Sunday, February 5, 2012

Kansas-Missouri post-mortem

- It was a class move when Bill Self complimented the Missouri crowd after last night's game. Self called the atmosphere "classy," affirming that this game and the crowd's behavior matched the pre-game hype.

- Great players play well in great games, whether in the midst of a slump or not. Marcus Denmon of Missouri played 39 minutes, scored 29 points and had nine rebounds. His nine points in MU's stretch run single-handedly erased an eight point KU lead.

- Thomas Robinson should have been called for a technical when he flexed and woofed at Ricardo Ratliffe in the middle of the second half. Robinson was on a tear at that point and was using his size and strength to take advantage of the Tigers.

- Conversely, how does an All-American and Player-of-the-Year candidate get called for a charge--against no less than Steve Moore--on a call made by the official standing by the Kansas bench? Robinson's basket was waved off at the two minute mark when the Jayhawks were up five and trying to stem the beginning of MU's rally.

- Everyone will point to the points he scored, the critical turnovers at the end, and the two missed free throws. But, let's credit Tyshawn Taylor for his defense on Phil Pressey. Taylor limited Pressey to two points and three turnovers and, for the most part, kept the quick MU guard out of the lane.

- I texted in the first half that Connor Teahan was playing scared--no points and two turnovers. In the second, Teahan had two steals and two threes. He also was in Denmon's grill on the shot which put MU in the lead--a case of a great player hitting a shot even though he was defensed well.

- MU's bench contributed 17 points, four rebounds and five assists. Kansas' bench provided nine points, four rebounds, and one assist.

- Kansas played its last game in Columbia, MO and finishes with a 65-54 record there. KU is 4-4 in games at Mizzou Arena. Overall, KU now leads the series 171-95 with the final game--at least for the foreseeable future--taking place in Lawrence on Saturday, February 25.

- Speaking of "last game," I wish I had a dollar for every time Dick Vitale, Dan Schulman and/or Holly Rowe brought up that topic on last night's broadcast. Please, give it a rest...

No comments:

Post a Comment