Just the Facts, Ma'am: It was tight at the end, but St. John's came out as champions of their holiday tournament with a 64-60 win over Memphis. Shenneika Smith had 18 points for the Red Storm, while Brittany Carter had 23 for the Tigers.
For jackets, the incandescent rage of Kim Barnes Arico, Panthers (or possibly Seawolves), and the show-the-ball trick, join your intrepid and decorated blogger after the jump.
Finally, after entirely too long, it was time for the second game, and nothing says “pressed for time” like the team going straight from the stands to the court. I think the long delay due to both the foul issues and the, y'know, triple freakin' overtime left both teams a little out of sorts.
Big games mean tight rotations. Ann Jones was the reserve post, coming mostly to shift the forwards and set screens. Danay Collier was the reserve guard, mostly there to give the guards a break. She was a little bit of a threat from the outside, but not much else.
I love the way Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir runs the offense. She's going to keep Memphis fun to watch for a couple of years; if she's this fast a year off a torn ACL, I wish I could have seen her at full speed. Jasmine Lee was shut down- she was able to get position often, but she wasn't able to get the ball and move on the smaller posts. Unfortunately for us, that meant letting Brittany Carter get loose and shoot, and shoot, and shoot some more. She's got a pretty stroke. I like her hustle and her work in the lanes. Nicole Dickson also had a good game. Fouls got her in the second half. Ramses Lonlack is very much a loose cannon, and there are times when I like a player like that, but this wasn't one of those days. Well, as a St. John's fan, it was, but as a basketball fan, it wasn't.
Memphis stays on you. You can't show them weakness. I look forward to their matchups with UAB. They're similar enough in attitude that those games are doing to be interesting, to say the least.
Da'Shena Stevens is back. Be afraid, Big East. Be very, very afraid. By the time she gets to you, her shot is going to be all the way back, and her defense is already on point. She's still getting used to her teammates again, but when she's got Nadirah spearheading the break... this is going to be good. Tesia Harris's on-ball defense could use some work, but she had a good stretch in the middle of the game where she was contesting shots and pulling down rebounds like nobody's business. She's going to be one of those players we don't necessarily expect a lot from, but expect a steady stream of something from.
If I had a wee bit more of an ego, I'd think Shenneika Smith read the GNoD this morning and decided that she didn't like being called out for being less active than usual in the last couple of games. She was much more assertive today, coming up with the big shots in the first half. She had a couple of boneheaded passing plays that she knew were bad, but you live with those with her. Keylantra Langley got entirely too cute with her ballhandling, which is not the greatest of plans when facing an opponent with very quick hands (nine turnovers, Jesus Christ, you know Kim Barnes Arico tore her a new one for that). She's a good substitute, but she's not a point guard. Amber Thompson had a rough start shooting, but was able to get herself in better position in the second half and hit some shots inside. I love how she works, I really do. Eugeneia McPherson put up some wild and ridiculous shots that had no business going up. At leats she got free throws for some of them in the first half, but I'm going to lay off my usual soapboxing vis a vis the focus on drawing the foul first instead of attempting to hit the shot. I'm tired and you've heard it all before. Which is also why I'm going to lay off Mary Nwachukwu; she didn't do anything she hasn't been doing all season, and by 2012 she's going to be coming off the bench anyway, so I'm going to do a little work for my blood pressure and let go of my frustrations about her inability and/or unwillingness to use her size.
I was waiting for Kim to kill someone. There was a point in the game where (I think) Keylantra was pinned against the sideline by a Memphis trap and about to be forced out of bounds or into a five-seconds-stationary call. Kim was screaming for a timeout loudly enough for those of us in the tenth row to hear... somehow, Bonita Spence and the crew managed to miss it. Kim was... incensed. To put it mildly. The same situation happened a couple of possessions later, and Kim called the timeout with such an exaggerated gesture that we nearly died of laughter. And then they missed it again. Combine that with some sketchy block/charge calls, and I was pretty sure that one of those stiletto heels was going to be turned into a weapon.
Memphis brought a very loud contingent for both games, including one lost lady who persisted in sitting in our section for the first half. Ma'am, if you have been informed that you're sitting directly behind the opposing coach's family, you might want to move, as if sitting next to the band and behind the cheerleaders wasn't enough of a hint.
Football is stupid.
I can't say I'm overjoyed with this result, but a win is a win.
All-tournament team: Jasmine Bendolph of Louisiana Tech, Brittany Carter and Jasmine Lee of Memphis, and Shenneika Smith and Da'Shena Stevens of St. John's, with Eugeneia McPherson as MVP.
My picks: Carter, Smith, Shantale Bramble-Donaldson of Louisiana Tech, Kiara Etienne of Prairie View, and Nicole Dickson of Memphis (or Kiara Young of Louisiana Tech), with McPherson as MVP. Etienne got screwed.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
December 18th, 2011: Memphis at St. John's (Chartwell's Holiday Classic)
Saturday, December 17, 2011
December 17th, 2011: Memphis at Louisiana Tech (Chartwell's Holiday Classic)
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Memphis Tigers put the pedal to the metal and never looked back in an 86-67 win over the Lady Techsters of Louisiana Tech. Brittany Carter led all scorers with 24 points, while Jasmine Lee put in 23 for Memphis. Louisiana Tech got 16 points and 10 rebounds from Shantale Bramble-Donaldson.
