruits may read the board..

Impressive game for the team today, it's starting to come together..

Before the past two years it could be considered the Georgetown offense, but they have used it less and less with heavy new players in their rotations. Can't really call it Georgetown offense as it hasn't been used much and it is only two minor variations from the Princetown offense, which is to account for a big man and what happens with the big man is different. The other mod is what the two high wings do as there is a fast cut option that modifies what others do as Georgetown has fast athletic players they can take advantage of, which is exactly what got DSR scoring in this game.

Going back to calling it Georgetown offense is a bit silly as it isn't what they usually run. A modified Princetown offense is what it is, which is also what the Lakers were running for a while, with the same modifications Georgetown used.neither are using it much and Princetown still is, besides Georgetown recruits smart players for the most part that wouldn't be confused.

Whew, glad that is cleared up. ;-)

[SFHoya99]

Some Thoughts:

• No, Marquette is not very good. They have talent down low, and they are better than DePaul, but they might only be as good as UNC Wilmington. On the other hand, they are likely also better than UNC Asheville, and we lost to them. It's worthwhile to note that we covered, and by about the amount we'd have been favored back before UNC Asheville and Monmouth happened. In other words, this wasn't a breakthrough or anything, but the team is playing better most likely.
• Marquette is pretty bad on offense and pretty decent on defense -- so our results on winning this one -- 110 O rating and 96 D rating point this to being a bit more of an offensive victory than a defensive one. It was our third worst defensive rating in a win and that's before you adjust for Marquette sucking on offense generally.
• The defense LOOKED better. There was much less lethargy and players were moving their feet and closing with energy. Ellenson and Fisher were mostly shut down. But aside from the first 10-15 minutes of the first half, we continued to foul -- or get called for fouls. We also forced almost no turnovers. We did do a good job on the defensive boards, but add the 5-10 from 3, lots of foul shots and no turnovers and a rather inept offensive Marquette team was made to be slightly below average. One big issue is that while we had energy we were definitely overplaying both on the close outs and on drives. They could reverse and get the lane any time they wanted, and they did.
• Govan and Hayes got to play defense on actual big and did a great job. Govan in particular really owned the paint against people established in the paint, and as someone else noted, both players did a great job -- and Derrickson, too -- or staying vertical. I don't think this was a step change in defense. It was a stylistic difference that benefited these guys. They were still pretty bad at helping on drivers. When we face big men, I expect them to do a good job. But I don't see significant improvement against penetration yet.
• Love DSR's drive and dish game, and it honestly didn't feel like he was passing up shots except one drive and dish in the second half that he probably should have taken the five footer. I do think he -- and every other guard on this team -- has a bit too much Kevin Braswell in him. That's the weird disease where every time you drive you've predetermined whether you are going to pass or shoot rather than deciding based on what's there. DSR isn't as bad as Braswell, but it's there a bit. The one pass we definitely was avoiding was passing to the rolling screener when we ran the snr on the wing -- he kept passing over the top to the far corner and not to much good even though Jessie was usually rolling hard and open to the hoop. Have to recognize that one even if both Jessie and Hayes have botched it more than once.
• This team misses Paul White, and sadly, I think it's going to keep missing Paul White. I have no inside info, but it's a huge blow to lose his passing, shooting and savvy.
• Tre Campbell needs to start hitting shots again. And play like he's part of the team. I don't mean he's selfish or anything; it always just feels like he's not "in" on the play.
• And Copeland needs to stop just being a jumpshooter. He's not completely inactive, but he's the only one that is still standing and not moving too much, both on offense and defense. He did okay on the boards but his lack of aggression is standing out. Yes, you have a wonderful jumper, use it. But don't only use it, DaJuan. I mean, Isaac.
• But I can't complain about Peak's game. Every time he makes a dumb play, people pile on on him. Yes, LJ needs to better recognize what a good drive is and what a good drive isn't. He's getting better. While he learns, I'd rather he stay as aggressive as he is. His driving gives us a dimension we don't otherwise have and makes him a dangerous player. Kudos to him for getting better despite moving to a bench role.
• One of the places that we can get better is if the freshman class keeps improving. All three had great games. Govan is starting to really settle into his own and has cut down on freshman mistakes. Derrickson showed some extra dimensions with his drive and finish. And Kaleb was a whirling dervish. That was amazing. We need to bottle that energy to feed it to some of our other players. Six rebounds in 12 minutes!
• We played with much more energy in the first half and our half court sets were definitely crisper and ran faster. Some of that was likely just the ups and downs of the game. Some of it was likely failures on the defense's part, giving us openings. Some of it might have been lack of fatigue. But some was definitely just energy from getting up and down. What people seem to miss, though, is that we actually didn't fast break much in that time period, and what we did was mostly generated off steals. Which is great. We need to do that more. But part of the reason why we didn't get any fast break points in the second half was that defense didn't create the break by getting steals. We only had three and only one was even somewhat in a position to create a break. There are a lot of reasons for the slowing down, but that's one of them -- defense feeds offense.
• The big differences between the first and second half for us offensively were: 11 turnovers in the second half versus 5 in the first (and likely over less possessions); missing some shots we made in the first half.

