Final Score: UW-80 USC-58
This game went pretty much how it should have. UW came to Galen Center and stomped around a decimated USC team. Just like that, the Dawgs secure at least a share of the conference title for the second time in 4 seasons and some sort of conference title for the fourth straight season.
The Huskies started with a nice run, quickly jumping the lead up to 8 points before going into half with a 17 point lead. The Dawgs were a tad sloppy in the start of the second half, allowing USC to pull within 9 before going on another huge run to put the Trojans away for good.
Production came from different sources today. Tony Wroten had one of his coldest shooting nights of the season, hitting only 2 of his 13 attempts. He did manage to find success elsewhere by playing shut down defense and cleaning up on the glass. Wroten finished with 7 points, 8 rebounds (4 offensive), 6 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, and 4 turnovers. Not his best night, but I would not categorize it as a bad one either. Wroten successfully shut down Maurice Jones and found his teammates for better shots. The only bad part about his night is that it certainly complicated the Pac-12 Player of the Year award a little more. Hopefully the coaches don't split their votes between Wroten and Ross thus allowing an outside candidate to take home an undeserved award.
Darnell Gant had one of his better performances throughout his career. Gant drilled some nice 3-point shots throughout the night and finished just under a double-double with 14 points and 9 rebounds. Gant was 6 of 8 from the field and 2 of 3 from deep. Hopefully his inspiration and motivation continues through the weekend to give us an additional weapon against UCLA. Loved the fire he brought and the intensity he rubbed off onto his teammates.
Abdul Gaddy continued to play aggressive basketball and boy do I wonder what has taken him so long to get this attitude back. He is so effective when driving the lanes. Gaddy either opens himself up for the easy basket or finds an open teammate on the perimeter for a solid jumper. Gaddy was 4 of 6 from the field and hit the only 3-pointer he attempted. Gaddy finished with 12 points, 2 boards, 5 assists, and 2 turnovers. Nice night, great performance, needs to continue this type of play.
C.J. Wilcox cooled off after his fiery performance against WSU. Wilcox was a measly 3 of 10 from the field, 0 of 4 outside the arc. Maybe his hip was acting up again because Wilcox certainly didn't seem to be himself. Wilcox bobbled two easy buckets at the hoop, one of which would have been a highlight worthy alley-oop from Wroten. The good part about the game was the lead allowed Romar to rest Wilcox, giving him only 24 minutes on the night. We certainly need his shooting skills against UCLA a lot more than we did against USC.
Aziz N'Diaye battled in the paint and came out the overall victor, in my opinion. While Blasczyk did finished with 10 points, he received 4 of those at the line and only managed to grab 3 rebounds. N'Diaye, on the other hand, had 8 points and 7 boards on top of one nice dunk. N'Diaye continues to be a force in the middle. He will need his A-game tomorrow against Josh Smith who was very successful against the Dawgs last time out. Speaking of N'Diaye, my friend Ted Copeland just posted this video from the UA game. Check Ted out on Facebook here. He does good work.
Desmond Simmons returned to better form against the smaller USC line-up. His shot selection was smarter and his aggressiveness in the paint was back to its old ways. Simmons finished with 5 points on a couple of nice put-backs and nabbed 7 rebounds. Simmons also had 2 steals to offset his 1 turnover. Love this type of production from Simmons, it is exactly what we need from him.
The bench got some decent play time tonight with everyone but Alex Wegner getting into the game. Not sure why Romar didn't put him in as well, but too late to worry about it. Martin Breunig had 4 points coming off of a last second, fade away 3-point jumper that drained somehow and also finished an alley-oop pass from Wroten to cap the night off in spectacular fashion.
Terrence Ross was the star of the night for the Dawgs. After foul trouble crushed Ross' ability to contribute against WSU, Ross returned in mighty fashion playing a full 40 minutes of basketball once more. Ross had 11 points at half time and finished with 18 after only 27 minutes of play. That puts him on pace for nearly 30 points in 40 minutes with that type of production. Ross was 8 of 13 from the field and hit 2 of his 3 from deep. Ross also put up 7 rebounds and 1 steal against 2 turnovers.Ross' crossover is really turning into a deadly weapon that opponents simply cannot defend against. He looks a lot like BRoy on the court. 17 different NBA teams had scouts at the game and one can only imagine that Ross was the focus of their trip.
What Needed Improvement:
Free Throws:
What saved the Dawgs in Pullman had a chance to bite them against USC. The Huskies were a miserable 12 of 23 from the line and this allows the Trojans to close the lead at times. Tony Wroten looked ugly at the line, consistently shooting wide and rattling the ball around. Wroten went 3-7 from the line. Not one person was perfect from the charity stripe and even infallible Wilcox was only 2 of 4 from the line.
Defense:
This may seem odd at first, but hear me out. The Dawgs didn't really shut down the Trojan offense. The Trojans average 54 points per game and finished with 58 because the Huskies like to push the tempo, allowing more shots for USC. The Trojans shot a very respectable 45% from the field and 30% outside. The Dawgs only forced 8 turnovers of which 5 were steals. The Dawgs didn't pressure USC into uncomfortable situations where the players would throw the ball away. The Huskies were able to score so much more because they had nearly as many offensive rebounds (18) as USC had total rebounds (20). When you attempt 16 more shots than the oppositions, chances are you will win. As I said in the pre-game write up, the Dawgs average somewhere around 1.2 points per possession, so 16 times 1.2 gives just under 20 extra points. That 20 points is almost exactly the amount we won by. This is a concerning stat when one considers how much better UCLA is than USC. We cannot afford to let UCLA shoot 45% from the field because they will rebound unlike USC and will certainly score more. We have to play better defense tomorrow.
What Was Good:
Rebounding:
Domination on the glass once again. The Trojans do not have the size or talent to compete in the paint with the Dawgs and this was reflected mightily in the stat line. The Huskies outrebounded USC 47-20 and allowed only 3 offensive boards for the Trojans. That is killer.
Ball Control:
The Husky guards got it done pretty well and the team as a whole dished out 13 assists on 31 shots. Not bad. The 12 turnovers are respectable, but I'd prefer if we could keep that number at 10 or lower. The ball control and passing led to many open shots outside the arc and the Huskies capitalized with a 6 of 13 performance from deep. If you exclude Wilcox from the stat line, the Huskies were 6 of 9 from outside. Solid.
Final Thoughts:
The Dawgs did what they needed to to win this game. They weren't incredibly spectacular and had few standout plays. They play consistent, solid basketball and got the win they wanted and needed. After the game their heads were in the right place. USC offered to do a post game celebration for the title if they wanted, but the Dawgs declined and instead kept their emotions in check, realizing the game on Saturday is just as important, if not more so. I suspect the defensive issues will be addressed and kept in check tomorrow. The bigger issue, no pun intended, is how to shut down Josh Smith. Smith killed us last game and will certainly try to do one better this time around. The Dawgs need to get a good game plan going, maybe run some zone to prevent entry passes. If the Dawgs win tomorrow, I believe they will have secured an at-large bid to the NCAA. Down year or not, the Pac-12 has always performed well in the NCAA, unlike the Big East, and a 15-3 major conference record is nothing to snuff at. I would much rather the team goes into the Pac-12 tournament and grabs that title as well to guarantee a bid. It will be a tough run, but this team is figuring things out and I am confident they can pull it off.
Go Dawgs!
Showing posts with label USC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label USC. Show all posts
Friday, March 2, 2012
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
University of Southern California Game 2 Preview
There are 344 Division 1 Men's Basketball teams in this nation. Keep this in mind when I read off the following stats. 341st in points per game (53.3). 343rd in rebounding (27.1). 337th in assists (9.5). 331st in field goal percentage (39.1%). That is where USC stands in the national picture.USC is a miserable 6-23 on the season and has barely avoided a shutout in conference play (1-15) by narrowly beating a nearly as terrible Utah team at home. The only good thing USC has been able to do this season is play defense. Not the traditional in-your-face type of defense, but the mind-numbing slow down style of offense that makes me want to rip what little is left of Kevin O'Neil's hair right out of his head. To give you an idea on how slow this team plays I'll read off another stat. The Trojans are 333rd in possessions per 40 minutes. The Huskies are 23rd. The Trojans will often give up rebounds on the offensive glass and free throws to run back into a prevent defense. This team does not play to win, heck they aren't even playing not to lose, they are simply playing not to get decimated or injured anymore than has already happen.
I understand it. The team is down to just 6 scholarship players after 5 have suffered season-ending injuries. No one else wants to join that list and with over 20 losses on the record already, the motivation to try hard just isn't there.
One might think that perhaps the Trojans would be able to draw fouls and get to the line. Perhaps there they could offset their terrible field goal percentage and make up some points through free throws. Nope. The Trojans are 343rd in free throw attempts and dead last (344) in free throws made.
There are only two categories in which the Trojans do not rank in the triple digits. Total Losses on the season where they are ranked at #19 and Field Goal Point Percentage (how many points their field goals account for out of their total points per game) at #9. Those are not stats one should be proud of. A good team likes to see a high percentage of points come from the field, but they also need point production behind the arc and at the charity stripe.
If you want to see more of how the Trojans have performed this season, click on this link. The Trojans make a strong case for being the worst team in D1 basketball. I feel sorry for the fall this team has taken. It is not their fault that injury has plagued them so badly.
The Trojans enter Thursday's game on a 7 game losing streak, a streak that could have easily turned into 17 if not for the win versus Utah. 62 points is the high score for the Trojans in conference play. One resulting in a loss, the other was the win against Utah. Do not expect the Trojans to score. Do not expect the Trojans to play uptempo.
The Trojans have only allowed 5 opponents to score 70 or more in conference play (UW scored 69, so I included them). This is fairly impressive, but when you consider the Trojans average 10 less possessions per game than the Huskies, it is not difficult to see how they manage this task. UW is currently averaging a little under 1.2 points per possession. Multiply this by 10 and you have 12 additional points per game being missed out on. This is why teams like UW and California are not putting up 90 points on USC. It's not that the Trojans are playing better defense, it's that the Trojans burn clock like no tomorrow because they know they cannot win a high scoring game.
Maurice Jones has continued to be the backbone of this team. At 5-7, 155lb this is a burden too large for his shoulders. Jones has shown an ability to make shots on the perimeter, deeper than most guards, but his size and strength cause far too many issues for him to be effective inside the paint. The opposing guards are simply too big and strong for Jones to go one-on-one with, both offensively and defensively. In his last game, Jones was 4-13 from the field and 4-9 from outside the arc. A very nice shooting percentage from deep, but his inside game was a whopping 0-4. Jones leads the team in scoring, steals, assists, and turnovers per game (13.6, 1.7, 3.4, and 2.4 respectively).
