GAME DAY, BALA! GAME 42: SPURS AT SUNS, 20-1-2020, 8PM (CT)

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Fresh off a better performance comes a SEGABABA test in which we can show what we've learned. Consistency of quality play has been a challenge, so let's ride the good momentum. Solid rotations and closeouts, smart transition play, great ball movement, and focused energy throughout.

WHERE: Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, AZ

WHEN: Monday, January 20, 2020, 8pm (CT)



GO SPURS GO!!!

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Right, ok, an even better effort. We seem to have a couple of patters when we win: one is slow start, then come from behind lead, give up lead, then come from behind win, or like in this game, start strong, get a big lead, go on a drought to just give up the lead, but come through with solid play down the stretch to win.

I loved how we started the game, with a defensive focus from the first play, and DJ leading the way. He was a man possessed with defense, getting deflection and steal after deflection and steal. We rotated well, help D slid over in time, and we blocked well (7 to their 3). A season-high 12 steals (led by 4 from DJ, one of four starters to get one) to their 3, and only 8 turnovers (on which we gave up 14 points) but earned 23 points on their 14 turnovers. I thought at times not everyone made the same concerted effort to run out at their 3 shooters, so that's an ongoing challenge, but we made it tougher for them to even get those up to begin with by forcing passes from first shooting options much of the time.

It helped that we moved well to start and got the shots we wanted, and equally as important, we made them. Led by Bryn who found his shot just when he and we needed him to most, he made seven 3s in the first half which was part of a 66-point barrage in the opening 24 minutes. We had 18 assists by the break, made 12-20 from 3, and Bryn was the leading scorer at the half with 21.

While our two best Qs were the middle ones, we did see our 20+-point lead evaporate thanks to a 15-0 run by them in a cold stretch by us in the final Q. Teams make runs, but I thought we settled for outside shots too much rather than trying to push and drive to get to the FT line. DeMar has a great knack for when we need a shift in or jolt to our rhythm and he does just that, but overall, they had 26-30FTs to our 17-22 for a subpar 77.3%. They also outrebounded us both at the half in which they had 23 rebounds, including 7 on O to our 15 (3 on O), and finished the game with 43 rebounds (8 on O) to our 31 rebounds (6 on O, so we closed the gap there. Can't repeat this enough - long shot, long rebound).

They poured in 35 points in the 4th Q and won it by 11 points, but we stayed resilient and got some really solid play from Derrick who was his steady self, but combined it with the more assertive player we'd love to see more of. He drove with intent (the only bench player to get to the FT line, 3-3), passed well (bench-high 7 assists), scored in the paint, made outside the paint Js, and took his 3s assertively. These coupled with his ever-reliable defensive presence to stay with drivers, pressure ball handlers, force passes and get rebounds made for a wonderful all around performance. Derrick led us in scoring with 25 on 9-14, 4-5 from 3.

DJ and Derrick were a terrific tandem, and even played some minutes for defensive purposes. We needed them and Bryn to step up as DeMar, though with a near triple double again, had one of those game in which his handles were just not there: unforced turnovers with dribbles off his shins, driving into multiple defenders and falling when there was no play and complaining for a foul when he was stripped, settling for outside shots when he could and should have driven to the basket. So it was a 3 steal but 5 turnover night for him, and an inefficient 5-15. However, he did balance it out with team-high 9 rebounds (including tying Jakob for a team-high 2 on O), and team-high 8 assists. Plus, despite some missed chances, he did still lead us at the FT line, making 8-9.

LMA gave us 19 on 6-14, 1-4 from 3, and 6-8FTs, only 3 rebounds, plus 2 assists. I though defensively he was a strong steady presence, making an impact with help D, anchoring us down low for 2 steals and tying Jakob for team-high 3 blocks.

DJ does not shoot it often, but more often than not he has better efficiency this season, and his 4-7 included 2-2 from 3. He's been more assertive from the arc, and it was good to see our back court step up and be willing to take these so it wasn't all on Bryn and Beli. But DJ did miss some bunnies on drives after he got quality steals. The control will come with time, I think, and at times his finishes were rushed or erratic from the pressure from behind, but at least once he flat out missed one by not using glass angles. Same thing with Lonnie, who is more in love with finishing with Gervin flair than glass fundamentals. Use the glass, SkyWalker, use the glass. We had I think four or five missed bunnies if we include Jakob's and Bryn's close to the basket misses. When we got steals at times we also rushed transition (such as DeMar's errant top spin pass that sailed away from a running out Bryn), so there were scoring chances we earned through great D that we did not reward ourselves with, so better awareness and finish at the rim will ensure we make the most of our opportunities.

