Sooner04
3/7/2009, 08:05 PM
Oof.
We didn't play very well today. We shot well, but we didn't play well. If James Anderson wanted to score, he did. If E-tahn wanted to get into the paint, he did. I give O-State credit for responding to every run we threw at them. It seemed like we'd bump our lead to nine, ten or 11 often in the second half only to glance at the scoreboard a minute later and see the margin had shrunk to five or six.
I give our guys all the credit in the world for fighting when their backs were against the wall. I hear you now, "04, how were their backs against the wall when they led for the final 31 minutes?" I read you loud and clear, but you could tell we were struggling. There were so many crucial possessions where we scored when leading by four or five. Empty trips there, and the Aggroids could come down and REALLY make things interesting. As good as Blake was today, and he was incredible, he had help from his supporting cast.
Omar Leary hit two clutch threes; both of them came after O-State cut the lead to five. His bombs pushed it back to eight. The crowd got restless earlier when the Aggies cut it to seven, but Taylor brings them to their feet with a monstrous "and one" dunk. Three-point game with less than two minutes to go, and Austin Johnson goes to the line and calmly sinks two free throws to keep the orange-clad goobers at bay.
Three seniors. 32 points and 11 rebounds. James Anderson had 37, but he had no help. Blake had 33, but he had his seniors, and THEY were the difference in our 82-78 victory today.
I felt dirty rooting for the Longhorns in Lawrence, but I wanted a share of the conference pie. I'd like to add to that banner, but I think we might add to another one and right a wrong if we take care of our business. Oklahoma City should be a ton of fun.
SCORING BREAKDOWN:
1st - 17 [Once I was swimming 'cross Turtle Creek.]
2nd - 25 [Man, them snappers all around my feet.]
3rd - 20 [Sure was hard swimming 'cross that thing.]
4th - 20 [With both hands holdin' my ding-a-ling-a-ling.]
LEADING SCORERS:
33 - Blake Griffin [animal, and Drexler-esque on that lonesome dunk.]
15 - Taylor Griffin [rare in a game involving Blake, but he had the dunk of the day.]
11 - Austin Johnson
11 - Willie Warren [and the coup de grace at the end. his trey made it 82-76.]
LEADING REBOUNDERS:
14 - Blake Griffin
7 - Taylor Griffin
3 - Tony, Austin and Cade
PLUSES:
1. Resiliency: The reports of our demise may not be completely exaggerated, but we're not the team we were a month ago. Can we get it back? I don't know. Will the Crock Pot ever cook again? Will the Chupacabra ever come back out of hibernation? These questions have yet to be answered, but in spite of all that, we banded together and made the plays down the stretch. We could've sulked, lost this game and entered the postseason in a death spiral. Instead, we're the #2 seed in the RUGGED ;) Big 12 Conference.
2. Blake Griffin: 33 and 14 in what was probably his last game as a Sooner inside the Lloyd Noble Center. What's better? 9-13 from the charity stripe. Those freebies were huge.
3. Taylor Griffin: I've often compared O-State's frontcourt to a bunch of clowns piling out of a Volkswagen, but Taylor's still got to be competent enough to put together a solid game. Today he delivered in big fashion. 15 and seven on Senior Day. Delicious.
4. Austin Johnson and Omar Leary: Our starting senior backcourt was really good. They weren't as aggressive as I'd like, but they protected the basketball. We turned it over 21 times in Stillwater, but only 15 times today. Our two starters accounted for a measly two. And they hit big shots too, with Omar's particularly troubling for the Aggies.
5. James Anderson: The dude has been awesome lately, and he was awesome today. That said, go home, loser.
MINUSES:
1. Aggressiveness: Taylor seemed to get the memo, but everyone else seemed reluctant to attack. When the started trapping us at half-court, I desperately wanted to see us take it right to the rim. Taylor did it a couple of times, but most of the time we allowed them to reset and we had a real tough time getting good looks late in the second half. In Stillwater, we kept them at bay during that stretch by turning the game into a dunking contest. I thought we had to work too hard today. We'll probably see the orange tie brigade again on Thursday, so maybe we'll work on that.
2. Tony Crocker: Last two games.......four points.
3. The Chupacabra: I used to say Tony was the difference, but I think it's Juan. When he brings energy off the bench and puts up 10 and 7, we become a MUCH better basketball team.
And, with that, the regular season is complete. 27-4 and 13-3 in the RUGGED ;) Big 12 Conference. I think our guys felt like they left a few things on the table, but we're far from through. In the grand scheme, all our major goals are still out there. Win the Big 12 Tournament, and you're probably looking at a 1-seed or the #1 2-seed. We've made a Final Four from that perch, and this team has all the pieces to make it to Detroit.
There may be some hints of doom and gloom surrounding the program, but I think they're overblown. We lost one game with Blake in 2009, one game to a team that failed to lose a game at home. We've battled through adversity, and it's time to wipe the slate clean and get down to grittiest of the nitty business. The marathon is over, it's time for the sprint. It'll be weeks before we play a team that we shouldn't beat. We will not face a team we cannot beat. It's all there in front of us. Let's go out and take it.
