Author:
bison137
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Date Posted: 09:52:02 01/17/06 Tue
>>>I was very surprised HC did not press more.<<<
I was also, but there are a few possible reasons for this:
1. HC has no real subs at the 1,2, or 3, which makes Thomas, Simmons, and Hamilton have to play virtually 40 minutes. Not only does the lack of rest make it hard to press, it also creates issues with foul trouble.
2. They did go to the full court trap once midway through the second half but the Bison went through it easily. Then Willard tried a 1-3-1 zone, trying to trap off of it, but it likewise produced no turnovers. I think, Duke not withstanding, that the Bison, with another year of experience, are a lot better at dealing with the zone press than they were last year. Thankfully no-one else on their schedule has the athletes that Duke has.
3. It is possible that Willard does not want to let the Bison get familiar with the press before the likely PL championship game, when he will obviously pull out all the stops. Maybe if they had been closer in the last three minutes of this one, they might have gone to the all-out press. In this case, however, not only was the margin double digit but also all of their "big 3" had four fouls.
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