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Post by AzTex on Nov 19, 2024 15:36:19 GMT -8
I think you have to give both teams credit. Viejas is no easy road game. And, although I had hoped we could keep the point differential to under 10, I am ok with 13 under the circumstances...banged up Byrd and no Waters. Gonzaga played defense all night like they were SDSU, and their guys were just longer and got to their defensive spots very quickly. But, the vaunted SDSU defense did their usual solid job. The Zags are just a very talented team. I was saying just about this same thing last night. But I like the way you said it better. I was very surprised at the level of defense they played. With their 100.7 scoring average coming into the game I was expecting a fast breaking team, not a defensive team. |
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Post by aztecdan8 on Nov 19, 2024 15:53:07 GMT -8
I think you have to give both teams credit. Viejas is no easy road game. And, although I had hoped we could keep the point differential to under 10, I am ok with 13 under the circumstances...banged up Byrd and no Waters. Gonzaga played defense all night like they were SDSU, and their guys were just longer and got to their defensive spots very quickly. But, the vaunted SDSU defense did their usual solid job. The Zags are just a very talented team. I was saying just about this same thing last night. But I like the way you said it better. I was very surprised at the level of defense they played. With their 100.7 scoring average coming into the game I was expecting a fast breaking team, not a defensive team. Posted this earlier... I've been watching Gonzaga for at least 30 years, back to the Dan Monson days. I have never seen Gonzaga play this elite brand of defense. Not like this. Not only elite, but the variance, creativity and different looks were impressive ... full court press, 3/4 court press, trapping at various spots,their halfcourt D with hedging at the top, frequently doubling the ball, flashing doubles, extended doubling before peeking off, and then full hard doubling. Then their base halfcourt and help D. Incredible. They put on a master class defensively. Their offense was impressive as well, but the Aztecs often made it harder on them at times. If they stay healthy and improve even marginally, they should be the favorite to win the NC. This could be the best Gonzaga team ever. They might have had more top tier talent (future NBA guys) on previous teams. But this Zags team is so well connected on both ends of the floor, this could well be their best TEAM. |
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Post by docmm on Nov 19, 2024 16:55:49 GMT -8
We will see how good Gonzaga really is because they play an incredibly hard OOC schedule: The best teams,
Baylor
Arizona State
SDSU
West Virginia
Kentucky
Connecticut
UCLA.
That is quite a gauntlet.
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Post by AzTex on Nov 19, 2024 17:06:19 GMT -8
I was saying just about this same thing last night. But I like the way you said it better. I was very surprised at the level of defense they played. With their 100.7 scoring average coming into the game I was expecting a fast breaking team, not a defensive team. Posted this earlier... I've been watching Gonzaga for at least 30 years, back to the Dan Monson days. I have never seen Gonzaga play this elite brand of defense. Not like this. Not only elite, but the variance, creativity and different looks were impressive ... full court press, 3/4 court press, trapping at various spots,their halfcourt D with hedging at the top, frequently doubling the ball, flashing doubles, extended doubling before peeking off, and then full hard doubling. Then their base halfcourt and help D. Incredible. They put on a master class defensively. Their offense was impressive as well, but the Aztecs often made it harder on them at times. If they stay healthy and improve even marginally, they should be the favorite to win the NC. This could be the best Gonzaga team ever. They might have had more top tier talent (future NBA guys) on previous teams. But this Zags team is so well connected on both ends of the floor, this could well be their best TEAM. We haven't always been great at scoring, but I don't remember being held down by such a smothering defense. With the combination of their offense and their defense I wouldn't bet against them for the championship. |
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Post by gozags on Nov 19, 2024 17:54:54 GMT -8
We will see how good Gonzaga really is because they play an incredibly hard OOC schedule: The best teams, Baylor Arizona State SDSU West Virginia Kentucky Connecticut UCLA. That is quite a gauntlet. This list is correct but misses the last 2 games in the Battle for Atlantis … Zaps open with West Virginia … 2nd game either Indiana or Louisville and the 3rd game could be Arizona, Oklahoma or Providence. |
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Post by Fishn'Aztec on Nov 19, 2024 19:40:32 GMT -8
Really, I would have liked to have had this game played a few OOC games later and with Reese-Waters and the Byrd @ 100%.
Yeah, I know you can wish in 1 hand and cr@p in the other and see which 1 fills up first!
GO AZTECS!!
