Helluva game

Refs were horrendous. It’s genuinely impressive that CC didn’t go full Hurley on them multiple times.

Shame we couldn’t pull it out. Bishop and DBJ deserved the W.

Last edited by GW0509 (1/03/2024 10:44 pm)

Box out, rebounding?

I don't think i've mentioned the refs once in 10+ years posting on this and the previous board but jeez that was bad. The thing that validates it the most is that was by far the most animated CC has ever been on the sidelines. He kicked the scorers table at one point.

After a month of getting used to watching the likes of Navy, Coppin State, Bowie State, Alcorn State, and UMES, by comparison Fordham looked like the best team I'd ever seen for the first 10 minutes. Just a different level of skill and athleticism than we'd been seeing. I know a lot goes into scheduling strategy, but I'm just not sure that schedule was the best approach to prepare for A10 level opponents (even a mid-to-lower tier one). They seemed a bit shell shocked for the first 5-10 minutes. 

Even by 3-OT standards that was the most exhausted I've seen a team in a long time. Any word on Benny? Could have used even just 10 minutes from him today. A bit surprised they're not finding a few minutes for Antoine Smith, or letting Trey get a little more run (though he did have a couple of bad mistakes in regulation).

If anyone from the athletic department is reading this, for the love of god you need to do something with the student section for the Davidson game. For anyone not in the arena, what happened today was the section behind the Fordham bench was filled with Fordham fans, and the rest of the lower section filled sporadically, because students are on break. So the loudest fans sitting near the court were Fordham fans. Email season ticket holders to sit in the student section, tell fans sitting in the endzone near the GW bench (where there are a lot of young alums) to sit in the student section. Please just do something about it, that was embarrassing today. 

We've been fortunate to not have to feel just how crushing it is to lose a game that goes into overtime for a while but man it doesn't feel great. There are no sure games in the league, but a home game against Fordham is as favorable as it gets. It's a long season though and there's a lot the young guys can learn from the game.

There are times GW could have boxed out better for sure, but I see many of the offensive rebounds the same as diving for a loose ball. I'm not saying guys aren't diving on the floor or battling on the glass but for several seasons now (across coaches) it feels like GW never comes out on the winning side of the 50-50 loose balls. Sure there were a few the team won tonight but Fordham seemed to win those 80% or more of the time.

Some other thoughts:
1) It was nice to see the team come out focused and ready to go. Additionally, it was nice to see an efficient effort offensively for the first time in a while against a decent defensive squad. However, the offense felt way too much in isolation at times. The team finished with just 11 assists, and remember this game lasted 55 minutes. There's no denying DBJ is a stud, and JB can make plays in isolation, but where is the passing? I can't help but feel additional points were left on the table because we were too predictable. That's partly a product of the way Fordham defends, but we played right into their hand.

2) This is obvious, but the defense along the perimeter was pitiful and it's not just been this game. The only difference is that Fordham made GW pay for all the open shots whereas previous teams may have not been skilled enough to make those shots consistently. There were plays where Charlton was coming off a screen where I knew what was going to happen before the play unfolded and yet the rotations were blown on the court. You can credit Fordham for making those shots (19 in any game is incredible) but GW gifted those shots to them. It wasn't like they were making contested shots.

3) Stretch was switched onto Medor for a number of possessions in overtime. Akingbola did an admirable job guarding him, but it appeared CC did not feel comfortable going a bit smaller on defense when Fordham did.

4) This team's depth has been disappointing. Whether you chalk that up to the closely fought games against lesser competition or what, this team can't go more than 8 deep. Normally that's not a major issue but it becomes a problem in games that go to overtime like this one. It was unfortunate that Benny was under the weather, but assuming Antoine is healthy this game seemed to cement that he's not close to making the rotation anytime soon. This was more apparent watching Fordham go deep into their bench.

5) Despite a lot of things going against us, CC did a great job managing the game, whether it was drawing up the DBJ layup to force single overtime, the DBJ dunk to force a third overtime, or even managing JB's minutes by substituting Jacoi in for defense (which had to be done especially later in the game when JB picked up his fourth foul).

