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View Full Version : My Own Private Idaho (State): Utes v. Bengals [OFFICIAL GAME THREAD]



Applejack
12-09-2013, 01:52 PM
The Utes have a huge game this week. But first we have to take on the mighty Bengals of Idaho State.:rockon:

I'll be honest and admit that I haven't been following ISU very closely this season. They have beaten a tough Carroll College squad and shocked San Francisco on the road, while losing a heart-breaker to CSU Baskersfield after getting manwiched at Arizona State.

While all that is ridiculously unhelpful in evaluating this team, we are fortunate to have a common opponent: the Evergreen State GeoDucks! The Bengals and Geoducks played an epic early season game in which ISU edged out a 37 point win.* As a personal note, after seeing the following photo on the ISU website (surprisingly good!), I regret not watching the Utah-Geoducks game (as if I could have).

http://www.isubengals.com/images/2013/12/4/rp_primary__JCW1466.jpg
How tall is that guy on Idaho State? 7''2? That looks like the old rec league I used to play in in San Francisco: high.quality.ball.

Anyway, we know that the Utes also had their way with Evergreen, so tomorrow's battle promises to be a great prelude to the visit from BYU and their collection of thugs.


* The Geoducks sit at a disappointing 1-10 on the season.

Ex'dute
12-09-2013, 08:29 PM
The Geoducks won a game? That must be a typo.

As far as Idaho State is concerned, they have the third best RPI (after Boise State and Fresno State) of the teams we've played this year. So we shouldn't take them lightly.

Oh, who am I kidding? If Coach K and the boys haven't already started preparing for the Zoobs in practices, I'll be pissed. If we can't roll the ball out on the court and beat Idaho State with little to no specific scouting/game planning then we aren't as good as I've come to believe.

chrisrenrut
12-09-2013, 09:55 PM
The Geoducks won a game? That must be a typo.

As far as Idaho State is concerned, they have the third best RPI (after Boise State and Fresno State) of the teams we've played this year. So we shouldn't take them lightly.

Oh, who am I kidding? If Coach K and the boys haven't already started preparing for the Zoobs in practices, I'll be pissed. If we can't roll the ball out on the court and beat Idaho State with little to no specific scouting/game planning then we aren't as good as I've come to believe.

Ugh, that sounds like a Boylen game plan.

We we need to throttle these guys! I want revenge for a miserable night we spent in their weird dome in Pocatello a few years back. Two hour drive in crappy weather both ways. We gotta make them pay!

Applejack
12-10-2013, 07:34 AM
The Geoducks won a game? That must be a typo.

The Gooeyducks won their first contest of the season, against UBC-Okanogan. It's been rough sledding since then.

LA Ute
12-10-2013, 07:25 PM
Utes need to settle down. 6 TOs already, down by 7, 10-0 run. Ouch.

LA Ute
12-10-2013, 07:26 PM
7 TOs now. 9 points of the ISU 10- point lead resulted . Wow.

Applejack
12-10-2013, 07:35 PM
Didn't Senioritis promise me personally that Utah had a zone offense? We are really confused by this 2-3.

LA Ute
12-10-2013, 07:40 PM
Utes were not ready for ISU.

LA Ute
12-10-2013, 07:43 PM
Hoping for good halftime adjustments to avoid a grade A debacle.

Diehard Ute
12-10-2013, 07:46 PM
Hopefully someone has a case of redbull in the locker room

Senioritis
12-10-2013, 07:48 PM
Didn't Senioritis promise me personally that Utah had a zone offense? We are really confused by this 2-3.

Yes, I gave it my personal pledge. I don't know quite how to apologize. They are working us.

Applejack
12-10-2013, 07:49 PM
Hoping for good halftime adjustments to avoid a grade A debacle.

Happy to be down nine instead of 15. We made an adjustment on D (which should not have needed to be made, but whatevs) in that we are fully hedging on the simple pick and roll with Sanchez, basically daring the screener to do anything. It has taken Sanchez out of the game since we made the switch, but they will counter it pretty easily.

Our defensive rotations are really, really bad - often non-existent. JLo can't just let their fat shooter come off a pick and get an open look - he needs to rotate onto him. Overall, our defensive effort has been horrible; sometimes a zone makes you stand around on offense and it's hard to switch if on at the other end. Utes need to switch it on next half.