[hoyainspirit]

Smokeyjack's been smoking.

[aleutianhoya]

Jan 3, 2016 12:48:16 GMT -5 smokeyjack said:

Jan 3, 2016 2:33:21 GMT -5 kchoya said:

A no show? He had 15-8-4.

Did you even watch the game? It seemed like watching the game that he totally disappeared in the second half while Marquette was making its run, and the play-by-play confirms that conclusively:

After collecting his 7th assist at the 14:16 mark to put the Hoyas up 57-43, DSR committed 1 TO, missed a shot and had one assist over the next 12:07, playing almost the entire time but largely spectating as Marquette turned a blowout into a 68-62 game. Yes, over the last 2:09 he woke up to score 12 of his 15 points to help them put the game away which was extremely impressive.

But is it too much to ask your senior captain to play closer to 40 minutes of basketball? And it's actually less about his stats than his leadership. This is hardly the first time the team has floundered around him for long stretches, and he seems either reticent or unwilling to take charge. He can't flip the switch over the last 2:09 and produce GU wins against the decent teams in the league, much less the good ones.

I understand you are a contrarian KC, but last night wasn't just savior/good DSR, it was the best and worst of DSR. The very fact that he is capable of scoring 12 points in 2:09 is an indictment begging the question, 'What the hell were you doing from a scoring perspective for the previous 38 minutes?"

This season comes down to Peak and DSR to me. We can be very good if those two play with leadership, fire and urgency. If they don't, we are going to significantly underachieve. IMO, DSR does not have the luxury of waiting for the game to come to him. He has to be more proactive from the tip for GU to be successful.

12:16: With 20 on the shot clock, Hayes has Ike for a backdoor from the elbow but it goes out of bounds.

11:46: With 17 on the shot clock, DSR makes a perfect entry pass to Derrickson who misses a very make able jump hook from five feet.

11:21: Johnson brings it up the court at a quick pace. Passes to Derrickson who makes a poor entry to Hayes that is deflected. Johnson alertly gets the loose ball. DSr demands the ball but now only 18 to shoot. After a couple passes, he gets it back with eight, gets into the paint and kicks to an open Johnson who circles the three to miss a contested runner. Johnson gets his own board and is fouled.

1053: poor offensive possession. Hoyas try to get into the Post but no one is open. DSR doesn't touch it until 12 on the clock. After trying to free Ike, he demands it back with about five and forces an eighteen footer. Johnson again with the board.

10:26: Another fairly poor possession but it ends with DSR making a beautiful pocket pass to Hayes who misses the open three footer.

932: DSR dribbles deliberately up the court, passes and cuts. Before he gets it back, Ike makes a terrible entry to Hayes with 14 to shoot that goes out of bounds.

