Teams don't reach the Final Four without there being a clear and obvious contribution from the man on the bench.
Tonight, we saw the "A" game.
What the nation saw heading into the game -- what I saw heading into the game -- was a mammoth Duke team inside. Big, after big, after big. Playing a four out, one in team that had as its second big, a kid just 90 days removed from high school. And who had as its first bit a lumbering lug that while very skilled, was quick to tire and an easy mark for silly fouls.
Bill Self scripted an absolutely brilliant game plan defensively.
Quick traps, immediate help, help off the bounce, prioritizing threats, trusting match ups -- you name it. What I find incredibly impressive is off the traps, how well our guys slid into the correct lanes, and how they generally were always in a position with their eyes in the right place. Not an easy task. Our defense put Duke on the defensive much of the night. It appeared that Duke (particularly Bagley) was not fully ready for our aggressiveness. Self had this team ready to play defense against the oversized Blue Devils. Without it, this game would have been over quickly.
One tremendous decision was to put Svi on Bagley -- and to trust Svi. What a terrific game he had. Of course, he hit the big three. But even bigger was the job he did guarding a bigger, more athletic Bagley. A guy who could jump out of gym. But on many occasions, Svi was able to be in the right spot, deny Bagley the ball, and disrupt. That's all Svi had to do was disrupt, and he did it magnificently.
This game was won on the defensive end. And defense like this just doesn't happen. Two months ago, who would have believed that this team, in this moment, would win with defense?
Bill Self took a team he was complaining about being soft, and lacking chemistry (just last month), and created a unit that could coalesce into a monster defensive squad.
Turmoil, uncertainty, criticism, adversity -- this team has suffered this fate more than any KU team in recent memory. But look at the product. Just look at it.
We now have the opportunity for our moment. Our beautiful, ever-lasting moment. Two to go.
And this season, which was Bill Self's greatest coaching job yet, is not over. Not by a long shot. This team has experience, tenacity, and character. And it has a toughness that cannot just be created because a coach says so.
This team has a toughness that was earned. Earned, in part, by the bitter disappointment of the last two seasons. Being on the brink of the what is a life changing accomplishment, only to fall short. Or as the players feel deep inside, only to fail.
Why are we going to San Antonio? It's because of the journey. It's because of Nova in '16 and Oregon in '17. It's because Vick went into a shell. It's because Newman wasn't meshing. It's because Preston was a mirage. It's because Mitch stepped up. It's because of our All-American. It's because Doke got hurt. It's because DeSousa became a man. And it's because this team became a team.
But more than anything, it's because of the boss on the bench. The man on the bench took a team that many thought was rudderless, and steered it through some incredibly stormy seas. He took control. And we are in the Final Four because of it.
So look at us now.
