Cannon County vs. MLK

[oldkodger]

Congrats to CC on a great run! Came from the middle of the pack in 8AA, believed in themselves, & represented their school, town, district, & region with class!

[lazarus]

cannon county was physically overmatched,

being both outsized and outquicked.

for much of the game, it looked like it might turn into a rout.

 

to their credit, they sucked it up and made a good 4th quarter run.

they showed the kind of desire and will to win that gets a team to murfreesboro.

 

a run like that takes a toll,

both in fouls and fatigue.

and i did not think they would be able to get over the hump....

 

but that one play; the failure to call a walk,

when a girl went up to shoot, held the ball

and came down before passing.

it was as bad a ref failure as you will ever see,

adding the technical on top of that was overkill,

and did leave cannon county with zero chance.

 

as could be expected, the partisan fans overreacted to every subsequent call,

and developed the narrative that the officials won the game.

 

i did not see anything exceptional,

besides the one really bad (and unfortunately timed) call...

that said,

i would have expected some latitude on the technical

(usually officials know it when they really blow a call, and hate it as much as anyone)

 

but there might not have been a choice.

i did not see what the technical was for.

 

kudos to cannon county for a gutsy performance,

and to their coach for getting them to believe enough to make that run.

to be honest, i thought their spirit had been broklen in the first half.

[oldschoolhoops]

I disagree that Cannon was out quicked- that team was sizable, but slow. As a matter of fact- most of Cannon's points came from drives to the basket. They could have beat that team off the dribble for the next 365 days, but that wasn't the issue. From my point of view the lack of full court pressure is what contributed to the loss more than blown calls or fouled out players. Of course, with the officiating as it was, the full court pressure might have resulted in double bonus by the 1st quarter's end, but that would have been my plan from the first whistle for two reasons:

1) that's the game they've played all year. Cannon had the stamina to play full court pressure for 32 minutes and since that's what got them to the glass house in the first place(their defense is what pulled them through a scoring slump in the sectional game)- coach should have kept on with that- if it ain't broke- don't fix it, dance with the one that brought ya.....

 

2) It seemed like the plan was to get back as quick as possible, and double and even triple team #30, but that didn't work- what might have worked, and certainly would have been worth a try after 16 minutes of beating their heads against the wall, would have been the full court pressure. I predict that MLK would have fallen apart with the full court pressure. I could be wrong- but more pressure is what helped Cannon close the gap in Q3.

If anybody's asking me- my viewpoint is(having played and coached) the game plan was flawed. The officiating was the icing on the cake.

 

ALL of that being said- looks like MLK is making their mark on the State Tourney this year as well and Kudos to them!

Edited March 8, 2015 by oldschoolhoops

[rabbitranch]

I disagree that Cannon was out quicked- that team was sizable, but slow. As a matter of fact- most of Cannon's points came from drives to the basket. They could have beat that team off the dribble for the next 365 days, but that wasn't the issue. From my point of view the lack of full court pressure is what contributed to the loss more than blown calls or fouled out players. Of course, with the officiating as it was, the full court pressure might have resulted in double bonus by the 1st quarter's end, but that would have been my plan from the first whistle for two reasons:

1) that's the game they've played all year. Cannon had the stamina to play full court pressure for 32 minutes and since that's what got them to the glass house in the first place(their defense is what pulled them through a scoring slump in the sectional game)- coach should have kept on with that- if it ain't broke- don't fix it, dance with the one that brought ya.....

 

2) It seemed like the plan was to get back as quick as possible, and double and even triple team #30, but that didn't work- what might have worked, and certainly would have been worth a try after 16 minutes of beating their heads against the wall, would have been the full court pressure. I predict that MLK would have fallen apart with the full court pressure. I could be wrong- but more pressure is what helped Cannon close the gap in Q3.

If anybody's asking me- my viewpoint is(having played and coached) the game plan was flawed. The officiating was the icing on the cake.

 

ALL of that being said- looks like MLK is making their mark on the State Tourney this year as well and Kudos to them!

Wow! Probably the best all round coach in 8aa. Took a team that had the third or forth best talent in the district to the state tourney and got beat by what looks like the best aa team in the state at this point. Now you are complaining about his coaching? 

[oldschoolhoops]

I'm simply stating the fact that they diverged from their strengths in this game. I also disagree that they had third or fourth best talent in the district. I've rarely seen a PG that can penetrate the paint as well as McReynolds- she has the ability to move laterally with the ball in tight situations that many ball handlers struggle with. Davis is a force to be reckoned with on both ends and Hale is a pure shooter. Throw in two other players like Maynard and King who average double figures and that's a pretty good offensive stand. When you have four out of five starters averaging double figures in this district that's nothing to sneeze at. If you'd like to take that as a complaint then you're free to do so, but the game was what it was.

Edited March 8, 2015 by oldschoolhoops

[rabbitranch]

I'm simply stating the fact that they diverged from their strengths in this game. I also disagree that they had third or fourth best talent in the district. I've rarely seen a PG that can penetrate the paint as well as McReynolds- she has the ability to move laterally with the ball in tight situations that many ball handlers struggle with. Davis is a force to be reckoned with on both ends and Hale is a pure shooter. Throw in two other players like Maynard and King who average double figures and that's a pretty good offensive stand. When you have four out of five starters averaging double figures in this district that's nothing to sneeze at. If you'd like to take that as a complaint then you're free to do so, but the game was what it was.

And they lost to a quicker, bigger, more athletic team that has one of the best players in the state. 

[oldkodger]

I disagree that Cannon was out quicked- that team was sizable, but slow. As a matter of fact- most of Cannon's points came from drives to the basket. They could have beat that team off the dribble for the next 365 days, but that wasn't the issue. From my point of view the lack of full court pressure is what contributed to the loss more than blown calls or fouled out players. Of course, with the officiating as it was, the full court pressure might have resulted in double bonus by the 1st quarter's end, but that would have been my plan from the first whistle for two reasons:

1) that's the game they've played all year. Cannon had the stamina to play full court pressure for 32 minutes and since that's what got them to the glass house in the first place(their defense is what pulled them through a scoring slump in the sectional game)- coach should have kept on with that- if it ain't broke- don't fix it, dance with the one that brought ya.....

 

2) It seemed like the plan was to get back as quick as possible, and double and even triple team #30, but that didn't work- what might have worked, and certainly would have been worth a try after 16 minutes of beating their heads against the wall, would have been the full court pressure. I predict that MLK would have fallen apart with the full court pressure. I could be wrong- but more pressure is what helped Cannon close the gap in Q3.

If anybody's asking me- my viewpoint is(having played and coached) the game plan was flawed. The officiating was the icing on the cake.

 

ALL of that being said- looks like MLK is making their mark on the State Tourney this year as well and Kudos to them!

E-town was known for full crt pressure & were pretty much dominated the whole game. So CC's press wouldn't have helped.

[oldschoolhoops]

Not necessarily, Cannon and Elizabethton are two different teams completely.

[lawnman]

Guys West TN and Middle TN have a lot of good teams and I respect them all and wish we could play more of them because they make you a better team.

Edited March 8, 2015 by lawnman

[oldschoolhoops]

Absolutely lawnman!! A strong schedule is a great post season preparation!!