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Post by oldie on Nov 19, 2024 19:45:59 GMT -8
don't know if anyone said this: but if you take away the 28 points Gonz made on free throws, the Aztecs did pretty darn good. Sure hope the Aztecs make this game an awesome learning experience and kick some butt in the upcoming tournaments. (and you too, Dutch).
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Post by jp92grad on Nov 19, 2024 20:14:22 GMT -8
don't know if anyone said this: but if you take away the 28 points Gonz made on free throws, the Aztecs did pretty darn good. Sure hope the Aztecs make this game an awesome learning experience and kick some butt in the upcoming tournaments. (and you too, Dutch). Hell, lets take it a step further, lets just say the difference between them in free-throws (27-13, 14 points) would have gave the Aztecs the win by 1 Overall the Aztecs played pretty good against a really good team with while not having a couple key experienced players available on a very young team. |
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Post by docmm on Nov 19, 2024 21:02:29 GMT -8
I love what Zeigler wrote for tomorrow's paper: in the last 26 minutes of that game the score was 52-51 Gonzaga.
What killed us was the 6:11 stretch between when we tied it up @ 12-12 at the 14:20 mark until J-C-J made a layup at the 8:09 mark to make it 24-16 Gonzaga. During that stretch we were 1-12 shooting with three TOs.
Take out that one poor stretch and it's a 2-4 pt game.
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Post by sdsuball on Nov 20, 2024 1:06:54 GMT -8
They didn't call shooting fouls in our favor all night, so many times where we attacked the rim and drew a block with no call. That's not the way I viewed it..... I thought we benefitted from ticky tack calls early, but just couldn't score and ride the momentum from those opportunities.... Other than some of our bigs settling for 3's, I thought the flow and movement of our offense was encouraging..... I'm especially encouraged with our " don't quit " defensive will..... If this team stays engaged, continues working and improves it's health, we could be a nightmare matchup come March! But we <didn't> benefit from the ticky tak fouls as much as they did. They called a bunch of non shooting fouls on Gonzaga before we were in the bonus in the first half. Conversely, they got a bunch of one and ones on shooting fouls before they were in the bonus in the first half. The "number of fouls" were similar, but the result was completely different. It annoys me to no end when the opposite team gets those ticky tak fouls that don't result in free throws early, because I swear, in big games like this the refs always try to make sure that the number of fouls called against each team are close. Regardless of who is fouling more or less, in marquee games I see it a lot. |
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Post by docmm on Nov 20, 2024 1:31:38 GMT -8
That's not the way I viewed it..... I thought we benefitted from ticky tack calls early, but just couldn't score and ride the momentum from those opportunities.... Other than some of our bigs settling for 3's, I thought the flow and movement of our offense was encouraging..... I'm especially encouraged with our " don't quit " defensive will..... If this team stays engaged, continues working and improves it's health, we could be a nightmare matchup come March! But we <didn't> benefit from the ticky tak fouls as much as they did. They called a bunch of non shooting fouls on Gonzaga before we were in the bonus in the first half. Conversely, they got a bunch o f one and ones on shooting fouls before they were in the bonus in the first half. The "number of fouls" were similar, but the result was completely different. It annoys me to no end when the opposite team gets those ticky tak fouls that don't result in free throws early, because I swear, in big games like this the refs always try to make sure that the number of fouls called against each team are close. Regardless of who is fouling more or less, in marquee games I see it a lot. You're right about the kinds of foul calls they got but all "shooting" fouls are two shots unless they made the basket they were fouled on. In the first half they only fouled us three times after they were over the limit: Heide missed the front end of a one-and-one while Boyd made both FTs twice. In the 2nd half Gonzaga only had 3 fouls over the limit: 2 were shooting fouls, Heide and J-C-J both made one of two while Boyd made both of his. |
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Post by jpaztec on Nov 20, 2024 5:05:04 GMT -8
My thoughts:
The game went about as I expected, and I think anyone who objectively thought we were going to win that game with a roster as young, and as banged up as ours, clearly just doesn’t understand college hoops and that Gonzaga team. It was an experience game for us, and we’ll be better off in January having played it. My individual thoughts:
Nick Boyd: Stud. Bucket getter. Floor leader. Fantastic pickup.
BJ Davis: he’s going to be really, really good for us. Pretty fearless which I love.
Miles Byrd: I was hoping to see an added 8-10 lbs this off season, strictly from a longevity standpoint. Needs to get healthy, cuz when he is, is a difference maker especially on the defensive end where he’s a menace.
Coleman-Jones: has the look of a solid roll player at this point, I don’t think his ceiling is as high as another 4 man on this roster.
