The post double, transition defense, referees, perimeter shooting and fatigue
Five things to watch when eighth-seeded San Diego State plays No. 1 Duke on Sunday...
1. DOUBLE TROUBLE
San Diego State goes from one of the smallest teams it has faced in St. John?s, with no starter over 6-6 and no real post presence, to one of the biggest in Duke, with 6-11, 270-pound starter Jahlil Okafor and 7-0, 255-pound Marshall Plumlee off the bench. It has no choice but to double-team the post. That?s not the problem; Steve Fisher helped popularize the post double in college basketball, and the Aztecs do it as quickly and effectively as anyone. The problem is what happens next. Okafor is an excellent passer out of the low block, which starts a domino effect of passes that often results in an open 3-pointer. The Blue Devils are shooting 38.9 percent beyond the arc, which ranks 28th nationally. Teams shoot 30 percent from deep against SDSU, 13th stingiest in the nation. What gives?
2. TRANSITION D
If the Aztecs had a weakness in Friday?s 76-64 win against St. John?s, it was their inability to get back quickly enough on defense. The Johnnie?s made them pay, with a 16-2 edge in fast-break points. (That means SDSU had a 74-48 advantage everywhere else.) Steve Fisher regularly works on transition defense in practice, but that has been curtailed in recent weeks in an effort to save legs for games. ?When we?re playing in transition,? Duke forward Justice Winslow said, ?we?re pretty much unstoppable. With the way we can knock down 3s in transition, big fellas (running) the floor, it just makes us real tough to beat.?
3. THE WHISTLE
SDSU ranks among the best in the nation at not committing fouls (498). Duke ranks among the best at drawing them (654), or at least getting them whistled. Whether a Coach K bias by officials truly exists in the NCAA Tournament is open to debate, along the lines of whether there is indeed such a thing as the Mafia or Area 51. But it could play a huge factor, particularly if Skylar Spencer picks up a couple quick fouls against Okafor (or if Okafor goes over people?s backs for rebounds without penalty like he did against Robert Morris). The good news for SDSU is that if Spencer gets in foul trouble, then have another physical big in Angelo Chol and don?t have to stick the 6-7 O?Brien on a 7-footer.
4. DOWNTOWN
SDSU was 9 of 22 on 3-pointers against St. John?s. Only twice all season did they make more 3s in a game, and that was against Air Force and a depleted Wyoming team. Dwayne Polee II and his backup, Matt Shrigley, were a combined 9 of 12. Incredible numbers for a team shooting 32.4 percent on 3s (263rd in the nation). The big question: fluke or trend? ?(Polee) was fantastic,? Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said of his performance in the St. John?s game. ?And he may be coming on. He may be regaining what he missed by being out and then that gives them another 3-point shooter beside Shrigley and (Aqeel) Quinn. And you put one more shooter out there, it stretches (the defense) and it gives O?Brien a chance to make more plays.?
5. RUNNING ON FUMES
Players always say that there?s no time to be tired in the NCAA Tournament, and there?s some mind-over-matter truth to that. But SDSU is clearly the more taxed of the two teams. Duke went out early in the ACC Tournament and, other than a brief spell in the second half, wasn?t tested against Robert Morris on Friday, as you?d expect in a 1 vs. 16 matchup. The Aztecs, meanwhile, played three games in three days in the Mountain West tournament, then a hard game Friday against ninth-seeded St. John?s. ?We thought we could create tired legs (on St. John?s players),? Fisher said, ?but we were the ones that got tired legs in stretches.? The good news is Quinn seems better after a bout with food poisoning from a bad turkey sandwich and was able to practice Saturday.
Five things to watch when eighth-seeded San Diego State plays No. 1 Duke on Sunday...
1. DOUBLE TROUBLE
San Diego State goes from one of the smallest teams it has faced in St. John?s, with no starter over 6-6 and no real post presence, to one of the biggest in Duke, with 6-11, 270-pound starter Jahlil Okafor and 7-0, 255-pound Marshall Plumlee off the bench. It has no choice but to double-team the post. That?s not the problem; Steve Fisher helped popularize the post double in college basketball, and the Aztecs do it as quickly and effectively as anyone. The problem is what happens next. Okafor is an excellent passer out of the low block, which starts a domino effect of passes that often results in an open 3-pointer. The Blue Devils are shooting 38.9 percent beyond the arc, which ranks 28th nationally. Teams shoot 30 percent from deep against SDSU, 13th stingiest in the nation. What gives?
2. TRANSITION D
If the Aztecs had a weakness in Friday?s 76-64 win against St. John?s, it was their inability to get back quickly enough on defense. The Johnnie?s made them pay, with a 16-2 edge in fast-break points. (That means SDSU had a 74-48 advantage everywhere else.) Steve Fisher regularly works on transition defense in practice, but that has been curtailed in recent weeks in an effort to save legs for games. ?When we?re playing in transition,? Duke forward Justice Winslow said, ?we?re pretty much unstoppable. With the way we can knock down 3s in transition, big fellas (running) the floor, it just makes us real tough to beat.?
3. THE WHISTLE
SDSU ranks among the best in the nation at not committing fouls (498). Duke ranks among the best at drawing them (654), or at least getting them whistled. Whether a Coach K bias by officials truly exists in the NCAA Tournament is open to debate, along the lines of whether there is indeed such a thing as the Mafia or Area 51. But it could play a huge factor, particularly if Skylar Spencer picks up a couple quick fouls against Okafor (or if Okafor goes over people?s backs for rebounds without penalty like he did against Robert Morris). The good news for SDSU is that if Spencer gets in foul trouble, then have another physical big in Angelo Chol and don?t have to stick the 6-7 O?Brien on a 7-footer.
4. DOWNTOWN
SDSU was 9 of 22 on 3-pointers against St. John?s. Only twice all season did they make more 3s in a game, and that was against Air Force and a depleted Wyoming team. Dwayne Polee II and his backup, Matt Shrigley, were a combined 9 of 12. Incredible numbers for a team shooting 32.4 percent on 3s (263rd in the nation). The big question: fluke or trend? ?(Polee) was fantastic,? Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said of his performance in the St. John?s game. ?And he may be coming on. He may be regaining what he missed by being out and then that gives them another 3-point shooter beside Shrigley and (Aqeel) Quinn. And you put one more shooter out there, it stretches (the defense) and it gives O?Brien a chance to make more plays.?
5. RUNNING ON FUMES
Players always say that there?s no time to be tired in the NCAA Tournament, and there?s some mind-over-matter truth to that. But SDSU is clearly the more taxed of the two teams. Duke went out early in the ACC Tournament and, other than a brief spell in the second half, wasn?t tested against Robert Morris on Friday, as you?d expect in a 1 vs. 16 matchup. The Aztecs, meanwhile, played three games in three days in the Mountain West tournament, then a hard game Friday against ninth-seeded St. John?s. ?We thought we could create tired legs (on St. John?s players),? Fisher said, ?but we were the ones that got tired legs in stretches.? The good news is Quinn seems better after a bout with food poisoning from a bad turkey sandwich and was able to practice Saturday.