857: DSR brings it up and immediately gets a high PNR from Hayes with 24 to shoot but nothing doing and he passes. Ball gets to Ike, who promptly has his pocket picked. He recovers but now there is ten to shoot and be is 30 feet from the basket. Forced to shoot an eighteen foot step back that misses.

827: DSR takes a charge.

827: With 20 on the shot clock, DSR passes to Cameron for the four point play.

745: DSR walks it up the court. Doesn't get ball back after be initiated the offense. With ten to shoot, Derrickson gets ball in post and tries spin move but puts up crazy miss.

712: still up eleven. DSR agvresive skip pass to Peak culminates in Peak turning it over trying to enter to the post.

637: DSR rushes it up the court and throws half court pass ahead to Derrickson who takes and misses wide open three with 24 to shoot.

616: Foul with 20 to shoot. Two makes by Cameron.

546: DSR makes pass to high post. Next pass to Ike who shoots and misses three with 19 to shoot.

505: LJ runs point. Ball immediately stolen from Govan on first pass.

443: now up 7, III calls TO. Peak again runs point. Again, Jesse weak with the ball coming to the high post but the defender runs by him and Jesse drives to the hoop with 23 to shoot and is fouled

411: same set with LJ at point and Govan at high post. Govan back to LJ who drives hard with 20 to shoot and scores.

340: same look but to opposite side. at end of possession, they look for DSr who is well guarded so LJ and Govan run a nice PNR and Govan is fouled with five go shoot. Nice possession.

300: Same look. With DSr waiting for a reversal, ball is stolen with 18 to shoot on a lazy pass from Derrickson to Peak. Marquette dunk.

235: six point game. enough with Peak at the point. DSR makes first pass with 25 to play. After a near turnover he demands it back with 16 on the clock. They basically clear out for him before Govan comes for a high PNR with 8 to shoot. DSR drives hard, is fouled, makes two.

158: DSR deliberate up court. Makes pass with 20 to shoot. Immediately gets it back and takes high degree of difficulty classic DSR 18 foot step back. "Pure."

124: DSR again (appropriately) deliberate. Makes pass with 16 to shoot. Gets it back with nine to shoot and ices game with lefty difficult layup.


Some observations: Until the very end, we got into the offense quickly and looked to take the first good shot that was available. There was no real slow down. A couple times we tried to enter the post, and because it wasn't there, we had limited time to do something. Some horrific turnovers, but none was DSR's fault. In fact, he was facilitating and then demanding the ball back when things started going awry. Exactly what you would want.

Maybe -- maybe -- there was one or two decisions in that entire sequence where he could have done something different. And in addition to the end of game clutchness, he made the pass to get Cameron the three and right before that took a charge. He was unequivocally terrific.

[johnnysnowplow]

Jan 3, 2016 14:17:25 GMT -5 SFHoya99 said:

• And Copeland needs to stop just being a jumpshooter. He's not completely inactive, but he's the only one that is still standing and not moving too much, both on offense and defense. He did okay on the boards but his lack of aggression is standing out. Yes, you have a wonderful jumper, use it. But don't only use it, DaJuan. I mean, Isaac.

I stopped short of making a Dajuan reference in my critique of Isaac. Why, I don't know. Because I've spent a lot of this year so far having nightmarish flashbacks to an athletic, 6'8" stretch 4 who generally doesn't have much interest in doing anything but shooting jumpers. I really, really hope the staff can break Ike of this. Because he has worlds of potential that isn't being realized.

[aristides]

Jan 2, 2016 19:24:58 GMT -5 smokeyjack said:

Total clown show - DSR is a no-show and Cope has regressed by miles. I'm sorry, but 3 has no clue. This should have been a 30 point win.