Magoon Gwath: we need to focus on getting him some easy offense (drive and dump/alley oop type stuff). He’s smooth and has a refined touch with his handle and shot for his size and age, but isn’t a dependable offensive threat….YET. Elite shot blocker but needs to not pick up stupid fouls.
Pharoah Compton: need to figure out the cramp situation because he needs to be on the floor. Is going to be a stud and I think will be starting at the 4 in the next couple weeks.
Taj Degourville: Swiss Army knife. Tough, can rebound, pass, defend, good size at the 2, can play some 3, a great piece to have.
Miles Heide: was giving him the benefit of the doubt the first couple games, but has shown me very little and is a bit of a liability out there currently. Dude needs to be able to make a free throw if he’s gonna be, and really needs to relax, maybe that second part will come…tbd.
Wayne McKinney: great spark off the bench, could easily start but I think his greater value is bringing a scorers mentality to the second unit. I’m a fan.
Demarshay Johnson: knows the system well enough to set some screens and roll to the basket for a lob, and to play some defense. 5 big
Man fouls that we will likely Need this year.
I think we’ve got a squad when Reese Waters comes back, and why it may take a while, this is an NCAA tournament team if it all comes together, but will probably require Dutch’s best coaching job to date
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Post by docmm on Nov 20, 2024 7:56:16 GMT -8
My thoughts: The game went about as I expected, and I think anyone who objectively thought we were going to win that game with a roster as young, and as banged up as ours, clearly just doesn’t understand college hoops and that Gonzaga team. It was an experience game for us, and we’ll be better off in January having played it. My individual thoughts: Nick Boyd: Stud. Bucket getter. Floor leader. Fantastic pickup. BJ Davis: he’s going to be really, really good for us. Pretty fearless which I love. Miles Byrd: I was hoping to see an added 8-10 lbs this off season, strictly from a longevity standpoint. Needs to get healthy, cuz when he is, is a difference maker especially on the defensive end where he’s a menace. Coleman-Jones: has the look of a solid roll player at this point, I don’t think his ceiling is as high as another 4 man on this roster. Magoon Gwath: we need to focus on getting him some easy offense (drive and dump/alley oop type stuff). He’s smooth and has a refined touch with his handle and shot for his size and age, but isn’t a dependable offensive threat….YET. Elite shot blocker but needs to not pick up stupid fouls. Pharoah Compton: need to figure out the cramp situation because he needs to be on the floor. Is going to be a stud and I think will be starting at the 4 in the next couple weeks. Taj Degourville: Swiss Army knife. Tough, can rebound, pass, defend, good size at the 2, can play some 3, a great piece to have. Miles Heide: was giving him the benefit of the doubt the first couple games, but has shown me very little and is a bit of a liability out there currently. Dude needs to be able to make a free throw if he’s gonna be, and really needs to relax, maybe that second part will come…tbd. Wayne McKinney: great spark off the bench, could easily start but I think his greater value is bringing a scorers mentality to the second unit. I’m a fan. Demarshay Johnson: knows the system well enough to set some screens and roll to the basket for a lob, and to play some defense. 5 big Man fouls that we will likely Need this year. I think we’ve got a squad when Reese Waters comes back, and why it may take a while, this is an NCAA tournament team if it all comes together, but will probably require Dutch’s best coaching job to date Agree with everything although I think(hope) that J-C-J can be a bigger offensive piece. He shot 44.2% from 3 on 43 attempts last year. He was trying hard to duplicate that against Gonzaga, probably too hard (1-5). But 44.2% ain't nothing. And he looked incredibly smooth when he finished a fast break against a couple guys down low. I think it still needs to be determined who's playing the 4 and who's playing the 5 when multiple big men are in. He was mostly a perimeter, 3 pt-shooter-in-the-corner guy against Gonzaga (1 rebound) but a 5, back-to-the-basket guy vs UCSD (9 rebounds). |
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Post by aztech on Nov 20, 2024 12:37:13 GMT -8
