Sydney Uni 92 Canberra 68 Game report
Sunday 23 October 2005
Boxscore is here. Gsme report is here
It wasn't much of a game tonight. Both teams ignored defence in the first quarter but Sydney rediscovered it in the second quarter while Canberra didn't. Sydney was rotating deep into the bench by the end of the second quarter! The second half was essentially extended garbage time - Canberra never looked like threatening Sydney. The score was generous to Canberra; if Sydney had made their layups, they would have been over 100.
To put it simply, a LJ-less Canberra is not a finals team. They looked disorganised on both ends of the court tonight. Poor Graffy looked frustrated and resigned tonight. I don't think she could do much - the problem with Canberra is mainly a personnel one. With LJ on the team, the role players' specialties are their strengths but without LJ, it becomes a weakness. A couple of examples:
* Tully is a great defender and floor leader but isn't much of an offensive sparkplug and Canberra really needed that tonight.
* Angela Marino can put up points in a hurry, but her D and court vision is substandard.
* Jenny Whittle is a nice complementary player in the paint but is too limited to be a good primary offensive option. The Flames did a good defensive job on her from the second quarter onwards.
Abrams is a solid all-round guard but she's only one player. Sharp wasn't there and the rest of the Caps team is basically bench fodder. Canberra simply didn't have the talent to play with Sydney tonight and while Sydney was playing well, I don't think they were close to their best. This is not a good omen for Canberra and if LJ doesn't come back this season, Canberra are going to miss the finals.
Sydney played a lot better this week. Their D was a lot tighter and I was impressed with the way they dealt with Whittle. The offence was a lot smoother this week with more movement and I noticed they even set a screen or two for driver (but they still need to run shooters off screens - especially Snell). However, the offence was quite sloppy in the second half. I understand players can lose their edge and focus when they're up by a lot but I don't think making crisp and accurate passes, making layups and not overdribbling isn't too much to ask. Karen Dalton didn't appear to be impressed either by the sloppy offense with semi-regular substitutions and timeouts in order to try and improve the offensive execution.
Analysis of Sydney players
Michelle Musselwhite - This week's Flames POTW. She displayed her offensive range with accurate long distance shooting and strong moves to the basket. She put in her usual effort on the defensive end and the boards
Trish Fallon - I have no idea why Canberra left her open so many times but who's complaining...
Belinda Snell - It's interesting to note that when she's on court with the starters, she's playing the role of playmaker and is essentially the fourth offensive option behind Fallon, Porter and Muss. She only took open threes tonight (except for a missed layup off a good backdoor cut) and was generally passive when it came to looking to score. Her play wasn't passive on the floor though - she hustled after rebounds, looked to create for others and played some tough D. I really would like the team to get her some more open shots but as long the rest of the team is firing like they were tonight, they don't need her to take 15-20 shots a game.
Natalie Porter - Played a bit more on the perimeter tonight but had a solid game. Had a nice behind the back pass to rookie Jenna Bilton close to the end of the game.
Narelle Lindsay/Vicki Brick - Lindsay had a pretty good first game back. Her shooting form is a bit rusty (and she really shouldn't take baseline shots as she airballed both her attempts quite badly) but she ran the offence well and I certainly feel more comfortable with her handling the rock than Brick. I also liked Brick's game tonight - I like her D and she made some nice passes tonight. Her handle is almost as cringeworthy as her shot though.
Jamie Samuels - After a disappointing first couple of outings, Samuels put together some nice minutes tonight. She whipped off a couple of nice passes and played some great D on Whittle.
Analysis of Canberra players
Jenny Whittle - If you go by numbers, she played ok but as the game went on, she became less and less effective. When she got position or open, she nailed her shots but it's just too easy to force her into a bad shot. The quicker Flames forwards exposed her lack of speed on the defensive end.
Angela Marino - She scored most of her points in garbage time. It is fun to watch her play though and maybe Graffy should loosen the reins a bit because Canberra really needs somebody who can spark the offence. I am aware her floor game is quite lacking but I think her D is improving.
Tully Bevilaqua - Played good D but was generally subdued. Also seemed to be dealing with an elbow injury.
Tracy Beatty - What's up with the netball style free throw shooting? It doesn't work! She seemed pretty frustrated all game but did come up with an impressive block. She really needs to pull in the boards, instead of slapping them about.
The officiating was quite loose tonight with the refs letting a lot go but then there were the usual WTF calls. Tully gets away with a lot. Carrie was mouthing off at the refs though I'm not sure why (habit?). Her team was benefiting from the officiating!
Tonight, I saw a variation on the pick and roll play - the player rolled before the pick was really set. It's as bizarre as it sounds (and yes, it failed dismally).
Spotted at the game: Shelley Sandie, who looked in great shape. Maybe the Caps will give her a call-up.
The lolly throw continues to be a dangerous activity.
Wrist tags were neon yellow tonight. I look forward to fluorescent green.