Blue/White Game -- After Action Report
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 28, 2009 9:35 PM EDT
in Basketball
40 comments
Well, as you might expect from a public scrimmage, there was a lot of fun had tonight in the Big Blue Nation. The Blue/White Scrimmage is now a historical fact.
Some questions were answered. Others remain. But overall, there was a lot positive from this intra-squad tussle. Here are the main things I noticed:
- Wall and Bledsoe together are scary as heck in this offense. Nobody could stop them.
- John Wall is as advertised, but he really needs to work on his perimeter game, it is a significant weakness.
- Eric Bledsoe's perimeter game is better than it was. Early progress is a good thing.
- Patrick Patterson is showing signs of having small forward skills. That's really great to see.
- DeMarcus Cousins is a big, big boy. And he plays like one. But he is quite a bit more athletic than he looks.
- Darius Miller was invisible in the first half, and awesome in the second. I don't know what that means.
- Darnell Dodson can shoot, but he's no Jodie Meeks.
- The athleticism on this team is absolutely remarkable. Perhaps the most athletic college team, top to bottom, ever assembled.
- Jon Hood really looks like a contributor this year. He was fearless.
- Perry Stevenson was completely invisible the whole game. Ramon Harris was not.
- I think we can pretty well figure out who the stars are going to be.
- Josh Harrellson can still shoot, and he makes good decisions more often than not. But he has to go to the basket a lot more strongly against the likes of this team.
- Speed, speed, speed. This team is going to wear folks down in a hurry.
- This team has the ability to be great defensively. Will they?
- Did I mention Patrick Patterson was the man?
- Mark Krebs can shoot a little.
- DeAndre Liggins has a chance to be pretty good in this system.
Overall, I thought the practice was sloppy but fun, and I expect this team to get a lot better. Our athleticism and talent will carry us until we run up against the big boys, but hopefully by then, these guys will have some kind of clue. Even though they tried to execute Calipari's system, most of the time they didn't do a great job. We saw flashes of what makes the DDM so great, but it wasn't a consistent theme.
I do like the way that the team played with respect to effort and pace. I thought overall the team really played hard, and did good work. I expect Cal to get them to the point of competence, if not a well-oiled machine, pretty quickly. This was all good fun, and way more interesting than Big Blue Madness from a basketball standpoint.
I can't wait to see us play our first real game. Go Cats!
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I really
did not see that much improvement in LIggins. As for Harrelson, if he can shoot from the perimeter he can be part of the solution when teams go to a zone to try and stop Walls and Bledsoe. I see a team that sends waves of players at the opponent throughout the game, enough depth to keep fresh legs late into the contest. Looks very promising.
by kywineman on Oct 28, 2009 9:44 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I agree on Liggins. Harrellson once again shows what last year's stats proved: he is the best rebounder on the team.
Some have said DeAndre was made for the DDMO, whereas it appears to me nothing could be further from the truth. DDMO requires SOUND split second decision making, which is something, alas, that it does not appear the Lord has gifted DeAndre with. He should have transferred to a school where his athleticism and great view of the court would have been enough to make him a legend. That probably means a second tier program. I will continue to pull for him (and we know Tru will), but I see him transferring after this season.
Last year Harrellson had the best Rebounds Per Forty Minutes stats on the team, despite being given very little opportunity to get into the flow of the game before being pulled and berated by BCG. In fact, his Rebounds/40 was among the top in the country (ranked right there with Hasheem Thabeet). This year you see what he can do when given a chance to get into the flow of the game — 6 more rebounds than anyone else, and more than Darius Miller and Patrick Patterson COMBINED. Go Jorts!
Jon Hood had stats identical to Darius Miller playing against better talent. Let that be a lesson not to foget about “that white kid from Madisonville.”
by Ken Pomeroy on Oct 29, 2009 9:52 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
GREAT ....
Glad to see everyone off on the right foot … we’ll take some lumps … but when this team begins to gel … lookout.
Any word on Wall’s eligibility? Will he be able to play in the exhibition game Monday? Seems like the SEC/NCAA should have to say YES or NO by the time the season starts ….. instead of leaving the player hanging in the wind – especially inasmuch as they have required them to spend a year in college instead of jumping to the pros.
by ukcris on Oct 28, 2009 9:48 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
My Guess
Wall’s suspension (if there ever is one) will be announced AFTEr he doesn’t play X games.
by FortyYearCatFan on Oct 28, 2009 10:46 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I have two words for the Blue/White game
Wow and Fast !!
Did I mention the word FAST ???….lol :-)
I must add another, now that I reflect….FUN !!!
