1 OSU ranks #130, they are by far the worse team in the big 12.
2 And just like that, Mag starts over Catchings…Talk about a weird game. The refs handed out Ts like candy and Catchings took the brunt of it, played only 7 minutes then sat the rest of the game. Maybe down the road Catchings will figure out how to play big 12 ball but BYU had 2 monster runs and Mag-Saunders were in during the runs, out when OSU made it’s 2nd half run.
3 About the refs: They SUCKED!
Watched every single T they handed out and clearly, not a single call was even close to a T. Yes, I get that OSU was talking and doing the hand wars etc. Pretty sure the coach told them to try to get into Catching’s head but no fouls in that game came even close to
4 Demin woke up midway in the 2nd, had everyone on their feet.
5 Both Demin and Hall had injuries that sat them for about a month each and they did not get to “gel” in the early season, that may be a reason why BYU has struggled in close games.
6 now we play Utah. Keba going to get Booed! We will see if BYU is getting healthy
7 OSU only got 26 rebounds for the game…seriously. only 16 D rebounds for the entire game
8 Hall, Knell and Saunders had themselves a good night.
Agree with #5. I think one big challenge has been the chemistry between Hall and Demin. I think they are starting to figure it out. Add to this that I think Young is figuring out the rotations. I think mag is a key part of it. Keep the seniors and the experience in and sprinkle with the freshman.
Did Demin turn a corner last night? Starting to make some shots and less turnovers? I hope so. Exciting if progress continues.
Which Knell will show up? I was concerned that the Big 12 version was showing up where he disappears. I think he has had two decent games so far in conference play. Now the question is will the away Knell show up? Can he demonstrate while not at home? If so that also helps out the team.
Whichever OSU player decide to get under the skin of Catchings did us a favor. Helped us to figure out a successful rotation.
I think the thing with Catchings will benefit Catchings going forward this year. The fact is, without Catchings contributing in a positive way, we are at best an 8-12 league record. If Catchings can now get serious and play aggressively without cheap fouls we are a potential 12+ win team. He will be essential to get his scoring and passing going. And, he can play defense regardless of what Lanier says.
When we look at the Big 12, older teams are dominant. But, they all have freshman that come in and contribute significantly too. It’s an older league and more physical because of it. Of course, Im guessing Dybantsa will be different.
Once BYU got into league play and the insanely physical nature of Big 12 basketball, things got REAL in a heartbeat…That is when KY realized that playing 2 Fr. and Knell at the same time was not working. Like you, sitting a 5th year grad Sr. in favor of a Fr. with potential was killing BYU’s chances of a win.
heading up to hostile Utah on the road will tell us everything about if Demin is playing better.
That is the million $ question: I have said for months now that with good defenders, Knell can be hidden in the lineup. Mag, Saunders, Egor are good enough to hide Knell and his 3 can really get things going. But we also saw how OSU tried and succeeded in getting under Catchings skin…they tried the same tactic on Knell but Sr’s don’t retaliate like young immature Fr…Catchings sat, Knell played and killed OSU…just can’t play both of them at the same time
sorry, I printed the above before reading your last sentence…great minds think alike!
I can’t remember EVER seeing WORSE officiating in a game–not one sided, just awful for both teams. NONE of the Ts were legit; NONE of the Flagrants on either team were legit. I was laughing OUT LOUD at the flagrant they called on the OSU big who sort of bumped Keiba when they were both on the move under the basket. NEVER EVER have I heard ESPN announcers legitimately mocking and making fun of the officials like they did last night. The worst of it all: the T on Knell that was PURELY without any cause at all, called by a spineless little man for no other reason than he had the power and could abuse it. Officials like this are a detriment to the game and don’t belong in B12 games.
Again, if you watched the game you heard the announcers CALL OUT the officials on probably a dozen or more occasions for how bad they were.
Knell has consistently killed bad teams, and disappeared against good teams. The problem with that is we would beat the bad teams without him, yet he’s built this ridiculous “shot doctor” persona on the shoulders of blowouts against garbage teams. Take out the first conference game last year vs Cincy, and I think he was one of the worst 2 or 3 shooters from deep on the entire team last year in B12 play–on a lot of attempts.
I have always been critical of Knell’s inability to consistently hit 3s against good teams. So far this year he is .360 (9/25) from deep in B12 play–good games against Houston (great team) and OSU (TERRIBLE team), and 3 just awful games (TCU, TTU, ASU) in which he shot .230 (3/13) from deep. I hope that Chris is right, and that the passing/scoring threat from Saunders, Hall and Demin leave Knell open for looks. We now play 3 bad teams in a row, and I’ll be interested to see how Knell shoots from deep against these bad teams, but MORE interested in how he does against the top half of the league…
Shot doctor came about during his injury season, he was essentially an on scholarship shooting coach…he liked the job and Pope saw that he did it well.
two of the bottom teams in the league on the road, maybe a couple of road wins finally, though
Demin and Hall must finally sync, Catchings may get his head on straight…
Cincinatti is hardly a cakewalk team…the home crowd might make enough of a difference for it to be a win against an NCAA quality team.
Cincy 0-4
CU 0-4
Utah 1-3 (likely 1-4 in a few hours)
Those bad teams. Combined 1-12 after tonight=bad teams. I’m not even saying BYU is much better, just the truth and nothing but the truth about those 3. I keep telling you guys stats are stats and the numbers don’t generally lie.
He gets one good defensive play and all of the sudden he is “learning”?
Too funny. If you add that one good defensive play to the myriad plays he was not good, you get an overall grade of D- on defense for him. If he isn’t hitting threes regularly he just can’t contribute much. 18 points is incredible honestly. He does contribute at home with the three pointers, it’s just a shame that he can’t do more defensively.
Bad is a relative term and description. They are probably decent to good teams in another conference but bad in the Big 12 because it is such a competitive and tough conference. BYU could lose to any of those “bad” teams because, as evidenced last night, nobody can be sure which BYU team will show up. Last night it was one team in the first half and a different team in the second half. They won the game because Demin finally woke up and it gave the rest of the team the confidence to finish the win.
And just to make things interesting, Utah beat TCU on that ugly, horned frog, scaly skin court. That is something BYU could not do. That says something for Utah… they show up and play hard regardless of their record and standing. Now if BYU could only do the same. A quick check shows that BYU is in the bottom half of the conference standings.
Nonsense, I saw him whiff on several defensive plays and give absolutely no help on several others. You are talking like he is a decent/good defender when everyone knows he is not. My eyesight is just fine. You need NEW glasses, those coke bottles are fogging up. Knell is a 3 point shooter who can get hot, plays weak defense and gets rebounds only when they come right to him. Why do you have such a hard time calling things like they really are?
Exactly what I am trying to tell you. If you can do that then YOU will see what EVERYONE else is seeing. It would be helpful if someone other than you said these things about Knell, but nobody else does. It’s going to take more than the eyes of someone looking through blue colored coke bottle lenses to convince me. I am able to discern when I think you are accurate on your analysis and I tell you as much. This is not one of those times.
Nobody??? The Announcers do, the BYUSN do including analysts that come like Farnham. Why do you limit to those in here only? Lanier isn’t biased? How do you know?