U-Ute
12-10-2013, 08:04 PM
Utes looking more crisp in the second half.

UtahDan
12-10-2013, 08:11 PM
I just realized this was tonight. Also...ugh.


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U-Ute
12-10-2013, 08:13 PM
Batshitinski with the drop step. I've never seen him do that before.

U-Ute
12-10-2013, 08:16 PM
Have we played well in the first half of any games yet this year?

I can't think of any, except maybe Evergreen State. I don't think that counts though.

U-Ute
12-10-2013, 08:18 PM
Wright and Loveridge decide that the Utes want to win this game.

LA Ute
12-10-2013, 08:37 PM
Treys will be the story of this game, whoever wins.

U-Ute
12-10-2013, 08:44 PM
Ugh. Batshitinski ruins what was looking like a fabulous game by him.

LA Ute
12-10-2013, 08:44 PM
Bad TO by Dallin.

Did last year's team ever come back against a double-digit deficit?

Senioritis
12-10-2013, 08:51 PM
Taffy Town!

U-Ute
12-10-2013, 08:54 PM
Didn't Senioritis promise me personally that Utah had a zone offense? We are really confused by this 2-3.

To be fair, I don't think we were confused as much as you have to give ISU credit in how well they played it. Remember, this is the same matchup zone Bill Evans ran when SUU beat Majerus in the Hunty. The guy has been running it for ages and knows how to play it.

Consequently, you also have to give our coaching staff in changing the way we attack it. It made a huge difference.

Solon
12-10-2013, 09:04 PM
To be fair, I don't think we were confused as much as you have to give ISU credit in how well they played it. Remember, this is the same matchup zone Bill Evans ran when SUU beat Majerus in the Hunty. The guy has been running it for ages and knows how to play it.

Consequently, you also have to give our coaching staff in changing the way we attack it. It made a huge difference.

I'll take a hard-fought win over a hard-fought loss.
This team has work to do, but there were several bright spots in this game.
Wright played well. Loveridge had 27. Tucker hit some big shots. Bachadasww3tyujksnaski was able to dominate when the ISU center went out.
I'll take it.

Applejack
12-10-2013, 09:25 PM
Not a pretty victory, but a victory indeed. A couple of thoughts:

- We were out-efforted tonight. Idaho State really wanted a win, we sort of did. Fortunately, we have a lot more talent than in years past so we can overcome an off-night.
- Delon stands up straight on defense too much. I can't tell if he doesn't care on defense (not a good thing) or if he is not in great shape. Because the game was closer than it should have been he basically played the entire game, so I'll cut him some slack tonight, but he should be an elite defender and right now he's just adequate.
- Taylor, on the other hand, gives solid defensive effort. Too bad he's 5''4.
- JLo just chose not to box out on multiple sets late in the game. Those are KILLERS against a good team. He needs to clean that up. That is all about effort.
- The coaches made 1 nice adjustment in the first half (changing how we approached the pick and roll) which effectively took Sanchez out of the game. They made a number of nice adjustments at half-time (planting Dakarai in the corner to spread the floor; using Batshitinski to force the zone to move around him; having Wright play off the ball occasionally so that he could get a catch one-on-one). I'm still not sure what sort of Xs and Os coach we have on our hands, but if I had to guess, I'd say that he is more comfortable on the defensive side of things (given that he didn't make any offensive adjustments until halftime when he could talk it over with the others).
- Dakarai made some BIG shots tonight. They were all open, but we need him to hit those shots against BYU as well. I'm happy for him.
- Delon's elite skill, for my money, is his finishing around the rim. If you have ever played basketball, you know that the ability to finish once you get to the rim is natural or its not. Delon makes every layup, floater, scoop shot look like a gimme. He's got great touch and phenomenal body control on the finish. I don't think he can shoot (personal opinion), but his vision and ability to finish make him a great point guard. He'd be better suited if he were surrounded by 3 shooters and a post guy (BYU, actually), but I'm glad he chose Utah.
- JLo is still the key to this team. As he goes, the team goes. I'd like to see more effort on defense and on the boards from him, but he was a killer when he needed to be a killer tonight. I'm glad he chose Utah.

LA Ute
12-10-2013, 09:31 PM
- Delon stands up straight on defense too much. I can't tell if he doesn't care on defense (not a good thing) or if he is not in great shape. Because the game was closer than it should have been he basically played the entire game, so I'll cut him some slack tonight, but he should be an elite defender and right now he's just adequate.