My thoughts: The game went about as I expected, and I think anyone who objectively thought we were going to win that game with a roster as young, and as banged up as ours, clearly just doesn’t understand college hoops and that Gonzaga team. It was an experience game for us, and we’ll be better off in January having played it. My individual thoughts: Nick Boyd: Stud. Bucket getter. Floor leader. Fantastic pickup. BJ Davis: he’s going to be really, really good for us. Pretty fearless which I love. Miles Byrd: I was hoping to see an added 8-10 lbs this off season, strictly from a longevity standpoint. Needs to get healthy, cuz when he is, is a difference maker especially on the defensive end where he’s a menace. Coleman-Jones: has the look of a solid roll player at this point, I don’t think his ceiling is as high as another 4 man on this roster. Magoon Gwath: we need to focus on getting him some easy offense (drive and dump/alley oop type stuff). He’s smooth and has a refined touch with his handle and shot for his size and age, but isn’t a dependable offensive threat….YET. Elite shot blocker but needs to not pick up stupid fouls. Pharoah Compton: need to figure out the cramp situation because he needs to be on the floor. Is going to be a stud and I think will be starting at the 4 in the next couple weeks. Taj Degourville: Swiss Army knife. Tough, can rebound, pass, defend, good size at the 2, can play some 3, a great piece to have. Miles Heide: was giving him the benefit of the doubt the first couple games, but has shown me very little and is a bit of a liability out there currently. Dude needs to be able to make a free throw if he’s gonna be, and really needs to relax, maybe that second part will come…tbd. Wayne McKinney: great spark off the bench, could easily start but I think his greater value is bringing a scorers mentality to the second unit. I’m a fan. Demarshay Johnson: knows the system well enough to set some screens and roll to the basket for a lob, and to play some defense. 5 big Man fouls that we will likely Need this year. I think we’ve got a squad when Reese Waters comes back, and why it may take a while, this is an NCAA tournament team if it all comes together, but will probably require Dutch’s best coaching job to date Agree with everything although I think(hope) that J-C-J can be a bigger offensive piece. He shot 44.2% from 3 on 43 attempts last year. He was trying hard to duplicate that against Gonzaga, probably too hard (1-5). But 44.2% ain't nothing. And he looked incredibly smooth when he finished a fast break against a couple guys down low. I think it still needs to be determined who's playing the 4 and who's playing the 5 when multiple big men are in. He was mostly a perimeter, 3 pt-shooter-in-the-corner guy against Gonzaga (1 rebound) but a 5, back-to-the-basket guy vs UCSD (9 rebounds). I think the one glaring issue is rebounding. We didn't totally do badly against the 'Zags, but our guards outrebounded our front court guys. Was it from long rebounds due to the 'Zags missed 3 pt shots or from under/near the basket? Our bigs need to fight for those under the basket rebounds like LeDee did. Let our guards do their thing on the other end of the court. |
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Post by azson on Nov 20, 2024 12:52:27 GMT -8
Agree with everything although I think(hope) that J-C-J can be a bigger offensive piece. He shot 44.2% from 3 on 43 attempts last year. He was trying hard to duplicate that against Gonzaga, probably too hard (1-5). But 44.2% ain't nothing. And he looked incredibly smooth when he finished a fast break against a couple guys down low. I think it still needs to be determined who's playing the 4 and who's playing the 5 when multiple big men are in. He was mostly a perimeter, 3 pt-shooter-in-the-corner guy against Gonzaga (1 rebound) but a 5, back-to-the-basket guy vs UCSD (9 rebounds). We didn't totally do badly against the 'Zags, but our guards outrebounded our front court guys. Was it from long rebounds due to the 'Zags missed 3 pt shots or from under/near the basket? Our bigs need to fight for those under the basket rebounds like LeDee did. Let our guards do their thing on the other end of the court. Agreed. There was one particularly painful sequence in the 2nd half when we were on a mini-run and they got two O-boards off of two misses (misses due to our stellar D) and then hit a 3. Was very demoralizing and you could feel the air go out of the building. |
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Post by Aztec Since 88 on Nov 20, 2024 13:33:00 GMT -8
Gonzaga's ability to get the FT line and make FTs, made it difficult to get a run going. We could never get more than a 2 basket run without the Zags getting some points.
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Post by perch on Nov 20, 2024 14:27:13 GMT -8
If Ike played for the Aztecs instead of the Zags, the Aztecs would have won.
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Post by Fishn'Aztec on Nov 20, 2024 18:47:25 GMT -8
There were a few forgettable offensive series when the AZTECS exhibited weak hands and alligator arms. They need to toughen up and get a grip on that damn ball.
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Post by 84aztec96 on Nov 20, 2024 19:03:30 GMT -8
I'm hoping this is not the "real" Heide I'm seeing the first few games of the season. I think he would be fine, but man...
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Post by docmm on Nov 20, 2024 19:09:48 GMT -8
We’ll see what he’s made of next week. But got a feeling there’s going to be a lot of 3-guard lineups out there this year.
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