Yeah I think we might stick Bede on Barrett whenever Jrob is on Jones. No idea who we put on Zion. No one in the country has an answer for him. We just have to accept that he will get 25/10 regardless and focus on limiting Barrett slashing to the rim and force him to shoot 3s.
Edit: We also need to force Barrett and Zion to their right as much as possible. They are both automatic with their left hand.
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I think without question NAW is guarding him. He's fast enough to redirect his drives, smart enough to anticipate, long enough to defend effectively. Obviously Zion is beefy so there's gonna be a mismatch.
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The mismatch is key though. Physics is not on Zion's side when it comes to changing directions and puts lots of stress on his ligaments and joints. Williamson weighs in at 285lbs! Forcing him to move laterally will put more stress on his knees and will, therefore, make him move more carefully. NAW definitely has the agility to do it. If we play a straight line game against him we'd have to likely use Outlaw.
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I thinking the only real hope is someone fast enough to plant the feet and draw the charge, getting zion in foul trouble is the only real hope, and the refs have to cooperate.
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The refs let A LOT of shit go in that game both ways during the last 10 minutes of the game. I do think the refs are terrible... the refs in the Liberty game got more than a few calls wrong... but they've been consistently terrible for both sides from what I can see in the games.
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What kills me is Robinson can drive last night against Liberty's big man (who weighs a solid 100 pounds more than Robinson), big man flops and gets a charge call.
Zion who weighs probably 135-150 pounds more than that poor UCF defender, drives and knocks him into the Pacific Ocean, and it's considered a clean play.
Not to mention the push in the back on Barrett's rebound and then the most obvious "Hook and Hold" ever committed by DeLaurier standing next to the push...
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Charge/block calls have nothing to do with size. That wouldn't be fair at all. They are supposed to be called based on which player is entitled to that space on the floor. If a defender is in legal guarding position, it's a charge.
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I think force should come into play when you're knocking the defender into the court side seats then charging him admission for watching Zion finish the play against Tacko.
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That was definitely a foul on Zion, he straight up shoved him to the ground with his forearm/elbow. Player control foul by the laws of the game, but you won't see that call on a star player very often at any level of the game, especially in the last minute.
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I see buzz throwing some zone at them, it has appeared as if we have played some match-up zone/straight zone throughout the year, try to collapse on them in the paint, force them to take some 3's (they haven't shot well throughout the season but they have been hot the past two games), we don't really have anyone who can guard zion 1 on 1
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Just remember that even though it will probably be Nickeil and Hill on Zion and RJ, we double in the post regularly, so KJ or Outlaw will likely be helping when Zion has the ball in the key.
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I know we're talking bball here, but if there is one person at VT I think could guard him, its Dax. And that's only because I haven't really seen what QP2 has
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I know we play really good man to man, but why not go 2-3 zone/matchup zone and force Duke to beat us outside? They don't have any dangerous height inside besides keeping Zion and RJ Barrett out of the paint. I'm not saying do it the whole game, but throwing this at them some would really bother them. That's how 'cuse got under their skin in Cameron.
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If y'all think Tech's going man-to-man against the Fighting Zions, you're crazy. Matchup zone, Zion gets his points but hopefully doesn't foul Blackshear out in 10 minutes.
UCF did a really interesting thing where they had Tacko "guard" Tre Jones and Jordan Goldwire, but he obviously never left the paint. I think Buzz follows that lead with the zone, packs the paint (even more than usual) and dares Duke to win by shooting. Maybe they do, maybe they don't, but that's the path to an upset.
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But also, is the best true "on ball defender" Blackshear? NAW is at his best off-ball, freelancing and jumping passing lanes. Robinson's not there. Bede has his moments, especially against smaller guards.
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Comments
Bede but I highly doubt he's matched with Zion much
Yeah I think we might stick Bede on Barrett whenever Jrob is on Jones. No idea who we put on Zion. No one in the country has an answer for him. We just have to accept that he will get 25/10 regardless and focus on limiting Barrett slashing to the rim and force him to shoot 3s.
Edit: We also need to force Barrett and Zion to their right as much as possible. They are both automatic with their left hand.
I think without question NAW is guarding him. He's fast enough to redirect his drives, smart enough to anticipate, long enough to defend effectively. Obviously Zion is beefy so there's gonna be a mismatch.
The mismatch is key though. Physics is not on Zion's side when it comes to changing directions and puts lots of stress on his ligaments and joints. Williamson weighs in at 285lbs! Forcing him to move laterally will put more stress on his knees and will, therefore, make him move more carefully. NAW definitely has the agility to do it. If we play a straight line game against him we'd have to likely use Outlaw.