If DSR was a no-show, then I hope you are similarly disappointed the rest of the season. Not to mention JT3's egregious failure to maintain a 30 point lead in the win. 12 more of those clueless coaching debacles please! :-P

[Filo]

Jan 3, 2016 14:24:12 GMT -5 aleutianhoya said:

Jan 3, 2016 12:48:16 GMT -5 smokeyjack said:

Did you even watch the game? It seemed like watching the game that he totally disappeared in the second half while Marquette was making its run, and the play-by-play confirms that conclusively:

After collecting his 7th assist at the 14:16 mark to put the Hoyas up 57-43, DSR committed 1 TO, missed a shot and had one assist over the next 12:07, playing almost the entire time but largely spectating as Marquette turned a blowout into a 68-62 game. Yes, over the last 2:09 he woke up to score 12 of his 15 points to help them put the game away which was extremely impressive.

But is it too much to ask your senior captain to play closer to 40 minutes of basketball? And it's actually less about his stats than his leadership. This is hardly the first time the team has floundered around him for long stretches, and he seems either reticent or unwilling to take charge. He can't flip the switch over the last 2:09 and produce GU wins against the decent teams in the league, much less the good ones.

I understand you are a contrarian KC, but last night wasn't just savior/good DSR, it was the best and worst of DSR. The very fact that he is capable of scoring 12 points in 2:09 is an indictment begging the question, 'What the hell were you doing from a scoring perspective for the previous 38 minutes?"

This season comes down to Peak and DSR to me. We can be very good if those two play with leadership, fire and urgency. If they don't, we are going to significantly underachieve. IMO, DSR does not have the luxury of waiting for the game to come to him. He has to be more proactive from the tip for GU to be successful.

12:16: With 20 on the shot clock, Hayes has Ike for a backdoor from the elbow but it goes out of bounds.

11:46: With 17 on the shot clock, DSR makes a perfect entry pass to Derrickson who misses a very make able jump hook from five feet.

11:21: Johnson brings it up the court at a quick pace. Passes to Derrickson who makes a poor entry to Hayes that is deflected. Johnson alertly gets the loose ball. DSr demands the ball but now only 18 to shoot. After a couple passes, he gets it back with eight, gets into the paint and kicks to an open Johnson who circles the three to miss a contested runner. Johnson gets his own board and is fouled.

1053: poor offensive possession. Hoyas try to get into the Post but no one is open. DSR doesn't touch it until 12 on the clock. After trying to free Ike, he demands it back with about five and forces an eighteen footer. Johnson again with the board.

10:26: Another fairly poor possession but it ends with DSR making a beautiful pocket pass to Hayes who misses the open three footer.

932: DSR dribbles deliberately up the court, passes and cuts. Before he gets it back, Ike makes a terrible entry to Hayes with 14 to shoot that goes out of bounds.

857: DSR brings it up and immediately gets a high PNR from Hayes with 24 to shoot but nothing doing and he passes. Ball gets to Ike, who promptly has his pocket picked. He recovers but now there is ten to shoot and be is 30 feet from the basket. Forced to shoot an eighteen foot step back that misses.

827: DSR takes a charge.

827: With 20 on the shot clock, DSR passes to Cameron for the four point play.

745: DSR walks it up the court. Doesn't get ball back after be initiated the offense. With ten to shoot, Derrickson gets ball in post and tries spin move but puts up crazy miss.

712: still up eleven. DSR agvresive skip pass to Peak culminates in Peak turning it over trying to enter to the post.

637: DSR rushes it up the court and throws half court pass ahead to Derrickson who takes and misses wide open three with 24 to shoot.

616: Foul with 20 to shoot. Two makes by Cameron.

546: DSR makes pass to high post. Next pass to Ike who shoots and misses three with 19 to shoot.

505: LJ runs point. Ball immediately stolen from Govan on first pass.

443: now up 7, III calls TO. Peak again runs point. Again, Jesse weak with the ball coming to the high post but the defender runs by him and Jesse drives to the hoop with 23 to shoot and is fouled

411: same set with LJ at point and Govan at high post. Govan back to LJ who drives hard with 20 to shoot and scores.

