Yardbarker: Patrick Mills

Talk Around the Hardwood

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 13:36:03 -0500

It's been a long time, but let's link!Cuzoogle. Cuzzy polls the people of Twitter on who will win the finals and in how many games.The700Level.com. Andre Iguodala rocks some glasses at a press conference.Reds Army. Euroleague dancers are funny looking.Ball Don't Lie. Great NBA finals preview.FanHouse. Breathe easy NBA fans, there are no plans to put logos on NBA jerseys.Mercury News. Lookout for this soon to be NBA player: Patrick Mills. He can play and will be a late first or sec...

March madness: Saint Mary's-San Diego State Lines Preview

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 21:09:21 -0500

The Saint Mary's Gaels and the San Diego State Aztecs will both be gunning for a victory on Wednesday when they meet at Cox Arena in the third round of the National Invitational Tournament. Odds aren't yet posted for this game, so check back later for the opening line and total. Patrick Mills dropped 23 points and dished out 10 assists to lead St. Mary's past Davidson 80-68 in the second round of the NIT on Monday night. St. Mary's covered as 4.5-point home favorites as the ga...

Talk Around The Hardwood

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 16:20:32 -0500

Anyone having March Maddness withdrawal? I'm not, I've got the NBA to focus on. On that note, let's link!YouTube. If you haven't seen this yet, it's a shot from DWade from about 3/4 court, didn't count though.Fanhouse. Good talk about Stephen Curry vs. Patrick Mills in the NIT. Just as Ziller said, I like both player too (I remember Mills from the Olympics).Bullets Forever. Wizards fans may or may not like Gilbert Arenas coming back, but at least things got interesting...

March Madness: Davidson-Saint Mary's Odds Preview

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 00:20:12 -0500

The fans at McKeon Pavilion will be treated to a game between the Davidson Wildcats and the Saint Mary's Gaels when they take their seats on Monday for the second round of the National Invitational Tournament. Odds aren't yet posted for this game, so check back later for the opening line and total. Stephen Curry dropped 32 points to lead Davidson past South Carolina 70-63 in the first round of the National Invitational Tournament last Tuesday night. Davidson cashed as 3.5-point road u...

NCAA Tournament Bracket Projections -- March 11, 2009

Wed, 11 Mar 2009 09:38:22 -0500

After the thumping heard

Saturday Morning College Basketball Musings...

Sat, 07 Feb 2009 13:55:09 -0500

Far from a STACKED lineup today; nevertheless, it's still an entertaining set of matchups.

#20 Syracuse @ #17 Villanova
Note: I started this post before tip-off, by the time I finished typing it was 12-2 Villanova. Crocodile tears are ready to flow.
Syracuse and 'Nova split last year (each winning by double-digits on the other's home court). While neither may be "bubbling it" come March, both have a somewhat realistic shot at the coveted 4-seed (UCONN, Marquette, Louisville, & Pitt have the inside track). Keys for the road Orange have to center around the healthy of there center (yes, I just said that) Arinze Onuaku and 'Nova will need backcourt balance combined with an ability to force the Cuse into sloppy passes and lazy turnovers.
Call it: 'Nova trades baskets for the first 35 minutes, pulling away mid-way through the second-half for a 8 point victory.

Notre Dame @ #15 UCLA
Notre Dame dropped to 3-7 in conference with a brutal 2nd half showing at Cincinnati. With Louisville, UCONN, and Villanova still on their schedule, the Fighting Irish need to start piling up impressive victories. While this tussle in Pauley Pavilion won't help their conference standing, it'd be a MAJOR boost before Thursday's visit from Rick Pitino and company. Meanwhile, UCLA has been under the radar - even for a West Coast team - and can't afford a slip up against the struggling Irish.
Call It: UCLA withstand an early 3-point barrage and balances their way - on both sides of the ball - to a hard fought 6-point victory.

Miami (FL) @ #2 Duke
Miami has had an up-and-down campaign to say the least. Forcing OT against Tech two weeks back was trivial as they lost down the stretch in OT. However, pounding Wake (Mistake?) Forest has them 4-5 in conference. Unfortunately, they will need another upset - at Cameron of all places - to reach .500 and respectability in conference. Statements wins are the only way the Cannes will be dancing in March.
Call It: Duke rebounds - by shooting the 3 better and Henderson enforcing the middle - and pounds Miami by 20+. It's gonna be ugly.

Indiana @ #13 Michigan State
Remember when this game mattered? Indiana is 1-8 in the Big 10 and you can't blame Tom Creen yet, can you? Seems a lot like Rich Rodriguez over here. Except Kelvin Sampson can take the majority of this blame. It's great he still assumes little to no responsibility.
Call It: Indiana will be competitive, for around 8 minutes, before Michigan State cruises to a W. In the Big Ten, that means they win by 10.

Florida State @ #10 Clemson
A couple ACC friends of mine claim that there will be two spots for Boston College, Virginia Tech, and Florida State. While the Noles and Hokies are 4-3 in conference, FSU still has two shots to beat a top 10-team like Clemson; whereas the Hokies blew a 15-point lead (at home, no less) to the Tigers. While FSU appears to easily be the team "outside" the aformentionmed equation, no time like the present to make a statement. Meanwhile, Clemson is riding high off of perhaps its most impressive regular season showing in the last 10 years.
Call It: The word letdown has to have been talked about in the locker room. It will be close, but it won't happen today. Clemson wins a squeaker by 5.

