Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Marist Red Foxes allowed the Manhattan Jaspers first blood, then turned on the afterburners to win 75-52. Brandy Gang led Marist with 19 points in her 23 minutes, while Corielle Yarde added 17 and Erica Allenspach added 14. Abby Wentworth of Manhattan led all scorers with 20 points.
For bitter cold, anthems with vibrato, yummy hot cocoa, fancy footwork, sassy pigeons, and drunken alumnae, join your intrepid and freezing blogger after the jump.
We haven't done it as much this season as we normally do, but we do like to travel around the city and see what games there are to see. We had a choice between Wagner hosting Sacred Heart and Manhattan hosting Marist. Well, we've never been to Wagner, and it's been a long time since I've climbed the hills of the Bronx to go visit Draddy Gymnasium, so either way it was going to be an adventure. But the lure of seeing Marist in action again won out, so off we went on the A to the 1 to the end of the line.
Either the last time I went I got bad directions, or they added an elevator since I was there last, but the trip was much less arduous than when I went with my mother a couple of years ago. Up a few flights of stairs and around an elevator, and you're at a building that looks like something out of a suburban high school. It doesn't even look like the high school gym, but the front entrance to the school.
Special thanks must go to the lovely young lady who sold us our tickets and hooked us up with a scorecard and the media game notes. She was charming and helpful and friendly. Plus, the scorecard is really nifty- it's also a mini-team poster with the roster and the season preview printed on the back with the scorecard bit. We may put it on the wall somewhere.
Marist traveled very well. Of course, it helped that Casey Dulin's family made the trip from Connecticut, and the O'Connor shirt on one fan hinted at someone else's family as well. For the most part, they were pretty awesome, except for the one guy over by Manhattan's bench who thought it would be cute to get DE-FENSE chants going when Marist was up 25. I quietly listened to the two guys behind us who talked about the freshmen so I would actually know something about this team beyond Allenspach and Yarde.
There's a lot about the Manhattan experience I like. The announcer sounds like the prototypical small-college announcer, the tickets are affordable, the people are nice, the jerseys have names on them... but they should really turn the heat on. We were freezing, even in multiple layers. Fortunately, one of Manhattan's concessions is really good hot cocoa. Mmmm, hot cocoa. That sounds like a really good idea right now, actually.
We got to see a lot of the back end of Marist's bench in this one; Giorgis made an effort to work his reserves into the game early in the second half instead of just waiting for garbage time and unloading all of them at once. Casey Dulin got a lot of support from her family; a few of them were wearing shirts with her name on the back, which was a good hint as to their loyalties. Emily Stallings had all the chances in the world to get on the scoreboard, but she missed a lot of easy shots. It was kind of depressing. Maria Laterza had the same problem, though she made more of an impact on the defensive end. Kristine Best saw a lot of time as the reserve point guard, and I'm not sure if she's going to fit into the system as nicely as their current guards do- she has some of Caron's mindset, but too much offensive instinct to be the kind of distributor that Marist's system really needs. They got some very good minutes out of Kelsey Beynnon as offense off the bench. Emma O'Connor put in some work on the boards. She was popular with the people behind us.
Brandy Gang came out like... okay, I'm sorry, I'm tired and it's been a long day, my ability to resist bad puns is nonexistent... she came out like gangbusters. She was on fire. She had the inside game going, and then when she got bored with that, she started hitting threes. There was a point where she was almost outscoring Manhattan singlehandedly. She cooled off in the second half, but she also sat for most of it, because the Red Foxes really didn't need her. Élise Caron reminds me a lot of Debbie Black in her defensive tenacity. She gets up in your business like very few players I've ever seen. Her ball-handling and passing are a little sloppy, though, which makes the Black comparison a little less apt. Corielle Yarde took some time to get warmed up, but she turned it up in the second half, including with a nice shot off a deflection by Laterza. Kate Oliver appears to be a nice kid, and a tall kid, but she couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. There were one or two shots that I was fairly certain that I could have hit. She needs to get more assertive; at least she's only a sophomore and has time to do that. Erica Allenspach's rebounding, for a guard, is phenomenal. She was all over the place. I think half her points were on putbacks or on second chances that her offensive rebounding created. I love players like that. Fierce.
Marist's offense is fun to watch. There's a lot of misdirection and a lot of ball movement. Giorgis is also an interesting coach to watch. One of the best moments of the game was his frustrated command, “Stop going baseline!” delivered in the voice of someone who had been chaperoning the fourth-grade field trip just a little bit too long and had shepherded one too many youngsters away from the edge.
Monica Roeder impressed me off the bench. For a big girl- not in height, but in girth- she's got some nice touch. She's only a freshman, so she'll have time to work on being more assertive inside and showing better shot selection. Toni-Ann Lawrence really needs to work on her pass-catching. Her hands were like stone. It was sort of sad. Schyanne Halfkenny has an awesome name, but she really didn't contribute much. Manhattan didn't go very deep into their bench, to put it mildly.
