GT / Louisville

[YlJacket]

No, you did NOT miss-remember... that's is exactly what happened.

If we had lost the game, losing that runout dunk would likely have been the reason.

 

[chris975d]

FWIW our minutes last night were not as " bad" as I have seen them in the past. We had 4 folks over 30 min but the most was 33. 33,32,32,31 Bubba came off the bench for 28 min, Moore 10 and Cole 6. I thought Cole might get a few more minutes but otherwise was OK with it. The issue is Bubba can't go 28 minutes and score 2 points. Same for Moore and Cole but obviously to a lesser degree. I like that Bubba doesn't turn it over a ton - a rare quality on this team - but someone has to score off the bench and he is the obvious one. Moore just has to get better. Cole kind of is what he is. The rest are projects at this stage.

Bubba seems...I don’t know...afraid to shoot to me. Doesn’t even appear to want to. Again, my perception from watching him most all games (all home games, at least).

 

[awbuzz]

Interesting tidbit - All five of our starters reached double figures in points against Louisville, the first time in a game this season that has happened.

 

[glandon1960]

Couple comments on the posts ...
- Crowd last night .... place was 75-80 percent full ... students section full (and loud) ... 75 percent gold 25 percent red .... Louisville did not fill up 10th street with bus loads of fans like they have for weekend games in past. Crowd was as loud as Duke - especially in second half

- This team is a lot better than the record - someone pointed to the stats - the stats and eye test both bear this out .. last couple of years we needed some help to compete with the top teams, this year (with fill team) we have been there every game. No reason what we see should not carry over to next season (other teams lose players to graduation/NBA/transfers also). Do need depth/bench to produce more (or new players be able to produce)

- Turnovers are killing this team ... #1 problem by far ....

- I agree the damage to record to get into NCAA this year was done in December (losses to UGA, Arkansas, Ball State) ... unless they run table in regular season they won't make it - especially since early NCAA seeding shows UVA at #11 seed right now and NC State not it ...I would like to see them drop the appeal and go into next year with no cloud over the head

- The other sanctions (loss of a scholarship) in the long run is not a huge thing, but would be nice to land Kai Sotto and then deal with having only 11 on scholarship the next year ...Enogh people I have spoken with feel the other restrictions on recruiting are not signficant IF you are targeting one less person (you need less OV and off campus dates, etc.).

 

[g0lftime]

That foul on Moses was bad. Not only did they get a basket and free throws, it stopped the clock at a crucial time in the game. That was a pure make up call by lousy ref who did not like the overturned goal tend.

 

[slugboy]

I get the perception part, but are we at the level of biting off our noses to spite our face? There's a 1 in 10 chance the NCAA is going to overturn their ruling, and given that we've been labeled a habitual offender, that 1 in 10 chance is being generous.

There's a real possibility GT sits at 20+ wins next season and a shoo in for the tournament...be we have to miss it because we decided to appeal a season we didn't have any shot at the tournament. How would perception be then?

We might be able to keep the appeal and self impose sitting out post season this year on our own. There might be other options, too. It’s in the hands of lawyers now, and it’s time for good lawyers to do good lawyering


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Connell62]

FWIW our minutes last night were not as " bad" as I have seen them in the past. We had 4 folks over 30 min but the most was 33. 33,32,32,31 Bubba came off the bench for 28 min, Moore 10 and Cole 6. I thought Cole might get a few more minutes but otherwise was OK with it. The issue is Bubba can't go 28 minutes and score 2 points. Same for Moore and Cole but obviously to a lesser degree. I like that Bubba doesn't turn it over a ton - a rare quality on this team - but someone has to score off the bench and he is the obvious one. Moore just has to get better. Cole kind of is what he is. The rest are projects at this stage.

You're right.. He is the best candidate and he has the ability. The problem with Bubba is that if he isn't making three's or getting to the line, he likely isn't scoring.

He simply doesn't try to go to the bucket because his lack of size really hurts him in the paint. I say **** it, take it in there and get it blocked, but at least try and finish at the rim.

 

[OG-T]

We had 4 folks over 30 min but the most was 33. 33,32,32,31 Bubba came off the bench for 28 min, Moore 10 and Cole 6.

Satisfying win. Team s/b proud of that effort. Cards were ripe to be knocked off last night. Last night’s min mix is sustainable; more of that! Would like to see Price get a sniff here/there if other team backs into zones; he’s long enough to catch and shoot more effectively than Bubba; Price % ugly, but stroke looks good. You gotta forgive Cole last night, his ankle clearly wasn’t 100%, and he is a capable 5-7 pt guy. Pastner gets strong grade on rotation with the exception of not pulling Banks sooner at end of first half; then Banks gets cheap 3rd foul with 1+ min left.

Glad SportsCenter Nation was able to learn all about The Birds and The Bees last night, so to say.

 

[Techster]

You're right.. He is the best candidate and he has the ability. The problem with Bubba is that if he isn't making three's or getting to the line, he likely isn't scoring.

He simply doesn't try to go to the bucket because his lack of size really hurts him in the paint. I say **** it, take it in there and get it blocked, but at least try and finish at the rim.

You know, Bubba is so quick he wrong foots a LOT of defenders off the dribble. I've always wondered why he doesn't drive to the hoop and get someone in the air and create a foul. IMO, creating fouls on key players is just as good as scoring points.

