I finally got a nice dose of college hoops action this week thanks to three substantial games in the last four nights, two that I attended in person (Maryland/Villanova, George Washington/Providence) and one that I watched slighty delayed on the DVR (Georgetown/Butler) since I was covering the Abe Pollin memorial service at Verizon Center.
In chronological order, here are some ideas that have stuck in my head:
1. Greivis Vasquez seems to be having a case of Gilbert Arenas-itis, except without the knee injury as an excuse. Vasquez came back to Maryland for his senior year to complete the job, not only to help the Terps redeem themselves after last year’s often frustrating campaign but quite frankly to get himself ready for the NBA Draft next June. He went through all the NBA workouts last spring after declaring and eventually backing out, learning the things he had to work on — mainly, shooting a higher percentage and committing fewer turnovers — and where’s it landed him? With a low shooting percentage (.323) and a nasty-high number of turnovers (3.8 per game).
It’s as if he’s channeling Agent Zero, who Wizards head coach Flip Saunders just talked about yesterday, noting his superstar’s struggles because he’s become so focused on getting assists that it’s messed up his overall game. The Terps need Vasquez to play his game — with all the bells, whistles and attitude it entails — not to play as if he’s trying to prove himself to NBA scouts.
2. Don’t misinterpret the significance of Georgetown’s win over Butler. Driving home from Verizon Center on Tuesday, I caught the very end Rich Chvotkin’s call of the Hoyas’ win over Butler, and of course, was immediately struck by Greg Monroe’s huge line: 24 points, 15 rebounds. Now, Monroe was impressive, there’s no doubt. But the Bulldogs were clearly inferior inside, and Matt Howard’s foul trouble reduced their ability to handle Monroe even further. What’s more, Butler’s atrocious shooting (31.1 percent) had as much to do with the game’s outcome as Monroe’s double-double.
But the real difference in the game was Austin Freeman hitting his first five shots – four of them from behind the arc – and finishing with 18 points. Georgetown desperately needs the junior from DeMatha to keep knocking down jumpers, and not awkwardly forcing himself inside, if they are going avoid becoming predictable offensively.
3. The buzz is back in Foggy Bottom. How little respect did George Washington get on campus last year? The Colonials didn’t get more than 3,000 into the Smith Center ONCE last season. They’ve now done it twice in a row — on weeknights — following last night’s 110-97 decision to Providence in front of 3,015, which may have been a defeat in name only and came seven days after 4,125 packed the gym for a win over local rival George Mason. And GW showed why, with an entertaining brand of basketball full of high-flying and fearlessly athletic plays from an seemingly endless reserve of athletes who give the impression that they are enjoying playing with one another.
“You talk about talented George Washington is, we couldn’t press them,” said Friars head coach Keno Davis. “We couldn’t three-quarter court press them to slow them down. They were going faster when we pressed them. I can’t remember last year taking the press off of anybody…For a team to be unpressable, especially for us going in, I think it shows how talented they were.”
Damian Hollis said the atmosphere made a difference, and Karl Hobbs could barely contain a smile afterward, a rarity in the last two years. The loss got him more excited, not less.
“It’s not about us getting disheartened,” said Hobbs. “For us, it’s the focus of getting back to our foundation of how we play. That’s the stage we’re at. We’re not at a stage where we’re talking about we need to win this game so get an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament. We’re not at that level yet.”
Apparently, the Smith Center crazies don’t care.
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