tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7193007137551439191.post6341545294193631769..comments2023-12-27T18:04:21.987-05:00Comments on From Old Virginia: game preview: FloridaBrendanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10506945153264825303noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7193007137551439191.post-79979656222751597472012-03-18T01:39:06.140-04:002012-03-18T01:39:06.140-04:00Btw, quick note on UVA baseball, but when is it ti...Btw, quick note on UVA baseball, but when is it time to ask if Chris Taylor should be moved off short? Errors aren't the end all and be as a sign on defensive ability, but still, 8 errors already this early in the year? <br /><br />Granted, there's the question of who to take his spot, as Bruno has had some issues at 3rd (but then again, he isn't a natural at 3rd). I still wonder if UVA's best alignment isn't to have Bruno at short with Taylor at 2nd or CF.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7193007137551439191.post-78124948405562886882012-03-18T01:28:09.549-04:002012-03-18T01:28:09.549-04:00At the end of the day, it was a good season. The ...At the end of the day, it was a good season. The one thing that really hurt was that we never really developed a guy who could attack the rim. I had hopes that KT Harrell could be that guy, that creator which could open up the floor. Without that, the inside/out game just didn't have enough spacing at times.<br /><br />Along with that, we only had one good on-ball defender. Jontel can contain a small guard as good as anyone, but the lack of wing talent to play shutdown on-the-ball defense really hurt.<br /><br />Looking forward to next year, the loss of Mike Scott will obviously hurt, and the squad next year will be lacking in size (Tobey's tall, but by most accounts, needs to add weight, Nolte will probably be a 3 masquerading as a 4 and Atkins/Mitchell are already smallish 4's to begin with). The athleticism that Jones and Anderson bring to the table could be a nice asset, and a healthy Brogdon could help. We should be more perimeter oriented, although we'll need Jesperson/Nolte/Harris to hit the 3's to provide spacing. I can see Bennett going small at times, and playing Harris at the 4, as he did in his freshman year.<br /><br />I hope Bennett will extend the rotation to 10. Jones needs to play because we need that 2nd quick, small guard. Anderson's talent seems like it'll force it's way on, and we need Tobey for size. The only possible redshirt, to me, seems to be Nolte, but he'd be a nice depth piece to have some 3/4 action.<br /><br />Really hoping for a big, burly post player in the 2013 class (to go along with perhaps a combo guard and/or Brandan Stith, if they change their mind on adding a wing).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7193007137551439191.post-42492625966968828942012-03-16T11:31:04.276-04:002012-03-16T11:31:04.276-04:00That NIT championship victory over Notre Dame was,...That NIT championship victory over Notre Dame was, of course, not even close to the most memorable Stith-vs-Notre-Dame game in history. That honor goes to the regular season game in which Stith scored all 17 of the team's points in the final 3 minutes (!) to lead Virginia to a one-point comeback victory over the Fighting Irish. I've never before or since seen anything like it. It was mind-blowing.<br /><br />I may be a bit biased because his years at UVA coincided with mine, so I got to follow his career closely, but I think Stith is the best player UVA has ever had. With all due respect to Ralph and Buzzy. Can't wait to relive some of those memories (and make some new ones) when the next generation of Stiths comes to town.<br /><br />And oh yeah, the game today. I expect Scott and Jontel to light it up. I just hope we can rattle Florida's shooters. Go Hoos!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7193007137551439191.post-50102328947132577382012-03-16T01:50:40.019-04:002012-03-16T01:50:40.019-04:00I'm excited. When I first saw Florida as the ...I'm excited. When I first saw Florida as the opponent, I thought, dangit. <br /><br />The more I looked a the bracket, though, this is as good a match-up for us out of other teams in this range. We'll need to get back on defense and hit some three's, but they don't have a lot of size that it would be a concern to us, and they don't have tall, rangy wing players that could cause some match-up problems. <br /><br />We've got to establish tempo. If that means giving up offensive rebounds to hurry back defensively, okay. Here's hoping Akil/Darion/Mike can handle Patric Young enough that our guards can be aggressive in protecting against the three. Gotta pass well. At the end of the day, on the offensive side of the ball, we need either Sammy or Joe to hit shots (preferably both). We also need Paul/Darion to give us useful minutes (doesn't mean they need to have a good statistical game, just need to make sure that them being the game doesn't cause a slippage in play).<br /><br />Either way, we're back in the tourny, and the long run future of the program looks bright.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com