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Could we be in one of those initial playin games?

Anyone else flying the flag today? It’s been awhile, but it brings good vibes! I think mine needs to be ironed. Do you do that with synthetic flags?

There's no need for a game recap, I'm sure in these 40+ pages that has been covered.

But what I did want to do was link back to a post I wrote in the offseason:

hoyatalk2.proboards.com/post/880904

Please note the date because the defense we saw last night was from a completely different universe.  Sure I was having some fun with the tone, but those defensive issues were very real.  I can assure you I'm not a D1 coach masquerading on a message board, these were obvious and systemic issues that were called out by numerous posters.  I just happened to write it all down in one place. 

I've tried to be down the middle with Ewing, actually liking his offense but had real concerns that the defense would ever get there.  We had seen 3+ years of ineptitude on that end.  For those posters who had blind faith Ewing would figure that out, a victory lap is deserved.  The changes suggested were implemented, the attention to detail is there, the effort was persistent, and we broke a top 20 offense.  

I'm just going to call out 3 defensive plays because they're a microcosm of what I saw:

1. Dante icing Zegarowski screen to baseline, big dropping, Zegarowski with nowhere to go and throwing the ball out of bounds toward half court.  With Blair making the talking hand motion telling his team to keep communicating on defense as the ball rolls out of bounds.  

2. The possession where Mahoney (mercifully) hit his one shot.  It was honestly 28 seconds of the best defense I've ever seen this team play.  Rotations, communication, flying around.  Mahoney was stuck with the ball with 2 seconds left and just chucked up a 3.  It went it but that doesnt matter.  Process over results

3. A Creighton player drove and jump stopped in the lane.  In the past, the defense would've collapsed and given Creighton a wide open 3.  Every single defender stayed connected and the player had nowhere to go.  That's the attention to detail we've been missing in a nutshell.

Proud to be a fan of this team, this is just the beginning.  Hoya Saxa!

Here's a thought: Hoyas a 12 seed playing Texas Tech a 5 seed. It is the type of drama the NCAA seems to like. Or a rematch as a 13 seed against a 4 seed in West Virginia. Given the tourney is in one area there does not seem to be any geographical or homecourt issues.

I've been a fan since my freshman year in 2001. Not in terms of how good they ended up being, but the team I was always most proud of the last 20 years was the '05-'06 team. Seniors like Cook/Bowman who really had to endure some tough times but hung on long enough to persevere and lead a special group of underclassmen from a middle of the road BE team to quite possibly the 2nd best team in the country over the course of a season.

This team has surpassed that team in terms of how proud I am of them. Just remarkable. Unthinkable. Unprecedented (I defy someone out there with the time to find another major conference team that won the conference tourney finishing 1 game over .500). The staff figured it out. The players bought in and re-dedicated themselves during that COVID break. The effort level tonight was off the charts, the best we've seen in maybe close to a decade. I think the team has finally realized that effort and not talent is what makes you competitive.

Count me thrilled to have been wrong about a lot of things.

Dante Harris. BET MOP. A night after Pickett brutally outplayed Mamu, Harris had his turn matching the BE preseason POY in Zegarowski, who was the only Creighton player to show up tonight, blow for blow. Feels like he's matured 2 seasons in 2 weeks. Just an incredible transformation. I know a few of us said he'd be ready to contribute earlier than expected, but to dominate a conference tournament... no one saw that coming.

Bile probably had his best game as a Hoya tonight. Dagger 3s. Killer offensive boards including one off a missed FT. And the help side defense near the rim basically intimidated Creighton out of the paint. Played under control; the out of control drives that were turnovers earlier in the year became controlled jump shots when he didn't have a step and layups when he did. Never thought he was anything more than a turnover machine, but somewhere during that COVID break he bought into the idea of being this team's energy guy and it positively impacted every other teammate. Another remarkable turnaround.

Few players will go down in GU history having had more grief than Jamorko Pickett. But he was the quiet leader today. The maturity to let the game come to him, do the little things to win, and take pride in not being just a good defensive player but a shutdown defender. The box score says 2 pts 3 rebs tonight but I thought he had a great game doing the right things it takes to win a basketball game.

What Q did to Bishop tonight was very reminiscent of Roy destroying Aaron Gray in the 2007 title game. He stayed at home like we needed to and was an absolute force in the paint on both ends. Once Creighton abandoned the paint and were forced to match our efficient offense with tough 2s, they were dead. For a long time this season, it was unclear if the light was going to go on for Q in terms of knowing his defensive responsibilities and executing them on the end. A lot of credit to him and the staff here for getting on the same page and putting him in a position to succeed.

In a game where Blair had some maddeningly bad turnovers and poor shot selection, his sheer confidence willed in some shots that not a whole lot of players can make. But what a spark he gives us off the bench with his fearlessness and ability to give the second unit an offensive boost. Beginning to think that DNP vs. Depaul was almost by design to give him a blow and get him ready for the stretch run. For a guy like him to selflessly give up his starting role for the good of the team, embrace his new role AND thrive in it... huge credit to him.

Unsung hero. In a long grueling tournament where buying minutes for guys who have played heavy minutes becomes a necessity, you need your deep reserves to step up. Holloway had a couple missed opportunities but was ultimately not exploited tonight or even against Nova earlier in the tourney. Dante looked like he took it as a personal insult that McDermott would put Canfield on him to give Zeg a break. That stretch really turned the game tonight and we never looked back after that.

The two big stats: +16 on the boards, -1 TOs (and only 12 again for us). The two stats we had to win and we passed the test with flying colors. If we beat teams that badly on this boards next week, we have a shot at advancing.

Very happy for this staff; they've put in a lot of work and you can see a lot of signs in improvements in a lot of areas. The entry passes look a lot better (less telegraphing, better angles, less careless passing). The inbound plays are starting to generate a lot more good shots (Q from Blair vs SHU late, Bile dunk and 3 today) than turnovers. The shot selection is incrementally improving for a lot of guys. The defensive intensity and game-planning is really starting to come together (I think at this point of the season, seeing a team a 3rd time really helps). And I thought Ewing managed the minutes masterfully in this tournament. We knew guys would have to play heavy minutes, but he gave guys short rests when they needed them and it showed when we had the advantage late in games in the stamina department. Getting Dante the early blow tonight was crucial.

Savor this one, everyone. You might not see anything like it in a long time. Here's to hoping that Cinderella's run isn't over yet AND that we won't have to be a Cinderella in the years to come!

WE GOING DANCING!

And knock Syracuse out of the tourney!