After the Buzzer: Western Kentucky

Quick Hitters

-The Cards are 4-0. Had to start with that.

-It seems like every newcomer will be taking turns having a big performance to start the season, which is fine by me. Carlik Jones took the Evansville game, J.J. Traynor had the big bucket and free throws to end the Seton Hall game, Jae’Lyn Withers (I know he was here last year) had his turn against Prairie View A&M, and against WKU it was Dre Davis. The freshman had 21 points on 7/9 shooting to lead all scorers in the game. It was Dre’s Day.

-Can’t wait to see what Gabe Wiznitzer does on Friday!

-At the time of writing this on Wednesday afternoon, Jimmy Dykes is still talking about how good Charles Bassey is.

-Bassey was good. He had 13 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks. He was not great. He turned the ball over six times and was 0/3 from three, which were shots we were all comfortable with him taking.

-I thought Aidan Igiehon played well in his 11 minutes. You would never know that by looking at the box score. Two points, two rebounds, five fouls. But he played with the energy he always does and he played physical against Bassey. If anyone on the team can do that with any big man in the country, it is the Irish Hulk. If he comes in and plays hard and makes his fouls worth it and not cheap, then he is helping this team.

-Carlik Jones: 18 points, six rebounds, four assists.

David Johnson: 17 points, six rebounds, eight assists.

Yeah, I really like our backcourt. Please stay out of foul trouble. Thanks.

-I mention this on one of the film clips, but I think those two guards are very interchangeable. Either one can drive and dish, so there isn’t too much pressure on one to always be the guy running the show. Obviously the pick and roll is a big part of our offense this season, but another aspect should also be one of those guards driving and kicking to the other and then he drives the lane, like in a dribble drive kind of way. The defense will have to collapse so much on the first guy that the second should have an off-balance defense when he is driving.

-Let me get back to Davis really quick. I keep thinking more and more that we have our next Dwayne Sutton, and that was a big role to fill and one that I did not expect to be filled so soon. He plays hard, brings a toughness, can knock down the three but you would still rather see him drive, and isn’t backing down from anybody. He has been a pleasant surprise, to say the least.

-The first half of this game looked like two evenly matched teams. WKU threw the first punch, Louisville countered, and we had a balanced game. Then the Cards pulled away in the second half and it looked like Western threw in the towel. After that first half, you expected this game to go down to the wire. Louisville delivered a knockout punch early and WKU just took it.

-Dykes just praised Bassey again.

-I was happy to see a graphic on the screen about players from the 2018 class DURING A FREE THROW. That was great.

-Louisville is clearly putting an emphasis on taking charges this year, and they are doing great with it. I don’t have any stats on that, but it seems like they are drawing multiple charges in every game.

-After giving up 16 offensive rebounds in each of the last two games, the Cards only gave up eight.

-16 assists on 26 made baskets. Very nice.

-Quinn was 0/4 from the field and 0/3 from three. At some point, he HAS to take advantage of these opportunities…right???

-I don’t know how many games need to be played before I can declare that I love this team, but I am at that point. I don’t see egos. The guys play hard and together. The defense is solid and a good team defense. They just keep fighting. Someone different continues to step up. I really am enjoying watching this squad.

-As always, thank you for reading. Let’s get another one on Friday in an afternoon game. Go Cards!

Film Review