NIT Season Tip-Off Marathon
Finally! After a wait of over 7 months, college basketball is finally back. And from Butler to San Diego State to the Uconn women, we have some surprises.
#18 Butler at Louisville
The Butler Bulldogs came into the KFC Yum! Center expecting a team who can only shoot the three and pass well. But that's not what they saw. The Cardinals were aggressive, and when they saw open lanes, they took the lanes for easy buckets. When they didn't, they passed the ball around for 3 pointers.
And Louisville was passing well. They had 18 assists, and that's because they spread the floor and drew double-teams to try to find the open man. When the bench players came in they stepped up and played to that level, too. The Louisville bench outscored the Butler bench 36-16.
When Louisville is aggressive and on from beyond the arc, these Cardinals are unstoppable. Maybe they weren't perfect against Butler, but they were good enough for an 88-73 win to open up the KFC Yum! Center.
Eastern Washington at #15 Washington
The Washington Huskies showed what they can do with that same style of play. Running what I like to call the "In and out offense", Abdul Gaddy, the point guard would look for a lane. Since he was facing a zone defense, he would always have someone to pass back to. They would normally shoot a 3 pointer.
But that was their only real source of points for the first half. And Eastern Washington was scoring too. The Eagles played aggressive, and by driving to the hoop, Eastern Washington took a 13-8 lead.
And late in the first half the game was still winnable for E-Wash. The score was 28-26, so Washington coach Lorenzo Romar went to the in and out offense, and looked for more points in the paint, and more rebounds.
That strategy worked. The Huskies outscored E-Wash 70-46 after that, and they also made 13 3 pointers. That is the benefit of the in and out offense.
San Diego State at #12 Gonzaga
The San Diego State Aztecs have forces inside and outside. Billy White scored 30 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. White was making jumpers and lighting up the Zags, while Kawhi Leaanord was grabbing every available rebound.
Leanord grabbed 12 boards and scored 18, mainly because of his size and ability to jump high and snatch the ball from the air. If he wasn't going to shoot then he could always pass to Billy White, who would usually be open.
White could score from anywhere, and Leanord could rebound from anywhere. When you put these 2 together, you get 48 points, 21 rebounds, and 2 guys who can really play. If you want 2 guys who fit in the in and out offense, here you go.
What this led to was a 75-72 win over the #12 team in the country.
Pacific at UCLA
With 2 guys who can score inside and outside, plus rebound, the UCLA Bruins look like they are on their way to the glory days. And so far, with 3 straight double-digit wins, the Bruins look pretty good.
Reeves Nelson is a power forward who can out jump opponents for rebounds, and he can put back baskets with ease. Nelson also proved that he can shoot from beyond the arc, making opponents want to look out.
Tyler Honeycutt is a small forward who has a good jump shot and can drive to the hole. He can also go in and kick out, as he proved with his average of 3.3 assists per game. He is another player worthy of a double-team.
Then you have Lazeric Jones, a point guard who likes to go in and out as well. Jones looks like an amazing point guard right now, a guy who can shoot and pass. He scored 9 points and dished out 5 assists against Pacific.
And then you have Josh Smith, like a center. He can also rebound well, and he can score down low too. With these four guys, opponents need to look out.
Nelson and Honeycutt each proved what they can do. Honeycutt hit 3 threes and Nelson scored 18 down low, making these guys 2 to watch out for. They combined to score 36 of UCLA's 57 against Pacific. And after the Bruins beat Pacific 57-44, these 2 are looking to lead UCLA to more wins.
Other games
Jared Sulliger scored 26 and grabbed 10 rebounds, David Lighty scored 26 and these 2 proved that they can dominate as #5 Ohio State beat #10 Florida 93-75. Lighty proved that he can play anywhere, and Sulliger proved that he can dominate the paint.
A team effort helped #3 Kansas State dominate the second half and beat #24 Virginia Tech 73-57. The team relied heavily on passing, racking up a total of 19 assists.
Scoop Jardine scored 27 points, dominating with the jump shot, as #11 Syracuse held off Detroit 66-55.