Trey the magician did a disappearing act again It's so bizarre that a young guy can look so engaged and contribute so well one game, and be a non-factor the next. I can sort of understand older guys like DeMar or LMA looking a bit off on the second of a back-to-back on the road, but even when it's not these situations, Trey has up and down games. He's raised his floor overall, but when he has good games and brings it on both ends with solid D , great rebounding, drives and 3s, you hope to see it continue.

Our bench was on the whole terrific and a big strength for us in this game. We outscored theirs 47-16! They had a couple of guys out, but still, led by Derrick, terrifically engaged on both ends Jakob (6 points on 3-4, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 3 blocks) and Beli (11 on 5-9, 1-2 from 3, 3 rebounds, 2 assists) with great movement, deft passing, and good shooting also had very solid contributions. Nice to see them do well for us. Patty had an off night and did not play much though he looked hampered by hip soreness (he's fine, thank goodness). Lonnie continues to find his way, and has been struggling on O of late, and though he only took 3 shots, the drive for a layup missed bunny stands out not because of micro-criticism, but because it has happened often enough that it warrants pointing out. There are no points awarded for style of a missed shot. Either dunk it or use the glass. Simple. Still, on a night when every point counts, his 3, like all other made shots, were crucial.

To that end, this game was a great example of early great play playing off late in the game and adding to the result. All the early steals, especially, for instance late in the second Q when we got the ball back and Bryn hit a 3 as the clock expired to bring our lead up to 15 at the half were plays that we put in the bank whose interest we reaped rewards from at the end of the game.

Bryn for instance was white hot in the first half, but nearly emptied his gas tank in the effort and almost ran out in the second half going 1-5, including a missed layup, and 0-2FTs. Weird, but also, that 3 he did hit was part of a back-to-back effort with Derrick that gave a crucial 6 points that gave us back the lead with around two minutes left in the game. DeMar and LMA each assisted on one of those, DeMar drove to the basket for an And1 before that to end our scoring drought, and LMA hit 3-4FTs plus punched out their final shot attempt so far out that by the time they got their hands on the ball past half court, time had expired. Just enough poise, drive, stops, and smart play down the stretch to fight and pull through.

I did wonder whether having Bryn out there late in the game for our O possession along with Beli was the right call, seeing as how Bryn is just not a good ball handler, and Beli as more of a finesse player also tends to lose it late in games. Sure enough, LMA was pressured with a double at half court, still managed to pass it to Bryn who promptly got rid of the ball like a hot potato, throwing it away from Beli who got called for a foul chasing it down. It's a risk having your best shooters out there trying to increase our lead when they also can make plays like these. But if they're not out there in pressure situations now, they won't be able to handle them later, so chalk it up to learning experience. We make the bunnies earlier, we have a bigger cushion later, too.

I did like Pop once again subbing Lonnie in for Beli for defensive purposes late in the game, and it's a huge boost to a young guy to take on such a responsibility. He has done well in the pressure situations on the D end.

We had a new season high of 30 assists this game, so that was a terrific trend in the right direction, and we once again hit our 30 3s attempt mark, this time to excellent efficiency, hitting 17-31 for a big 51-24 advantage.

Some things to work on are finishing with fundamentals - can't stress this enough, and making sure we get great shots earlier. There were some instances of dribbling about too much, or passing up shots, or passing horizontally only to reset the plays, and so we made many end of clock shots. The 30 assists attest to our terrific ball movement and accuracy, especially from the outside, but we can't fall in love with the outside shot, and I hope we drive more, doing more with the opportunities given and the execution at the end. It was actually our effort in the second half to get to the FT line that helped us stem their flow. We had only 4-4FTs in the first half, and so 13-18 in the second. You take what you're given, but you make your chances, too.

It was going to be a challenge to deal with their P&R game as well as trying to contain a dynamic scorer, and we made a concerted effort to force them into secondary or even tertiary options on O often enough that it added up for us. Whichever coaches scouted and game planned this one, job well done. The hope is that we keep putting the things we do well into the memory bank and reward ourselves with better play more consistently. And as always, defense first from which all else flows. A good team-wide win.

NOTEWORTHY ACHIEVEMENTS

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And the city of San Antonio, which, with a population of just over 1.5M had the largest MLK Jr. March :

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