Byron Wesley has been forced to really mature his game quickly with all of the injuries suffered this season. Against ASU, Wesley dropped in 22 points on 8-14 shooting, all of which came inside the paint (0-1 from the arc). He also shot a decent 6-10 from the foul line and was the only Trojan to attempt a free throw outside of reserve guard Greg Allen who attempted just a pair. Wesley is second in scoring among active players with 9.2 per game as well as leading in active rebounders with 5 per night. Wesley is second in assists and turnovers behind Jones. Wesley is a much tougher match-up than Jones as his stands at 6-5 210lb and is a much more typical shooting guard.
The only remaining big man on the Trojan roster is 7-1 260lb James Blascyzk. Sizewise, Blascyzk has the tools to be a great player and the only person capable of stopping Aziz N'Diaye inside. Overall, Blascyzk leaves much to be desired. He is averaging a miserable 3 points and 3 rebounds per game. For being 7-1 you would think he could at least attack the glass with some tenacity. Last game against UW, Blascyzk was held to 0-5 shooting and made just 1 point on a free throw. N'Diaye was able to consistantly body up Blascyzk and keep him from taking confortable shots.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups:
USC:
Maurice Jones 5-7 155lb
Alexis Moore 6-2 180lb
Byron Wesley 6-5 210lb
Garrett Jackson 6-6 225lb
James Blascyzk 7-1 260lb
Washington:
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 185lb
Tony Wroten 6-5 205lb
Terrence Ross 6-6 195lb
Darnell Gant 6-8 230lb
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb
Keys to the Game:
Rebouding:
We are one of the best in the nation. USC is among the worst. USC will miss a lot of shots and the limited possessions mean that every UW miss is critical. Recover the miss, put it back in for the easy bucket. Wroten excels in this category and Ross was able to capitalize in the last match-up dragging in 14 rebounds. UW has much superior sizer and talent. In the last match-up UW raked in 49 rebounds (14 offensive) to USC's 16 (3 offensive). We had nearly as many offensive boards as USC managed in total. Domination at its finest. The Huskies need to continue this trend to prevent any thoughts USC has of pulling a supreme upset.
Free Throws:
This goes back to the limited possessions I talked about earlier. Less possessions means less points. The Dawgs will likely struggle to get a reasonable amount of attempts at the line so each and everyone will count. The Cougars showed how valuable free throws are by missing 6 of 20 in the second half, surrendering a 13 point lead to the Dawgs. Make your free throws. They win games. They are free. Collect yourself, run through your motion, and shoot. Simple. Each and everytime.
Find the Hot Hand:
C.J. Wilcox was lights out against WSU. If not for the foul trouble encountered by Ross, I believe Wilcox would have continued his feiry streak. The Dawgs have several players who should be able to man-handle the Trojan defense: Wroten, Ross, Wilcox, and N'Diaye immediately jump to mind. All four are bigger and stronger than the guys they will be going up against. The Trojan zone screams for a 3-point showing we haven't seen since the Maui Invitational last year. If USC goes man-to-man, I'll be thrilled. Our guards should be able to take their man off the dribble every possession.
Final Thought:
In many ways this is a trap game. The Trojans are horrendous and a much tougher match-up against UCLA is on the horizon. This should not be a problem as motivation will be high for this game. The Dawgs are still looking to claim an at-large bid and losing to USC will demolish that possibility. The Dawgs are in sole possession of first place, a half-game up from Cal (thanks, Colorado)and control their own fate. If the Dawgs win against USC, they will claim at least a share of the regular season title. A sweep of the LA school will mean sole possession of the title and 15-3 record in conference, something that hasn't been done at UW since 1984. Motivation is high, the gears are finally starting to roll all at once, and the team is finally playing as one cohesive unit versus a group of 5 guys sharing the court. The Dawgs cannot let this one slip away from them. It is absolutely critical if they wish to establish themselves as a tournament worthy team. If I am Romar, I want a 30 point win again. Do not let another ASU fiasco happen where we take a near 30 point lead and let it slip to 8 by the end of the game. By all means rest our guys, but if the lead starts slipping we need to put our stars in to bump it back up.
Final Score Prediction: UW-70 USC-44
I understand it. The team is down to just 6 scholarship players after 5 have suffered season-ending injuries. No one else wants to join that list and with over 20 losses on the record already, the motivation to try hard just isn't there.
One might think that perhaps the Trojans would be able to draw fouls and get to the line. Perhaps there they could offset their terrible field goal percentage and make up some points through free throws. Nope. The Trojans are 343rd in free throw attempts and dead last (344) in free throws made.
There are only two categories in which the Trojans do not rank in the triple digits. Total Losses on the season where they are ranked at #19 and Field Goal Point Percentage (how many points their field goals account for out of their total points per game) at #9. Those are not stats one should be proud of. A good team likes to see a high percentage of points come from the field, but they also need point production behind the arc and at the charity stripe.
If you want to see more of how the Trojans have performed this season, click on this link. The Trojans make a strong case for being the worst team in D1 basketball. I feel sorry for the fall this team has taken. It is not their fault that injury has plagued them so badly.
The Trojans enter Thursday's game on a 7 game losing streak, a streak that could have easily turned into 17 if not for the win versus Utah. 62 points is the high score for the Trojans in conference play. One resulting in a loss, the other was the win against Utah. Do not expect the Trojans to score. Do not expect the Trojans to play uptempo.
The Trojans have only allowed 5 opponents to score 70 or more in conference play (UW scored 69, so I included them). This is fairly impressive, but when you consider the Trojans average 10 less possessions per game than the Huskies, it is not difficult to see how they manage this task. UW is currently averaging a little under 1.2 points per possession. Multiply this by 10 and you have 12 additional points per game being missed out on. This is why teams like UW and California are not putting up 90 points on USC. It's not that the Trojans are playing better defense, it's that the Trojans burn clock like no tomorrow because they know they cannot win a high scoring game.
Maurice Jones has continued to be the backbone of this team. At 5-7, 155lb this is a burden too large for his shoulders. Jones has shown an ability to make shots on the perimeter, deeper than most guards, but his size and strength cause far too many issues for him to be effective inside the paint. The opposing guards are simply too big and strong for Jones to go one-on-one with, both offensively and defensively. In his last game, Jones was 4-13 from the field and 4-9 from outside the arc. A very nice shooting percentage from deep, but his inside game was a whopping 0-4. Jones leads the team in scoring, steals, assists, and turnovers per game (13.6, 1.7, 3.4, and 2.4 respectively).
Byron Wesley has been forced to really mature his game quickly with all of the injuries suffered this season. Against ASU, Wesley dropped in 22 points on 8-14 shooting, all of which came inside the paint (0-1 from the arc). He also shot a decent 6-10 from the foul line and was the only Trojan to attempt a free throw outside of reserve guard Greg Allen who attempted just a pair. Wesley is second in scoring among active players with 9.2 per game as well as leading in active rebounders with 5 per night. Wesley is second in assists and turnovers behind Jones. Wesley is a much tougher match-up than Jones as his stands at 6-5 210lb and is a much more typical shooting guard.
The only remaining big man on the Trojan roster is 7-1 260lb James Blascyzk. Sizewise, Blascyzk has the tools to be a great player and the only person capable of stopping Aziz N'Diaye inside. Overall, Blascyzk leaves much to be desired. He is averaging a miserable 3 points and 3 rebounds per game. For being 7-1 you would think he could at least attack the glass with some tenacity. Last game against UW, Blascyzk was held to 0-5 shooting and made just 1 point on a free throw. N'Diaye was able to consistantly body up Blascyzk and keep him from taking confortable shots.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups:
USC:
Maurice Jones 5-7 155lb
Alexis Moore 6-2 180lb
Byron Wesley 6-5 210lb
Garrett Jackson 6-6 225lb
James Blascyzk 7-1 260lb
Washington:
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 185lb
Tony Wroten 6-5 205lb
Terrence Ross 6-6 195lb
Darnell Gant 6-8 230lb
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb
Keys to the Game:
Rebouding:
We are one of the best in the nation. USC is among the worst. USC will miss a lot of shots and the limited possessions mean that every UW miss is critical. Recover the miss, put it back in for the easy bucket. Wroten excels in this category and Ross was able to capitalize in the last match-up dragging in 14 rebounds. UW has much superior sizer and talent. In the last match-up UW raked in 49 rebounds (14 offensive) to USC's 16 (3 offensive). We had nearly as many offensive boards as USC managed in total. Domination at its finest. The Huskies need to continue this trend to prevent any thoughts USC has of pulling a supreme upset.
Free Throws:
This goes back to the limited possessions I talked about earlier. Less possessions means less points. The Dawgs will likely struggle to get a reasonable amount of attempts at the line so each and everyone will count. The Cougars showed how valuable free throws are by missing 6 of 20 in the second half, surrendering a 13 point lead to the Dawgs. Make your free throws. They win games. They are free. Collect yourself, run through your motion, and shoot. Simple. Each and everytime.
Find the Hot Hand:
C.J. Wilcox was lights out against WSU. If not for the foul trouble encountered by Ross, I believe Wilcox would have continued his feiry streak. The Dawgs have several players who should be able to man-handle the Trojan defense: Wroten, Ross, Wilcox, and N'Diaye immediately jump to mind. All four are bigger and stronger than the guys they will be going up against. The Trojan zone screams for a 3-point showing we haven't seen since the Maui Invitational last year. If USC goes man-to-man, I'll be thrilled. Our guards should be able to take their man off the dribble every possession.
Final Thought:
In many ways this is a trap game. The Trojans are horrendous and a much tougher match-up against UCLA is on the horizon. This should not be a problem as motivation will be high for this game. The Dawgs are still looking to claim an at-large bid and losing to USC will demolish that possibility. The Dawgs are in sole possession of first place, a half-game up from Cal (thanks, Colorado)and control their own fate. If the Dawgs win against USC, they will claim at least a share of the regular season title. A sweep of the LA school will mean sole possession of the title and 15-3 record in conference, something that hasn't been done at UW since 1984. Motivation is high, the gears are finally starting to roll all at once, and the team is finally playing as one cohesive unit versus a group of 5 guys sharing the court. The Dawgs cannot let this one slip away from them. It is absolutely critical if they wish to establish themselves as a tournament worthy team. If I am Romar, I want a 30 point win again. Do not let another ASU fiasco happen where we take a near 30 point lead and let it slip to 8 by the end of the game. By all means rest our guys, but if the lead starts slipping we need to put our stars in to bump it back up.
