Just the Facts, Ma'am: Devereaux Peters had 18 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks, and Notre Dame withstood several Red Storm runs to knock off St. John's, 71-56. Skylar Diggins led all scorers with 24. For St. John's, Shenneika Smith and Da'Shena Stevens each had ten points.
For the hand of Touchdown Jesus, shenanigans, classless behavior, and post-envy, join your intrepid and proud blogger after the jump.
Part of me cares what the scoreboard says; part of me will always care what the scoreboard says. Another part of me is full of righteous indignation and the urge to do unseemly things to Devereaux Peters's smirk at the refs. Most of me is fiercely proud of my team's heart, hustle, and effort.
I have no beef with most Notre Dame fans. (Though someone is going to have to point me to where I can get team logo earrings. Rutgers has them, Tennessee has them, Notre Dame has them, St. John's should have them.) I do have a beef with the one family who came into our section, ignored our warning that they were in a section full of Red Storm die-hards (and oh, yes, the Arico family), held up a sign and blocked people's view, kicked popcorn onto the court, stepped on people's feet, and generally acted like rude, entitled brats- both the children kicking popcorn, and the parents mildly chiding them but nothing more. You stay classy, you. I also have beef with the woman in the blue and gold shamrock shirt sitting behind the St. John's bench; she better be part of Megan Duffy's family tree to pull a stunt like that in front of the ROTC coordinator.
Fashion fail of the day: wearing gray pants, a white jacket, and a pink-and-white striped shirt is rummage-through-the-closet enough. But why in the world would you wear Seton Hall blue shoes with that ensemble?
Excellent anthem from the Metropolitones, a favorite of the Game Notes of Doom. Always good to start off on the right foot, even if the start wasn't great after that.
Ariel Braker played long enough to establish why she wasn't playing earlier in the game. That was a pretty dumb foul. Kaila Turner came in for a couple of rotations and was almost called for a foul while she was on the bench because someone couldn't count fingers. Natalie Achonwa made more of an impact in the first half; she was less of a necessity in the second half, but she still impresses me. (But do her stats only count 95% or so depending on the exchange rate?) Fraderica Miller got the bulk of the minutes off the bench and brought good on-ball defense.
Skylar Diggins is beautiful- not necessarily as a physical specimen, but with her grace and speed as a basketball player. I'd probably like watching her more if she weren't in my conference and if she didn't bitch the refs so much. (It's especially galling to watch her complain to the refs when Notre Dame hasn't been called for a foul yet in a game.) Devereaux Peters is the kind of post I wish all my teams had. She's physical, she's tough, and she's got an array of moves. This is not to say I don't appreciate Da'Shena, Amber, Mary, Zakiyyah, Jennifer, Plenette, Kia, Quanitra, Kara, or Ta'Shia. I'm just saying. Natalie Novosel knows an awful lot of football moves for a kid from a football dead zone. She also had the shot of the game, a three that bounced hiiiiiiiiiiiiigh off the rim and then dropped smoothly in. That was some Touchdown Jesus magic. Kayla McBride didn't seem to do anything, and then you look up and she's rebounding her butt off. Rebounding is one of the harder stats to track by eye; there are so many bodies going for the ball that it's hard to tell who comes out with it eventually unless someone does something remarkable. Brittany Mallory got hit with fouls pretty quickly in the second half, and she didn't have a chance to be much of a factor.
Mallory Jones tried so very hard in her twenty-three seconds, she really did, but you have to hold on to the ball. Briana Brown came in late in the game, as one of what I like to call a “throw spaghetti at the wall” move. Love her defensive hustle, but she needs to play a little smarter. I don't know what Amber Thompson is doing or not doing in practice, or saying or not saying to KBA, or what's wrong with her, but either she needs to get her head together or Kim needs to stop fighting with her, because going up against the size and strength of Notre Dame was not the day for Amber to only play eight minutes. She's the kind of player who needs to be on the floor if she's going to produce; she'll freeze up if she's on the bench too long. I think she could have been more of a factor if she had had the time. Keylantra Langley came in for defensive purposes, and she did her job.
Nadirah McKenith, whatever you may or may not have said to the refs at some point in your life, don't ever say it again. That's the only reason I can think of for two of her shots to be waved off and turned into offensive fouls. One of those was made, one didn't go in, but that's up to four points wiped off the board on reprehensibly bad calls. I can't say enough about her leadership, though. Every time they came out of the timeout, she was gathering the five on the floor together and talking to them. No matter how far down they were, she never let them get discouraged. She also showed up some ups that I hadn't expected from her on that bad knee; she was right up there with Diggins, who's taller and also has pretty damn good vertical. Shenneika Smith was all over the place today. I like when she has well-rounded games, when she's bringing both the defense and the offense, when she's scrapping for boards and going for loose balls. I think today was the first time I actually saw Mary Nwachukwu get a rebound in this calendar year. She played like someone had lit a fire under her, with some spectacular blocks and some good rebounds. I do wish she'd either step in on that long two or take the extra step back and shoot it as a three; long twos do no one a favor, especially when there's no one there to rebound. Da'Shena Stevens did her thing- got in underneath, sneaking around bigger posts and hitting her shots. I don't think it helped her that she went stretches without a break where it was obvious that she needed that break (again, those were the times Amber should have been in the game- if Day is missing short and bailing on plays, and especially if she's in foul trouble, get a sub up). I don't know where Eugeneia McPherson's head was in this one. I really don't. She just couldn't hold on to the ball. She was careless, she was sloppy, and she couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. If this had been a close game, she would have been the goat, but this wasn't a game that any one person could control.
These refs. I thought Kim Barnes Arico and Eric Brewton were going to drop the gloves. And she would have been well within her rights as a frustrated coach watching her team get hacked and shoved with no call. She let him have it two or three times. The second time was when, somehow, a second and a half was added to the end of the first half, which gave Notre Dame juuuuuuust enough time to get off a decent shot. Her inspiring speech to the refs seemed to work in the beginning of the second half... and then Notre Dame committed the seventh deadly sin and wasn't called for another foul for eight minutes. Were there calls in our favor? Of course. But it always seems like Notre Dame gets preferential treatment from the officials, and I'm sick of it. They're good enough, talented enough, skilled enough, that they don't need the officials to protect them.
There have been Red Storm teams in the past that, if they were down by 20 to the #2 team in the country, would have lost by 40. This is not one of those teams. The core of this team learned from the debacle at Stanford not to give up, not to surrender, not to let up. I'd take this team at gun-to-the-head time over half the teams in the poll.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
January 28th, 2012: Notre Dame at St. John's
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
January 17th, 2012: Rutgers at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Red Storm overcame a six-point halftime deficit and the heroic efforts of Khadijah Rushdan to knock off Rutgers 62-57. Eugeneia McPherson had 17 points to lead all scorers, with Nadirah McKenith chipping in 15 and Shenneika Smith adding 14 points and eight rebounds. Khadijah Rushdan led the Scarlet Knights with 16, eight in the last two minutes.
For fouls, wet spots, questionable fashion choices, never giving up, highlight reel plays, and awkward realizations, join your intrepid and high-pitched blogger after the jump.
I have this urge to run around and hug people, but the only person around is my husband, and I can hug him any time.
My sympathies to the Cagers who came on the A-1 bus that scraped up against the gate a few times like he was trying to shake off a nagging defender. Apparently that wasn't the only issue he had. The Rutgers fans were paler than they should have been after the game.
Anthem singer, you are not Whitney Houston and you do not have to blow out the sound system, okay? You have a mic, you don't have to project quite that much.
Sparkly C. Vivian Stringer was sparkly. Loved the rhinestones on the pockets and collar. Didn't see the scarf that I used to lust after when I was still a Rutgers fan- red silk with the block R- which is a shame, because it would have gone.
I don't know if Rutgers knows what to do with the freshmen. There are so very many of them and they all seem vaguely interchangeable. I'm not sure if that's being unsure due to not having seen them very much, to Stringer's recruiting, or to Stringer not knowing how to use any of them in specific roles yet. Shakeena Richardson had a nice little shot- may she be a better player and a classier person than that other #22 from Rutgers. Betnijah Laney looked less like a freshman than most of her classmates, using her solid build to get opportunities. Christa Evans strikes me as a more traditional RU center- someone who's just there to clean up the mess from the guards and make room in the lane.
Monique Oliver is a load in the lane. If Rutgers hits her every time out next year, they're going to be dangerous. Congrats to April Sykes for hitting 1000 (at least so I assume, from the fans' reactions when she hit her first basket). I was surprised they didn't try to get to her more- she's a matchup nightmare for us with her size and outside touch. (The only player we have with that skill set is not the world's greatest defender.) My heart was in my throat every time that Erica Wheeler got open with the ball, but we got on her when we needed to and harassed her as necessary. Briyona Canty got the start, but to be frank, I'm not sure why. I guess someone had to. Khadijah Rushdan has the heart of a champion. She was bound and determined not to lose that game at the end, and she tried to take the entire team on her shoulders. I reluctantly like her.
Briana Brown, thank you for the hustle, but thank you for also putting Rutgers back in range with that dumb foul. Amber Thompson came off the bench for this game after her sketchy performance against Marquette, and while she still looks like she's making friends with the freshman wall, she's scrapping and hustling, and showing that she'll make those plays when she's a sophomore or a junior. I'll take that. Tesia Harris made a brief cameo, demonstrated that her shot had not decided to join her this evening, and ended up back on the bench. Keylantra Langley brought the defense, and some but not all of her shot clock heroics.
Da'Shena Stevens took a lot of contact down low, and she had a couple of questionable foul calls. The numbers aren't going to show the kind of presence she had for us in the post and the kind of leadership she provided on the floor. They're not going to reflect her increased ballhandling ability and her willingness to bring the ball up the floor. Shenneika Smith had a solid all-around game- some boneheaded plays that had us screaming at her, but some dagger shots that wounded Rutgers. I have lingered repeatedly over the lack of rebounding that Mary Nwachukwu brings at the four- I'm sorry, but two consecutive games with no rebounds from a post is unacceptable. If Tesia Harris can get her own rebound in two minutes, I think one is not too much to ask. Mary's defense was also suspect in the second half- if you're going to foul a shooter, don't just ruffle their hair, make sure they don't hit the shot as well. Still, she had the pretty midrange jumper. I'd just like to see a little more from her inside. Eugeneia McPherson got the calls tonight. Well, most of the calls. She still hit the deck more than I would have liked, but tonight she got the calls and hit the free throws. I love when she gets that aggressive and drives that hard. Nadirah McKenith was the point guard at both ends of the floor, leading both offense and defense. She made the plays to force turnovers, and she hit the clutch free throws. I love her poise and her court vision.
