even 6pm is fine.
anything but Noon through 4pm starts – I think our all-time historical record is 3-177 in those games. (OK, maybe a slight exaggeration)
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Better energy this half. If only they had brought this to start the game off.
How about some hard physical fouls. Make them feel it at least
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Sendek will never coach that – it’s infuriating.
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If your team is down by almost 30 points at half, Coach Herb is not the coach to lead a comeback. Normally, I love trying to go deep inside but not down by 30. We needed quick shots and lots of 3s.
OK- next three games against P teams. Could be three wins if we play hands up defense and win 50/50 balls
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Pretty embarrassing all around. SMC’s effort and discipline were just night and day with the Broncos’. Mahaney was putting on a clinic for ball control. All of SMC spaced the floor expertly.
During the Gonzaga game, SCU used a ton of sets in the half court. Those seemed to all disappear just 48 hrs later. It was hard to see what prep went into this one.
I sympathize with having Zags and SMC in the same week. And if you didn’t show me scores but offered me a 1-1 week, I would take it with a song in my heart. But that was the ugliest game yet, maybe.
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I’m reducing my high hopes from previously frothy levels (including a valuable post-season tourney appearance) to this: I want to see Gonzaga finish no higher than 3rd place in conference (ideally with SCU finishing 2nd).
I can “hate” SMC as our historical arch-rival (with USF), but I have so much damn respect for Coach Bennett. The Gaels would represent the WCC well in post-season.
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Watched court side and although 30-6 and down 29 at half was embarrassing, more disturbing was how SMC clearly dominated us both physically and through execution. It really looked like JV vs Varsity. How we compete vs SMC, USF, and Zags is all that matters, rest of league is downright terrible.
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Spot on Jerry…I texted the exact same (‘looks like JV vs. Varsity’) to an SCU buddy late 1st half.
This game and St. Mary’s laid to bare every weakness and deficiency of this Bronco squad…poor Team offensive execution and TO’s, weak uninspired D, rebounding that’s not what it should be given our size & athleticism.
I’ve harped on this all season, when our shots are falling, especially 3ptrs, then we can win and overcome and hide a lot of deficiencies (TO’s, mediocre D and rebounding)…but that’s not a recipe for sustained success. Against better squads you get exactly what you saw this week…the high of an overdue GU win and the embarrassment of the drubbing to SMC.
Bal certainly did not look like an NBA 1st rounder…Marciulionis giving up 3inches and who likely won’t ever see an NBA court completely stymied Bal, was in his jersey all game…limited his shot attempts (Bal took just one 3ptr), always stayed in front of Bal, didn’t let him get to the rim. Textbook individual D…something our guys should watch over and over again to understand what real defense looks like.
Good news, bad news this upcoming week…we will play what may be the two weakest teams in the league, Pacific and Portland. We will likely notch 2 wins, move to 5-1 and end the week in the 2nd place in the league (USF and SMC play Saturday, the loser will drop a half game behind us). But as Jerry noted above, the only thing that matters is how we compete vs. the Zags, SMC, and USF. Beating Pacific or Portland by 15-20 or more doesn’t really matter, what matters is do we truly improve and address the aforementioned areas of deficiencies. My fear is that our shots our falling, and guys like Bal, Marshall and Tilly find it easy going against overmatched opponents and the individuals and team as a whole succumb to a false sense of security and false achievement until we again get punched in the face down the road when we play SMC, USF or Gonzaga.
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That was a stinker. For anyone that’s confused concerning what a good coach does, today was a clinic.
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I think SMC came out with some extra juice. Mahaney made some disparaging comments about “portal programs” in the Merc and SMC had to see interest in Bal spiking. SMC was dialed in last night, but remember that they lost 5 of 6 in one stretch in November.
It was reportedly a sold out crowd. And the students seemed to show up pretty well. So I think the theory that a Gonzaga win would bring folks out was validated. Unfortunately, they got to witness a horrid letdown that SCU will be lucky to recover from in terms of fan interest.
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There were a lot of people, though little surprised it was a sell out. There were definitely empty seats, even in my row and around me. Though I guess tickets sold and actual attendance aren’t always the same thing.
There was a very healthy group of SMC fans, not surprising given the proximity. Felt like more than GU given they were actually doing chants and making more noise than GU the other night.
And after Pacific and Portland, we have Pepperdine, so we really should be 6-1 going into the rematch in Moraga. Pepperdine is 2-2 in conference, but the two wins are against the cellar dwellers Pacific and USD. Portland, at 1-2, has only beaten Pacific.
Anything less than 3-0 over the next 3 games is bad.
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Happens all the time. Every year it seems. Broncos tease that they might be good, get some momentum or a big win and then lay an egg. No better way to keep people away than leaving this kind of stink at the front porch.
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Anything less than 10-0 vs Pacific, SD, Pepperdine, LMU, and Portland is bad.
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The ONLY WAY to redeem themselves is to go to Moraga and walk away with a win. Play physical ball. PRESSURE DEFENSE, I am so sick and tired of watching our guys watch the opponent. Hands should be on a body and in a face AT ALL TIMES. The few times we actually pressured the ball - worked in our favor. Santa Clara has the depth chart - USE IT.
I hope plenty of folks plan to go to Moraga and be equally loud and annoying. YES - the St Mary’s fans had a megaphone. Think we should ALL invest in plastic ones we can hide under our jackets and pull them out at the 9-minute mark in the first half and be loud as ever.
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Agreed, However, with Herbs backpeddle/no touch D and dribble create 1 on 1 offense that’s not going to happen. Basically the way he plays lends itself to the other team being in the game , even garbage opponents (SCU was already very lucky to win in Malibu).
Not a chance at 10-0 vs the dregs of the WCC (I hate to say it, but just being honest). Even with the 2-0 start against those foes my expectation is a 6-4 or 7-3 record in those games. That is completely becuase of Sendek… second most talented team in the WCC and they likely up up in 4th place (or worse if Pepp or LMU somehow starts to play ball).
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While you could be right, bb, I think we should give credit where due: SCU has gone 20-3 in the last two seasons against teams that finished lower than them in the WCC. Two of those three losses were to USF in 2022 which was an NCAA tournament team (but finished in 4th place below SCU).
Now this year’s team isn’t the Williams/Vrankic squad or the Podz squad, and the analytics are demonstrating that. But even 7-3 against the three P’s and LMU/USD would be quite a collapse. Totally possible, but even this SCU squad that seems to try to turn the ball over as much as it scores hasn’t lost to a team outside of the top-125 on Torvik–though they tried with Pepperdine and SE Louisiana.
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I hope they go 10-0 against those teams, I just simply don’t see it.
If vegas had a line on SCU wins in those games and they set it at 7, I certainly would not be betting the over. Sounds like you’d be on the other side.
For me the defense is almost non-existent and the offense is simply a series of forced, acrobatic, well covered, difficult shots. SCU has a talent and depth advantage against those WCC cellar dwellers but Sendek’s singular way to play pretty much evens things out from my perspective.
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