Have you seen Zion Williamson play?
I saw him TEAR through a basketball shoe. That's a lot of force.
I thinking the only real hope is someone fast enough to plant the feet and draw the charge, getting zion in foul trouble is the only real hope, and the refs have to cooperate.
Lol I have a feeling there will be some frustration with how the calls go
See Duke's last possession against UCF on how that hope is likely to go.
I disagree with this.
The refs let A LOT of shit go in that game both ways during the last 10 minutes of the game. I do think the refs are terrible... the refs in the Liberty game got more than a few calls wrong... but they've been consistently terrible for both sides from what I can see in the games.
Particularly with charge calls. It was abysmal.
What kills me is Robinson can drive last night against Liberty's big man (who weighs a solid 100 pounds more than Robinson), big man flops and gets a charge call.
Zion who weighs probably 135-150 pounds more than that poor UCF defender, drives and knocks him into the Pacific Ocean, and it's considered a clean play.
Not to mention the push in the back on Barrett's rebound and then the most obvious "Hook and Hold" ever committed by DeLaurier standing next to the push...
Charge/block calls have nothing to do with size. That wouldn't be fair at all. They are supposed to be called based on which player is entitled to that space on the floor. If a defender is in legal guarding position, it's a charge.
I think force should come into play when you're knocking the defender into the court side seats then charging him admission for watching Zion finish the play against Tacko.
That was definitely a foul on Zion, he straight up shoved him to the ground with his forearm/elbow. Player control foul by the laws of the game, but you won't see that call on a star player very often at any level of the game, especially in the last minute.
We are playing against Duke who normally get all the calls.
This game is where not having Chris Clarke hurts...would have been best candidate to guard Zion imo
Wilkins is thicc, wouldn't be shocked if Buzz threw him at Zion for (very) limited minutes.
I'm guessing we'll just stick Outlaw on him and double him in the post as usual. Who knows how effective that'll be tho
I hope it's NAW but I also think Hill could be useful in spurts. But from a strictly stance and energy standpoint, Buzz is our best defender.
Whatcha gonna do against that ZION??
via GIPHY
Hill and whoever is not guarding Tre Jones atvtyat moment.
I see buzz throwing some zone at them, it has appeared as if we have played some match-up zone/straight zone throughout the year, try to collapse on them in the paint, force them to take some 3's (they haven't shot well throughout the season but they have been hot the past two games), we don't really have anyone who can guard zion 1 on 1
My plan is to take up religion this week, and start praying.
Any suggestions?
Stay out of the chapels in Lynchburg, they don't seem to be working properly at the moment.
Well, you do have to be careful to choose real religion over cult religions, right?
Just remember that even though it will probably be Nickeil and Hill on Zion and RJ, we double in the post regularly, so KJ or Outlaw will likely be helping when Zion has the ball in the key.
Dax
I know we're talking bball here, but if there is one person at VT I think could guard him, its Dax. And that's only because I haven't really seen what QP2 has
If we are going to play this game....
.
Mekhi vs. Zion
Doesn't Zion have 100 pounds on Mekhi?
It is a trick of the camera, Mekhi is actually much closer to the camera. You are right, Mekhi will need to have a hand tied behind his back.
I know we play really good man to man, but why not go 2-3 zone/matchup zone and force Duke to beat us outside? They don't have any dangerous height inside besides keeping Zion and RJ Barrett out of the paint. I'm not saying do it the whole game, but throwing this at them some would really bother them. That's how 'cuse got under their skin in Cameron.
If y'all think Tech's going man-to-man against the Fighting Zions, you're crazy. Matchup zone, Zion gets his points but hopefully doesn't foul Blackshear out in 10 minutes.
UCF did a really interesting thing where they had Tacko "guard" Tre Jones and Jordan Goldwire, but he obviously never left the paint. I think Buzz follows that lead with the zone, packs the paint (even more than usual) and dares Duke to win by shooting. Maybe they do, maybe they don't, but that's the path to an upset.
But also, is the best true "on ball defender" Blackshear? NAW is at his best off-ball, freelancing and jumping passing lanes. Robinson's not there. Bede has his moments, especially against smaller guards.
This - if we can make a bunch of bad shooters on Duke take a bunch of bad threes, we are in a good place.
This site is very pro-Duke, but if you can get past that, there is some great TKP-style film review for this matchup.
Part 1 - Duke
Part 2 - VT
Those are both pretty solid film reviews.
NIKE.
His shoes.
The best on the ball defender has to be the nose tackle since he's the only one lined up on the ball duh.