Just the Facts, Ma'am: In an offensively challenged game, Vanderbilt came away with the 53-40 win over Fordham to win the Fordham Holiday Classic. Minta Spears had 11 points to lead the Commodores, with Rebekah Dahlman adding 10 off the bench. Samantha Clark and Hannah Missry each had 11 to pace the Rams.
For all kinds of ugly, penance, bad shots, bad beats, questionable passes, a lack of field goals, and bleeding from the eyes, join your intrepid and penitent blogger after the jump.
Now that we're done with the undercard, it's on to the title fight. Vanderbilt's wearing their road black with the champagne gold trim, the Vanderbilt star on each leg of the shorts. Fordham, of course, wears their home white, trimmed in maroon.
I have no idea who she is, but Rayte'a Long has my new favorite Twitter handle: @Fine_N_Vandy. I approve of puns and school pride.
More people are drifting in now. It only makes sense that the home team draws the most fans, but I wish people had come for the first game for the sake of seeing free basketball.
Entire sections and rows free, and y'all really have to come sit in front of me? Like, really?
Fordham concessions, how do you manage to screw up Diet Coke? Bottled Diet Coke?
Much friendliness between Stephanie Gaitley and Melanie Balcomb in pre-game handshakes.
At halftime, the score is 27-14, Vanderbilt. The second quarter was 6-3, and the three for Fordham came with something like five seconds left. ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?! Vanderbilt is committing procedural turnovers and could be committing more; Fordham can't hit water falling out of a boat. Rayte'a Long leads all scorers. With 7. I have not had enough vodka for this game.
The scoring picked up somewhat in the second half, but if it had managed to drop, there would be a giant crater in the splintered hardwood of Rose Hill Gymnasium.
Kendall Shaw played briefly in the first half, when Marqu'es Webb was taken out for repeated three-second violations and her refusal to not shoot directly into the body of Samantha Clark. Shaw promptly committed the same violation, and I'm not terribly surprised we didn't see her again. Kristen Gaffney got a little grabby down low- not to the extent that the Fordham faithful thought she did, but a fair amount. Marqu'es Webb filled up space in the paint on both ends of the floor, setting screens and getting boards.
Morgan Batey's baskets came at timely moments for the Commodores. Rebekah Dahlman has a really pretty stroke, but when she first came into the game, she made her mark on defense, playing strong on the ball. She's somebody I'd like to see come into her own.
Minta Spears set the tone early for Vanderbilt with two threes to open the scoring. She roamed the perimeter on both ends of the floor. Rachel Bell was more active in the second half than the first, getting her points in the third quarter but also committing her fouls. There's something I like about Jasmine Jenkins- maybe it's just that she plays bigger than she is, that she plays fearlessly.
Christa Reed was kind of a tweener (which, to be fair, is something like half of Vanderbilt's schtick) but was able to hassle the Fordham guards effectively with her long arms. Rayte'a Long got comfortable in the lane (though, again, she wasn't in there as long as the Fordham faithful thought she was) and made some moves. She was just as good facilitating things by setting screens and running the offense as she was going to the hoop. I don't think I'd call it a point-forward offense per se- Spears seemed to have the traditional point guard role- but Long came off as the leader.
I really liked how communicative Vanderbilt was, both on the floor and on the bench. Lots of encouragement, lots of reminders. (Can I be petty about Balcomb's fashion sense, though? That jacket did not fit. I don't know if it ever did.)
Lauren Holden shows the promise of someday being a very good point guard. But that day was not today. Today was the day where she looked like a freshman who couldn't handle the pressure. Vanderbilt's defense came at her, and she wasn't ready. Danielle Padovano was at least willing to shoot, and she passed the ball well. She did a little of everything.
If you're wondering why I didn't do my usual split-out of the bench into guards and forwards, Fordham only played two bench players today. I don't necessarily agree with this decision.
Samantha Clark would be a WNBA prospect if she could just finish at the rim, I swear. She has the strength, and she has the build, but she just doesn't use it as much as she should. Drives me nuts when I see her make a power move and then blow the shot. She had some nice blocks, though. Danielle Burns rebounded well and bore down on defense. G'mrice Davis was a disappointment- she had such a strong freshman season, I was hoping to see her build on it. But so far, about midway through sophomore year, she looks like she's relying too much on her physical gifts and not enough on whatever basketball she's learned.
Asnate Fomina did a good job playing with four fouls after picking up the fourth foul in the third quarter. I was worried about her aggression, but she was able to back off in time. I like her poise. (Now, why she was playing extended minutes in the third and early fourth quarters with four fouls, you'll have to ask Stephanie Gaitley.) Hannah Missry looks like a shell of the shooter she once was; I think she's lost a lot of her confidence. She hesitates more than she used to. She's made her offensive game a little more flexible, but if she's not scoring, and scoring efficiently, she's not helping her team elsewhere on the floor.
The passing was very sloppy. A lot of balls went where players were supposed to be instead of where they were, or where they were going. They were careless with the ball, and no one was attempting to help the ballhandler when the Commodores swarmed on defense.
The officials didn't help either side- there was a lot of contact not getting called, and that's with a fair amount of whistles being blown. I thought the call that got reviewed for the out-of-bounds at 1:39 left of the fourth was actually off Davis, so Fordham caught a break there.
Why would you even cheat in a dizzy bat contest? All three of you suck for not spinning the appropriate number of times, and none of you should have gotten prizes.
I don't think either of these programs have adjusted to the new rules. I think Vanderbilt's in a better position to survive despite them.
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
December 30th, 2015: Vanderbilt at Fordham (Fordham Holiday Classic)
December 30th, 2015: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at New Mexico State (Fordham Holiday Classic)
Just the Facts, Ma'am: A first quarter of runs gave way to a second half surge from New Mexico State, as the Aggies won the consolation game of the Fordham Holiday Classic 70-51 over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Brooke Salas led all scorers with 18 points, adding five rebounds. Brittany Mbamalu was the only scorer in double figures for the Islanders, with 11.
For sneaking, pressing, rebounding, blue jackets, back pain, and sandwiches, join your intrepid blogger after the jump.
Hello, once again! Day 2 of playing hooky sends your intrepid blogger up to Fordham for the second day of their holiday tournament. The undercard features Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and New Mexico State; since I've been hearing a lot about the Aggies from a Board Junkie.
There is an absolutely fascinating conversation about literature and publishing going on around me. I knew I made the right choice not backtracking to the J to the F to the D. (If you're an editor with interestingly colored hair and a girl with a laptop was shamelessly eavesdropping on your conversation on the E train, please drop a comment. It's a million to one chance, but it just might work.)
I really like Corpus Christi's colors. Very vibrant.
Why is my signal cutting out? :(
The perils of the undercard game: there are literally fourteen people in the stands, including me. It's filled up a bit since then.
At halftime, New Mexico State is up 30-26. Aggies got out to a 16-6 lead, on the strength of some tenacious pressure in the backcourt, before coughing up a 14-0 run. It's been tight ever since. Both teams seem fond of the three. Islanders are rebounding way better. Neither team can really finish at the rim, which has been frustrating as a basketball fan. Tamera William and Brooke Salas each have 7 to lead NMSU, Salas's last basket coming on a third-chance putback right before the buzzer. Brittany Mbamalu has 9 on a trio of treys to lead TAMU-CC.
If you go to a Fordham game, the Subway across the street is staffed by lovely, understanding people, and they deserve patronage and tips.
That game lasted far longer than it should have. Too many people were committing unnecessary fouls well after the outcome was no longer in doubt. No reason to foul a three-point shooter- well, EVER, but certainly not when the deficit is about 15 points and the time remaining is under two minutes.
The Islanders used a lot of subs in short stints, and seemed to do a lot of direct subs, especially at point guard (as opposed to rotation). This would be a lot easier with stats, but they're using Fordham's live stats, and obviously those are being re-set for the Fordham game. And it always takes a while for box scores to go up, especially for neutral-site games. Good thing I always roll my own.