Alyssa Herrington didn't play a lot for a starter- I think she was almost a straight swap with Toni-Ann Lawrence. It didn't really matter, as neither of them was very effective. It was hard to say anything like that during the game, because I think we were sitting near her family, if the reaction of the people behind us to the left when she hit her only shot was any indication. I really like Nadia Peters's tenacity and toughness on the boards, but either they need to get her the ball more, or they need to show why they don't give her the ball more, because it didnt' make sense that they weren't going to her when she showed that she could get position and defend her space. But then, I'm not a coach, so perhaps there's some reason she doesn't get the ball. I don't know. Maggie Blair started the game, but didn't play a lot; maybe Roeder was in trouble, or maybe Olenowski just doesn't believe in starting freshmen, but it seemed like Roeder was playing the minutes that Blair would get if Blair were an ordinary starter. Lindsey Loutsenhizer had a solid game. Nothing terribly remarkable for good or for ill. Abby Wentworth stole the show in the second half, going inside and out with a combination of a pretty jump shot and some slick moves in the lane. She also got herself to the line a fair amount of times. I'm still not thrilled with some of her tendencies on the defense (no, Abigail, it's not likely that Élise Caron will give you a piggyback ride, she's much smaller than you are and she's on the opposing team, so please stop attempting to keep her warm by doing your best imitation of Superman's cape), but at least she didn't act like she thought anyone on Marist had set her puppy on fire.
The referees were very inclined to let a lot of things go. There werne't a lot of calls on just about anything, and the play didn't edge over into overly physical, though there were a couple of fouls that could have been called (Emily Stallings, I am looking at you).l I can't say I'm happy with officials letting players get away with shoddy footwork, (Élise Caron, I am looking at you; when all is said and done, you could have walked halfway to the Canadian border with all those extra steps) but as long as it's called evenly on both sides, that counts as a fairly called game, and that's part of the point of officiating, right?
Really, though, the most amusing bits of the Game Notes- you know, the random things I toss in to keep you all smiling- happened on our way back. Ah, adventures on MTA, New York City Transit, Going Your Way (only during rush hours, service changes may apply at all times, with red lights and random delays thrown in without warning). The station nearest Manhattan College is an elevated station, and inevitably, outdoor stations have some encounters with wildlife. We got on the train, and there was a pigeon standing near the middle door of the car. We shooed it out the door. It promptly looped back through the next door and got back on the train. We shooed it out again, and this time it took the hint. There was just something indescribably New York about its demeanor. Then, of course, on the train in Queens, we encountered a random Manhattan alumna who was in the condition of most recent college graduates on a Saturday night in New York City. Lucky for her that she found us- she was on the wrong train! So that worked out.
See, this is why I love traveling to games. The adventure doesn't stop until you're safely ensconced at home, fingers flying over the keyboard, two different kinds of music conflicting in your ears as you worry about your seating arrangements and the fact that the computer is making you uncomfortably warm.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
January 22nd, 2011: Marist at Manhattan
Saturday, January 15, 2011
January 15th, 2011: St. John's at Seton Hall
Just the Facts, Ma'am: St. John's snapped a four-game losing streak with a win over Seton Hall, 58-48. Shenneika Smith's 16 points led all scorers, while Eugeneia McPherson added 14 off the bench for the Red Storm. Kandice Green led the Pirates with 15 points and nine rebounds.
For ridiculous train fares, the innocence of college sophomores, amazing plays, and blatant lies, join your intrepid and rather punchy blogger after the jump.If that wasn't what the doctor ordered, I don't know what could be. We already knew we could beat Seton Hall, or at least that we already had. We were going to be on the road, yes, but close enough to home that people would come out to make the trip, especially since Nadirah hails from Newark. We had time to think about how gods-awful that last game was, and I still maintain that I was right in lambasting them for the Connecticut game.
New Jersey Transit's fares are ridiculous. It cost us $27 combined round-trip to go to South Orange. I don't think we're going to be making this trip that often, or more than once a year. Between the fare and the long walk to the gym, especially since it requires a large loop because the gates closest to Walsh Gym are closed on weekends, it's going to take a lot of improvement from the Hall for me to go out there again.
Please do not ask eleven-year-old boys to sing the National Anthem. It does not end well. Sorry, guys.
