MONTANA/USC BB GAME STREAMING THREAD 11/11/16

[grizzlyjournal]

CITAY: Thanks a ton for your game report! One could watch a telecast 2-3 times and not get the feel for game like actually being courtside. Couple of responses:

• Wright was recruited by DeCuire and called him Pac-12 caliber, which I believe. Just had a bad night.
• I did watch the game a second time and believe the refs salted the game away for USC with about 4-5 tickytack calls on the Griz in the final five minutes. My only major beef with the refs is their NOT ejecting Charles Buggs for his intentional shoulder slam to Kryslovic's left upper cheek. The telecast showed the play 3-4 times and both commentators were pretty shocked at the "intentional" appearance of the play. There's a rule for that play in basketball and the refs clearly backed down from calling it. Had it been an NBA game, it would have been a Flagrant 2 level foul.
• Your assessment of the Griz is very accurate, but I was very encouraged by the play of Kryslovic and Samuelson. Both are undersized, but both have very high basketball IQs. Remember, this was Samuelson's first college game. I believe he has the hoops savvy to help the Griz. Though undersized at the four, he still plays well with his back to the bucket and facing the bucket. If these two can make progress in preseason, I like Montana's prospects.
• I am not expecting this team to be Sweet 16 caliber, but they're a potential fringe-capable team (I'm thinking about Northern Iowa from last year). Yeah, that's a stretch, but I believe Montana has the coaches to push this team forward.
• Because, in re-watching the game last night, I realized the Griz totally outplayed USC in the first half. The dagger was nine straight missed OPEN shots that just didn't fall. If they had made even three of the nine they would have been ahead at halftime with a lot more confidence in their chances to win.
Thanks again for your post.

 

[citygriz]

One other thing I wanted to say: How proud I was of this Montana team.

My Tar Heel friend is well-connected through his business in Los Angeles and so was able to score us tickets courtside, in seats reserved for Trojan boosters (many of whom did not show up for the Montana game.) So we were literally five feet from where the Trojans were warming up. (And hey, heads up in those seats! On several occasions we had to toss back basketballs that rolled right over to us, and during the game, an errant pass came right into my lap.)

But I can tell you, up close, how impressive, how intimidating, those USC players are. Remember, this is USC, one of the most storied programs in the history of intercollegiate athletics, with dozens of national titles across all major sports. And their basketball team reflects that. These kids were lean, long, quick, phenomenal leapers. At the other end of the court were our Griz, going through their warmups, but obviously not in a class athletically with the Trojans. Plus they looked--and were--way shorter. This looked more like the Christians versus the Lions, than Montana versus USC.

I looked over at my Tar Heel buddy, and one quick glance said it all: How long do we have to stay for this? After all, the Heels were playing Tulane, and he was taping the game so he could watch it later. So I told him, if this is a blowout, we'll leave at halftime. I just came to see what the Griz looked like, not sit through an embarrassing blowout.

So the game starts and...wait a minute! Who's this kid Rorie? We go up 14-3. Remember, in our seats, we are five, ten feet from where our Griz are putting on a clinic defensively. A Trojan player gets a pass and instantly, there's one defender there, with another switching over to help. Our kids are communicating, hustling, covering. And it becomes pretty evident pretty quickly that Rorie is better than SC's point guard. Even Mr. Tar Heel notes that. Now you're thinking, SC may have the talent, but...whoa! We may be the better coached team. And we're better at the point. This could be an interesting game!

And of course it was. Neither of us had any intention of leaving at the half.Despite the hometown cooking, this was a one or two possession game deep into the second half. It wasn't until SC got into the double bonus that they ran up the score late. And even with all their free throws, we won the game from the field, 54-48. Mr.Tar Heel left raving about the Griz, even added them to his "Score" app so he can follow them the rest of the season.

And we did it without the two players I most wanted to see, Alphonso Anderson and Michael Oguine.

In the end, I disagree with grizjournal: I do not feel we have the inside strength to compete this season, not with this pre-season schedule, and maybe not against Weber. Fun to watch? Check. Competitive? Certainly in the Big Sky. But as this board has been pointing out for the past year, we've got to get bigger. Thankfully we have those bigs on deck.

But I could not have been happier with our team and its hustle and preparation; Ahmaad Rorie; our coaching staff. Montana didn't win but they did themselves, this alum and I'm sure several recruits, extremely proud.

 

[PlayerRep]

Nice game reports. Thx. My LA buddy, who played college hoops and follows the teams there, as well as the Griz from afar, said: USC is good, and the Griz are good. Griz play good D and are very unselfish. And, of course, Rorie is good.

 

[grizzlyjournal]

One other thing I wanted to say: How proud I was of this Montana team.

My Tar Heel friend is well-connected through his business in Los Angeles and so was able to score us tickets courtside, in seats reserved for Trojan boosters (many of whom did not show up for the Montana game.) So we were literally five feet from where the Trojans were warming up. (And hey, heads up in those seats! On several occasions we had to toss back basketballs that rolled right over to us, and during the game, an errant pass came right into my lap.)