Final Score Prediction: UW-70 USC-44
Saturday, February 4, 2012
University of Southern California: Game Preview
USC enters this game with a miserable 6-17 record highlighted by a 1-8 conference record. if not for the miraculous blowout of Utah, USC would be 0-9 in conference and on an 11 game losing streak. Instead the Trojans enter Saturday's game on a 1 loss streak, losing by 7 to WSU on the road. Not bad for a team with only 6 scholarship players available. 5 different USC players have suffered season ending injuries, leaving USC heavily undermanned and severely untalented. If not for Maurice Jones, I doubt the Trojans would have won a single game. Jones is so important to this team that USC Coach Kevin O'Neil stated before the season that "if Maurice Jones gets hurt, don't come to our games." Rough talk, but an honest statement. Maybe not one I would make publicly as a coach, but perhaps it needed to be said to fire up the team. Last week O'Neil was also quoted saying something about a van falling on his head would not be unexpected.
The Trojan line-up is overall, very short, but they do have 7-1 260lb James Blascyzk who is impressively size, but completely underwhelming in terms of skill and production. Out of the 8 players who took the court against WSU (remember, they have only 6 scholarship player), the tallest player outside of Blascyzk is 6-6 Garrett Jackson. Their guards vary in height from 5-7 Jones to 6-5 Byron Wesley. Jackson and Blascyzk are the only active players not listed as guards on the USC roster.
Maurice Jones is essentially the entirety of this team. He leads the in points (14.2), assists (3.4), steals (1.7), free throw percentage (technically he is second, but had 3 times the makes the the highest), and 3-pointer percentage (same as with free throws, technically not first, but has made many more than the highest percentage player). If not for Aaron Fuller and the fact he is only 5-7, Jones would probably fight his way into first on the team in rebounding as well. Currently he averages 2.4 boards per game. Not surprisingly, Jones averages he most turnovers per game at 2.6 a night. Jones is not a dangerous player in the traditional sense. He gets his 14 points per game, simply because there is no one else who can score on his team.
Aaron Fuller was the only other Trojan averaging double digit scoring, but suffered a shoulder injury resulting in season ending surgery. Fuller is joined by 7-footer Dwayne Dedmon, the most recent victim of a season ending injury, Jio Fontan (who was coming off a very successful junior season), Evan Smith, and Curtis Washington on the sidelines.
These injuries leave Byron Wesley as the next highest scorer and the highest active rebounder on the team with 7.6 points and 4.8 boards a game. Wesley is also second in assists (1.9), steals (.8), and turnovers (2.1). Wesley is only 1 of 7 from range and 21 of 43 from the foul line. Much like the rest of the USC squad, he is not an offensive threat despite his decent scoring average.
This image says all you really need to know about this year's Trojan squad. In not one major offensive statistical category is USC ranked above 300. That is rough. Thank god the Trojan fans have football to look forward to.
The Trojans do one thing well. Slow the ball down and play defense. The opposition has only scored more than 70 points in only 2 games this season. On the other side, the Trojans have only scored more than 70 one time in an 83 point explosion against TCU. The Trojans have been held to 50 or less points 9 times, including a season low of 36 against Cal Poly.
With all the injuries, USC loses nearly 20 points of their already disgustingly low 54 point average as well as 11 rebounds from their 28 board average. That is absolutely devastating no matter which way one looks at it.
It's hard to know what this battle-worn USC team will bring to the table. Greg Allen has the potential to do a ton of damage as he showed against WSU when he dropped 17 on them, including a 5-11 performance from deep. On the other hand, Allen could be completely shut down. Allen did not play in 6 games this season and tallied 0 points on 8 separate occasions. He has only reached double digits three times this season. Out of everyone on the team, Allen's 3-pointer has the best chance of catching fire. Allen is only 6-3 180lb and is thus a favorable match-up for guys like Terrence Ross or Tony Wroten.
Maurice Jones has had a very consistent year, only scoring in single digits 5 times this season. Before his 7 point game against WSU, Jones had a 7 game streak of 13 points or more with a high of 22 against Oregon. To be fair, Jones took 23 shots in the game against Oregon and only made 9. Jones has only attempted less than 10 shots in 2 games this year. The 23 shots against Oregon are a season high for Jones, narrowly edging out the Nebraska game in which he attempted 22 shots. Jones' best game came against South Carolina when he scored 28 points, going an amazing 7-7 from deep and 9-15 from the field. Jones has a very inconsistent shot as shown by the season opener when he went 0-7 from outside and the Colorado game where he was only 2-10 from 3-point land. Against Stanford, Jones was 1-12 from the field.
Byron Wesley has been decent enough for the Trojans. He is by no means spectacular, but he takes some of the load off of Jones. Wesley has reached double digit scoring 6 times this year, a high of 16, and has a season high of 9 rebounds on top of two 8 rebound performances. Wesley is a big, strong player at 6-5 210lb and will likely be Wroten's assignment as the two are very similar physically. Of course, this hinges on whether or not Wroten is healthy enough to play. My guess is Wroten will not allow a thigh bruise to hold him back, much like he did not let a tail bone injury keep him from playing 36 minutes a game the next week.
Starting Line-Up Predictions:
USC:
Maurice Jones 5-7 155lb
Alexis Moore 6-2 180lb
Byron Wesley 6-5 210lb
Garrett Jackson 6-6 225lb
James Blascyzk 7-1 260lb
Washington:
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 185lb
Tony Wroten 6-5 205lb
Terrence Ross 6-6 195lb
Darnell Gant 6-8 230lb (I think he replaces Simmons who has been slow as of late)
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb
Keys to the Game:
Control the Pace:
The Trojans will look to slow the game down to the point their malignant offense can stand a chance. They will do this by using up the clock, pulling guys back on free throws as opposed to attempting the rebounds, and clogging the middle with a zone defense. I'm sure many Husky fans recall this last season and, personally, this is the worst type of basketball in the world. The shot clock was introduced because guys like Kevin O'Neil play sloooooowwwwww basketball. I love the fast paced game style that the Huskies thrive on. It is exciting and produces highlight reel plays every night.
Free Throws:
In slow paced games, every point counts. The Huskies continue to struggle as a whole to convert shots at the line. We need to get guys like Ross, Wilcox, and dare I say it, Wroten to the line. They have converted the highest percentage of freebies as of late. N'Diaye needs to do some work on his shot to get to the level of free throw shooting that makes fouling him a poor choice versus a decent choice.
Get Hot From the Start:
If the Huskies can get a lead early in this game, the lack of bench for USC will prove to be the death of them. The problem is that the Huskies have been a second half team this season and have not been successful in getting their scoring going until they have started shooting on the opposite side they started from. Maybe the view is nicer on one side than the other. Whatever it is, it has to change and the Dawgs need to figure out how to put together a full 40 minutes of play. The Trojans are not a team that will be dropping 70-80 points, nor do they normally allow more than 70. Even Kansas, ranked 11 the time, was only able to put up 63 on the Trojans.
Final Thoughts:
This is a game the Dawgs should not struggle with, but this is almost certainly the definition of a trap game. Coming off back-to-back emotional wins against Arizona and UCLA has the Dawgs feeling high and mighty and they cannot let this go to their heads and fall apart by playing down to USC's level. This win in monumental in continuing our charge towards the league title and an at-large bid, should the Dawgs fall in the post season tournament. We have a chance to go 16-2, but it all hinges on playing this type of basketball the rest of the season. By this I mean the final 4 minutes where the Bruins only scored 4 more point. Tough defense, hardcore offense, and a strong, collective team effort.
Final Score Prediction: UW-64 USC-48
Go Dawgs!
The Trojan line-up is overall, very short, but they do have 7-1 260lb James Blascyzk who is impressively size, but completely underwhelming in terms of skill and production. Out of the 8 players who took the court against WSU (remember, they have only 6 scholarship player), the tallest player outside of Blascyzk is 6-6 Garrett Jackson. Their guards vary in height from 5-7 Jones to 6-5 Byron Wesley. Jackson and Blascyzk are the only active players not listed as guards on the USC roster.
Maurice Jones is essentially the entirety of this team. He leads the in points (14.2), assists (3.4), steals (1.7), free throw percentage (technically he is second, but had 3 times the makes the the highest), and 3-pointer percentage (same as with free throws, technically not first, but has made many more than the highest percentage player). If not for Aaron Fuller and the fact he is only 5-7, Jones would probably fight his way into first on the team in rebounding as well. Currently he averages 2.4 boards per game. Not surprisingly, Jones averages he most turnovers per game at 2.6 a night. Jones is not a dangerous player in the traditional sense. He gets his 14 points per game, simply because there is no one else who can score on his team.
Aaron Fuller was the only other Trojan averaging double digit scoring, but suffered a shoulder injury resulting in season ending surgery. Fuller is joined by 7-footer Dwayne Dedmon, the most recent victim of a season ending injury, Jio Fontan (who was coming off a very successful junior season), Evan Smith, and Curtis Washington on the sidelines.
These injuries leave Byron Wesley as the next highest scorer and the highest active rebounder on the team with 7.6 points and 4.8 boards a game. Wesley is also second in assists (1.9), steals (.8), and turnovers (2.1). Wesley is only 1 of 7 from range and 21 of 43 from the foul line. Much like the rest of the USC squad, he is not an offensive threat despite his decent scoring average.
The Trojans do one thing well. Slow the ball down and play defense. The opposition has only scored more than 70 points in only 2 games this season. On the other side, the Trojans have only scored more than 70 one time in an 83 point explosion against TCU. The Trojans have been held to 50 or less points 9 times, including a season low of 36 against Cal Poly.
With all the injuries, USC loses nearly 20 points of their already disgustingly low 54 point average as well as 11 rebounds from their 28 board average. That is absolutely devastating no matter which way one looks at it.
It's hard to know what this battle-worn USC team will bring to the table. Greg Allen has the potential to do a ton of damage as he showed against WSU when he dropped 17 on them, including a 5-11 performance from deep. On the other hand, Allen could be completely shut down. Allen did not play in 6 games this season and tallied 0 points on 8 separate occasions. He has only reached double digits three times this season. Out of everyone on the team, Allen's 3-pointer has the best chance of catching fire. Allen is only 6-3 180lb and is thus a favorable match-up for guys like Terrence Ross or Tony Wroten.