It was great to see Amanda Burakoski willing to shoot again. Buzz, don't let the misses get you down- take your shots when you've got them. Her hustle this game was incredible- her hands were active and she kept her eye on the ball. She had some very blonde moments on defense, though. Keylantra Langley came in in short spurts to give Nadirah McKenith some rest, and because she was basically being used as a placeholder, she didn't have much of an impact on the game- she did score a basket for the first time in I can't remember how long, which allowed me to realize that the lady next to us was part of Key's family, not Briana Brown's like I had thought. Jennifer Blanding was rally out of it today. She must have left her skills at home. The and-1 was pretty, but that was about it. Eugeneia McPherson was our microwave off the bench- instant offense, just add butt-kicking. She brought the halfcourt trap nicely too.
I think Coco Hart's shoulder brace is trying to eat her. It's getting bigger every game. I don't know what they're going to do, because if this keeps up, she's going to need football pads, and we don't have a football team. She wasn't able to rebound the way she usually does, but she did a nice job of compensating for that by tipping the ball to her teammates a lot. She's leaving a lot of shots short, too. This is not a good thing. I do have to wonder where Sky Lindsay's game has gone this season, though she got us started nicely in the second half. Nadirah McKenith ran a solid game, and it looks like she's trying to get the team back to the running game, which I like. We work much better when we're moving. Da'Shena Stevens had an excellent first half for the Red Storm, and she takes way the heck too much punishment for my liking. Please do not elbow my players in the ta-tas, okay? It's nice to see Shenneika Smith's offense again. We missed it. It's pretty. I'd like to see less highlight reel and more simplicity, but I like points, just on general principles.
Jazzmine Johnson impressed me. She's got an incredible first step and a pretty shot. She made our lives miserable on the defensive end. Tajay Ashmeade appears to have fallen in the rotation, and if her games have been like today, I can't say I'm surprised. I guess Anne Donovan was using the LSU game to shake out what she had and doesn't have. And she doesn't have a lot. Whitney Wood continues to boggle my mind- I honestly have no idea how she ever ended up on a Big East team. She hit a corner three and that was all she did that I can recall being good and useful for the Hall. Brief cameos as well by Nicosia Henry and Terry Green, which surprised me- I recall Terry Green being a much more important part of that team.
We had no answer for Kandice Green in the paint. She knifed in all around us. She really showed out in the second half. We did a nice job of slowing down Ka-Deirdre Simmons, keeping her from initiating any offense until the last basket of the game (thanks for that defensive breakdown, Key, I'm sure Nana will never let you hear the end of it). Seriously, though. If Ka-Deirdre Simmons is five-eight, I'm Janel McCarville. If nothing else, after the game, someone snapped a picture of her with Nadirah, who's listed at five-seven, and she was visibly shorter. Kashmere Joseph is back in uniform (she was injured against LSU, which was the last time I saw the Pirates play) and gosh, I can't believe how little I missed her. She should have fouled out in the first half with some of those overly physical plays. She also needs to pull her shorts down. That all said, I thought she and her coach did a good job of using her outside skill set to keep her out of foul trouble once she got the fourth foul (of course, it would have helped if we'd driven in on her like we should have). Brittany Morris has a very odd looking jumpshot, but it seems to work for her. Jasmine Crew was off and on all through the game, showing flashes of potential.
Play of the game would have been Nadirah's emphatic stuff of Morris, except for the end of the first half. Went something like this: Seton Hall misses a shot. Coco pulls down the rebound, throws an outlet pass to Buzz. It's too far ahead, and we're holding our breath, thinking it's just another stupid turnover. Buzz somehow manages to save the ball on the end line to Nadirah, who sets up Shenneika for a lay-up as the buzzer expires. It was pretty awesome, except for the part where we thought Buzz had blown the play.
Play of the game for Seton Hall was Jazzmine Johnson's offensive rebound on the play where they were playing four on five due to contact lens issues that the referee didn't immediately pick up on.
Dear referees. Dear, dear referees. If a player checks someone into the boards, that is acceptable in hockey. It is not acceptable in basketball, especially when there are no boards. Gina almost left the gym the hard way. The proper call in that situation is certainly not to give the ball to the team committing the foul. Fortunately, at least the out of bounds was called correctly, even if somehow no one noticed that our player was checked pretty hard. There were a couple such plays, but the referees didn't do a bad job. The gentleman- Titus, I assume, since he didn't look like a Rachelle or an Angela- was a pretty quick counter, and I liked the way he differentiated between the different flavors of travel.
As I mentioned last time out, Seton Hall selects three players to sign autographs after every game, and we still had a poster to work on from the LSU game. Of course, one of today's three was a duplicate from the last time we went, which was mildly annoying, but that would still give us two new players, which would give us an acceptable amount of autographing before we stuck the poster on the wall with all our other nifty stuff. So we hung out in the lobby outside the gym itself, waiting for the Pirate players to come out and greet the few who would be waiting for them. They changed up the location slightly, which meant that we were waiting in the midst of the St. John's family and friends... and players, as they drifted out of the locker room with giant bags. Sky met up with her mom and family, Da'Shena met up with her folks, Buzz ran into the loving embrace of her mom and family, etc. Some folks met up with old friends- hence the picture of the picture of the two Newark girls. I have no idea where Gina knows Terry Green from, but they were chattering for a while. Green was also kind enough to sign our poster, especially since Jasmine Crew, one of the players who was supposed to sign after the game, either couldn't be bothered to come out or didn't realize that there was signing going on, given that we were the only ones waiting. Since Crew's the one who decided to play hockey with Gina, we're really not thrilled with her in our house.