Originally, the play of the game was going to be the sequence where Da'Shena had the block, which was recovered by St. John's, then got to Shenneika, who passed it to Keylantra for the jumper. And then Nadirah spun and threw it up over her shoulder and got the roll on the no-look and got the foul, and that was sort of freaking amazing. Why that's not an ESPN Top Ten play, I will never know.
Bryan Enterline. Amy Bonner. What did we ever do to deserve this? Lots of inexplicable calls that are still inexplicable as I watch the replay. Lots of travels. The floor did seem slippery tonight, judging from the sequence that had both Nadirah and Laney on the floor.
Credit to the students for coming out for this game. We did our best to get the word out, and they answered.
There was a time in my life when I would have yearned for the matching Rutgers earrings and necklace set. This is not that time in my life.
I sympathized with the guy who wanted to storm the floor, but we've beaten Rutgers before. Notre Dame might be the only one we storm this year if we pull it off.
What a game, what a night, what a team. We did what we had to do. Now we need to keep doing it.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
January 15th, 2012: Marquette at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Strong second half play from the Marquette Golden Eagles put away the St. John's Red Storm 63-55 at Madison Square Garden. Katherine Plouffe's 18 points and 11 rebounds led all players, while St. John's was led by the 13 points of Shenneika Smith.
For frustration, calling out, blue hair, comfy chairs, and a random Tamika Whitmore reference, join your intrepid and nail-biting blogger after the jump.
Ah, space, better seats, less beer, a chance to tease Mike Thibault about Tamika Bleeping Whitmore, and my team finally out on the floor. It's 32-28 St. John's at the half, and it could be a lot worse for the Red Storm, and it could be a lot better for them.
Security graciously let people move down after the swathes of Georgetown fans left from the first game. We're in some very plum seats near center court- 19, I believe, but don't hold me to it. I don't know how to read the new Garden numbers.
Nadirah McKenith seems to have decided that if her teammates aren't going to get the job done, she'll do it herself. Marquette took a lead shortly before the half, and then she scored three straight buckets to give St. John's back the lead. It's a shame that her teammates didn't follow her lead, and I want to take my clipboard and hit most of them upside the head with it.
Katie Young is either a Vinnie Johnson, doesn't usually come off the bench, or is streakier than a badly washed window, because otherwise there is no excuse for a shooter as good as she proved herself to be to come off the bench. She came in when Simmons went out with some eye irritation, or blood or something, and she erased our lead in two shots. She was clutch. Chelsie Butler brought the pain off the bench when Marquette needed a rest for their posts. The Golden Eagles played mostly a seven-woman rotation, with a smattering of players playing spot minutes.
Katherine Plouffe abused us inside. She did a great job on the boards and establishing position inside. Arlesia Morse got Marquette going early with her shot, which kept them in the game early, and I think that was important for them, to keep their heads in the game. Sarina Simmons wasn't the factor I was expecting her to be, but she was enough of a threat that St. John's had to keep an eye on her. Gabi Minix ran the offense well, and I have to be impressed with her stamina- she turns interesting colors, but she didn't sit down at all. Apiew Ojulu didn't make much of an impression on me.
Marquette brought few fans, but those fans were loud and vocal. Sir, I appreciate your team-colored glittering hair, but please don't disconcert our free throw shooters. Really. You're on the road. You should know better. We wouldn't do the same in Milwaukee.
I have no idea why Briana Brown was in this game. Don't get me wrong, she didn't play badly, but the way she went into the game was Kim Barnes Arico in full “throw spaghetti at the wall” mode. She was all right defensively. Tesia Harris made a cameo appearance and didn't impress. Keylantra Langley was streakier than usual, making big offensive plays but slacking a little defensively. Mary Nwachukwu, on the other hand, needs to be sat down for a very long lecture from her coaches regarding the responsibilities of a 6-2 post player, which start with REBOUNDING THE DAMN BALL. I'm sorry, but there is no excuse for a 6-2 forward who played stretches of the game as the only post on the floor, who was in for 21 minutes, to not pull down a single rebound. Mary, you don't have Stefanie Murphy and Carolyn Swords to hide behind anymore. You are the big girl. Get it.
If there was a game in which Da'Shena Stevens wanted to prove that she could be a leader as a senior, this was it. She stepped up late in the game to try and get it back, sacrificing her body to take charge after charge. The numbers don't necessarily show it, but she came to play today. Amber Thompson had some rough luck with the rolls, and the two quick fouls at the start of the second half pretty much wiped her out for the rest of the game, paving the way for Mary's sketchy play and Coach Barnes Arico's dodgy coaching. Eugeneia McPherson... one moment she'd make a great defensive play, and the next she'd throw up a wild shot in the lane and complain about the lack of a call. Stay with the play, Gina. Hit the shot and don't worry about the officials. (Worrying about the officials and giving them an idea of what they should be calling is our job. We got your back.) Shenneika Smith had some strong plays, but got burned on defense more than I'd like to see out of her. She's our tallest guard, so when Coach decides to go to some of her more esoteric lineups, she's often the three or the four. We need her to be tougher if she's going to be put in that position. Nadirah McKenith was very frustrated with her team at some points- I've never seen her get that “WTF?” with her teammates before. She wanted this game- she knew that her team needed this game, and she did everything she could to get them it.
Kim Barnes Arico, I would like to know where you got your stash, because those have to be some pretty potent substances you were ingesting to think that a four-guard set with Mary Nwachukwu as the only post would be a good counter to Marquette's big lineups. Shenneika at the four against Plouffe or Butler is a bad plan and you should feel bad for coming up with it. One thing I've noticed with her is that when she panics, her control freak comes out and she starts tinkering. Bad things happen when she starts tinkering, almost to the point of a DirecTV ad. (“When you start tinkering, you lose your team a halftime lead. Don't lose your team a halftime lead.”)
These officials... it's a bad sign when both teams' fans are screaming at you to call a foul, whether it's a block or a charge, on a brutal collision near the end of the game, and all you can do is call the out of bounds. I don't care if you had called the block on Nadirah. I'd rather see the foul called on someone than run the risk of frustration fouls getting rougher and rougher and having someone get hurt. All game, they were letting scrums go on and calling held balls, or making procedural calls instead of foul calls. We were upset. The Marquette fans were upset. Kim Barnes Arico was upset. Terri Mitchell was upset. Everyone was upset, and everyone had reason to be.
Marquette answered the bell. I'll give them all the credit in the world for that. Now St. John's has to answer the bell against Rutgers on Tuesday if they want any shot of anything worth mentioning. This is the Big East. There's no margin for error. Compete and beat the teams you're supposed to beat, or go home.
January 15th, 2012: Georgetown at St. John's
For kvetching, potential, a lack of senior leadership, and jackassery, join your intrepid blogger after the jump.
I will be brutally honest. I am not interested in men's basketball- at least, not to the extent that I'm interested in women's basketball. The Madison Square Garden doubleheader is my least favorite game on the women's schedule. I'm paying more money for worse seats, the stink of beer wafts over the whole scene, I'm crammed in with way too many people, and inevitably, the largest and most vocal fan base in the building belongs to the men's opponents, with whom I have nothing in common.
Today, it really doesn't help that I'm in the wedge behind the Georgetown bench, which means that the Hoyas have two rows of students behind us, so the call and response of “HOYA!” “SAXA!” has already rung out behind me once. It also doesn't help that the Georgetown fans have had a lot more to cheer about. I have to grit my teeth and wait through the Hoyas' cheers and all these people everywhere for the game that I paid a ridiculous amount of money to see.
It's hard to imagine what benefit St. John's thinks the Garden has for them these days. What kind of draw can it be to go into your “home” arena and have the opponents' cheers roaring out? Does playing at the Garden mean that much to a player that it doesn't matter that the crowd's not behind them? Honest curiosity.
Show up on time and sit down. Don't hang out on the concourse during play, and don't get irked that people are asking you to sit down during play. This is not rocket science.
Georgetown killed the Red Storm with depth. Not that they're insanely deep like the Stanford women are, where there are legitimately three separate lines like a hockey team, but eight players put up double-digit minutes, which is more players than St. John's put on the floor. I'm working under the assumption that Otto Porter either had the game of his life, that he doesn't usually come off the bench, or that he's their strike-fear-into-the-hearts-of-men reserve that I've always coveted for any of my teams. He's a baller. I was very impressed with him. Since I didn't buy the scorecard, I don't know what year he is, so I don't know if this is the culmination of four years of polishing or if he's a top-notch underclassman. They also got some quality minutes out of Greg Whittington.
It's very wrong to be going to a game at the Garden and seeing a Starks on the floor who, 1) is not wearing #3, 2) is not someone I'm supposed to be cheering for. Henry Sims had surprisingly nice touch for a center. Hollis Thompson killed the Red Storm from beyond the arc- any time they tried to mount a defense of their dignity, he hit one, and the Georgetown fans roared, and the St. John's fans went silent. (Honestly, people. I'm not even all that much a fan of the men and I was louder than half of you. Shame, shame, shame, shame on you.) Since I didn't buy the scorecard, and since I was trying to drown out the Georgetown fans behind us, I don't have much better detail than that, other than the fact that their rebounding was damn good. They stayed hard on the boards, especially as the game wore on and St. John's got tired.
Amir Garrett has potential, but it's pretty clear that he's still shaking off the rust, and that he's got a lot of rust to shake off. Given time to be fully incorporated into the team's plays and to gain familiarity with his teammates, he'll be a valuable part of the team (if he doesn't leave for one reason or another; sorry, guys, but at this point this is almost a required disclaimer). Malik Stith was not making good decisions with the ball, which is never a good sign from a senior. He should know this by now, whatever 'this' is.
