We need a little Northwestern game noise

[MichDeac25]

The worst thing you can do is just give up 2 points with time running off the clock. That's what we did by trying to press which is something we just don't normally do and apparently don't do well. 30 seconds is plenty of time to foul even if it means trying to trade 3 for 2.

They broke the press. We didn't press well. Clearly it didn't work. It doesn't mean the strategy was bad. You can debate this all day. Try not to get hung up on the last 30 seconds. What's not debatable is that the play of Crawford is what lost the game. 9 TO's and horrible shooting. I like Crawford, but he has to play better.

 

[Bluegrass Deac]

The worst thing you can do is just give up 2 points with time running off the clock. That's what we did by trying to press which is something we just don't normally do and apparently don't do well. 30 seconds is plenty of time to foul even if it means trying to trade 3 for 2.

Compare the last 30 seconds last night with what Virginia did to us last year in their comeback. What a monstrous disparity in game and clock management.

 

[Ralph Medlin]

For a team like Wake Forest, fouling and extending the game for as long as possible down 3 with 30 seconds left is clearly the only strategy.

I don't know what would make the coaches look worse; forgetting to tell your players to foul or banking on a trap and steal, especially when the other team has timeouts left.

 

[Ralph Medlin]

They broke the press. We didn't press well. Clearly it didn't work. It doesn't mean the strategy was bad. You can debate this all day. Try not to get hung up on the last 30 seconds. What's not debatable is that the play of Crawford is what lost the game. 9 TO's and horrible shooting. I like Crawford, but he has to play better.

I'm only hung up on the last 30 seconds because it is a microcosm of our coaching staff's shortcomings in game and clock management.

 

[Deacsfan27]

For a team like Wake Forest, fouling and extending the game for as long as possible down 3 with 30 seconds left is clearly the only strategy.

I don't know what would make the coaches look worse; forgetting to tell your players to foul or banking on a trap and steal, especially when the other team has timeouts left.

There is nothing wrong at all with trying to get a steal before you foul immediately if there are 30 seconds left. There is a 0% chance we forgot to tell our players to foul. Come on.

 

[PhDeac]

For a team like Wake Forest, fouling and extending the game for as long as possible down 3 with 30 seconds left is clearly the only strategy.

I don't know what would make the coaches look worse; forgetting to tell your players to foul or banking on a trap and steal, especially when the other team has timeouts left.

Very good point. I think they had 3 timeouts.

 

[PhDeac]

There is nothing wrong at all with trying to get a steal before you foul immediately if there are 30 seconds left. There is a 0% chance we forgot to tell our players to foul. Come on.

They weren't trying to aggressively get a steal.

 

[Ralph Medlin]

I know, I'm just making a point..Trapping doesn't work bc they had timeouts...Once you don't steal the inbounds pass you foul which we didn't...

I agree this is just one example of ineptitude in a game full of them

 

[TUA01576]

I know, I'm just making a point..Trapping doesn't work bc they had timeouts...Once you don't steal the inbounds pass you foul which we didn't...

I agree this is just one example of ineptitude in a game full of them

You know that sometimes teams throw errant passes because of traps right? It's not a given that the timeout happens.

 

[CantStandYa]

Compare the last 30 seconds last night with what Virginia did to us last year in their comeback. What a monstrous disparity in game and clock management.

Goddammit. I'd forgotten all about that travesty of a game.

 

[TUA01576]

Looking back on the idea to trap, was it a bad idea, in hindsight yes. But if executed well and properly could have changed the game. And I refuse to believe the players weren't told to foul if you can't get the trap or steal. Just doesn't happen.

 

[daaberry]

You also have to factor in that Wake only had 7 team fouls so there would have been two opportunities for NW to shoot 1 & 1. McIntosh had just missed the front end seconds prior to that. To not extend that 30 seconds to as long as humanly possible was a huge mistake by the coaches & players. Instead we go lay up, brick, lay up, brick, quit.

