When reporters on the sideline are getting decked, it’s a tough game! (FYI, the shot my esteemed colleague from Waterbury absorbed Monday night was nothing like the one yours truly took a few years ago in Atlanta, but I digress).
OK, maybe the game wasn’t that dirty or physical.
But by the number of fouls called and the reactions of the coaches, you’d think it was Rocky Balboa against Ivan Drago.
Coach Jim Calhoun, whose team knocked off No. 8 West Virginia 73-62, didn’t seem to mind the nature of the game or the outcome.
“You have to get your nose dirty. You have to get in there,” Calhoun said. “And those who know me a little bit know I don’t mind my teams getting their noses dirty.”
– West Virginia coach Bob Huggins didn’t exactly agree. He didn’t appear to think the Mountaineers got a very fair whistle, and seemed to be relaying that to official Mike Stuart in the final minute.
The conversation seemed cordial until Stuart suddenly signaled a “T”. That REALLY set the coach off and he quickly received a second one.
So what did Huggins think of the officiating?
“You watched it. You saw,” Huggins said. “You’re allowed to report on it. I’m not. You have tremendous advantage.”
When asked why his team “couldn’t get over the hump” Huggins paused.
“I don’t know if I can answer that without getting in trouble,” Huggins said.
He later offered a few words on the free throw totals.
“They shoot 42, we shoot 23. You can’t win,” he said.
– Huggins, who hasn’t won 660 games in his career by being stupid, knows there were reasons other than the officials why his team lost.
“Our best player is 2-for-10, 0-for-4, 5-for-8,” Huggins said.
That would be the line _ FGs, 3-pt FG’s and FT’s _ of WVU’s Da’Sean Butler. Butler tied his season-low with nine points, mostly thanks to Jerome Dyson’s defense.
“Just try to make it tough for him. Coach (Andre) LaFleur just told me ‘Make him shoot tough shots. Don’t try to overdo it,’ ” Dyson said.
– Dyson left the game with 6:31 to play after spraining his left ankle.
“I went up for the layup and kind of landed sideways, on the front of my left foot and rolled my ankle,” Dyson said. “But I came back. I wasn’t really going to let that keep me out of the game.”
By my count Dyson now has 342 injuries. I’ll double check that total, of course.
Oh, and there’s little doubt he’ll play some 36 minutes next Sunday against Louisville (barring the usual foul trouble).
– Two straight Big Monday’s. Two straight wins over top 10 teams.
The Huskies seem to be on a little bit of a mission.
“Ever since our last loss we just have the mentality that if we lose one, we’re probably out,” forward Gavin Edwards said of the NCAA Tournament. “So we might as well go out without any bullets left in the chamber and give it all.”
-Neill
Neill,
I wonder how the Interview Session with the Coach went after this big W ? We only hear about “slight” controversies with Coach Calhoun not the gracious man when his team wins.
I for one think this is one of the Coaches BEST coaching jobs he has done in keeping this team potentially ready for the NCAA Tournament, giving it a chance to make the tourney after the way the season was going etc.
I would love to see a Journalist report on this but it’s highly doubtful since you all just can’t stand the Hall of Famer….
Comment by Full Disclosure — February 23rd, 2010 @ 10:36 am
Ha!
I love it.
Half the people in Connecticut seem to think that people like me hate Jim Calhoun so much that we love to rip him and wish him the worst.
The other half truly believe we are merely cheerleaders for the program who believe it and Calhoun can do no wrong, and go out of our way to cover the negative things up.
I wonder when folks will realize it’s actually neither, that 99 percent of the journalists who cover the team really do try to be as impartial and fair as they can.
Oh well, fighting an uphill battle, I suppose.
As to your most recent response, I’m not sure what you want from me and my brethren (and sistren, I guess) on this one. You think Calhoun was gracious in his talk after the game we somehow covered it up and didn’t report it?
Um, no.
I would never encourage fans to read/watch any other media outlet than mine (bosses won’t let me), but I would guess that if you scanned the state’s newspapers this morning and watched local TV and listened to local radio, you’d probably hear/read/see just about all of Calhoun’s comments following the game.
Comment by Neill Ostrout — February 23rd, 2010 @ 10:53 am
So was the Coach gracious?
Comment by Full Disclosure — February 23rd, 2010 @ 1:20 pm
As much as he normally is. No more, no less, I’d say.
Most of his comments were about UConn’s recent play, the nature of the game (physical, lots of fouls) and his players’ individual efforts.
Comment by Neill Ostrout — February 23rd, 2010 @ 1:40 pm
Neill,
Please take the picture off your website here. What a disgusting human being picture…..
Comment by Full Disclosure — February 27th, 2010 @ 9:50 am
Please appreciate fine cinema like Rocky IV.
Comment by Neill Ostrout — February 27th, 2010 @ 11:09 am