D'Angelo Harrison should not be a top option for this team. He's streaky, he doesn't make smart plays, he takes shots he shouldn't take- for a team that had a full range of personnel, he'd be a situational shooter, but he's in a position where either he has to gun or he's allowed to gun, and neither of those is good for St. John's. Phil Greene, do not be scared of the ball. It isn't going to bite you. I've never seen a guard pass up an open lane. A shot from an open lane, yes, but backing away from an open lane until you're at the arc, and then passing off, in a shot clock situation? Seriously? God'sgift Achiuwa looked like a guy who can play, but one who was outmatched by the Georgetown front line (I hear the Hoyas are known for centers). He wasn't awful, which is more than I can say about a couple of his teammates. Sir'Dominic Pointer impressed me on the defensive end of the floor, and hey, at least he got to the line and hit his free throws. Definitely a keeper, and hey, we know he'll probably stick around. Last, but most definitely not least, wow, Moe Harkless. He's only a freshman? Seriously? Can we get the birthers on this? Guy's got to be at least a junior, the way he plays. Granted, he commits stupid freshman fouls, like his fifth (which hurts even more because he backed off the play the first time so he wouldn't get it, then went back in on the offensive rebound by G'town). If he stays, and if St. John's can get him a good solid second option so he doesn't have to do everything around here, and if his teammates can be allowed to play the complementary roles they're more suited for... this team can be for real.
I do wish Dunlap had given the walk-ons and the guys who are there just to make muster a little time at the end of the game, when it was 20 points. It's MSG. It might not be the only Garden game they get, but don't run your guys into the ground in a game that's already dead and buried. Is margin really that important?
To whatever idiot set off a firecracker in the men's room: may you step on Legos in the dark every night for the rest of your life, and may you be afflicted with explosive diarrhea in a traffic jam.
Can't say much about the officials in this one- it's hard to see the finer points of play from the 300s. That's one of the things I miss when I'm in the higher seats. Seems like St. John's wasn't getting the calls, but the Red Storm didn't do as much to draw the fouls as the Hoyas did.
If I got into men's basketball, I could get into this team next year.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
January 8th, 2012: Louisville at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Strong second-half play from the Red Storm gave St. John's the 72-64 win over the Cardinals of Louisville. Eugeneia McPherson led St. John's with 16 points, while Louisville's Becky Burke led all scorers with 19 points, including five-of-eight three-point shooting.
For rowdy road fans, snazzy duds, the critical importance of early conference games, and inexplicable decisions, join your intrepid and psyched up blogger after the jump.
Sometimes you need a game for the entire season. Sometimes that game is in March, conference tournament time, everything on the line, win or go home. Sometimes that game is in February, the frenzy rising, the sharks scenting blood, big conference games mixed in with the biggest out of conference games.
Sometimes that game is in January, the second game of a new year, a game on national television against a team in the top fifteen of the polls that's down two key players and needs to make a statement just as much as your team does. Sometimes the bell rings early and the springboard is longer than you realize.
Louisville brought a large fan contingent- or more precisely, Bria Smith brought a large fan contingent. Am I the only one who thinks it's really tacky to start chanting “DE-FENSE!” at a true road game? Neutral site is one thing, but to go into someone else's house and get the defense chants going, or disconcerting the shooter... that's uncouth. They shut up pretty quickly after Smith fouled out, though.
Even if you didn't have a roster, and even if Louisville didn't have names on their jerseys, you'd be able to tell that Jude Schimmel is Shoni Schimmel's little sister. They look a fair bit alike, but also move very similarly on the floor. I hesitate to say that they play similarly, because Jude doesn't look to be quite as good, but they look like they had all the same influences. (Which, yes, I know, but it's one thing to know and another to see.) Cierra Warren brought size off the bench and a nice bit of touch in the second half. She also brought some of the most hilarious offended indignation I've ever seen. Clearly she transferred to Louisville for the drama classes, because North Carolina didn't offer sufficient acting courses. Shelby Harper saw time late, in what I like to refer to as “throw spaghetti at the wall” time, when Louisville was getting ready to start firing threes. She tried to bother our offense. It was cute, in a way. Antonita Slaughter seemed to think she was a three-point shooter. Either her shot was really off today or she's really, really not. (Is she any relation to Gwen Slaughter?) For some reason I expected more from Sara Hammond, but she's young and she only played briefly. Shawnta' Dyer got a lot of minutes off the bench, but she made very little impression on me. I think she was one of those players who got all up in Da'Shena Stevens's face and edged around foul trouble.
Bria Smith fears nothing. I think the strong support from friends, family, and miscellaneous people with signs behind the bench bolstered her. She was red hot in the early going, and I feared the worst case scenario (for this fantasy player, it was Louisville winning with someone other than Schimmel the elder being the big gamer). In the second half, she ran into foul trouble- literally, being called for charges when she drove the lane. She's damn good for a freshman- damn good for anybody, but the idea that she's just a freshman is mind-boggling. Becky Burke's stroke is still amazing. She's got such a quick release. I'm not sure what she was thinking driving in the last minute or two, though. If they're not guarding you on the outside, and you're that good a shooter, and you're down that much, and the officiating hasn't been helping you, why would you drive instead of taking the three? Sheronne Vails started, but wasn't impressive; from what I've read from Louisville fans, it sounds like they were playing musical starters again. Asia Taylor was also a non-factor, with the bonus of not being able to hit a shot. Again, this might be a matter of musical starters. Shoni Schimmel has all the tools to be the best point guard in the country- by her senior year. Right now she's still raw, still wild, and still not as good in her judgment as she should be. But she's only a sophomore, and she has good court vision, and she's amazing when she cuts into the lane. She's slick, and she's fun to watch. When she matures, she's going to be very special... and by then Bria Smith will be a junior. That's a scary thought as a Big East fan.
This was not Tesia Harris's day. She looked like she was in well over her head. She was exploited defensively and inept offensively. Keylantra Langley hit one of her 'oh, hey, shot clock's running out, better hit a basket' shots, and her defense was solid, if not perfect. Mary Nwachukwu played well off the bench- she had someone to do the dirty work inside, freeing her up to look at the basket and put up the shots she's more comfortable with. She also boxed out well and did work on the offensive boards. This is what we're going to need from her going into the Big East season- a strong, reliable presence in the post to keep the pressure.
Amber Thompson looked like a freshman today- great hustle, good work going inside, but let a lot of stuff go through her hands and fumbled a lot of things that she's normally much better on. But it's sort of inevitable with freshmen. Shenneika Smith was solid, and her defense was on point. (All due respect to her, but c'mon, ESPN, she wasn't even close to being the star of the game. Why did you decide to interview her? Did you already have the story written?) Nadirah McKenith ran an excellent offense- every time Louisville made a run, St. John's had an answer, and she was part of why. She found the right person at the right time. Sometimes that person was herself. She helped shut down Schimmel, too. Eugeneia McPherson looked good, going to the lane and also hitting threes. If she can get a consistent outside shot going... we're going to be lethal. It's so good to see Da'Shena Stevens on the floor, and she's been battling so much that it hurts to see how much she's probably hurting. She got into a lot of grappling with the Louisville posts.
There were two calls that had Kim Barnes Arico about ready to go off on a ref, one where the refs missed a shot hitting the rim and refused to reset the clock, another where Da'Shena got hit in the face with no call. After she gave them several pieces of her mind, the officiating started to lean more towards St. John's. Overall, it wasn't bad- they let 'em play in the first half, less so in the second. When both teams are in the bonus with nine minutes left in the game, you might have a tightly called physical game.
I was disappointed in the turnout by St. John's. Look, guys, we're getting nationally ranked teams in here, we're on national television, would it be so much to ask that we make the place look a little less like a high school gym?
Dear dance team: can I have your jacket in an XL? Because it is awesome with the airbrushing and the sparkly logo.
We stuck around for the post-game autograph session, both because we both needed something for our cubicles and because we wanted to wish the team well. A lot of kids stuck around for that. Gee. I wonder why.
This was the crucial game for us. If we hadn't gotten this, I'm not sure any of the other games would have mattered for a chance at the tournament. But this was a big game, and a big win, and now I'm not sure what Louisville's going to do. I'm not sure if Louisville's sure what Louisville's going to do.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
January 8th, 2012: Bridgeport at Queens
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Purple Knights of Bridgeport led for most of the way in their 59-50 victory over the Knights of Queens College. Four Bridgeport players put up double figures, led by Tanisha Carter's 18 points and 10 rebounds. Nicole Caggiano led Queens with 19 points, 15 of which came in the first half.
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Ranked teams on CBS, wild card football on NBC, laundry piled up and needing to be done- of course this was a perfect day to walk down Kissena Boulevard and check out a game at Queens College like we've been saying we would do all season. There's a St. John's connection, you see- alumna Sky Lindsay is the new assistant there, and we promised we'd go out and support her.
I don't know if we're going to do it again. Security was obstructively helpful and ended up leading us through the back door. I'd really rather not be shepherded, if it's all the same to you. I don't mean any harm, and it's not like I was carrying a large bag that could be used to blow something up, and the guy sent us up the wrong way anyway.
Queens's gym is on the second floor of FitzGerald Gym, and you'll find yourself transported to another time when you go there. It's not necessarily a good thing. I'm pretty sure that's literally the same floor that Donna Geils and Gail Marquis played on and the same bleachers that people watched them from. The scorer's table is pretty nifty, with a clear arrow and what looked like a lot of nice gadgets. Everything else smacked of improvisation, though.
I have no idea what was up with the dance team's lime green leotards and black tops in the first half. They were pretty ugly, and in no way related to team colors. At least in the second half they put on Queens College shirts and looked slightly less like they were earning their tuition on Eighth Avenue. I do not appreciate signs blocking my view of the game, people. Just because it's bad basketball, that doesn't mean we don't want to see what we came to see.
I've never heard anyone with as thick a New York accent as the PA announcer at Queens. Mind you, I'm born and raised in Queens, and I do have a slight accent. But this guy sounded like an extra on any New York-based show you can name. I was almost embarrassed, but then, many stereotypes about my city embarrass me. (That goddamn Nanny...)
