Back from the game. Ugh. First, USF deserves some credit. They pass well, shoot well and rebound well.

We don't do anything well. That's the problem, we are below average at every aspect of the game. We don't have a strength to go to. We don't make up for our talent limitations with hustle or teamwork.

On top of it all, Harris-Dyson seems to have reinjured whatever he had injured before (hand, finger, whatever). That can't be good. We could have used him tonight (and going forward).

The effort looked like 95%. My students would tell me that that percentage is an "A". Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way... especially not in this situation.

Again, ugh.

You are being generous with 95%. I enjoyed Allen Crabbe, but he had poor body language and did not seem to be a team leader. Justice Sueing seems to be in the same mold. He played waaaay too many minutes last night for putting in what seemed to be minimal effort. Someone needs to explain to him that body language impacts his teammates (negatively).

I get that we're young and under sized. But the apparent lack of pride, effort and desire is the worst sign of a young developing program. Wyking acknowledged as much in the post game, while he repeated that USF wanted it more. He apparently has lost this team emotionally, which seemed to be his lone redeeming value as head coach.

Also, we can rebound better. The guys started out OK, but then lost their energy after about 8 minutes. They weren't even trying to jump up and get the ball. Just standing. Seemed too disinterested to bend down to get a loose ball.

Sad.

double sad. we are used to competitive bball. our 3 point shooting leaves a lot to be desired. our perimeter defense is ugly. where are you ed gray.??

No one is ever given an open look.

Justice Sueing knows what to do. He is a sophomore. He was brought up in the McKnight Mater Dei program. He is simply not doing it. He does not act like a leader (as he needs to), and looks like he doesn't even want the rock. Yes, we lack in the middle, but the outside four can step up as best they can.

I would not start blaming the players.

making shots cures a lot of ills. our guys are poor in that department.

Dear Calgo: You would be surprised. I go early to see thge players shoot from the perimeter. Of our 5 starters, only Austin is truly lacking a true perimeter stroke. Even Dyson is a much better perimeter shooter than last year. He still does not have the confidence to shoot from the perimeter in games. The problem is that our offensive structure does not result in our perimeter shooters having enough space to shoot in rhythm. Most of our perimeter shots are hotly contested, and, as a result, our shooting percentage is not nearly as good as it could be. A real pass-first PG would solve this problem, but Austin is a drive-first PG who only looks to pass as a second or third option. Maskes a huge difference.

oskidunker said:

---

I would not start blaming the players.

---

+100

We all know what the real problem is. It is not the players.

Go Bears!

oskidunker said:

---

I would not start blaming the players.

---

The blame gets shared by everybody involved. Last time I checked, the players were the ones playing the game. Last season, I identified Sueing as the only guy on the team with an above-average hoops IQ. This year, not so much. But it's "IQ": You can't lose it. So what does that mean?

While I'm on a rant, it seems like Paris Austin should've been ultra-motivated against USF, since it was all over social media how Frankie Freakin' Ferrari was a better point guard than him. (At least that's what I would've told him three days before the game.) Well, now that they've gone head-to-head, the notion has gone viral.

If it makes you feel better, the coaches (the guys supposedly leading the team) also suck.

I'll reserve 1% of the blame for Cal's rhymes-with-witty, fair-weather fans, who stay home in droves when the team isn't doing well and give up on the team in November.

If any good recruits are reading this, please consider coming to Cal: The future is bright! Whatever I'm writing in this post is out of love. I care. Go Bears!!!

BeachedBear said:

---

...Also, we can rebound better. The guys started out OK, but then lost their energy after about 8 minutes. They weren't even trying to jump up and get the ball. Just standing. Seemed too disinterested to bend down to get a loose ball...

---

I think this is an interesting point, and shows how different aspects of the game are inter-related.

We should be careful attributing our woes to a lack of "effort". I believe "effort" and "energy" or adrenaline are often confused. Basketball is a game of emotion, and confidence (or "swagger") is a big part of maintaining positive emotions. When a team sees the ball go through the hoop on offense, that gives a boost to their confidence and energy, and helps the team play harder on defense. Conversely, when the team is struggling on offense, there is a natural sap of energy which bleeds into the defense, leading to lethargic play on the other end of the floor. And at the same time, the opponent starts to get the positive boost in adrenaline, and things can quickly snowball against you.

We just seem really prone to long droughts on offense. I was kind of shocked to see that we are shooting over 40% from the arc on the season (and did you guys realize that Matt Bradley is 11-for-17, or .647, on the season so far?). But when the shots aren't falling, we don't seem to find a way to get easy buckets. And it seems to me that when we start to struggle on offense, that is when we lose our intensity on defense.

BeachedBear said:

---

You are being generous with 95%. I enjoyed Allen Crabbe, but he had poor body language and did not seem to be a team leader. Justice Sueing seems to be in the same mold. He played waaaay too many minutes last night for putting in what seemed to be minimal effort. Someone needs to explain to him that body language impacts his teammates (negatively).

I get that we're young and under sized. But the apparent lack of pride, effort and desire is the worst sign of a young developing program. Wyking acknowledged as much in the post game, while he repeated that USF wanted it more. He apparently has lost this team emotionally, which seemed to be his lone redeeming value as head coach.

Also, we can rebound better. The guys started out OK, but then lost their energy after about 8 minutes. They weren't even trying to jump up and get the ball. Just standing. Seemed too disinterested to bend down to get a loose ball.

Sad.

---

I agree on all of this.

Kind of interesting to me was that with all those USF players 6'-8" and taller (6 of them), their leading rebounder in the Cal game turned out to be Minlend, a 6'-4" guard, who got 11 boards. That is atrocious. I assume it was usually either McNeill or Bradley's responsibility to keep a guard like Minlend off the boards.

Looking at the stats, rebounding was a big factor in this game. Cal usually gets out-rebounded by about 6 boards, but in this game USF killed us, out-rebounding us by 12. Cal lost this game, in a statistic sense, because we put up 10 fewer shots than USF. Since turnovers were about even, one reason USF got more shots was that they got 7 more offensive rebounds then Cal. To me, a lot of this is in the guards. The athleticism of McNeill, the size and strength of Bradley should be able to garner more boards than we are getting. And Austin with his quickness should be able to pick up some as well. Are we not boxing out, or are we just not putting energy into rebounding?