6) GW lost this game because they were brutally bad defending the three (even if Fordham couldn't miss) but that doesn't mean the refs weren't bad. It started from the tip (quite literally) when they called a foul on JB for going after the ball. As time went on in the game, they felt more and more reluctant to call any fouls on Fordham despite GW consistently drawing contact. There was also one really bad play that I think will get overlooked where Darren's shot was altered by Fordham. Not only did they not call contact (which I could live with on that play) but they called the ball out on him which was highly questionable. But yeah, Gray slapping the backcourt after his dunk was 100% unsportsmanlike and merited a technical foul. It felt like a repeat of the Washington State game from last year. GW never seems to get the benefit of the doubt on those calls.

I'll just say this: Fordham came into the game averaging over 20 fouls per game, and they finished the game with 22 after 3 OTs. 10 of these were called in the first half, so we're talking just 12 fouls called on Fordham in the final 35 minutes of the game. The way the Rams play on defense lends itself to a lot of fouls yet not enough were called.

The team will have to somehow regroup after a tough loss. Unfortunately, the next opponent is against VCU at their place and the Rams are going to be playing angry coming off a double digit loss to Bona. The only saving grace is that they don't really do havoc anymore but things could get ugly Saturday.
 

BGF wrote:

I understand the ref-bashing, and the loss was disappointing, but I left the Charles E. tonight with nothing but satisfaction (even if it was muted without the victory).  It was a great game, one of the most entertaining I've seen at GW, and I was impressed with how player after player on both teams rose to the occasion when needed.

Also, I do believe that this game being pre-semester start hurt us.  With no students there and Fordham bringing a really large contingent of fans (most sitting on every side of my seats), this felt like a road game at times.  

I remain optimistic, sitting in my corner happily wearing my buff-colored glasses,
 

I second that emotion

am I wrong or was this the best game since the victory over Virginia 5 or 6(?) years ago

Exciting game, disappointing at the end but what a game to watch in person. 

Benny would have helped give us a few. 

LSF - I think Harvey is a great kid and ambassador for the school- not an A10 level player.  Very slow on defense - would not be able to stay with their bigs or handle the pick and roll.  Not even close to a good option even for a few minutes.    He will only see the floor in blowouts.

Rebounding has always been effort.  Not seeing it here. Giving up way too many offensive boards. And D? 
Well, I'm glad the moniker change has made a big difference in attendance. Not. 

Admitedly I am one of those "winning isn't everything, its the only thing" type of person, and that if my team doesn't win, the game wasn't fun, but I will admit that the Fordham game was an incredible experience and a reminder why I have remained a season ticket holder for over 40 years.   The desire to win on both teams, the stratgeizing, both coaches working their asses off,  the expression on the players faces, the ability to hit huge shots, the high shooting percentages, including from the line (neither team was going to help the other by going cold on the free throws), so many lead changes in the 2nd half and in the OTs....it is why I love the games.  Too bad the students and cheer team weren't there to add to the experience.   That play drawn up by Caputo ane exectuted perfectly by the team with about 2 seconds left in one of the OTs and GW down 2, in which Buchanan got opened for the dunk, was a work of art.   Damn shame we lost the game.

Last edited by Long Suffering Fan (1/04/2024 11:55 am)

Will add game comments in a while.
But this is certainly an accurate, but tough love perspective from the GWradio link above. We played with a lot of heart, but this is also some advice to take to heart. Fordham was 6-7 going into the game and we were 11-2.
   "In a game that GW tried their best to lose with a horrible defensive performance, it was ultimately Fordham luck and inconsistent officiating from the famous Atlantic 10 referees that downed the Revolutionaries (11-3, 0-1 A10) 119-113 in triple overtime in the Smith Center on Wednesday night.
     The GW squad came into this first A-10 matchup having won their previous five games, although all of them were against vastly inferior teams and most of them were not as convincing as they should have been. In these games it could be said GW was playing down to their opponents, often looking disjointed on both sides of the ball. This game, against the lesser but feisty Rams (7-7, 1-0 A10), was a way to get headed on the right path in what is sure to be a dogfight of a conference schedule. "