This game turned around about 2/3 of the way through the 2nd quarter.
Prior to that, the SLO defense was really messing us up. They were body checking all of our off-ball players whenever they went in motion, they moved people in and out of the lanes we traditionally use for the motion part of the Princeton motion offense. The officials showed they simply would not call any off-ball fouls. Combine that with us going cold from three--even when open--and we labored to maintain a six point lead. Some of the non-calls went our way. I think both sides got away with some really extreme moving screens. They finally called one on Nunu, I think, but for the longest time it seemed that almost anything would go.
Then toward the end of the second quarter we began driving to the basket every chance we got--multiple players did it. Suddenly fouls started to be called. Clearly the officials were quite prepared to call fouls against overly aggressive defenders who made on-ball contact, even if they ignored everything in the off-ball game. I think this must have been a coaching decision to change our approach, since it happened abruptly and all players seemed to do it. After that switch our lead steadily grew, and with Tess Heal's four point play it began to mushroom.
A few observations:
1) Per the chalk talk: Lepolo sprained her ankle earlier this season to go along with her off season knee surgery. And apparently the two injuries can set each other off. There are good days and bad days for her.
2) Also per the chalk talk: Given our personnel, the coaches think Heal would ideally play the 2, but with Lepolo's injury she has been doing a lot at the 1.
3) I think the story of the post-Indiana games so far has been Heal's emergence on offense and Ijiwoye's emergence in general. I really thought Clardy and Harriel should be the starters, but we are developing a true conundrum with regard to which of those 4 should get the most minutes. Heal just looks so mature out there on the court, never looks rattled, always keeps her eyes up looking for opportunities. And tonight was the first night I saw how she got so many free throws last year. 5/5 from the line, 4/5 shooting, with 3 assists and 1 turnover. What we would have given for a guard that could regularly do that in the last few post-Kiana Williams years. But we have her now. And Ijiwoye's unique speed and defense may make her just invaluable and impossible not to play. She also produced a couple of take-your-breath-away moves. She is going to be a lot of fun to watch develop.
4) Stevenson is making progress, showing more confidence, scoring more and making good decisions. She was our 5th player in double digits tonight. 4/4 from the field, 5 rebounds, and an assist in 14 minutes.
5) Demetre's step back jumper was once again can't-miss-deadly. Can she keep that up all year?
6) Ogden just can't seem to get her offense consistently on track. On a night with 5 players in double digits, she was 0/2 in 15 minutes. She is a puzzle to me--so obviously talented, but it doesn't always produce results.
7) Agara had another good night--except her free throw shooting was off. 3/6, and even the makes looked a little sketchy. Last year and earlier this year she was a particularly outstanding free throw shooter. I hope tonight was an aberration.
Prior to that, the SLO defense was really messing us up. They were body checking all of our off-ball players whenever they went in motion, they moved people in and out of the lanes we traditionally use for the motion part of the Princeton motion offense. The officials showed they simply would not call any off-ball fouls. Combine that with us going cold from three--even when open--and we labored to maintain a six point lead. Some of the non-calls went our way. I think both sides got away with some really extreme moving screens. They finally called one on Nunu, I think, but for the longest time it seemed that almost anything would go.
Then toward the end of the second quarter we began driving to the basket every chance we got--multiple players did it. Suddenly fouls started to be called. Clearly the officials were quite prepared to call fouls against overly aggressive defenders who made on-ball contact, even if they ignored everything in the off-ball game. I think this must have been a coaching decision to change our approach, since it happened abruptly and all players seemed to do it. After that switch our lead steadily grew, and with Tess Heal's four point play it began to mushroom.
A few observations:
1) Per the chalk talk: Lepolo sprained her ankle earlier this season to go along with her off season knee surgery. And apparently the two injuries can set each other off. There are good days and bad days for her.
2) Also per the chalk talk: Given our personnel, the coaches think Heal would ideally play the 2, but with Lepolo's injury she has been doing a lot at the 1.
3) I think the story of the post-Indiana games so far has been Heal's emergence on offense and Ijiwoye's emergence in general. I really thought Clardy and Harriel should be the starters, but we are developing a true conundrum with regard to which of those 4 should get the most minutes. Heal just looks so mature out there on the court, never looks rattled, always keeps her eyes up looking for opportunities. And tonight was the first night I saw how she got so many free throws last year. 5/5 from the line, 4/5 shooting, with 3 assists and 1 turnover. What we would have given for a guard that could regularly do that in the last few post-Kiana Williams years. But we have her now. And Ijiwoye's unique speed and defense may make her just invaluable and impossible not to play. She also produced a couple of take-your-breath-away moves. She is going to be a lot of fun to watch develop.
4) Stevenson is making progress, showing more confidence, scoring more and making good decisions. She was our 5th player in double digits tonight. 4/4 from the field, 5 rebounds, and an assist in 14 minutes.
5) Demetre's step back jumper was once again can't-miss-deadly. Can she keep that up all year?
6) Ogden just can't seem to get her offense consistently on track. On a night with 5 players in double digits, she was 0/2 in 15 minutes. She is a puzzle to me--so obviously talented, but it doesn't always produce results.
7) Agara had another good night--except her free throw shooting was off. 3/6, and even the makes looked a little sketchy. Last year and earlier this year she was a particularly outstanding free throw shooter. I hope tonight was an aberration.