Scouting Report
- Primary defense: M2M
- Offense focus: Balanced (fast)
- Key players:
- Fr SG Brian Hayes (15.3 ppg, 40% 3PT)
- Fr SF Jon Knight (10.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 49% FG, #26 class rank)
- Jr PF Mike Brown (10.1 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 58% FG, All Conf team)
- So C Victor Prince (9.8 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 52% FG, Conf DPOY, All Conf team, #35 class rank)
- Strengths:
- Offensive efficiency: 79.8 ppg (#1 Nat'l), 50.8% FG (#2 Nat'l), 13.3 topg (#2 WCC)
- Rebounding: 33.5 rpg (#1 WCC)
- Defense: 40.5% opp FG (#1 WCC), 16.6 opp topg (#1 WCC)
- Weaknesses:
- They don't got to the FT line too much: 326 FTM (#10 WCC)
- How they got here:
- Finished 1st WCC; Lost Conference Tournament Final
- (Round 64) Def Louisiana-Monroe, 67-41 (UL-Mon 23 turn overs)
- (Round 32) Def #23 Memphis, 79-60 (Knight 20 pts)
- We need to minimize turn overs, as Gonzaga averaged 17 fast break pts on their past 2 tournament game
- Hayes may be threat from outside, but we'll shut down the paint again, and minimize damage from their front court
Start of 1st half
3 early turn overs for us. ZAGA's C Victor Prince has hit 3 outside jumpers, as they were able to counter our 2-3 zone effectively. SG Haven Wilkerson's 7 pts helping to keep us in the game. Down 12-14, 14:18. ZAGA's shooting cooled off a bit, and our big men scored a couple of baskets to get us ahead. Up 21-18, 10:54.
SG Haven Wilkerson has missed at least 5 consecutive FGs, and we can't find anyone else to score. Down 21-22, 7:51. FTs due to ZAGA's penalty situation helped ease our scoring drought. Up 32-30, 3:00. 5 turn overs in the last 2 mins of the 1st half wasted most of our good efforts. Halftime, Down 34-35.
Key stats / Notes (Halftime)
- Turn overs: TOW 11, ZAGA 5; we're lucky that ZAGA is only +2 in fast break pts, otherwise we'll be in a deep hole right now
- ZAGA is 5-8 3PT, but it doesn't concern me at the moment; what's more important is we do a better job of handling the ball in the 2nd half
Start of 2nd half
Down 39-40, 15:50. SG Haven Wilkerson (19 pts) has single-handedly reclaimed the lead for us, scoring our last 8 pts. Up 47-44, 11:32. Wilkerson added 4 more pts, but our turn overs continue to be a problem, giving ZAGA +8 in FGA now. Somebody has to step up on offense for us, as Wilkerson needs a short rest. Down 53-54, 7:40. ZAGA picked up its offense, adding 2 more 3s, and this game is starting to slip away from us. Timeout. Down 57-64, 4:49.
I'll need to have my best 5 on the floor now, regardless if they are still tired; no more tomorrow if we lose. We'll also shift to m2m defense. SF Aaron Hale converts a 3pt play opportunity. But ZAGA's C Victor Prince (12 pts) answered back with a converted 3pt play of his own. Down 60-67, 4:21.
Out shot got blocked. ZAGA hits a jumper. C Byron Hardy responds with an inside basket. We got called for another foul on ZAGA's C Victor Prince. Both our PGs have now fouled out, and I'm forced to use a 3rd string, walk on PG. Prince missed the front end of a 1-and-1. Down 62-69, 2:41.
Another shot block by ZAGA (their 10th of the game), but we recover the ball. Walk-on PG RJ Tozey puts up a shot, and it's good. Down 64-69, 2:20. ZAGA missed. SG Haven Wilkerson puts up a shot. He misses, but C Alex DeMond off rebound put back is good!. Down 66-69, 1:46.
ZAGA: Another foul called. Double bonus. C Victor Prince to shoot 2 FTs. Prince is 2-4 FTs today. Missed the 1st. Missed the 2nd! Timeout. Down 66-69, 1:28.
TOW: SG Haven Wilkerson gets the ball. Dribbles closer, and pulls up a jumper. Miss. Off rebound by C Byron Hardy. Hardy puts up a shot. Block by ZAGA's C Victor Prince. Prince with 7 blocks. ZAGA recovers the ball
ZAGA: Another foul called. I complained, but I refrained myself from yelling to the refs. 2 FTs for ZAGA. They hit both. Timeout. Down 64-69, 1:11.
TOW: We'll have to consider the possibility of shooting 3s, if it's available. SF Aaron Hale missed a 3.
We definitely have to give up fouls now, and shoot 3s exclusively. We missed all our next 3 attempts from beyond the arc. Season over
Final Score: Towson - 68, Gonzaga - 74
Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilkerson 23, 4, 1
Hale 13, 4, 0
DeMond 10, 15, 2
Hardy 8, 13, 1
Green 6, 1, 0
Martin 2, 2, 4, 6 tos, fouled out
Weaks 2, 1, 0
Desmond 2, 1, 0
Toxey 2, 0, 0
Granger 0, 4, 1, fouled out
Roberson 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 39-41%
REB: +14
TO: +10
Pts in paint: +8
2nd chance: +3
Fast break: -6
[/INDENT]
Notes
- We wanted to keep the game close, and have a chance to win in the end. We did, but we couldn't make our shots in the end game. The 17 turn overs hurt, as our -6 differential in fast break pts could have represented the 6 pt final margin. ZAGA's defense (11 blks, 5 stls) was offset by our advantage in rebounding.
- In summary, it was good season and many may not have predicted that we will reach this stage. During the regular season, we won a lot of close road games, that game us a good over all record