ThomasCostello
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Everything that went wrong for Ohio State women against UCLA
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Coaching, missing shots, injuries and lack of team chemistry. The laundry list of issues facing the Buckeyes after Saturday
Basketball coaches have a long list of role responsibilities and one of them is as a lobbyist. Watch them during games and they are usually trying to win favor with the officiating crew. Every coach does it and some make a bigger scene than others. Coaches talk to referees because, honestly, it works. Mind games are real and in a game of small margins, a coach will take any advantage they can get.
In the second half of Saturday night’s Big Ten Tournament semifinal, Ohio State women’s basketball head coach Kevin McGuff was not garnering favor with the officiating crew. With a whole quarter to go, the game was already over.
The Buckeyes ended the third quarter down 37 points to the eventual conference championship-winning Bruins. It was a program record for the Scarlet and Gray but not the kind fans want to see. It eclipsed the side’s previous three-quarter deficit high of 36 points. Not exactly a moment going up in the rafters of the Schottenstein Center.
For the last 10 minutes, Ohio State did not have the services of guard Jaloni Cambridge, due to a tough ankle roll, and forward Cotie McMahon, who left the game holding her wrist after falling on a rebound attempt, both injuries coming in the third quarter.
After the game, the team’s mood was not reeking with distraught or anger. It was not a last second loss where the stages of grief set in immediately at the final whistle. McGuff was already at the acceptance stage.
“They [UCLA] showed up focused, ready to go,” said McGuff. “They kind of jumped us early, and we didn’t respond very well. We didn’t coach very well. We didn’t play very well. Like I said, UCLA was ready, and we were not today.”
It was blunt honesty from McGuff.
Following an emotional, grind it out, win over the Iowa Hawkeyes, Ohio State was a shadow of itself, and it was not all UCLA. After all, the Buckeyes played UCLA before and built a double-digit lead against them in Los Angeles, in the first half. It was only in the fourth quarter that the Bruins pulled away in that February matchup. On Saturday, the Bruins pulled away on their first basket.
Ohio State went 3-of-14 in the first quarter and despite holding center Lauren Betts to no points in the opening 10 minutes, the other UCLA players found ample space to work in the post to the tune of 10 points in the paint to start off the game, compared to eight total points for the Buckeyes.
That was despite Ohio State crashing inside the post. It was not that Betts took a defender away, because four other UCLA players ran into that congested paint without a defender trying to stop them. Players stood around and seemed to wait for a teammate to do something, or their back was turned to the play altogether.
“We talked about a lot of things because any adjustment we made didn’t work,” McGuff said. “Everything we did differently, UCLA executed in a way that made us pay. That shows you that they were ready and they were focused.”
A key adjustment was moving from the press to half court defense. Ohio State has forced 12.6 steals per game, which leads the conference and is two more per game than last season, but that does not mean the press is working. Steals come in all sorts of ways, like Jaloni Cambridge forcing a guard into the corner of the half court or guard Taylor Thierry intercepting a pass.
The Buckeye full court press is not causing the havoc of past seasons, which makes sense with the number of changes to the roster in the offseason. Teams are finding their way around by passing long and getting to open players on the offensive end of the court.
In the half court defense, the double teams on Betts did not stop and UCLA reigned down three-point baskets with frequency. The Bruins had four in the first half and seven in the second. Ohio State had three total.
UCLA on defense closed down shooters and forced poor shot selection. When shots did get open, the Buckeyes missed them. Their zone defense made it nearly impossible to get inside near the rim, neutralizing the game of McMahon and Jaloni Cambridge, with the latter leading the team with 10 points, the only player on the team in double figures, and she played only three quarters.
So, what is the bigger problem? Is it coaching decisions? Lack of team chemistry? Unknown injuries slowing players down? Too tired from the emotional game against Iowa?
Saturday was a combination of all of those factors. The coaching staff did not make decisions quickly enough to catch Bruins head coach Cori Close off guard. Ohio State’s focus on certain plays that were not working made the team look lethargic and confused. Freshman center Elsa Lemmilä, who came on strong for the Buckeyes in the latter parts of the regular season, did not move as easily, visibly playing through pain.
Then there is the Hawkeyes piece. Multiple players on the team mentioned Iowa’s lack of respect towards the Buckeyes before and after the game. There was more to Friday than playing the next team up. McGuff does not believe the Iowa game had anything to do with Saturday’s loss to UCLA, maybe.
“If you’re on like day 3 or 4, I think maybe there’s a physical element, but on day 2 that shouldn’t be the case at all,” McGuff said. “We did put a lot into last night’s game, but they played hard too. They had to really play hard against Nebraska. I don’t think it was that. Well, it shouldn’t have been. How’s that?”
