-Jim Root

As I live the dream that is covering the Maui Invitational, I’ll be posting some thoughts each day about the games that were - some analysis, some insider bits of info, some general nonsense. Here’s Day 2…

Michigan State 93, Georgia 85

Hang on, I’m still re-assembling the pieces of my shattered brain after the Anthony Edwards Experience in the second half. He had 33 points on ludicrously difficult shots, and while the pull-ups were mind-boggling, it was his all-around game that had me fully losing my mind. Plays like this block:

Or this pass:

When you add this kind of impact on to his supernova perimeter bombardment, it’s probably the most incredible individual half of basketball I’ve ever seen in person. And the insane part is, they still lost!

Michigan State rebounded from a massively disappointing first round loss to Virginia Tech, getting ahead 59-33 and answering the bell just enough times when Georgia hit the turbo boost. The Spartans struggled with the Bulldogs’ second half switch to a 2-3 zone, but the real takeaway from this one surrounded Sparty’s star point guard.

Cassius Winston looked like the junior year version of himself, probing into gaps with the dribble, knocking down perimeter jumpers, and finding open cutters and shooters. He finished with 28 points and eight assists, and he mentioned after the game how he truly felt like himself on the court again:

“It was a tough day…but once I got out there, I was able to find my rhythm, find my peace out there on the court, and that was really good for me, getting up and down. Just having that rhythm that I usually play with, I feel like this was the first time that I had it in a while.”

It’s still going to be a struggle for Winston and the Spartans, though. As Tom Izzo said, certain things – like the tragedy in the Winston family – don’t go away, and Winston himself admitted he cried before the game. The Spartans will continue to take things day by day, hoping to build on this win and this trip, continuing to find comfort within the team itself for everything going on around them.

UCLA 74, Chaminade 48

Another game effort from the Silverswords, although they faded down the stretch as UCLA finally figured out what color jerseys they were wearing. UCLA had 15 turnovers in the first 22 minutes, struggling mightily to solve Chaminade’s basic 2-3 zone, but then only three more over the final 18, and the Bruins used their athletic edge (and Chaminade’s frigid shooting) to turn this into a rout towards the end. Coach Eric Bovaird laughed exasperatedly when asked about his team’s next challenge: stopping the Anthony Edwards Show, as Georgia now looms on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, I kind of wish UCLA was the one playing Georgia, if for no other reason than because both coaches (Tom Crean and Mick Cronin) seem to strangely despise their own teams. Despite the Bruins giving up just 35 points in the half court and 23% cumulative shooting, Mick was as prickly as ever in the postgame press conference, saying his team still wasn’t anywhere near the level it needs to be on defense. And he may be right – this was an ice-cold Division II team missing a starter (Telly Davenport) who was one of the only guys with D1 playing experience.

Dayton 89, Virginia Tech 62

Though it started much closer than the Dayton-Georgia game, this one unfolded in a similar fashion: Obi Toppin scored early, and the rest of the Flyers kept the avalanche going, particularly in the latter stages of the game as they broke the game wide open. Ibi Watson had the highlight of the evening, climbing multiple ladders for this doozy of a buzzer beater:

The real story for me, though, is how much I love both teams. Dayton is playing with a passion and joy as a team that’s magnetic to watch, and everyone seems in sync with their roles – a surprise this early in the year. Jalen Crutcher is the emotional firebrand, a skilled point guard and dogged defender who can’t wipe the smile off his face while he’s playing (for good reason). Trey Landers is similarly emotional on the court, and his philosophy of “give ‘em more” (in regards to the Flyers’ own fans) has brewed a delightful partnership between his team and the crowd. Rodney Chatman, meanwhile, is more of a silent killer, a pesky defender and pinpoint passer who wowed the crowd with this exclamation mark of a needle-threading:

And Virginia Tech – well, I waxed poetic about them yesterday, but I thought there were actually a few impressive parts to this performance, despite the final margin. The Hokies took a few absolute haymakers on the chin from Dayton, but they punched back for a while, hanging around enough to keep the rabid Flyer fanbase foaming at the mouth for more carnage. Dayton eventually broke their backs, but the Hokies are still in a great spot following their win over Michigan State. Tomorrow’s cap to the tournament brings an intriguing “skill ball” matchup, as both VT and BYU have a few forwards who can step out to the perimeter and make plays, and both teams run crisp offense that pressures the defense in multiple ways.

Kansas 71, BYU 56

What a tour de force performance by the Jayhawks’ defense. BYU’s Princeton-influenced action is difficult to guard even with time to prepare, and the Jayhawks had just 20ish hours to prepare a game plan for a system that is designed to be confounding in its read-and-react nature. The Jayhawks’ lanky guard corps of Marcus Garrett, Ochai Agbaji, and Isaiah Moss (plus the blindingly fast Devon Dotson) smothered BYU’s deadly perimeter trio, and a great many of the Cougars’ 33 three-point attempts were desperation heaves while up against the waning shot clock.

Of course, that was the game plan for BYU – slow the game down by eating the clock and forcing Kansas to defend for 25+ seconds. The Jayhawks held strong, though, rarely lapsing against the constant cutting and screening, and BYU’s total inability to score inside or get to the free throw line (4 attempts all game) were a direct result of KU’s lockdown defense.

Aside – Silvio De Sousa had himself a great seat for this game, parked next to Bill Self for all but one minute of non-garbage time. De Sousa is a fine big man, but on this Kansas team, he’s #3 behind Azubuike and McCormack, and the Jayhawks have consistently looked better with just one of them on the court. I’m not fully burying him for the season yet, but until he displaces McCormack for minutes or Kansas can find a way to play extended stretches with iffy floor spacing, this may become a regular occurrence.

Random Observations

1.      During every TV timeout of every game, there’s been some kind of shooting competition – putting on Scuba gear and making a lay-up, shooting from a Tommy Bahama lounge chair, etc. – and through eight games, I have yet to see anyone actually win anything. No matter how well anyone does, they just seem to wander off the court. It’s like the opposite of what everyone complains about with youth sports: no one gets a prize, no one gets a participation trophy, nothing. I guess they just get to keep being at the Maui Invitational, which is its own form of winning.  

2.      I pocketed my media credentials (both literally and figuratively) for most of the Kansas-BYU game, sitting in the stands with a friend, and I gotta say, cheering for basketball is quite entertaining. The wildest outburst came when timid freshman Christian Braun finished an alley-oop from Devon Dotson late in the game - perhaps he won’t be quite as timid tomorrow if he gets minutes against Dayton.