[scorecard]

I think socalstanfan1 makes some very good points about the bench.  We rely so much on the three 5th-year seniors, and it seems to me that the other players are too shy about pulling the trigger.  In the UCLA game, that really cost us, as no one had anything going except Randle, and it almost looked like the other players were too nervous to even try to make a play.  Everyone waited for Randle to do something, and it made our offense terribly predictable and stagnant (not to mention completely wore Randle down in double OT). 

Confidence is a brobdingnagian factor, particularly for a shooter, and we have numerous examples of players blossoming only after they became seniors (Grunfeld, Lottich, Fields come to mind).  We are seeing some signs from Rosco Allen with being more assertive, both with 3 pointers and rebounding, and we need that.  Frankly, we need it from all the players.  It's great to have 3 strong options, but the other 2 guys can't be dead weight.  This is part of why I like Cartwright on the floor, he seems to at least have the moxie to shoot the open 3 when it is there. 

It will be interesting to see the dynamic next year, as the 3 seniors will be Rosco Allen, Sanders, and Verhoeven -- none of whom seem like alpha dogs at this point.  I wonder if this will accelerate the development of this year's frosh.  I also wonder if we will continue to run the triangle if we don't have a true low post threat like Nastic.  Does Reid Travis become a low post force?  Does he have that kind of game? 

For next year:
Seniors: Rosco Allen, Sanders, and Verhoeven
Juniors: Marcus Allen, Malcolm Allen
Sophomores: Reid Travis, Humphreys, Pickens, Cartwright
Freshmen: Cameron Walker, Marcus Sheffield, Josh Sharma

Other thoughts:
- UConn did not look good.  But hey, they reported a 2nd consecutive perfect APR!
- As much as I want Reid Travis to play against Arizona, I'd prefer that he gets healthy for the home stretch and the tournament, rather than rush back in and get injured again. 
- I am disappointed for Verhoeven.  This was his chance to really play some minutes and shore up the inside.  I am not as down on him as some others are on this board -- he made what should have been the game-saving block in the 1st OT of the UCLA game (which looked to me on the replay to change direction off of Kevon Looney's hand, but was still given to UCLA, leading to Bryce Alford's 3 pointer, followed by Randle's 1 of 2 FTs).
- We saw some odd flagrant fouls called for some weak incidental elbows last year.  Why was there no flagrant given for the elbow contact that split open Nastic's forehead?  Has the rule been changed?

[scorecard]

I think socalstanfan1 makes some very good points about the bench.  We rely so much on the three 5th-year seniors, and it seems to me that the other players are too shy about pulling the trigger.  In the UCLA game, that really cost us, as no one had anything going except Randle, and it almost looked like the other players were too nervous to even try to make a play.  Everyone waited for Randle to do something, and it made our offense terribly predictable and stagnant (not to mention completely wore Randle down in double OT). 

Confidence is a brobdingnagian factor, particularly for a shooter, and we have numerous examples of players blossoming only after they became seniors (Grunfeld, Lottich, Fields come to mind).  We are seeing some signs from Rosco Allen with being more assertive, both with 3 pointers and rebounding, and we need that.  Frankly, we need it from all the players.  It's great to have 3 strong options, but the other 2 guys can't be dead weight.  This is part of why I like Cartwright on the floor, he seems to at least have the moxie to shoot the open 3 when it is there. 

It will be interesting to see the dynamic next year, as the 3 seniors will be Rosco Allen, Sanders, and Verhoeven -- none of whom seem like alpha dogs at this point.  I wonder if this will accelerate the development of this year's frosh.  I also wonder if we will continue to run the triangle if we don't have a true low post threat like Nastic.  Does Reid Travis become a low post force?  Does he have that kind of game? 

For next year:
Seniors: Rosco Allen, Sanders, and Verhoeven
Juniors: Marcus Allen, Malcolm Allen
Sophomores: Reid Travis, Humphreys, Pickens, Cartwright
Freshmen: Cameron Walker, Marcus Sheffield, Josh Sharma

Other thoughts:
- UConn did not look good.  But hey, they reported a 2nd consecutive perfect APR!
- As much as I want Reid Travis to play against Arizona, I'd prefer that he gets healthy for the home stretch and the tournament, rather than rush back in and get injured again. 
- I am disappointed for Verhoeven.  This was his chance to really play some minutes and shore up the inside.  I am not as down on him as some others are on this board -- he made what should have been the game-saving block in the 1st OT of the UCLA game (which looked to me on the replay to change direction off of Kevon Looney's hand, but was still given to UCLA, leading to Bryce Alford's 3 pointer, followed by Randle's 1 of 2 FTs).
- We saw some odd flagrant fouls called for some weak incidental elbows last year.  Why was there no flagrant given for the elbow contact that split open Nastic's forehead?  Has the rule been changed?