Thank you for your time.
We didn't play very well today. We shot well, but we didn't play well. If James Anderson wanted to score, he did. If E-tahn wanted to get into the paint, he did. I give O-State credit for responding to every run we threw at them. It seemed like we'd bump our lead to nine, ten or 11 often in the second half only to glance at the scoreboard a minute later and see the margin had shrunk to five or six.
I give our guys all the credit in the world for fighting when their backs were against the wall. I hear you now, "04, how were their backs against the wall when they led for the final 31 minutes?" I read you loud and clear, but you could tell we were struggling. There were so many crucial possessions where we scored when leading by four or five. Empty trips there, and the Aggroids could come down and REALLY make things interesting. As good as Blake was today, and he was incredible, he had help from his supporting cast.
Omar Leary hit two clutch threes; both of them came after O-State cut the lead to five. His bombs pushed it back to eight. The crowd got restless earlier when the Aggies cut it to seven, but Taylor brings them to their feet with a monstrous "and one" dunk. Three-point game with less than two minutes to go, and Austin Johnson goes to the line and calmly sinks two free throws to keep the orange-clad goobers at bay.
Three seniors. 32 points and 11 rebounds. James Anderson had 37, but he had no help. Blake had 33, but he had his seniors, and THEY were the difference in our 82-78 victory today.
I felt dirty rooting for the Longhorns in Lawrence, but I wanted a share of the conference pie. I'd like to add to that banner, but I think we might add to another one and right a wrong if we take care of our business. Oklahoma City should be a ton of fun.
SCORING BREAKDOWN:
1st - 17 [Once I was swimming 'cross Turtle Creek.]
2nd - 25 [Man, them snappers all around my feet.]
3rd - 20 [Sure was hard swimming 'cross that thing.]
4th - 20 [With both hands holdin' my ding-a-ling-a-ling.]
LEADING SCORERS:
33 - Blake Griffin [animal, and Drexler-esque on that lonesome dunk.]
15 - Taylor Griffin [rare in a game involving Blake, but he had the dunk of the day.]
11 - Austin Johnson
11 - Willie Warren [and the coup de grace at the end. his trey made it 82-76.]
LEADING REBOUNDERS:
14 - Blake Griffin
7 - Taylor Griffin
3 - Tony, Austin and Cade
PLUSES:
1. Resiliency: The reports of our demise may not be completely exaggerated, but we're not the team we were a month ago. Can we get it back? I don't know. Will the Crock Pot ever cook again? Will the Chupacabra ever come back out of hibernation? These questions have yet to be answered, but in spite of all that, we banded together and made the plays down the stretch. We could've sulked, lost this game and entered the postseason in a death spiral. Instead, we're the #2 seed in the RUGGED ;) Big 12 Conference.
2. Blake Griffin: 33 and 14 in what was probably his last game as a Sooner inside the Lloyd Noble Center. What's better? 9-13 from the charity stripe. Those freebies were huge.
3. Taylor Griffin: I've often compared O-State's frontcourt to a bunch of clowns piling out of a Volkswagen, but Taylor's still got to be competent enough to put together a solid game. Today he delivered in big fashion. 15 and seven on Senior Day. Delicious.
4. Austin Johnson and Omar Leary: Our starting senior backcourt was really good. They weren't as aggressive as I'd like, but they protected the basketball. We turned it over 21 times in Stillwater, but only 15 times today. Our two starters accounted for a measly two. And they hit big shots too, with Omar's particularly troubling for the Aggies.
5. James Anderson: The dude has been awesome lately, and he was awesome today. That said, go home, loser.
MINUSES:
1. Aggressiveness: Taylor seemed to get the memo, but everyone else seemed reluctant to attack. When the started trapping us at half-court, I desperately wanted to see us take it right to the rim. Taylor did it a couple of times, but most of the time we allowed them to reset and we had a real tough time getting good looks late in the second half. In Stillwater, we kept them at bay during that stretch by turning the game into a dunking contest. I thought we had to work too hard today. We'll probably see the orange tie brigade again on Thursday, so maybe we'll work on that.
2. Tony Crocker: Last two games.......four points.
3. The Chupacabra: I used to say Tony was the difference, but I think it's Juan. When he brings energy off the bench and puts up 10 and 7, we become a MUCH better basketball team.
And, with that, the regular season is complete. 27-4 and 13-3 in the RUGGED ;) Big 12 Conference. I think our guys felt like they left a few things on the table, but we're far from through. In the grand scheme, all our major goals are still out there. Win the Big 12 Tournament, and you're probably looking at a 1-seed or the #1 2-seed. We've made a Final Four from that perch, and this team has all the pieces to make it to Detroit.
There may be some hints of doom and gloom surrounding the program, but I think they're overblown. We lost one game with Blake in 2009, one game to a team that failed to lose a game at home. We've battled through adversity, and it's time to wipe the slate clean and get down to grittiest of the nitty business. The marathon is over, it's time for the sprint. It'll be weeks before we play a team that we shouldn't beat. We will not face a team we cannot beat. It's all there in front of us. Let's go out and take it.
Thank you for your time.