Buzz... definitely takes after her mother. Not in looks, but in... a questionable and difficult to discern level of tact. We were telling a few people that we can't make it to the next game since it's at noon on a Tuesday, and we both work. “Well, why can't you take a day off?” “We have to save our vacation days for our honeymoon.” “Why don't you take your honeymoon at one of our games?” Simultaneous blushing and burying of faces in hands occurred. (Because, Amanda, we timed our wedding to fall between seasons, we have already followed your team to two road games and Madison Square Garden, our honeymoon will be the only-non-basketball related part of our lives and I don't think there's room for that under the bleachers at Carnesecca Arena anyway.)
So it was nice to see a win, and I'm much happier when we win, even though I still think we could have performed better, but under the circumstances, I have no reason to complain other than the fact that I'm very tired and I'm typing this paragraph with my eyes shut because I'm tired and they hurt from staring at the screen too long. You can tell by the degrading organization of my words and writing that it's time for me to finish this up and get to bed.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
January 12th, 2011: Connecticut at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am:: Behind yet another superlative performance from Maya Moore, the Connecticut Huskies defeated the St. John's Red Storm 84-52. Moore had 21 points, eight assists, six rebounds, and three steals. Tiffany Hayes added 21 points and eight rebounds for Connecticut. Da'Shena Stevens led the Red Storm with 12 points and five rebounds.
For dismay, distress, despair, and a severe lack of basketball on the part of St. John's, join your intrepid and depressed blogger after the jump.The good news is that more people in red are staying than we thought. The good news as a St. John's fan is that not a lot of UConn fans appear to have made the trip down, possibly having something to do with the giant blizzard that enveloped New England, possibly related to Syracuse fans buying up all the tickets. I'm not sure how thrilled I am about some of these people staying, given some of the remarks the college boys behind us were passing. Have I mentioned lately that alcohol and college athletics are a really bad combination?
We moved over a section, and we might be moving up a couple of rows as well, so we can actually see things other than the bench. Sometimes there's such a thing as having too good a seat, you know?
Shoutout to the hard-working photographers, especially SportsPage Magazine's representative.
The things I would like to ask St. John's are not things I can say in a public forum. Our offense is stagnant on its good plays and spastic on its bad ones. Our defense is out to lunch (how do you leave Maya Moore open, ever?!). Our coaching is sketchy. Our effort is lackluster. How many of these players actually want to be playing Big East basketball right now? Have they forgotten that things don't come easy? I think they have. I think they played too many cupcakes and got fat, just like Syracuse does, just like North Carolina does. I'm sick to my soul, knowing what this team can be and has been, and comparing it to what it is now.
I don't get it. I just don't get it. I don't know what's wrong with my team. And the sad part is that they're not going to learn anything from this because everyone expects UConn to lay the hammer down, and it doesn't occur to them that there are things to be taken away from a game like this, that there's no way on God's green earth the margin should have ballooned out the way it did. That's not taking anything away from UConn. They're an excellent, deep team that's developing its young post players at a dizzying rate. And, of course, they have Maya Moore. That's a pretty good piece to have.
Samarie Walker put in some work in the post off the bench. She doesn't have the bulk, but she's got the moves. She looks to be more of a slashing forward than a back to the basket sort of post. We got to see some Heather Buck, and apparently a round with a team that's lost its way is the cure for a lack of confidence. Bria Hartley is already showing the ruthlessness of a true Husky- not just the talent, but the killer instinct that separates UConn from a lot of teams. She's sure got a pretty stroke. Why or how we missed the scouting report on her, given that we also have a kid from North Babylon, I will never know.