Blue... there is no other color to Bleed !!!
by a2d2 on Oct 28, 2009 9:53 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
oh well
Sadly Tennessee did not benefit from the BBN hubub…so no broadcast here. Thankfully I did “participate” with ASOB. Does anyone know if a replay can be found anywhere?
The speed seemed to be a key. I can’t wait to see this in action.
Again thanks ASOB for the connection. .
by CAWebb on Oct 28, 2009 10:40 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Did you check the UK website?
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 9:02 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You use to have to
shoot from the outside to bust a zone. I have a feeling we have another way around it. Wall and Bledsoe on the court at the same time should do the trick. WOW, this team is absolutely going to run most teams into the ground with the speed and the bench we have. I can see why Cal says the minutes will be spread out so much, they have to with the speed he intends to play at. I was very happy with what I saw tonight and as the season progresses, we will continue to improve. This is the kind of basketball UK fans love.
by Grasslands1 on Oct 28, 2009 10:43 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Dribble Penetration By Guards
That is the zone “busting” key.
by FortyYearCatFan on Oct 29, 2009 6:31 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
CAWebb, I live in Florida
and got the game on FOX South on my cable. It cost me 3.99 a month, but as you can imagine is well worth it. To think that you can live in Florida and watch a UK scrimmage is mind bogeling to me. They have a repeat tonight at 1:00 am.
by Grasslands1 on Oct 28, 2009 10:48 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I'm in Montana with DirecTV's Sports Package
I got to see the pregame and the scrimmage on FSN’s alternate feed (Channel 648). I kept waiting for the splash screen to come up to tell me that the game was not available in my area, but was rewarded with the whole banana.
I’m anxious to see if I get the two exhibition games next week. They are supposed to be on FSS, or at least Rob Bromley promised on the pre and post game teasers.
Last year I has to purchase ESPN’s Full-Court ($100.00) to ensure I got all the BBall games. With the new ESPN/SEC deal, I may be able to pick them up within the package deal on DirecTV.
So far, I’ve been able to watch all of the ‘Cats’ football games (even ULM) and think I have a good chance of getting the MSU game Saturday. Still doubtful for EKU, though.
by MTCAT on Oct 29, 2009 12:41 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You mean we have two Cat fans out in Big Sky country?
Wow!
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 9:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Wrong, Tru
There are 3 of us, which is appx 50% of the population. :>)
by longtime on Oct 29, 2009 8:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
you guys could like start your own ASOBWest group.....lol
Remember, we're having fun now!!!
by ALLBLUCAT on Oct 29, 2009 9:44 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Wow!
Three times the pleasure! :-)
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 30, 2009 5:39 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Hey, MTCAT!
Yeah, at $13.00/month the sports package with DirecTV is a pretty good deal for us WAY out here in the north forties. I ordered that, along with Full Court last year in order to see all of the UK’s legitimate hoops games.
Unfortunately, I didn’t think about the sports package until late yesterday, and at that point, rather than pay for a whole month for just one game (you know, since the scrimmage was the only UK game left in October and I only get the sports package for UK games and specifically for FSN South, I really don’t utilize all 30 or however many channels there are in the sports package) – well, at that point I figured I would just wait until November to order and reluctantly miss the scrimmage. And as far as the exhibition games, I’m hoping that I’ll be able to see those with the sports packages, as well. Last year those games were blacked out, so I’m crossing my fingers for better results this year.
Also, I haven’t ordered it yet, but in looking over the b-ball schedule I think I will have to order Full Court this year, as well. A handful of our games later on in the year (and next year) are listed on the schedule as being broadcast on the SEC Network, and I’m not sure if that is somehow worked into the ESPN deal and they will be showing those on regular ESPN or not? I guess I’ll just wait for the Full Court schedule to come out and see what UK games, if any, are listed. If any are listed, I will, of course, be ordering.
Oh, and thanks so much for the "After Action Report", Tru. I appreciate the rundown. : )
by BigSkyCat on Oct 29, 2009 10:14 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Not at all.
I have some news links up now, for those who are interested.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 10:15 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Not at all = "no thanks necessary"
I didn’t see how that came through till I posted it. :-)
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 10:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Anticipation!
As I watched Midnight Madness and then last night…I can almost hear Carly Simon singing in the background!
Isn’t it great to anticipate postive things for the season rather than worrying about how bad someone was probably going to beat us?
No one knows how good this season will be but I’ll make a prediction right now………We won’t see the shot clock run out on this team!!
GO CATS!!!!
by UKlvrJM on Oct 29, 2009 7:49 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
do you realize...
how elderly we (myself included) are to remember Carly Simon’s song?
by StillCatwoman on Oct 29, 2009 8:20 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Like Fine WIne...we just get better!!!
