We actually won the rebound battle today too, 45-52. Yes we gave up 12 offensive rebounds, which is not ideal, but we claimed 15 of our own. Big time rebounding performances from Jon and Mo. Also 5 rebounds from Wilkins, most of them in big situations. 

Oops. 

Good thing my posts are in no way fey.

What?

Tariq Owens:

I guess the old adage proved out again today:

IT AIN'T OVER TILL THE THE FINAL BUZZER BLOWS.

I'm certainly glad to see they were able to pull it out.

Now if we could only improve our shooting from 3 we would be on our way.



GO BOBCATS

Looking at the entire game as a whole and not just the last 4 minutes:

*Maurice has just got to be more assertive.  We can't afford him to take only 9 shots and often times not even look for his shot, but instead repeatedly kicking it out for a contested 3 pointer or players just a foot away with not much better of a look.  Yes, I know they covered him up in the 2H more than the 1H; yes I know there was a 7 footer lerking and yes, part of his role was to distribute--but he was not assertive.  Yes, they did back off Jon much more than Mo when they switched spots, but Mo has got to take a few of those, especially when we're struggling to score.
*Good for Bean.  He needed that and we need him.
*Too bad for Stevie in that he was having a standout type day.  14 points in 16 minutes and what kept us close.
*TJ--ugh, rough day all around.  Missed layups, dunks, foul shots, just a tough day.  In case you didn't see it, he led the team with 12 shots and was 0-12.
*Treg--no comment.  Ugliest shot in recent history...possibly?
*Jon got ate up on the boards often, much more than I'm used to seeing.  Played his size a bit today.  But love to see that improved jumper on display.
*Nick--still my favorite Bobcat. 
*Travis reverted back to his "designated sharp shooter who doesn't shoot real well" in first half, but he played solid defense and made some huge defensive plays (rebounds) late as noted.

We let one go vs. BG, but the Basketball God's evened things out today as we got one we probably shouldn't have got, back.

Does anyone know what he even said or did?

I thought it was kind of weak on the refs part to call that T (unless it was really bad, and I doubt it was).

My guess is it was something very similar to this -


Yes, Stevie does this all the time. Fans tend to love it, especially vs. Akron, except evidently when it results in a T.

It is really no different than players talking smack to each other on the court. Unless it is really out of line, let it go....

 .... and this fellow walked away ....

I thought it was a weak T as well on Stevie. The play RIGHT BEFORE that on the other end Bryant dunked on Mo and stared him down, clearly taunting him. No T. But Stevie also needs to remember that he is the leader now and he will be targeted the rest of the year.
My thoughts on the day.
Any problems anyone has with Mo are so petty. We are still 14-5 without most of the guys we have other than Nick. We are not 14-5 without Mo. Let's savor this special talent.
Nick was solid but unspectacular. When we can win with that it's awesome.
Travis is slowly becoming the unsung MVP. His rebound and timeout at the end was CLUTCH
TJ flat out sucked but he has been Rico's replacement well this year so one game does not a season make
Setty and Tony are energy and toughness and nothing else. Let's just appreciate what they bring in small doses
Bean was outstanding. He can only get better from this
Jon needs to pick his spots for blocks and return to the stopper he is. Love that shot from the elbow though!

Just to re-clarify, something I've already clarified---My comments on Maurice straddle the line of being a criticism, but if you're thinking positively, they aren't.  Kind of like telling your mom, "these cookies are so good we wipe them out everytime.  Could you please make extra next time, there are never enough of them?"  Mo is so good and so important to this team (partially because we don't have a ton of dynamic scoring options), I think we want to see more of him.  More than 9 shots in game.  Passing up fewer 13 foot jumpers to shooters 22 feet away.  Still a corrective statement, but much different than "get that guy off the court," or "he stinks."   He could've easily taken 16-18 shots yesterday total (7-9 more than what he took) and not have been criticized for poor shot selection.  My motto is M&M (More Maurice!).  If he takes that as a knock, then I'm sorry.