10 Thoughts On SMU

BOX SCORE

1. Tonight was a big win for a team that was in desperate need for one. You can poopoo on the fact that they were playing a crappy SMU team and they shouldn’t go to overtime with anybody after only giving up 49 points in regulation, but the fact of the matter is that OSU hung in and won a game it absolutely had to have or the season was pretty much over.

2. Two people that know their roles and need to play more (and probably will play more): Michael Cobbins and Brian Williams. Kind of gives some credibility to that whole redshirting players thing. Williams (7), Keiton (6) and Markel Brown (8) actually led the team in rebounds tonight as well which is kind of bizarre to me since none of them really play inside all that much.

3. Speaking of Williams, how about the following minute totals for OSU:

Keiton – 47
Williams – 41
Markel – 38
Cobbins – 37
Cezar – 29
Nash – 28
JPO – 19
Jurick – 11

If you had “Brian Williams will play more than Nash and Jurick combined in this game” please step forward and collect your prize. The first five on that list is a really strange, really athletic group of players (minus Keiton obviously).

4. First thing on Cezar: Anthony Slater tweeted this after the game and he was absolutely correct – OSU is 5-7 instead of 7-5 without him this year. He hasn’t lost OSU a game (yet) but he’s basically won two of them single-handedly (with help from Keiton tonight).

5. Second thing on Cezar: I love the intensity dude, I mean I freaking love it. But you’re averaging a 7-1-1 line as the backup point guard for the worst or second worst team in the Big 12. You don’t need to be sneering at opponents you’re favored to beat after hitting a three in overtime. You can celebrate, you can drop f-bombs at Keiton, you can invent a Mexican assassin dance, I don’t care, just leave the flexing and eye drop sneers for someone else. Maybe someone who starts.

6. Why does OSU slow it down when it has a 4 on 4 or 4 on 3? It’s not like it has this prolific, complex offense that’s built to confound lesser opponents. Just run, dunk, do something.

7. OSU has to shoot better than 40% (FG) | 29% (3PT) | 65% (FT). They aren’t a good team and for not good teams to win they have to hit pretty much every open shot they have. Keiton, Brian Williams, and Le’Bryan all missed multiple open looks.

8. I really like Mark Jones and Fran Fraschilla doing games together, they both seem like they really love basketball. You can throw Gottlieb in that mix as well.

9. How cold was Keiton’s three at the end of the first overtime? He wasn’t squared up and wasn’t very close to the college three-point line and it didn’t even hit the rim. When he really gets going it’s so much fun to watch. He’s done a great job his entire career of inventing ways to get points, whether by drawing fouls on threes or getting to the rim and collecting and ones with high-arcing layups. The young guys could learn a few things about basketball creativity from the Pawnee Pistol.

10. OSU’s point guards (Keiton and Cezar) played 76 combined minutes tonight and had 1 assist between the two of them, and yet OSU gets blown out without both of them. Not sure what to make of any of that.

Next game: Saturday night in Gallagher-Iba against Virginia Tech.