I get this strange feeling that Shelby Miskell might be TAMU-CC's Nikki Jo- the maverick colt who needs to be... persuaded to get along with the coach. She was committing a lot of stupid mistakes late in the game, and getting reprimanded for them. Sure has a pretty shot, though. Mykayla Flores reminds me of a dwarf, but not the show-on-TLC kind, the kind that opens up cans of whoop-ass with axes in sword-and-sorcery fantasy (only less bearded). This is a terrible description. She's short, she's solid, and she's tough. She was relentless on defense and had a high-arcing shot on offense. She took a lot of contact and dished out a lot of contact. Shola Adebayo was a scorer in the first half, putting up threes, but in the second half, she was doing more on defense, or at least trying to do more on defense. She really racked up the fouls early in the fourth quarter.
Camesha Davis was very active on the glass and defensively- she had a beautiful block on Moriah Mack. Maddisen Turner and her mini-pigtails stood tall down low. She had a play that was almost a wonderful defensive play, but she was just in the circle, and it went from drawing a charge to an and-1 for Brooke Salas. Uri Jolivette saw her time in the second half, and was somewhat intimidating with her facemask.
Gee Lawler played her minutes in short spurts, getting spelled pretty often (usually by Turner). For a big, she's awfully tentative- I feel like she could have gone up more often and with more force. Kre'Ana Henry lists as a center, and rebounds like a center, but most of her shots were well away from the basket.
Jennifer Ramirez ran point, and while she has the leadership you need from a point guard, she didn't show the composure and quick decision-making under pressure that separates the good from the rest of the pack. New Mexico State brought a lot of pressure, and she couldn't handle the traps and the press. Kassie Jones got aggressive defensively and always seemed to be in the middle of the play. Brittany Mbamalu set up outside a lot and picked up long-range rebounds. There was a sequence where she almost lost the ball, but kept her dribble even as she went to the floor.
I am crazy in love with NMSU's full-court press. I love that kind of pressure, and they execute it really well.
Abby Scott reminds me of someone, and I can't put my finger on whom. Whoever she reminds me of, she has a really light, pretty, three-point shot. She tries on defense, too, but not as effectively. Emily Hardin saw her first time in the second half, and lit up from beyond the arc. She gambled well defensively. Her teammates really seemed to be encouraging her. Zaire Williams played point for stretches of the second half. She didn't look as comfortable doing it as any of the other options.
Jasmine Cooper got time near the end of the game and got a nifty block- but also got a block call against her. Brandee Walton also saw her time near the end of the game. Tyler Ellis was strong, and had good chemistry with Tamera William. I feel like she could have done more with her build inside. Moriah Mack came up with big plays in the second half.
Sasha Weber's tough. She got herself in trouble in the third quarter with three fairly quick fouls, though. Some nice rebounding from her. Shanice Davis came up big in the third quarter, including a sweet finish on a steal from Tamera William. Brooke Salas looked awkward, but when NMSU needed a big basket, they got it from her. She hit the basket to end the first half that kept the momentum going for the Aggies, and she had some key plays down the stretch as well. I like her spirit.
Brianna Freeman made a lot of good defensive plays- she had two beautiful blocks, one on Lawler and one on Turner, and a couple of steals. I like her activity on the floor and in the paint. Tamera William was everywhere, seemingly at the same time. She covered a lot of ground in a hurry. Sometimes she was putting a little too much oomph into her shots and not taking the extra quarter second to get a better shot.
When the press worked, it worked. When it didn't work, they weren't able to react as well. They relied on that and on their offense.
This wasn't a very good game, but at least it was a more interesting one than the title fight that was to follow. Not to mention that the Islanders have really boss gear, including their letter jackets.
Tuesday, December 29, 2015
December 29th, 2015: East Tennessee State at Iona
Just the Facts, Ma'am: A balanced, and not always pretty, effort led Iona over East Tennessee State. Aaliyah Robinson's 13 points were a team-high, but the Gaels also got strong performances from Joy Adams (12 points, 12 rebounds) and Alexis Lewis (7 points, 13 rebounds). Tianna Tarter of ETSU led all scorers with 19; Shomari Kendrick added a double-double for the Bucs with 11 points and 17 rebounds.
For red sweatshirts, questionably kept secrets, persistent beeping noises, big posts, lots of missed shots, stupid plays, cheering from the bench, and maroon, join your intrepid and liberated blogger after the jump.
The soundtrack for the next two days is "Scotty Doesn't Know", by the way. I had time off, two of my teams had ridiculous day games, you do the math. Today, this cold, rainy, winter-at-last day, I'm off to Iona to watch them take on East Tennessee State. I'm intrigued by ETSU, mostly because I used to know someone who went there.
On a rainy winter's day, the ride to Iona begins with a Gothic air, as the bus winds its way along the curves of Pelham Bay Park; the trees reach up in a mesh of bare branches, or sink beneath the weight of dead moss. There's a rusted, grown-over gate along the route; somewhere near the banks of the Hutchinson, someone has lost a beachball. Eventually one emerges from the Frost poem into the city of New Rochelle and its pride in the fleur-de-lys, but it's nice while it lasts.
There are more people here than I expected. Granted, that's still only about twenty people, but I didn't expect anyone.
Do your thing, blue-haired Buccaneer. Do your thing. Except when your thing is scoring on the inside. I don't like you anymore, Shomari Kendrick.
At halftime, Iona is up three, 30-27. This Iona team likes to get out to a lead, then promptly start playing remarkably stupid. The refs aren't helping, but when Philecia Gilmore (who might be the most basketball-smart person on this team, including the coaches) fouls a three-point shooter, it might be a long day.
Cassidee Ranger has disappeared from the team. I thought I saw her wandering around on crutches just outside, but if she was, then she's in exile and this is a thing that makes me sad. Y'all did not need to give me reasons to abandon y'all after this season.
Damika Martinez is here, wandering around at halftime and saying hello to people. I'm still waiting for her 14 to go on the wall next to the other one. When you make the record book your personal plaything, you get your number retired, this is a thing that happens, why is this a thing that has not happened yet?
One of the screens is broken; the upper right corner is dark and won't turn back on. They eventually managed to fix it during the third quarter.
Why am I doomed to love dumb teams? I mean, I don't love Iona the way I used to, but they're still one of my teams, but they're so ridiculously and sometimes relentlessly stupid.
We got to see more of the ETSU bench in the first half than the second half- although, more precisely, we saw more different players in the first half, and perhaps more minutes in the second.
Adriane Vaughn only came in in the second half. I decided to pay attention to her on one random possession, and she promptly committed a rather blatant hacking foul on Marina Lizarazu, so take that for what it's worth. She was also the emergency call-up when Chandler Christopher fouled out. Malloree Schurr was first off the bench in the first half and was worked in later in the second. I don't like her. I don't mean that in the sense of "she's doing things that are awesome against my team", I mean that in the sense of "stop whining and stop flopping, you not-so-little brat". I object to people who retroactively get technical fouls called against my team. I give her credit for her rebounding, though. Carley Lytton brought length, but nothing else of note.
Yamile Rodriguez is a big, big woman, and that's not including the big, big hair. She got a lot of looks because we were inexplicably sending guards at their big posts with big hair, but she really didn't take advantage of her size, and she didn't have a lot of stamina- she was only in for short stretches. She needs a lot of polishing. Raven Dean was first off the bench in the second half, possibly for defensive purposes? She didn't make much of an impression.