I’m listening to Sirius 14 right now…..Elton John’s singing Leave On!!!! The youngsters just don’t have anything good to listen to!!;)
by UKlvrJM on Oct 29, 2009 8:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Defense
I know it was a scrimmage, but was the defense lacking a little? We never got a charge (all blocking calls) all night and there was opening in the lanes this 50 year body got to the rim. I know I might be a little critical but would have liked to see the defense step up a little. But is nice to see the athleticism on our side for a change.
by sonnybadbutt on Oct 29, 2009 7:55 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I think Mike Pratt said it best...
They were not going too play too physically on defense last night, no sense in getting someone hurt in a scrimmage. They basically said that if your man beats you on that first step, let him go, do not get under people in the air, not even on accident.
We’ll see defense when they are playing other people, no sense in banging each other up.
by aidanpryde18 on Oct 29, 2009 8:34 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
But there were a ton of steals and a number of blocks.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 9:05 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Defense will be the strength of this team. Mark my words.
— as it is all of Calipari’s teams, by the way.
Coach has been salivating over what we can accomplish on defense. His emphasis on being the number 1 shot blocking team in the country was exciting, although it probably will upset those few on this site who always claim shot blocking is somehow a sign of bad defense.
by Ken Pomeroy on Oct 29, 2009 9:57 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Shot blocking
Count me among the pro-shot-blocking crowd. I love seeing a big guy swat one into the third row. I’m really excited about seeing that from Daniel Orton this year.
by Acdixon on Oct 29, 2009 10:00 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Yeah ...
… I think that’s right. Wall is likely to lead the league in steals, if that game was a good indicator of what we will see later. He is just all over you on defense.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 10:13 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think there was a special instruction ...
… to call the block on most of the block/charge calls. I heard them talking about that in the commentary, but I didn’t catch it all, I was too busy watching. :-)
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 9:04 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Ya
They were talking about the fact that Calipari doesn’t want to enforce a bad habit of guys sliding under players going for layups especially. It’s bad enough to let your man get that deep, but to give him a stupid And One as well is even worse. The NCAA has told refs to automatically call the block on plays under the basket, so he is reinforcing that idea.
On the rest of the floor, I am not so sure of the calls, but I know for the basket area situations, that is the explanation.
by aidanpryde18 on Oct 29, 2009 9:09 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Injuries
This has the makings of a great team, but I suspect, as Macy said on the broadcast, the defense was lacking in some respects, precisely because they players did not want to put their teammates in harm’s way for an exhibition. They will have to get after one another in practice to get good defensively, but I don’t think this was the place to do it. When Cousins went to the sidelines with an ankle tweak, I was reminded how fragile any team is with just one injury. My mind immediately returned to 1997 and Derek Anderson… Great team, one injury, no threepeat.
by BluebloodinNaptown on Oct 29, 2009 9:08 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
"DeMarcus Cousins is a big, big boy."
Yes, yes he is. Last night was the first time I really paid attention to it, but dude is huge. One of the commentators (Macy?) commented that he was built like Shaq at the same point in his career, and I kinda think he’s right. Does that make anyone else excited?
Also agree about Hood. I was very pleasantly surprised, and more so because one of the folks in my office is his cousin.
by Acdixon on Oct 29, 2009 9:43 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I'm overseas
in India for a year. Does anyone know a good way to try to catch the games? I don’t care what time of the morning I have to wake up at.
by Byron on Oct 29, 2009 10:06 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
You can try ...
… ESPN 360, and the UK athletics website. Both have live streaming of many games. Also, Yahoo sometimes streams them.
Others may have better answers than me.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 10:14 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
thought about the 360
but that’s only for set domestic providers. I’ll be hitting yahoo up as much as I can but I’m so worried about the big games…this makes me very sad.
by Byron on Oct 29, 2009 10:15 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Somebody else in here may have better sources. I rarely have to use streaming.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Truzenzuzex on Oct 29, 2009 10:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
SlingBox Is Best Alternative
I reside in Central America and use SlingBoxes at 3 USA sites to access UK games. Don’t miss many. Although last night was proof that redundancy doesn’t always work. Kansas City was in use by someone else, NYC owner was in Italy and turned system off (dumb) and Hilton Head was in midst of remodel with Box and TV moved and not connected. Hope is one will be available Saturday.
"Learn(ing) without thinking begets ignorance. Think(ing) without learning is dangerous."
-Confucius
by Wild Weasel on Oct 29, 2009 12:56 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
BREAKING NEWS
Jerry Tipton has been caught fabricating part of a story yesterday in the LHL.
by -Zoso- on Oct 29, 2009 6:40 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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