Bridgeport's uniforms are very purple, and I'm not sure what was up with the stuffed animal on the bench, only that they held it up like a trophy after the game. It's hard to tell, since not all of the substitutions were announced, but it looked like Bridgeport wasn't going very deep into their bench. The box score confirms this assessment, though the bench player I did notice, Casey Bray, wasn't the one who logged most of the minutes. This is why announcing substitutions consistently is important.
I like the way Edna Marant got to the basket- she was about the only player who was consistently drawing foul calls. Aziza Patterson scored a bit in the first half, but wasn't as effective in the second. Julia Colley demonstrated her English background with several dives worthy of EPL. Sometimes they worked, sometimes they didn't. She mostly looked for outside jumpers of questionable accuracy. Elinor Avny showed off her three-point shot in the first half, but didn't get going again until late in the second. I was most impressed with forward Tanisha Carter, though she's going to have to learn to handle double teams if she's going to be the first option for this team. She was hot for the first ten minutes, then faded as Queens's defense keyed on her in the second quarter (for lack of a better description), then came roaring back in the second half to hit her average. She's got nice presence in the paint, and could conceivably be a good fourth option for a D-I team.
Megan White came in long enough for me to notice her as she committed a foul and got good position in the lane. Cadie Chu played a lot of point guard in the second half, mostly because she was bigger than the starter, but I wasn't impressed with her vision. (Because she wears #1, and because she has a high-arcing shot with little spin, I'm assuming she's going to be Sky's pet project this year.) Caitlin Hopkins came in for a bit to give them some minutes in the post, but they mostly went with the starters, rotating Chu in as necessary.
If Marissa Resnick were about five inches taller and had a better handle, she'd be a D-I point guard. I like the way she saw the floor, though she and her teammates couldn't make the plays, especially on the break, that they were trying to make. Nicole Caggiano was the focus of most of the offense, which wasn't necessarily a good thing but wasn't necessarily a bad thing either. She got them going early. Samantha Gillman got them going late; if you could average her and Megan Lonergan out, you'd have two pretty good basketball players, because Gillman is way too aggressive and Lonergan backs away from too many balls. I like Gillman's physicality, though. If she had better hands... but that's part of being a D-II player, isn't it? Setting aside the “I chose Division II” slogan, most D-II players are going to have flaws; otherwise I'm pretty sure they would have chosen the free ride and the increased notoriety. Alexandra Marshall committed stupid fouls, but otherwise made no impression on me.
I understand why Queens brought in a former point guard as an assistant- the entire team is in dire need of lessons in ballhandling and catching passes. Bridgeport was able to start running clock with four minutes left in a six-point game because Queens could not get their offense going with anything that remotely approached speed. Whether it was on rebounds, on passes, or even inbounding the ball, they couldn't maintain possession long enough to get anything going. It was exceedingly frustrating as a basketball fan to watch this.
Officiating was a good bit more consistent than I've seen in a while, though Alexandra Marshall might disagree with me.
It was an interesting experience, but one I'm not sure I want to repeat. I know I'll end up doing so sometime in the near future. Maybe the next time, the heat won't be cranked up to max and the team will have figured out a little more about this whole basketball thing.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
January 4th, 2012: Providence at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: A late run salted away the Red Storm's first conference win, as St. John's defeated the visiting Providence Friars 57-41. Shenneika Smith had 14 of her 18 points in the second half, including the 1000th of her career, to lead all scorers, while Eugeneia McPherson added 12. Rachel Barnes put up 15 for Providence, which shot 28.6% from the field but out-rebounded the Red Storm.
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There are some days when you'll just take the win and run before you realize just how badly you played. This was definitely one of those days.
Moment of silence before the game in honor of the Big East's founder. Seems kind of late for a guy who died in September, but it was our first Big East home game, so I guess that's why.
Anthem was a bit off tonight. Trumpets, you have enjoyed winter break too much. Flautist, that better have been your sheet music you were checking on your touch-screen phone during the anthem.
Phil Seymore likes to take an odd position on the sideline, near the baseline. It makes sense if he's a coach who thinks his team is getting screwed by the refs underneath, but I imagine he doesn't see as much at the top of the zone, though I suppose that's what you have assistants for. Because they have a few kids from the area, they had a lot of loud people behind their bench, and I do think it's a bit classless to disconcert a free throw shooter on the road. I know that's how the “BRICK!” tradition started with Seattle, but it's a weapon that in college is better used at home. This was okay, though. It just gets us going, and I did two and a half years of improv. I can project like nobody's business.
Lauren Okafor, first, I refuse to refer to you as Lady. Second, wash your jersey. The pink marker in your numbers looks childish at best and is a uniform violation at worst. Her play bordered on dirty, and I'm fairly certain Da'Shena Stevens was going to kill her by the end of the night. Didn't Lola Wells use to be somebody of significance? She kind of turned into a non-factor, except for a second-half three that trimmed the lead. I was more impressed with Rachel Barnes's shooting- when she got going in the second half, I thought she was going to save the day for the Friars (the Nuns?) It's kind of silly to leave someone open from a spot when they've already hit a couple from that spot. Just saying. I have no idea why Alicia Cropper is starting for a Big East team. Maybe she just had an exceptionally awful game for some reason, but she couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, and she was taking both good and really bad shots. Teya Wright continues to throw me off, because Teya is pronounced like Tia, and we did a good job of shutting her down, though the foul trouble didn't help her either.
They got a few good minutes from Symone Roberts, but I was more impressed with the rebounding position of Brianna Edwards. I would write more about the Providence bench, but in general, it was an ugly game, and it's hard to write in more detail about an ugly game than “wow, you guys played stupid tonight”.
St. John's decided to open things up by giving everyone a heart attack before the game had even started. They ran out in their two lines for the lay-up drill- and then Nadirah's ducking out of the way of a pass and then I blink and someone goes sliding and Zakiyyah and Amber are in a heap in the lane and HOLY TOLEDO ROCKETS WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? I don't actually know what was going on, but there was water all over the floor during warmups. There were more mops going at once than I've ever seen in my life. At least no one was seriously hurt, though I did worry about Mary accidentally ROFLing herself into an injury of some kind.
Nice to see Zakiyyah Shahid-Martin out of the doghouse- she was a DND last game, though I don't know why (I can guess, but they're unsubstantiated guesses). She played briefly in the first half when Da'Shena went out after having her head sat on, and had one good defensive series and one bad one. Brief cameos by Briana Brown, Jennifer Blanding, and Mallory Jones; it was nice to see the whole gang get on the floor at some point or another, though Briana's appearance was more of an “I'm throwing spaghetti at the wall and seeing what sticks” shot in the first half. Tesia Harris also played briefly, but one dumb play pretty much got her benched for the rest of the game. Mary Nwachukwu didn't quite build on the momentum from her big game against Boston University, but she boxed out well. Keylantra Langley looked good on the boards, but her passing, both giving and receiving, was so far off that it was painful to watch. Don't fumble the ball out of bounds, okay, Key?
Eugeneia McPherson brought the drama with two three-pointers as the shot clock expired. She looked pretty good, and was about the only Red Storm player I didn't really start swearing at at any point, so there's a plus, I suppose. Da'Shena Stevens put up some pretty shots, but was slipping badly on defense. I think her teammates wanted to know what was going on more than once. Amber Thompson played like a freshman, with blatant frustration fouls and missed assignments- all the hustle, none of the discipline. Nadirah McKenith still looked a step off, but I wonder if that was partially because she was still coming back from the knee injury and was a bit more ginger after the issues with the floor. But we're better with her at point than any of our other options.
If you had told me at halftime that the second half, and especially the fourth quarter, would belong to Shenneika Smith, I would have kindly reminded you that Carnesecca Arena is a non-smoking facility, so put the pipe down. She had looked pretty awful for most of the first half, taking iffy shots and missing them badly, as well as being out of position on both ends of the floor and being careless with the ball. Her rebounding was solid, but that was it. And then something happened and she started hitting shots and going to the line. She needed 15 to get to 1000 for her career, and she got 18. (1003. Should I hope for 1500 by the end?)
Epic facepalm moment of the day in a day full of epic facepalm moments. Shenneika Smith on the fast break, hellbent on the basket, blissfully unaware of two Providence defenders all up in her business. So unaware, in fact, that Teya Wright picks her pocket like an extra from a Dickens novel. So unaware, in fact, that she attempts to complete the fast break and only then notices that the ball is no longer in her possession. It is customary to possess the ball before attempting to shoot it...
I expect a bit better officiating from Denise Brooks and Dennis DeMayo. (Other guy, I do not know you quite as well.) A lot of stuff went uncalled that could have easily festered into a fight. On both sides, to be sure.
Announcer guy, please keep the foul count straight on the floor, identify players correctly, get the lineup in the right order (by class unless otherwise informed), and do learn the difference between Da'Shena Stevens and Amber Thompson. And if you do make mistakes, correct them.
I don't know if Sky Lindsay's mom was joking about being pressed into service as a concessionaire at Queens College. And I'm not sure if she told me to get a better job or said she was going to tell Sky to get a better job when we explained the whole '5PM games are hard to get to with a 9-5:30 job' thing. But ladies and gentlemen, this is the Mama Lindsay experience and one of the biggest reasons why I miss Sky Lindsay. (I swear! We're going to Queens this season! Honor as a former Girl Scout!)
Neither of these teams looked like a Big East team tonight. Too many mind-numbing defensive lapses, too many people out of position on the boards, too many balls bouncing off hands and legs and arms, too many off-target shots... these were both two good defensive teams, but not as good as the score and the stats indicate.
I am hard on this team because I love them and I see the potential that's there. I hope someone, somewhere, gets that.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
December 31st, 2011: Boston University at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: St. John's put four players in double figures and led wire to wire in their 75-38 win over Boston University. Eugeneia McPherson and Shenneika Smith each had 15 to lead the Red Storm, with McPherson adding six steals. Chantell Alford had 12 for the Terriers, while Rashidat Agboola had eight points and eleven rebounds.
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The last Game Notes of Doom of 2011! Hard to believe, isn't it? The year's gone by so quickly...
I have to give BU fans credit- they took advantage of the three-day layover in New York and came in force. There were a lot of them. I also like their player-family gear. Johnny Thunderbird was almost too friendly to them- he darn near ran out of hats by the time he got to our section. (Yes, we got New Year's hats. Mine was red. /preens)
Our band has a gnome. Your argument is invalid.