#19 Minnesota @ Ohio State
I can't figure out either of these teams. If someone much smarter than me can shed some light, I'll owe you. I will enjoy the coaching matchup though. You call it, I'm too scared.

#14 Memphis @ #18 Gonzaga
The WCC is entirely different with St. Mary's sans-Patrick Mills; meanwhile, Memphis may never again lose a Conference USA game. The Tigers haven't seen much - outside of Tennessee I suppose - since a tough home loss to Syracuse. Tyreke Evans has turned it around and Coach Calipari has his few veteran leaders playing much better. Nevertheless, this is a brutal matchup in Spokane and I'm take the home team.
Call It: Memphis has plenty of athleticism and momentum; however, the only thing I love more than semi-colons in this post, is picking the sturdier home team.

Enjoy the matchups.

NCAA Tournament Bracket Projections - February 2, 2009

Tue, 03 Feb 2009 00:10:15 -0500

[NOTE: Bracket projections do not include results from February 2, 2009]

Talking Points

For the second week running, the UConn Huskies top the field of 65. On the heels of two road wins (that they were supposed to win anyways), North Carolina claims the #2 spot flanked by Duke, who lost at Wake Forest. One of the tougher choices this week was whether to elevate Oklahoma over Pittsburgh, who lost to Villanova. In the end, we foresee Oklahoma losing at Texas and at least two other conference games prior to the Big XII Tournament. Due to the relative strength of the Big East, Pittsburgh can afford two more losses and a loss in the finals of the Big East Tournament (to UConn) and still earn a #1 seed.

Unlike most weeks, this past week involved plenty of movement. Villanova, Boston College, Dayton and Penn State were among our highest risers. On the flipside, there was a whopping four teams ? Notre Dame, Miami-FL, Michigan, Baylor ? who fell out of the field from a 10 seed or better. In the case of the Irish, they were lifeless in the final four minutes of a must-win home game against Marquette and they continue to be obvious on offense and always place the welcome mat in the paint on defense. Miami-FL has lost 3 in a row and get to face Wake Forest, Duke and UNC. Good luck. As for Michigan and Baylor, both have become accustomed to losing games by double digits, which is never a good sign.

Moving down to the last four out, I felt the need to keep St. Mary's in the field because of Patrick Mills, which occurred at the end of the first half against Gonzaga when the Gaels were up. Mills will miss the next month, but should return prior to the WCC Tournament. Arizona took care of business at home (while Arizona State faltered) versus the Washington schools and has a realistic chance of completing a sweep on the Oregon trail this weekend prior to winnable games against UCLA and USC in Tucson. In spite of Providence's 30+ point loss to UConn on Saturday, they won the first game that they were not supposed to against Syracuse, which (along with Notre Dame's poor performances and future schedule) catapulted them into the field of 65. For the final spot, Utah edged Notre Dame and Texas A&M behind their current play and their win against Gonzaga.

If you have any questions, comments, or just wish to send a shout, shoot me a line at phashemi@gmail.com.

The Seedings

1: UConn (Big East), North Carolina, Duke (ACC), Pittsburgh

2: Oklahoma (Big XII), Louisville, Marquette, Wake Forest

3: Michigan State (Big Ten), Minnesota, Xavier (A-10), Clemson

4: Purdue, Villanova, Texas, Butler (Horizon)

5: Gonzaga (WCC), Syracuse, UCLA (PAC-10), Memphis (C-USA)

6: Washington, Illinois, UNLV (MWC), Kansas

7: West Virginia, Dayton, Davidson (Southern), Ohio State

8: Boston College, Tennessee (SEC), Arizona State, Penn State

9: Florida State, Florida, Missouri, Utah State (WAC)

10: Georgetown, South Carolina, Virginia Tech, California

11: LSU, Northern Iowa (Missouri Valley), USC, Kentucky

12: Siena (Metro Atlantic), St. Mary's, Arizona, Providence

13: Utah, VCU (CAA), Buffalo (MAC), Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)

14: Stephen F. Austin (Southland), American (Patriot), North Dakota State (Summit), Cornell (Ivy)

15: VMI (Big South), Vermont (America East), Austin Peay (Ohio Valley), Belmont (Atlantic Sun)

16: Weber State (Big Sky), Long Beach State (Big West), Morgan State (MEAC), Robert Morris (Northeast), Alabama State (SWAC)

IN: Penn State, LSU, Arizona, Providence, Utah, Northern Iowa, Alabama State, Buffalo, Weber State

OUT: Notre Dame, Miami-FL, Michigan, Baylor, Wisconsin, Prairie View A&M, Miami-Ohio, Portland State

Last Four In: St. Mary's, Arizona, Providence, Utah

Last Four Out: Notre Dame, Texas A&M, BYU, Mississippi State

Next Four Out: Miami, Baylor, Michigan, Maryland

Seeding Summary (Multi-Bid Conferences Only in Order of Percentage)
Pac-10: 6/10

ACC: 7/12

Big East: 9/16

Big Ten: 6/11

SEC: 5/12

Big XII: 4/12

West Coast: 2/8

Mountain West: 2/9

A-10: 2/14

I Taped the St. Mary's Gonzaga game...

