Sidibe's reaming early in the game.

[STEVEHOLT]

So coach really tore into Sidibe for not closing out on the deep right corner 3's early in the game however to my novice eyes it seemed impossible for him to both cover down low and be able to get out there in time...i mean nobody could without seriously cheating and leaving defensive post early..

which brings me to the question..you think they had discussed in practice that indeed they were going to cheat out to the corners and leave underneath exposed as a tactical plan specific for VTech? or was coach just doing that thing where he reams whoever was closest to the guy who made the shot regardless of who was really at fault?

 

[JoeySimz]

Was more than justified.
That’s exactly what they focused on in practice this week and he clearly failed to execute his duty. Furthermore, the coach has made his expectations public all year, so I’m pretty sure Bourama knows what’s expected of him.

If he can manage to stay out of foul trouble and stay in the game, he has to at least make the proper defensive rotations.

 

[bballbeadle]

Do people think he did a much better job when he was back in the game? Indeed, I thought we ALL played better defense after that reaming. I will have to watch the game again, but I don’t think Va Tech got off another corner shot after Boeheim put the dingbats on Sid.

(I’m sure I’ll watch and be proven wrong.)

Edit: Also, I just read Brent’s article and he said that for the last defensive play of the game Coach substituted Bourama for Joe, because of height. He must have trusted him not to foul.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

Do people think he did a much better job when he was back in the game? Indeed, I thought we ALL played better defense after that reaming. I will have to watch the game again, but I don’t think Va Tech got off another corner shot after Boeheim put the dingbats on Sid.

(I’m sure I’ll watch and be proven wrong.)

They did, both when Sid was back or when Marek was playing there. They just missed.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

So coach really tore into Sidibe for not closing out on the deep right corner 3's early in the game however to my novice eyes it seemed impossible for him to both cover down low and be able to get out there in time...i mean nobody could without seriously cheating and leaving defensive post early..

which brings me to the question..you think they had discussed in practice that indeed they were going to cheat out to the corners and leave underneath exposed as a tactical plan specific for VTech? or was coach just doing that thing where he reams whoever was closest to the guy who made the shot regardless of who was really at fault?

That’s exactly what coach said in his presser. They practiced that numerous times. I think it’s insane personally.

 

[br801]

So coach really tore into Sidibe for not closing out on the deep right corner 3's early in the game however to my novice eyes it seemed impossible for him to both cover down low and be able to get out there in time...i mean nobody could without seriously cheating and leaving defensive post early..

which brings me to the question..you think they had discussed in practice that indeed they were going to cheat out to the corners and leave underneath exposed as a tactical plan specific for VTech? or was coach just doing that thing where he reams whoever was closest to the guy who made the shot regardless of who was really at fault?

Whenever you see JB go off on a player like that, it's probably safe to assume it involves a failure to do something he has been coaching them to do in practice.

 

[Cheriehoop]

Whenever you see JB go off on a player like that, it's probably safe to assume it involves a failure to do something he has been coaching them to do in practice.

And you can almost take it to the bank that it’s a defensive mistake.

 

[br801]

And you can almost take it to the bank that it’s a defensive mistake.

And whatever it was yesterday, it happened very early, as Guerrier was waiting at the scorer's only a few minutes into the game.

 

[RMH44]

Whenever you see JB go off on a player like that, it's probably safe to assume it involves a failure to do something he has been coaching them to do in practice.

Short of doing something really selfish i.e. shoving a player, taking a bad technical foul etc, undressing ANY player like that is a very bad look.
Today's players are used to adulation and people fawning over them since the 7th grade.

People like to blame the asst coaches for poor recruiting. Even bags of cash would have difficulty overcoming JB's behavior.

 

[br801]

Short of doing something really selfish i.e. shoving a player, taking a bad technical foul etc, undressing ANY player like that is a very bad look.
Today's players are used to adulation and people fawning over them since the 7th grade.

People like to blame the asst coaches for poor recruiting. Even bags of cash would have difficulty overcoming JB's behavior.

It's who he is and how he coaches. I often see Izzo and K dressing down their players like that as well, and don't recall much complaining about them. Maybe it's a generational thing and we'll see less of it from coaches in the future.