976

Diehard Ute
12-10-2013, 10:00 PM
In his post game Krysko said they spent 2 days practicing attacking the matchup zone via penetration.

He said for whatever unknown reason the players decided to play hot potato in the first half instead of attacking the zone the way they had prepared.

He challenged them to get the deficit to single digits before half, which they did.

I like Kryskos demeanor and candor when discussing such things.

SeattleUte
12-10-2013, 10:49 PM
I don't think [Delon] can shoot .... .

What?! He's 74.3% from the field, including 4-10 from 3. By the way, those floaters, layups and scoop shots that he makes every time are shots.

Applejack
12-11-2013, 05:48 AM
What?! He's 74.3% from the field, including 4-10 from 3. By the way, those floaters, layups and scoop shots that he makes every time are shots.

40% from three is great, but a result of a small sample size I presume. Idaho state would have let him shoot a jumper at any point last night. If he were a marksman, I think he would have taken a lot more. If he shoots 40% from three on the year, we are in great shape.

sancho
12-11-2013, 09:58 AM
40% from three is great, but a result of a small sample size I presume. Idaho state would have let him shoot a jumper at any point last night. If he were a marksman, I think he would have taken a lot more. If he shoots 40% from three on the year, we are in great shape.

AJ is right. Marksmen are never shy about shooting the ball. But at least he's not a horrible shooter. I have hope that he can at least keep defenses honest by hitting some jumpers. They won't sag 8 feet off him like they did with Jace Tavita.

He's also right that we were badly out hustled last night. I thought all offseason that we were a good rebounder away from being competitive. I underestimated Wright and his presence on the glass, so we are better than I thought. But that rebounder is still a hole in the lineup.

I feel bad complaining about a gift from the basketball gods like Wright, but it is disappointing that his defense isn't better. For the upcoming game, we could really use a lock down defender on Haws. We have seen Haws taken out of games by tough defense. I don't think we have a guy who can do that.

SeattleUte
12-11-2013, 10:33 AM
AJ is right. Marksmen are never shy about shooting the ball. But at least he's not a horrible shooter. I have hope that he can at least keep defenses honest by hitting some jumpers. They won't sag 8 feet off him like they did with Jace Tavita.

He's also right that we were badly out hustled last night. I thought all offseason that we were a good rebounder away from being competitive. I underestimated Wright and his presence on the glass, so we are better than I thought. But that rebounder is still a hole in the lineup.

I feel bad complaining about a gift from the basketball gods like Wright, but it is disappointing that his defense isn't better. For the upcoming game, we could really use a lock down defender on Haws. We have seen Haws taken out of games by tough defense. I don't think we have a guy who can do that.

It's not that he "can't shoot". See the link at :23, :39, and :53: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mc_iKJt5cV4 His offensive game is very complete, and I perceive an internal set of principles or values at work here. He's extraordinarily disciplined for a kid, and really intelligent. As AJ noted, he's phenomenally gifted in his ability to finish. He's also a great passer. See the link. He doesn't look for threes, he's looking for other ways to score or create points. Yes, playing to his magnificent strengths, but it's not that he "can't shoot" the three. If he decided to shoot 20 threes a game like Marshall Henderson, instead of slightly over 1, would he match Henderson's 37% from 3? It's a good question. Maybe he would. The player he most reminds me of is Ichiro in his prime.

LA Ute
12-11-2013, 10:38 AM
AJ is right. Marksmen are never shy about shooting the ball. But at least he's not a horrible shooter. I have hope that he can at least keep defenses honest by hitting some jumpers. They won't sag 8 feet off him like they did with Jace Tavita.

He's also right that we were badly out hustled last night. I thought all offseason that we were a good rebounder away from being competitive. I underestimated Wright and his presence on the glass, so we are better than I thought. But that rebounder is still a hole in the lineup.

I feel bad complaining about a gift from the basketball gods like Wright, but it is disappointing that his defense isn't better. For the upcoming game, we could really use a lock down defender on Haws. We have seen Haws taken out of games by tough defense. I don't think we have a guy who can do that.

Isn't Onwas supposed to be the budding lockdown defender? He is compared to Cedric Martin often.

sancho
12-11-2013, 10:39 AM
Isn't Onwas supposed to be the budding lockdown defender? He is compared to Cedric Martin often.