There were three main differences between this year's debacle and last year's more closely contested game. One, this year our offense went on vacation. Two, this year our defense broke down. Three, this year Tiffany Hayes showed out. When we played them two seasons back at Carnesecca Arena, Hayes was a non-factor (this is the same game that won Da'Shena Stevens BEast FOY). She was showing more aggressiveness towards the basket than I remembered seeing from her, but that didn't mean she abandoned the three-point stroke. You'd think she'd have cooled off after the fifth one, but this is UConn. Lorin Dixon is really, really fast. For this team, she works as a point guard, because she doesn't need to be the spearhead or the playmaker. She just has to keep them from going completely off the rails. Stefanie Dolson... okay, I'll admit that when I first saw UConn on TV this year, I said, “Oh my God, it's Kara Wolters.” She was a step or two slow that I think we could have taken advantage of, but she clogs things up in the middle and is a good enough finisher to force teams to match up against her, which means they have to change their game plan, which will result in someone being left open. If you're having a good day, it'll be Dixon. If you're having a bad day, it'll be Hayes or Faris. If you're having an Arthur Pearlstein kind of day and moaning, “I knew I should have stayed home today,” you'll leave Maya Moore open, which is possibly the single stupidest thing you can do in basketball. Then again, if you guard her, she'll hit the shot anyway. I saw her glide in and hit shots against doubles, with hands in her face, into the arm of a defender- she had one possession with a gorgeous tip-in, another where she slid around with a silky move and went to the hole. So maybe that is a good plan. Leave her open and she'll get hers, and maybe you have a shot of stopping someone who's not a demigod. Seriously, she's like Connecticut's answer to Tamika Catchings, like Geno got annoyed he couldn't have Catch, so he had someone whip up a carbon copy for him. Kelly Faris also showed out in this game, though it seemed like she was taking advantage of being considered a weak link by our quote-unquote perimeter defense.
You know how bad we were? Briana Brown actually got into the game. And she wasn't completely awful. She looked a little lost, but that's to be expected when you don't play. Her first shot, she canned a sweet corner three. I'd love to hear from Coach Barnes Arico what the story is there. Zakkiyah Shahid-Martin also got into the game, though she didn't get as much of an opportunity. Keylantra Langley continues to look like a lost freshman, without the other two freshmen's excuse of not getting playing time. And if I ever catch someone's head hanging during play, I'm going to rush the court and shake some sense into them. I'm sorry, but no matter how thoroughly you are being embarrassed, hold your head high and don't act like you're ashamed to wear your jersey. Amanda Burakoski's confidence is shot (and this is coming from a very reliable witness). Why she's not shooting, I will never know. As her three to beat the shot clock buzzer proved, good things happen when she shoots. She's a scrapper, and she's a shooter, and she has to be both and more to be a player for us. She can't let herself turn into Kelly McManmon, only shooting when the defender is in the next ZIP code. Jennifer Blanding was not well-used in this game- she had very few opportunities to counter Dolson, and she was given few chances to attack the basket. Now, granted, this might be because Jennifer has a terrible habit of missing shots that I could probably make. But she's actually playing with heart and soul out there, and the way this team's gone down the tubes, that kind of effort needs to be rewarded. I will never fault Eugeneia McPherson's effort, though, because she might hurt me if I did. I will fault her three-point shooting, her tendency to believe that officials will reward you for going to the basket no matter how ill-advised the shot is, and her sudden inability to hit a damn free throw. But I will never fault her defense, her leadership ability, or her hustle.
Seriously, though, has anyone seen Shenneika Smith's head? Wherever it is, it's not on her shoulders and it's not in the game. She's passing up shots she should be taking for NBA-style glorified lay-ups that she shouldn't be taking, because the one that goes in looks beautiful on the highlight reel, but the ten that don't are disastrous for her team. Her defense is lacking, too. This all infuriates me because I believe Shenneika has the skills and the skill set for the WNBA, and if she's not careful she's going to blow it. I've already watched one potential prospect shoot herself in the foot this way (Monique McLean, two years ago, who reminded me so much of Shameka Christon it wasn't funny) and I can't deal with it again. I'm also going to need for Nadirah McKenith to stop worrying about whether she's broken her opponent's ankles with a crossover and start worrying about where her teammates are and where her assignment is on the defensive end of the floor. Don't get me wrong, she has a beautiful crossover that drew gasps from the crowd a few times, but she was so much more than that last year. Someone, and God help me, it might have to be me, needs to get her some footage of Jennifer Azzi or Ticha Penicheiro. I'm about done trying to figure out what Sky Lindsay's deal is. Whether she's been out-talented by the younger players, whether she's just counting the days until she graduates, whether there's something else going on in her life, I don't know, because I'm not Sky Lindsay. (I'd have bigger boots and be a better dancer if I were.) I have no idea what happened to Coco Hart, either, other than getting out-sized. While she progressed early in the season, she's back to being the epic fail we all know and... know. She was badly out of position on a lot of plays. It was very frustrating.
I wasn't thrilled with the officiating. Maya Moore, you are not allowed to hit Da'Shena Stevens in the windpipe. But I can't really blame that.
I just don't know what's going on with this team. I'm trying to figure it out, and I'm trying to ignore it, and I'm trying not to scream at the top of my lungs.
January 12th, 2011: Syracuse at St. John's
Boys? In my blog? It's more likely than you think. It's also more Orange than you think, what the hell?