340: same look but to opposite side. at end of possession, they look for DSr who is well guarded so LJ and Govan run a nice PNR and Govan is fouled with five go shoot. Nice possession.

300: Same look. With DSr waiting for a reversal, ball is stolen with 18 to shoot on a lazy pass from Derrickson to Peak. Marquette dunk.

235: six point game. enough with Peak at the point. DSR makes first pass with 25 to play. After a near turnover he demands it back with 16 on the clock. They basically clear out for him before Govan comes for a high PNR with 8 to shoot. DSR drives hard, is fouled, makes two.

158: DSR deliberate up court. Makes pass with 20 to shoot. Immediately gets it back and takes high degree of difficulty classic DSR 18 foot step back. "Pure."

124: DSR again (appropriately) deliberate. Makes pass with 16 to shoot. Gets it back with nine to shoot and ices game with lefty difficult layup.


Some observations: Until the very end, we got into the offense quickly and looked to take the first good shot that was available. There was no real slow down. A couple times we tried to enter the post, and because it wasn't there, we had limited time to do something. Some horrific turnovers, but none was DSR's fault. In fact, he was facilitating and then demanding the ball back when things started going awry. Exactly what you would want.

Maybe -- maybe -- there was one or two decisions in that entire sequence where he could have done something different. And in addition to the end of game clutchness, he made the pass to get Cameron the three and right before that took a charge. He was unequivocally terrific.

This is too damn funny. A beat-down of a reply. But smokey won't let the facts get in the way of his narrative. Still laughing...

[HoyaChris]

Jan 3, 2016 14:24:12 GMT -5 aleutianhoya said:

Jan 3, 2016 12:48:16 GMT -5 smokeyjack said:

Did you even watch the game? It seemed like watching the game that he totally disappeared in the second half while Marquette was making its run, and the play-by-play confirms that conclusively:

After collecting his 7th assist at the 14:16 mark to put the Hoyas up 57-43, DSR committed 1 TO, missed a shot and had one assist over the next 12:07, playing almost the entire time but largely spectating as Marquette turned a blowout into a 68-62 game. Yes, over the last 2:09 he woke up to score 12 of his 15 points to help them put the game away which was extremely impressive.

But is it too much to ask your senior captain to play closer to 40 minutes of basketball? And it's actually less about his stats than his leadership. This is hardly the first time the team has floundered around him for long stretches, and he seems either reticent or unwilling to take charge. He can't flip the switch over the last 2:09 and produce GU wins against the decent teams in the league, much less the good ones.

I understand you are a contrarian KC, but last night wasn't just savior/good DSR, it was the best and worst of DSR. The very fact that he is capable of scoring 12 points in 2:09 is an indictment begging the question, 'What the hell were you doing from a scoring perspective for the previous 38 minutes?"

This season comes down to Peak and DSR to me. We can be very good if those two play with leadership, fire and urgency. If they don't, we are going to significantly underachieve. IMO, DSR does not have the luxury of waiting for the game to come to him. He has to be more proactive from the tip for GU to be successful.

12:16: With 20 on the shot clock, Hayes has Ike for a backdoor from the elbow but it goes out of bounds.

11:46: With 17 on the shot clock, DSR makes a perfect entry pass to Derrickson who misses a very make able jump hook from five feet.

11:21: Johnson brings it up the court at a quick pace. Passes to Derrickson who makes a poor entry to Hayes that is deflected. Johnson alertly gets the loose ball. DSr demands the ball but now only 18 to shoot. After a couple passes, he gets it back with eight, gets into the paint and kicks to an open Johnson who circles the three to miss a contested runner. Johnson gets his own board and is fouled.

1053: poor offensive possession. Hoyas try to get into the Post but no one is open. DSR doesn't touch it until 12 on the clock. After trying to free Ike, he demands it back with about five and forces an eighteen footer. Johnson again with the board.

