Hello Followers.
Well, today, as Abe Lodwick’s final three (with 1 second left) fell one inch short, so did the Cougars’ chances of being in the NCAA tournament.
And really, this 71-69 loss was a true-blue heartbreaker, as I for one really admired the Cougs’ spirited second half effort.
In terms of “Keys To The Game:”
As noted earlier, the Devils were 6-14 when shooting uncontested threes in the first half.
In the second half, they were 2-4 (uncontested) and 0-1 (contested).
So, in addition to the fact that Klay was largely spectacular and Abe played one of his better games as a Cougar, the tale of tape in the second half was that we defended the three much, much better. And that’s why we got back in the game.
Other Notes:
1) Out of line: Although the Devils missed a bunch of FT’s at the end to allow the game to be close, they still shot 14-18 from the game. And your Cougars? Try 14-25 (.560). Think that makes a difference?
2) Not Clutch. Part of this stat comes from our brick fest from the line. But, between the 4:00 mark and Klay’s 3 that made it 68-65 Devils with :36 left, we scored NO POINTS. And yes, most of our looks during that stretch weren’t that great.
3) Play of the Game: Lots of candidates. But for me, down 65-62 with 1:42 left, Klay intercepted an errant Sun Devil pass at the top of the key (on the defensive end). But, instead of landing and then doing something with the ball, Klay tried to heave it down court in one motion to a breaking Reggie Moore. Of course, Klay’s pass was intercepted and ASU quickly made it a two possession game.
4) The Great Marcus Caper. Even with Aden’s absence, Marcus spent most of his time on the bench tonight, while Mr. Diiorio took his minutes. Too bad too, since Diiorio missed a gimme layup in the final minute and half which would have cut the game to one possession. You have to wonder what has happened there.
5) Out of Time. We said that this was a must win. And we didn’t do it. So, save a Pac-10 tournament title, our NCAA hopes are now done.
The question now is whether or not this team has enough to finish in the top 6.
Next Sunday is a real gut-check for Bone and his Boys.
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