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 13:34:37 -0500

Why? Because I found a radio feed of Utah Valley State and Chicago State. 123-121. 4 overtimes. Ryan Toolson scored 63. David Holston had 41. John Cantrell added 40. I would take these three, and go seven seconds or less on every team I saw, and everyone would love it. But that's a digression. I ...

NBA = National Basketball…Australia?

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 14:26:13 -0500

Although the NBA Draft is still a fair way off, there are already players who are being highlighted as potential draftees. Thousands of players go through the rigors of balancing school and sport to try and make it on the biggest stage in Basketball, but at the end of the day there are only 60 whose dreams become a reality. That being said, I am so proud that there are 3 Australians who have a strong chance of being drafted.

Firstly, Patrick Mills. At the time of writing, Patrick Mills is averaging 19.8 points in 31 minutes, not to mention a healthy 2.3 assists per game. The guard currently is a sophomore at St Marys, and to say he is integral in their team is an understatement. However, it was in the Olympics where Pat made a name for himself. Being the only NCAA player in the tournament, he held his own against the more experienced US team, scoring 20 points with 2 steals. So good was Mills, he received glowing reviews from Team USA, with Chris Paul having this to say about him:
"Man, he's fast. I read something that says he's faster than me. They're probably right. He can move." [Source]
If Patrick Mills keeps up his consistency then there is no reason why he can't be a solid first round pick. Draft Express currently have him ranked 15th in their mock draft.

Next up is AJ Ogilvy, playing for Vanderbilt. The sophomore is averaging over 15 points and 7 rebounds in 27 minutes. However, it was his rookie season where he really shined, with his outstanding skills making him a potential first round pick. AJ had a stellar Under 19 Championships and this was highlighted by his excellent field goal percentage. He plays with such passion and intensity that when under the ring he truly makes his position known. He is currently ranked 16th in Draft Express' mock draft.

Fans of NCAA basketball will probably know the previously mentioned players quite well, but there may be a third player still playing in the Australian NBL that might sneak into the second round, and that player is Joe Ingles. The small forward shot into calculations from his rookie season playing for the South Dragons. Although "Jingles" as he is often coined, could have opted to nominate for the last draft, he chose to try and improve his skills in the same league that Nathan Jawai got drafted from. Jingles did not see a lot of game time during the Olympics, but he played well and this could lead to him being a potential pick. He can do everything and has a great basketball mind with the ability to read plays well. He is projected at 24 on Draft Express' mock draft.

Australian basketball certainly has a bright future. With Andrew Bogut recently signing a lucrative long term deal with Milwaukee and Nathan Jawai about to start with Toronto, hopefully these three will become a welcome addition to an NBA team next season. Whilst the national league is in dire need of an overhaul, there are hundreds of Aussies at colleges all over America. The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) has done a great job in educating and training these players to become professionals and is doing everything to ensure that their full potential is being realized.

