Final: NDSU 78, NCCU 74.
Duke will face the Bison.
Bob Green
Tough game for Central...bring on the Bison!
On to the official scouting thread...
If I were coach, I wouldn't be saying that to my team. However, I'd still be thinking it. NDSU will no doubt play hard, but it would take us playing our worst game all season by a pretty wide margin and NDSU shooting absolutely lights out for them to challenge. This is KenPom 200 versus KenPom 2 we're talking about. We are are roughly a 30-point favorite. If this game is close, we are doing something very, very wrong on both ends of the court, and my TV is at real risk of physical damage.
I watched the entire game. ND State does the things that Duke has trouble with, hitting 3's and very good from the FT line. They are also disciplined and don't turn the ball over a lot. They are smaller and less athletic than Duke, but their qualities will make it an interesting game to watch.
The real question: if you were an NDSU assistant, knowing the Bison would likely be playing a top seeded team, would you have requested ACC tourney tickets, which would have allowed you to see 3 potential 1st round opponents at the same time. Highly efficient! And with a few breaks, NDSU might be playing 5 ACC teams in the next few weeks.
It might be hard to argue unavailability of tape (recordings of Zion? Hmmm. I know they’re around here somewhere), but I’d explain I’d get a better feel in person.
I would think we would at least send one of the younger assistant coaches to prepare a scouting report so that he could get the experience of doing it on his own. Have him brief the team with his findings. This would bring a new energy to the process, and a different voice - something to counter the overconfidence that is bound to seep in. Of course, the rest of the staff will have done the film work per usual, so things won't go off the tracks. Remember, first and foremost, Coach K is a leader, he will rarely pass up such an opportunity.
Also, scouting a team is more than just watching game action, it includes watching the interaction of the team and the coaching staff in the various phases and the various situations.