Shamauria Bridges shot the ball and played on offense like she was used to being far more athletic than anyone else on the floor. She's quick as lightning, which is really cool, but I don't know that she's ever had the basics of the game fully drummed into her head. Tianna Tarter impressed me- I like her instinct for the game, though her late-game clock management needs a lot of work; ETSU might have had a chance to go one more round in the foul derby if she hadn't held the ball as long as she did. (Please tell me someone in the SoCon, somewhere, sometime, has made a "Brush away the Tarter" sign. Or a sign with some other tartar-related pun. This needs to be a thing that has happened.) Chandler Christopher was there, and out there a lot, but I honestly don't remember much about her, except for the part where she fouled out.
Shomari Kendrick had a big first half, showing off a pretty hook shot and a lot of toughness in the lane. Karynda DuPree got on the case defensively in the second half, but Kendrick was still pulling down the boards. I feel like this might be someone I should keep an eye on going forward. Sadasia Tipps got in foul trouble in the first quarter, sat the rest of the first half, got a quick foul early in the third quarter, and I think spent the rest of the game on the bench.
Alexis Lewis lists as a guard for Iona, but today we were all reminded that she's got a fair bit of height to her, and she likes to rebound. I'd like it better if she could hold on to the ball when she gets it, since she wasn't always doing that so well. The volleyball tip only works if your teammates know to expect it. (And at least three of her offensive rebounds were off her own missed shots, on the same possession.) Treyanna Clay saw limited time, and showed that she still needs to learn the defensive schemes, but her time wasn't as limited as the other two Iona posts. Aurellia Cammock and Ashley Murray both seemed to be under the "one strike and you're out" protocol, both making brief appearances in the second quarter and both getting pulled after one bad play.
I have watched a lot of personally frustrating players over the years, but Karynda DuPree might be one of the most frustrating. There are moments when she seems to put it all together, when she rebounds well, when she makes the backdoor post play that used to be an Iona signature, when she's blocking shots with authority, when she looks like the 6-4 center her body says she should be. And then there's the rest of the time, where she watches rebounds go to other players, where she takes jumpers without following them, where she misses bunnies by the basket, where she looks lost and confused, when I want to tear my hear out. She had some of both today. Joy Adams is also up there on the list of players who frustrate me. She rebounds amazingly, and she can make plays athletically that make my jaw drop. She can make things happen. It's just that those things tend to also include committing stupid fouls, missing shots in ways I never knew they could be missed, and panicking at the sight of triple-teams. Schurr embellished the contact, but Joy probably should have been called for the technical for the elbow, simply because you don't put yourself and your team in that position late in the fourth quarter.
Marina Lizarazu drives too much to the left, but to be fair, sometimes I understand why she might be reluctant to give up the ball to her teammates. She made some nice defensive plays today, using the edges of the court as her defensive partners. But when she drives that ball, she's got to do better than just randomly throwing it up. She and Aaliyah Robinson both drew the short straw a few times, having to guard the far, far bigger Kendrick and Rodriguez. (I feel like I'm harping on this, but honestly, it looked ridiculous.) Aaliyah made some big plays on defense and hit a couple of baskets in the fourth quarter to stretch the lead out. Philecia Gilmore was in and out all game- I think she was nursing something, because she spent a fair amount of time on the bike to nowhere and the training table (usually yelling encouragement to her teammates while she was there). I love her leadership.
Why do we take so many threes? Especially when they're not falling? I know ETSU had big posts who were clogging the lane, but we've got to look inside more. (Granted, we also have to hit those shots. But then, we weren't hitting so many of the threes, either.) And why do we commit stupid fouls late in the game when all we have to do is sit on the clock? Joy and Marina both committed shooting fouls that allowed the Bucs to score with the clock stopped. If you're up six with under a minute, you're probably okay giving up the two.
Officiating was very inconsistent today. I recognized enough of these officials that I expected better of them. I don't like seeing hard body contact get ignored while touch fouls get called. It's dangerous.
No cheer squad, and dance team wasn't much interested in leading cheers. So noise was sort of generalized.
Maybe I'm being too hard on Iona because I've soured on them. After all, they led for most of this game. They rebounded well. Why am I only seeing the negatives?
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
December 22nd, 2015: Fairfield at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Red Storm's star guards came up big in their win over Fairfield. Aliyyah Handford had a game-high 22 points and six assists to go with seven rebounds, while Danaejah Grant had 16 points and eight rebounds. Casey Smith had 15 to lead the Stags.
For exhaustion, bad fiscal decisions, where did I put that Diet Coke, embarrassing shooting, speedy guards, Aliyyah's smile, and color matches, join your intrepid and baked-out blogger after the jump. Want a cookie?
It's too early for this. Whoever had the idea to have a basketball game at 2PM on a Tuesday the week of Christmas, thus ensuring that no one would be available to show up, should be keel-hauled. I'm here because I had vacation days left, but I was literally the first person in the stands and there are currently a grand total of four ticketholders in the building.
Liyyah decided to give us a scare by coming out late for warm-ups, but it was just a small medical issue. Kind of curious why she had to put the gloves on, but that's none of my business.
On top of everything else, today is Ugly Sweater Day, so everyone on staff is wearing Christmas sweaters ranging to the cutesy to OH GOD IS THAT ONE FLASHING. Ugly Sweater Day is a proud St. John's tradition, but if you're going to do it, do it on a day when people will show up. Which is not three days before Christmas in the afternoon.
Our gray is really too dark to be a home uniform. Technically, Fairfield's red is brighter.
All right, jerk with the dual Fairfield and Ohio State stickers in the rear window who was standing in the bus when the Q30 came in, you better be coming to the game. I mean, the Fairfield sticker gave away your loyalties and the Ohio State sticker was your jerk stamp, did you have to put the cherry on top by standing in the bus stop with a bus coming up your tailpipe?
Hello, dude in Michigan sweatshirt. Did Kim send you as a spy? Wait, that sounds too antagonistic.
Mom, it takes more than an hour to Jamaica from Park Slope, trust me on this one.
I don't think Sandra Udobi's playing today. She looks so forlorn. :( Sandie.
There's a woman here in a volleyball hoodie who appears to be a VIP. She approves of the flag. The flag is worth approving of.
After a bit of a rough start, St. John's is up 36-23, and it's clear, at least to me, that Joe Tartamella is using this game to see what his bench has to offer. The guards are looking good. Aliyyah Handford is doing Aliyyah things in the lane. Seriously, her Senior Day write-up is going to be epic.
Danaejah Grant was honored pregame for hitting 1K. Do ya thing, Nae.
That felt like it was closer than it needed to be, but at the same time, the bench got more extensive minutes than usual, and not just because Sandie DND. I think Joe felt it was more important to see what the reserves had to offer than it was to dominate the Stags, and I think he's right.
Sarah Stock was an emergency call-up when Casey Foley fouled out late in the game. Foley herself was defensively pesky. Kendra Landy saw brief minutes in the third quarter- I think she might have been the one who came in when Lizzy Ball started picking up fouls. Helena Orts came in briefly in relief of (I think) Smith near the end of the game. She and Khadidiatou Diouf both brought length, and when they were both in the game, there were a lot of long arms in the air blocking the passing lanes. Kristine Miller seemed to have a knack for being in good places defensively, though the box score doesn't help her. You'll just have to take my word for it that the Fairfield defense seemed better with her on the floor.
I love what Lizzy Ball brings to the table. She's super speedy- I've never seen anyone keep pace with Aaliyah Lewis the way she did. She's not the world's greatest shooter, although she did some work on that front in the second quarter, but she can change the game with her speed and her work on defense. I honestly don't remember much about Kristen McLaughlin- it seemed like they were going with Ball and Foley in the backcourt for much of the second half.
Kristin Schatzlein had a lot of open looks and took advantage of them- they didn't necessarily go in a lot, but she had them and they were good. Same for Kelsey Carey, sho also contributed on the boards with a nice move in the third quarter, moving around three Johnnies to get to it. Casey Smith did the down low and the dirty work, which makes her sound worse than she was- I like players who aren't afraid to do the things that don't get in box scores, and she was setting picks and making space for her teammates all day. She has a super fast shot at the line. I think she might have been studying tapes of Rick Barry or something. She wasn't quite under-handed, but she dipped a little low on them.