 

[DCDeac]

Just as an aside, it was Woods that drew the McIntosh assignment after he started out hot in the 2nd half. He was even in full ball denial from around the 6 minute mark on if I recall. Crawford got a shot at him to close out the game. He hung 28 on Wisconsin last year in a win - they made the Sweet 16. Sometimes a good player catches fire - he hit some open shots but hit a bunch of extremely difficult shots over multiple defenders.

The sky-is-falling stuff is par for the course, but teams are going to go cold in hostile gyms, especially early in the season. To me the killer was Woods not stepping up until the end when he was fouled on the drive then nailed that 3. With the starters struggling (13% from 3) he was 50% from 3 and 100% from the line. We maybe win that game if we make getting him even decently open looks from 3 a priority (or if he'd looked for his shot as much as Crawford did). After Collins he could be our best overall player, and he's not a 1 year rental like Arians. The truth is he's too good not to start, and there's a good chance that putting him in a secondary role lost this game.

Wilbekin did what Wilbekin often does against solid defenses - 1 field goal, 1 board, 0 assists, 0 steals. It's time to sit him and let our best 5 start. It took us 15 minutes to get Woods his 2nd shot attempt in this game while our starters were shooting 10%. Simply can't do that and beat good teams, which Northwestern is.

 

[daaberry]

Wilbekin did what Wilbekin often does against solid defenses - 1 field goal, 1 board, 0 assists, 0 steals. It's time to sit him and let our best 5 start. It took us 15 minutes to get Woods his 2nd shot attempt in this game while our starters were shooting 10%. Simply can't do that and beat good teams, which Northwestern is.

The possession where Wake let the shot clock go down & found the ball in Wilbekin's hands & he tried to make a move was awful. He didn't come close to even attempting a basket at a time where one was greatly needed.

 

[simosfrostyone]

They broke the press. We didn't press well. Clearly it didn't work. It doesn't mean the strategy was bad. You can debate this all day. Try not to get hung up on the last 30 seconds. What's not debatable is that the play of Crawford is what lost the game. 9 TO's and horrible shooting. I like Crawford, but he has to play better.

I've been a Crawford defender. His talent is undeniable and he is the only guy other than Collins (and possibly Woods) who has the physical tools to take us to the next level. But I am beginning to wonder if he is a head case. He just seems to do the same dumb things he did last year and has the look of someone who doesn't really worry about it.

 

[knowell]

What possible rationale is there for Woods not starting. He is not only one of the 5 best, he is probably one of the 3 best players on the team.

 

[MichDeac25]

I've been a Crawford defender. His talent is undeniable and he is the only guy other than Collins (and possibly Woods) who has the physical tools to take us to the next level. But I am beginning to wonder if he is a head case. He just seems to do the same dumb things he did last year and has the look of someone who doesn't really worry about it.

Some guys have athletic ability but just do dumb things. I hope he figures it out. And I hope the coaching staff can educate him. Some of his passes are brilliant. Some are unbelievably dumb.

 

[Deac83]

Quote Originally Posted by cheeseheads12 View Post
"Tends to happen when you play a game right before or after a holiday."

Glad we've had so much recent success that the team feels that way. Based on this theory the NW game is going to be brutal.

I tried to warn everybody but no one wanted to listen.

 

[diverdeac]

So, the only results that count must have an artistic aspect to them?

For the season, opponents are shooting 35.3% on threes. That's not bad in this era.

RJ yes the eye test does matter. NW missed a ton of wide open threes last night. Our hedging high post bs is killing us as well. Our defensive scheme sucks.

On Offense, we panicked a bit, but I also thought NW did a good job of taking away our sets.

 

[BamaDeac]

Im so tired of some people believing that we should be happy because there appears to a little bit of improvement from last season. Before the Bz Era we would have won that game 10 out of 10 times, we never lost to teams like NW. At the end of a game people ask did you win or lose, and at the end of the season people ask what was your record. Last night we lost, there are no moral victories, and I guarantee you we will finish with a losing record this season.