I have heard this, but I haven't seen it.

Scratch
12-11-2013, 11:17 AM
It's not that he "can't shoot". See the link at :23, :39, and :53: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mc_iKJt5cV4 His offensive game is very complete, and I perceive an internal set of principles or values at work here. He's extraordinarily disciplined for a kid, and really intelligent. As AJ noted, he's phenomenally gifted in his ability to finish. He's also a great passer. See the link. He doesn't look for threes, he's looking for other ways to score or create points. Yes, playing to his magnificent strengths, but it's not that he "can't shoot" the three. If he decided to shoot 20 threes a game like Marshall Henderson, instead of slightly over 1, would he match Henderson's 37% from 3? It's a good question. Maybe he would. The player he most reminds me of is Ichiro in his prime.

I've had the same sense about Wright. It seems to me like even when he does drive and score, he's not really setting out to score; when you watch him, it seems like he's always looking for a good look for a teammate, but he's so skilled around the rim and so long that when that doesn't materialize he can just finish himself.

SoCalPat
12-11-2013, 01:01 PM
This was probably the most satisfying win of the season in that we came out flat (it's hoops, it happens and there's little that can be done about it), fell behind big, kept our composure, kept chipping away and dominated the second half. That's probably not going to be a recipe for success against Oregon State, much less Arizona or UCLA, but every team in the country is on upset alert at multiple stages in the course of a season. We were that team last night and we turned off the alert with some good play.

Applejack
12-11-2013, 01:27 PM
This was probably the most satisfying win of the season in that we came out flat (it's hoops, it happens and there's little that can be done about it), fell behind big, kept our composure, kept chipping away and dominated the second half. That's probably not going to be a recipe for success against Oregon State, much less Arizona or UCLA, but every team in the country is on upset alert at multiple stages in the course of a season. We were that team last night and we turned off the alert with some good play.

I agree. It's been a long while since I've watched the halftime show thinking "we will probably win this game," despite the first half showing absolutely no signs of that result. If I had to pinpoint the last time I felt that smug confidence some refer to as "destiny," I would point to a time before I learned that "Jiggy" could refer to something other than Will Smith's favorite weekend activity.

U-Ute
12-11-2013, 02:15 PM
976

AJ is right. Wright plays lazy D and doesn't bend his knees. He's one of those guys who was always so ridiculously more athletic than anyone else he didn't really need to learn defensive technique.

U-Ute
12-11-2013, 02:19 PM
This was probably the most satisfying win of the season in that we came out flat (it's hoops, it happens and there's little that can be done about it), fell behind big, kept our composure, kept chipping away and dominated the second half. That's probably not going to be a recipe for success against Oregon State, much less Arizona or UCLA, but every team in the country is on upset alert at multiple stages in the course of a season. We were that team last night and we turned off the alert with some good play.

This team showed some resiliency coming back from 15 down. That's a good sign.

Now if we could just start the game with the same sense of urgency we come out of halftime with.

LA Ute
12-11-2013, 02:36 PM
This team showed some resiliency coming back from 15 down. That's a good sign.

Now if we could just start the game with the same sense of urgency we come out of halftime with.

It would be interesting to know the last time Utah came back to win after being down 15. I don't think it's happened in the recent past, but I really don't know.

SeattleUte
12-11-2013, 02:44 PM
It would be interesting to know the last time Utah came back to win after being down 15. I don't think it's happened in the recent past, but I really don't know.

You know, I'm surprised nobody has mentioned this. Last season's Idaho State game was eerily like this one.

http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=323260254

Rocker Ute
12-11-2013, 02:47 PM
It would be interesting to know the last time Utah came back to win after being down 15. I don't think it's happened in the recent past, but I really don't know.

If Utah played like they did the last 5 minutes of the first half and the entire second half from the get go we win this game by 25 points. I doubt we'll come out flat like they did against BYU. I should note that once again, facing a sizable deficit the Utes never really lost their cool, they stuck with the game plan and adjusted. The fact that not once did I see a guy waving off his teammates and attempting to go one one on is why I'll watch every game this season, win or lose.

It also reminded me that while many question Kodiak's tactics when he first got here and most of the team left, I'm fairly certain that it was a cultural purge as much as it was a talent one. I think there was a lot of bad juju going on with Boylen's teams.