Hey Dwight, glad you were able to see the game on ESPN+. I had an appointment in town so I listened to the end of the game from the mid-quarter. Exciting play-by-play by Jim Heller.

I understand that Santucci picked up her second foul in the first half and Coach Cullop sat her for 15 minutes of game time. Subs did the job. Excellent coached game hy HC Cullop!

Hopefully the replay will be available.

GO ROCKETS!

(03-11-2020 02:17 PM)NewMex RocketFan Wrote:  Hey Dwight, glad you were able to see the game on ESPN+. I had an appointment in town so I listened to the end of the game from the mid-quarter. Exciting play-by-play by Jim Heller.

I understand that Santucci picked up her second foul in the first half and Coach Cullop sat her for 15 minutes of game time. Subs did the job. Excellent coached game hy HC Cullop!

Hopefully the replay will be available.

GO ROCKETS!

Yes, I thought that was the end when Santucci went to the bench, but Wiard was very solid. Still, an example of the downside of Cullop's strategy. No Rocket finished with more than two fouls for the game, yet we were without our best player for a very long stretch due to foul trouble. On the other side, Molly Davis picked up her third foul in the first minute of the third quarter but never sat.

Too bad we can't be in Cleveland!

Wow, what a performance. This just goes to prove how little separation there is between #1 and #12 in the MAC. It does really seem that anyone can beat anyone on a given day (except BG ).

Where has Rokkanen been all season? Another great all-around game today. And the way Wiard played in the 1st half makes me feel a lot more enthused to see what she can do next year as a full-time PG. Shot well, played great D, and got the boards when it mattered. Everyone helped. Even Morgan-Elliott hit that huge 3 when it looked like CMU was gonna pull away.

As bad as this season has been, 2-1 against CMU and 1-0 against BGSU takes some of the sting out.

One thing I forgot to mention yesterday is Cullop's unusual method of defending CMU. Central, like many teams, often starts its offense with a ball screen up top by its post player. Never before have I seen a defensive team switch that screen by design, but that is what the Rockets did in both of their wins against the Chips. As a result, Central could get a mismatch every time down, with Beacham guarding point guard Molly Davis up top, and one of the Rocket guards on Bussell or Jahari Smith. When I first saw this tactic, it seemed to me like a really dumb idea (which is why I am not a college basketball coach!). It turns out that, even though Central had mismatches, the Chips were prevented from running their normal offense because the screens did not produce the typical result.

Cullop is a very creative defensive coach. She was the first to put a center (McIntyre) on Ohio's Cece Hooks, and now a bunch of teams are doing it. I love that she is not afraid to take a chance and do something that is unconventional. It's always safer to do what everyone else does. Then, if it doesn't work, you are less susceptible to criticism.

(03-12-2020 06:57 AM)Dwight Wrote:  One thing I forgot to mention yesterday is Cullop's unusual method of defending CMU. Central, like many teams, often starts its offense with a ball screen up top by its post player. Never before have I seen a defensive team switch that screen by design, but that is what the Rockets did in both of their wins against the Chips. As a result, Central could get a mismatch every time down, with Beacham guarding point guard Molly Davis up top, and one of the Rocket guards on Bussell or Jahari Smith. When I first saw this tactic, it seemed to me like a really dumb idea (which is why I am not a college basketball coach!). It turns out that, even though Central had mismatches, the Chips were prevented from running their normal offense because the screens did not produce the typical result.

Cullop is a very creative defensive coach. She was the first to put a center (McIntyre) on Ohio's Cece Hooks, and now a bunch of teams are doing it. I love that she is not afraid to take a chance and do something that is unconventional. It's always safer to do what everyone else does. Then, if it doesn't work, you are less susceptible to criticism.

Good analysis. I recall Cullop gave credit to Perry for a number of the defensive game plans this year. I am not sure if this was one, but I would not be surprised. Also note that they almost never doubled Bussell. Cullop said after the game she didn't care if Bussell was the leading scorer as long as she only got 2s. Just didn't want to give up a bunch of 3s which is how CMU won most of their games. CMU made 10, but 4-5 of those were in the waning minutes.