Hello, Rumble in the Garden readers! I don't think we've been introduced, unless you were over in the comment thread from the explanatory post. My name's Rebecca-call-me-Becky-and-you-die, but around these parts, I'm known as Queenie. You can call me either- heck, you can call me anything so long as you don't call me late for dinner. I've answered to a wide range of nicknames, mistaken names, profanities, and the ubiquitous “Hey you!”
If I go to a basketball game, I write Game Notes of Doom. I've done this for the NBA, the WNBA, men's college basketball, women's college basketball, and a couple of international friendlies. I can usually be found over at Swish Appeal, but in honor of the doubleheader, I'm making a guest appearance here.
Be warned that I'll be approaching this game more or less like a novice. What I know about the St. John's men's team this year can be summed up as follows: they have a lot of seniors, they have a new coach, the women's team gets along with them really well, and Shiz Evans does a pretty good Ric Flair impression. There will probably be more questions in here than usual.
Today's notes will be coming from the vantage point of the endcourt seats in section 20, fairly low down. I expect to be able to see a lot of post play and three-pointers.
I was wrong about the seats. They're what we refer to as the sucker seats- deceptively low-priced low-level seats that face onto the seats. We've sat over here once before, in a memorable Maggie Dixon Classic game where Kia Vaughn puked her guts out in front of us. Fun, laughs, good times. Because the Powers-That-Be-Flaming-Idiots decided to reverse the benches for the two games, we have the distinct displeasure of being squeezed in among Syracuse fans and drunken idiots. Bonus points for those who combine both. I'm really hoping the switch is real, or I'm going to have some very pointed words for our connection in the marketing department who got us these tickets after two months of waiting. I'm also hoping a goodly number of the fans from Syracuse leave so I can see the goddamn game, because I've had to rely on the big screen far more than I like.
Things I have noticed: no one can shoot tonight, though Syracuse found their stroke in the second quarter. St. John's does not appear to actually know where their players are supposed to be. Kris Joseph's getting hot for Syracuse, which is not a good sign for the Red Storm. Burrell's got nine in the first half for St. John's, but it's on volume as far as I can tell. Megan, come and save me from this hell! (And in an exceptional moment of good timing, guess who's two sections over chatting up some more important people?)
So, remind me why the Garden is a recruiting draw for St. John's? “Come to New York! Play in front of thousands of opposing fans!” I'd say Syracuse fans outnumbered St. John's fans at least two to one. There were multiple audible chants of “Let's Go Orange!” How exactly does this work as a benefit?
C. J. Fair is the first player I can honestly say strikes me more as a point guard than he does as a forward- not even a point forward, but a straight-up point guard who's playing the forward position for reasons understood to no mortal man other than Jim Boeheim. I like his court vision- he made a couple of very pretty passes. Baye Moussa Keita was the first guy off the bench for the Orange, but I don't recall him making any plays worth remembering. James Southerland shows promise, but I might be biased because he's a Queens boy and we Queens kids have to stick together. Dion Waiters brought some canned heat off the bench.
Boy howdy can Kris Joseph shoot. He had some incredible shots in the lane, and a couple of nasty blocks on defense as well. Scoop Jardine also showed off his array of moves. And here's one of the differences between the men's and women's games- 6-2 and 190 in the women's game translates to a fairly hefty post with occasional delusions of three-shooting. I love to watch him work, though. Brandon Triche kept bringing the big shots whenever St. John's had some notion of making a run. I was also impressed with the work of Rick Jackson in the middle, setting screens and making room for his teammates to work. I like seeing a post player set things up for his teammates, doing all the little things so they can do the big things. He's the kind of guy who will have a solid game that no one will look at because someone else is always having a phenomenal game. Fab Melo has either the most ironic or most appropriate name for a Syracuse player ever. I'm honestly not sure which. I think I recall him doing some good things on the boards- I know that whatever he did, he did it in the middle.
Boeheim's zone is not nearly as much fun to watch from the endcourt corner. Since that's the only thing I like about Syracuse, this is sort of a depressing realization.
By the end of the game, Steve Lavin was throwing things at the wall to see what would stick. We saw a few rotations and bench players in the second half who didn't even think about taking off their warmups in the first. Justin Burrell had himself a very nice first half, albeit on volume. He put in a lot of work on the boards, but the man seriously has to improve his dribbling and general ballhandling skills. He lost a few boards out of bounds because he couldn't keep his hands on the ball. Paris Horne brought the blend of stylish moves and boneheaded plays that I remember bemoaning the last time I took in a men's game at Carnesecca Arena. Malik Stith didn't have a bad run near the end of the game, but it was the end of the game, and it's not always easy to tell whether a player can work under pressure when he's not under pressure.
