**********OU-Kansas State Game Thread**********

TheGimper said:
No way. Jelon had the offense a bit more stabilized, didn't take as many bad shots (didn't get any favors from the refs when he drove), and was way better than Jordan on the defensive end.
Click to expand...
Respectfully disagree. As poorly as Jordan played on the defensive end, he scored 5 quick points in the second half, and the offensive ball movement was way better though we weren't making many open looks. Also the ball movement was drawing defenders away from the goal allowing Spangler to dominate on the offensive glass. When Woodward went out and we settled into a half court game the ball movement really suffered, and Gibson and Williams were able to clog the paint. K-State dominated the board the last 5 minutes or so of the game. I realize Jordan can be somewhat of a liability defensively, but if we are gonna go with the offensive philosophy we have this year (very successfully), he's the staw that stirs the drink and we should play him worts and all. I don't believe we can win as a half court team due to our size limitations and I don't think Lon does either. IMO, he's done a great job this year. I would've liked to see Jordan in there at the end. I'd rotate Jelon with Cousins and Booker with occasional spells for Jordan as Hornbeak gets his sea legs back.
 
Didn't get to watch, but looking at the box score, we had ONE guy show up in Spangler. It couldn't have been that bad could it?
 
jerry said:
Everyone shot bad, but Woodard and Hornbeak together were 1-12.
Click to expand...

Kinda hard to decide on a PG at crunch time with those numbers, isn't it?

Having said that, I agree that Woodard would have been the best choice in the last few minutes. He didn't play well. But he has a knack of getting to the line with the clock stopped.
 
CrimsonandCream14 said:
Didn't get to watch, but looking at the box score, we had ONE guy show up in Spangler. It couldn't have been that bad could it?
Click to expand...

I would say Frank Booker played well too. Hit 3s, rebounded a bit, was in better defensive position, and I think showed more court awareness and looked less like a freshman than he has all season. Tyler Neal had some good moments. Other than that, your summary is accurate.
 
stubbysooner said:
I would say Frank Booker played well too. Hit 3s, rebounded a bit, was in better defensive position, and I think showed more court awareness and looked less like a freshman than he has all season. Tyler Neal had some good moments. Other than that, your summary is accurate.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Booker was 3 of 6 from three and had 4 rebounds in limited minutes. He was also solid on defense. He has been really good from three the last few games, shooting at a 50% clip in the last six. He's definitely not playing like a freshman now.
 
Booker started 3-3 and went 0-3 in the second half - sorry I'm grumpy still.
 
stubbysooner said:
Respectfully disagree. As poorly as Jordan played on the defensive end, he scored 5 quick points in the second half, and the offensive ball movement was way better though we weren't making many open looks. Also the ball movement was drawing defenders away from the goal allowing Spangler to dominate on the offensive glass. When Woodward went out and we settled into a half court game the ball movement really suffered, and Gibson and Williams were able to clog the paint. K-State dominated the board the last 5 minutes or so of the game. I realize Jordan can be somewhat of a liability defensively, but if we are gonna go with the offensive philosophy we have this year (very successfully), he's the staw that stirs the drink and we should play him worts and all. I don't believe we can win as a half court team due to our size limitations and I don't think Lon does either. IMO, he's done a great job this year. I would've liked to see Jordan in there at the end. I'd rotate Jelon with Cousins and Booker with occasional spells for Jordan as Hornbeak gets his sea legs back.
Click to expand...


I think this is 100% correct and I think this cost us the game. Hornbeak was pretty terrible on the offensive end and is not near the threat to penetrate and kick or score as Jordan. Not sure what Lon was thinking on this one but I think it potentially cost us a win.
 
This might have been a perfect example of why Bennett not being better hurts the team.

Spangler had to play 35 minutes, and I'd like to attribute some of his "missed rebounds" late in the game to fatigue, rather than laziness or lack of effort. He grabs a couple of those rebounds, we might win that game. But 35 minutes, as hard as he plays, is a lot. If not for missing so much time against KU due to fouls, Spangler would probably be leading our team in minutes per game (in conference games) by a fairly wide margin.
 
Bennett is really weak. Does nothing but come in and foul or give up a layup. He won't move his feet on defense and he only goes for blocks on anything around the rim which does nothing but put him as risk for a foul, or gives up a layup because the back side is in terrible position to contest the layup or get a rebound. And his hands are just brutal. He hardly ever gets a clean rebound. He almost always bobbles the ball anytime it's in his hands. I mean I hate to be hard on a college kid, but he just doesn't look like he gets it when he's out there, and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. We need someone who can give Spangler a break and still be productive. The opposing teams almost ALWAYS go on runs when Bennett is in. Hopefully some of the new players next year can step in and fill that role because I just don't think Bennett is the answer passed this season.
 