Team USA Pounds Australia, 116-85

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:21:48 -0500

Kobe Bryant scored a game-high 25 points--the most by any American player in this year's Olympics--as Team USA defeated Australia 116-85 and moved to within two victories of winning the gold medal. LeBron James added 19 points, nine rebounds, three assists and four steals. Bryant played a team-high 26 minutes, while James played 25 minutes, five more than any other player on the squad. NBA fans get so caught up in debating whether Bryant or James is the best player in the league but the important thing right now is that the two best players in the world are on the same team and they are both playing at a very high level. Before the game, USA Network color commentator Doug Collins singled them out as the two most important players on the roster. He said, "The guy who has been the catalyst is LeBron James. He's the guy on the back line blocking shots (and also) stealing the basketball." Collins then spoke of Bryant's contributions, noting, "Defensively on the perimeter, he has taken the other team's toughest guy." People who fretted that Team USA does not have enough big men do not understand basketball in general and FIBA basketball in particular: James is big enough to be a big man in any league in the world and great defense starts with defensive pressure in the backcourt, which Bryant has supplied since he was added to the team last summer. Carmelo Anthony (15 points on 5-9 field goal shooting), Chris Bosh (10 points on 3-4 shooting, six rebounds) and Deron Wiliams (10 points) also scored in double figures. Dwyane Wade had a quiet game offensively--eight points on 3-8 shooting--though he did get eight rebounds. Dynamic guard Patrick Mills led Australia with 20 points, while reserve Glen Saville added 13 points. Andrew Bogut had just four points before leaving in the second half after reinjuring his balky left ankle. Team USA's game plan early in the game focused on feeding the ball to Dwight Howard in the paint and this worked to perfection as Howard drew two fouls on Bogut in the first 2:42. Team USA raced to a 12-3 lead as Howard converted a three point play, Anthony scored two baskets, Bryant made a jumper and James drilled a three pointer. Australia is a feisty team, though, and they battled back to cut the margin to 17-14 as Team USA took some questionable shots and had some defensive lapses. In one sequence, James inexplicably pulled up behind the three point line and launched a jumper on a 2 on 4 fast break, with Bryant in the left corner and not one Team USA player in the paint. Later, Bryant wisely passed up taking a three pointer in the half court set in order to feed the ball to Howard in the post. Howard got fouled and split a pair of free throws but Bryant, who is a great free throw line offensive rebounder, corralled the miss; his turnaround jumper was off the mark but the extra possession paid off for Team USA because Howard tipped in Bryant's shot. Australia answered with a Chris Anstey three pointer and then Bryant missed a three pointer early in the shot clock. Collins said, "I think every time the United States takes one of those quick threes it helps Australia's defense." So many people have erroneously talked about how important it is for Team USA to make three pointers but it is far more important for Team USA to defend the three point line effectively, force turnovers/missed shots and then score in transition. For Team USA, the three point shot is a luxury that can pad a lead, not a necessity for winning--something that should be evident to everyone after this contest, considering that three straight three pointers bridging the second and third quarters enabled Team USA to push a nine point lead to 18; Team USA was winning even before the three point barrage, but the outside bombing turned the game into a rout. That is why you only see Michael Redd on the court in garbage time and why defensive specialist Tayshaun Prince is the first wing player off of the bench after Wade. Sideline reporter Craig Sager said that after a stoppage of play late in the first quarter, Coach Mike Krzyzewski told Team USA, "Stop being stupid. You are making dumb plays." In other words, stop looking for early three point shots and do a better job of guarding Australia's three point shooters; Australia shot 3-7 from three point range in the first quarter, tied the score at 21 and only trailed 25-24 after the first 10 minutes. A greater concern for Team USA than three point shooting is their free throw shooting: Team USA shot 5-11 (.455) from the free throw line in the first quarter and 18-31 (.581) for the game. Team USA can decide how many three pointers to shoot and when to shoot them but the opposing team dictates to some extent how many free throws Team USA will shoot and slowing the game down by fouling may be the best strategy against Team USA, at least for a team that has enough depth to withstand some foul trouble. Early in the second quarter, Team USA went with a small lineup of Bryant, James, Anthony, Wade and Williams, trying to speed up the tempo against the bigger, slower Australian group that was on the court. Team USA forced a turnover that James converted into a fast break dunk for a 33-28 lead but then Anthony committed his second foul and had to go to the bench. He was replaced by Bosh, giving Team USA a more conventional--but still very quick--quintet. Bogut scored on a nice drive to the hoop but Bryant answered with an emphatic dunk in the half court set. Collins said, "Smart decision by Kobe Bryant. Looked like he was going to take the three. (David) Anderson on the closeout could not play with that type of quickness and Kobe with a brilliant play." Next came a wild sequence in which James stole the ball but threw it away and then Wade stole the ball and passed to Williams, who advanced the ball to Bryant, who faked a behind the back pass and made a layup. Australia trailed 37-30 and immediately called a timeout. On the next possession, Australia ran a great play resulting in a layup for Bogut. Collins observed, "Chris Bosh showed too quickly and when he did Andrew Bogut slipped the pick." Bryant immediately came over to Bosh and explained to him what he did wrong. That kind of leadership does not show up in the boxscore but it is exactly what Team USA was missing in previous years. Don't forget that Team USA led 33-21 early in their 101-95 loss to Greece in the 2006 FIBA World Championship. At that point, James told his teammates on the bench, "They don't know what to do"--but when Greece hit Team USA with a 24-8 run it was James and Team USA that did not know how to stop the bleeding. It is a different story now with Bryant on the team, because the defensive intensity is higher and when mistakes are made they are immediately corrected during the game. After the game, Jason Kidd said of Australia's strong early play, "We felt that in this game that they were going to live and die by the three pointer. They made a couple. We had a couple of defensive breakdowns but we took care of it. That's the beauty of this team. On the fly we can solve problems without having to call timeouts. Communication is a big weapon for us. Nobody is afraid to talk to one another because we all respect one another." Once again Kidd's boxscore numbers (four points, one assist) will not blow anyone away but he has played a big role in changing the culture for Team USA and that should not be diminished or