10:26: Another fairly poor possession but it ends with DSR making a beautiful pocket pass to Hayes who misses the open three footer.

932: DSR dribbles deliberately up the court, passes and cuts. Before he gets it back, Ike makes a terrible entry to Hayes with 14 to shoot that goes out of bounds.

857: DSR brings it up and immediately gets a high PNR from Hayes with 24 to shoot but nothing doing and he passes. Ball gets to Ike, who promptly has his pocket picked. He recovers but now there is ten to shoot and be is 30 feet from the basket. Forced to shoot an eighteen foot step back that misses.

827: DSR takes a charge.

827: With 20 on the shot clock, DSR passes to Cameron for the four point play.

745: DSR walks it up the court. Doesn't get ball back after be initiated the offense. With ten to shoot, Derrickson gets ball in post and tries spin move but puts up crazy miss.

712: still up eleven. DSR agvresive skip pass to Peak culminates in Peak turning it over trying to enter to the post.

637: DSR rushes it up the court and throws half court pass ahead to Derrickson who takes and misses wide open three with 24 to shoot.

616: Foul with 20 to shoot. Two makes by Cameron.

546: DSR makes pass to high post. Next pass to Ike who shoots and misses three with 19 to shoot.

505: LJ runs point. Ball immediately stolen from Govan on first pass.

443: now up 7, III calls TO. Peak again runs point. Again, Jesse weak with the ball coming to the high post but the defender runs by him and Jesse drives to the hoop with 23 to shoot and is fouled

411: same set with LJ at point and Govan at high post. Govan back to LJ who drives hard with 20 to shoot and scores.

340: same look but to opposite side. at end of possession, they look for DSr who is well guarded so LJ and Govan run a nice PNR and Govan is fouled with five go shoot. Nice possession.

300: Same look. With DSr waiting for a reversal, ball is stolen with 18 to shoot on a lazy pass from Derrickson to Peak. Marquette dunk.

235: six point game. enough with Peak at the point. DSR makes first pass with 25 to play. After a near turnover he demands it back with 16 on the clock. They basically clear out for him before Govan comes for a high PNR with 8 to shoot. DSR drives hard, is fouled, makes two.

158: DSR deliberate up court. Makes pass with 20 to shoot. Immediately gets it back and takes high degree of difficulty classic DSR 18 foot step back. "Pure."

124: DSR again (appropriately) deliberate. Makes pass with 16 to shoot. Gets it back with nine to shoot and ices game with lefty difficult layup.


Some observations: Until the very end, we got into the offense quickly and looked to take the first good shot that was available. There was no real slow down. A couple times we tried to enter the post, and because it wasn't there, we had limited time to do something. Some horrific turnovers, but none was DSR's fault. In fact, he was facilitating and then demanding the ball back when things started going awry. Exactly what you would want.

Maybe -- maybe -- there was one or two decisions in that entire sequence where he could have done something different. And in addition to the end of game clutchness, he made the pass to get Cameron the three and right before that took a charge. He was unequivocally terrific.

Thank you Aleutian for doing the chronology because you saved me from doing it. The team makes makes lots of mistakes,but the insistence of some posters in identifying motivational issues - i.e.disinterested - feels like a strained attempt to fit "facts" to a narrative.

[wrestlemania]

I was at the game, and with my admittedly untrained eye I saw an offense that became predictable and easier to defend in the second half. This team gets virtually no dribble penetration into the lane, so they are left with a lot of handoffs/ball screens on the perimeter that don't scare the defense if no one has handle or is hitting shots. Marquette seized the opportunity to be more aggressive and push the offense further away from the basket. The Hoyas became tentative, hence the turnovers.

But man, DSR's step-back elbow jumper with a couple of minutes to go was tremendous (gutsy too, since it was early in the shot clock). Even my 15 year old, otherwise bored out of her mind daughter was impressed.