For emptiness, awkwardness, team colors, and a ball of confusion, join your intrepid and sleepless blogger after the jump.
So then everyone left. The end.
I'm mostly kidding, but there's something painful about the neutral game in a hosted tournament. At least with the home team playing, you get the atmosphere of a game. But when the band packs up to go home and the cheerleaders put on real clothes and the bulk of the crowd leaves, things get quiet, and a little depressing. You can hear the referees communicating, the voices from the bench, everything.
Liberty fans, I am disappointed. You were enticed with the promise of Teresa Weatherspoon, and where were you? Shopping? You could shop tomorrow. Lucky you, the awkward choice doesn't have to be made.
We could have ended up with an awkward situation if both the family of Memphis guard Bilqis Abdul-Qaddir and the family of one of the Louisiana Tech assistants had stayed in our section. But the Memphis folks moved along behind the road bench, and we scared off the Louisiana Tech family. I'm okay with that. I like my space to yell at the refs.
There's something very 21st-century about hijab accompanied by a Memphis supporters' scarf.
I was more impressed with Memphis than I was expecting, but then, I've been skeptical of Memphis since around the time Tamika Whitmore gave up on being a consistent player. So sue me. I hold grudges sometimes. They play a lot taller than they are, and they're fast.
Lauren McGraw had a tendency to play a bit out of control- lots of fun flash, but a lot of moving faster than she was ready for. Danay Collier got a fair bit of playing time in her homecoming, but I can't recall much of what she did- I was surprised to find she had played that much, to be honest. Ann Jones came off the bench as sixth woman in the first half and showed a little touch, though the illegal screen she drew as one of her first moves was not exactly a promising portent. McFerrin only threw in most of her bench near the end of the game, so they weren't in a position to do anything exciting or interesting.
Jasmine Lee impressed me, though I can see the flaws in her game. Her stamina and conditioning could stand some improvement, but I like her instincts. She worked hard in the paint. Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir ran a nice offense- she's small, but she's effective, and fast. Brittany Carter's athleticism impressed me- she had a resounding block that we could hear on the other side of the court. Nicole Dickson displayed a little range, but also athleticism. I was most intrigued by senior guard Ramses Lonlack- she plays a lot taller than she is, and she has the footwork of a soccer player. Control wasn't great, but Memphis seems to like to play fast and frenetic.
Spoon, give Sophia back her 1999/2000 hair. Some things just aren't right.
Louisiana Tech went deep into their bench- everyone played at least five minutes, but I don't think Savanna Langston's five minutes were terribly impactful. Tavasha Anderson moves well for a big girl. Kanedria Andrews got into a lot of plays late in the game, but I think they were expecting her to do a lot more earlier in the game. Kiara Young brought speed, and offense, but not much else.
It's probably for the best that Courtney Hayes didn't do anything of note, because somehow she didn't make it onto the roster that St. John's printed up. So now I'm confused and don't know anything about her. Jasmine Bendolph showed a nice stroke, but I think she might be having back problems- she looked a little pained, and I thought I saw a heating pad come off her during one timeout when she was about to check in. Shantale Bramble-Donaldson did a good job establishing position down low, but Memphis was able to make her less of a factor in the second half. Whitney Jones can play- nothing spectacular, but a nice all around game from her.
Ah, the peril of double-headers when I can't bring the computer to the game. Things get vague, especially when people keep distracting me.
My husband/viewing partner/distraction pointed out that Louisiana Tech threw a lot of high passes, and wondered whether there's just that little height in the WAC. They were fast, and had great ball movement, but I'm not sure whether they are really her team yet. They made a lot of stupid mistakes and couldn't hit a lot of easy shots. I expected a lot better out of them, and maybe they were just off their game today. We'll see more tomorrow. Or today. Time travel tense trouble here.
The officiating bothered me- not necessarily because of the quality of the calls, but because it looked like they weren't sure who was the crew chief. Spence and Aliberti got into a debate early in the game.
Crowning Moment of Funny: Shantale Bramble-Donaldson grabs a rebound. Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir rips it out of her hands cleanly and promptly falls over on the endline. The whistle blows. Teresa Weatherspoon explodes, charging off the sideline to protest the call. The funny part? It was a travel on Memphis for Abdul-Qaadir rolling with the ball. Nothing says WTF like screaming bloody blue murder at a ref who's making a call in your favor... even as your team inbounds the ball.
Hello, Chris, you poor unfortunate bastard! Did you miss us? Because we miss you. I have no idea whether anything did go on at Taffner Field House; we had a long walk home to look forward to.
Tomorrow's matchups will be fun, and Lordie, do I wish Cynthia Cooper was still at Prairie View right about now.