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Quick Hitters
-Ah, a win. Was it perfect? No, but it was a win. One that this team and fanbase needed. Although it wasn’t perfect, there were certainly some positives, so let’s dive into some of them and then have film review.
-Let me just start with the Jordan Nwora assist/turnover ratio counter, because it was GREAT! Jordan had four assists and only one turnover. The four assists were his most all season and tied a career high. It could have easily been five if Dwayne Sutton had converted his open layup on the backdoor pass from Nwora. But that’s how these stats go. Sometimes you should have more assists, sometimes you are credited with a turnover that isn’t all your fault. Either way, 4:1 is fantastic for Nwora and his season totals are now 21 assists and 36 turnovers.
-Speaking of assists, Darius Perry now has 61 on the season, which is already a career high. He had 54 as a freshman and 50 as a sophomore. Of course, he has the ball in his hands a lot more to create plays now, which makes it even more impressive that he only has 28 turnovers on the season, an average of 1.9 per game.
-Steven Enoch had good numbers with 12 points and 10 rebounds, but he was only 4-12 from the field. I think that he was catching the ball a little far out and settling for a longer jump hook than we would like to see. I also think he may have been settling for it because there were times where he worked really hard to get the ball, and he never got it. Then there are times that the guys tried too hard to get it to him and turned the ball over. He is at his best when the Cards are playing the high-low game and he can establish his position before he gets the ball. Then he catches it within three feet of the basket and has a dunk or a hook with either hand.
-I thought Samuell Williamson did some good things while he was in there. He only played nine minutes, but he had six points and one rebound. The negatives are he also turned the ball over twice and had three fouls, including one on a three-point shooter. So like I said before, you have to take the good and the bad with freshmen. He looks great in transition and seems like that is his comfort zone. But there are two ends of the floor, and that other one is where mistakes are being made. He still shows a lot of promise and I am excited to see him “get it” and really become a big contributor.
-Louisville didn’t seem to have a sense of urgency on offense for a large portion of the game. They can’t pick and choose when to play or they will end up in the middle of the ACC this season. There’s too much talent for that.
-Score was 53-48 at the under eight-minute timeout. After “Joker and the Thief” plays, the Cards end the game on a 21-10 run. Good work.
-Dwyane Sutton: 9 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. Do it all, big fella.
-Happy to see Ryan McMahon knock down a huge three down the stretch.
-I thought Darius Perry willed this team to the victory in the last few minutes.
-Fresh Kimble’s stat line isn’t great: 0 points, 2 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 steals in 21 minutes. But you know what else he had none of? Turnovers. Even if he doesn’t necessarily have a good game in the box score, he isn’t going to hurt you. He still brings really good defense, stability with the ball, and leadership. Don’t let the numbers tell you the whole story. They rarely do.
-The step-back three that Jordan Nwora hit in the first half was nothing short of a pro move. We (or I) often take his scoring for granted because I am always focused on his defense and how else he is impacting the game. But I have to still acknowledge how good he is at scoring.
-Alright, let’s see what this team is made of. The next three are on the road. You go to Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, and Duke. We know our history of close games with the Irish. If you remember when Pittsburgh was here, you know how physical they are and going into their house won’t be easy. And Duke may be the best team in the country. These next three will tell a lot.
-As always, thanks for reading. Go Cards!
Film Review
Florida State shot so many open threes that it was encouraging to see this closeout and good defense by Darius Perry. Simple play? Yes, but it was improvement from the last game. pic.twitter.com/SuifWsBqJZ
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
Defense leads to offense and yes, back to back clips of an assist by Nwora. Good block by Enoch, the Cards run the floor well, Nwora dumps it off and Williamson (or Samuellson) finishes. He is very good and comfortable in transition. pic.twitter.com/5mBFevJro5
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
Louisville relies so much on Nwora and Enoch to score so it’s nice when you see Dwayne Sutton make a great individual move and score. He reminds us sometimes that he doesn’t just have to score from an offensive rebound. pic.twitter.com/TLmUcaSesS
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
A lot happening really fast. Nwora sets up to screen for McMahon and Ryan’s man tries to get over the screen. But he fakes and runs baseline instead, so Nwora’s man takes Ryan, and then Ryan’s man tries to recover and get back to him. Who is open? Nwora. pic.twitter.com/3EXAZgABJR
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
Whole lot of yuck on this one. Ball goes to the corner and Nwora has a really bad closeout and isn’t ready to play the drive. As soon as it’s in the corner, Perry needs to be in help under the basket so he can help on the drive, but it looks like his controller got stuck. pic.twitter.com/jAPOK5U2or
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
If you see Enoch force some shots when he gets the ball, it may be because there was a possession like this one where he works this hard and doesn’t get a look. You have to find a way to get it in there to him on this one. pic.twitter.com/F0VxdamCTm
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
Malik and Nwora switch here, and I think Malik tries to allow Jordan back to his man. This puts Malik in a bad matchup and he gets beat off the dribble and then Nwora’s man (who was Malik’s) hits the three. Bad mixup from the time they switched. pic.twitter.com/64QdMGwFIw
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
Pass the ball, your defender’s eyes follow the ball, and use a flare screen to get an open three. Catch and shoot. Very good to see Ryan hit a big shot after his last couple of games. pic.twitter.com/LMknZVoQTY
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
Malik dribbles at Perry, who is closely guarded so he goes backdoor. The lane is wide open because Nwora’s man stayed so close to him. Good cut by Perry and not standing still. pic.twitter.com/uwwLgkBpF3
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020
Last one and maybe not a big deal at all. But I loved seeing how happy Jordan Nwora was for Williamson to make this play. Remember earlier he passed to Sam on the fast break as well. Can’t be overlooked to see someone being a good teammate, and I wanted to recognize it. pic.twitter.com/6C9kqSFCuA
— Justin Renck (@JustinRenck) January 9, 2020