Deadline for The Davidson Project is Jan. 1.
Showing posts with label charleston classic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label charleston classic. Show all posts
12.14.2009
11.23.2009
Roles and wants
Ten a.m. on a Sunday can be a good time to think about who you are and what you might be able to be.
At tip in Charleston against Penn State there maybe were a couple hundred people watching this year’s Wildcats trying to figure that out.
At around 20-4 or so I left my seat and walked up to the concourse at Carolina First and saw a woman up there wearing a Davidson Elite 8 sweatshirt. The calendar says it wasn’t that long ago. It was and it wasn’t.
The legacy of that incredible achievement is many things, and different things to different people, and not yet fixed. The legacy is still very much being determined.
For this year’s team, and particularly for this year’s seniors, the legacy of the Elite 8 is extraordinary expectations. Expectations are good, or can be, but that doesn't mean they’re always fair.
Every player on this team has a new role. That includes Bryant, Will and Steve. Their roles now are as new to them as college ball in general is to JP, Jake and Nik. They’re trying, trying their hardest, maybe trying too hard, to adjust to those new roles.
It remains to be seen whether Bryant, Will and Steve are trying to be things they can’t be. That’s only four real games. But it’s a statement of fact that they're trying to be things they haven’t been.
“I think the biggest part is being expected to be a leader,” Bryant told me after the game outside the locker room. “Right now I’m making mistakes. How can we expect our freshmen to do things the right way if I’m not doing things the right way?”
This could be a long season?
No. This is a long season. They all are.
That’s the point.
At tip in Charleston against Penn State there maybe were a couple hundred people watching this year’s Wildcats trying to figure that out.
At around 20-4 or so I left my seat and walked up to the concourse at Carolina First and saw a woman up there wearing a Davidson Elite 8 sweatshirt. The calendar says it wasn’t that long ago. It was and it wasn’t.
The legacy of that incredible achievement is many things, and different things to different people, and not yet fixed. The legacy is still very much being determined.
For this year’s team, and particularly for this year’s seniors, the legacy of the Elite 8 is extraordinary expectations. Expectations are good, or can be, but that doesn't mean they’re always fair.
Every player on this team has a new role. That includes Bryant, Will and Steve. Their roles now are as new to them as college ball in general is to JP, Jake and Nik. They’re trying, trying their hardest, maybe trying too hard, to adjust to those new roles.
It remains to be seen whether Bryant, Will and Steve are trying to be things they can’t be. That’s only four real games. But it’s a statement of fact that they're trying to be things they haven’t been.
“I think the biggest part is being expected to be a leader,” Bryant told me after the game outside the locker room. “Right now I’m making mistakes. How can we expect our freshmen to do things the right way if I’m not doing things the right way?”
This could be a long season?
No. This is a long season. They all are.
That’s the point.
Thoughts from Charleston
1. That these guys made quite competitive three games that could’ve been so lopsided says something good about them. That the early holes were so deep says something maybe not so good.
2. Many of the biggest shots in Davidson’s second half came from JP and Jake.
3. Radio man Ken Hall said after the game that we’d seen 59-57 before. Then he opened up his copy of the book standing in the hall down a bit from the Davidson locker room and reminded me of a part on page 47:
4. Tripp made the good point watching the game Sunday that for the last seven years Davidson basketball has had a clear No. 1 scorer. There were the three years of Stephen but also before that the four years of Brendan Winters. Best not to forget Brendan Winters.
5. The first option on that last play? JP.
2. Many of the biggest shots in Davidson’s second half came from JP and Jake.
3. Radio man Ken Hall said after the game that we’d seen 59-57 before. Then he opened up his copy of the book standing in the hall down a bit from the Davidson locker room and reminded me of a part on page 47:
In Detroit a reporter had asked McKillop about his team’s 4-6 start.
“We did not surrender,” McKillop said.
“Our world today is full of surrender. People surrender morals, principles, beliefs, dreams, at the first sign of a challenge, at the first sign of failure.
“We did not surrender,” he said again.
4. Tripp made the good point watching the game Sunday that for the last seven years Davidson basketball has had a clear No. 1 scorer. There were the three years of Stephen but also before that the four years of Brendan Winters. Best not to forget Brendan Winters.
5. The first option on that last play? JP.
Penn State game coverage
The Observer:
CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Davidson’s visit to the ESPN Charleston Classic might not have been the most enjoyable of trips, but it certainly proved to be a learning experience for the Wildcats, who lost Sunday for the fourth straight time this season.Penn State (3-2) jumped to a big lead early in the game that tipped off at 10a.m., and managed to hang on for a 59-57 win.
“Losing is never easy for me or for our players or our program or our fans,” Davidson coach Bob McKillop said. “We all feel the loss. We have great expectations. I’m proud of the way we fought. I think we fought hard in every game. Certainly, we need to have the players executing at the same time. That's my responsibility. We’re going to go back to work to get that done. I’m very encouraged.”
11.21.2009
The La Salle loss
The Observer:
Giannini in the Philly Daily News: “Davidson likes to play fast and we like to play fast, so I think this was a comfortable game for both teams in terms of tempo. Of course, when it gets down to around 4 minutes, you don’t want to shoot it that quickly, so we kind of backed off.” Inquirer. DavidsonWildcats.com. Cowie photos on DavidsonNews.net.