Maurice Jones has had a very consistent year, only scoring in single digits 5 times this season. Before his 7 point game against WSU, Jones had a 7 game streak of 13 points or more with a high of 22 against Oregon. To be fair, Jones took 23 shots in the game against Oregon and only made 9. Jones has only attempted less than 10 shots in 2 games this year. The 23 shots against Oregon are a season high for Jones, narrowly edging out the Nebraska game in which he attempted 22 shots. Jones' best game came against South Carolina when he scored 28 points, going an amazing 7-7 from deep and 9-15 from the field. Jones has a very inconsistent shot as shown by the season opener when he went 0-7 from outside and the Colorado game where he was only 2-10 from 3-point land. Against Stanford, Jones was 1-12 from the field.
Byron Wesley has been decent enough for the Trojans. He is by no means spectacular, but he takes some of the load off of Jones. Wesley has reached double digit scoring 6 times this year, a high of 16, and has a season high of 9 rebounds on top of two 8 rebound performances. Wesley is a big, strong player at 6-5 210lb and will likely be Wroten's assignment as the two are very similar physically. Of course, this hinges on whether or not Wroten is healthy enough to play. My guess is Wroten will not allow a thigh bruise to hold him back, much like he did not let a tail bone injury keep him from playing 36 minutes a game the next week.
Starting Line-Up Predictions:
USC:
Maurice Jones 5-7 155lb
Alexis Moore 6-2 180lb
Byron Wesley 6-5 210lb
Garrett Jackson 6-6 225lb
James Blascyzk 7-1 260lb
Washington:
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 185lb
Tony Wroten 6-5 205lb
Terrence Ross 6-6 195lb
Darnell Gant 6-8 230lb (I think he replaces Simmons who has been slow as of late)
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb
Keys to the Game:
Control the Pace:
The Trojans will look to slow the game down to the point their malignant offense can stand a chance. They will do this by using up the clock, pulling guys back on free throws as opposed to attempting the rebounds, and clogging the middle with a zone defense. I'm sure many Husky fans recall this last season and, personally, this is the worst type of basketball in the world. The shot clock was introduced because guys like Kevin O'Neil play sloooooowwwwww basketball. I love the fast paced game style that the Huskies thrive on. It is exciting and produces highlight reel plays every night.
Free Throws:
In slow paced games, every point counts. The Huskies continue to struggle as a whole to convert shots at the line. We need to get guys like Ross, Wilcox, and dare I say it, Wroten to the line. They have converted the highest percentage of freebies as of late. N'Diaye needs to do some work on his shot to get to the level of free throw shooting that makes fouling him a poor choice versus a decent choice.
Get Hot From the Start:
If the Huskies can get a lead early in this game, the lack of bench for USC will prove to be the death of them. The problem is that the Huskies have been a second half team this season and have not been successful in getting their scoring going until they have started shooting on the opposite side they started from. Maybe the view is nicer on one side than the other. Whatever it is, it has to change and the Dawgs need to figure out how to put together a full 40 minutes of play. The Trojans are not a team that will be dropping 70-80 points, nor do they normally allow more than 70. Even Kansas, ranked 11 the time, was only able to put up 63 on the Trojans.
Final Thoughts:
This is a game the Dawgs should not struggle with, but this is almost certainly the definition of a trap game. Coming off back-to-back emotional wins against Arizona and UCLA has the Dawgs feeling high and mighty and they cannot let this go to their heads and fall apart by playing down to USC's level. This win in monumental in continuing our charge towards the league title and an at-large bid, should the Dawgs fall in the post season tournament. We have a chance to go 16-2, but it all hinges on playing this type of basketball the rest of the season. By this I mean the final 4 minutes where the Bruins only scored 4 more point. Tough defense, hardcore offense, and a strong, collective team effort.
Final Score Prediction: UW-64 USC-48
Go Dawgs!
Monday, October 31, 2011
University of Southern California: 2011-2012 Preview
USC is coming off a tipsy turvy year. USC was part of the 8 teams who had to play their way into the NCAA tournament where they lost to the miracle VCU team who shocked college basketball like Butler last season. USC finished 19-15 overall and 10-8 in conference, one game back from UW.
Unfortunately for USC, the Trojans look to be taking a huge step backwards after graduating 4 seniors and junior, Nikola Vucevic. Alex Stephenson and Nikola Vucevic combined for 27 points and 20 rebounds a game in what was one of the best frontcourt duos in the nation. Stephenson was .2 points and .8 rebounds from averaging a double-double along with Vucevic.
After losing so much size, experience, and talent the Trojans will have a lot of work to do, especially in the frontcourt. Their backcourt was looking fairly solid until Jio Fontan, last season's second leading scorer, blew out his knee during their Brazilian tour. He had season ending surgery and will not return until 2012-2013. The Trojans will likely be without Curtis Washington this season as he suffered a torn labrum (shoulder injury). The Trojans' new 7 foot center, Dwayne Dedmon, suffered a broken hand in mid October that has kept his practice limited for the past few weeks (common recovery time is 2-3 weeks for the injury he suffered, so he should be back to full mobility in his hand quite soon).
As you can see its been a rough off season for USC, so much so that during the Pac-12 media day Trojan coach, Kevin O'Neil, made this statement: "If Mo gets hurt we can't really play the game. ... We'd have to start a freshman point guard and that would be a disaster. ... I need him (Jones) to do more all the time. ... His impact on our team is unbelievable. If he's in trouble or gets hurt, don't come to our games because it will be ugly."
Key Losses:
Alex Stephenson 6-10 250lb
A big man with a big game. The second best rebounder in the conference behind teammate Nikola Vucevic, Stephenson was a big, talented body who helped USC battle their way to the NCAA. Stephenson had a strong inside game, but his shooting from range struggled a bit in comparison to his counterpart.
Nikola Vucevic 6-10 240lb
A top prospect in the Pac-10, Vucevic was drafted with the 16th overall pick in the NBA draft. He averaged 17 points and over 10 boards per game. Dominating is the only way to describe him. He could push his weight around inside and drop the long ball every now and then. USC will be missing him greatly.
Jio Fontan 6-0 170lb
Fontan has a terrific junior season. Second in scoring at 11 ppg and first on the team with 4 assists per game, Fontan was the guard they needed after losing a lot of backcourt talent the previous seasons. He was going to be the saving grace for the Trojan until his knee injury. He'll be back next season.
Incoming Freshmen:
Alexis Moore 6-2 180lb
Moore adds some much needed depth at the PG position. He is a solid passer who has been developing his shooting game with relative success. His biggest problems lie in his form when passing and a tendency to take too many shots. Moore will have to quickly learn how to play at the collegiate level because Maurice Jones is going to need a hand.
Byron Wesley 6-5 210lb
Wesley will be a terrific 2/3 for the Trojans if he can add a 3 point shot to his arsenal. He has a solid mid-range game that is tough to stop with his strength and height. He strikes me as a less talented, but stronger Terrence Ross. Regardless, the backcourt is USC's weak point Wesley could find himself getting immediate play time.Haven't heard or seen much about his defensive skills so I can't comment on what type of impact he could have there, but at 210lbs he can bang with the best of them on the outside.
USC also added two JC transfers in 7-1 260lb, James Blasczyk, and 6-3 180lb, Greg Allen. Both players could bring in much needed experience to an underdeveloped team.
Returning Players:
Maurice Jones 5-7 155lb
Tyler Sugiyama 5-10 150lb
Daniel Munoz 5-10 175lb
Eric Strangis 6-4 190lb
Daniel Dragovic 6-5 195lb
Aaron Fuller 6-6 235lb
Garrett Jackson 6-6 225lb
Evan Smith 6-7 225lb
Curtis Washington 6-10 245lb
Not a whole lot of big name talent coming back for USC. Like O'Neill said, if Maurice gets hurt then the Trojans are in for a world of hurt. The talent coming in doesn't come close to replacing the talent going out and honestly, the talent remaining is far from spectacular with all the injuries they have sustained. That being said, USC should not be the worst team in conference. They have enough size and "veteran" players win against teams like Utah and ASU, maybe even WSU.
Predicted Starting Line-Up:
Maurice Jones 5-7 155lb
Alexis Moore 6-2 180lb
Garrett Jackson 6-6 225lb
Curtis Washington 6-10 245lb
James Blasczyk 7-1 260lb
Look at that line-up. Recognize anyone from last season? Jones is the only player who had an impact last season for USC at nearly 10 points and over 3 assists per game. Jackson played in all but one game for USC, though he only averaged 3 points.
What to Expect:
USC is going to have to do all it can to keep its guards healthy as well as find a way to get the frontcourt developing. Not a lot of talent to be seen here and they'll be scrapping for every win they can get. USC has a tough match-up as their last non-conference game against Kansas. They also face Georgia (who UW beat in the NCAA last season) and New Mexico (who UW beat two season ago in the NCAA). USC will have a losing record and finish in the bottom four of the conference. I'd be surprised if they finished higher than 8th. Utah will keep USC out of the basement, but not far from it. Keep your heads up Trojan fans. There is always football to look forward to.
Unfortunately for USC, the Trojans look to be taking a huge step backwards after graduating 4 seniors and junior, Nikola Vucevic. Alex Stephenson and Nikola Vucevic combined for 27 points and 20 rebounds a game in what was one of the best frontcourt duos in the nation. Stephenson was .2 points and .8 rebounds from averaging a double-double along with Vucevic.
After losing so much size, experience, and talent the Trojans will have a lot of work to do, especially in the frontcourt. Their backcourt was looking fairly solid until Jio Fontan, last season's second leading scorer, blew out his knee during their Brazilian tour. He had season ending surgery and will not return until 2012-2013. The Trojans will likely be without Curtis Washington this season as he suffered a torn labrum (shoulder injury). The Trojans' new 7 foot center, Dwayne Dedmon, suffered a broken hand in mid October that has kept his practice limited for the past few weeks (common recovery time is 2-3 weeks for the injury he suffered, so he should be back to full mobility in his hand quite soon).
As you can see its been a rough off season for USC, so much so that during the Pac-12 media day Trojan coach, Kevin O'Neil, made this statement: "If Mo gets hurt we can't really play the game. ... We'd have to start a freshman point guard and that would be a disaster. ... I need him (Jones) to do more all the time. ... His impact on our team is unbelievable. If he's in trouble or gets hurt, don't come to our games because it will be ugly."