Fairfield was really good at getting into the passing lane and scoring clean interceptions. They recognized how much we like to drive the baseline and put a lot of bodies in the paint to block those passes.
O HAI SOX. Tamesha Alexander got to run the offense near the end of both halves. I thought she did all right for herself- would love to see a +/- for this game to confirm that. She's gotta work on her free throws, though. (So do all of our players, though.) Crystal Simmons brought some athletic moves and some defense, and then hit two funky-looking threes, the second one about when I had just commented about her offensive limitations. I like when players prove me wrong in a positive manner.
Some nice rebounding from Jordan Agustus off the bench today. She seems to be settling in a little bit. I'd really like for Akina Wellere to stop being terrified to shoot- I counted three occasions where she backed out of a shot that was in her normal sweet spot. She's got such a pretty shot, and I'd love to see more of it.
Imani Littleton still needs a lot of work knowing where she's supposed to be in offensive and defensive schemes, but she's improving, and so is her rebounding- there was one she fought for in the third quarter in between spurts of Danaejah getting things done, and she got to the line for it. Keep pushing! Keep fighting! She's got the moves in practice- time to see them on the floor, methinks. Jade Walker showed off her shot, as well as a distressing tendency to throw passes to the other team. That is not how anyone should be emulating Eli Manning. I also hate the step-forward two, the bastard sister of the step-back three.
Tiny Aaliyah Lewis is tiny, but she's feisty and fast and defensive-minded, and these are a few of my favorite things. It disturbs me that her shots came up short, but then she hit the three in the fourth quarter, and it might have been near the end of the shot clock, and I'll take it no matter how or when it comes. Danaejah Grant was covered tightly in the first half, then erupted in the third quarter to stretch the lead before Fairfield came back again. Her defense was a bit lackadaisical today. Aliyyah Handford moves like something out of the Matrix, or maybe whichever Terminator it is that turns into liquid. She has frighteningly phenomenal body control. I don't always like the dramatics when she takes contact, but part of me is okay with it, because she does take a lot of contact, and sometimes drama is necessary to make the officials aware that things happen.
(but seriously, Liyyah needs to have a WNBA roster spot this summer, I need to be seeing her play basketball as much as possible, I may be slightly addicted, but she's just so damn fun)
Officiating was all right until around the end of the third quarter, when it looked to be getting a little sloppy. But St. John's got the advantage on most of it, so I'm not going to complain. That would be just silly.
Running a play called "UConn" against a team from Connecticut does not end well- Fairfield got the steal on the play.
I admire Joe for finding an STJ holiday sweater sweatshirt, but it's still an eye-searing thing.
We have to work on clock awareness at the end of quarters. Doesn't help that we had a basket taken off the board, either. I thought Aliyyah was on time, but I could be wrong. It's been known to happen.
Santa Claus went around the arena giving out candy canes. They're in my backpack. He lost the halftime tag team contest, and Johnny Thunderbird was trying to give him a fighting chance by taking a three instead of going for the lay-up... and hit the three on the second or third shot.
I apologize if these notes are terser and less useful than usual. It's been a long day, full of cookies. So many cookies. My blood may have partially transmuted into cookie dough.
Sunday, December 20, 2015
December 20th, 2015: St. Peter's at Seton Hall
Just the Facts, Ma'am: After a slow first quarter, Seton Hall took control and defeated St. Peter's 81-65. Aleesha Powell led all scorers with 17, one of four Pirates in double figures. Tabatha Richardson-Smith added 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Shakena Richardson had 15 points and eight assists. Talah Hughes had a team-high 15 points and six rebounds off the bench for St. Peter's.
For mild inaccuracies, big hair, disconcerting the shooter, hissy fits, finding the big girls, backaches, shooting contests, bad shot selection, and escaping, join your intrepid and festive blogger after the jump.
Hello and welcome to one of the holiday editions of the Game Notes of Doom! Your intrepid blogger is up entirely too early and on the way to Seton Hall for a noon tip against St. Peter's. So far, knock on wood, public transit hasn't messed us up yet, but we've got two more transit authorities to interact with, so one never knows.
And PATH didn't disappoint in that regard, lagging for close to fifteen minutes due to unannounced single-track operation.
Seton Hall is not good at early games. The first quarter was a tie, and the Pirates are up eight at the half, 44-36. Aleesha Powell has 15, Shakena Richardson 11. It's been a sloppy game by both sides, with a lot of passes to nowhere and a lot of missed shots..
The refs are already under fire after not bothering to review a foul during which Aleesha Powell's head hit the stanchion. There was a legitimate chance to look at it as a flagrant, but they didn't even review.
Tab, I really do want to like you, but on days when you play like crap and you act like nothing is your fault, we're going to have problems.
I really wish Patty Coyle weren't the head coach at St. Peter's, because I think I could get to like some of their players. But I can't get past their coach and the failure she was as the Liberty coach. I hold grudges. I'm not ashamed to admit it.
Janae Mayfield came in right at the end of the game. Alyssa Velles saw minimal time at the end of both halves, launching a deep three that had no chance of doing anything. Rebecca Sparks ran point when Marcia Senatus was in foul trouble- she had one nice pass to one of the posts (I want to say Bethea) but was otherwise unremarkable. Janelle Mullen shows promise, but I feel like she's trying to play shorter than she is- she gets low to the ground and it looks uncomfortable for her. She's got some really slick moves, and I think she just needs to get comfortable in her skin. She's going to be something special for them, though.
Talah Hughes came off the bench first in the first half and really provided a spark for St. Peter's. She's fearless inside and has a good nose for the ball. Plus, let the record show I'm always a sucker for a player who can rock an Afro, even if it's just a mini-fro. I was less happy with her after the play where Aleesha went head-first into the stanchion on a hard foul, but I wasn't quite as convinced as everyone else that it was a flagrant. (But you still have to review, Aldrich, and the words "doesn't mean anything" should not come out of your mouth at any point during the conversation.) Neechelle Ingram poured in the points late and was solid in the middle. I think she was the one with the big fan group behind the Peahens'cocks' bench, because they got pretty loud when she was putting in buckets in the last two minutes.
Bridget Whitfield is vocal, and not always to her team's advantage- she barked the refs after a couple of out-of-bounds plays. I really like Marcia Senatus- she has a nifty knack for hesitation moves, getting her defender in the air, and creating space for herself.
Sajanna Bethea has no fear in the lane. She's not always accurate, but she uses her build well and gets the job done. Seton Hall did a better job in the second half of denying her the ball, and that helped power the second half for them. Hala Mostafa seemed less involved in the offense than the last time I saw St. Peter's, but that might just be the change in personnel and the emergence of Bethea and Hughes. Her shot is still very strange-looking. Samantha Meier showed off a midrange jumper, but her primary purpose in the offense seemed to be to set screens and picks to get their shooters open- she had a beautiful one to get Senatus free for a three.
I love when the deep bench players get to see some time. Claire Lundberg came in in the last couple of minutes and actually took a shot that was not a three! Do your thing, Claire! Martha Kuderer wasn't able to follow up her last good game with a strong performance here- she got lost on defense a lot. Taylor Byrne showed her nose for the ball, but for the most part, she was a step behind on getting to the glass. Jordan Molyneaux came in once Lubirdia Gordon got two fouls and proceeded to commit two of the quickest fouls I've ever seen in my life. She was back on the bench in short order, only returning when the game was in hand.
Jordan Mosley needs to learn when not to shoot, but other than being a bit of a ballhog near the end, she gave good minutes. LaTecia Smith flaunted her speed, especially her closing speed, disrupting the ballhandler from behind a few times with it and getting flashy steals. Her clock management is getting better, too. She drives the lane without fear. I love it.
