I do not believe that the team we saw last night is what BYU is going to be without Davies. I think there will be some adjustments. The team will figure it out. Like I said in an earlier post, I think losing Davies makes this team a lot more like last year's team that still advanced out of the first round for the first time in 18 years. I think they just need to adjust to that. That takes time. They are obviously perimeter-oriented now, but they do not have to be three point-oriented like they were last night. It was 5 guys standing around the three-point line jacking up the first thing resembling an open look. Abouo only drove one time, and that was after the game was well out of hand. He needs to put it on the floor more. Jackson was jacking up anything. Jimmer was pleading for fouls. And Hartsock and Collinsworth decided to not participate in the offense last night. They need ball movement through quick, crisp passes, like they did in the non-conference schedule. BYU will get that back on offense.
Defensively, the team was not in it. They weren't focused. Jimmer was BYU's most tenacious defender last night. That is not a good sign. There was no hustle. They were getting beat to the floor for loose balls. They were getting beat to the rim. They weren't closing on open shooters. That wasn't Davies' physical absence causing it. It was all mental. They can get over the mental aspect of this. They will. But they had better do it fast. Their NCAA Tournament seed depends on them winning the next two games. I think the shock of it all will have passed by Saturday. BYU will get it going again.
I am confident that BYU is a better team than they were last night. There is no doubt of it. Once they get the rotation set (i.e. starting Kyle Collinsworth), things will get going again. Once the emotion passes, Jackson won't be kicking chairs, Logan Magnusson won't be getting technical fouls, James Anderson will not be intentionally knocking opponents down. It will come. There is hope. All is not lost. This is still a team at least as good as last year's. If I'm right about that, then, with a better draw, they should have a really good chance at the Sweet 16.
I totally agree with your assessment and said many of the same things to my coworkers this morning. I'm still sick about last night, but I don't see us playing anywhere near that badly for the rest of the season.
ReplyDelete- D Luke
BYU won't shoot 18 percent (or whatever it was) from the three point line too often. I think it just one of those nights, and everything was compounded by Davies being absent. That said, I can't say I'm still not a little worried. It looked like a completely different team.
ReplyDeleteAt the Cougar Club luncheon today Dave Rose made two points about the team. He thought they got a little carried away with the possible future now that they had beaten SDSU and forgot they had some games left. Also anyone could see at the start of the game that they were playing with heavy hearts. He hasn't figured out the rotation yet and does not have time nor games to do so he said. They had never played from behind that far this year except with UTEP so they didn't know how to play. He thought they learned last night by failure to do what the coaches tried to get them to do for the next time if it happens again. He and Chad Lewis and Tom Holmoe were very upbeat today at the luncheon.
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