The Upside: NC State III

[SWC75]

- I’ll keep posting this until we lose:


- If you listen to the rhetoric this season, you’d think the team stunk and we were having a disastrous season. It’s just a question of who’s fault that is, (or why it’s Jim Boeheim’s fault). We are 16-8 and 10-7 in a power conference. The three close non-conference games we had were against Bryant, Northeastern and Buffalo, who are a combined 48-22 – and we won each game. As CuseBBall pointed out, our last three opponents, North Carolina, Clemson and NC State have won 14 of their last 17 games. The three losses are all against us – by a total of 33 points. We have three good guards and four good forwards and we finally found a guy who can play center for use. We are a good team having a good season and might have bene a great team having a great season if Bourama hadn’t gone down after the first four minutes, if the season hadn’t been interrupted by Covid and if home games vs. Quad 1 teams didn’t become road games.

- Buddy Boeheim has now become the team’s leading scorer, moving ahead of Alan Griffin. In the last 8 games he’s averaging 20 points on 46% three point shooting and 55% two point shooting. He’s augmented his game with effective drives to the basket and pull up jumpers. He’s not just a shooter – he’s a scorer. He also had 5 assists in this game. He might be our best player at this point. Nepotism, anyone?

- Robert Braswell Had his best game, playing 21 minutes due to Quincy Guerrier’s foul trouble. He scored 11 points, including some difficult shots, had 3 rebounds and 2 steals. He also helped solidify our defense.

- When 7 foot Jesse Edwards is at center along with 6-10 Marek Dolezaj and Quincy, Alan or Robert at small forward and two 6-5 guards in Buddy and Kadary, the Syracuse zone becomes THE SYRACUSE ZONE. Jesse was sure-handed in grabbing 8 rebounds, 5 on offense including a couple of difficult ones. He also scored a couple of buckets and had a block. He’s learning to use his length and create a barrier between the ball and the basket. Even when he was out, we played very effective defense, perhaps motivated by the knowledge that we could go to the tall line-up and really shut people down. The stat of the game: We shot 20/31 from two (64.5%) while they shot 14 for 41 (34.1%).

- The other stat of the game is that we hit 14 of 29 three pointers, (48.3%) while they were 7 for 17 (41.2%) but only 1 for 7 in the second half.

- Marek Dolezaj wasn’t spectacular, (except for a thunderous dunk off a Joe Girard pass) but again filled up the stat sheet: 7p 6r 4a 2b 1s. he also helped us break the press repeatedly and had his best defensive game.

- Joe Girard had a solid game with 14 points and 3 assists. He did nothing questionable and was ’in control’ throughout the game.

- Alan Griffin didn’t dazzle but had a solid game with 12 points, 8 rebounds 5 assists, 2 blocks and steal. He, too, did everything ‘under control’ and, as a result, Syracuse had everything under control.

- Quincy Guerrier only played 19 minutes due to foul trouble but has 12 points, including two threes, 4 rebs, an assist, a block and steal.

- Marek, Quincy and Kadari were all nursing significant injuries but they all played.

- Yes, you can beat a team three times - if you are better than they are. The Wolfpack has given us a lot of pain in football over the years. But we've made them feel the hurt a few times in basketball, too.

16-8 (10-7) with ? to go

LET’S GO ORANGE!!!

 

[Ceerqqq]

What's funny is how some of Boeheim's season-long critics are trying to say that the team is looking really good right now because Coach B has begun to follow their advice on rotations, etc.

All they need to do is ask themselves if they really think Jim Boeheim is going to take seriously ANY criticism from fan boards, or reporters, while he is building his team over the course of a season. If anything, he'd do the opposite.

They need to face the facts, no matter how unpleasant it might be to them:
The reason this team is playing so well right now because Jim Boeheim's approach to coaching his team hasn't changed at all from the first day of practice. It's because he's "stubbornly" done things his way that we're seeing the impressive results we're seeing.

And yes, his way means playing the players he wants to play when he feels they're ready. As he's demonstrated many times in the past, coaching his team his way usually/often produces fantastic end-of-season results.

The transformation in the way this team is playing defense has been phenomenal and we can be sure that the team didn't coach themselves into their improved grasp of how to play the zone.

I not only think that we will beat Virginia today, I think we may very well end up winning our first ACCT championship the day after.

 

[bevosu]

I hope you're right, but you are...

I admire the optimism.

 

[Bball44]

Last 3 games shows the zone can still be effective in 2021.

 

[SWC75]

What's funny is how some of Boeheim's season-long critics are trying to say that the team is looking really good right now because Coach B has begun to follow their advice on rotations, etc.

All they need to do is ask themselves if they really think Jim Boeheim is going to take seriously ANY criticism from fan boards, or reporters, while he is building his team over the course of a season. If anything, he'd do the opposite.

They need to face the facts, no matter how unpleasant it might be to them:
The reason this team is playing so well right now because Jim Boeheim's approach to coaching his team hasn't changed at all from the first day of practice. It's because he's "stubbornly" done things his way that we're seeing the impressive results we're seeing.

And yes, his way means playing the players he wants to play when he feels they're ready. As he's demonstrated many times in the past, coaching his team his way usually/often produces fantastic end-of-season results.

The transformation in the way this team is playing defense has been phenomenal and we can be sure that the team didn't coach themselves into their improved grasp of how to play the zone.

I not only think that we will beat Virginia today, I think we may very well end up winning our first ACCT championship the day after.

Well, we know that he takes criticism seriously. But that doesn't mean he takes it as advice. I give him credit for doning some of the things that were suggested despite the fact that fans or reporters were suggesting them. he'd rather win than be proven right.

 

[Ceerqqq]

Well, we know that he takes criticism seriously. But that doesn't mean he takes it as advice. I give him credit for doning some of the things that were suggested despite the fact that fans or reporters were suggesting them. he'd rather win than be proven right.

He has done some things that fans have suggested, but from where I'm sitting--having observed him for decades like you--it is merely a coincidence and not a consequence of fans noticing some of the variables he has to deal with, which he is fully aware of.

Fans like to think that Jim's been oblivious to the value of Kadary and Jesse and Robert. That's crazy talk. He knows better than anyone else what their abilities are as well as the mistakes they are prone to.

Whenever Jim's faced a choice between a starter who's struggling on the court vs. a backup who "might be the answer", he always places the greater weight on experience, having seen far too often the less experienced player commit crucial turnovers. Especially earlier in the season, when they still have a lot to learn.

Is that evaluation 'bias' gonna fail you sometimes? Of course. But Jim's quite aware that by relying primarily on experience whenever the game's on the line, he's been generally successful in developing his teams over the course of a season...

As we are seeing once again...