forgotten. Another key moment came at the 3:59 mark with Team USA leading 43-36. James failed to complete a three point play by missing a free throw, Anthony got a strong rebound and Australian reserve Mark Worthington wound up and took a big swipe at Anthony's put back attempt, clocking Anthony in the head. Anthony smartly just smiled and walked to the free throw line but players from both teams began jawing at each other. Australia knows that Anthony and Howard can be hotheads and part of their strategy was to be very physical and hopefully get those guys off of their games. That approach helped Australia to give Team USA their toughest battle in the pre-Olympic exhibition tour, with Team USA only winning by 11, 87-76. Collins noted that the Soviet Union used a similar approach against Team USA when Collins played in the 1972 Olympics and it paid off as the Soviets baited Dwight Jones into being ejected. Collins said, "This is where you have to keep your poise. Worthington comes into the game. He's a guy who has no value to the Australians except maybe to get one of the better American players thrown out." Anthony made both free throws to put Team USA up 45-36. After the mishap on the Bogut play, Team USA closed the quarter with an 18-11 run--punctuated by a buzzer beating three pointer by Williams--to make the score 55-43 at halftime. If Australia had any illusion about keeping the game relatively close in the second half, Bryant quickly disabused them of that notion, draining a three pointer on Team USA's first possession of the second half and scoring nine points in just 3:20 as Team USA used a fourteen to zero run to take a 69-43 lead. Bryant shot just 1-15 from three point range in the first two games of the Olympics, leading to some poorly considered commentary in some quarters about Bryant's relative value to this team. However, I kept a level head and wrote, "Bryant shot 17-37 (.459) from three point range last summer when Team USA went 10-0 en route to winning the gold medal in the FIBA Americas tournament and he shot 7-19 (.368) from three point range when Team USA went 5-0 during their pre-Olympic exhibition tour--that adds up to 24-56 (.429) three point shooting during his 15 FIBA games prior to the Olympics. Bryant shot .361 from the 23-9 NBA three point distance last season and is a .340 career NBA three point shooter. In other words, at some point he is going to have a 6-8 game from the three point line and by the end of the Olympics his three point shooting percentage will be around its normal level." Bryant shot 4-7 from three point range versus Australia and he has shot 11-21 from behind the arc (.524) in the past four games, improving his overall three point percentage in the Olympics to .333. Bryant told Sager after the game, "The three point line now (in FIBA play), that's where I shoot fadeaways from." I read an idiotic comment somewhere in which someone asked how can Bryant be a top NBA shooting guard if he cannot make catch and shoot shots from 20 feet? As Bryant indicated, in the NBA he catches the ball at the free throw line extended and shoots turnaround jumpers from that range (or from just a little closer); Bryant is used to shooting three pointers from 23-9, so catching the ball facing the hoop at 20-6 is a little bit different. It's not that he cannot make the 20-6 shot but just that faceup shots from that range are not part of his normal repertoire. Bryant admitted that he is actually more comfortable shooting from a few steps behind the FIBA three point line, which he did a couple times in this game. Bryant was the only Team USA player who played the entire second quarter plus the opening minutes of the third quarter, a stretch during which Team USA outscored Australia 46-24 (James sat out a little over a minute and a half during that time); except for the game against Spain when Bryant experienced early foul trouble, he typically has played most if not all of the second quarter and has almost always been on the court when Team USA breaks the game open in the second or third quarter. Team USA pushed the margin to 85-55 before settling for an 89-61 advantage at the end of the third quarter. By that time, Bryant, James, Anthony and Kidd had been on the bench for a few minutes and one could have reasonably expected that their work was done. Wade was on the court at the end of the third quarter and he started the fourth quarter, which has been a normal rotation for this team--but Coach Krzyzewski inexplicably brought Bryant, James, Anthony and Kidd back into the game shortly after the start of the fourth quarter with Team USA leading 91-63. That quartet played alongside Redd. Maybe the idea was to spread out the defense enough so that Redd could make a shot? Redd did nail his first jumper en route to a 2-3 shooting performance in the fourth quarter to improve his Olympic shooting percentage to 10-31 (.323). Collins assured viewers that Redd could go off and make four in a row at any point to get his numbers back up to par. I have no doubt that this is true but if Redd does this it will be in garbage time, not when the game is even remotely in doubt. The bigger issue is bringing back four starters with a huge lead. Frankly, I was dumbfounded by this decision, particularly considering that Australia is a physical team and that they were no doubt frustrated about their imminent elimination from medal play. What would happen to Team USA if Australia committed a hard foul on Bryant or James and injured one of those guys? Team USA outscored Australia 10-7 before the four starters returned to the bench. Wade came back for a cameo appearance and then he left the game for good. The curious substitution patterns slightly distorted the on court numbers for the five players who I have been tracking: Team USA outscored Australia 77-48 when Bryant was on the court, 75-48 when James was on the court, 60-37 when Anthony was on the court, 44-26 when Kidd was on the court and 48-43 when Wade was on the court. As I noted, Bryant was the only player who was on the court during Team USA's 46-24 run in the second quarter and early stages of the third quarter, though James was on the court for the vast majority of that time. Kidd helped Team USA get off to a good start by feeding Howard the ball early in the game and he was the point guard when Team USA broke the game open in the third quarter. Argentina defeated Greece 80-78, so they will play Team USA for the right to advance to the gold medal game. Manu Ginobili scored 24 points and shot 6-13 from three point range versus Greece and it will be Bryant's job to contain him, a challenge that Bryant welcomes and relishes. After Team USA beat Australia but before Argentina played Greece, Bryant said, "We want to play the best. We want to play the defending (Olympic) champs. It's all about challenges and obviously we welcome all comers. We know what a great team Greece is. Argentina is the defending champs. You want to be able to play the guys who won it the last time. I would love for us to have the opportunity." Of course, someone tried to twist his words into a slap at the Greeks, so Bryant immediately clarified his remarks by adding, "They're both great teams. The point that I'm making is that when you're a champion, you want to have the opportunity to defend your championship. And, anyone who has aspirations to be a champion, you understand there is a sense of pride that comes along with beating a champion. That's all that comment's about."