Tabatha Richardson-Smith got out of her funk somewhat in the second half, but that might have been the worst 14-point performance I've ever seen in my life. She took ill-advised shots, both outside and in the lane. She rebounded well, but a lot of those were rebounds tipped to her by her teammates. Her defense was sorely lacking. I know I'm being hard on her, but I expect a lot from her- it's the only way I'm going to see her come summertime, and I believe that she could be there if she puts her mind to it. Tiffany Jones had an off game with some flashy plays, and I think she knew it was a bad game- she seemed pretty frustrated when she went to the bench for the last time. Lubirdia Gordon showed how useful she can be when she's on her game- all of our tiny guards were able to find her under the basket for easy lay-ups, and she blocked shots like there was no tomorrow.
Shakena Richardson picked us up early when we needed her. She used her speed to get the offense going on one end and keep the St. Peter's offense off balance at the other- there was one sequence where she disrupted the ballhandler to the point where Tiffany (I think) ended up with the steal. She didn't get credit for the steal, but she made it happen. Aleesha Powell went in with floaters and fearlessness. She was the catalyst, and not just because everyone wanted to get revenge for her.
Momentum-swinger: the oft-mentioned hit on Aleesha by Hughes. Aleesha came back to hit the free throws, and Seton hall found their offensive groove.
Best sequence of the game: Talah Hughes attempting a shot, having it blocked acrobatically by a flying Tab, not taking the hint from the universe, grabbing the loose ball, attempting to drive in the paint, and having the second shot rejected with authority by Bird.
I like the part where Coyle wigged out over Seton Hall calling timeout to maintain possession of a loose ball. She completely lost it. I just shook my head and laughed.
The band honored this weekend's big event by playing both the opening theme and the Imperial March from Star Wars.
The band also played "Uptown Funk". I see you dancing, JaQuan. Have fun.
We need to be crisper. We need to play smarter. We need to not be looking past St. Peter's to the Big East season. Because it's time for the BEasties to come out and play, and a game like this isn't going to cut it in the BEast. We can't keep jacking threes, we can't keep committing stupid fouls, we can't keep passing to the bench and the band, and most importantly, we can't keep not listening to the coach when he says things. (Unless "motion" is actually a codeword for "Tiffany, take a three with 23 seconds left on the shot clock.")
Sunday, December 13, 2015
December 13th, 2015: North Texas at Iona
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Mean Green mounted a third-quarter comeback behind 10 of Kelsey Criner's 19 points, but it wasn't enough to erase a 21-point halftime deficit, and Iona came away with the 62-51 home win. Alexis Lewis led all scorers with 22 off the bench for the Gaels, who got 17 points from Philecia Gilmore and 10 points and 19 rebounds from Joy Adams. Teadra Jones added 13 for North Texas, while Bria Frierson flirted with a double-double, ending at nine points and 12 rebounds.
For localized rosters, music making people come together, bad decisions, big threes, counting down to defense, hard bleachers, and questionable pizza, join your intrepid and fatigued blogger after the jump.
I may regret this being gameday after karaoke last night, but it is in fact game day, as Iona faces North Texas. It'll be our first home game of the season for the Gaels, and I'm looking forward to seeing some of the rumored changes at Hynes. I'm also looking forward to seeing the North Texas team that knocked off Oklahoma.
Aaaaand I'm really not seeing how North Texas knocked off Oklahoma, given that they're down 36-14 to an Iona team that's not the Iona team that gave Marist fits, including a one-field-goal quarter. Alexis Lewis is on fiyah for the Gaels, with 14 all by herself. This is probably the best coaching job I've seen on the Iona bench in a few years.
Aaaaaand then the third quarter happened, with some of the dumbest basketball I've ever seen from a team I root for, and I can't even word some of it. How do you forget the shot clock twice in the same quarter? I think people just get their kicks out of making me look stupid.
Kasiney Williams is the tiniest basketball player I've seen in Division I in my life! I've seen a lot of short guards, and I've seen a lot of slight guards, but she's super short and she's super slight. I think Leilani Mitchell- she who the Board Junkies call Fluffy Little Bunny- has four inches and forty pounds on her. She left the door open for short jokes when her first shot attempt was a fast break lay-up that ticked the underside of the rim. She's fearless, though, but I guess you have to be if you're going to play D-I basketball at that size. Brooke Jolivette played brief minutes in the first half, of minimal interest.
Acheil Tac showed some flashes of athleticism in going for loose balls. She could do with a little bit of meat on her bones- might make her more effective in not getting knocked around down low without sacrificing any of her sproing. That's a science word, dontcha know. Tosin Mabodu mixed it up in the middle a little bit. There's something I like about her, but I can't put my finger on it.
Bria Frierson took care of business near the basket, at least on the boards. She positioned herself well opposite the shooter and got good reads off the rim. She took a lot of hits and made the most of the contact she got. Terra Ellison seemed constantly surprised that anyone would consider calling a foul on her when she was so always clearly wronged. (Sarcasm mode enabled.) Throw up bad shots, you're going to miss them. It's going to happen.
Teadra Jones got some nice baskets on the fast break. Candace Adams did her scoring late, getting on the board in the middle of the fourth quarter. She was aggressive on defense. I was most impressed with Kelsey Criner, whose name our PA announcer so carefully enunciated so as to not garble the C into a G and imply a familial relationship where none existed. She's the kind of guard who draws my eye and keeps my attention: aggressive, athletic, able to score outside and in, willing to gamble hard on the ballhandler, maybe not the best defender in the world within the system but who makes plays happen. I like her.
I think the Mean Green got more aggressive in the second half. It helped that the shots were falling when they hadn't been falling before, but they were getting better shots and closing the door on second chances on the boards.
With this specific starting lineup, I like the idea of bringing both Alexis Lewis and Aaliyah Robinson off the bench. They're both streaky shooters, but the odds of both of them being off on a given day are pretty slim; this way you can play the hot hand. Each of them also has her own knack: Alexis pressures the ball better, while A-Rob boxes out players far bigger than she is and goes hard for rebounds. Today Alexis was the hot hand, beyond the arc, on the break, and in the midrange. There's something about the way she holds herself, and the way she wears her hair, that reminds me of Damika last year. She's not Damika Martinez, not by a long shot, but I see what the hype is about. Aaliyah had trouble finding her range- if anything, she was getting too close to the line and shooting too strong. Clearly she needs to challenge herself more.
Iida Ahnenvainen came in briefly near the end of the first half, threw the ball away, and never saw the light of day again. I could be petty here, and I could be snide, but it's not really worth it. Ashley Murray is growing on me. When she makes moves to the basket, and when she makes her presence felt, good things happen for the Gaels. She just has to watch her feet, but more on that later. Aurellia Cammock came into the game for brief spurts when the starters were in foul trouble, and she cleaned up on the glass. She has to be willing to go back up with the ball, though. You're not going to get minutes if you don't try to score.
¿Qué te pasa, Marina Lizarazu? Her shot was really, really bad today. She always goes too much to the left, but even her left-handed shot in the lane had failed her for most of the day. She showed some flashy passes, even if they mostly ended up being footnotes to missed shots. Philecia Gilmore started the game off red hot, hitting three straight threes to open the scoring for Iona. She's sometimes too aggressive for her own good, but I think I'd rather that than a player who's not willing to make plays.
I love Karynda DuPree's blocks, and I love when she hits that little drop shot in the lane, and I love when she's not jacking ridiculous threes. I don't love when she's standing around instead of rebounding, or when the ball goes off her hands, or when she commits moving screens. Treyanna Clay ran the press well with Alexis Lewis, but that was her only major contribution to the game. Joy Adams needs to hit her bunnies, but I love how she skies for rebounds. Joy frustrates me sometimes, and I don't know if it's how she's being used or how she responds to it. I don't think the current system plays to her strengths, and I think her response is not to work within it, but to work against it. She's going to do her thing, come hell or high water, or she's going to be bad a the things she's told to do. There's failure to communicate at both ends, and I don't think the constant flux in the starting lineup helps that.
