Taking a Look at The Russdiculous End to the Notre Dame vs. Louisville Game

By now, if you didn’t watch the game last night, you’ve all seen the highlights of the epic five-overtime thriller between Notre Dame and Louisville.  We all know that Jerian Grant scored 12 points in the final 45 seconds, that Garrick Sherman scored 17 points without getting a minute of playing time in regulation, and that Louisville just couldn’t close.  But let’s take a look at the final moments of regulation and each of the overtimes, because Russ Smith may have broken a record for most game-winners missed in a single game.  Seriously.  If such a record existed, it was surely broken last night.

End of Regulation:

Peyton Siva dribbles to the top of the key, looks to have a wide open jumper if he wants to take it, but decides to dump it down to Gorgui Dieng in the low-post with three guys around him, and can’t handle it.  No shot is attempted.

End of 1^st Overtime:

Russ Smith slowly dribbles the ball up the court, comes to a complete stop at half court with roughly five seconds remaining, and Russ, seemingly unaware that the clock is running, is forced to jack a 3 from about 10 feet beyond the 3-point line, and it clanks off the glass and rims out.

End of 2^nd Overtime:

This time Russ Smith slowly dribbles past half court, but has enough time so that he can attempt a drive.  He opts to go left and his erratic, running extended layup from high off the glass doesn’t even hit the rim.  Chane Behanan gets a chance with the put back, but it was highly contested and rushed, and also didn’t get any rim.

 

End of 3^rd Overtime:

Louisville is forced to go the length of the court after inbounding it from under their own basket in less than four seconds.  Obviously they inbound to Russ, he runs and dribbles as fast as he can, and he attempts a running jumper from approximately the 3-point line.  The attempt didn’t go and it wouldn’t have mattered because the ball was still in his hand when the buzzer sounded. 

End of 4^th Overtime:

The Cardinals once again have to go the length of the court upon inbounding it from the opposite end, but this time they have just over six seconds to work with.  Again they inbound the ball to Smith, he scampers down the floor only to have it knocked away at the 3-point line, but he is able to regain control just in time to jack a fade-away five feet beyond the arc that ends up being an airball. 

End of 5^th Overtime:

This time the circumstances are different.  Instead of the game being tied like the previous instances, Louisville is now down three with under 10 seconds to play.  But like the four previous overtime periods the ball was in Russ Smith’s hands last.  On this occasion he dribbles to the top left of the arc, sets himself right in front of Coach Pitino (hoping for him to will it in I presume), but the deep three clanks off the iron.  The Irish win.

Summary:

The Louisville Cardinals had the final shot at the end of regulation and every overtime period, opted to not use an available timeout in every instance, didn’t get a shot off once, and Russ Smith had the ball in his hands for the final possession in all five overtimes and didn’t make a single shot.  I have a feeling that not only will the Cards use a timeout in these situations in the future, but they will be dedicating large portions of their practice sessions to these situations over the next month.  And maybe next time they will actually have some sort of set play to run rather than it just being a chaotic Russdiculous situation. 

Twitter:  @soupTOOnuts

Soup to Nuts: Vol. 6

Power Rankings

We are more than halfway through the conference schedule and it looks pretty clear which teams are good, which teams are decent and which teams are awful. If James Southerland is reinstated for the Orange today I believe it is a two horse race between Cuse and Louisville to win the league. If his appeal is rejected I’d be surprised if the Ville didn’t take it. Pittsburgh, Marquette and Georgetown will remain in contention, but will fall short. However, any five of these teams could run the Big East Tournament. And the only conceivable game I can see either DePaul or South Florida winning is when they play each other in early March.

Now to the rankings…

Twitter:  @soupTOOnuts

James Southerland’s Fate Determined Tomorrow

James Southerland has been relegated to street clothes at the end of the ‘Cuse bench since their home game against Villanova on January 12th. He was deemed academically ineligible before tipoff that afternoon and it has since been released that an ongoing investigation was taking place centering on a term-paper that he wrote, or possibly didn’t write.

He will now sit down in front of a Syracuse University panel tomorrow (Thursday, February 7) to appeal the allegations and attempt to regain his eligibility. That’s right; he’s sitting down with SU officials, not NCAA officials. So this issue has strictly become a school matter and it is in the University’s hands to determine his - and essentially the team’s- fate for the remainder of the season.