Key Losses:
Alex Stephenson 6-10 250lb
A big man with a big game. The second best rebounder in the conference behind teammate Nikola Vucevic, Stephenson was a big, talented body who helped USC battle their way to the NCAA. Stephenson had a strong inside game, but his shooting from range struggled a bit in comparison to his counterpart.
Nikola Vucevic 6-10 240lb
A top prospect in the Pac-10, Vucevic was drafted with the 16th overall pick in the NBA draft. He averaged 17 points and over 10 boards per game. Dominating is the only way to describe him. He could push his weight around inside and drop the long ball every now and then. USC will be missing him greatly.
Jio Fontan 6-0 170lb
Fontan has a terrific junior season. Second in scoring at 11 ppg and first on the team with 4 assists per game, Fontan was the guard they needed after losing a lot of backcourt talent the previous seasons. He was going to be the saving grace for the Trojan until his knee injury. He'll be back next season.
Incoming Freshmen:
Alexis Moore 6-2 180lb
Moore adds some much needed depth at the PG position. He is a solid passer who has been developing his shooting game with relative success. His biggest problems lie in his form when passing and a tendency to take too many shots. Moore will have to quickly learn how to play at the collegiate level because Maurice Jones is going to need a hand.
Byron Wesley 6-5 210lb
Wesley will be a terrific 2/3 for the Trojans if he can add a 3 point shot to his arsenal. He has a solid mid-range game that is tough to stop with his strength and height. He strikes me as a less talented, but stronger Terrence Ross. Regardless, the backcourt is USC's weak point Wesley could find himself getting immediate play time.Haven't heard or seen much about his defensive skills so I can't comment on what type of impact he could have there, but at 210lbs he can bang with the best of them on the outside.
USC also added two JC transfers in 7-1 260lb, James Blasczyk, and 6-3 180lb, Greg Allen. Both players could bring in much needed experience to an underdeveloped team.
Returning Players:
Maurice Jones 5-7 155lb
Tyler Sugiyama 5-10 150lb
Daniel Munoz 5-10 175lb
Eric Strangis 6-4 190lb
Daniel Dragovic 6-5 195lb
Aaron Fuller 6-6 235lb
Garrett Jackson 6-6 225lb
Evan Smith 6-7 225lb
Curtis Washington 6-10 245lb
Not a whole lot of big name talent coming back for USC. Like O'Neill said, if Maurice gets hurt then the Trojans are in for a world of hurt. The talent coming in doesn't come close to replacing the talent going out and honestly, the talent remaining is far from spectacular with all the injuries they have sustained. That being said, USC should not be the worst team in conference. They have enough size and "veteran" players win against teams like Utah and ASU, maybe even WSU.
Predicted Starting Line-Up:
Maurice Jones 5-7 155lb
Alexis Moore 6-2 180lb
Garrett Jackson 6-6 225lb
Curtis Washington 6-10 245lb
James Blasczyk 7-1 260lb
Look at that line-up. Recognize anyone from last season? Jones is the only player who had an impact last season for USC at nearly 10 points and over 3 assists per game. Jackson played in all but one game for USC, though he only averaged 3 points.
What to Expect:
USC is going to have to do all it can to keep its guards healthy as well as find a way to get the frontcourt developing. Not a lot of talent to be seen here and they'll be scrapping for every win they can get. USC has a tough match-up as their last non-conference game against Kansas. They also face Georgia (who UW beat in the NCAA last season) and New Mexico (who UW beat two season ago in the NCAA). USC will have a losing record and finish in the bottom four of the conference. I'd be surprised if they finished higher than 8th. Utah will keep USC out of the basement, but not far from it. Keep your heads up Trojan fans. There is always football to look forward to.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
University of Southern California Review
Final Score UW-73 USC-67
Wow...what a game. In a game where it looked as though the Huskies would struggle once more on the road they got it done. Despite the refs, despite the turnovers, they pulled out the win. Sure it took overtime. Sure UW was down 12 to start the game, but Terrence Ross wanted nothing to do with that. Along side MBA and Holiday, Ross got this game back and put us ahead. Venoy and Holiday put it away. MBA played a tough, tough game inside, scoring 18 and grabbing 8 boards. Foul trouble plagued the Huskies all game long and three players fouled out: Aziz N'Diaye, Terrence Ross, and Darnell Gant. MBA finished with 3 fouls, Holiday with 4, IT with 4, and Venoy had 1. At the end of regulation time, Nikola Vucevic had as many free throw attempts (14) as our entire team and the foul differential was 11 to 4.
USC started off strong leading 16-4 before UW mounted a come back led by Terrence Ross who hit back to back three point shots to get the game within 1 at 19-18. Ross gave UW its largest lead at 51-46 with a nice three with a hand in his face.
The game went to 55-55 at the end of regulation. UW had the ball with 39 seconds left. IT ran the clock down and took a shot with 7 to go which missed. USC rebounded, but Overton stole the ball at midcourt and put up a shot that was on line, but hit off the front rim. Overtime loomed ominous with the Husky foul situation. Aziz had already fouled out of the game with MBA and Gant close behind. The fouls were so bad that Brendan Sherrer was at the scorers table with 90 seconds left in the first half after MBA had picked up his second foul. If play had stopped during those final 90 seconds, he would have entered the game. In overtime Ross fouled out with 2:37 to go and Gant fouled out with 6 seconds left on a dumb foul. Gant also started the second half in place of Aziz.
Justin Holiday had a HUGE block with 19 seconds to go that allowed the Huskies to keep their 4 point lead and led to Gaddy getting to the line to extend the lead to 71-64. Overton sank two final free throws to put it away 73-67.
Vucevic was the destructive force everyone expected him to be and more. He hit a career high 28 points on 6-9 shooting from the field, including two three pointers, and a perfect 14-14 from the free throw line. He also snatched up 14 rebounds, 11 defensive.
Speaking of rebounding, UW won the battle of the boards 44 to 28. MBA led the team with 8 boards. Aziz had 6 boards, 4 offensive, in only 14 minutes. Justin Holiday and Venoy Overton also grabbed 6 a piece.
Offensively, the Huskies were extremely sloppy. They had only 7 assists and a crushing 17 turnovers. Thankfully UW utilized a zone defense which proved very effective and allowed USC's terrible perimeter shooting to keep the game reasonable.
Shooting proved to be tough early on as the Huskies finished with 40% from the field and 36.8% from range. Ross went 4 for 8 and was the best shooter on the team tonight. Holiday went 2 for 4 from range and hit the ones that really mattered. MBA went 6 for 11 from the field and 6-9 from the free throw line. He missed one near the end of regulation that very well could have proven to be the game winner, but in the end the Huskies got the W and MBA played a solid game so I won't dally on things I cannot change. On a night went solid outside shooting was needed, C.J. Wilcox was out with a staph infection in his hip and looks unlikely to play against UCLA, but Terrence Ross stepped in to show what kind of player he is. You can bet that his performance earned him some game time minutes. against UCLA. Suggs was held scoreless in his 9 minutes. Gant and Aziz were also held scoreless. Abdul only managed 4 points in 19 minutes and 0 assists.
IT led the team with 3 assist, but also had a commanding lead in the turnover category with 6. Ross, Suggs, Overton, and Holiday each had 1 assist. Ross had 2 steals and IT managed 1 as well.
Overton went 9 of 13 from the line, IT hit 4 of 5, and Holiday was 2 for 2.
What Was Good
Rebounding
MBA and Aziz, while he was in, were terrific down low getting the boards. Sure Vucevic managed 14 and Stephenson got 8, but the rest of the team was able to box out their man and get the boards themselves. Winning the rebounding battle 44-28 against a tall and tough USC team is a great sign of progress. Darnell Gant was fairly ineffective the whole game, scoring no points and grabbing no rebounds. His only stats came from fouls, 5, and his lone assist. Scott Suggs only managed one. Other than those two, every other Husky grabbed 4 or more rebounds. Fantastic effort tonight by the team.
Terrence Ross
I'll say more on him later in the player by player review, but he needs to be noted here. This kid was an absolute BEAST tonight. Without him this game would have been lost early on. 7-13 shooting for 18 points, 4-8 from range, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist, and 2 turnovers. Great, great night for him. It was, hopefully, a breakout performance. If he keeps playing like that in conference play he will see major minutes come February and March.
Toughness
This isn't something you can quantify statistically, but the Dawgs had a lot of it tonight. In a physical game where UW was getting called for everything and USC was getting away with obvious fouls, the Huskies played tough, adapted, and battled through the refs to win the game. Playing against 5 is hard enough, 8 is near impossible. Add in our poor ball handling and you have yourself a nightmare. IT was getting picked left and right by Marcus Simmons, the 6-6 200lb G, whose size and strength was for the most part too much to handle for IT. Still, IT fought through and managed 10 points in the end. With Abdul playing even less effectively than IT, Thomas and Overton were given the reigns and they did a pretty good job of getting things going in the Dawgs favor.
Despite being down 12, the Huskies still managed to get the lead at the end of half, keeping their record a perfect 12-0 at halftime.
So despite all their short comings and the tough officiating, the Huskies kicked and punched their way through to the end and showed the grit they have been lacking thus far in the season. They showed they could win a tough game and on the road at that. Give props to Romar for getting his team ready for these battles.
Free Throw Shooting
While they were far from perfect, they did well in overtime when we needed it most. 2-3 in the first half, 7-11 in the second, and 13-17 in overtime. Overton was slightly below his normal shooting percentage at 9-13, but he did well in crunch time. MBA was better than usual at 6-9, though his was one make away from a really solid FT shooting night.
What Was Bad
Fouling
Whether it was us or the officials, our team struggled tonight with fouling. Going into half MBA had 2 fouls, Aziz had 3, and Holiday had 3. Gant may even have had 3, I don't remember. It was rough goings for the Huskies, especially the bigs who continually picked up fouls on rebounding. Our guards, mainly IT, were called for charges and momentum kept creeping away every time we picked up a foul. If not for USC's need to foul in OT the FT differential would have been huge. USC finished with 32 attempts to UW's 31. As I said in some other articles, fouling has been a problem for us. We are averaging 21 per game. Normally this is not a big deal as our guards pick up a few fouls, but today it was all on our bigs would just couldn't get the refs to leave them alone. UW will ace another tough challenge against UCLA on Friday. UCLA has a strong frontcourt with a little more depth than USC, though perhaps not as talented overall. MBA did a good job ending the game and maintaining his 3 fouls.