Things were going really well in the first half. I thought this was the best lineup we could run out there, and I liked the sub patterns as well. Then the third quarter hit and everything turned into a trainwreck. The first play that bothered me was a held ball- with one second left on the shot clock, Alexis was tied up with a North Texas player, UNT arrow. Iona called timeout. Under the old rules, that wasn't a bad play. But you get one fewer timeout now. In this case, I would have saved the timeout, let the arrow go, and then had the arrow in my favor. It didn't help that they came out of the timeout with no sense of urgency.
The next issue came at about 6:42 of the third quarter, when the clocks stopped briefly. I thought it was a two-second stop, which would have put the shot clock at 9. The officials disagreed with me, moving the clock forward five seconds, so that there was 6 left on the shot clock. The team came out of the official stoppage and played the possession out as if they thought they had 9 seconds. You have to know time and score when you come out of a timeout. No excuses.
There were a lot of mental lapses in general in that game. Too many Iona players boxed out their own teammates or displaced their own rebounders. Aaliyah accidentally took out Ashley. Things like that. We've got to be sharper. We've got to have better common sense, at the very least.
Other than that issue with the clock, I didn't really have any issues with the officiating, but counting seconds shouldn't be that difficult, should it?
Nice shooting during the timeout contest.
We have a band now! Okay, it's more of a quintet, and it's more jazz and less pep, but we have a band! Iona's also one of the few schools to take advantage of the new rules about music during stoppages, piping in chant cues before the ball is triggered in.
The official attendance is 503. I call shenanigans. 300 at most.
There's a lot of work that needs to be done still, and I don't know if this is the right combination of player and coaching personnel to get it done.
Thursday, December 10, 2015
December 9th, 2015: Yale at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: After a slow start, St. John's came back to win over Yale, 69-56. Danaejah Grant led the Red Storm with 23 points and six rebounds. Tamara Simpson had 20 for Yale, but she and Nyasha Sarju (18 points) were the only Bulldogs in double figures.
For trains on fire, corner shooters, size mismatches, chewtoys, and frustration, join your intrepid and pained blogger after the jump.
We're continuing on an Ivy League trend tonight, this time at St. John's, as the Red Storm host the rematch with Yale. It's a doubleheader with the men, so you already know it's going to start late, that people are going to give me grief about going to my rightful place, that most of the crowd will be filing out as the game begins, and that the fans who do stay will most likely incur my wrath by asking me about the men and ignoring the women.
The ad for today's game says that this is a red-out, and that you have to wear red to get in. This isn't a problem for me, since my shirt and my jersey are both red, but what if your St. John's t-shirt is white? And what about the Niagara and Yale fans? Will they be forbidden entry because they have the audacity to wear their team's colors? I'm really hoping this is an exaggeration, or that it's limited to students or something.
Now that I'm in the arena, it's actually super depressing. They weren't supposed to let us in until the final buzzer of the men's game, but we sneaked in for the last sixteen seconds or so. My impression is that it was a really bad men's game, from what attendees tell me and from the fact that it ended 48-44. The place was still packed. And most of those people are leaving, even though they can stay for free if they want to.
Because it's a red-out, St. John's is in the red, while Yale is in the white. So I still don't get to see Yale's road kit.
I forgot the flag. I feel awful.
Seriously, they did not think their cunning plan all the way through.
Oh, come ON, Yale fans, you're seriously going to sit in the section where the band normally sits? I may have to go take them in hand. Not to mention that now anyone who's staying from Niagara is behind our bench. Did NOT think the cunning plan all the way through.
At halftime, St. John's is up 31-21, and that's after allowing a 7-0 hole shot to the Bulldogs. Aliyyah Handford has 9 for St. John's, Danaejah Grant 6, and Jade Walker 6. Tamara Simpson has 10 for Yale.
I seem to have given my mother my bad transportation karma. I'm sorry, mom.
Who did Whitney Wyckoff piss off? She's gotten the short end of the stick from the refs all night.
I'm not sure how we turned that into a 14-point win. I'll take it- I'll always take a win. But it didn't feel like we did anything spectacular to change the momentum of the game. It might have been as simple as Yale not having the players to compete once you got past Nyasha Sarju and Tamara Simpson.
You're getting the St. John's notes first because I don't have names for many of the Yale players, and "what's-her-face, with the braid" is not an acceptable epithet in game notes.
I really liked what Tamesha Alexander brought off the bench in the first half, and I'm surprised she didn’t play in the second half. She was tenacious and tough, and the offense seemed to be moving well with her at point. Crystal Simmons brought solid defense and one of the funkiest three-point shots I've ever seen actually go in after being deliberately taken. Akina Wellere's three-point spots are definitely the corners- I think all the ones she hit were from the corners, and the ones she missed were straightaway. She's still learning the ropes on defense, but I like her effort and her hustle.
Brief Jordan Agustus sighting near the end of the first half. Unremarkable. We can all act surprised that she wears #23 for Jordan, though. Jade Walker brought offense and some interior swats off the bench. I know I harp on this, but I really like her offense when she goes inside out- intimidates defenders with that big build of hers, then steps outside for the sweet, sweet jumpshot. But I'm maybe a little in love with offense in the paint. I accept that. I'm okay with that. Wonder of wonders, Jade was not a magnet for mind-numbingly stupid fouls today.
Danaejah Grant has really buckled down and turned herself into a get-things-done player. Y'all know how much I love some Aliyyah Handford and her eye-catching plays, but Nae has turned herself into a great rebounder, an acceptable defender, and a solid offensive option, with more range in her game than Liyyah has. She's come a long way. She just needs to keep her head in the game and not get distracted by bad calls, because there will always be bad calls. Aliyyah had defenders all over her all night, and even going Neo-in-the-Matrix on them didn’t always work. So she passed off down low instead. She's just so damn fun to watch. Aaliyah Lewis moves like a jitterbug and covers space in a hurry. I think the stretch where she was on the bench for Sox helped clear her vision and get her head back in the game- it seemed like the taller Yale players were throwing her off. She's mom's favorite, in case y'all didn't know. (Me? Aliyyah and Sox, if I have to pick.)
I'm honestly not sure why Imani Littleton is still starting at this point, unless it's to protect players who are more prone to stupid mistakes. She barely played in this one, and I can understand why- she was passive on both ends of the floor. When you're the tallest player on the team, you have to make plays, and you have to at least have your hands up. Sandra Udobi wasn't very mobile, but when she made blocks, you knew she was making blocks. She didn't quite bring out the Mutombo finger-wag, but after the third one, I got the sense that she was tempted (or that one of her teammates was).
Our PA guy wasn't really good at announcing subs, so I'm not rally as sure as I should be as to who played when. Elizabeth Haley got some brief minutes in the first half. Mary Ann Santucci was tall and awkward and in everyone's way on both sides of the ball. I honestly have no real impression of Emmy Allen and Jen Berkowitz, except maybe for fouls?
Whitney Wyckoff got some very bad calls against her in the first half, on two fouls that should not have been called against her, and got a little bit of her own back in the second. I was surprised that she was doing so much ballhandling in the second half- she didn't seem all that comfortable with it. It might have been bias on my part because I tend to gravitate to names and faces I know, but she always seemed to be in the middle of play, whether it was setting up the offense or making plays on the defensive end. Tamara Simpson was strong on offense- not just in the "please allow me to introduce you to my 20 points" sense, but in the sense that she was strong and physical. The way she was hitting that one-handed shot off the glass, she's got to be a finance major, because she knows her banking. (I'll stop now. I've been sitting on it all night, though.) Katie Werner was small and kinda quick-moving. I seem to remember her around the sidelines a lot. Nyasha Sarju was one of the only Yale players who knew what to do with the ball when she was in a decent position to score. She had nice range on her jumper. She was very deft with the ball as well.
