VaBeachOrFan
2nd String
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2011
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That ought to be the mantra for this year's team. Consider:
Grim because this was the grimmest of seasons as the NCAA penalties sunk in. Scholarships were lost. Daigne was lost. JB kicked off the bench. Short on bench strength. Gaps on the front line. Too much youth to depend on. . . and the constant carping about SU's punishable offenses, with the punishments raining on the shoulders of last year's and this year's players though they happened so many years ago in a galaxy far, far away.
Growth because JB relies on freshmen only when he has no choice or their name is Carmelo. Painful to watch Lydon turn up shots everyone but him knows he can make. Puzzling to see Robo play in-a-game/out-a-game. Frustrating to see Malachi flash to his game like a light bulb with a bad socket connection. Stressing to see DC have to relearn how to play competitive basketball after nearly two years off. Maddening beyond belief to see two 5th-year senior guards miss bunnies, fail free throws, muff passes and suffer barren possessions. Worrisome to see Howard struggle to follow JB's strict directions not to shoot when he is the best pass-first PG option available. Yet out of the mud grows the lotus, and much indeed changed by the time the tournament started. Every player on this team has grown significantly during this trying year.
Grit is obvious. It's the only way this team could overcome so many deficiencies and win. They were out-shot and out-rebounded by Gonzaga, yet still won. UVA had all the tools required to beat this team including a top coach, yet they didn't. Syracuse took its grit and threw it in the gears of UVA's well-oiled machinery.
So maybe those three Gs represent the G in Gbinije -- silent but essential. Keep it up, Cuse.-VBOF
Grim because this was the grimmest of seasons as the NCAA penalties sunk in. Scholarships were lost. Daigne was lost. JB kicked off the bench. Short on bench strength. Gaps on the front line. Too much youth to depend on. . . and the constant carping about SU's punishable offenses, with the punishments raining on the shoulders of last year's and this year's players though they happened so many years ago in a galaxy far, far away.
Growth because JB relies on freshmen only when he has no choice or their name is Carmelo. Painful to watch Lydon turn up shots everyone but him knows he can make. Puzzling to see Robo play in-a-game/out-a-game. Frustrating to see Malachi flash to his game like a light bulb with a bad socket connection. Stressing to see DC have to relearn how to play competitive basketball after nearly two years off. Maddening beyond belief to see two 5th-year senior guards miss bunnies, fail free throws, muff passes and suffer barren possessions. Worrisome to see Howard struggle to follow JB's strict directions not to shoot when he is the best pass-first PG option available. Yet out of the mud grows the lotus, and much indeed changed by the time the tournament started. Every player on this team has grown significantly during this trying year.
Grit is obvious. It's the only way this team could overcome so many deficiencies and win. They were out-shot and out-rebounded by Gonzaga, yet still won. UVA had all the tools required to beat this team including a top coach, yet they didn't. Syracuse took its grit and threw it in the gears of UVA's well-oiled machinery.
So maybe those three Gs represent the G in Gbinije -- silent but essential. Keep it up, Cuse.-VBOF