Fwd: [Husker] KU win - 78-65.

[NUStLNorris at aol.com]

In a message dated 2/5/05 1:05:20 PM Central Standard Time, 
jonlists at cbsol.com writes:


> Score was worse than the game - we stayed in it, but just couldn't claw 
> back into the lead after the first half. 
> 
> 2nd half started out poorly - what McCray with 3 quick turnovers, we 
> didn't protect the ball very well in the 2nd half, and shot the ball 
> poorly. Poor defense underneath, and KU shooting the lights out even when 
> the defense was good. KU came to town remembering last year's mashing, 
> with a vengeance. 
> 
> KU has four seniors - Simien, Langford among them, not that it'll make a 
> difference, but McCray's inexperience showed up. 
> 
> Our two dynamic freshmen didn't have a very good game. MCray with only 7, 
> Marics playing only sparingly, finishing with zero. Good thing Dourisseau 
> showed up to play, finishing with 24. Wilkinson with 13. Turek with 12. 

This was frustrating.  McCray wasn't good.  He had a quick stretch where he 
scored all seven points in the first half in about a minute-and-a-half.  Like 
Jon said, he struggled and made some poor decisions with the ball at the start 
of the second half when we were still in the game.  

But Barry took him out at the 17 minute mark (when we were still in the game) 
and re-entered him with 1:20 to play with the game already decided.  This 
mystified me.  For awhile I thought he must have told Barry to go blow, or 
something.  NU's only chance to win this game was to take Joe out for a minute or 
two, let him regroup, then have him play his way out of it.  He's averaging 
about 15 for a game for you and he's been your first option all year.  NU wasn't 
going to beat KU unless Joe snapped out of it and played a lot better in the 
second half.  We never gave him a chance.  You're never going to beat anybody of 
significance (top shelf Big XII teams) if you put the ball in the hands of 
Jason Dourisseau.  It's never happened and it's not going to happen ... nothing 
personal against the kid it's just got to do with "winning basketball."  I'll 
be kind and say his game is "limited."

This was KANSAS, not Texas Southern or Morgan State.  Barry decided to sit 
McCray for basically all of the second half.  Suicide.

Jake played an inspired game and Wilkensen is setting himself up to have a 
big year next year.  We need him to have a big year next year.  Maric was 
showing the affects of his recent illness.  Not many minutes and not much of a 
factor.  

McCray gets into trouble with his jumper when he doesn't square up.  Instead 
he'll have his side facing his target.  Great shooters have a tendancy when 
they're "feelin' it" to think that ANYTHING they throw up will go in ... and at 
times it does.  But not squaring up means you're not getting your legs and 
torso behind and underneath your shot.  The only guy I saw who could repeatedly 
get away with not squaring up was Downtown Freddie Brown, University of Iowa 
and the Seattle Supersonics (I'm showing my age). He was a machine.  Fred Brown 
shot regularly at a 90 degree angle from the direction he was facing.  HE WAS 
THE EXCEPTION, and he was quite exceptional.  McCray shoots in a hurry at 
times ... and you can do it if you see your shot ahead-of-the-fact and get squared 
up.

I've had about enough of this "Princeton-principled" offense.  Too much 
one-on-one play and waaaaaay too much dribbling.  With new personnel might come a 
new scheme.  I'd be all for it.

Give Kansas credit for playing very well, but they were NOT unbeatable today. 
 We didn't give ourselves much of a chance, in a number of ways.

This was frustrating.  Next up is Tuesday night vs. Iowa State at Bob's 
House.  My schedule says it's on Fox Sports Midwest.

Dave Norris