This was a tale of one center giving a dunking clinic, one center being dunked on, and two perimeters giving a mediocrity clinic.
The Dunker aka Udoka Azuibuke, went 12 for 15. He didn't bother with FTs, going 0-2. Stanford decided to reject all film evidence regarding the benefits of fouling Azuibuke, and instead fouled our best FTs most of the time. It was an odd strategic choice by Jerrod Haase, who proved himself a coach more interested in executing his system than adapting it. At a place like Stanford that is a recipe for a short tenure.
The two perimeters had the turnover equivalents of productive coughs (KU 11, SU 14), fouled each other quite a lot for a relatively slow, 61 FGA game, and matched each other with tenacious FT defense (low 50% range by both teams). KU's perimeter won the stealing game +3.
Inside, the edge in scoring effficiency was, of course, all KU. But Stanford amazingly was +1 in blocks. In rebounding, KU continued to approach the glass indifferently; i.e., as a category to dabble in, but not to dominate. Stanford was actually +2 on the glass for the game. Completely inexplicably, given KU having a footer and Stanford and KU shooting only low 30% range from trifectaville, Stanford kicked KU's butts on the offensive glass +6.
Clearly KU has decided to guard opponent's shooting percentages down, and then guard them some more, rather than guard them and then rebound. It is not an easy strategy to make sense of, but it seems to distill to this. We aren't very good at rebounding. But we can guard. If we can just keep guarding them hard, and letting them have enough second shots at low percentages, sooner or later we will get the rebound just by chance. I am not sure how this will work against better teams than Stanford.
My feeling was that the two previous losses to Washington and Arizona State ranked as conclusive evidence that our small ballers need to take rebounding slightly more seriously. But that bump in seriousness was no where visible versus Stanford. Might I recommend that the team spend some time on glass vaccing practice during the week of getting better? No, no, no. I can't suggest improvement in a fundamental of the sport after a 21 point win. That sounds churlish. Still, just between us, giving most teams plus 6 on the offensive glass could mean some more of those unsightly L's on the schedule summary, if unaddressed.
Both benches did give clinics in anti-impacting. It was actually impressive how many persons were rotated in without so much as a ripple of impact on the basketball lake.
KU won, because it Doked Stanford, and because Devonte and Vick were a combined 5 for 8 from trey.
It all worked out pretty well for KU, which won 75-54.
Yes, Stanford sucked and Jerrod Haase needs to forget everything Roy taught him about basketball, emulate Bill Self, get some players and foul a center that makes FTs around 50% of the time, instead of letting him shoot 12 of 15 (80%) literally from inside the rim itself .
The take away?
Never, never, never, never, EVER let Bill Self play 70 point take what they give us giving him his footer just dunking it.
That Canis lupus familiaris does NOT hunt.
Put another way: don't let KU Doke you.
Rock Chalk!