[kchoya]

Jan 3, 2016 12:48:16 GMT -5 smokeyjack said:

Jan 3, 2016 2:33:21 GMT -5 kchoya said:

A no show? He had 15-8-4.

Did you even watch the game? It seemed like watching the game that he totally disappeared in the second half while Marquette was making its run, and the play-by-play confirms that conclusively:

After collecting his 7th assist at the 14:16 mark to put the Hoyas up 57-43, DSR committed 1 TO, missed a shot and had one assist over the next 12:07, playing almost the entire time but largely spectating as Marquette turned a blowout into a 68-62 game. Yes, over the last 2:09 he woke up to score 12 of his 15 points to help them put the game away which was extremely impressive.

But is it too much to ask your senior captain to play closer to 40 minutes of basketball? And it's actually less about his stats than his leadership. This is hardly the first time the team has floundered around him for long stretches, and he seems either reticent or unwilling to take charge. He can't flip the switch over the last 2:09 and produce GU wins against the decent teams in the league, much less the good ones.

I understand you are a contrarian KC, but last night wasn't just savior/good DSR, it was the best and worst of DSR. The very fact that he is capable of scoring 12 points in 2:09 is an indictment begging the question, 'What the hell were you doing from a scoring perspective for the previous 38 minutes?"

This season comes down to Peak and DSR to me. We can be very good if those two play with leadership, fire and urgency. If they don't, we are going to significantly underachieve. IMO, DSR does not have the luxury of waiting for the game to come to him. He has to be more proactive from the tip for GU to be successful.

How's your beat down feel?

[michaelgrahmstylie]

Jan 2, 2016 23:17:10 GMT -5 This Just In said:

Jan 2, 2016 22:47:17 GMT -5 michaelgrahmstylie said:

Let's see if we will be having this discussion again when they take on Villanova this week. Marquette is a very good team. Well-coached team with two to three solid players. Let's see what happens going forward.

What do you think Marquette's Big East record wil be?

Marquette has a very daunting task with their next three games. However, I would not be surprised at all if they upset Providence or Villanova. I don't know what their record will be, but I would not be surprised if they make the tournament.

Mark my word.

[michaelgrahmstylie]

Must say, after watching the game again, I am really impressed with Johnson.

[eagle54]

I'm laughing because I've been the negative guy on the board maybe once. Perhaps it's perspective, but I think DSR not overtaking the game and trying to do too much "which to no fault of his own" is his MO in my mind was the most encouraging part of the game. I think he appropriately stepped up in the last few minutes and got control of a game that was getting closer but throughout let everyone play. My view of this team in the past is we've lived and died with certain guards doing too much. When it works, great but more often than not it doesn't. I really like that we are involving the younger players to get meaningful minutes and play.

My expectations for this team are in check I hope but like that III is getting more freshman playing early and maybe that's a sign of this program evolving. Whether he can coach them up in bigger games will remain but part of college coaching is recruiting. I like what I see from some of these young guys.

[3xhoya]

I'm sorry if this has already been mentioned as I have not had time to read through all of the posts yet but......

They seemed to play MUCH better in the faster tempo that took place in the first half. I watched the game taped late at night so my observations are admittedly not the best (not to mention my amateur eye) but I feel like they tried to slow it down in the second half and this is a partial reason of why Marquette was able to claw back. This team has some good athletes and I think they benefit from a faster pace.

[eagle54]

Jan 3, 2016 2:05:03 GMT -5 EtomicB said:

Jan 3, 2016 0:45:13 GMT -5 eagle54 said:

I don't think he's getting enough respect for what he's doing as posters are holding back on what we are seeing.  If we had Hayes out there playing against the bigs on Marquette down the stretch I don't think he fares as well.  I think our coach saw what he was bringing.  Played 6 less minutes than Hayes but had 1 more rebound, 2 more blocks and 3 more points.     

I haven't & I won't knock Jessie and he definitely has more upside than Hayes but the key is he hasn't out played Hayes in anyway this season..