Ball Handling
Ball handling was terrible tonight. USC forced 17 turnovers and had 9 steals. IT had 6 turnovers alone and couldn't get things going his way. It seemed like every time we had things starting to head our way we would get an off the ball foul, a charge, or some sort of travel/steal/turnover. I don't know what was happening (thanks FSN....), but from what I heard, it was just sloppy offense and great defense by USC. Not sure if Romar made the right choice keeping IT in for so much of the game with as many turnovers as he had, but he must have been playing good defense to merit his time. That and the fact that Gaddy was ineffective as well meant IT's leadership was valuable and possibly why he stayed on the court.
Not sure where to put our defense. We only forced 10 turnovers and had 27 fouls against us, but the zone we threw at USC forced them to shoot from range and they failed miserably at it. USC went 5 for 21 from range. To me this looks like we were an effective defensive team despite our short comings. Holiday came through with a critical, game securing block with 19 seconds to go. A huge play to make especially with 4 fouls.
Player by Player Review
Venoy Overton
His first half was not his best performance, but his second half and overtime performances were excellent. He hit free throws, drove the lane on occasion, and created some opportunities. He made a nice steal at the end of regulation to give the Huskies at shot at a last second win, but it rimmed off the front. Nice performance tonight getting 11 points and 6 boards and only 1 foul. On a night when fouls were being handed out like candy on Halloween, the normally foul prone guard did a great job avoiding them and adding to the deficit.
Grade: B+
Justin Holiday
Holiday was forced to play a mismatch against Stephenson in the post at times and it hurt us, but overall Holiday played a very solid game. Even with four fouls he managed to be a game changer. He scored 12 points including a huge three pointer to start off the overtime period. He snatched up 6 boards, 4 defensive and had two blocks on the night. Without video coverage it's hard for me to really judge how well all the players fared.
Grade: B+
Matthew Bryan-Amaning
Well he sure stepped up his game today. 18 points and 8 boards. Fantastic performance offensively for MBA. From the fans that attended the game in person it sounds as though he still struggled to hit some of the bunny shots, a problem that has persisted this season and throughout his career. Defensive performance is even harder to judge. Vucevic had 28 points and tended to be MBA's assignment, but playing a zone defense most of the game makes Vucevic not entirely his responsibility alone. The fact he was able to score and rebound against tough post players is a huge improvement over earlier this season and he was most effective when Aziz was in the game. Expect to see them remain in the starting line up together despite the foul trouble we had tonight. The Dawgs showed they could battle through the foul trouble and get it done regardless.
Grade: A-
Brendan Sherrer
Did not play, but also did in the final 90 seconds of the game when MBA picked up his second foul and Aziz was already sitting with 3. Would have been a huge moment as he has never played in a non blowout game let alone the first half. I guess Romar was serious when he said Sherrer could see real game minutes and I was right about when. Foul trouble situations for our bigs.
Grade: N/A
Scott Suggs
Only 9 minutes tonight. Missed both shot attempts. Not much else to say about him tonight. Ross was hot so Romar left him in. Unfortunate as Suggs has been a big contributor the last two games.
Grade: C
Darnell Gant
Like Suggs, Gant was ineffective on offense tonight. On defense he was solid, especially in OT minus the stupid 5th foul with 5-6 seconds left in the game. He still did not manage to rebound a single ball in 22 minutes of play. At 6'8'' that is unacceptable. Even 6-0 Overton managed 6 and 5-8 IT grabbed 4. After grabbing 4 offensive boards in 14 minutes against UNR I was hopeful he had turned the corner, but this game indicates otherwise. Not sure why he can't rebound, but it isn't a part of his game yet, though it seriously needs to be.
Grade: C+ for his defense and size we needed
Isaiah Thomas
Marcus Simmons shut him down pretty well. IT still managed 10 points. His 6 turnovers were generally due to forcing too much on the inside against USC's long bodies. Can't blame him for trying to create opportunities on a night when we lacked a lot of offensive punch. He hit his free throws. He rebounded well. His defense was pretty good.
Grade: B
Abdul Gaddy
Another sub par performance tonight. He did tie a career high with 5 rebounds, but had 0 assists and only 4 points. He sat a large chunk of the game, playing only 19 minutes. I don't know what his game looked like and why he struggled. It sounds as though he hid behind the ball and despite taking the shots he normally excels at he missed.
Grade: C
Aziz N'Diaye
No points tonight for the big man, but he did manage an impressive 6 rebounds, 4 offensive, in 14 minutes. One of his offensive boards was huge as it gave UW a third chance at the basket and led to the Huskies going to the free throw line. Fouls eliminated him from the game and it looks as though the tough post presence of Stephenson forced him to pick up silly over the back foul calls. More time will be needed to perfect his rebounding efforts, but so far you have to be impressed. The lack of points is disappointing, but he isn't exactly out there to be a big scoring option. Still, it would be nice to see him put up 6 or 8 a night. It's a long season so don't fret now about his offensive woes. The fact that he rebounds so well is the best part about him.
Grade: B- for foul problems
Antoine Hosley
Did not play.
Grade: N/A
C.J. Wilcox
Sat out tonight with a Staph infection in his hip. He is unlikely to be healthy enough to play against UCLA on Friday. Hope he gets well soon, we missed his shooting tonight, though Ross did an excellent job filling in and playing big.
Grade: N/A
Terrence Ross
MVP of the game no doubt. His back to back threes got us within 1. His third put us up 28-26 at the end of the half. His fourth gave us our largest lead at 51-46. He had a few drives into the middle for great lay-ins and hook shots. He picked up 4 boards, had 2 steals, an assist, and 2 turnovers. He fouled out with 2:37 to go in OT. This was a slightly scary moment for the Huskies as he had been our main offensive weapon and most consistent and dangerous shooter. A huge, breakout night and performance from the freshman. 18 points in his Pac-10 opener, not many freshman can say they have done that, let alone have those 18 points be such high impact points. Without Ross, tonight would have been another blowout loss on the road. Didn't see what he did defensively minus the steals so I'm not sure how he did on that end of the court.
Grade: A
Final Thoughts
A tough win with the grit and drive Husky fans have been clamoring for. A huge win and statement maker to open Pac-10 play. This win should give our team a lot of confidence heading into Friday's game against UCLA. They have proven to not only themselves, but us, and the media they can win tough games and road games, oh and tough road games. Man, my heart took a beating from this game. I honestly don't know out of this game, the Pac-10 Tournament Championship game, and the Marquette game which was the most stressful. Maybe this one because it was either going to show we are overrated again and can't play up to our promise or it would show we have what it takes to win big. Picking up a win in UCLA would likely put the Huskies back in the rankings. Nice job tonight Huskies, way to get it done the hard way.
Wow...what a game. In a game where it looked as though the Huskies would struggle once more on the road they got it done. Despite the refs, despite the turnovers, they pulled out the win. Sure it took overtime. Sure UW was down 12 to start the game, but Terrence Ross wanted nothing to do with that. Along side MBA and Holiday, Ross got this game back and put us ahead. Venoy and Holiday put it away. MBA played a tough, tough game inside, scoring 18 and grabbing 8 boards. Foul trouble plagued the Huskies all game long and three players fouled out: Aziz N'Diaye, Terrence Ross, and Darnell Gant. MBA finished with 3 fouls, Holiday with 4, IT with 4, and Venoy had 1. At the end of regulation time, Nikola Vucevic had as many free throw attempts (14) as our entire team and the foul differential was 11 to 4.
USC started off strong leading 16-4 before UW mounted a come back led by Terrence Ross who hit back to back three point shots to get the game within 1 at 19-18. Ross gave UW its largest lead at 51-46 with a nice three with a hand in his face.
The game went to 55-55 at the end of regulation. UW had the ball with 39 seconds left. IT ran the clock down and took a shot with 7 to go which missed. USC rebounded, but Overton stole the ball at midcourt and put up a shot that was on line, but hit off the front rim. Overtime loomed ominous with the Husky foul situation. Aziz had already fouled out of the game with MBA and Gant close behind. The fouls were so bad that Brendan Sherrer was at the scorers table with 90 seconds left in the first half after MBA had picked up his second foul. If play had stopped during those final 90 seconds, he would have entered the game. In overtime Ross fouled out with 2:37 to go and Gant fouled out with 6 seconds left on a dumb foul. Gant also started the second half in place of Aziz.
Justin Holiday had a HUGE block with 19 seconds to go that allowed the Huskies to keep their 4 point lead and led to Gaddy getting to the line to extend the lead to 71-64. Overton sank two final free throws to put it away 73-67.
Vucevic was the destructive force everyone expected him to be and more. He hit a career high 28 points on 6-9 shooting from the field, including two three pointers, and a perfect 14-14 from the free throw line. He also snatched up 14 rebounds, 11 defensive.
Speaking of rebounding, UW won the battle of the boards 44 to 28. MBA led the team with 8 boards. Aziz had 6 boards, 4 offensive, in only 14 minutes. Justin Holiday and Venoy Overton also grabbed 6 a piece.
Offensively, the Huskies were extremely sloppy. They had only 7 assists and a crushing 17 turnovers. Thankfully UW utilized a zone defense which proved very effective and allowed USC's terrible perimeter shooting to keep the game reasonable.
Shooting proved to be tough early on as the Huskies finished with 40% from the field and 36.8% from range. Ross went 4 for 8 and was the best shooter on the team tonight. Holiday went 2 for 4 from range and hit the ones that really mattered. MBA went 6 for 11 from the field and 6-9 from the free throw line. He missed one near the end of regulation that very well could have proven to be the game winner, but in the end the Huskies got the W and MBA played a solid game so I won't dally on things I cannot change. On a night went solid outside shooting was needed, C.J. Wilcox was out with a staph infection in his hip and looks unlikely to play against UCLA, but Terrence Ross stepped in to show what kind of player he is. You can bet that his performance earned him some game time minutes. against UCLA. Suggs was held scoreless in his 9 minutes. Gant and Aziz were also held scoreless. Abdul only managed 4 points in 19 minutes and 0 assists.
IT led the team with 3 assist, but also had a commanding lead in the turnover category with 6. Ross, Suggs, Overton, and Holiday each had 1 assist. Ross had 2 steals and IT managed 1 as well.
Overton went 9 of 13 from the line, IT hit 4 of 5, and Holiday was 2 for 2.
What Was Good
Rebounding
MBA and Aziz, while he was in, were terrific down low getting the boards. Sure Vucevic managed 14 and Stephenson got 8, but the rest of the team was able to box out their man and get the boards themselves. Winning the rebounding battle 44-28 against a tall and tough USC team is a great sign of progress. Darnell Gant was fairly ineffective the whole game, scoring no points and grabbing no rebounds. His only stats came from fouls, 5, and his lone assist. Scott Suggs only managed one. Other than those two, every other Husky grabbed 4 or more rebounds. Fantastic effort tonight by the team.
