** That seemed a bit harder than it should have been, but it's simply great to FINALLY get an ACC win.
** I'm especially glad because I made a "bold prediction" for a win, and I made a "bold prediction" about a year ago which really did not work out so well.
** But mostly I'm really happy for this team. We've all commented how they haven't quit, and it was great for them get rewarded for this effort with a W.
** And I confess that I was ready for the loss when the score went tied with the end of an 8-0 BC run with under two minutes. I was even ready for the final layup to go down. I don't think I can be blamed for such concerns.
** But too much Big John all game long kept that from happening.
** John's work today was pretty special of course. He's playing his way toward All-ACC. He's probably already there.
** As I watched LSU/Tennessee, I was reminded how disappointed we all were that we didn't get Efton Reid, and only saw John's reinstatement as something of a consolation prize. We were wrong.
** Nonetheless, if I was a BC fan, I would wonder a little about the strategy to resist the double team to stop John. Perhaps they were playing straight up to keep other Panthers from beating you, but which Panther can really beat you besides John?
** Not only did this strategy lead to Hugley's huge day, but tons of BC foul trouble, which may have been the biggest difference in the contest.
** Another difference was the second half perimeter scoring from Femi and Burton. Their scoring never really came from great offense -- but both just made some shots. Sometimes it's that simple.
** Congrats to Will. This young man didn't have many fans left before the game, and even fewer if any after a miserable first half. But he did everything he needed to do to in the second half to help his team win. Hopefully he can build on it.
** I got a kick out of the Capel's first timeout when he called out his team for being down 7-2. In the quiet Pete confines, you could clearly hear him yell "Wake the %$@& Up!"
** That helped a little, but it wasn't a pure antidote. The Panthers never seemed like they were at their best all game long, especially on the defensive end. But they were good enough, especially knowing that BC hit some really deep shots. I don't know if we expected that, but we better account for it going forward.
** Biggest "unsung" play of the game. Eze tips away a rebound from BC with under a minute to go, when it looked like the Eagles were going to grab their second straight offensive carom. He wanted it more.
** After that, there's not much else to talk about because our bench has grown remarkably thin. 30 minutes of bench time (27 from a former walk on) is an issue, but I doubt that can be rectified this year unfortunately, unless Ithiel returns soon.
** I don't have any additional comment on Ithiel's situation other than it's just really disappointing how this has played out. It might have been better for Horton and his teammates had he never been reinstated in the first place.
** Maybe one of our super rules gurus can explain something to me regarding the loose ball the Panthers received around the four minute mark. It would seem like the Panthers didn't get a shot clock violation because it was ruled that BC possesses the ball. But if that's the case, why did we get just 20 seconds on the shot clock instead of 30.
** Little worry though, the Panthers found Big John just a few seconds later for an easy two.
** Yep ... that was the theme of the night ... finding John. It was a nice theme -- a winning theme -- and for this fan, a really fun theme.
** Congrats to our Panthers! Let's see if we can make it two in a row on Tuesday in the Dome. No "bold predictions" this time though.
** I'm especially glad because I made a "bold prediction" for a win, and I made a "bold prediction" about a year ago which really did not work out so well.
** But mostly I'm really happy for this team. We've all commented how they haven't quit, and it was great for them get rewarded for this effort with a W.
** And I confess that I was ready for the loss when the score went tied with the end of an 8-0 BC run with under two minutes. I was even ready for the final layup to go down. I don't think I can be blamed for such concerns.
** But too much Big John all game long kept that from happening.
** John's work today was pretty special of course. He's playing his way toward All-ACC. He's probably already there.
** As I watched LSU/Tennessee, I was reminded how disappointed we all were that we didn't get Efton Reid, and only saw John's reinstatement as something of a consolation prize. We were wrong.
** Nonetheless, if I was a BC fan, I would wonder a little about the strategy to resist the double team to stop John. Perhaps they were playing straight up to keep other Panthers from beating you, but which Panther can really beat you besides John?
** Not only did this strategy lead to Hugley's huge day, but tons of BC foul trouble, which may have been the biggest difference in the contest.
** Another difference was the second half perimeter scoring from Femi and Burton. Their scoring never really came from great offense -- but both just made some shots. Sometimes it's that simple.
** Congrats to Will. This young man didn't have many fans left before the game, and even fewer if any after a miserable first half. But he did everything he needed to do to in the second half to help his team win. Hopefully he can build on it.
** I got a kick out of the Capel's first timeout when he called out his team for being down 7-2. In the quiet Pete confines, you could clearly hear him yell "Wake the %$@& Up!"
** That helped a little, but it wasn't a pure antidote. The Panthers never seemed like they were at their best all game long, especially on the defensive end. But they were good enough, especially knowing that BC hit some really deep shots. I don't know if we expected that, but we better account for it going forward.
** Biggest "unsung" play of the game. Eze tips away a rebound from BC with under a minute to go, when it looked like the Eagles were going to grab their second straight offensive carom. He wanted it more.
** After that, there's not much else to talk about because our bench has grown remarkably thin. 30 minutes of bench time (27 from a former walk on) is an issue, but I doubt that can be rectified this year unfortunately, unless Ithiel returns soon.
** I don't have any additional comment on Ithiel's situation other than it's just really disappointing how this has played out. It might have been better for Horton and his teammates had he never been reinstated in the first place.
** Maybe one of our super rules gurus can explain something to me regarding the loose ball the Panthers received around the four minute mark. It would seem like the Panthers didn't get a shot clock violation because it was ruled that BC possesses the ball. But if that's the case, why did we get just 20 seconds on the shot clock instead of 30.
** Little worry though, the Panthers found Big John just a few seconds later for an easy two.
** Yep ... that was the theme of the night ... finding John. It was a nice theme -- a winning theme -- and for this fan, a really fun theme.
** Congrats to our Panthers! Let's see if we can make it two in a row on Tuesday in the Dome. No "bold predictions" this time though.