I'm not impressed with Dwayne Polee yet. I see flashes of potential, but he's got to bulk up if he doesn't want to get broken. Dwight Hardy scored a lot, which was helpful, but he had some incredibly dumb shots and a lot of shots that he should have hit that he left short. I would have liked to see Dele Coker produce a little more than some free throws. It's a bad sign when a post player doesn't have any fouls- that sounds counter-intuitive, but if he's not banging down in the post and not using his body, then he's not helping his team. Malik Boothe did not appear to have actually shown up, other than for fouls. This is not something you want out of a guy who starts. At least Justin Brownlee had a decent game.
The Syracuse fan behind us made a couple of really good points. Why run with a team that can run? Why play a zone and leave a team open for threes that specializes in the zone on the other end of the floor and has a reputation for hitting threes against the zone? (Of course, my view of that is based on the McNamara teams, so if I'm out of date, please let me know gently.) I do wonder if Lavin's inexperience with the Big East came into play, and will continue coming into play- you don't necessarily know what these guys are going to throw at you if you haven't been going at them for years on end.
The officiating was odd. They were really letting them play, especially St. John's, as I thought the play was equally physical on both ends of the floor and Syracuse had more fouls for the bulk of the game. At the same time, there were some pretty rough plays that weren't called. Maybe that's the difference between the men's game and the women's game. I don't know. I'm not enough of a connoisseur of the men's game to judge it, and I doubt I'll ever be.
So that was disheartening. I don't like having my arena invaded by opposing fans, and the Garden is always my arena (the other team of my heart is the New York Liberty, and except when they're getting their house renovated, they play at MSG too).
Sunday, January 9, 2011
January 8th, 2011: DePaul at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Domination on the boards and a 24-point performance from Anna Martin powered the DePaul Blue Demons to a 69-54 win over the Red Storm of St. John's. Keisha Hampton, Felicia Chester, and Taylor Pikes each had 11 rebounds for DePaul. St. John's placed no one in double figures; Amanda Burakoski, Nadirah McKenith, and Shenneika Smith each had nine points for the Red Storm, with point guard McKenith leading the team with eight rebounds.
For celebrity recognition, raging at the heavens, a lack of hustle, and the cacophonous sound of free throws bouncing off the rim, join your intrepid and still seething blogger after the jump.
I'm sick to my stomach right now at my team. I love my program, don't get me wrong. But that means that I get exceedingly angry when I watch my team go out there and proceed to play like they don't give a damn about the game or their team. (I'm also sick to my stomach because of the shooting in Arizona, and I'm trying not to let that color my perception of things that have nothing to do with politics.)
The day started off so well, too, and both for reasons that had nothing to do with basketball and everything to do with basketball. It's one thing to be recognized by fellow message board posters and people who've met once or twice by your handle. It's another thing to be recognized by your handle by a professional in the field. Hi, Brooke! I love your work! And I'm not just saying that because you're a fan of the blog!
And it all went to hell in a handbasket in a hurry. The St. John's marketing department changed their story on the tickets we were supposed to be getting for the UConn game again, to the point where maybe we'll have them on Monday, which is not reassuring when the game is on Wednesday and they've been telling us we'll have the tickets in a few days for the last couple of months. While I appreciate being able to get to this major game (though not as much as I would have thought, now that I've seen how this team approaches big games), their handling leaves much to be desired. This is not the greatest move in the world.
Lousy anthem. This singer was billed as the first performer for a new label, and I hope that she's the last one, if she's any indication of their talent scouting. Her performance was awful, and she messed up the words. Messing up the words is unacceptable.
Doug Bruno is the only person I've ever seen who appears to be aging in reverse. Good for him. He's a good guy, and he's good for the game. I just wish he'd stop trying to officiate and coach at the same time. There's only so much you can do at once, you know.
I didn't even notice that China Threatt, who really has one of my favorite names in basketball, played in this game. Shows how much attention our announcer was paying ot the subs. I was also surprised that Deirdre Naughton wasn't really a factor. I was under the impression that she had been a major piece for them before she got injured last year, and Bruno really didn't bring in a lot of players this year. They got some good minutes from Deanna Ortiz, who brought a nice blend of size and touch off the bench. Maureen Mulchrone I mostly remember for her fouls, and I could have sworn she had two, although the box score says one. But what do I know? I'm just the screaming woman in the Joy McCorvey jersey. Taylor Pikes had some nice shots, but also some pretty dumb plays. Par for the course for a reserve, I suppose.