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ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Coaching, missing shots, injuries and lack of team chemistry. The laundry list of issues facing the Buckeyes after Saturday
Basketball coaches have a long list of role responsibilities and one of them is as a lobbyist. Watch them during games and they are usually trying to win favor with the officiating crew. Every coach does it and some make a bigger scene than others. Coaches talk to referees because, honestly, it works. Mind games are real and in a game of small margins, a coach will take any advantage they can get.
In the second half of Saturday night’s Big Ten Tournament semifinal, Ohio State women’s basketball head coach Kevin McGuff was not garnering favor with the officiating crew. With a whole quarter to go, the game was already over.
The Buckeyes ended the third quarter down 37 points to the eventual conference championship-winning Bruins. It was a program record for the Scarlet and Gray but not the kind fans want to see. It eclipsed the side’s previous three-quarter deficit high of 36 points. Not exactly a moment going up in the rafters of the Schottenstein Center.
For the last 10 minutes, Ohio State did not have the services of guard Jaloni Cambridge, due to a tough ankle roll, and forward Cotie McMahon, who left the game holding her wrist after falling on a rebound attempt, both injuries coming in the third quarter.
After the game, the team’s mood was not reeking with distraught or anger. It was not a last second loss where the stages of grief set in immediately at the final whistle. McGuff was already at the acceptance stage.
“They [UCLA] showed up focused, ready to go,” said McGuff. “They kind of jumped us early, and we didn’t respond very well. We didn’t coach very well. We didn’t play very well. Like I said, UCLA was ready, and we were not today.”
It was blunt honesty from McGuff.
Following an emotional, grind it out, win over the Iowa Hawkeyes, Ohio State was a shadow of itself, and it was not all UCLA. After all, the Buckeyes played UCLA before and built a double-digit lead against them in Los Angeles, in the first half. It was only in the fourth quarter that the Bruins pulled away in that February matchup. On Saturday, the Bruins pulled away on their first basket.
Ohio State went 3-of-14 in the first quarter and despite holding center Lauren Betts to no points in the opening 10 minutes, the other UCLA players found ample space to work in the post to the tune of 10 points in the paint to start off the game, compared to eight total points for the Buckeyes.
That was despite Ohio State crashing inside the post. It was not that Betts took a defender away, because four other UCLA players ran into that congested paint without a defender trying to stop them. Players stood around and seemed to wait for a teammate to do something, or their back was turned to the play altogether.
“We talked about a lot of things because any adjustment we made didn’t work,” McGuff said. “Everything we did differently, UCLA executed in a way that made us pay. That shows you that they were ready and they were focused.”
A key adjustment was moving from the press to half court defense. Ohio State has forced 12.6 steals per game, which leads the conference and is two more per game than last season, but that does not mean the press is working. Steals come in all sorts of ways, like Jaloni Cambridge forcing a guard into the corner of the half court or guard Taylor Thierry intercepting a pass.
The Buckeye full court press is not causing the havoc of past seasons, which makes sense with the number of changes to the roster in the offseason. Teams are finding their way around by passing long and getting to open players on the offensive end of the court.
In the half court defense, the double teams on Betts did not stop and UCLA reigned down three-point baskets with frequency. The Bruins had four in the first half and seven in the second. Ohio State had three total.
UCLA on defense closed down shooters and forced poor shot selection. When shots did get open, the Buckeyes missed them. Their zone defense made it nearly impossible to get inside near the rim, neutralizing the game of McMahon and Jaloni Cambridge, with the latter leading the team with 10 points, the only player on the team in double figures, and she played only three quarters.
So, what is the bigger problem? Is it coaching decisions? Lack of team chemistry? Unknown injuries slowing players down? Too tired from the emotional game against Iowa?
Saturday was a combination of all of those factors. The coaching staff did not make decisions quickly enough to catch Bruins head coach Cori Close off guard. Ohio State’s focus on certain plays that were not working made the team look lethargic and confused. Freshman center Elsa Lemmilä, who came on strong for the Buckeyes in the latter parts of the regular season, did not move as easily, visibly playing through pain.
Then there is the Hawkeyes piece. Multiple players on the team mentioned Iowa’s lack of respect towards the Buckeyes before and after the game. There was more to Friday than playing the next team up. McGuff does not believe the Iowa game had anything to do with Saturday’s loss to UCLA, maybe.
“If you’re on like day 3 or 4, I think maybe there’s a physical element, but on day 2 that shouldn’t be the case at all,” McGuff said. “We did put a lot into last night’s game, but they played hard too. They had to really play hard against Nebraska. I don’t think it was that. Well, it shouldn’t have been. How’s that?”
Continue reading...