Instantaneous Ill-Informed Roundball Wrapup: South Carolina 78, Georgia 77
by T Kyle King on Jan 30, 2010 9:31 PM EST
in Basketball
11 comments
So, basically, it's like Mark Fox is Lane Kiffin with better manners, since all the Georgia Bulldogs seem capable of achieving on the basketball court are moral victories.
The last few minutes of the first half stunk for the Red and Black, so a visiting squad that ought to have been out in front by several points instead went to the locker room clinging to a slim 38-36 advantage. The Palmetto State Poultry outscored the Fox Hounds 42-39 after the break, largely due to torrid three-point shooting. The Classic City Canines' lead held up almost to the very end, but, once again, it was close but no cigar for the Hoop Dogs.
At this point, I would like to present the family-friendly edited-for-television version of Orson Swindle's 2007 post-Cocktail Party thoughts; viz.:
Dadgummit son-of-a-gun dang drat shucky-darn crap crap crap crap shoot dagnabit Bobby Bowden in a golf cart frick frag freak fargin' sumnabotch scumbum shazbat fishizzle this stinks.
Feel better now? I don't.
As Yoda might have put it, "Win or win not. There is no close."
February 1, 2010, will mark 25 consecutive months of abject suckitude in Bulldog Nation. I am true to my school, just like I am to my girl, but, boy, I'll be glad to see the return of the day when the phrase "It's great to be a Georgia Bulldog!" is no longer merely an expression of loyalty and aspiration. Blackout 2007 feels like something that happened to someone else a lifetime ago.
Go 'Dawgs!
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South Crackalacki's torrid 3's...
Yep. We defensed them inside and made ‘em jack it up from beyond the arc. To their credit, they drained those. You can only tip your hat because as a defense, you want them to take a low percentage shot. Of course, Devon Downy’s ability to turn on a cloaking device doesn’t quite seem fair.
We were hitting “3’s” late as well, and it became quit the shootout late…but McPhee missed a couple of wide open looks and if one of those falls, maybe that’s the difference.
They’re close…but not closing.
"If we score, we may win. If they never score, we'll never lose."
-Erk Russell
Disagree!
I think our collective sneering at Kiffin for the last year has made us unable to permit any optimism on the basis of close losses. Kyle, you are doing what you gotta do, but it’s silly and illogical.
This is not UT football, a team with talent perfectly capable of matching up with SEC teams. This is not a UT football team that was clearly “playing to keep it close” against superior competition. This a Georgia Basketball program that has no business being as competitive as it has been, and in all but one of these recent losses has been competitive to the very end. With a bit of luck, this team is 4-1 in the SEC.
By the way, the reason it hurts so much more to lose these games is because, even though you don’t dare admit it, you expected to win. And that’s the difference with the inaugural edition of Fox’s dawgs.
I disagree!
I was selling this same argument myself, but “moral victories” have a limit, and we reached that quota a while ago. We can’t win on the road and can’t win back to back. I believe we are better with Coach Fox, but, ultimately, we are still losing, a lot. We needed more than a “bit of luck” to blow a double digit lead twice over against MSU. We can’t maintain a lead a finish and that’s not bad luck. We have a ways to go.
"I look forward to developing an aggressive, physical, attacking style defense that offenses will not look forward to playing against." - Coach Grantham
Bobby Bowden in a golf cart...
… awesome.
Can’t you just picture Bobby Bowden doing die-uh-bee-tuss commercials?
Can't wait til he has a chance to add to the talent level around here...
better players, better depth. We’re close, especially considering what he’s working with. They are hard working, damn good dawgs, but Felton didn’t leave a full cupboard, especially for the offensive end.
End of game strategery?
I’ve got a question for someone with a higher basketball IQ than my own.
What was with the strategy of not putting any men on the paint for the one and one foul shot with ~3.5 seconds remaning and down by one? Did we just assume that the first one was a done deal? I understand not wanting to let the opponent hit an easy outlet pass, but nary a player was in position to either A) rebound the miss, or B) foul quickly.
The FT
Fox explained he was confident your guy (80% +) would hit that FT, but he was extremely worried about Downey’s ability to go coast to coast. He wanted to take the extra time on the first FT to make sure everybody knew their defensive assignment.
by GwinnettGamecock on Jan 31, 2010 1:10 AM EST up reply actions
That particular end of game strategery
is called a mistake; a costly mistake. To explain it away as wanting to be sure you have guys understanding the d assignment, well, that’s another mistake. We had two guys who CAN’T be on the lane as the free throws are shot, those two guys could’ve handled Downey. The 4 on 1 rebounding situation is a bad one, especially if you are down by one.
Again, he’s doing a good job. Just made a stategic mistake at the end of the game. Hopefully he can bring in more talent and get this thing we call a basketball program competing for tournament bids.
I would also call it a mistake...
I understand Fox’s rationale, but when you’re down by one in the final seconds, you have to play to TAKE the lead, not to protect one that you don’t have yet. You can’t assume you’re going to make the free throws, especially on the road.
Garnet and Black Attack: A Blog by and for Gamecocks Fans.
by Gamecock Man on Jan 31, 2010 4:31 PM EST up reply actions
For such a strategy to have ANY benefit ...
… you have to be either tied or in the lead. The only way that could happen is if the first FT is made. So you have your guys in position on the first FT, and if it goes in, you can back them out before the second.
The strategy that was employed makes sense if it’s a two-shot foul, but not on a one-and-one.
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