But I can tell you, up close, how impressive, how intimidating, those USC players are. Remember, this is USC, one of the most storied programs in the history of intercollegiate athletics, with dozens of national titles across all major sports. And their basketball team reflects that. These kids were lean, long, quick, phenomenal leapers. At the other end of the court were our Griz, going through their warmups, but obviously not in a class athletically with the Trojans. Plus they looked--and were--way shorter. This looked more like the Christians versus the Lions, than Montana versus USC.

I looked over at my Tar Heel buddy, and one quick glance said it all: How long do we have to stay for this? After all, the Heels were playing Tulane, and he was taping the game so he could watch it later. So I told him, if this is a blowout, we'll leave at halftime. I just came to see what the Griz looked like, not sit through an embarrassing blowout.

So the game starts and...wait a minute! Who's this kid Rorie? We go up 14-3. Remember, in our seats, we are five, ten feet from where our Griz are putting on a clinic defensively. A Trojan player gets a pass and instantly, there's one defender there, with another switching over to help. Our kids are communicating, hustling, covering. And it becomes pretty evident pretty quickly that Rorie is better than SC's point guard. Even Mr. Tar Heel notes that. Now you're thinking, SC may have the talent, but...whoa! We may be the better coached team. And we're better at the point. This could be an interesting game!

And of course it was. Neither of us had any intention of leaving at the half.Despite the hometown cooking, this was a one or two possession game deep into the second half. It wasn't until SC got into the double bonus that they ran up the score late. And even with all their free throws, we won the game from the field, 54-48. Mr.Tar Heel left raving about the Griz, even added them to his "Score" app so he can follow them the rest of the season.

And we did it without the two players I most wanted to see, Alphonso Anderson and Michael Oguine.

In the end, I disagree with grizjournal: I do not feel we have the inside strength to compete this season, not with this pre-season schedule, and maybe not against Weber. Fun to watch? Check. Competitive? Certainly in the Big Sky. But as this board has been pointing out for the past year, we've got to get bigger. Thankfully we have those bigs on deck.

But I could not have been happier with our team and its hustle and preparation; Ahmaad Rorie; our coaching staff. Montana didn't win but they did themselves, this alum and I'm sure several recruits, extremely proud.

:thumb: Thanks Citay. Over the years I've learned it's more fun being overly optimistic than pessimistic. So, yeah... Still like the character of this Griz team and if they start thinking they can compete with the big guys, they'll just get better & better. The next three weeks may show us more about the character of the Griz.

 

[GrizLA]

I think UM can play even better than they did in LA and that is saying something. USC is a team with length and height and speed. UM is still in a development mode but showed up and did better than many thought. I thought they would beat SC, even with their great and very well paid coaching staff and talent level. But, the bigger test is coming up when they play NCState and Mississippi....if think it will be 1-1 on that end. This team could be the Vermont, or NIU or any other mid major that can surprise and surpass expectations...I watched a tape of Weber...gonna be a game.

 

[citygriz]

I think UM can play even better than they did in LA and that is saying something. USC is a team with length and height and speed. UM is still in a development mode but showed up and did better than many thought. I thought they would beat SC, even with their great and very well paid coaching staff and talent level. But, the bigger test is coming up when they play NCState and Mississippi....if think it will be 1-1 on that end. This team could be the Vermont, or NIU or any other mid major that can surprise and surpass expectations...I watched a tape of Weber...gonna be a game.

I forgot until journal mentioned it that this was Samuelson's first game, so way too soon to judge.

But still we are too small inside to compete with the premier teams. Remember, next year we will be replacing 5'10", 6', 6'4" and 6'5" with 6'6", 6'7", 6'8" and 6'11". That's a big upgrade in height. Optimism abounds around this team, and I too am optimistic. I've also found it good in life to be realistic.

 

[GrizLA]

I think UM can play even better than they did in LA and that is saying something. USC is a team with length and height and speed. UM is still in a development mode but showed up and did better than many thought. I thought they would beat SC, even with their great and very well paid coaching staff and talent level. But, the bigger test is coming up when they play NCState and Mississippi....if think it will be 1-1 on that end. This team could be the Vermont, or NIU or any other mid major that can surprise and surpass expectations...I watched a tape of Weber...gonna be a game.

I forgot until journal mentioned it that this was Samuelson's first game, so way too soon to judge.

But still we are too small inside to compete with the premier teams. Remember, next year we will be replacing 5'10", 6', 6'4" and 6'5" with 6'6", 6'7", 6'8" and 6'11". That's a big upgrade in height. Optimism abounds around this team, and I too am optimistic. I've also found it good in life to be realistic.

Sometimes reality is truly a shock to mental well being (witness the elections)but a hustling well coached team that gets into a 3 pt fest can shake up the bigger guys who expect to win everytime. By the season's end most teams are beat up, especially their big guys. I am always optimistic about Griz BB...even when, down deep, I know the reality. I liked your report on this game.