BU looked exhausted. They were a step slow for most of the game; we're a good defensive team, but I've never seen us stay with a team through as many moves as we did. They would fake one or two or three times, and we'd be with them every time.
We saw a lot of their bench in the second half, because, y'know, thirty-point game, even a Terrier knows when to lay off. The spelling of Troi Melton's name makes me wonder if her family were Trekkies (but that's just because I'm a Trekkie myself). She gave them some good minutes. Whitney Turner was the first one off the bench in both halves, bringing them some size and physicality. Kristen Sims played a lot, but wasn't able to accomplish much. Greenberg started mixing in her deeper bench early in the game, so we saw a lot of players for short spurts.
Chantell Alford played well. She has a nicely balanced game, which I like in a player. Caroline Stewart didn't have a boxscore kind of game, but I like the way she took up space and the defense she brought. Rashidat Agboola did not demonstrate the world's greatest ball control, especially in the first half, when she had two bad turnovers in a row. Alex Young tried to make something happen, but it didn't happen. Mo Moran, who I dimly recall from her freshman year being someone to keep an eye out for, wasn't much of a factor.
Maybe someone gave Kelly Greenberg downers, maybe she's gotten one too many technicals, maybe she was wiped after three days in New York, but she was a lot calmer than I remember her being. I'm not sure if this is a good thing for her team or not.
Jennifer Blanding! The most popular woman in the room and the namesake of our Christmas tree, she got in late and made an impact. Big girl takes up a lot of space in the middle, and I wish Kim Barnes Arico would use her in those situations more. Briana Brown can't shoot straight, but she hit a three in an attempt to light the tree (alas, Mallory Jones went scoreless, meaning that Jennifer Tannenbaum is the only St. John's tree lit up today). Tesia Harris played surprisingly well, coming up with more loose balls than I think even she was expecting. Keylantra Langley was solid but unremarkable except for the one three that beat the shot clock. (Her flair for the dramatic usually annoys me, except when it has to do with the shot clock.) I think someone clued Mary Nwachukwu in to the fact that she needs to get her act together if she's going to get minutes, with Da'Shena's return and Amber's improvement. Either that, or she's still BC enough to get up for a game against BU, and she'll go back to soft mediocrity against Providence. But it was nice to see her hitting shots and going for loose balls.
Oh, hey, Nadirah McKenith! Nice to have you back. She's still a couple of steps slow, and the knee's bothering her, but she's going to be back, and I'm quite glad of it. She and Amber Thompson hooked up for a couple of beautiful plays. Amber was more assertive on offense than I've seen her in a while, and kept up her hustling for rebounds, even if she wasn't always able to get her hands on them. Shenneika Smith was quiet and a bit fumble-prone early in the game, but as time went on, that dagger-like shot showed up for the party. Eugeneia McPherson went for the shot instead of the foul, and her game was better for it. This is the Gina I enjoy watching- the one who goes to the rack without fear, who gives up her body without hesitation, and who strips the ball from her opponents like a pickpocket working Times Square. Da'Shena Stevens was bothered by injury- she was noticeably slow getting up and down the floor, and her shots were way off to the right.
The offense was a little loosey-goosey, and I think the coach got a little frustrated with the way they weren't taking care of the ball. But I liked the defense. Defense is good.
The officiating was the usual combination of confusing and solid. I'd really like to see more of an emphasis on tripping in the women's game, though. Too many knee injuries for us not to be careful with that.
It was hard to really get into this game after the big run in the first half. After it was 7-6, things got rapidly out of hand, which was refreshing and much needed. Now the hard part begins...
Sunday, December 18, 2011
December 18th, 2011: Memphis at St. John's (Chartwell's Holiday Classic)
Just the Facts, Ma'am: It was tight at the end, but St. John's came out as champions of their holiday tournament with a 64-60 win over Memphis. Shenneika Smith had 18 points for the Red Storm, while Brittany Carter had 23 for the Tigers.
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Finally, after entirely too long, it was time for the second game, and nothing says “pressed for time” like the team going straight from the stands to the court. I think the long delay due to both the foul issues and the, y'know, triple freakin' overtime left both teams a little out of sorts.
Big games mean tight rotations. Ann Jones was the reserve post, coming mostly to shift the forwards and set screens. Danay Collier was the reserve guard, mostly there to give the guards a break. She was a little bit of a threat from the outside, but not much else.
I love the way Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir runs the offense. She's going to keep Memphis fun to watch for a couple of years; if she's this fast a year off a torn ACL, I wish I could have seen her at full speed. Jasmine Lee was shut down- she was able to get position often, but she wasn't able to get the ball and move on the smaller posts. Unfortunately for us, that meant letting Brittany Carter get loose and shoot, and shoot, and shoot some more. She's got a pretty stroke. I like her hustle and her work in the lanes. Nicole Dickson also had a good game. Fouls got her in the second half. Ramses Lonlack is very much a loose cannon, and there are times when I like a player like that, but this wasn't one of those days. Well, as a St. John's fan, it was, but as a basketball fan, it wasn't.
Memphis stays on you. You can't show them weakness. I look forward to their matchups with UAB. They're similar enough in attitude that those games are doing to be interesting, to say the least.
Da'Shena Stevens is back. Be afraid, Big East. Be very, very afraid. By the time she gets to you, her shot is going to be all the way back, and her defense is already on point. She's still getting used to her teammates again, but when she's got Nadirah spearheading the break... this is going to be good. Tesia Harris's on-ball defense could use some work, but she had a good stretch in the middle of the game where she was contesting shots and pulling down rebounds like nobody's business. She's going to be one of those players we don't necessarily expect a lot from, but expect a steady stream of something from.
If I had a wee bit more of an ego, I'd think Shenneika Smith read the GNoD this morning and decided that she didn't like being called out for being less active than usual in the last couple of games. She was much more assertive today, coming up with the big shots in the first half. She had a couple of boneheaded passing plays that she knew were bad, but you live with those with her. Keylantra Langley got entirely too cute with her ballhandling, which is not the greatest of plans when facing an opponent with very quick hands (nine turnovers, Jesus Christ, you know Kim Barnes Arico tore her a new one for that). She's a good substitute, but she's not a point guard. Amber Thompson had a rough start shooting, but was able to get herself in better position in the second half and hit some shots inside. I love how she works, I really do. Eugeneia McPherson put up some wild and ridiculous shots that had no business going up. At leats she got free throws for some of them in the first half, but I'm going to lay off my usual soapboxing vis a vis the focus on drawing the foul first instead of attempting to hit the shot. I'm tired and you've heard it all before. Which is also why I'm going to lay off Mary Nwachukwu; she didn't do anything she hasn't been doing all season, and by 2012 she's going to be coming off the bench anyway, so I'm going to do a little work for my blood pressure and let go of my frustrations about her inability and/or unwillingness to use her size.
I was waiting for Kim to kill someone. There was a point in the game where (I think) Keylantra was pinned against the sideline by a Memphis trap and about to be forced out of bounds or into a five-seconds-stationary call. Kim was screaming for a timeout loudly enough for those of us in the tenth row to hear... somehow, Bonita Spence and the crew managed to miss it. Kim was... incensed. To put it mildly. The same situation happened a couple of possessions later, and Kim called the timeout with such an exaggerated gesture that we nearly died of laughter. And then they missed it again. Combine that with some sketchy block/charge calls, and I was pretty sure that one of those stiletto heels was going to be turned into a weapon.
Memphis brought a very loud contingent for both games, including one lost lady who persisted in sitting in our section for the first half. Ma'am, if you have been informed that you're sitting directly behind the opposing coach's family, you might want to move, as if sitting next to the band and behind the cheerleaders wasn't enough of a hint.
Football is stupid.
I can't say I'm overjoyed with this result, but a win is a win.
All-tournament team: Jasmine Bendolph of Louisiana Tech, Brittany Carter and Jasmine Lee of Memphis, and Shenneika Smith and Da'Shena Stevens of St. John's, with Eugeneia McPherson as MVP.
My picks: Carter, Smith, Shantale Bramble-Donaldson of Louisiana Tech, Kiara Etienne of Prairie View, and Nicole Dickson of Memphis (or Kiara Young of Louisiana Tech), with McPherson as MVP. Etienne got screwed.
December 18th, 2011: Louisiana Tech at Prairie View (Chartwell's Holiday Classic)
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Down by 14 with 6:26 to go in regulation, the Lady Techsters fired off a 21-5 run to force overtime and (eventually) pull out a triple-OT 89-83 win over Prairie View. Kiara Young and Jelena Vucinic each had 21 points for Louisiana Tech, while Kiara Etienne led Prairie View with 24.
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So is the game over yet? With all due respect to Prairie View and Louisiana Tech, by the middle of the second overtime, I was approaching the game the way I usually approach baseball games- “please, for the love of God, let the team that's in the lead win so the game will end!” I'm pretty sure everyone around us thought we were insane, but we just wanted it to be over. Honestly, I found myself wishing that Cynthia Cooper was still at Prairie View so she and Spoon could settle it in a one-on-one duel after the second overtime.
With all due respect to the National Anthem, I'm not going to applaud a recording, especially not one that drags on forever. Pick one that doesn't go on forever.
I don't think I like Louisiana Tech's alternate road jerseys. They don't go with the rest of the color scheme. I understand that these alternate jerseys match the men's scheme, but come on. Spoon worked the all-black everything pretty well, though.
Change in the starting lineup from yesterday, which shuffled the bench around a bit. Kanedria Andrews became the first player off the bench, and she was not nearly as effective as she was yesterday. Courtney Hayes, she of the not-actually-existing on the roster, put in a first half bucket and was never seen again. Tavasha Anderson started to make her presence felt late in the game, once the rosters had thinned and she was needed. She threw her weight around, especially in the third overtime (which, I'm sorry, is a ridiculous phrase to end up typing).
