[slide]

Did Davis and Terry swap roles on offense last night?  Davis seemed to bring the ball up the court more often than not.  And Terry seemed to play off the ball more than I saw in previous games.   Then again,  I've only been able to watch a couple games this season.

looked like Fox/Cal gameplan was to prevent TT from initiating the offense so they denied/pressured in the backcourt.  Stanford's reaction was to allow DD to bring the ball up and initiate.  DD played well last night -- only a single turnover.

[slide]

Did Davis and Terry swap roles on offense last night?  Davis seemed to bring the ball up the court more often than not.  And Terry seemed to play off the ball more than I saw in previous games.   Then again,  I've only been able to watch a couple games this season.

looked like Fox/Cal gameplan was to prevent TT from initiating the offense so they denied/pressured in the backcourt.  Stanford's reaction was to allow DD to bring the ball up and initiate.  DD played well last night -- only a single turnover.

[teejers1]

Did Davis and Terry swap roles on offense last night?  Davis seemed to bring the ball up the court more often than not.  And Terry seemed to play off the ball more than I saw in previous games.   Then again,  I've only been able to watch a couple games this season.

looked like Fox/Cal gameplan was to prevent TT from initiating the offense so they denied/pressured in the backcourt.  Stanford's reaction was to allow DD to bring the ball up and initiate.  DD played well last night -- only a single turnover.

That was exactly the game plan.  Cal was attempting ball-denial on Terry all over the court - he had to work hard just to catch a pass.  

Most teams will employ the strategy of not letting Terry or OSD beat them; others will have to show up on offense.  Last night DD certainly did.

P.S.  Jones will be easier to shut down than either Terry or Da Silva; but I liked the fact that he didn't force much on O.  He took shots when available (not many) and busted it on D.  Jones doesn't have the lightest feet, but he has some size/bulk and works hard on the defensive end, and that will often suffice.  BTW, all on the Stanford roster bust it on defense.  Really good to see/fun to watch.

[teejers1]

Did Davis and Terry swap roles on offense last night?  Davis seemed to bring the ball up the court more often than not.  And Terry seemed to play off the ball more than I saw in previous games.   Then again,  I've only been able to watch a couple games this season.

looked like Fox/Cal gameplan was to prevent TT from initiating the offense so they denied/pressured in the backcourt.  Stanford's reaction was to allow DD to bring the ball up and initiate.  DD played well last night -- only a single turnover.

That was exactly the game plan.  Cal was attempting ball-denial on Terry all over the court - he had to work hard just to catch a pass.  

Most teams will employ the strategy of not letting Terry or OSD beat them; others will have to show up on offense.  Last night DD certainly did.

P.S.  Jones will be easier to shut down than either Terry or Da Silva; but I liked the fact that he didn't force much on O.  He took shots when available (not many) and busted it on D.  Jones doesn't have the lightest feet, but he has some size/bulk and works hard on the defensive end, and that will often suffice.  BTW, all on the Stanford roster bust it on defense.  Really good to see/fun to watch.

[SamuelMcF]

Did Davis and Terry swap roles on offense last night?  Davis seemed to bring the ball up the court more often than not.  And Terry seemed to play off the ball more than I saw in previous games.   Then again,  I've only been able to watch a couple games this season.

looked like Fox/Cal gameplan was to prevent TT from initiating the offense so they denied/pressured in the backcourt.  Stanford's reaction was to allow DD to bring the ball up and initiate.  DD played well last night -- only a single turnover.

+1. They stuck a senior guard on Terry who harassed him all night. Davis responded extremely well.

Haase actually did the same thing with Cal's best shooter, the big Australian guy, at halftime...Wills more or less shut him down in the 2H.

[SamuelMcF]

Did Davis and Terry swap roles on offense last night?  Davis seemed to bring the ball up the court more often than not.  And Terry seemed to play off the ball more than I saw in previous games.   Then again,  I've only been able to watch a couple games this season.

looked like Fox/Cal gameplan was to prevent TT from initiating the offense so they denied/pressured in the backcourt.  Stanford's reaction was to allow DD to bring the ball up and initiate.  DD played well last night -- only a single turnover.