Bay Area score: Jorge Guitteriz scored 18 points and dished out 8 assists, proving that he can make good decisions as UC Berkeley beat Cal State Northridge 80-63.
#18 Butler at Louisville
The Butler Bulldogs came into the KFC Yum! Center expecting a team who can only shoot the three and pass well. But that's not what they saw. The Cardinals were aggressive, and when they saw open lanes, they took the lanes for easy buckets. When they didn't, they passed the ball around for 3 pointers.
And Louisville was passing well. They had 18 assists, and that's because they spread the floor and drew double-teams to try to find the open man. When the bench players came in they stepped up and played to that level, too. The Louisville bench outscored the Butler bench 36-16.
When Louisville is aggressive and on from beyond the arc, these Cardinals are unstoppable. Maybe they weren't perfect against Butler, but they were good enough for an 88-73 win to open up the KFC Yum! Center.
Eastern Washington at #15 Washington
The Washington Huskies showed what they can do with that same style of play. Running what I like to call the "In and out offense", Abdul Gaddy, the point guard would look for a lane. Since he was facing a zone defense, he would always have someone to pass back to. They would normally shoot a 3 pointer.
But that was their only real source of points for the first half. And Eastern Washington was scoring too. The Eagles played aggressive, and by driving to the hoop, Eastern Washington took a 13-8 lead.
And late in the first half the game was still winnable for E-Wash. The score was 28-26, so Washington coach Lorenzo Romar went to the in and out offense, and looked for more points in the paint, and more rebounds.
That strategy worked. The Huskies outscored E-Wash 70-46 after that, and they also made 13 3 pointers. That is the benefit of the in and out offense.
San Diego State at #12 Gonzaga
The San Diego State Aztecs have forces inside and outside. Billy White scored 30 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. White was making jumpers and lighting up the Zags, while Kawhi Leaanord was grabbing every available rebound.
Leanord grabbed 12 boards and scored 18, mainly because of his size and ability to jump high and snatch the ball from the air. If he wasn't going to shoot then he could always pass to Billy White, who would usually be open.
White could score from anywhere, and Leanord could rebound from anywhere. When you put these 2 together, you get 48 points, 21 rebounds, and 2 guys who can really play. If you want 2 guys who fit in the in and out offense, here you go.
What this led to was a 75-72 win over the #12 team in the country.
Pacific at UCLA
With 2 guys who can score inside and outside, plus rebound, the UCLA Bruins look like they are on their way to the glory days. And so far, with 3 straight double-digit wins, the Bruins look pretty good.
Reeves Nelson is a power forward who can out jump opponents for rebounds, and he can put back baskets with ease. Nelson also proved that he can shoot from beyond the arc, making opponents want to look out.
Tyler Honeycutt is a small forward who has a good jump shot and can drive to the hole. He can also go in and kick out, as he proved with his average of 3.3 assists per game. He is another player worthy of a double-team.
Then you have Lazeric Jones, a point guard who likes to go in and out as well. Jones looks like an amazing point guard right now, a guy who can shoot and pass. He scored 9 points and dished out 5 assists against Pacific.
And then you have Josh Smith, like a center. He can also rebound well, and he can score down low too. With these four guys, opponents need to look out.
Nelson and Honeycutt each proved what they can do. Honeycutt hit 3 threes and Nelson scored 18 down low, making these guys 2 to watch out for. They combined to score 36 of UCLA's 57 against Pacific. And after the Bruins beat Pacific 57-44, these 2 are looking to lead UCLA to more wins.
Other games
Jared Sulliger scored 26 and grabbed 10 rebounds, David Lighty scored 26 and these 2 proved that they can dominate as #5 Ohio State beat #10 Florida 93-75. Lighty proved that he can play anywhere, and Sulliger proved that he can dominate the paint.
A team effort helped #3 Kansas State dominate the second half and beat #24 Virginia Tech 73-57. The team relied heavily on passing, racking up a total of 19 assists.
Scoop Jardine scored 27 points, dominating with the jump shot, as #11 Syracuse held off Detroit 66-55.
Bay Area score: Jorge Guitteriz scored 18 points and dished out 8 assists, proving that he can make good decisions as UC Berkeley beat Cal State Northridge 80-63.
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