I'm not sure whether Kiara Young was consistent, per se, but she was always in on plays, and her score line on my card is quite beautifully multi-colored. Jelena Vucinic, I humbly apologize for forgetting about you and your crazy spins yesterday. I'm sorry. I won't forget your outside shooting again. Please forgive me. Shantale Bramble-Donaldson played well in the second half, and when she fouled out in the first overtime, I thought Louisiana Tech was done for. Whitney Frazier got her shot going, and had a really nifty block in the first half. Jasmine Bendolph hit the shot to send the game into the first overtime, so I'm not thrilled with her.
I felt like I should have been rooting for Louisiana Tech, but somehow I wasn't. Strange, that.
Fouls, fouls, everywhere fouls for Prairie View. LaReahn Washington managed to foul out off the bench; her temper got a little bit the better of her. Asha Hampton-Finch played a lot off the bench, and her length was useful in getting to the basket. She had to do a better job of holding on to the ball, though.
Kiara Etienne didn't put on quite as much of a show as she did yesterday, but she didn't need to. She came up big in the overtime, but that was as much a function of three people fouling out as anything else. The coaching staff really worked on Jeanette Jackson all game; I thought that was an interesting point of emphasis. I like her willingness to penetrate, and her judgment will improve with time. Larissa Scott continued to set the screens that so intrigued me about her, plus was able to get into the paint and hit some lay-ups. I like her offensive rebounding, too. She's raw, but she's a freshman; it happens. Michaela Burton and Latia Williams shared the same problem- an inability, or an unwillingness, to handle the ball. At one point, Coach Wilson yelled, “Just keep dribbling, Michaela, you're a guard!” This is a very young, very raw, team- no seniors and only two juniors of consequence, so they're going to be more dangerous next year than this.
The officiating was administratively messed up. With nine seconds left, the officials had to take several minutes to settle up the foul count. Turns out they'd mis-allocated a Prairie View foul to Louisiana Tech. Because both books were wrong, no free throws for Louisiana Tech. The foul was eventually retconned out of existence (for the record, it was Larissa Scott over the back- I had it on my chart, which is why I chart fouls and use different colors for each period, which becomes a lot harder at the third overtime, darnit).
By the second overtime, I was sure that Kim Barnes Arico was going to ninja someone with one of her stiletto heels if they tied the game again. It was hysterical. We may have been loopy by then.
Prairie View's contingent got a lot louder today than they were yesterday.
Classy move by Spoon not to have Louisiana Tech huddle up directly at center court.
It might be a long season in Ruston. They looked more like a Teresa Weatherspoon team today, feeding on their opponent's weaknesses and flashing better ball movement, but Fresno State would eat this team alive.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
December 17th, 2011: Memphis at Louisiana Tech (Chartwell's Holiday Classic)
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Memphis Tigers put the pedal to the metal and never looked back in an 86-67 win over the Lady Techsters of Louisiana Tech. Brittany Carter led all scorers with 24 points, while Jasmine Lee put in 23 for Memphis. Louisiana Tech got 16 points and 10 rebounds from Shantale Bramble-Donaldson.
For emptiness, awkwardness, team colors, and a ball of confusion, join your intrepid and sleepless blogger after the jump.
So then everyone left. The end.
I'm mostly kidding, but there's something painful about the neutral game in a hosted tournament. At least with the home team playing, you get the atmosphere of a game. But when the band packs up to go home and the cheerleaders put on real clothes and the bulk of the crowd leaves, things get quiet, and a little depressing. You can hear the referees communicating, the voices from the bench, everything.
Liberty fans, I am disappointed. You were enticed with the promise of Teresa Weatherspoon, and where were you? Shopping? You could shop tomorrow. Lucky you, the awkward choice doesn't have to be made.
We could have ended up with an awkward situation if both the family of Memphis guard Bilqis Abdul-Qaddir and the family of one of the Louisiana Tech assistants had stayed in our section. But the Memphis folks moved along behind the road bench, and we scared off the Louisiana Tech family. I'm okay with that. I like my space to yell at the refs.
There's something very 21st-century about hijab accompanied by a Memphis supporters' scarf.
I was more impressed with Memphis than I was expecting, but then, I've been skeptical of Memphis since around the time Tamika Whitmore gave up on being a consistent player. So sue me. I hold grudges sometimes. They play a lot taller than they are, and they're fast.
Lauren McGraw had a tendency to play a bit out of control- lots of fun flash, but a lot of moving faster than she was ready for. Danay Collier got a fair bit of playing time in her homecoming, but I can't recall much of what she did- I was surprised to find she had played that much, to be honest. Ann Jones came off the bench as sixth woman in the first half and showed a little touch, though the illegal screen she drew as one of her first moves was not exactly a promising portent. McFerrin only threw in most of her bench near the end of the game, so they weren't in a position to do anything exciting or interesting.
Jasmine Lee impressed me, though I can see the flaws in her game. Her stamina and conditioning could stand some improvement, but I like her instincts. She worked hard in the paint. Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir ran a nice offense- she's small, but she's effective, and fast. Brittany Carter's athleticism impressed me- she had a resounding block that we could hear on the other side of the court. Nicole Dickson displayed a little range, but also athleticism. I was most intrigued by senior guard Ramses Lonlack- she plays a lot taller than she is, and she has the footwork of a soccer player. Control wasn't great, but Memphis seems to like to play fast and frenetic.
Spoon, give Sophia back her 1999/2000 hair. Some things just aren't right.
Louisiana Tech went deep into their bench- everyone played at least five minutes, but I don't think Savanna Langston's five minutes were terribly impactful. Tavasha Anderson moves well for a big girl. Kanedria Andrews got into a lot of plays late in the game, but I think they were expecting her to do a lot more earlier in the game. Kiara Young brought speed, and offense, but not much else.
It's probably for the best that Courtney Hayes didn't do anything of note, because somehow she didn't make it onto the roster that St. John's printed up. So now I'm confused and don't know anything about her. Jasmine Bendolph showed a nice stroke, but I think she might be having back problems- she looked a little pained, and I thought I saw a heating pad come off her during one timeout when she was about to check in. Shantale Bramble-Donaldson did a good job establishing position down low, but Memphis was able to make her less of a factor in the second half. Whitney Jones can play- nothing spectacular, but a nice all around game from her.
Ah, the peril of double-headers when I can't bring the computer to the game. Things get vague, especially when people keep distracting me.
My husband/viewing partner/distraction pointed out that Louisiana Tech threw a lot of high passes, and wondered whether there's just that little height in the WAC. They were fast, and had great ball movement, but I'm not sure whether they are really her team yet. They made a lot of stupid mistakes and couldn't hit a lot of easy shots. I expected a lot better out of them, and maybe they were just off their game today. We'll see more tomorrow. Or today. Time travel tense trouble here.
The officiating bothered me- not necessarily because of the quality of the calls, but because it looked like they weren't sure who was the crew chief. Spence and Aliberti got into a debate early in the game.
Crowning Moment of Funny: Shantale Bramble-Donaldson grabs a rebound. Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir rips it out of her hands cleanly and promptly falls over on the endline. The whistle blows. Teresa Weatherspoon explodes, charging off the sideline to protest the call. The funny part? It was a travel on Memphis for Abdul-Qaadir rolling with the ball. Nothing says WTF like screaming bloody blue murder at a ref who's making a call in your favor... even as your team inbounds the ball.
Hello, Chris, you poor unfortunate bastard! Did you miss us? Because we miss you. I have no idea whether anything did go on at Taffner Field House; we had a long walk home to look forward to.
Tomorrow's matchups will be fun, and Lordie, do I wish Cynthia Cooper was still at Prairie View right about now.
December 17th, 2011: Prairie View at St. John's (Chartwell's Holiday Classic)
Just the Facts, Ma'am: St. John's held the Lady Panthers of Prairie View scoreless for stretches of five and seven minutes in the second half to claim a 66-50 comeback win. Eugeneia McPherson led the Red Storm with 20 points, also notching five steals. Kiara Etienne led all scorers with 27 in a losing effort for Prairie View.
For debuts, excitement, lots of purple, eyebrows being raised, and really good-looking wings, join your intrepid and chilly blogger after the jump.
There's something discomfiting about being down by a hefty margin to Prairie View in the early going. We were sloppy, and we missed having a steadying hand at the point to keep us from doing too much stupid stuff.
Attendance disappointed me greatly. Promotion needs work. Even luring Liberty fans with the tantalizing promise of Teresa Weatherspoon doesn't appear to have worked.
Prairie View looked like they were going with a short roster, and banking on the success of SWAC bowling in the design of their warmups. (Which is not to disrespect SWAC bowling; I had an acquaintance who bowled at a SWAC school, and it's SRS BZNS there. But bowling and basketball have different design sensibilities.)
A fair whack of the band was at the Holiday Festival at the Garden for the men's game, so they filled in with alumni and other substitutes. They didn't do a bad job, which is good. Our band has been hit or miss, to put it delicately. They did the anthem, and it wasn't bad.
Our PA announcer wasn't quite sure how to pronounce LaReahn Washington's first name when she first entered the game; as near as I can tell, it's a variation of Lorraine. She demonstrated a fondness for diving that would have made Mery Andrade proud. We didn't like her very much; she was rather fond of plays that were just this side of dirty. Kathryn Jackson played briefly near the end, and she moves pretty well for a big girl. Asha Hampton-Finch was in a lot, and I remember her being tall, but I can't think of anything else she did in the game.
Larissa Scott was rendered a non-factor because of the fouls. She positioned herself pretty well as a screener, opening up shooters, but not much else. Kiara Etienne stole the show, especially in the first few minutes, when she had 13 of Prairie View's 15 points. She impressed me with her shooting, especially from outside, but doesn't seem to know when to stop. Reaching with six seconds left in a game you've lost by 16, and then complaining about the call, is perhaps not the brightest move in the world. I seem to recall Latia Williams having a decent defensive game, but too much time has passed and I'm easily distracted. Michaela Burton looked pretty good for the Lady Panthers as well.
