palestra38
Professor
Posts: 32803
Reg: 11-21-04
|
02-12-05 02:59 AM - Post#3954
Well, those who predicted that Penn would come out flat (I disagreed) were right and I was wrong....Penn was unbelievably flat, could not buy an outside shot for most of the game, could not stop Columbia from getting open 3s, most of which they hit, and yet they won. Aside from the dominating play of Steve Danley, I credit Fran Dunphy for this one. From the start, he saw that Columbia simply couldn't stop Penn inside and Penn took it inside time after time and got fouled almost every time. There was an unbelievable foul shooting disparity in this game (like usual, Penn was weak at the line or it would have been a much easier game), but the overall number of fouls was not that different. It's just that almost all of the fouls committed by Columbia were 2 shot fouls. The way I see it is that CU played about as well as it could, Penn had an off game, and Penn won. I'll take it....but Penn probably needs to bring a little more tomorrow night.
And now for the grades:
Danley---A+. This guy has 2 years left?! He simply cannot be stopped by most of the Ivies without a foul. He plays great defense too. This guy is the key to the season so far---providing a major upgrade in a season where everyone expected a step down.
Jaaber---A. While his offensive game was good, not great, his defense was so overwhelming that he gets an A. When he wasn't stealing the ball, he disrupted passes, caused 2 backcourt violations and got rebounds. He was a major factor in this victory.
Fikiel--A. Again came in for Zoller, who simply cannot move, hit a couple of huge 3s, actually hit a jumper off the dribble, blocked a few shots and consistently played within himself....he has come a long way from deep in Fran's doghouse a year ago.
Begley....B-. Not one of Tim's better games. Missed about his first 5 or so shots, made some really bad decisions, but then came back to hit 2 threes when it really counted. Down the stretch, he took the ball past the press and hit a few key foul shots.
Oz....B-. Quiet game for Oz. Did hit a 3 when Penn needed one in the second half, but missed 2 foul shots when he could have put the game away. I really would like to see him drive more.
Zoller---C. He is injured...pure and simple. He cannot get off the ground. Nonetheless, he hit 2 shots with CU challenging down the stretch. Made a contribution.
Ebede---B. Played hard, got minutes, made a contribution.
Good win---you don't always have your best stuff. To beat an up and coming team, well coached and motivated when you have an off game is satisfying.
|
TomPittsburgh
maximus
Posts: 538
Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
Reg: 11-28-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-12-05 12:01 PM - Post#3955
In response to palestra38
perhaps the many minutes logged by the starters on Tuesday night had some adverse affect on the team last night. Agree team was flat and from the radio report sounded like they lacked energy and were tired. Thank goodness for Mr. Danley. Hope we have a better game against Cornell.
|
Pennsylvania69
Junior
Posts: 206
Loc: Chester County, PA
Reg: 11-21-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-12-05 12:17 PM - Post#3956
In response to TomPittsburgh
Heck, even the crowd lacked the energy of Tuesday night. It was a "W". Back to work tonight to get to 8-0 at the halfway mark.
|
SFlaQuaker
Postdoc
Posts: 2427
Reg: 11-21-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-12-05 12:22 PM - Post#3957
In response to Pennsylvania69
If Zoller is only going to play about 20 a game, Jan has to do a better job on the glass. His offensive rhythm has really come around, and his defensive footwork/positioning is light years ahead of where it used to be. Now if he can just do a little better job of boxing out, we'll be in great shape.
|
light blue heavy
maximus
Posts: 164
Reg: 11-22-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-12-05 02:23 PM - Post#3958
In response to SFlaQuaker
Wow-Danley: 18 points on 4 shot attempts?
Somehow I feel that he wont be able to keep up the 4.5 points per shot. Clearly the hack-a-Danley approach didn't work: kudos for the innovative strategy to Jones, in my book.
CU ended up shooting 48% from 3. Its frustrating: if ANY of those shots had fallen against Brown...
I think the game in NYC will be intense. I think the Penn fans may have seen Columbia's propensity to play football. They are always on the floor. Especially Preston.
Ibby and Danley are going to be a sick combo for the next 2.5 seasons. It sounded like the only person on Columbia that wasnt TOTALLY overmatched by Danley was Preston, and he's gone next month.
Ibby is a star on D, but I'm particularly impressed by his rebounding. Its true that CU isnt big, but they fight for rebounds, and Jaaber managed to corral 5, which is pretty impressive.
|
palestra38
Professor
Posts: 32803
Reg: 11-21-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-12-05 02:29 PM - Post#3959
In response to light blue heavy
Well, 4 "official" shot attempts....but he got hacked on about 10 others. Truly amazing....Ben will be a force in the future, but I see now why he isn't starting. He doesn't yet have any defensive footwork. Danley had great training at DeMatha on defense and has worked hard at his offensive game. He got the step on his defender every time.