Terrence Ross
I'll say more on him later in the player by player review, but he needs to be noted here. This kid was an absolute BEAST tonight. Without him this game would have been lost early on. 7-13 shooting for 18 points, 4-8 from range, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist, and 2 turnovers. Great, great night for him. It was, hopefully, a breakout performance. If he keeps playing like that in conference play he will see major minutes come February and March.
Toughness
This isn't something you can quantify statistically, but the Dawgs had a lot of it tonight. In a physical game where UW was getting called for everything and USC was getting away with obvious fouls, the Huskies played tough, adapted, and battled through the refs to win the game. Playing against 5 is hard enough, 8 is near impossible. Add in our poor ball handling and you have yourself a nightmare. IT was getting picked left and right by Marcus Simmons, the 6-6 200lb G, whose size and strength was for the most part too much to handle for IT. Still, IT fought through and managed 10 points in the end. With Abdul playing even less effectively than IT, Thomas and Overton were given the reigns and they did a pretty good job of getting things going in the Dawgs favor.
Despite being down 12, the Huskies still managed to get the lead at the end of half, keeping their record a perfect 12-0 at halftime.
So despite all their short comings and the tough officiating, the Huskies kicked and punched their way through to the end and showed the grit they have been lacking thus far in the season. They showed they could win a tough game and on the road at that. Give props to Romar for getting his team ready for these battles.
Free Throw Shooting
While they were far from perfect, they did well in overtime when we needed it most. 2-3 in the first half, 7-11 in the second, and 13-17 in overtime. Overton was slightly below his normal shooting percentage at 9-13, but he did well in crunch time. MBA was better than usual at 6-9, though his was one make away from a really solid FT shooting night.
What Was Bad
Fouling
Whether it was us or the officials, our team struggled tonight with fouling. Going into half MBA had 2 fouls, Aziz had 3, and Holiday had 3. Gant may even have had 3, I don't remember. It was rough goings for the Huskies, especially the bigs who continually picked up fouls on rebounding. Our guards, mainly IT, were called for charges and momentum kept creeping away every time we picked up a foul. If not for USC's need to foul in OT the FT differential would have been huge. USC finished with 32 attempts to UW's 31. As I said in some other articles, fouling has been a problem for us. We are averaging 21 per game. Normally this is not a big deal as our guards pick up a few fouls, but today it was all on our bigs would just couldn't get the refs to leave them alone. UW will ace another tough challenge against UCLA on Friday. UCLA has a strong frontcourt with a little more depth than USC, though perhaps not as talented overall. MBA did a good job ending the game and maintaining his 3 fouls.
Ball Handling
Ball handling was terrible tonight. USC forced 17 turnovers and had 9 steals. IT had 6 turnovers alone and couldn't get things going his way. It seemed like every time we had things starting to head our way we would get an off the ball foul, a charge, or some sort of travel/steal/turnover. I don't know what was happening (thanks FSN....), but from what I heard, it was just sloppy offense and great defense by USC. Not sure if Romar made the right choice keeping IT in for so much of the game with as many turnovers as he had, but he must have been playing good defense to merit his time. That and the fact that Gaddy was ineffective as well meant IT's leadership was valuable and possibly why he stayed on the court.
Not sure where to put our defense. We only forced 10 turnovers and had 27 fouls against us, but the zone we threw at USC forced them to shoot from range and they failed miserably at it. USC went 5 for 21 from range. To me this looks like we were an effective defensive team despite our short comings. Holiday came through with a critical, game securing block with 19 seconds to go. A huge play to make especially with 4 fouls.
Player by Player Review
Venoy Overton
His first half was not his best performance, but his second half and overtime performances were excellent. He hit free throws, drove the lane on occasion, and created some opportunities. He made a nice steal at the end of regulation to give the Huskies at shot at a last second win, but it rimmed off the front. Nice performance tonight getting 11 points and 6 boards and only 1 foul. On a night when fouls were being handed out like candy on Halloween, the normally foul prone guard did a great job avoiding them and adding to the deficit.
Grade: B+
Justin Holiday
Holiday was forced to play a mismatch against Stephenson in the post at times and it hurt us, but overall Holiday played a very solid game. Even with four fouls he managed to be a game changer. He scored 12 points including a huge three pointer to start off the overtime period. He snatched up 6 boards, 4 defensive and had two blocks on the night. Without video coverage it's hard for me to really judge how well all the players fared.
Grade: B+
Matthew Bryan-Amaning
Well he sure stepped up his game today. 18 points and 8 boards. Fantastic performance offensively for MBA. From the fans that attended the game in person it sounds as though he still struggled to hit some of the bunny shots, a problem that has persisted this season and throughout his career. Defensive performance is even harder to judge. Vucevic had 28 points and tended to be MBA's assignment, but playing a zone defense most of the game makes Vucevic not entirely his responsibility alone. The fact he was able to score and rebound against tough post players is a huge improvement over earlier this season and he was most effective when Aziz was in the game. Expect to see them remain in the starting line up together despite the foul trouble we had tonight. The Dawgs showed they could battle through the foul trouble and get it done regardless.
Grade: A-
Brendan Sherrer
Did not play, but also did in the final 90 seconds of the game when MBA picked up his second foul and Aziz was already sitting with 3. Would have been a huge moment as he has never played in a non blowout game let alone the first half. I guess Romar was serious when he said Sherrer could see real game minutes and I was right about when. Foul trouble situations for our bigs.
Grade: N/A
Scott Suggs
Only 9 minutes tonight. Missed both shot attempts. Not much else to say about him tonight. Ross was hot so Romar left him in. Unfortunate as Suggs has been a big contributor the last two games.
Grade: C
Darnell Gant
Like Suggs, Gant was ineffective on offense tonight. On defense he was solid, especially in OT minus the stupid 5th foul with 5-6 seconds left in the game. He still did not manage to rebound a single ball in 22 minutes of play. At 6'8'' that is unacceptable. Even 6-0 Overton managed 6 and 5-8 IT grabbed 4. After grabbing 4 offensive boards in 14 minutes against UNR I was hopeful he had turned the corner, but this game indicates otherwise. Not sure why he can't rebound, but it isn't a part of his game yet, though it seriously needs to be.
Grade: C+ for his defense and size we needed
Isaiah Thomas
Marcus Simmons shut him down pretty well. IT still managed 10 points. His 6 turnovers were generally due to forcing too much on the inside against USC's long bodies. Can't blame him for trying to create opportunities on a night when we lacked a lot of offensive punch. He hit his free throws. He rebounded well. His defense was pretty good.
Grade: B
Abdul Gaddy
Another sub par performance tonight. He did tie a career high with 5 rebounds, but had 0 assists and only 4 points. He sat a large chunk of the game, playing only 19 minutes. I don't know what his game looked like and why he struggled. It sounds as though he hid behind the ball and despite taking the shots he normally excels at he missed.
Grade: C
Aziz N'Diaye
No points tonight for the big man, but he did manage an impressive 6 rebounds, 4 offensive, in 14 minutes. One of his offensive boards was huge as it gave UW a third chance at the basket and led to the Huskies going to the free throw line. Fouls eliminated him from the game and it looks as though the tough post presence of Stephenson forced him to pick up silly over the back foul calls. More time will be needed to perfect his rebounding efforts, but so far you have to be impressed. The lack of points is disappointing, but he isn't exactly out there to be a big scoring option. Still, it would be nice to see him put up 6 or 8 a night. It's a long season so don't fret now about his offensive woes. The fact that he rebounds so well is the best part about him.
Grade: B- for foul problems
Antoine Hosley
Did not play.
Grade: N/A
C.J. Wilcox
Sat out tonight with a Staph infection in his hip. He is unlikely to be healthy enough to play against UCLA on Friday. Hope he gets well soon, we missed his shooting tonight, though Ross did an excellent job filling in and playing big.
Grade: N/A
Terrence Ross
MVP of the game no doubt. His back to back threes got us within 1. His third put us up 28-26 at the end of the half. His fourth gave us our largest lead at 51-46. He had a few drives into the middle for great lay-ins and hook shots. He picked up 4 boards, had 2 steals, an assist, and 2 turnovers. He fouled out with 2:37 to go in OT. This was a slightly scary moment for the Huskies as he had been our main offensive weapon and most consistent and dangerous shooter. A huge, breakout night and performance from the freshman. 18 points in his Pac-10 opener, not many freshman can say they have done that, let alone have those 18 points be such high impact points. Without Ross, tonight would have been another blowout loss on the road. Didn't see what he did defensively minus the steals so I'm not sure how he did on that end of the court.
Grade: A
Final Thoughts
A tough win with the grit and drive Husky fans have been clamoring for. A huge win and statement maker to open Pac-10 play. This win should give our team a lot of confidence heading into Friday's game against UCLA. They have proven to not only themselves, but us, and the media they can win tough games and road games, oh and tough road games. Man, my heart took a beating from this game. I honestly don't know out of this game, the Pac-10 Tournament Championship game, and the Marquette game which was the most stressful. Maybe this one because it was either going to show we are overrated again and can't play up to our promise or it would show we have what it takes to win big. Picking up a win in UCLA would likely put the Huskies back in the rankings. Nice job tonight Huskies, way to get it done the hard way.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
University of Southern California Preview
USC enters this game with an 8-5 record that is much better and worse than it appears at first glance. They have beaten two top 25 teams in Texas and Tennessee and narrowly lost to #3 Kansas. They also have a 20 point loss a home to Rider and a 1 point loss at home to Bradley.
USC is currently averaging 69.1 points per game and 35.6 rebounds per game. They also bring in 12.2 assists per game and 13 turnovers per game, including 2.9 per game by starting point guard Maurice Jones and 2.7 per game by guard Jio Fontan.
Until 3 games ago, USC lacked transfer Jio Fontan and he seems to have stabilized USC and made them into a strong competitive team. USC was also playing a 7 man rotation, bu are now using an 8 man rotation with the addition of Fontan.
