In Reply to: I guess my expectations were a little too high after the last 2 posted by traprh on March 01, 2026 at 09:12:54
You, me and the WiseGuys expected a tuff game on the long hard B10 road. We weren't the only ones, as their 11-4 record in The Barn was no fluke.
I attribute this L to MN buzzing around and overcoming what everyone, including their MASH rotation, knew they would have to give up while, ummmm. buzzing around:
They couldn't get in foul trouble;
Related to the above, they knew they had to keep UCLA off the foul line and did so by remarkably sending the Bruins to only 4 trips to the stripe ~ 4!;
They knew they couldn't get swamped in transition;
Relating to the above, they knew they would have to concede O boards by overbalancing their player placement to UCLA's O end of the court to prevent transition;
They knew they had to prize and protect every possession and did so with an incredible only 3 turnovers ~ 3!;
They packed the paint on D to prevent Dent, Skyy and Perry from driving and pillaging via UCLA's speed advantage;
They limited the efficacy of Cronin's game plan to speed them up, not to mention completely and surprisingly taking away Perry's flyswatter.