So apparently the scouting report that everyone read was the same one that St. John's read, because we did our best to contain Keisha Hampton and Sam Quigley. Great. We did a nice job on that, at least until the second half when Quigley started hitting some absolutely impossible shot. Her little finger roll comes to mind, but so does the cold-blooded three she hit near the end of the shot clock. Of course, this left Anna Martin open for shot after shot after shot. You get the idea. It was extremely frustrating to watch her take open threes or score on the fast break as St. John's defenders ran away from her as if they should have been holding matador capes. It's one thing when you're not expecting someone to go off, and if this had all been in the first half and we clamped down on her in the second, that would have been all right. That would have shown DePaul's depth and St. John's ability to regroup. But she was going at it deep into the second half, and defender after defender couldn't be bothered to stay on her. I am not amused. I am not even close to being amused. Felicia Chester and Katherine Harry brought good size and toughness down low for the Blue Demons, though I thought Chester really needed to tone down the screens slightly. She got called for one illegal screen, and should have been flagged for at least one more.
What impressed me most about DePaul was their ability to rebound. They chased balls and took advantage of every tap the way we usually do, except they did it with taller players. All other things being equal, the taller team will win in that situation. They kicked our butts on the boards. I have to appreciate that.
Of course, I also have to appreciate the fact that, for whatever reason I cannot possibly think of for a college student on a Saturday afternoon after a Friday night in New York City, Da'Shena Stevens got herself a nice little suspension for the first quarter of the game. I know that college games don't have quarters, but she didn't go in until after ten minutes had passed in the first half, so I'm calling it a quarter. She looked very disoriented and really like she didn't have her head in the game. It's a very bad sign when I'm hoping that the reason why was because she was still suffering from the concussion she suffered against Southern Miss. We got very good minutes out of Jennifer Blanding, who used her size well against the DePaul posts and converted on her opportunities for a change. Keylantra Langley showed me nothing; I almost wish she hadn't taken the one shot she missed so that she would have shown up in the boxscore as an eight billion, because that would have reflected her value in this game. On the other hand, at least in the first half and on the defensive end of the floor, Amanda Burakoski was putting in some work. Her hands were extremely active. She kept a lot of balls alive and had one sequence where she followed a sweet three with a steal. But in the second half she was suddenly very reticent to shoot. We were screaming for her to shoot the ball time and time again, but she wasn't willing and her teammates stopped finding her. I don't get it.
I also don't get why Briana Brown's not playing. I don't understand why Zakkiyah Shahid-Martin's not playing, though I've heard enough things that I don't wonder as much as I do about Bri. In the games I've seen, Bri has shown me more than Key.
The only reason I'm not attempting to eviscerate my starting lineup is because this part of the blog was written several hours later, after the Jet game, and my spirits have been lifted. I'm still absolutely livid at how lackadaisical Shenneika Smith was on defense, and how off her shots were on offense. She sat out the third quarter of the game, not coming back in until the ten minute mark of the second half, and unlike Da'Shena, I can't think of any medical excuse she might have had to be held out, other than the same thing that might have happened to Da'Shena, and to many college students on the Saturday after a Friday night in New York City. I wasn't thrilled with Sky Lindsay's effort, either, and her shot selection was not what I would have liked out of a senior leader. On the other hand, that's more than I can say for Coco Hart, whose presence on the court was unnoticeable for long stretches punctuated by moments of complete stupidity. Nadirah McKenith, while she was working hard on the boards, wasn't able to run much else efficiently. Her defense was not what I have come to expect from her, either. While Eugeneia McPherson didn't have a great game, I can't fault her effort. I can never fault her effort.
Prettiest play of the game for St. John's was Nadirah's stutter-step/crossover/move that faked DePaul out of their collective sneakers and possibly socks. Again, that was in the first half and it all went downhill from there.
I'm not thrilled with Kim's coaching in this game, either. I can only assume she had to balance her starters' stupidity with the needs of her game plan, since she couldn't just sit them both. I might have switched Da'Shena and Shenneika, since it looked bad for Kim to have Day not starting after the big ceremony for her thousandth point. But she still does an excellent job of looking like she doesn't know her personnel and wants to keep running the same game plan that was in her head at the beginning of the game and not adjusting to things that happened in reality.
We had a very good crew today- Denise Brooks, Bob Trammell, and Kathy Lonergan- so I have fewer complaints about the officiating than I normally do. I forgot how personable Brooks was. That's one of the things I like about her, though; she knows how to be friendly to the folks she's officiating for without giving up her objectivity.
It looked like a much nicer crowd than it was; the official attendance said 844, but it looked like more. Of course, my perception of the sound is always biased because I sit next to the loudest guy in the arena, and I'm usually one of the loudest people there myself. Except, of course, when my team's failure is so epic and dismal that I just can't do it anymore and I sit and watch the game quietly, with occasional pointed comments. I hate getting to that point, you know.
So I'm looking forward to the UConn game less than I was before, because not only are we on a losing streak, UConn is going to be looking for someone they can take out their frustrations with Notre Dame on. And oh, look, an undersized opponent who can't take advantage of them in the post, who's playing on a floor that's nominally their home court but that UConn has experience with and will be more like a neutral site game, and isn't playing at their very best. We're gonna get cheesed.