+1. They stuck a senior guard on Terry who harassed him all night. Davis responded extremely well.

Haase actually did the same thing with Cal's best shooter, the big Australian guy, at halftime...Wills more or less shut him down in the 2H.

[burger]

Fun stats: Ken Pomeroy has us 16th in D-I in adjusted defense.  Bart Torvik has us 5th in D-I for the season on defense and (arbitrary endpoint alert) number 1 in the country over the last 10 games. 

With the caveat that I love this defense and they are so fun to watch, a nitpick: does anyone else think that double-teaming the bigs on defense is not very effective?  I would love to see the +/- on plays with and without a double team.  Sometimes we force a turnover, but against more skilled bigs, the ball seems to find its way to an open shooter.  It's also possible that this defense has spoiled me so much that the rare breakdowns and open shots allowed stand out in my memory.

[burger]

Fun stats: Ken Pomeroy has us 16th in D-I in adjusted defense.  Bart Torvik has us 5th in D-I for the season on defense and (arbitrary endpoint alert) number 1 in the country over the last 10 games. 

With the caveat that I love this defense and they are so fun to watch, a nitpick: does anyone else think that double-teaming the bigs on defense is not very effective?  I would love to see the +/- on plays with and without a double team.  Sometimes we force a turnover, but against more skilled bigs, the ball seems to find its way to an open shooter.  It's also possible that this defense has spoiled me so much that the rare breakdowns and open shots allowed stand out in my memory.

[MVDan]

Tonight Ziaire Williams (prospective Stanford 5* SF recruit and #5 ranked player in 2020 Class) and his Sierra Canyon team play Patrick School from NJ on ESPN2 at 6pm PST.

[MVDan]

Tonight Ziaire Williams (prospective Stanford 5* SF recruit and #5 ranked player in 2020 Class) and his Sierra Canyon team play Patrick School from NJ on ESPN2 at 6pm PST.

[SamuelMcF]

With the caveat that I love this defense and they are so fun to watch, a nitpick: does anyone else think that double-teaming the bigs on defense is not very effective?  I would love to see the +/- on plays with and without a double team.  Sometimes we force a turnover, but against more skilled bigs, the ball seems to find its way to an open shooter.  It's also possible that this defense has spoiled me so much that the rare breakdowns and open shots allowed stand out in my memory.

My inkling is that it's the latter here - you're spoiled so mostly remember the breakdowns. (I was guilty of grumbling after a 16-point win myself!) Cal had 3 assists and 18 turnovers.

Our double teams were quite effective overall, and we generally rely on athleticism to get out to the "open shooter" you mention. Feels like that's the opportunity cost of the defensive gameplan.

[SamuelMcF]

With the caveat that I love this defense and they are so fun to watch, a nitpick: does anyone else think that double-teaming the bigs on defense is not very effective?  I would love to see the +/- on plays with and without a double team.  Sometimes we force a turnover, but against more skilled bigs, the ball seems to find its way to an open shooter.  It's also possible that this defense has spoiled me so much that the rare breakdowns and open shots allowed stand out in my memory.

My inkling is that it's the latter here - you're spoiled so mostly remember the breakdowns. (I was guilty of grumbling after a 16-point win myself!) Cal had 3 assists and 18 turnovers.

Our double teams were quite effective overall, and we generally rely on athleticism to get out to the "open shooter" you mention. Feels like that's the opportunity cost of the defensive gameplan.

[GK3]

We make the other team work their a** off to try and get a decent shot.  By the time you get half way through the second half the effort starts to affect the rest of their game. I would think that trying to beat Wills, Davis or Terry is a rather thankless task.  Get tired, start making a few weak passes and Davis or Wills is off to the races.  It has been a long time since I have seen a Stanford team that really makes the other guys pay a price for sloppy basketball.

[GK3]

We make the other team work their a** off to try and get a decent shot.  By the time you get half way through the second half the effort starts to affect the rest of their game. I would think that trying to beat Wills, Davis or Terry is a rather thankless task.  Get tired, start making a few weak passes and Davis or Wills is off to the races.  It has been a long time since I have seen a Stanford team that really makes the other guys pay a price for sloppy basketball.