I like the way CTG adjusted yesterday. Mainly with how he sat guys when they were not producing and played them when they did produce. He didn’t just stick to a preconceived plan and he adjusted on the fly. Also liked how he went offense/defense down the stretch. You typically see that more at the NBA level. Aside from that, he built deep lineup, able to weather the storm of a hurt or fouled out big man. I think he saw what happened last year with Castleton and said “never again”. We were not good without him and when he went down, we had no real shot. This team is different.
I think TG is great for the program and has a very high ceiling. I loved his enthusiasm when we won. This program needs that…. And it was something White lacked. I don’t think last night was Golden’s best game; and we survived on a Pullin 3… that had it missed, this board would look very different today. I did not like our rotations; think we need a lot of work on situational basketball … inbounding against pressure, timeout usage; felt we should’ve subbed offense/defense for Michigan final play of regulation… and had Samuel in for the missed rebound; and was baffled by Clayton being on the bench in a catch-and-shoot scenario with 2 seconds left…. and the resulting play;
Basketball never lacks opportunities for second-guessing. To me, this appears to be our best team since the back-to-back championships. I'm excited by Golden and his clear *basketball* mentality. These players he's brought to Orange & Blue Heaven have an edge to them and I likes dat. Hopefully he can help transform our program. Into a *basketball* program distinct from our football mindset. What I mean is this: I love our number 1 program, football, and its mindset. Basketball is different and has its own vibe. I constantly think back on going to a tournament game in Memphis where we were playing. Our band had a slow, football vibe imposed on it. ((( sigh ))) Dayton's band, however, had a real ROCKING basketball vibe that was faster, better. I want that for us. Golden can get it done.
I was wondering why Golden didn't continue to make the offensive/defensive switch of Clayton and Kugel into the second overtime? This is why Golden coaches the Gators and I post on Gatorcountry.
I think the direction of the basketball program is positive vs stagnation with Mike White's teams but Billy had several Elite 8's and a Final 4 run since b2b... this team I am not sure is at that level But I hope I am wrong!
What was impressive to me, unless he was hurt - Kugel wasn't on the floor most of OT and he never felt he had to play him (unless he was hurt). defensive effort was good, some careless opportunities when we failed to grab the ball etc. Overall must win game at a neutral site against a team with potential, but who is struggling right now. I doubt Michigan becomes a ncaa tourney team once they enter conference play. As much as we almost gave that game away, we won it back -- very very good game for the gators. Team has potential, now it's about consistency going into SEC play - open with kentucky, ole miss, Ark, and Tenn -- that's a brutal stretch right there. What I liked, is he let the kids play, called timeouts, when he had to, but the kids on the floor had to make the difference vs analytics etc. Bringing in size was a must for sure, first time in a while we actually look like a basketball team in my opinion.
While I praised CTG, I agree with you on Clayton, somewhat, but honestly he didn’t look like himself until the end of the 2nd OT. Was not aggressive all game then you saw the flashes when he hit that three and strong layup at the end. I think CTG sat him because he saw the same thing. I agree that we need better inbound plays. We should not have passed it into Clayton on the baseline corner without a plan.
Until we know more there is no way I can put this team above the Chiozza Elite 8 team. They had Final Four potential. I don’t see this team at that level, yet, but hey let’s see how things go.
Man, I amaze myself with my recency bias. Totally flushed those Donovan years, probably because I prefer this style of ball. But . . . point taken. These guys, our 23-24 team, are frustrating and tantalizing all at once. I'm good with that. Gonna be interesting to see whether they can grow into a championship team. That Baylor game gives me great confidence.
Can CTG coach up the basketball band? I kid I kid. Sometimes the coaches meet w the band. Napier met w the matching band in their rehearsal hall. When I was an undergrad Kruger met the basketball band in the arena. Maybe CTG had done something similar.
I like what I'm seeing, now if he can get the guys to value each possesion more. He's talked about that, but they're not hearinbg the message
I like what he is doing, we finally big men with great talent. I still like our D, they made some contested 3s but man our rebounding and grit is great. In year 2 he has already made key adjustments and if we can improve our ft shooting and shooting in general we will be tough to beat. Keep in mind we've already played a really tough schedule of non conference games. Our guys will be ready for the SEC gauntlet
Haugh deserved more than 8 minutes last night, by far. 5 points, 3 (2 offensive) rebs, a steal and a block. His minutes have been drastically cut back to 7/game in the last 3.
