• Hi Guest, want to participate in the discussions, keep track of read/unread posts access private forums and more? Create your free account and increase the benefits of your eGriz.com experience today!

Griz WBB vs. ISU: the facts

grizzlyjournal

grizzlyjournal

Well-known member
No Big Sky Conf. team OR coach has dominated Montana -- since Robin Selvig's retirement -- compared to the Bengals. This quote from GoGriz.com shows the facts:

Montana has lost five straight at home to the Bengals while averaging just 54 points. The Lady Griz have gone 3-11 against ISU and coach Seton Sobolewski since longtime Montana coach Robin Selvig retired in 2016.

"They're tough and Seton is a great coach," said Holsinger. "They are going to come in and be physical and defend like crazy. It's going to be a tough game."

There were several encouraging signs in Montana's win over Weber State.
1 -- Montana's got 3-pt firepower all over the floor, which worked well to spread Weber State's defense. Which opened up the paint for Montana's front court game.
2 -- Holsinger is expanding his use of two point guards -- Mack Konig and Gina Marxen -- by running rotations with both in the lineup. That allowed Konig to operate a bit more freely to shoot or drive.
3 -- Macy Huard is still struggling a bit on defense, but she gave a hint of her considerable offensive versatility vs. Weber. Macy gets measurably more confident & versatile game by game.
4 -- Soph backup post Alex Pirog is contributing solid backup minutes. The coaches are working her hard & she is responding. She still struggles defensively, but her rebounding and scoring abilities are improving game by game.
5 -- MJ Bruno is probably the GrizWBB most versatile defender even though she struggled vs. Weber's point guard. She looks like a guard, but rebounds like a forward and is always in the middle of every rebounding scrum.
6 -- Maggie Espenmiller-McGraw has a classic net-flipping zone-busting shot, but has struggled with defenders fronting her. I think she's still learning how & when to drive for a midrange jumper, which will be key vs. teams like the Bengals.
7 -- Dani Bartsch is MVP talent on defense and rebounding. Holsinger's now inserted a couple of plays just for Dani. Her offense is still a matter of confidence (hers). But she looks to be gaining confidence driving into the key.
Simply put: This is a fun team that's got a ways to go on defense. Here's hoping they can reverse the defensive bugaboo vs. the always tough Bengals D. Go GrizWBB.
 
Lady Griz win 66 - 55. Pretty much from the 3 point line and the freethrow line. Lady Griz shot 10 - 26 from the 3 point line compared to ISU's 3 - 11 and 12 - 16 from the freethrow line to ISU's 6 - 9.

Didn't have to many glaring defensive lapses in this game. Still need to improve as ISU shot pretty well most of the game but just couldn't keep up with Lady Griz's 3 point shooting and, of course, the freethrow line discrepancy.

Lady Griz had 20 turnovers. I think around 5 of them came in the last 3 minutes of the game. 8 turnovers in the fourth quarter.
 
TrueGriz said:
Lady Griz win 66 - 55. Pretty much from the 3 point line and the freethrow line. Lady Griz shot 10 - 26 from the 3 point line compared to ISU's 3 - 11 and 12 - 16 from the freethrow line to ISU's 6 - 9.

Didn't have to many glaring defensive lapses in this game. Still need to improve as ISU shot pretty well most of the game but just couldn't keep up with Lady Griz's 3 point shooting and, of course, the freethrow line discrepancy.

Lady Griz had 20 turnovers. I think around 5 of them came in the last 3 minutes of the game. 8 turnovers in the fourth quarter.
Click to expand...

This was a fun game with both teams playing well until it wasn't. The refs halted the game for a review and took forever to come to a decision. From then on it got really ragged, neither team could make a basket, and a turnover-fest.
 
I agree with maroonandsilver. The game turned ragged after the long game stoppage, where refs reviewed what was first called a foul on ISU player (#1) Kacey Spink against Griz MJ Bruno, who clearly got the rebound on an ISU missed shot. Spink and another ISU player trapped MJ, and the ball was knocked away. In the scrum, all 3 players rushed for the ball, then Sprink fell to the floor clutching her face. Spink was on the floor for about a minute before being helped to the locker room. After film review, MJ was called for a technical, an ISU player made two free throws, and ISU was awarded possession. Spink later returned to the game with no visible sign of injury and played the full 4th quarter.

There was NOT any intentional or flagrant contact. Prove me wrong. Watch the game replay at about 5:50 to 5:10 of quarter 3. MJ had no raised elbows or arm. She was entangled with both ISU defenders, but there was no aggressive move by MJ toward the other players in the scramble for the ball and no sign of her elbow near an ISU player. Certainly there was nothing intentional by MJ in the scrum for the ball. What was wrong was the call by refs... calling a scramble for the ball by three players (one who clearly first fouled MJ) a flagrant foul.

In what had been a well-officiated game to that point, the refs called the game much tighter and the entire flow of the game was changed.

That said, what had been a masterful game by Montana, ahead 62-41, changed. Griz players got hesitant & tentative. I would say that at least half (probably more) of Montana's turnovers were committed in the fourth quarter. We've seen this hesitancy with Holsinger-coached Griz teams where they lost a late-game lead, then the game. The most recent was last year at Portland State. Tonige, in what could have been an easy 20-point + win for Montana, the game pace fizzled into an 11-point Griz win. The Griz were never in danger of losing, but they lost the game momentum.

I hesitate to blame refs. But the call was, in my view, clearly wrong.
Griz fans well remember that Montana lost to ISU last year on this floor on a last-second flop by an ISU shooter who fell into the defending Griz player (whose arms and hands never touched the shooter) and then on to the floor. The play was called a foul after the game buzzer rang and the shooter made both points for a 1-pt ISU win.

I do admire Holsinger, and his coaches, for coaching their players to play hard, but clean games.
 
Felt it important to note that the GrizWBB team might have played its best full game of defense since Brian Holsinger took over the program.

Montana switched from man to a combo zone/matchup zone look where three or four defenders rotated in coverage of ISU's perimeter players, while one or two Griz defended low post players pretty tightly, depending upon whether the Bengal high post player was located near the free throw line. The rotating matchup had Bengal guards stymied through the first half.

The GrizWBB earlier played the same defense vs. Gonzaga and WSU, but tonight's rotating coverage was much improved & very effective at keeping Bengal guards away from penetrating into the high key area. The rotating matchup allowed the Griz to play pretty tightly on all the ISU perimeter players.

There's no doubt the GrizWBB have been working hard on this combo D. I say combo because its alignment allows the Griz to slide into a full man-on defense very quickly, sometimes in alternate possessions. The Bengals had no luck with any dribble enter into the high key when the zone was rotating. The zone also worked pretty well for GrizWBB defensive rebounding. Montana outrebounded the Bengals 37-25 for the game.

Coach Holsinger was quoted as saying the D is still a work in progress, but that tonight's effort was the best of the season so far.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top