Southerland played in a total of 16 games and is currently third on the team in points per game with 13.6 Not only was he the team’s best 3-point shooter, but his length was ideal for the 2-3 zone. Jerami Grant has filled in admirably and the freshman has improved immensely since the beginning of the season, but he doesn’t give the Orange the same threat offensively as Southerland did.

I believe it is imperative that Syracuse gets Southerland back if they want to even be in the discussion for a national title. With him on the floor the Orange are able to stretch and open up defenses with his sharp-shooting ability from long range. With that, cutting and passing lanes open up for the talented Michael Carter-Williams to take advantage of. The Orange have struggled recently because MCW has struggled. This seems to be because defenses are sitting back, taking away slashing lanes, and daring the Orange to shoot from the outside. Beyond Brandon Triche, there isn’t much on this roster to scare defenses.

Carter-Williams is the team’s best player, but teams have been able to scheme against him better because of the pieces around him. With Southerland in the lineup, the floor opens up. If the Orange are able to get some good news on Thursday and see him back in uniform soon, they will once again be considered title contenders.

Twitter:  @soupTOOnuts

Notre Dame has One Glaring Defensive Issue, Again

When it comes to running an efficient offense Notre Dame is not only one of the best, but one of the most consistent teams in the nation year after year.

Going as far back as KenPom’s tempo-free history has data for – which is 2003 – the Irish have only once had their offense ranked outside the top-50, which was 51^st in 2005. They have finished in the top-10 in five seasons over that span and are currently 11^th this year. Their offensive prowess is predicated on excellent 3-point shooting (finishing in the top 30 in 3-point percentage in eight of 11 seasons) along with being one of the best teams in the country at protecting the ball. Their turnover percentage has never been worse than 29^th.

But for how good Notre Dame is at protecting the ball, they are equally and oppositely terrible at taking it away from their opponents.

Now the Irish aren’t a terrible defensive team. Their average rank over the past 11 seasons is 90^th, but that isn’t good enough in the Big East as they are usually at or near the bottom in the conference.

And the finger can be pointed directly at their ability - or lack thereof - to force turnovers.  The Irish are absolutely atrocious at turning their opponent over. Take a look at the chart below. They have consistently ranked outside the top-300 in the country at forcing turnovers. And only once have they cracked the top-200, which is a complete anomaly because all 10 other seasons have been over 300.

The Irish do compensate for this by not fouling often (at least fouls that result in their opponent going to the free throw line, anyway) and they are a respectable rebounding team year after year. But when you run that slow ‘burn’ offense without generating turnovers to create extra possessions, you are consistently playing with fire and will likely be in many more close games than you would like, especially against upper echelon opponents or in hostile environments. Just take a look at what the Irish have done in the NCAA Tournament over the past 10 seasons…

2012: Lost their first game as a 7 seed

2011: Won one game as a 2 seed

2010: Lost their first game as a 6 seed

2008: Won one game as a 5 seed

2007: Lost their first game as a 6 seed

2003: Won two games as a 5 seed

Notre Dame has made the tournament as an at-large bid in six of the last 10 seasons and has never been worse than a seven seed. But only once – 10 years ago – have they made it out of the first weekend, while succumbing to one-and-done on three occasions.

One would think that given the fact that Notre Dame is more or less consistently ranked in the top-25 throughout the season that they would have better fortunes in the tournament every now and then. But given that the Irish are a mediocre defensive team – especially when compared to the rest of the NCAA Tournament field – I don’t think it’s any surprise that they have struggled when it has mattered most.

And this year’s statistics suggest more of the same.

I know I’m not the only one who enjoys the likes of Eric Atkins, Jerian Grant, Jack Cooley, Pat Connaughton, and Cam Biedscheid on offense, but if this group doesn’t improve on defense, an early exit in March seems to be in the works once again.

Twitter:  @soupTOOnuts

Is Ricky Ledo Off to the NBA before ever Suiting Up for the Friars?

There was some considerable hype surrounding the Providence Friars last summer when they landed the #6 recruiting class for 2012 according to ESPN, which was highlighted by the #5 ranked recruit Kris Dunn and the #21 ranked recruit Ricky Ledo. Since landing the two prized recruits, the hype has diminished significantly.

It was determined that a shoulder injury that Dunn suffered in the spring time would require surgery and keep him out until late December. While there were concerns that the Friars may just red shirt the injured freshman, he was able to make a full recovery and make his debut in December a few games ahead of conference play.

