Jan. 14, 2009

Will Bryan on DavidsonWildcats.com:

So a little over a year ago, Davidson won a classic conference grudge match at Elon University. Many remember Stephen Curry’s eight points in the final minutes as a defining moment of the season.

I remember that night as the time when Lauren Biggers emerged as the preeminent Davidson basketball blogger. She took over my blog (Will’s World) that night and never turned back.

Tonight, I return the favor.

I promise a few less of these (!) and a little less of that screwy Mac-centered formatting … (I was just told I can’t change that).

So we’re back for SoCon play in Belk Arena. Another capacity crowd was on hand and students were back in school (I don’t remember that break being this long when I was here).

This crowd had all the familiar faces and a few new ones, as Joe Gibbs joined us in the arener with his new season tickets.

This stretch is all about familiarity and repetition. Same coaches and same players that we know and love (Ola ola ola ola). Same trends (Is Brett James sparking a comeback again?)

But in the end, it’s Davidson on top. For the 42nd time in a row (including tournaments), Davidson came out on top against one of those familiar squads with the SoCon logo on their jersey.

So what set this one apart?

Well, there was the focus on interior scoring at the beginning (Rossiter scored his four points in the first three minutes). What about those five blocks and that rebounding advantage (36-33)?

Steph did his thing again. It actually made a message boarder eek that he’s back (he’s back?!?). Dagger three at the end of the half off a 50-50 ball that made new Elon assistant Wes Miller slam his clipboard and Bob McKillop nod.

This was the learning experience that you can’t just sit on your laurels with a 22- point halftime lead.

“We need to be killers,” Steph said.

What about you as the best passer in college basketball?

Head rub. Look to the ground. “Home runs … I need to work on those six turnovers I had. We hadn’t prepared for that full court pressure since we only had time to look at their half-court sets.”

That’s what this is about.

Learning on the fly. Springing new leaks and fixing some old ones.

Print off the box score. Go to the Brickhouse and do it again next week.

It’s almost addicting in its repetition. Be careful Lauren. I might not want to give this back up now.

When’s the next home one? Next Wednesday? Hmm …

Comments?