Holmes 58 Newport Central Catholic 51 (9th Region Quarterfinals)

[sweet16]

At the end of the day this is the truth but unfortunately folks will look for other answers that are way too deep than they need to be. Winning a region tournament is very hard. I don't care how good you are.

 

Exactly right.

[letabrotherspeak]

Three pages in and people have yet to give kudos to the job that Andrew Arnold did on McDonald tonight. Arnold giving up 7 inches and very little rest kept McDonald off the block most of the night and simply did not back down. It may not show up in the stat line but Arnold was simply terrific guarding McDonald. For a large part he guarded him straight up with some help. McDonald was forced to kick it out.

Weyer had Avery on him and he is not going to see kids with that much length guard him out on the floor.

I thought a key sequence in the game is when NCC went to a zone for a stretch. Bolden left open and drills a 3. I believe he hit another as well and they threw a lob in that sequence. NCC went back to man and behind and McClendon and Bolden controlled the ball.

Avery had a few offensive rebounds in the 4th to keep possessions alive and ultimately the ball game.

Holmes did a terrific job on the glass and Arnold kept McDonald off the offensive glass and negated stickbacks.

I just think that the two Holmes guards outplayed NCC's backcourt. McClendon really played well. Hit open shots and dogged Pangallo all over the court.

Why does this happen to NCC at the region? I think they just play too tight but much of it is matchups.

Unfortunately, its a bitter pill to swallow for the Breds but they have some classy kids and a classy staff.

[Bengal Maniac]

Three pages in and people have yet to give kudos to the job that Andrew Arnold did on McDonald tonight. Arnold giving up 7 inches and very little rest kept McDonald off the block most of the night and simply did not back down. It may not show up in the stat line but Arnold was simply terrific guarding McDonald. For a large part he guarded him straight up with some help. McDonald was forced to kick it out.

Weyer had Avery on him and he is not going to see kids with that much length guard him out on the floor.

I thought a key sequence in the game is when NCC went to a zone for a stretch. Bolden left open and drills a 3. I believe he hit another as well and they threw a lob in that sequence. NCC went back to man and behind and McClendon and Bolden controlled the ball.

Avery had a few offensive rebounds in the 4th to keep possessions alive and ultimately the ball game.

Holmes did a terrific job on the glass and Arnold kept McDonald off the offensive glass and negated stickbacks.

I just think that the two Holmes guards outplayed NCC's backcourt. McClendon really played well. Hit open shots and dogged Pangallo all over the court.

Why does this happen to NCC at the region? I think they just play too tight but much of it is matchups.

Unfortunately, its a bitter pill to swallow for the Breds but they have some classy kids and a classy staff.

 

You are correct about Arnold. He did about all you can do with the size disadvantage. Really all the 'dogs played well. They are a very good team when they play like they did tonight. It would be nice to see them get on a roll.

 

Dixie is probably playing the best in the region over the last three or four weeks. I know they didn't look like the first half tonight, but they gritted one out which is what good teams do. They will be a really tough game for the Bulldogs.

[Thebrother]

Heh, I think the webcast guys tore them apart enough.

 

They kept going on about Holmes calling multiple timeouts with a player in the air. Is this a rule or not? Not a game changer but seemed odd for them to harp as long as they did.

[sweet16]

Heh, I think the webcast guys tore them apart enough.

 

They kept going on about Holmes calling multiple timeouts with a player in the air. Is this a rule or not? Not a game changer but seemed odd for them to harp as long as they did.

 

In HS you can do that

[Bengal Maniac]

Heh, I think the webcast guys tore them apart enough.

 

They kept going on about Holmes calling multiple timeouts with a player in the air. Is this a rule or not? Not a game changer but seemed odd for them to harp as long as they did.

 

I only remember McClendon doing it once going out of bounds and Weyer diving after a loose ball. Both calls legit, within HS rules.

 

There may have been more, but that is all I remember.

[nkywildcat68]

NewCath didn't appear to be a team that was "hungover" from the All A since they won it. Haven't they gone unbeaten post All A each of the last three years (until the region)?

They beat Holmes just three weeks ago, they certainly looked fine that night. I think the theory about the All A run or that their schedule didnt challenge them is a huge reach.

[sportsfan2012]

Just my opinion but only going 6 guys doesn't help either. If I'm not mistaken the only bench player that got in was Freppon. The starting 5 played the entire second half, well with the exception of Grant who got into foul trouble in the 4th. Why wouldn't you develop your entire team so at any given minute they would be ready to go into the game. Anderson or Ludwig are more than capable of coming into that type of game and giving some valuable minutes. Again, just my opinion.

[BigVMan23]

I think NCC could have looked at Pangallo driving the lane more in the 2nd half. It was there and he did it a couple of times but could have done it more. Holmes was so concerned about Mac once Pang got the step on his defender the rim was open. Just my observation while watching the game. Tough loss for the Breds. I was sitting with the NewCath faithful and was pulling for them.

[Qryche11]

Congrats to the Bulldogs and best of luck to those NCC Sr's. I know it didn't end the way they wanted but the lifetime memories those boys have cannot be denied. They have been a pleasure to watch and follow these past 3 yrs.

[gameplayedright]

Not sure how many times I have read, "great season NCC." How is it a great season when you loose in the qt finals of your region, one you were one expected reach the final at the very least.

My guess is the NCC players and staff don't feel it was a great season. Certainly hope they had set a higher goal for themselves then region 9 qt finalists.

[G1]

It sounds like it was an exciting night with 2 entertaining games. I only wish I could've been there. Ncc had an excellent team and I expected them to last longer then one game. I'm sure the seniors are disappointed with having a great career and never winning a title and advancing to the big stage. But that doesn't make them less of a player. The few times I saw them, I really enjoyed their play. I agree with those that say its hard to win the region. It really makes you appreciate how easy Ken Shields and John Messmer made it look.

[paNDA]

Two players combine for 41. Beetle and McClenndon, can't allow those open looks even if they were from downtown.

[PurplePride92]

Not sure how many times I have read, "great season NCC." How is it a great season when you loose in the qt finals of your region, one you were one expected reach the final at the very least.

My guess is the NCC players and staff don't feel it was a great season. Certainly hope they had set a higher goal for themselves then region 9 qt finalists.

 

I'm sure they had a higher goal but you can't ignore the draw that they had either. Holmes, then Dixie/Boone County winner then likely CovCath for the region title. Anyways you slice it that is the hardest path to a regional title and there is no shame in losing in the quarterfinals to that Holmes team.

[Doppler Don]

Just my opinion but only going 6 guys doesn't help either. If I'm not mistaken the only bench player that got in was Freppon. The starting 5 played the entire second half, well with the exception of Grant who got into foul trouble in the 4th. Why wouldn't you develop your entire team so at any given minute they would be ready to go into the game. Anderson or Ludwig are more than capable of coming into that type of game and giving some valuable minutes. Again, just my opinion.

 

Agree that playing 6 is an issue for NCC. And really only 5 in the second half. Unfortunately for NCC they are only four deep to begin with. Playing deeper in my opinion would hurt more than help.

 

 

Holmes did not dig very deep into the bench either.

 

I'm not a follower of NCC, I see them play maybe 3-4 times a year, and have seen them in the regional tournament every year. They are a good team with enough talent to win the region. I do agree with the previous poster that outside of Pangallo they are not very athletic. But I think what really gets them in the regional tournament is nerves. They simply seem to play tight. I thought this last year, and do again this year.