Kewllane said:
Bennett is really weak. Does nothing but come in and foul or give up a layup. He won't move his feet on defense and he only goes for blocks on anything around the rim which does nothing but put him as risk for a foul, or gives up a layup because the back side is in terrible position to contest the layup or get a rebound. And his hands are just brutal. He hardly ever gets a clean rebound. He almost always bobbles the ball anytime it's in his hands. I mean I hate to be hard on a college kid, but he just doesn't look like he gets it when he's out there, and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. We need someone who can give Spangler a break and still be productive. The opposing teams almost ALWAYS go on runs when Bennett is in. Hopefully some of the new players next year can step in and fill that role because I just don't think Bennett is the answer passed this season.
Click to expand...

Can't say I disagree about Bennett. Just when I think he is ready to contribute in a meaningful way, he proves me wrong. You're right about his hands. It's like he's trying to catch and control the ball with mittens on both hands.

He also hurts us on defense. Instead of blocking or changing shots, he puts opposing players on the line to shoot uncontested free shots. There is no excuse for picking up two personal fouls in only five minutes on the floor.

Problem is, we don't have another option this season. M'Baye's departure and Hamilton's failure to make it on campus really put this team in a bind when it comes to quality post depth. That will change next year. But for now, LK has to go with the players available to him.
 
Some of the things that the critics post makes me think that they are operating from a faulty premise. Every loss or even every win that wasn't a good enough win is viewed as some ones fault or some one did something wrong. It is as though the team is suppose to do something but isn't doing it because of some system wide break down of some kind or another.

This, I think is the situation. We simply don't have the horses to accomplish much more. We don't have the horses to close out a decent Big 12 team on the road every time. We don't have the horses to beat every good mid major on the schedule.

I like Woodard as well as anyone. There will be a lot of big strong good Big 12 guards he will see the rest of the year. Last night won't be the last night that he gets his butt handed to him. He is a freshman. He will get better.

Cam is a good player. But, he isn't the kind of player that is going to be good every night.

Buddy is a good player most of the time. He will get better. He will end up being a good player most all of the time.

We are 2/3 players away from deserving the wrath of the critics.
 
Last edited:
garyeb2 said:
Some of the things that the critics post makes me think that they are operating from a faulty premise. Every loss or even every win that wasn't a good enough win is viewed as some ones fault or some one did something wrong. It is as though the team is suppose to do something but isn't doing it because of some system wide break down of some kind or another.

This, I think is the situation. We simply don't have the horses to accomplish much more. We don't have the horses to close out a decent Big 12 team on the road every time. We don't have the horses to beat every good mid major on the schedule.

I like Woodard as well as anyone. There will be a lot of big strong good Big 12 guards he will see the rest of the year. Last night won't be the last night that he gets his butt handed to him. He is a freshman. He will get better.

Cam is a good player. But, he isn't the kind of player that is going to be good every night.

Buddy is a good player most of the time. He will get better. He will end up being a good player most all of the time.

We are 2/3 players away from deserving the wrath of the critics.
Click to expand...

Good post Gary. Certainly the rational way to look at it.
 
garyeb2 said:
Some of the things that the critics post makes me think that they are operating from a faulty premise. Every loss or even every win that wasn't a good enough win is viewed as some ones fault or some one did something wrong. It is as though the team is suppose to do something but isn't doing it because of some system wide break down of some kind or another.

This, I think is the situation. We simply don't have the horses to accomplish much more. We don't have the horses to close out a decent Big 12 team on the road every time. We don't have the horses to beat every good mid major on the schedule.

I like Woodard as well as anyone. There will be a lot of big strong good Big 12 guards he will see the rest of the year. Last night won't be the last night that he gets his butt handed to him. He is a freshman. He will get better.

Cam is a good player. But, he isn't the kind of player that is going to be good every night.

Buddy is a good player most of the time. He will get better. He will end up being a good player most all of the time.

We are 2/3 players away from deserving the wrath of the critics.
Click to expand...

Great post! We just don't have the quality depth, especially inside, to win some games when things don't go as expected. I'm disappointed in the outcome last night as much as anyone but definitely excited where this program is headed in the future. It's tough winning on the road in conference. Ask the Jayhawks about last year in Fort Worth!
 
Before we start using "depth" as an excuse every time we lose a game, we might want to look around at what other teams have, and or using nightly.

In a lot of cases, our depth isn't much better, if any, than a lot of other conference foes.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

W
OU vs Michigan - Best Game I Ever Saw In Person!
2
Replies
38
Views
910
MsProudSooner
M
Sooner Season
I shouldn't take too much from the Bama loss?
2
Replies
22
Views
557
jdizzle34
J
CoachTalk
Fears & the NBA Draft Projections
2
Replies
39
Views
943
BoulderSooner
BoulderSooner
BoulderSooner
#23 OU @ KSU 7pm CST on ESPN+
22 23 24
Replies
462
Views
7K
WichitaSooner
W
N
Remind me: the true story of the "donor program" from 40 years ago
Replies
12
Views
348
NorthCarolinaSooner
N
Back
Top