 

[Bayside44]

So coach really tore into Sidibe for not closing out on the deep right corner 3's early in the game however to my novice eyes it seemed impossible for him to both cover down low and be able to get out there in time...i mean nobody could without seriously cheating and leaving defensive post early..

which brings me to the question..you think they had discussed in practice that indeed they were going to cheat out to the corners and leave underneath exposed as a tactical plan specific for VTech? or was coach just doing that thing where he reams whoever was closest to the guy who made the shot regardless of who was really at fault?

The zone was super-active. They clearly inverted it to more of a 3-2 look. JB even said in the presser they gave up that lane jumper because you always have to give something up on defense.

 

[upperdeck]

watch it again.. coach is telling SID.. YOU HAVE TO CHEAT.. cleary the game plan was o cheat out on some players and force others to make shots.

 

[FrancoPizza]

or was coach just doing that thing where he reams whoever was closest to the guy who made the shot regardless of who was really at fault?

I know the team is playing better so everyone thinks coach walks on water again. JB is reacting impulsively like a fan instead of trying to look at the situation pragmatically. Breakdowns in a zone are almost always a result of someone else’s poor rotation. The center not getting out to the corner should be considered a desperation move. The corner will ALWAYS be open whenever a team overloads the wing. If it’s consistently open the coach should flexing to a 1-2-2 if he insists on staying in a zone. Somehow I don’t think he was telling Sidibe, “we’re in a 1-2-2 and you’re supposed to be shading to the wing!”

this would be a good question forThursday’s show: “Coach, when the center has to cover the paint and the wing, should we consider adding a 6th defender by splitting Sidibe in half?”

 

[sutomcat]

And you can almost take it to the bank that it’s a defensive mistake.

Yup. They were running a set play designed to get Cone an open 3 from the corner. They used this play very successfully 2 weeks ago to free up Cone. It is a staple of their offense and I guarantee you Syracuse practiced to defend it endlessly before the game,

Bourama is running around really well this year and has the ability to cover that corner shot. His career to date has been plagued by mental errors where he appears to just space out. This was just another in a long time of them. I will bet Cone was the biggest focus pregame for the SU defense. I will bet the game plan was to take him away and make other people beat the zone.

It has to make JB crazy watching Sidibe play. This year, he is capable of so much but his execution has been so poor.

At least there are some signs of improvement on defense in recent weeks. Early in the season, I couldn’t even tell who were were trying to focus on. At least now, you can see Cone and Nolley were the guys we were really concerned with, and that we didn’t care at all about Sonic Hedgehog.

 

[br801]

I know the team is playing better so everyone thinks coach walks on water again. JB is reacting impulsively like a fan instead of trying to look at the situation pragmatically. Breakdowns in a zone are almost always a result of someone else’s poor rotation. The center not getting out to the corner should be considered a desperation move. The corner will ALWAYS be open whenever a team overloads the wing. If it’s consistently open the coach should flexing to a 1-2-2 if he insists on staying in a zone. Somehow I don’t think he was telling Sidibe, “we’re in a 1-2-2 and you’re supposed to be shading to the wing!”

this would be a good question forThursday’s show: “Coach, when the center has to cover the paint and the wing, should we consider adding a 6th defender by splitting Sidibe in half?”

You should call in with your question, perhaps worded a little differently.

 

[malpearl31]

Yup. They were running a set play designed to get Cone an open 3 from the corner. They used this play very successfully 2 weeks ago to free up Cone. It is a staple of their offense and I guarantee you Syracuse practiced to defend it endlessly before the game

Definitely looked like a nice set play by VaTech, as they had that kid Bede setting a little screen at the block to impede Sid’s path out to the corner to defend Cone. VaTech’s first bucket of the game was also a corner 3 (this one by Horne), with nobody screening Sid. He just didn’t get there.

So after having specifically practiced to defend the corner 3, SU gave up two of them right out of the gate. I can understand why JB was so upset.

It should also be noted that if you re-watch the game (I recommend the ‘condensed game’ available in the post-game thread), Cone did not get another corner 3 the rest of the way.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

On the play before he got pulled, Sid also got screened, which hindered his rotation.
That said, those are the rotations that need to be made.

