Post by BleedingOrange on Jan 15, 2012 16:20:29 GMT -5
The Jekyll and Hyde season continues, and it was the good side triumphing against SMU last night.
We had some trouble with their offense, which was a series of back cuts that we didn't defend very well, and they took a lead which fluctuated from four to eight points for most of the game. We also had some trouble finding shots against a tough SMU defense that morphed from a zone to a triangle-and-two to a man-to-man constantly throughout the game, but we did just enough scoring to keep it close and take the lead late in the game. Then the tension began...
After we had taken what seemed to be a comfortable 8 point lead with a little under three minutes left, the refs decided to keep SMU in strking distance. When their annoying little bitch of a point guard (some punk named Samarippus or something like that who loves taunting the crowd every time he scores) drove through the lane, Jaques Streeter slapped the ball out of his hands. The ball went right off the SMU player's knee and out of bounds, but the refs gave them the ball. On the ensuing inbound, John Bohannon had a beautiful leaping block, which inexplicably drew a foul. Two points to them, no time off the clock.
The annoying part of the rest of regulation was the fact that we were scoring down low, and there was plenty of contact on most of our shots, but no fouls were called. On the other hand, SMU was in the two-shot bonus for the last six or seven minutes of the game, and the refs were calling EVERYTHING and awarding them points at the line. After some missed free throws by us and a couple of late three-pointers by them, the game was tied with around 20 seconds left.
We brought the ball down the court, and Mike Perez saw a lane and started to drive for the winning shot; but they had a foul to give, and we had to inbound it again. Perez then missed a rushed three pointer with about 5 seconds on the clock, and SMU grabbed the rebound and called timeout with 1.2 left. Here's where it got annoying...
When SMU inbounded the ball, Gabe McCulley (who played another awesome game, btw) tipped the inbound pass up into the stands. Now follow my logic here... I always thought the clock started as soon as the ball was touched, and continued running until there was a whistle or the ball went out of bounds. Well the last 1.2 seconds ran off the clock while the ball was still in the air, and only landed in the stands after the buzzer had gone off. But for some reason, the refs decided to give the visitors another shot (I had flashbacks of the 1972 Olympic game at this point). They decided to put .5 of a second back on the clock, and on the next inbound pass, SMU nailed a three pointer and had seemingly won the game. They were jumping, laughing, and running for the locker room with the crowd in stunned silence... but the refs reviewed the replay, and determined that the clock had expired before the shot was taken (at least they got THAT one right). Overtime.
I won't bore you with a play-by-play of OT; fortunately we made enough free throws (John Bohannon was 4-4 when it counted most) and they missed enough shots that we were able to put it away. Not the prettiest game we've played, but considering the team we were playing and their style of play, it was great to see this young team face a pressure situation like OT and play well enough to get the victory.
17 wins, perhaps? If we can be a bit more consistent, I don't see why that's not a possibility.
We had some trouble with their offense, which was a series of back cuts that we didn't defend very well, and they took a lead which fluctuated from four to eight points for most of the game. We also had some trouble finding shots against a tough SMU defense that morphed from a zone to a triangle-and-two to a man-to-man constantly throughout the game, but we did just enough scoring to keep it close and take the lead late in the game. Then the tension began...
After we had taken what seemed to be a comfortable 8 point lead with a little under three minutes left, the refs decided to keep SMU in strking distance. When their annoying little bitch of a point guard (some punk named Samarippus or something like that who loves taunting the crowd every time he scores) drove through the lane, Jaques Streeter slapped the ball out of his hands. The ball went right off the SMU player's knee and out of bounds, but the refs gave them the ball. On the ensuing inbound, John Bohannon had a beautiful leaping block, which inexplicably drew a foul. Two points to them, no time off the clock.
The annoying part of the rest of regulation was the fact that we were scoring down low, and there was plenty of contact on most of our shots, but no fouls were called. On the other hand, SMU was in the two-shot bonus for the last six or seven minutes of the game, and the refs were calling EVERYTHING and awarding them points at the line. After some missed free throws by us and a couple of late three-pointers by them, the game was tied with around 20 seconds left.
We brought the ball down the court, and Mike Perez saw a lane and started to drive for the winning shot; but they had a foul to give, and we had to inbound it again. Perez then missed a rushed three pointer with about 5 seconds on the clock, and SMU grabbed the rebound and called timeout with 1.2 left. Here's where it got annoying...
When SMU inbounded the ball, Gabe McCulley (who played another awesome game, btw) tipped the inbound pass up into the stands. Now follow my logic here... I always thought the clock started as soon as the ball was touched, and continued running until there was a whistle or the ball went out of bounds. Well the last 1.2 seconds ran off the clock while the ball was still in the air, and only landed in the stands after the buzzer had gone off. But for some reason, the refs decided to give the visitors another shot (I had flashbacks of the 1972 Olympic game at this point). They decided to put .5 of a second back on the clock, and on the next inbound pass, SMU nailed a three pointer and had seemingly won the game. They were jumping, laughing, and running for the locker room with the crowd in stunned silence... but the refs reviewed the replay, and determined that the clock had expired before the shot was taken (at least they got THAT one right). Overtime.
I won't bore you with a play-by-play of OT; fortunately we made enough free throws (John Bohannon was 4-4 when it counted most) and they missed enough shots that we were able to put it away. Not the prettiest game we've played, but considering the team we were playing and their style of play, it was great to see this young team face a pressure situation like OT and play well enough to get the victory.
17 wins, perhaps? If we can be a bit more consistent, I don't see why that's not a possibility.