Nikola Vucevic is by far the most dangerous player in the USC line up, nearly averaging a double double with 15.3 ppg and 9.8 rpg. He is a beast in the post and will be a tough challenge for our bigs to contend with. Add in Alex Stephenson who is also near a double double average with 9.8 ppg and 8.6 rpg and you have yourself a very dangerous duo. Hopefully MBA and Aziz who have been averaging a combined 23 ppg and 17.5 rpg in the last two outings can contend with these two talent post players. MBA will likely guard Vucevic as Vucevic has a nice outside shot. This will allow Aziz to stay close to home in the middle of the key to get rebounds and play tough defense. The one bonus is the USC frontcourt is not deep. After Vucevic and Stephenson, USC does not have any contributing forwards. Garrett Jackson averages 3.5 ppg and 1.7 rpg. Thankfully we have Darnell Gant who is averaging 6.3 ppg and 3.0 rpg, though he can score much more than 6 on any given night.
Another tough assignment is Jio Fontan. After 3 games he is leading the team in scoring with 16.3 ppg and also throws in 3.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game. These are solid numbers and it will be interesting to see if he can maintain them through conference play. Isaiah will likely be given the responsibility of handling Fontan. Fontan has made 5 of his 8 three point attempts.
Starting Line Ups
USC
Maurice "Mo-Mo" Jones 5-7 155lb G
Jio Fontan 6-0 175lb G
Marcus Simmons 6-6 220lb G
Nikola Vucevic 6-10 240lb F
Alex Stephenson 6-10 250lb F
UW
Isaiah Thomas 5-9 185lb SG
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 195 lb PG
Justin Holiday 6-6 185lb F
Matthew Bryan-Amaning 6-9 240lb F
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb C
Keys to the Game
Rebounding
This is the biggest issue the Huskies will have to deal with. USC does not rebound by committee, rather USC rebounds via Vucevic and Stephenson who account for half of USC's rebounds. MBA and Aziz will have their work cut out for them. Its a sink or swim sort of moment for MBA who needs to prove himself against worthy opponents. Aziz also needs to show he can be dominate once more on the glass against tough foes. Now that he is able to play 20+ minutes a game, his numbers are improving and his impact is becoming greater. If MBA and Aziz can combine for 15 or 16 boards while limiting the USC duo to 12 or 14 we should consider their play a success. Vucevic and Stephenson will get boards no doubt, how many depends on the sort of effort MBA and Aziz put out. Our other players need to limit their opponents from getting loose balls as well, especially off long range misses. The less second chance points USC gets the better off we shall be.
Pressure Defense
Though USC is only averaging 12 turnovers a game, their three main guards are averaging a combined 7.8 turnovers a game, the lowest is Bryce Jones at 2.2 per game. Vucevic is also averaging 2.0 turnovers while Stephenson is averaging 1.8 per games. Last season, USC was highly susceptible to 3/4 and full court pressure defense and so far it appears it is true once more. If UW want to control this game they need to get the tempo going in their favor and that means getting the ball out in transition. USC usually runs a good half court offense so forcing them to step up the tempo and play faster than usual should create more turnovers and opportunities for the Huskies to score. This will also limit 3 point opportunities for Fontan and Bryce Jones, both of whom can shoot the long ball with some proficiency.
Shooting
If we can get our perimeter shots to drop, our post players will have an easier day with a little less pressure on their backs. If we can't get the ball to drop from range, we will struggle mightily. USC's frontcourt is tough and scoring on them will prove to be tough as well. We need to find our shot on the road early in the season if we wish to gain any respect and not have to rely on the Pac-10 tournament to secure a spot in March Madness. If we can get scoring, USC won't stand a chance. There is a 20 point differential in our scoring averages, but only a 6 point differential in opponents scoring. Basically this translates to when we are scoring well we are golden, when we cannot find our shot it will be tough.
Passing
We continue to pass extremely well with our guard trio averaging a combined 12.7 assists per game with only 4.7 turnovers per game giving us an A/T ratio of nearly 2.7. USC is sitting at 9.6 assists from their trio and 7.8 turnovers for a ratio of 1.23. Clearly the advantage is ours if we continue to make 19 to 20 assists per game and force 18 to 20 turnovers per game. Playing patient and making the extra pass will go a long ways towards securing the lead and victory. It also lets us play our game and not falter under USC's pressure.
Final Thoughts
A tough road test to start the season is a mixed blessing. It means we could get our knocks early in a tough loss, but we have experienced those already against TAMU and slightly against MSU and UK. Win and we should be feeling much better about the season's prospects. We should be ready by now to take the conference by storm and statistically UW is superior in almost every category. This is a game that will likely come down to the final 5 or 10 minutes. With USC's strength playing the same spots as some of our weaknesses this game will not just blow over. We really need to play well, shoot well, and defend well. Limiting the USC post play will go a long ways towards winning in LA. All things considered I think UW can get this one done.
Final Score Prediction
UW-74 USC 68
USC's post presence will limit the scoring of MBA and Aziz while providing some second chance points for the Trojans. UW will eventually overcome using its superior bench and backcourt play.
Links
http://www.montlakemadness.com/game-preview-usc/
http://statsheet.com/mcb/games/2010/12/29/2010-12-29_washington_vs_southern-california
USC is currently averaging 69.1 points per game and 35.6 rebounds per game. They also bring in 12.2 assists per game and 13 turnovers per game, including 2.9 per game by starting point guard Maurice Jones and 2.7 per game by guard Jio Fontan.
Until 3 games ago, USC lacked transfer Jio Fontan and he seems to have stabilized USC and made them into a strong competitive team. USC was also playing a 7 man rotation, bu are now using an 8 man rotation with the addition of Fontan.
Nikola Vucevic is by far the most dangerous player in the USC line up, nearly averaging a double double with 15.3 ppg and 9.8 rpg. He is a beast in the post and will be a tough challenge for our bigs to contend with. Add in Alex Stephenson who is also near a double double average with 9.8 ppg and 8.6 rpg and you have yourself a very dangerous duo. Hopefully MBA and Aziz who have been averaging a combined 23 ppg and 17.5 rpg in the last two outings can contend with these two talent post players. MBA will likely guard Vucevic as Vucevic has a nice outside shot. This will allow Aziz to stay close to home in the middle of the key to get rebounds and play tough defense. The one bonus is the USC frontcourt is not deep. After Vucevic and Stephenson, USC does not have any contributing forwards. Garrett Jackson averages 3.5 ppg and 1.7 rpg. Thankfully we have Darnell Gant who is averaging 6.3 ppg and 3.0 rpg, though he can score much more than 6 on any given night.
Another tough assignment is Jio Fontan. After 3 games he is leading the team in scoring with 16.3 ppg and also throws in 3.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game. These are solid numbers and it will be interesting to see if he can maintain them through conference play. Isaiah will likely be given the responsibility of handling Fontan. Fontan has made 5 of his 8 three point attempts.
Starting Line Ups
USC
Maurice "Mo-Mo" Jones 5-7 155lb G
Jio Fontan 6-0 175lb G
Marcus Simmons 6-6 220lb G
Nikola Vucevic 6-10 240lb F
Alex Stephenson 6-10 250lb F
UW
Isaiah Thomas 5-9 185lb SG
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 195 lb PG
Justin Holiday 6-6 185lb F
Matthew Bryan-Amaning 6-9 240lb F
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb C
Keys to the Game
Rebounding
This is the biggest issue the Huskies will have to deal with. USC does not rebound by committee, rather USC rebounds via Vucevic and Stephenson who account for half of USC's rebounds. MBA and Aziz will have their work cut out for them. Its a sink or swim sort of moment for MBA who needs to prove himself against worthy opponents. Aziz also needs to show he can be dominate once more on the glass against tough foes. Now that he is able to play 20+ minutes a game, his numbers are improving and his impact is becoming greater. If MBA and Aziz can combine for 15 or 16 boards while limiting the USC duo to 12 or 14 we should consider their play a success. Vucevic and Stephenson will get boards no doubt, how many depends on the sort of effort MBA and Aziz put out. Our other players need to limit their opponents from getting loose balls as well, especially off long range misses. The less second chance points USC gets the better off we shall be.
Pressure Defense
Though USC is only averaging 12 turnovers a game, their three main guards are averaging a combined 7.8 turnovers a game, the lowest is Bryce Jones at 2.2 per game. Vucevic is also averaging 2.0 turnovers while Stephenson is averaging 1.8 per games. Last season, USC was highly susceptible to 3/4 and full court pressure defense and so far it appears it is true once more. If UW want to control this game they need to get the tempo going in their favor and that means getting the ball out in transition. USC usually runs a good half court offense so forcing them to step up the tempo and play faster than usual should create more turnovers and opportunities for the Huskies to score. This will also limit 3 point opportunities for Fontan and Bryce Jones, both of whom can shoot the long ball with some proficiency.
Shooting
If we can get our perimeter shots to drop, our post players will have an easier day with a little less pressure on their backs. If we can't get the ball to drop from range, we will struggle mightily. USC's frontcourt is tough and scoring on them will prove to be tough as well. We need to find our shot on the road early in the season if we wish to gain any respect and not have to rely on the Pac-10 tournament to secure a spot in March Madness. If we can get scoring, USC won't stand a chance. There is a 20 point differential in our scoring averages, but only a 6 point differential in opponents scoring. Basically this translates to when we are scoring well we are golden, when we cannot find our shot it will be tough.
Passing
We continue to pass extremely well with our guard trio averaging a combined 12.7 assists per game with only 4.7 turnovers per game giving us an A/T ratio of nearly 2.7. USC is sitting at 9.6 assists from their trio and 7.8 turnovers for a ratio of 1.23. Clearly the advantage is ours if we continue to make 19 to 20 assists per game and force 18 to 20 turnovers per game. Playing patient and making the extra pass will go a long ways towards securing the lead and victory. It also lets us play our game and not falter under USC's pressure.
Final Thoughts
A tough road test to start the season is a mixed blessing. It means we could get our knocks early in a tough loss, but we have experienced those already against TAMU and slightly against MSU and UK. Win and we should be feeling much better about the season's prospects. We should be ready by now to take the conference by storm and statistically UW is superior in almost every category. This is a game that will likely come down to the final 5 or 10 minutes. With USC's strength playing the same spots as some of our weaknesses this game will not just blow over. We really need to play well, shoot well, and defend well. Limiting the USC post play will go a long ways towards winning in LA. All things considered I think UW can get this one done.
Final Score Prediction
UW-74 USC 68
USC's post presence will limit the scoring of MBA and Aziz while providing some second chance points for the Trojans. UW will eventually overcome using its superior bench and backcourt play.
Links
http://www.montlakemadness.com/game-preview-usc/
http://statsheet.com/mcb/games/2010/12/29/2010-12-29_washington_vs_southern-california
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)