I have no idea how Tesia Harris's shot goes in. She puts it up like a shotput, and for a fair amount of time, it doesn't go in. But I don't understand how it ever does. She and Briana Brown both got additional time because of the injury to Nadirah McKenith, and I think Tesia made better use of it than Briana; Briana looked too much like a player who was rusty and uncomfortable with actual playing time, which is one of those cycles that has to be worked through, because yanking her makes the problem worse. Jennifer Blanding, folk hero of the masses (or at least the pep band) got to make a cameo, and it always impresses me how well she calls for the ball- the way she establishes position is almost textbook. Zakiyyah Shahid-Martin put in a little time, and tried to do some good stuff. But most importantly of all, St. John's got Da'Shena Stevens back. I won't deny that it did my heart good to see her back in uniform. She's still rusty, but her defense is on point. We've missed her quick hands. Haven't missed her sketchy free throw shooting, though. Come mid-January, we'll be fine.
Especially if Keylantra Langley keeps maturing. I've given her a lot of flack over the last season and change, but she's coming into her own. She's much more suited to a 2/3 role than the point guard role she'll be playing while Nadirah's out, but she's stepping up to the plate there. I also like what I'm seeing out of Eugeneia McPherson. She's choosing her spots and she's stepping up. She played the passing lanes hard today. Shenneika Smith's always a threat, and she'll come up with the big shot, but she seems to be receding lately. Maybe it's just that there hasn't been as much opportunity for her to get to the rack, which is her strength. Mary Nwachukwu, I am starting to give up. Stop staring at rebounds. Grab them. I like the little midrange shot, but we're going to need more than that, even with Da'Shena Stevens back. Amber Thompson couldn't hit the broad side of a barn in the first half, though she was getting good shots. She got better in the second half.
I don't know what was said in the Red Storm's locker room, but they need to bottle it and keep it for the BEast season.
I squeed a lot at our new assistant, but I have kvelled at length in the past about Joy McCorvey, so I will save you from my fangirling of the player whose jersey I wear.
I'm not sure what to think of Prairie View, beyond being duly impressed with Kiara Etienne. I suppose we'll know more tomorrow.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
December 11th, 2011: DePaul at Tennessee (Maggie Dixon Classic)
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Lady Vols of Tennessee induced 24 turnovers and 47 missed shots on their way to an 84-61 win over the Blue Demons of DePaul. Glory Johnson led Tennessee with 16 points, while Cierra Burdick and Alicia Manning both added double digits off the bench. Jasmine Penny led DePaul with 16 in reserve.
For exhaustion, wandering eyes, blurs of color, and a lot of orange, join your intrepid and sore blogger after the jump.
Tennessee is home for this game, so we're behind their bench with a lot of people in orange. I especially like the Tennessee-colored lei over in section 106. Tennessee is up 12 at the half, and it doesn't feel like it should be that much. DePaul's shooting well, though they'd be a lot better off if they could hit some of their bunnies. Tennessee's been rebounding well, and their defense is on point.
I love how John Whisenant talks about how there are WNBA prospects in all four games. Yes, maybe if you include the class of 2013, but I don't think a single senior played a significant role in the Baylor-St. John's game. I also don't think it's a good idea to talk draft strategy when the Seattle coaching staff is in attendance scouting (oh, and the Connecticut staff, too, though Thibault is a wee bit biased).
Kara Lawson is across from the Tennessee bench. There was a lady who looked a little bit like Loree Moore, but much girlier, so I don't think it was her.
Full disclosure: between looking for my team, gossiping with Ray, working on the Baylor-St. John's notes, and chatting with the people next to us, I found myself not paying as much attention to the game as I should, so these notes are not up to par, and I'm sorry.
Tennessee fans have some of the niftiest gear. They traveled in large groups, but the biggest group in orange... well, we spotted them during the first half, wearing the “We Back Pat” shirts. My husband went to talk to them at the half to see where we could get the shirt. Turns out the group in the “We Back Pat” shirts wasn't from Tennessee and weren't Tennessee fans. They were UConn fans who'd come for the doubleheader, basically to prove that UConn fans shouldn't be judged by the worst of their fanbase. We saw a couple of stray UConn fans, a lost UNC fan, a very lost South Carolina fan, and far too many Penn State fans.
Live by the three, die by the three, DePaul. Tennessee wasn't that much bigger than you are. Maureen Mulchrone (just a wild guess, what with the pale skin and the red hair and the name, she's of Irish descent) came in as a shooter off the bench. Jasmine Penny came in and played big minutes for the Blue Demons with Keisha Hampton and Katherine Harry both dealing with big foul trouble. I was impressed, though I wasn't thrilled with the way she knocked out Glory Johnson at one point. I don't remember much of anything else from the DePaul bench. My apologies.
Anna Martin looked like she was looking for shots she could get against the minor D-I teams of Chicagoland, but that she wasn't going to get against a team like Baylor. Brittany Hrynko couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, but she always seemed to be in a good place on the other side of the ball. Keisha Hampton never seemed comfortable, though that might have been because of the foul trouble. I didn't even see most of the calls; I blinked and she was out of the game. Katherine Harry showed off a pretty hook shot, but I don't remember much else she did. And I don't even know who Kelsey Reynolds is. I'm sorry, Kelsey Reynolds.
Alicia Manning put on a show. She was in a lot of places, and I think she had the move of the game with her pretty spin move. Briana Bass is adorably tiny, but not much else. Cierra Burdick went on a run in the second half that helped bury DePaul for good. Not much time for Isabelle Harrison.
Vicki Baugh's knee, or shoulder, or whatever, must have been acting up, because Burdick and Manning shouldered the load for her. Glory Johnson was everywhere on the court. Taber Spani looked a little out of sorts, like she wasn't quite with the program. I'll admit that when watching Tennessee on television, I tend to mix up Shekinna Stricklen and Glory Johnson, and when not looking at a roster, it's possible to mix players up. You have to understand that my perception of the game was less detailed than usual, and fading hours later; I have impressions of fast-moving orange and blue missing shots.
DePaul fell apart in the second half, and that's uncharacteristic of a Doug Bruno team. I guess that says as much about Pat Summitt as it does about Doug Bruno, though.
December 11th, 2011: Baylor at St. John's (Maggie Dixon Classic)
Just the Facts, Ma'am: 23 points from Eugeneia McPherson and a halftime lead weren't enough for the St. John's Red Storm to overcome the Lady Bears of Baylor. Brooklyn Pope led Baylor with 19 points in the 73-59 win.
For dizzying heights, depressing lows, hustle, pride, and supporters' scarves, join your intrepid and drained blogger after the jump.
Good morning, everyone! (Words that should never open a game report from a sporting event. It is too early for this.) But we're tipping off early due to a Ranger game at 7PM, making this the only time I've ever hated my Blueshirts.
I'm not sure I like the new Garden yet. It's very slick and very professional, but I miss the whimsy of the old Garden. The navy seats with their mahogany-colored armrests are very dignified, but depressingly dark. I'm sure it'll develop a soul over time, but right now it's... sort of generic.
A fair number of Baylor fans are here, though I'm not sure how much of that is connected to last night's Heisman presentation. Fortuitously, the Liberty section is right over the home tunnel. Hiiiiiii, St. John's band! Hiiiii, St. John's! You thought you'd escape us, didn't you? You thought you'd get a little peace and quiet, didn't you? Fuhgeddaboutit. I've seen a lot of orange, not enough red, and not a lot of blue. Maybe the flight from Chicago is late.
Baylor is tall. Not just that Griner kid, either. And there's a lot of them!
Very nice anthem by Maggie Dixon's cousin.
WE ARE LEADING THE NUMBER ONE TEAM IN THE COUNTRY AT HALFTIME. This isn't the best moment of my life, but that's only because I was at the Bethany Donaphin game and I was there when we beat Notre Dame. And we may get slapped around like a red-headed stepchild in the second half for our audacity, but we'll always have a two-point margin on the scoreboard at the half. St. John's is playing fearless and tenacious. Nadirah McKenith and Eugeneia McPherson and Shenneika Smith and all of them- my team, I love them. I love them so much.
This game breaks your heart. That's what it does. That's what it's meant to do. I'm sitting here near tears not because we lost, because I can take losing with dignity, I can take showing effort and pride, because we gave Baylor much more of a fight than we rightfully should have. No, I'm about to cry because I can't get the image of Nadirah crumpled on the court, holding her knee, being carried off, out of my head. It's not fair. It's not right. It's not fair. And it breaks your heart. I've seen ACLs. I was there for Rebecca Lobo and Meg Bulger and Becky Hammon and Stephanie White, and I know what it means if a player stops in a stretch and crumples to the ground holding her knee, what it means if they're testing the knee for flexibility and she has to be carried off the floor with no weight on her leg. I know what it means. And it hurts. (I mean, it hurts more for Nadirah, since it's her knee.)
So I don't know how to put the thoughts into words. I don't know how to talk about X's and O's and lay-ups and WHY ARE YOU SO TENTATIVE MARY and players I've never seen when I'm looking around the stands to see if Nadirah's back, if she's okay, if she's moving all right. It also doesn't help that the Maggie Dixon program had no scorecard, so I wasn't able to keep track of stats by half the way I usually do, with color-coded pens for each half and squiggly arrows connecting steals to assists to field goals, with running foul counts for both halves and starters marked. I had to make do with the back of a spare piece of paper and my trusty four-color pen. So if I'm a bit vague about who did what, it's because I couldn't balance both the makeshift scorecard and the program on my lap. And then there's the whole distraction of a point guard holding her knee, and I've seen that on the Garden floor before, I've heard that silence and wanted to pop someone for laughing during it.
Sorry. I'm dwelling, and if you're in Waco, you probably want to hear about your team. I was surprised that Kim Mulkey didn't take the opportunity to go deeper into her bench; I suppose she was expecting to do so in the second half, forgetting that past performance is not an indicator of future results. Sune Agbuke came in briefly for a lay-up, maybe for a little size. Apparently Destiny Williams went out a wee bit too late last night and got suspended for the first half, but I'm inclined to think she was showing the effects in the second half. She did a good job matching up athletically with Shenneika Smith, but Shenneika matched up equally well with her. I'm going to give Makenzie Robertson the benefit of the doubt and assume she's a better player than she showed today, because otherwise, I'm going to scream “NEPOTISM!” at the top of my lungs. Scrappy hustle players who play a little defense and not much else should not be your primary bench players.