There was a stretch in the third quarter where the game briefly turned into a ref show, but it calmed back down after a correct out-of-bounds call against St. John's. Other than that, it was the usual round of inconsistency.
The men's team came and sat a few rows in front of us, with what looked like really bad Italian food. I hope it wasn't. Bad, I mean.
Dance team has been working on their moves. Cheer team needs to. They showed a lot of interesting stuff during Tip-Off- don't lose it now!
Aliyyah and Danaejah are going to win us a lot of games. It's up to everyone else to step up around them.
Sunday, December 6, 2015
December 6th, 2015: Michigan at Princeton
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Michigan rallied for brief stretches, but Princeton controlled the game in their 74-57 win. Michelle Miller led the Tigers with 21 points and eight rebounds. Katelynn Flaherty led Michigan with 33 points, but no other Wolverine had more than 8.
For t-shirts, broken promises, hard bleachers, plaid, free things, a lack of hustle, matching grays, sore quads, and let-downs, join your intrepid and sore blogger after the jump.
Greetings, readers both loyal and disloyal! Your intrepid blogger is on the road again with her favorite allies, headed down to Princeton for the Tigers' game against Michigan. As always when an Ivy League institution takes the court, I will attempt to elevate the level of my discourse, to better suit the academic reputation of both Princeton and Michigan.
I'm currently writing from the back of a Suburban Trailways bus on the approach to the Lincoln Tunnel. It's a more fiscally sensible alternative to taking the train, costing less than sixty dollars, as compared to approximately seventy-five dollars in train fare. The bus was very slightly late, but well within normal parameters. Given that the Giants and the Jets kicked off at 1, this may prove to be a poor choice, but we'll see how the traffic flows.
Even if we didn't already have a source for tickets, we'd be able to get in free anyway; Princeton's holding a food drive today. We're bringing non-perishable food items anyway, because we can. It's what we do. (Today is also the post-game autograph session! Wee, another poster for the fancave! In other news, we're going to need a bigger fancave.)
We have arrived! We have a t-shirt! There are a lot of Michigan people here so far. We might very well end up filling the allocated seating, and there are additional Michigan supporters across from the benches.
Coach Joy coming through with the swag! Did not expect more t-shirts, but will totally take them.
My Sharpie and my spare pen are on loan to a family who's making a sign. I don't normally approve of signs on the road, but you know what? It's totally worth it.
I see the Guru is in the house.
All right, this is serious business. One of the Michigan staffers is going around with 3 cards and rolly-signs. We're going to make some noise up in here. (And apparently there will not, in fact, be noise. Everyone is ridiculously quiet. What's the point of showing up to support your team if you don't cheer for them?)
At halftime, Princeton is up 33-24, and it hasn't been pretty. I think they might have gussied the place up too much for ESPN- the floor is extremely shiny, and we've seen a lot of slipping and sliding, especially in front of the Princeton bench. I would greatly appreciate if someone other than Katelynn Flaherty could score, though.
There's a lot of work to be done for both of these teams. Michigan's overall youth showed up in this one, while Princeton still has work to do on their fundamentals. I really expected far better decision-making from two schools as academically inclined as Princeton and Michigan, though.
I think I have a new favorite Wolverine to replace the graduated Cyesha Goree, and her name is Danielle Williams. She needs to be a little more offensive-minded, but I love her work on defense, and I love how vocal she is on the floor. Michigan is looking for a leader, and she seems like someone who can at least lead by example. Boogie Brozoski did not make a good first impression, missing her first two shots very badly, but I like her spirit. She doesn't always know where she needs to be yet, but I think she can learn. Nicole Munger did not always make smart decisions with the ball.
Kelsey Mitchell, who I'm sure has considered the possibility of trolling that school in Ohio, had a solid few minutes, cleaning up on the glass from ill-advisd Michigan shots. Maria Backman showed a little spark on the offensive end, but definitely didn't look like she knew her place in the schemes yet. There was one play where the ball bounced off her hands because she wasn't ready for the pass. Sam Trammel gave a few good minutes on the board, and finished the half with a sweet putback.
I'm sure Madison Ristovski is a lovely person, but I have the strong feeling that if I were a regular attendee of Michigan games, she would drive me up the wall. She's timid with the ball, and every time I see her make a move, I fully expect it to be a turnover, whether on a bad pass, a careless dribble, a slip, a fumble- something will go wrong. Siera Thompson's attitude on the court disturbed me. Maybe it was just this game, but she didn't seem involved with the game or with her teammates, and like she was perpetually smelling something sour (which, granted, might have been Michigan's shooting). Near the end of the game, she was dominating the ball, which I can understand since she and Katelynn were the only ones making any reasonable attempt to score, but I don't have to like it, and I don't have to think that it's a good idea, and I don't have to think that she's not going to do it in situations where it's uncalled for. Katelynn Flaherty was the Michigan offense today. She has a beautiful stroke and some sweet handles, and she knows how to make space for herself. There were times when she tried to get her teammates involved, and that was when Princeton's defense was best able to strike. It was starting to wear on her by the end- she was tired, she was making mistakes on defense, she was getting sloppy.
Somebody needs to train Hallie Thome out of bringing the ball down. She's 6-5- there's no reason for her to equalize the playing field by bringing the ball back down to where the guards can get at it. She's very tentative right now, and that needs to get smacked out of her in practice right quick. (So much for my plans to elevate my diction.) Jillian Dunston doesn't seem to have a position, or if she does, she's not fully sure of what it is. She's got a very solid, thick build that seems to indicate she should be hitting people with it, but she spent too much time for my liking floating around on the perimeter. When she did shoot close to the basket, the results were ugly.
I think Michigan is in dire need of some ballhandling drills- too many fumbles.
Courtney Banghart really didn't go into her bench for long stretches- it was almost as if she were trying on different looks with most of her guards (although, to be fair, the way Michelle Miller was playing, I wouldn't have wanted to take her out). We saw Tia Weledji first in the first half and last in the second half, just to give you some idea of the shift in rotations. Taylor Brown gave the impression of small quickness. I really didn't get a strong sense of Qalea Ismail's play in her brief minutes.
Leslie Robinson came off the bench for the first time in the second half, and she lit a fire under Princeton. She had a nifty steal for a fast break lay-up, she had a sweet pass for a basket- in a short burst of time, she got a lot done. And her teammates were loving it- they gave her the kind of cheers you usually only see when the last player off the bench scores her first basket in a meaningless fourth quarter shift. Taylor Williams saw the bulk of the bench minutes and produced some strong rebounds and stifling interior defense, using her length to ruin people's shots.
Amanda Berntsen has some slick, sneaky moves. She knows how to get to the ball, and how to get the ball to the basket. She's a little reckless, and her gambling started to get her in trouble in the fourth quarter, when she started racking up the fouls. I like her flair, though. Vanessa Smith started off well, and she was all up on the ball like white on rice. Princeton's defense was tough, and she was a big part of it. Michelle Miller was feeling it, both from deep and down low. It felt like she couldn't miss, though I know she did. She had the shot of the game for Princeton, an absolute back-breaker at the shot clock buzzer that was so ridiculous that it'll get its own little bitty paragraph.
Alex Wheatley has one of the most unusual free throw wind-ups I've ever seen- it's like she studied part of Rick Barry's routine at the line, but not the whole thing. She has some nice left-handed moves near the basket, including one nice reverse that I still don't know how she got into the basket. Annie Tarakchian looked more out of place than I've ever seen her in a Princeton offense. Her shots were off, and badly off- way too strong. She hustled on the boards, as did all of the Tigers, but it was strange to see her so out of place. I guess that's one thing we can at least partially credit the Michigan defense for.