USA-Live Blog

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 07:47:54 -0500

Why not a pseudo little live-blog this morning? If anyone's around feel free to comment and I'll follow with some videos following the contest. 8:15- Close game early on. The U.S. leads by only three halfway through the first. Howard is settling in down low (Bogut has two fouls) but Australia is nailing their threes. 20-17 with 2:50 left in the first. There's been a couple of shots by the Aussies early as well. Something to keep in mind. "Stop being stupid. You're making...

What if Redeem Team USA fails to medal?

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 05:31:23 -0500

Overview : Really - what if Team USA does fail to medal in the Olympics? After a preliminary round spent drilling the crap out of opponents from all over the world, it would be akin to the Sonics losing to the eighth-seed Nuggets in 1994 or the Patriots losing to the Giants in the Super Bowl in February. It would be an absolute shock of epic proportions, and the losers would never recover. If that happens, I would blame Australia. After reading Chris Sheridan's ESPN.com column on Au...

Scouting Australia's Offense in Preview vs USA

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 04:35:22 -0500

Now that the games count for real, all the pressure is now on all the remaining 8 teams in Beijing to bring home the bacon, none more than Team USA. After doubling up on Germany, Team USA will face Team Australia in the quarterfinals. Though I expect Team USA to win the game, I don't think they will come anywhere near doubling them up.

Team Australia and Team USA have already played, in the pre-Olympic tournament. In that game, Team USA struggled with Team Australia. I highlighted Team Australia's offense which at the time did not have Andrew Bogut in the lineup. I watched Australia dismantle the top team in Group A, Lithuania, and was extremely impressed with their offense especially. Now, I know that Lithuania had already locked up top spot in Group A and were probably only going about 90%, it was the way they won that impressed me. They didn't get a lot of cheapy fast break points, most of their scoring came from execution off their half-court offense, which will obviously be a major factor in their game against Team USA.

Multiple Sets:

What I like about Australia's offense is their versatility. They're most popular sets are the 2-3 high and 1-2-2 but I've seen them go 4-out 1-in and even 1-4 low. Here is the 2-3 high,

Here is their 1-2-2,

Backdoor Cuts, Give and Gos:

What Australia loves to do out of their set offense is to go backdoor and give and go. So, off their 2-3, their first cut is a flex cut and a look to the cutter. In their 1-2-2, you'll see the forward pops out to receive the pass up top, then looks for the corner wing to go backdoor,

Team USA will really have to be cognizant of the backdoors. Since we expect them to come out with their aggressive man defense, they will be especially vulnerable to getting backdoored, Coach K will remember just this past March when Duke almost lost to Belmont in the first round by getting backdoored.

Inside Out:

The major difference between the pre-Olympic game and tomorrow's game is the presence of Andrew Bogut. With Bogut, the American's have to respect his ability to post up and make plays 1v1. With help from the top, that will allow Australia's many shooters to get open shots,

I think for defensive purposes, Coach K will go with Dwight Howard anytime Bogut is on the floor, so that they won't have to double and have Howard play him straight up. I think both Bosh and Boozer just give up a little too much height to Bogut to cover him 1v1.

Pick and Roll:

Now, the past couple of games against Greece and Spain, we saw Team USA clean up their defensive coverage of the PNR. They'll need to continue to do that, except, they'll need to watch for Australia's shooters. The roll in this case is not as important as defending the pick and pop or just ball-screen for the quick jumper. Australia has some outstanding 3-point shooters that can cause a lot of problems,

Early Offense 3-pointer:

I don't expect Team USA will have too many problems with Australia trying to outrun them, but I highlight this just because it is something that we've seen Australia run on more than one occasion. They like to run 5 guys hard, and Patrick Mills will hit the trailer for the open 3-pointer,

Team USA likes to do this with Michael Redd in a lead position rather than a trailer, but nonetheless, the scouting is report is out there, Australia will shoot these early 3-pointers, and hit them, when open.

Summary:

In my opinion Australia could very well give Team USA it's biggest test yet and if they go on to win Gold they may look back at this game and feel relieved that they came away with the win. Australia is extremely balanced, they have size and speed. They have toughness, after all it was Patrick Mills who refused to back down from a minor tussle in the warmup game. I think the deciding factor could very come down to whether Team USA can make outside shots and from the free throw line.

Well, it's finally here. For all you coaches out there dying to learn the Walberg Dribble Drive Motion offense from Walberg himself, Vance Walberg's brand new 2-DVD Set on the DDM has finally arrived. Get it today. Don't forget to check out the X's and O's of Basketball Forum to talk about this and your favorite basketball topics.

