You can't make it to Denver to see the game? Come on in, gather your beverage and late night snack of choice, and let's talk about how St. John's is going to run these cutesy, upset-minded, Bulldogs or "Zags" back into the Spokane from whence they came.
This is a special day, a special time; St. John's in the Tournament for the first time in so many years. It's been so long that current students were in grade school, mostly, when St. John's last played in the NCAA Tournament. So this day deserves a little celebrating...
But a loss would feel so very anticlimactic, wouldn't it? So many clutch wins, so much good karma, and the last chance for the seniors. And the team is doing it in honor of D.J. Kennedy. But the game isn't played on desire and emotion, or these Johnnies would have been to the NCAA Tournament before. Sean Evans gets the start, but winning this game and replacing D.J. will be a team effort:
At the end of the day, emotion won’t be enough. It comes down to execution and doing the things it takes over a two-hour period or 40 minutes of play to win a basketball game." - Steve Lavin, pregame
This is true. From the preview of Gonzaga vs. St. John's: St. John's needs to:
- execute. All year, the team isn't winning with awesome shooting, they're winning with the sharp execution they have lacked for years. Dwight Hardy and Justin Brownlee have to lead, and Paris Horne has to make plays.
- defend Gonzaga inside. The Zags are interior focused, with a wealth of big men including Robert Sacre; but they can't pinch the paint so much that Steven Gray gets open.
- not get overwhelmed by the emotion of the moment. This is the team's first NCAA action. They may be seniors, but this is a big game, and players might overcompensate for D.J.'s loss; the players need to play a smart basketball game, because there's a reason so many are picking Gonzaga as one of the upset picks in their brackets.
But this is a game thread... what are YOUR thoughts?