 

[jbix80]

Glad to see Alvarado and Usher laughing with each other at the end of the video. Jose really got on to him at one point in the game last night after he made a bad turnovers. Looked like they were jawing back and forth a little bit, which I don't mind. Showed great leadership on Jose's part and competitive nature on both guy's part during the game.

 

[Techster]

Glad to see Alvarado and Usher laughing with each other at the end of the video. Jose really got on to him at one point in the game last night after he made a bad turnovers. Looked like they were jawing back and forth a little bit, which I don't mind. Showed great leadership on Jose's part and competitive nature on both guy's part during the game.

Speaks to the culture of the team. They're not having the year they probably thought they would, but at the end of the day it's still family. Families fight...but you understand family is most important.

Of course, they were probably fighting over where to eat after the game:

Jose: Yo Jordan, that TO means we're going to the Varsity!
Jordan: Hell naw, you had a turnover earlier...I'm not eating any Varsity
Jose: The heck you're not...watch this...

 

[YlJacket]

Bubba seems...I don’t know...afraid to shoot to me. Doesn’t even appear to want to. Again, my perception from watching him most all games (all home games, at least).

I agree with you. I thought he was coming with a scorer's mentality but that has been removed from him this year. I don't want him gunning like he did at VMI but I for sure want him looking for his shot - jumper or penetrate I don't care. Gotta look to score - be more than just don't turn the ball over.

 

[tsrich]

Our bench was significantly outscored but they did provide more meaningful minutes than in most games and only had 2 turnovers between them.
Khalid 10 min, Cole 6 min, Bubba 28 min

I wonder if Cole would have gotten more min if he hadn't made that horrible TO on the handoff pass.
Pastner seems to have little patience for mistakes off the bench.

 

[tsrich]

You know, Bubba is so quick he wrong foots a LOT of defenders off the dribble. I've always wondered why he doesn't drive to the hoop and get someone in the air and create a foul. IMO, creating fouls on key players is just as good as scoring points.

I wish he'd take more 8-12 footer pull-ups. He is so quick he can get space there, but he's too small to shoot once he's in the lane.

 

[BleedingGold]

Can't be upset about taking down the number 5 team in the nation. Program needed that, but damn it's frustrating watching such a talented team try to give these games away. I have to believe this was UL's sloppiest performance of the year, and there's no doubt we were still the better team on the court last night. Am I the only one who thought we should have easily won this game by 15? Granted, when you're playing a talented team, and you have an early lead, you can always count on them making a run to get back into it, but UL never got into that groove. What was the biggest scoring run the went on? Maybe a quick four to five point turnaround in the first half? It seems like it always comes down to three things with us: foul trouble, free throw shooting, and turnovers. All three were on display last night though the thankfully the free throw shooting was solid for us down the stretch.

 

[Hjacket]

I think that those who have said depth is a real problem are correct. We have a huge drop in offense when we bring in Bubba, Kalid and Evan for Jose/Michael, Jordan/Moses/Banks. Given that we had 3 with 3 fouls in the first half, the substitution pattern did have to change and resulted in more bench minutes but not one basket. We played 100% man defense last night which also takes a lot out of you. Louisville had 10 players and it really did not matter that much which ones were on the floor and which ones were on the bench. End game, this really matters.

 

[gte447f]

As a few others are saying, Bubba is lightning quick; he has a good first step off the dribble and easily gets by defenders. He also has a great vertical jump and a good mid-range, pull-up jumper. So, he is not just a spot up 3 point shooter. I wish he would use his quickness and mid-range jumper to create more shots for himself. Now, as for driving all the way to the basket, due to his size, he does have to be careful with that unless he has an absolutely clear path all the way to the hoop.

 

[g0lftime]

Most teams are doubling down in the paint and causing some of our turnover problems. Moses and Banks don't kick it out much. They are going to take a shot regardless of whether they are doubled by the defense . We are not strong at an inside back outside game. Jose is pretty good taking it in the paint even into a crowd.

 

[gte447f]

Regarding the crowd last night, I walked in right at tip-off and was immediately very disappointed in the home crowd turnout. Both student sections (sideline and behind the basket) were full from the start. Visitor section behind the Louisville bench was also full of red from the start. Both lower deck sideline sections were just OK at tip-off. But, the Callaway Club, the section behind the basket (opposite of student section), and the upper deck were practically empty at tip-off. Now, people did filter in as the game went on. Ultimately I would also put it at about 75-80% full with about 75% gold and 25% red. The place did get pretty darn loud at times in the second half, but not as loud as the Duke game. Also, cardinal section behind visitor bench tried to get loud a couple of times, but were mostly pretty quiet since their team was losing for the entire game. I left the game talking about how surprised I was at how loud it got, considering that the McCamish was not full, and saying that if we can ever get back to winning consistently and filling McCamish to 100% capacity with 90%+ Tech fans, that place will be incredible.

 

[gte447f]

A lot of our turnovers come from our guards penetrating with no intention of scoring. They drive all the way to the basket, but you can tell they are hoping to kick out to a shooter or make an interior pass to a big rather than take a challenged shot at the rim. The problem is the defense knows this too, and keys on the passing lanes. I am all for sharing the ball and looking for open teammates if they are there, but I would rather see our guards be more aggressive in attacking the rim to score or draw contact instead of looking for the extra pass when it's not there. If our guards are not physical enough to finish at the rim, then they need to beat their man and get their shot up in the lane before getting all the way to the rim where they have no options.