However, Ledo’s time as a Friar hasn’t gone as well. The NCAA made public that it was investigating Ledo’s academic situation back in the summer, and there was obviously speculation that Ledo could be ruled ineligible. But on September 5, 2012 he was ruled a partial qualifier by the NCAA, allowing him to practice but not play in the upcoming season.

The fear at the time was that if he wasn’t at least ruled a partial qualifier, he wouldn’t even show up to campus. It was thought that he may go overseas or just do his own thing for a year before entering the NBA draft. But now that he could be with the team and practice for a year, he had his sights set on that - definitely good news for PC.

"I am happy to be a student at Providence College," Ledo said in a statement following the announcement. "It has always been a dream of mine to represent PC and I am looking forward to my days as a student-athlete." Well this sounded encouraging at the time as it came off as if he was willing to put in the effort with the team this year in practice and at minimum play the following year when he gained full eligibility. Now that’s what it sounded like, it’s not necessarily what he meant or what he had in mind. And he could have just been saying that or been told to say that to appease the school in the interim without ruffling any more feathers.

This is what Ledo said this past weekend…

"My status is unclear," Ledo said, as reported by the Providence Journal. "College is a great preparation for life and college has already taught me a lot. I’m looking at every option, both staying in school and looking at the draft."

Well that doesn’t sound very encouraging.

So after being at school for little more than a semester and practicing with a team that is .500 overall and in the bottom third of the Big East, he has garnered great preparation for life and has been taught a lot. What do I know? Maybe he has. Maybe he is a quick learner and develops at a more advanced rate compared to others.

My opinion, along with most others I assume, is that a year of college play would be greatly beneficial to him and would make him further prepared for the challenges in the next step of his life. But the fact that he is even speaking about contemplating entering the draft this season suggests to me that it is all but a foregone conclusion at this point.

To add insult to injury, it has also been reported that Sidiki Johnson is ‘off the team’. I have no clue what that means, but I do know that he hasn’t played in the Friars last two games and the school is reporting that it is for personal reasons. A transfer from Arizona, who just became eligible to play at the conclusion of the first semester in December, was hoped to give the Friars a significant interior presence, but he has failed to live up to those expectations. Not only do the Friars lose a big man, but they lose valuable depth. For how long? No clue. It’s just been reported that he’s off the team, which could mean for good given his precarious history.

So much for all that hype surrounding the Friars in the near future.

Twitter:  @soupTOOnuts

Player and Rookie of the Week [week of 1/28 - 2/3]

Player of the Week:

Shabazz Napier

While the Huskies were out-rebounded by 28 against Providence on Thursday night, they shot just well enough from the floor to force overtime and eventually emerge victorious. Napier finished the game with 18 points, but it was his 10 in overtime the propelled the Huskies to the road victory. Shabazz then followed up that overtime performance with another stellar overtime performance Sunday afternoon home against South Florida. He had 11 points in the extra frame, and finished with a game high 24 as UConn was able to hold off the Bulls for a 69-64 win. The Huskies have one of the most talented back courts in the country (Napier, Ryan Boatright and Omar Calhoun) that possesses blazing speed, smooth handles, slick passing and shooters that can get red hot at a flip of the switch, which is put it on display night after night with Napier leading the way.

Rookie of the Week:

Cameron Biedscheid

Biedscheid came off the bench and dropped a career high 18 points against Villanova on Wednesday night. But it was the second half in which he did all his damage. He scored 15 of his 18 points in the final 20 minutes, which included four 3-pointers (he had five total in the game). His four 3s came in a flurry with Jerian Grant to put the Irish ahead, a lead they never surrendered. The Irish ran their signature ‘burn offense’ in which they cycled the ball to perfection and displayed excellent patience to wait for an open shot, with Biedscheid being the beneficiary on multiple occasions. Biedscheid also contributed seven points off the bench to help Notre Dame stave off an embarrassing loss at DePaul on Saturday afternoon.

Twitter:  @soupTOOnuts

Soup to Nuts: Vol. 5

The Big East weekly power rankings are in

The top and bottom has stayed the same, while Villanova and St. John's have been making some noise.  There are some big games on the docket this weekend as the top four teams play eachother (Syracuse at Pittsburgh and Marquette at Louisville).  Enjoy.

Twitter:  @soupTOOnuts