The coach is right to play his most productive players..

I didn't say you knocked him but you continue to talk like that post.  I saw the game and saw who was better.  And the stats show the same for someone like you who needs to reference it.  Let's get ahead of this and realize the youth can win because if they are even close now they won't be in a couple of months.  Let the kids out to play.  

[OldHoyafan]

I have to admit that I found myself screaming at my tv for DSR to takeover and put the game away during Marquette's run, having watched Chris Dunn do that exact thing earlier.
However, after the game and some reflection I think his reluctance to takeover, to the extent he can( does not have Dunn's physical talents) is in line with what his coach wants of him. He is the only senior leader with sufficient game experience to make the right decisions in this offense. JTIII through DSR is letting the sophmores(Peak, Copeland, and Campbell) have that chance to make the right decisions in real time. Last year they deferred to DSR, Jabril, Hopkins and Bowen to make the right decisions in game that either gave them an open shot or pass to the basket, now they have to give each other that pass or pick for an open layup. In a perfect world they would still be deferring to the juniors and seniors on the team, but it is what it is they are the ones that have to carry the freshmen on the team. Cameron as a junior has to my surprise stepped up both on offense and defense. The announcer said that JTIII said Cameron was his most consistent player. After watching him for two years, I would never have thought those would be words describing him. Sometimes you get a special freshman like Otto Porter who the coach can put a ton of responsibility on and let the other freshmen mature in game decisions over time. This team does not have that special freshmen or sophmores but they have very good players in these respective classes so you get the up and down play of this team. I think JTIII could say as he has in other years, that this team will go as far as DSR's scoring will take them and tell DSR to shoot more, but he believes he has the talent to go further this year than in recent times, but to go there, this group of sophmores and freshmen have to gain that maturity through real time mistakes, that will be corrected by BE tournament time. As others have suggested, scheduling the senior laden mid-majors was purposely done for the same reasons to get his young team the experience for that same type of team that will be a first or second round opponent in the NCAA. I am sure he did not expect the losses, but I think if they get to the NCAA that earlier experience will pay off. So I am sure that as the season goes on I will again find myself hollering at my tv for DSR to take over.just hope the results are the same as the last game and that one or more of the sophmore and freshman class lessens his burden at the end of the game.

[bearsandbulls]

Jan 3, 2016 21:17:54 GMT -5 michaelgrahmstylie said:

Must say, after watching the game again, I am really impressed with Johnson.

Well if you like Johnson (I agree) you must love Govan and Derrickson....What a freshman class.

[bearsandbulls]

Hey Cal just beat Utah easily with young players. They made mistakes, but they stepped up when needed. That is exactly G'town. You have some bad preseason losses in the itinerary, but are a very good, young, fun to watch team. There will be some minor blips, but at the end of the year you will be there. i would love a Cal v. G'town matchup in the tourney at whatever stage (the later the better)

[dreamhoya]

Jan 3, 2016 14:38:25 GMT -5 johnnysnowplow said:

Jan 3, 2016 14:17:25 GMT -5 SFHoya99 said:

• And Copeland needs to stop just being a jumpshooter. He's not completely inactive, but he's the only one that is still standing and not moving too much, both on offense and defense. He did okay on the boards but his lack of aggression is standing out. Yes, you have a wonderful jumper, use it. But don't only use it, DaJuan. I mean, Isaac.

I stopped short of making a Dajuan reference in my critique of Isaac. Why, I don't know. Because I've spent a lot of this year so far having nightmarish flashbacks to an athletic, 6'8" stretch 4 who generally doesn't have much interest in doing anything but shooting jumpers. I really, really hope the staff can break Ike of this. Because he has worlds of potential that isn't being realized.

I think that Copeland's doing fine. He has want-to on his rebounding which is miles ahead of Dajuan

[DanMcQ]

As SFHoya99 pointed out in another thread, virtually all of Copeland's turnovers were errors of execution, which is how it looked to me. Correctable.