One thing I neglected to mention last night---Pettinella gave Penn a pretty strong 12 minutes (Danley played 28---in keeping with Dunphy's creed of never playing the two together) and also got to the hoop at will.
I can't believe this CU team had a low shooting percentage---must be those bright lights at Levien. In the dimmer light of the Palestra, they couldn't miss.
|
light blue heavy
maximus
Posts: 164
Reg: 11-22-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-12-05 02:57 PM - Post#3960
In response to palestra38
yeah, I don't know whats going on this year. Dragutin and Cuff just havent been making their shots. Last year they shot pretty well from outside
Remember, the sophs, juniors, and seniors were recruited for a Princeton offense. They are sharpshooters, for the most part.
|
Red n Blue
Masters Student
Posts: 898
Loc: South Jersey
Reg: 11-29-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-12-05 03:58 PM - Post#3961
In response to light blue heavy
In any event, a nice effort by the Light Blue-- they were in it to the very end. They can still salvage the ride back to NYC tonight by joining in the league's collective effort of beating up on Princeton.
|
pennindian
Sophomore
Posts: 100
Reg: 12-09-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-12-05 05:59 PM - Post#3962
In response to Red n Blue
One thing about Ibby was that he was suffering from a stomach virus, which explains the frequent substitions. Makes his performance even more impressive. Hopefully he'll feel better for tonight.
|
Streamers
Professor
Posts: 8220
Loc: NW Philadelphia
Reg: 11-21-04
|
Questions for the folks who were there...
02-12-05 06:04 PM - Post#3963
In response to palestra38
1) The radio guys kept going on about how Penn lacked energy last night, especially Begley and Oz (but not Danley, apparently.) Did it look like we are paying a price for the death march on Tuesday? Might it be worse tonight?
2) Zoller is clearly having problems again. There has been speculation he has been reinjured. Anybody have some evidence of this?
3) Does Jones have a point about the referee's role in the game? If so, we could have some problems in NY.
My read on last night was that the Lions played their best possible game, shot the lights out, caught us a bit flat, and our guys (with help from a good game plan) still managed to find a way to win. If true, it is more evidence that this team possesses some intangibles that its more talented predecessors did not have. I find that very encouraging from a bunch of sophomores.
|
SFlaQuaker
Postdoc
Posts: 2427
Reg: 11-21-04
|
Re: Questions for the folks who were there...
02-12-05 06:24 PM - Post#3964
In response to Streamers
1) Energy wasn't a problem so much as crispness. We weren't all that aggressive on offense early. Defensively, they simply weren't missing any outside shot.
2) I don't know for a fact if Zoller is hurt, but he did go back to the locker room in the first half, and didn't play a ton in the second half.
3) The refs were pretty poor both ways with alot of the calls (ie travels, out of bounds, etc). As far as fouls, they were all good calls. Penn plays a game that draws more fouls, especially when we go through Danley like we did last night.
|
Howard Gensler
Postdoc
Posts: 4141
Reg: 11-21-04
|
Re: Questions for the folks who were there...
02-12-05 08:25 PM - Post#3965
In response to SFlaQuaker
When the foul disparity is that great the losing team is always going to think it got homer'd. But Penn did pound the ball inside and Columbia was content to shoot uncontested threes (I would have been too if no one was guarding me and I couldn't miss). Also Columbia's inside defenders do not move their feet at all and they do hack a lot.
There were a couple calls against the Lions in the second half that were iffy (notably a forearm against Ibby that seemed somewhat incidental) but by then the refs may have been so sick of listening to Jones whine and wiping his scuff marks off the court (when I say he was three feet inside the sideline I am not exaggerating) that they might have whistled the foul instead of giving Jones a T.
Look the guy did a great job last night. His team is not that talented and they keyed off his enthusiasm to almost gut out a big road win. But if the coach is going to use the play where Big Ben (big, but not that tall and somewhat lumbering) pushed Fikiel to the ground to free space for a layup as an example to his players of the type of physical play he wanted, then you're going to get fouls called.
|
Condor
PhD Student
Posts: 1888
Reg: 11-21-04
|
Re: Penn Report Card---A Good Game to Win
02-13-05 07:22 PM - Post#3966
In response to palestra38
Quote:
Danley---A+. This guy has 2 years left?! He simply cannot be stopped by most of the Ivies without a foul. He plays great defense too. This guy is the key to the season so far---providing a major upgrade in a season where everyone expected a step down.
P38,
As I recall, most of the Penn faithful felt that Dan/Pet would be minimally a wash, and most were hopeful of improvement. Other than you, I only remember PU fans predicting a loss at the 5.
Regardless, your report cards are always appreciated.
|