I was surprised Brooklyn Pope got so much support from the crowd as she did. Given the way she left Rutgers, I would have thought the crossover fans (the confused folks in section 105 with the Rutgers gear on) would have told her to stick it where the sun don't shine, but she got bigger cheers than anyone except Griner. She played well in the first, but faded back a little in the second as Williams and Griner stepped up. Brittney Griner is an amazing player- I hesitate to use the term 'freak of nature' because someone's going to think I'm alleging something along the lines of what got Jordan Barncastle popped in the face, which I most certainly am not and would not. But that combination of speed and height is amazing. She did a great job on the boards simply by being able to reach up and pluck rebounds out of the air or tip them away from opponents. That being said, she won't make your jaw drop if someone plays her without fear. There's something about Kimetria Hayden that I like that I can't quite put my finger on. Well, other than the flop. I don't like that. But she was in the right place at most of the right times and took most of the right shots. Jordan Madden has an appropriate name for sports, and she just kept shooting. I'm not sure if Odyssey Sims is Baylor's point guard or not, or if they really have one, or if they really need one, but even the Baylor fans behind me were wondering why she was in the game at some points.
Zakiyyah Shahid-Martin came in, got a couple of offensive rebounds, and proved that she couldn't shoot over someone that much bigger than she is. Tesia Harris came in for a couple of stretches when we were a bit short on guards, but did nothing of note. Keylantra Langley played the bulk of the minutes off the bench, and Lord, I hope she's ready if Nadirah's injured. She played the passing lanes well, but I do wish she'd work on her shooting form if she's going to shoot at that kind of pace.
You know what I like most about Amber Thompson? She's not afraid of anyone. She's only a freshman and she's going toe-to-toe with Brittney Griner. She's going into the paint and taking opportunities when she can find them. And I repeat: she's only a freshman. I'm so looking forward to watching her mature and develop. She might be something special. Eugeneia McPherson stepped up, and I'm starting to think she might be turning into one of those people who steps up in big games. (Which is good. We need someone like that.) Shenneika Smith had a flashy defensive game and hit a couple of big shots, but she's more of a slasher, and there was a 6'8” presence in the paint who might have gotten in the way of her usual route. Nadirah McKenith was up and down at points, sometimes a step slow and a thought behind the defense, but she was starting to heat up when there was a confusion of bodies and a black and green blur and Nadirah on the floor holding her knee. She got a little fancy sometimes, but she was fearless. They were all fearless, except for Mary Nwachukwu, who needs to be less tentative. Don't tell me you're scared of Brittney Griner when you used to scrimmage against Shields and Swords, okay? Not getting the rolls didn't help, either.
It would not be reasonable to blame the referees for a 14-point loss. Baylor has more talent and more height than we do. I can accept that. To be honest, I can even accept bad officiating. I'm used to it. But I cannot abide uneven officiating. I cannot abide undercutting, hammer blows, and tripping not called on one end and ticky-tack calls made on the other. I cannot abide 20-4 free throw differentials and 16-7 foul differentials. You're going to tell me it's okay for people to get slammed with no call? And Dee Kantner let this go on, that's what shocks me the most. That, and I'll say the same thing I said after one of these debacles last year. Baylor is a very good team, currently the best in the country according to the polls. They don't need the officials' help to score. They can do it all by themselves. Don't let the way things “should” be dictate what you do.
All in all, we did exactly what I wanted us to do: we impressed a bunch of potential, neutral fans. We proved that, yes, there's a team out there worth watching that's a lot closer to most Liberty fans than Rutgers is. We showed heart and fire and passion and grit and talent. We made it a much closer game than it should have been according to all the stats, brought it under the spread, even led them at halftime. People know we exist now. People are interested. I should be happy.
But I just keep seeing Nadirah on the Garden floor...
Sunday, December 4, 2011
December 4th, 2011: Hartford at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Amber Thompson's 19 points and 13 rebounds powered St. John's in a 70-45 win over the visiting Hartford Hawks. Daphne Elliott led Hartford with 12 points.
For imaginary Girl Scouts (and no damn cookies), validation, adventures with Sharpies, swag, and short-term jersey loans, join your intrepid and most squeeful blogger after the jump.
Hartford is not the Hartford they once were. Maybe somebody didn't pan out, maybe Rizzotti didn't get someone she was expecting to get, maybe the pipeline shut down, but this bunch of Hawks didn't impress me. Something seems not right about it, though. But I'll take a 25- point win anywhere I can get it.
The anthem singer definitely knew how the anthem should be done. I don't know if she had the voice for it, but she had definitely gotten some training. I think after last time, they weren't going to stand for a bad anthem, especially when ROTC was presenting colors. (The ROTC instructor doesn't tend to appreciate that kind of disrespect, and he's the only person at Carnesecca Arena louder than we are.)
There was supposedly a Girl Scout event going on that day, but I didn't see many Girl Scouts. /Girl Scout salute from Junior Troop 4839/ Apparently my high school's team put in an appearance too. Nostalgia day much?
Hartford got some rough play off their bench. Alyssa Englert has one of the fastest free throw releases I've ever seen, and she uses her elbow brace like a weapon. I'm minded of how Barry Bonds used his pads and protectors to draw HBPs. She took Nadirah down pretty badly with no call, and got a little bit of her own medicine right back when Eugeneia ran into her and drew a block on her. Milana Gilbert was not making friends with her elbows and physical play down low. Cherelle Moore came on as an offensive spark, but didn't spark very much. I seem to recall Taylor Clark being small, fast, and annoying, but not much else.
Daphne Elliott fired off three quick baskets in the first half, the second off a gorgeous Ruthanne Doherty screen, but we clamped down on her in the second. Doherty has the strangest pronunciation of her surname I've ever heard. She went in on us in the second. Amber Bepko sounds familiar from somewhere, which is really odd, because she's a freshman and I haven't seen Hartford this year. I'm wondering if she has an older sister or something. She's got a nice little shot. Nikkia Smith has the most potential out of those starters, in my opinion. I'd like her to lay off the elbows when she makes that strong spin move to the basket, but as a basketball fan, I like strong spin moves to the basket. Alex Hall didn't do anything that I recall. I assume that Jennifer Rizzotti looks for distributing point guards.
I like Hartford's drills with the weak hand, and if their three-point shooting gets hot, they could be a dangerous opponent, but while this is a team that can compete against any non-BCS team you care to name, they look like they'll have trouble with teams that either have more size or more talent.
It was nice to see all the kids get into the game. Given how physically Hartford was playing, I might have put Mallory Jones in earlier- she's a big guard, and she's not afraid to use her body, so the Hawks might have thought twice about some of their shenanigans. Briana Brown didn't score, but pulled down a couple of nice defensive rebounds. Keylantra Langley brought clutch shooting, including a buzzer-beating three to end the first half, and strong defense. I think this is the kind of game I'd like to see from her on the regular- I don't necessarily need her to beat the clock every time, but I'd rather she take fewer shots and have them count, then focus more on her defense, than go crazy shooting. Jennifer Blanding and Zakiyyah Shahid-Martin worked together on one offensive rebound that chewed up a lot of time and resulted in a lay-up for Jennifer. Tesia Harris was back to looking lost, simultaneously not assertive enough and too aggressive.
I'm starting to think that Eugeneia McPherson is getting a reputation for diving and throwing up junk to draw a foul, because she was getting fewer calls than usual in the first half. She's starting to step up her offense, and if she can stabilize her shots, she might get more respect on them from officials. It was nice to see Mary Nwachukwu back in town, and I hope things are better for her. She looked a little tentative, which makes sense given how long she's been away from the team, but she seemed to adapt to that and focused more on boxing out and doing the little things to help her team win. Shenneika Smith's rebounding has been great, but her shot's been off. I think she's trying too hard to make herself an outside shooter, and that's not her strength. She's a slasher- she needs to slash to the basket and use her height and long arms to get things in there. Good things happen when she goes to the hole. Nadirah McKenith had one of her “how many columns can I fill in the stat sheet?” games, even if she wasn't getting the shots to fall. It didn't help that she was playing long stretches without a break- I think that wore her down faster than getting regular rests, but I'm not Kim Barnes Arico. It was kinda obvious when her reaction time slowed.
But this game belonged to Amber Thompson. This was her coming out party. (Not like that.) Da'Shena Stevens had UConn; Amber had this game. She was more assertive than I'd seen her in the first seven games; if she hadn't had some odd rolls and missed free throws, she could have gone for 25. As a freshman, she's producing as well as the senior we lost to graduation, Coco Hart. If she can develop, she could become a Crystal Langhorne kind of player. I'm psyched about her. It's been a while since I've been this psyched over a freshman, and even longer since I've been excited about a post.
This was the post-game autograph session game, so we lined up with the Girl Scouts and the random passers-by and waited our turn with poster in hand. Eugeneia ribbed us a little bit- “how many of these do you have?” (The answer, by the way, is five including this year's, or six if you include the signed scorecard from the big Georgetown game {which is in my cubicle}, or seven if you include the roster and the signed ball, or twelve if you count all the signed college posters, or thirteen if you also include the Mystics poster.) Da'Shena's thinking Chartwell's for her return, which is about right. I do not think it would be a good idea to bring her back against Baylor. Keylantra came in late, so we had to double back to get to her. Then my loving husband figured that we might as well get some of the coaching staff while they were glad-handing, so he grabbed my spare Sharpie and the poster and worked with them.
Meanwhile, I got official approval from the former owner of my jersey to keep it. Hey, I kept saying that if Joy McCorvey wanted her jersey back, she could have it. I got a chance to ask her today, and it was settled. And I was happy. (We all have our favorite exceedingly obscure player. We all stan for someone. Leave me alone.)
These officials... I think there's a Twitter slang for where they can go, but I don't remember which direction the arrow goes in. But honestly, how much undercutting do you allow before enough is enough? It got to the point where Kim Barnes Arico gave the three of them several large and PG-rated pieces of her mind before going into the locker room. I think they had the fear of Kim in them at the end; the calls were much more plentiful against Hartford in the second half. I expected better from that crew; Lynch, Lonergan, and Aliberti are experienced refs, and they're usually pretty solid.
If this wasn't an anomaly for Amber, and if we can work on our free throw shooting, and if we can find someone to be the outside shooter so our slashers can slash, and if Nadirah doesn't fall over from being run into the ground, we're going to be good.
