When Wayne Simien's Laettner-esque last gasp failed to give KU the victory in Friday's first round upset by Bucknell, I thought to myself that never has such a talented KU team disappointed more fans in a shorter time span. That's not a totally fair summation.
Last night's loss shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who's followed KU this season. This KU team struggled against lesser foes like Iowa State and Missouri. We saw it on the court in several games: bonehead turnovers, anemic perimeter shooting, and no offensive rebounds. Nobody stepped up to help the big three (except Mike Lee), and coach Bill Self’s low-possession game plan allowed undermanned teams to stay close to KU in matches where we should have applied more pressure and increased our advantage when we had the opportunity.
Today I am in recovery. Unlike earlier losses where I took comfort in the notion that the upcoming tournament offered an opportunity to make things right, I have no such crutch this morning. The rest of 2005 looks like one big zone defense right now.
Last night's loss shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who's followed KU this season. This KU team struggled against lesser foes like Iowa State and Missouri. We saw it on the court in several games: bonehead turnovers, anemic perimeter shooting, and no offensive rebounds. Nobody stepped up to help the big three (except Mike Lee), and coach Bill Self’s low-possession game plan allowed undermanned teams to stay close to KU in matches where we should have applied more pressure and increased our advantage when we had the opportunity.
Today I am in recovery. Unlike earlier losses where I took comfort in the notion that the upcoming tournament offered an opportunity to make things right, I have no such crutch this morning. The rest of 2005 looks like one big zone defense right now.
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