Princeton stayed on loose balls. They were aggressive on both ends of the floor. They were the ones who never gave up on plays.
Play of the game: beyond the shadow of a doubt, Michelle Miller throwing up a three-pointer over her shoulder as the shot clock expired and hitting nothing but net. The Michiganders around me made a reasonable argument that Boogie had played stifling enough defense that five-seconds-closely-guarded would have been the right call, but that shot was so awesome I can't take it away.
Officiating was the usual round of inconsistency. Film at eleven.
The post-game autograph session was fun. They had little bitty autograph books for the kids- I almost snagged one for the collection, but they'd been in the box too long and the covers were starting to wear off. So we got a poster instead. Unlike most teams, almost every Tiger signed with her first name only, or even a nickname (apparently Alex Wheatley is "Wheaties", which is apropos and funny at the same time). Tarakchian recognized us from the trip to Seton Hall last year, which was a bit awkward, but you shouldn't give clues to an Ivy League brain. The aforementioned poster was for all Princeton winter sports; Taylor Williams (I think) made a point of checking off which event this was. Tarakchian was the first to sign, and she signed on the little sliver that was devoted to WBB. So periodically, as the poster went down the line, there was a laugh and an exclamation of "Annie signed on Meesh!" (I, uh. It was funnier in real time. I swear.)
Then, of course, the bus broke down in New Brunswick. My life, loyal readers. To be fair, it was a pretty quick turnaround to get a new bus out, but stiiiiiiiiill.
Thursday, December 3, 2015
December 3rd, 2015: Sacred Heart at St. John's
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Aliyyah Handford finished the third quarter on a personal run to spur St. John's to a 67-54 win over Sacred Heart. Handford led all scorers with 24. Danaejah Grant and Akina Wellere each chipped in 17 for the Red Storm. Shelby Hickey led the Pioneers with 12.
For camo, ambushes, sawing noises, Aliyyah Handford being awesome, hot heads, cool moves, and warm pizza, join your intrepid and time-challenged blogger after the jump.
Hi, everybody!
"Hi, Dr. Nick!"
It's another day, another round of basketball. This time we're back at Carnesecca Arena for the Red Storm's match-up with the Pioneers of Sacred Heart.
You already know how much I hate the Q59; I shouldn't still be on the train at 6:20.
Fortunately for the office dress code, STJ put some golf shirts on sale last year, so I have a lovely collared shirt under my jersey and scarf. One must always dress in style, you know.
Well, this is not going well. Sacred Heart is up at the half, 31-30. St. John's does not slog well. We're also committing stupid fouls- that charge by Aliyyah at the end of the half was textbook "player-control" fail. Sacred Heart is slowing the game down, and shooting threes, and those both work against our strengths. (Of course, having our three top forwards out with foul trouble doesn't help.)
That's right, Marines don't need any damn microphones, especially not ones that scream like tortured souls. There's a military swearing-in at halftime, as half a dozen volunteers get ready to join the Army. And we've got a second one with the ROTC, too. I'm going to just leave that here with no political comment.
I thought the point of Military Night and Greek-mandatory events was to get some goddamn noise in the building. There's no point to frats showing up if they just sit there and stay quiet. Since when do frat boys stay quiet anyway?
And then Aliyyah Handford said, "naaaaaaaaaah," and took over the game, because she's Aliyyah and that's how she rolls.
Sacred Heart seemed to be playing a lot of zone and clogging the middle of the lane. Lots of collapsing on penetrators. They read the scouting report. They watched the film. Their coach has a good head on her shoulders.
Kiana Ye was last off the bench, when the game was well decided, and the one shot she took was very, very far off the mark. Danielle Durjan showed some athleticism on defense and on the boards. Kelcey Castro made some big plays in the second quarter, hitting threes to keep Sacred Heart in the game and even leading for long stretches. She's a physical guard who can use her build to knock smaller players off their feet. She had some wardrobe issues in the third quarter, where the Sacred on her jersey got rolled up in her bra or something. It was unreadable. Erin Storck looked to be running the offense when she was in, but she didn't take the Red Storm pressure well.
Lerae Ettienne is tough, and physical, and intimidating with that buzzed silver hair. That's a woman I would not want to meet in a dark alley. She made space for herself and got boards. Cleo Polyzou's brace is in the running with Rebecca Lobo's for the title of Creature from the Black Lagoon. She hit a pretty little midrange shot. I kind of have to like the Greek girls- there aren't too many of us out there.
Tykera Carter left no real impression, and I think Sacred Heart liked what they were getting out of Castro better. Adaysha Williams got into the middle of a lot of plays and made things happen for the Pioneers, but I think we got into her head a little bit at the free throw line.
Hannah Kimmel is a very smooth player. Her shot got a little more hassled in the second half, but she still found ways to help her teammates. She carries herself well on the floor. Shelby Hickey kept coming up with threes from the corner, and quickly became the darling and favorite of the frat in front of us. They kept it clean, but just in case they didn't, I'm sorry. Alissa Tarsi is a load in the middle, and not someone to be trifled with. She wasn't necessarily fast, but she knew where to be, and Kimmel knew where to find her.
Yay, minutes for Tamesha Alexander! Or at least A minute. Poor Sox. Crystal Simmons got some minutes in relief of Akina Wellere. She made some defensive plays, but I often got distracted by her bad decision to roll her shorts up until she looked like she was wearing saddlebags. It's not a good look.
Akina Wellere, have yourself a day! We needed someone to be an outside shooter to answer the threes that Sacred Heart was putting up, and she answered the bell. She needs more space than I'm comfortable with to put up her shots, but hopefully that's something she'll grow out of as she matures. She's still hesitant, but again, she's a freshman. Jordan Agustus and her goggles got a few minutes in the first half due to the foul trouble all the forwards were in. She's got some slick moves, but she needs to learn to be aggressive and finish. Jade Walker keeps forgetting that she's 6-1 and solidly built. She spends way too much time on the perimeter, and we need her to be tough inside. To be fair, she's rebounding well. I would just like to see more hook shots and fewer deep twos. Hook shots are sexy.
Imani Littleton got into quick foul trouble, which was why Jade started the second half. She looks like she's severely lacking confidence out there, and I'm worried about her. Sandra Udobi was willing to sacrifice her body on defense, but her mobility is very limited, and so are her minutes- she started the second half on the bike, which was why Akina started the second half. Bailing in the paint when there are three defenders and Aliyyah does not end well for Aliyyah. I love Sandie as a human being, but her best basketball days seem to be behind her.
Aaliyah Lewis ran the offense like the maestra she is, and made defensive plays that would make a Giants corner jealous. She got called for a lot of little procedural turnovers, the kind of things refs don't usually pay attention to unless they're haunted by the spectre of Bonita Spence. Except for losing her temper and getting a technical for okay I don't even know what, Danaejah Grant had a fantastic game. She came up with some big boards and was hitting shots from all over the floor (okay, except beyond the arc, but we have 'Kina for that). She's really dedicated herself to improving her all-around game. But the show-stopper, the one who makes 'em all gasp and who can make magic happen, is Aliyyah Handford. She believes she can fly. Sometimes she's even right- why yes, that is Liyyah pulling off the alley-oop. She gambles too much and she takes too many hits. But when she gets that look on her face and she drives the lane, you'd be a fool to get in her way. She took over the end of the third quarter to put St. John's right back in the game, and Nae took it from there.
I'd like to see more of the press from St. John's- it looks like it can be very effective.
Can we maybe do some free throw drills? And not have Da'Shena run them? I love me some Da', but it was happy fun adventure time when she was at the line.
Officiating was not good overall. Lots of ticky-tack procedural calls, lots of missed calls on both sides, I have no idea why Nae got the technical, and Sacred Heart got screwed on a missed kicked ball that led to a turnover.
Things we have learned today: we don't slog well. We can't let other teams force us into a slog.