No loss is a good loss. But as we agonize over the missed free throws, let's step back and find some meaning in our suffering.
First, this loss did not come in the tournament. Imagine how devastated we'd be this morning if this were the end of the season. Would Manuel have wanted to end his college career this way?
But more important, we owe a huge debt to the Lumberjack coaching staff. Because the dominant story of this game is that they exposed a huge weakness of this team, one I had missed for sure:
Our star player is playing out of position!
Sayeed Pridgett is a point guard. He played the point in high school. If he'd signed with a Pac12 team or other Power Five conference, he'd be playing the point today. If he has a future as a pro, it will be as a point guard.
For all his fabulous low-post moves, at 6'5" and 200 pounds, there is only one place he could get away with playing the low post: The Big Sky Conference. A conference notorious for its dearth of quality big men.
The Jacks saw this, and exploited it. Every time Sayeed got the ball in a stationary position in the low post, bang! He was double or even triple-teamed. The strategy was clear: Shut down Sayeed and make somebody else on the Montana team beat us.
And it worked! The entire first half, Pridgett had zero points on one shot attempt. It wasn't until well into the second half that our staff made the adjustment that in my opinion they should have made much earlier: They put the ball in Sayeed's hands up top, which gave him a running start on his whirly-dervish moves to the hoop. He scored on four straight possessions.
Essentially, our staff made him a point guard. His true position.
Don't think other coaches won't take notice of this game. Don't think we won't see this again in the tournament.
It's notable too that while they shut Pridgett down, none of our freshmen stepped up to take some of the scoring load. They are all playing stellar defense, but all of them seem hesitant to take shots. If we're going to win the tournament, these kids are going to have to step up. We can't rely on Sayeed and Kendal to provide all our scoring.
In sum, thank you Lumberjacks! This may have been the wake-up call we needed.
(And thank you too for your great announcer. Great voice, very smooth, wisely humble, and of course complimentary of the Griz.)
First, this loss did not come in the tournament. Imagine how devastated we'd be this morning if this were the end of the season. Would Manuel have wanted to end his college career this way?
But more important, we owe a huge debt to the Lumberjack coaching staff. Because the dominant story of this game is that they exposed a huge weakness of this team, one I had missed for sure:
Our star player is playing out of position!
Sayeed Pridgett is a point guard. He played the point in high school. If he'd signed with a Pac12 team or other Power Five conference, he'd be playing the point today. If he has a future as a pro, it will be as a point guard.
For all his fabulous low-post moves, at 6'5" and 200 pounds, there is only one place he could get away with playing the low post: The Big Sky Conference. A conference notorious for its dearth of quality big men.
The Jacks saw this, and exploited it. Every time Sayeed got the ball in a stationary position in the low post, bang! He was double or even triple-teamed. The strategy was clear: Shut down Sayeed and make somebody else on the Montana team beat us.
And it worked! The entire first half, Pridgett had zero points on one shot attempt. It wasn't until well into the second half that our staff made the adjustment that in my opinion they should have made much earlier: They put the ball in Sayeed's hands up top, which gave him a running start on his whirly-dervish moves to the hoop. He scored on four straight possessions.
Essentially, our staff made him a point guard. His true position.
Don't think other coaches won't take notice of this game. Don't think we won't see this again in the tournament.
It's notable too that while they shut Pridgett down, none of our freshmen stepped up to take some of the scoring load. They are all playing stellar defense, but all of them seem hesitant to take shots. If we're going to win the tournament, these kids are going to have to step up. We can't rely on Sayeed and Kendal to provide all our scoring.
In sum, thank you Lumberjacks! This may have been the wake-up call we needed.
(And thank you too for your great announcer. Great voice, very smooth, wisely humble, and of course complimentary of the Griz.)