Team USA Overcomes Sluggish Start to Beat Australia, 87-76

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 14:59:20 -0500

Team USA trailed for most of the first quarter but built a 15 point halftime lead and held on to post an 87-76 win over Australia at Qizhong Arena in Shanghai. Team USA finished 5-0 on their pre-Olympic exhibition tour--including a 4-0 mark in the USA Basketball International Challenge, which consisted of two games apiece in Macau and Shanghai--but this game (and a to a lesser extent their 89-68 win over Russia, a contest that was also competitive in the second half) showed that the road to the gold medal will not be a cakewalk for this squad. Dwyane Wade again provided a major lift off of the bench, scoring a game-high 22 points. LeBron James finished with 16 points, four assists and a game-high five steals. Kobe Bryant scored 13 points but did not shoot well (3-9 from the field, 5-8 from the free throw line) and he largely made his presence felt as a defender and playmaker (four assists). Carmelo Anthony scored 12 points and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds but he shot just 4-13 from the field. Jason Kidd did not attempt a shot and had three assists in 15 minutes as he split time almost evenly with Deron Williams (one point, 0 assists in 18 minutes) and Chris Paul (four points, five assists, five fouls in 16 minutes), Team USA's point guards of the future. Australia placed five players in double figures, led by Patrick Mills and former NBA center Chris Anstey with 13 points each. David Barlow scored 12 points on 4-5 shooting from the field while C.J. Bruton and Brad Newley--a 2007 second round draft pick of Houston's--added 11 points each. For the first time in these five exhibition games, a Team USA player received a DNP-CD (did not play-coach's decision): Carlos Boozer. Although some people continue to insist that Team USA needs more bigs--and Australia, like Russia, did outrebound Team USA (42-41)--Coach Mike Krzyzewski went with a small lineup with no true NBA big for a total of seven minutes; starting center Dwight Howard had eight points and five rebounds in 22 minutes, while Chris Bosh contributed nine points and four rebounds in 11 minutes. Howard shot 4-4 from the field, while Bosh made all three of his field goal attempts. Bigs are not as important in FIBA play as they are in the NBA because of FIBA's trapezoid lane. In any case, James and Anthony are as big and strong as just about any power forwards that Team USA will see, while Howard, Bosh and Boozer provide more than enough depth at center. Team USA's problem is not size but rather maintaining the awareness and discipline to defend against perimeter players from opposing teams; Team USA must contest three point shooters without giving up wide open driving lanes and they struggled in both of those areas in this game as Australia shot 8-20 (.400) from three point range and 29-61 (.475) from the field overall. I'm sure that many people will point out Team USA's subpar three point shooting (3-18, .167) but what concerns me more than that poor percentage is the volume and quality of those long range shots: Team USA shot too many three pointers and they shot them too early in the shot clock. Other than Bryant (2-5), no one on Team USA had a good game from behind the arc: James shot 1-4, Anthony shot 0-4, Michael Redd--who is supposed to the team's zone busting sharpshooter--shot 0-3, Wade shot 0-1 and Paul shot 0-1. It's fine to talk about how many long range shots Redd drained in last year's FIBA Americas tournament but he did most of his scoring after Team USA used good defense to build sizable leads; if Team USA gets in a close game during the Olympics, Redd will not be on the court unless Bryant or James are injured or in foul trouble. There is nothing wrong with adding a shooting specialist to the team but what will make or break Team USA is perimeter defense and this game was a perfect example of that: Australia used a zone, a matchup zone and a sagging man to man defense but Redd contributed just two points on 1-4 shooting in eight minutes. Rick Kamla and Fran Fraschilla handled the play by play and color duties one last time live and direct from ESPN2's studios in Bristol before turning over the microphones to Mike Breen and Doug Collins, who will call the Olympic basketball games for NBC. Fraschilla's three keys for Team USA were bang the boards, deflections and no injuries. He also listed a blueprint for how to beat Team USA in FIBA competition: (1) Don't hit offensive boards (2) Play zone or pack man to man (3) Sub on free throws (4) Take care of the ball (5) Use shot clock Australia followed several of those prescriptions. They won the battle of the boards despite getting just five offensive rebounds, which means that they got back on defense, clogged the paint and often limited Team USA to one shot. The reason it is important to substitute after made free throws is that this limits Team USA's ability to quickly inbound the ball and try to score in transition. Australia took care of the ball in stretches but Team USA built their leads during key runs when they forced some turnovers (Australia finished with 18 turnovers compared to 11 for Team USA). Australia did a pretty good job of using the shot clock, as indicated by the much lower pace of this game compared to Team USA's first three games (Russia also did a good job of slowing the game down). The concern for Team USA is that there are several FIBA teams (Spain, Greece, Argentina) that can follow the above five point plan and that have more depth than Australia and Russia. Team USA won the opening tip and ran a nice backdoor action as Kidd set a back pick for Bryant, who cut to the baseline, received a feed from James, scored, got fouled and made a free throw for a three point play. The reason that I have provided "verbal diagrams" of Team USA's opening play in several of these recaps is that this is often the first--and last--time that Team USA runs a good half court offensive set. Team USA obviously wants to pressure the ball, force turnovers and score in transition but I don't understand why they don't run these kinds of actions later in the game during sequences when the action has slowed down. Australia immediately answered by involving Anthony defensively in a screen/roll, resulting in a Bruton three pointer. During the Olympics, look for teams to go right at Anthony's poor defense, particularly in the one and done games during medal round action. Team USA ran a screen/roll with Bryant and Howard, who was not open on the roll; Bryant kept the ball and was eventually fouled but he missed both free throws. Barlow blew straight past James to give Australia a 5-3 lead. On the next possession, Anthony took the worst possible shot: a long two pointer with :18 left on the shot clock. James stole the ball but promptly threw it away; Kidd alertly broke up the resulting 3 on 1 opportunity for Australia. Anthony was intentionally fouled after a steal. He made both free throws and Team USA retained possession. Team USA again ran a back door action for Bryant, who drew a non-shooting foul but Team USA turned the ball over after Anthony made a bad pass trying to feed Howard in the post. "That's a bad angle," Fraschilla noted. "When you throw the ball in from the top of the key into the post you'd like to have the defender on Dwight Howard's back." The correct passing angle is from below the free throw line extended. Australia led 11-9 at the 4:56 mark when starting guards