 

[rrlbees]

So coach really tore into Sidibe for not closing out on the deep right corner 3's early in the game however to my novice eyes it seemed impossible for him to both cover down low and be able to get out there in time...i mean nobody could without seriously cheating and leaving defensive post early..

which brings me to the question..you think they had discussed in practice that indeed they were going to cheat out to the corners and leave underneath exposed as a tactical plan specific for VTech? or was coach just doing that thing where he reams whoever was closest to the guy who made the shot regardless of who was really at fault?

I don’t usually say this, but in this instance I disagree with JB. At least to the extent he took it. We had this discussion in the game thread and I commented it wasn’t as bad as it looked and that Sid was getting out there. After JB went berserk, naturally several posters jumped in agreeing with him and trashing Sid. One of the plays was even a fast break and people thought Sid was at fault they hit a corner jumper.

At halftime I reran the first few minutes and still felt the same way. Sid made an honest effort to get there. The one thing I don’t know is the whole cheating thing. Not sure what that means unless Sid was suppose to stay to that side of the lane and not care about any player in the lane which is kinda dumb.

After seeing this thread this morning I went back to the replay and took a few screenshots. I still contend Sid did his best and maybe there is an issue that caused him to be a split second late, it wasn’t at the level that warranted the over the top tongue lashing.

First one. He flew at him like everyone does and again, if he’s late it’s a split second.

Second one, same as the first. He’s there. If anything it’s a split second late but we never see the center get out there and block the shot.

This was the third one where we called timeout and the tongue lashing took place. It’s a secondary fast break. Half our guys are getting back and our center is never going to go straight to the corner. Never. The picture is when one player has the ball and is going to kick it to the corner. You can see we have a few players trailing.

 

[upperdeck]

for all we know is is yelling about 1 of the 3 and not all 3 plays.

first one is his fault. 2nd depends on how much he is supposed to fight the pick. then again if you are cheating you get over the pick before it happens.. the 3rd is not on him

 

[SouthernCuse]

this would be a good question forThursday’s show: “Coach, when the center has to cover the paint and the wing, should we consider adding a 6th defender by splitting Sidibe in half?”

Oh yeah, that called is going to get through fer sure.

 

[orangepassion]

Sidibe definitely seems like this year's Roberson in terms of the tongue lashings. There's always one guy

 

[hoopsupstate]

Short of doing something really selfish i.e. shoving a player, taking a bad technical foul etc, undressing ANY player like that is a very bad look.
Today's players are used to adulation and people fawning over them since the 7th grade.

People like to blame the asst coaches for poor recruiting. Even bags of cash would have difficulty overcoming JB's behavior.

A bad look? Leaving a player open for 3 open threes is a bad look too. Too bad if it looks bad. It’s called coaching and when a coach stops getting on you it means he’s given up on you. It’s a difficult cover for a big, but you have to be ready and anticipate getting to the corner. If you stop thinking, it’s too late. That was what a JB was upset about. It was a point of emphasis in game preparation and Sidibe wasn’t ready to react.

 

[Cheriehoop]

this would be a good question forThursday’s show: “Coach, when the center has to cover the paint and the wing, should we consider adding a 6th defender by splitting Sidibe in half?”

Easy Answer - what player is on the wing? Who is the bigger threat - the opponent’s ‘big guy’ inside or the player on the wing? Is it the player who decimated us with 3’s just 2 weeks ago and who we spent all practice emphasizing how the zone has to move to insure he doesn’t go off on us again or the opponent’s inside player that struggles to even get the ball less score against us? Are we going to play the old stagnant ‘tavern zone’ , slow to react or be a proactive zone that morphs and concentrates on the opponent’s most dangerous weapons?

Be ready to hear too that our other players practiced how to rotate and shade to help cover when our center goes to the wing to defend - just like we did when our previous centers like Paschal, Baye, Christmas etc had the exact same responsibilities. Looking forward to hearing your own call into Boeheim’s show to hear his answer.

 

[Halfmooncuse]

That might have been the ream of his career.
maybe SU isn’t everybodys dream team...but if you want to be on a ream team...then SU is for you.

 

[upperdeck]

yeah. but you watch coach K and MSU and many others it happens all over.