I'll be glad when that Johnson kid (#0) for Auburn is gone. He's one those players that's always hurling himself into defenders and getting what I consider to be bogus foul calls from the refs. It's one of my constant pet peeves in basketball. Those two good guards for Texas A&M do it also, but to a lesser degree than Johnson. Johnson is one of The Great Masters of throwing his body into defenders.
It aggravates me to no end how a few players get that call their way every time. Refs, if the guy with the ball is initiating the contact, at best it should be a no-call. Dang.
It's definitely a mental fatigue issue (even if only a relative one). Many of these guys can run all over the place all day long, but when you're in the moment of battle, you tap in to get a little extra (game exertion is different than practice exertion). That mental exhaustion makes it more difficult to tap in. There are a number of things that go into that mental exhaustion, and every player is different. There's also a team aspect to it as well. These are some of the things that makes sports at a high level interesting behind just the strategies involved. So far, there have been 4 games played in the SEC where only one team was coming off the bye: Texas A&M defeated FLORIDA LSU defeated Arkansas Arkansas defeated Georgia FLORIDA defeated Auburn In each case the home team was the team coming off the bye and they won; in 3 out of 4 cases, the winning team has a lower rated kenpom (FL and TAMU were close at the time, I don't remember who was higher). Georgia was the only team coming off of a loss (Nelson: ha ha). It could be something worth watching going forward: (KP #60) Ole Miss @ (KP #27) Kentucky tomorrow night (Kentucky going for 4th consecutive home loss; Ole Miss coming in off a weekend bye) 2/17: (KP #144) Missouri @ (KP #60) Ole Miss (Ole Miss coming off the game at Rupp on Tuesday) 2/17: (KP #39) TAMU @ (KP #6) Alabama (TAMU plays @ Vanderbilt on Tuesday) 2/17: (KP #117) Arkansas @ (KP #33) MSU (Arkansas hosts Tennessee on Wednesday) 2/17: (KP #26) FLORIDA @ (KP #84) Georgia (FLORIDA hosts LSU on Tuesday) 2/24: (KP #45) South Carolina @ (KP #60) Ole Miss (Ole Miss plays @ MSU on Wednesday) 2/24: (KP #5) Auburn @ (KP #84) Georgia (Georgia plays @ Vanderbilt on Wednesday) No clue how significant Tuesday/Wednesday is, if at all, and how that would be leveraged vs. a "big" win if you will. Tennessee/Vanderbilt each played each other off of a bye (makes the most sense); Kentucky used their bye to face Gonzaga. Go GATORS! ,WESGATORS
I know our guys probably felt a tinge of desperation about getting the W against Auburn, especially after the A&M loss. I’m sure TG emphasized the importance of the game. They prepared and came out and executed. Now, time to box up/ pack up that defensive effort & intensity and take it to Baton Rouge. Good defense travels, in any sport. It’s the one element that a team has better control of. Jump shots and FT’s, not so much. Looking forward to how the guys handle being favored and on the road. I think they’re up to the challenge. Time to buckle up for the stretch run. I still like our ceiling, as Micah, Haugh & Condon seem to be settling into what to do & how to do it, with their roles. Samuel is the constant, who can get you a double-double if the ball is bouncing his way. EDIT: Apex pointed out to me that LSU is a home game, so I’ll put this comment on “ pause”, until we get ready to head to Athens.
Thanks, My bad, I thought we were traveling to LSU. Being at home…..even better. EDIT: UGA is the next road game. Thanks for the course correction Apex.
mutts will be rested and fired up. I wouldn't be surprised to drop this one and maybe get an upset at Carolina or less likely bama.