Kidd and Bryant both went to the bench. Paul came into the game and really struggled to keep Mills in front of him; Mills drove past Paul and went coast to coast for a score after a made basket, something that should never happen. I laughed yesterday when I read that someone--a Hornets fan, naturally, as opposed to an objective analyst--praised Paul's defense in these exhibition games; as I have noted repeatedly and as Fraschilla has mentioned during the telecasts, Paul's defense has been poor. I disagreed with those who criticized Paul's NBA defense last season but there is no question that Paul has not played good FIBA defense so far. As Fraschilla said after Mills burned Paul a third time, forcing Paul to foul him, "There have been a number of times in this (exhibition tour) when he has not guarded the ball particularly well. Patrick Mills takes advantage of that." Team USA regained the lead late in the first quarter thanks to a steal and a layup by Wade, who also made two of three free throws after he was fouled on a three point shot with one second left. That made the score 22-19 Team USA. The second quarter began with Bryant blocking a shot and Williams passing ahead to Wade for a fast break dunk. Then came a series of bad possessions by Team USA, starting with a Bryant three point attempt with eight seconds on the shot clock. Team USA wasted too much time standing around before James passed to Bryant, who was in a no win position: there were no driving lanes available at that point against Australia's zone and the lack of good spacing meant that if Bryant passed the ball Team USA was unlikely to get a better attempt than the one he took. Deron Williams turned the ball over, leading to a Bruton jumper. Then Wade missed a long jumper with :14 on the shot clock. The next time down the court, Anthony bricked a contested three pointer with :12 on the shot clock and Fraschilla immediately exclaimed, "Oh, no. That's just too fast in the shot clock and he didn't move any defenders." Team USA's problem has never been--and is not now--a lack of players who can shoot but rather an inability and/or unwillingness to run good half court continuity; if they would move the ball and move bodies then someone would get an open shot that he is more than capable of making, so there is no reason to jack up long, contested jumpers with 12, 14 or more seconds on the shot clock. Team USA failed to score on the next possession thanks to a James travel. Kidd checked in at the 7:13 mark with Team USA clinging to a 24-21 lead. The teams traded baskets, a James jumper and a layup by David Anderson after James allowed dribble penetration. "Did LeBron fall asleep a little bit there?" Kamla asked after James got completely turned around. "Sure he did," replied Fraschilla, who at one point suggested that Team USA was already mentally in Beijing for the Olympics despite still being physically in Shanghai. He said that during the Russia game, too, but after Team USA's string of failures in FIBA events you'd think that they would be more attentive. James tried to post up on the block and unitentionally provided a good demonstration of why FIBA teams do not frequently use post up play; the trapezoid lane forces the offensive player away from the hoop, making it easier to trap him. "Right now he's playing one on three," Fraschilla said. James fired an ill advised behind the back pass to Anthony but the defense easily rotated and blocked his shot. Anthony went to the bench at the next dead ball with Team USA only ahead 26-25. Team USA had its first good half court possession of the second quarter when James drove to the hoop and kicked the ball to Bryant at the three point line; the drive and kick is a staple of FIBA basketball and in this case the defender, in his haste to recover, fouled Bryant, whose three free throws gave Team USA a four point lead. Bryant's third make enabled Team USA to trap--something you cannot do when you are turning the ball over and taking bad shots--and Bryant forced a turnover that James converted into a fast break dunk. Bryant then forced another turnover, this time leading to a James three pointer. After another defensive stop James missed a shot but Bryant got the offensive rebound and passed the ball back to James, who drove to the hoop and converted a three point play to put Team USA up 37-25. Right around this time Fraschilla made a very astute observation: Bryant put so much pressure on Australia's backcourt that Australia had to go small by bringing in another point guard just to get the ball up the court but this led to favorable matchups for Team USA at the other end of the court, namely a smaller player having to guard either Bryant or James. This is a good example of something that statistical analysis does not pick up: James scored eight straight points and he certainly played very well in this stretch but those scoring opportunities were created not only by Bryant's defense forcing turnovers but also by Bryant's defense forcing a lineup change that created favorable matchups for Team USA to exploit. You may recall that it was right around that point in the second quarter that Greece hit Team USA with a 24-8 run en route to a 101-95 victory in the 2006 FIBA World Championships. That version of Team USA got big offensive performances from Anthony (27 points), Wade (19 points) and James (17 points) but did not have a defensive stopper on the perimeter who could thoroughly disrupt the opponent's ability to even advance the ball up the court. Team USA led 44-29 at halftime but began the third quarter extremely sluggishly. James sagged too far into the paint, enabling Barlow to make an open three pointer; in the NBA you want to defend the paint first but in the FIBA game with the short three point line you simply cannot leave outside shooters unattended. After another Barlow three pointer plus a Bruton three pointer and a Barlow layup, Team USA's advantage shrunk to 46-42. Anthony's jumper pushed the margin to six but Australia quickly answered and Coach Krzyzewski did something he had not done in the previous four exhibition games: call a timeout. Bryant hit a three pointer on the next possession to put Team USA up 53-44. Team USA enjoyed at least a three possession lead the rest of the way, including a 65-55 advantage at the end of the third quarter. Perhaps Team USA was never in serious danger of losing after that point but on the other hand they never really put Australia away, either; there was always the chance that Australia might hit two quick three pointers and be right back in the game. Considering the closeness of this game it is interesting to look at how Coach Krzyzewski distributed the playing time: James played a game-high 33 minutes, while Bryant and Wade played 25 each. Bryant and James were the primary instigators of Team USA's second quarter run, while Wade provided steady scoring throughout the game. Anthony played 24 minutes but Team USA actually trailed 42-41 during his time on the court (Team USA outscored Australia 54-50 when Bryant was in the game and was tied 70-70 and 35-35 respectively when James and Kidd were in the game). Redd (eight minutes) and Tayshaun Prince (three minutes) hardly received any run and, as mentioned previously, Boozer did not even get into the game. Team USA will have to play better than this to win the gold medal but they are more than capable of doing so.

The Midseason Mid Major Watch List

Mon, 04 Feb 2008 14:48:19 -0500

Taking a look at the best mid majors in college hoops...