CHARLESTON, S.C. -- It’s been more than 10 years since Davidson has started a basketball season at 0-3, but even after losing 84-70 to LaSalle Friday night in the ESPN Charleston Classic Wildcats coach Bob McKillop saw some promise.“I’m delighted with our competitive toughness, the way we came back and in the end we were relentless defensively and getting better,” McKillop said after the Wildcats dropped their second straight game in the tournament to fall to 0-3 for the first time since the start of the 1998-99 season.
“There’s no way we feel good about losing the game, but I feel like we’re going to get better as we go along.”
11.20.2009
A thought here
Either they’ll figure this out, and it’ll be interesting, or they won’t, and that’ll be interesting, too. Numbers.
The La Salle coach
John Giannini: “Davidson wins 25-plus games every year. I know Stephen Curry is gone, but that’s still a very good team. They pose a lot of challenges for us. That’s why we didn’t beat ourselves up immediately after the game because we have to get ready to go up against a high-quality program tomorrow.”
Coverage off last night
SPT:
CHARLESTON, S.C. -- USF has a faster, stronger, more athletic team than Davidson, but it took a long time for that to manifest itself on the scoreboard Thursday night.
With Gus Gilchrist scoring 19 of his game-high 21 points in the second half, USF held on to beat the Wildcats 65-58 in the first round of the Charleston Classic at Carolina First Arena.
“That was a really tough game,” said coach Stan Heath, whose Bulls improved to 3-0. “We just could not shake them. We knew they were awfully good. I’m really proud of my guys.”
McKillop in the Observer: “I think guys have to execute their assignments better. The ever elusive quality we need to grasp is consistency. I thought we got pretty good looks at the basket. We need to capitalize.” Trib. DavidsonWildcats.com.
Tweeting from the Lowcountry
Bryant: big time disappointed...too inconsistent on our part...mind’s on tomorrow’s game now...learn and move on.
11.19.2009
Just some quick thoughts on tonight
Oof. Listened to this one down here in St. Pete. Tough to tell with no video feed so what do I know?
But ...
1. Defense creates offense. At least it does when a team has the personnel to do that. And Davidson has been that kind of team and was very much that kind of team over the last few years. That was because of the will of the sytem, but it also was because of Max, and Stephen, and Andrew. They’re gone now. Those extra possessions add up.
2. Will started strong. Bryant finished strong. It’s harder without Stephen and all the attention he drew. But everybody knew that coming in.
3. Honest assessment from McKillop on the radio after the game: “We cannot have any missing links. That’s got to be the standing motto for our team. No missing links.”
4. That’s two games of data. Tomorrow there’s a third. It’s Nov. 19.
5. We don’t have to fix it. We just have to watch.
But ...
1. Defense creates offense. At least it does when a team has the personnel to do that. And Davidson has been that kind of team and was very much that kind of team over the last few years. That was because of the will of the sytem, but it also was because of Max, and Stephen, and Andrew. They’re gone now. Those extra possessions add up.
2. Will started strong. Bryant finished strong. It’s harder without Stephen and all the attention he drew. But everybody knew that coming in.
3. Honest assessment from McKillop on the radio after the game: “We cannot have any missing links. That’s got to be the standing motto for our team. No missing links.”
4. That’s two games of data. Tomorrow there’s a third. It’s Nov. 19.
5. We don’t have to fix it. We just have to watch.
(More of) how people talk
From the Daily Gamecock: The field includes notable teams such as Penn State, Miami and Davidson ...
Perusing the game notes
Interesting factoid out of the Butler game: Davidson won all 20 games when it outrebounded its opponent in 2008-09. The Wildcats owned a 31-27 edge on the glass against the Bulldogs.
Tonight in Charleston
On the bottom of 5C in the paper that pays my bills:
Distraction for USF? Eh. Nobody cares. It’s still football season down here.
Observer says ... not much.
Last year in Charleston? At C of C. At The Citadel. Also (of course) March ’08. A text I got from Bro that night after the championship game win while sitting in the bar at the North Charleston Sheraton: “We are good. George Mason good. Gonzaga good. Stan Heath Kent State good.”
Star guard Stephen Curry is now with the Golden State Warriors, so Davidson isn’t quite the force it has been.
Distraction for USF? Eh. Nobody cares. It’s still football season down here.
Observer says ... not much.
Last year in Charleston? At C of C. At The Citadel. Also (of course) March ’08. A text I got from Bro that night after the championship game win while sitting in the bar at the North Charleston Sheraton: “We are good. George Mason good. Gonzaga good. Stan Heath Kent State good.”
11.18.2009
11.17.2009
Thursday night’s opponent
SPT: It’s only two games, but there’s a different energy around USF’s basketball team. Stan Heath on Twitter: Team Defense sparked Bulls home victory. Up nxt Davidson in Charlston Tourney. Developing more bench depth will b a focus ovr nxt week.
11.16.2009
In my morning paper
My SPT colleague Greg Auman on USF’s big-hope big guy: If you ask Stan Heath, the difference in Gus Gilchrist from a year ago is like night and day. It could also end up being the difference between losing and winning for USF basketball. Charleston Classic.
10.22.2009
How people talk Ctd
Cremins: “Look at the field. Look at the conferences these teams come from. South Carolina from the SEC, Miami from the ACC, Penn State from the Big Ten. And Davidson.” How people talk about Davidson basketball.
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