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Zone!!!!

I think zone defense proponents are more hated than Cardinals fans on this board. So it's a crew I hate to be throwing my lot in with, I really do. But we did look better playing zone. And the more we play it, the better it will look by comparison. It does everything we need it to do. It protects our bigs from foul trouble, it keeps the bigs defending in the post and the guards on the perimeter, and it neutralizes our weakness in pick and roll defense.

Next year is gonna be a great year for M2M because we'll have lots of versatile bigs on the floor and a very tall shooting guard, and hopefully a couple true rim protectors, so there's still a backup plan when we break down on a pick and roll. But this year's roster is tailor-made for zone.
 
Tipton is a buffoon but only a complete moron would think playing a zone that got us back in the game was a bad idea.
So I see you're familiar with Captain Dipshit's work!!!! I mean Kybassfan, not Tipton. Well, they're one and the same.
 
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Tipton is a buffoon but only a complete moron would think playing a zone that got us back in the game was a bad idea.

Well, just letting you know you and the buffoon are on the same side.

Funny me, I rather credited our shooting percentage going from 0 to 25% or so had more to do with it than anything.
 
I think zone defense proponents are more hated than Cardinals fans on this board. So it's a crew I hate to be throwing my lot in with, I really do. But we did look better playing zone. And the more we play it, the better it will look by comparison. It does everything we need it to do. It protects our bigs from foul trouble, it keeps the bigs defending in the post and the guards on the perimeter, and it neutralizes our weakness in pick and roll defense.

Next year is gonna be a great year for M2M because we'll have lots of versatile bigs on the floor and a very tall shooting guard, and hopefully a couple true rim protectors, so there's still a backup plan when we break down on a pick and roll. But this year's roster is tailor-made for zone.

I am not a proponent of one defense over any other. I am a proponent of having multiple defenses in your arsenal that you can throw at your competition when needed. I like defenses that are effective, if M2M is getting it done then by all means ride it for all 40 minutes but when it's not getting it done change it up at least for a few possessions. It's like calling a timeout to try and stop momentum, that is it. There really is no zone defense club on this board, it is more of a we see the all man all the time strategy is/was not working. Call me crazy but when something is not working I like this radical idea of trying something different.
 
Of course our going from 0% shooting up to 25% - 30% was due to the zone huh?

You guys enjoy your zone fix. We pull that mess out in the round of 16 or later in the tourney, we're dead. I'm not to worried about that though. Cal is on the bench
So you like the other coach deciding the match ups. I shudder when I see Willis on a point guard and Briscoe guarding the other team's center. This is the strategy of every opponent. Ball screen until you have your mismatch. We would have to play zone if they would just hedge and get back like most other teams. How many of us remember Dakari Johnson guarding the other team's point guard time after time. It was never corrected. Also when you have guys that are not great on defense you have to protect them. You can't have them exposed every time down the court. We are not going to get five players that are all great on defense. There are going to be weak defenders. Wiltjer was a perfect example. He was a guy that could give you 15-20 points a game, but had to be protected on defense. You had to either put him on a player that was not an offensive threat and not do any switching, or play a zone.
 
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Come on guys, we didn't play any zone tonight. Your eyes were deceiving you (and me). You know how I know this? Because there are some real Einsteins on this board that have sworn Cal will NEVER play any zone and tells us we just aren't living in "reality". Those few are so damn smart that we must have just imagined that zone defense tonight. It's the only explanation. Let's just go bass fishing!


Cal did say they practiced zone the past 2 days and it was all Tony Barbee, while Cal just watched and winced - reiterated how much he hates it.

I was glad to see it, Cal wont stay in it long if we give up a couple of baskets but thats better than fouling out our bigs...

Dont get pissed if you do not see it next game...
Cal also said we will not play it at Florida because they have 3 guys who hit 3's on the floor at all times. Even so I'd still like to see it a few times just to mix it up.
 
Cal did say they practiced zone the past 2 days and it was all Tony Barbee, while Cal just watched and winced - reiterated how much he hates it.

Really the key but then again this is, by far, his worst 2pt defensive team in his career. That has to be making him wince as well.
 
Really the key but then again this is, by far, his worst 2pt defensive team in his career. That has to be making him wince as well.


He said we are top 10 in the nation in blocked shots and maybe so, but we are in tied for last place with this past year's team compared to Cal's other UK teams.

Straight line drives really expose us without a rim protector. I'd trade Bam for Nerlens simply on this issue alone.

Hopefully Bamba comes and we can get back on track.
 
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So you like the other coach deciding the match ups. I shudder when I see Willis on a point guard and Briscoe guarding the other team's center. This is the strategy of every opponent. Ball screen until you have your mismatch. We would have to play zone if they would just hedge and get back like most other teams. How many of us remember Dakari Johnson guarding the other team's point guard time after time. It was never corrected. Also when you have guys that are not great on defense you have to protect them. You can't have them exposed every time down the court. We are not going to get five players that are all great on defense. There are going to be weak defenders. Wiltjer was a perfect example. He was a guy that could give you 15-20 points a game, but had to be protected on defense. You had to either put him on a player that was not an offensive threat and not do any switching, or play a zone.

I really can't argue the point on switching, though that actually is the second issue I'd deal with. We give up the drive WAY too much even when not in a pick. Just last night, we had 3 instances of guys coughing up the base line. One time scared the crap out of me as Bam, 4 fouls, swung the knee out to try and defend the baseline. I thought that was the game right there, but fortunately the ref spotted a foul more to his liking elsewhere. We are simply not moving our feet at times. Moving your feet, I might add, is a critical skill when playing zone or handling the pick. As far as deciding matchups, the zone makes it easy for the other coach to do that. GA was pretty adept at it as they got in the paint several times against the zone, man-to-man, or anything else we did.

As far as protecting guys not great on defense, remember who the coach is. Cal is defense first. Period. You got two choices there. Get a new coach. Switch teams. Good luck with the first choice. Second choice is one I wish some fans would take. Calipari is never going to shelter players like Wiltjer just to get a shooter. That's been true ever since I've watched him dating back to UMass. I guess there is a third choice too. Folks can whine about it. Doesn't accomplish much, but does provide some entertainment for the rest of us.
 
Sometimes the curveball is working better than the fastball.
The key is to have more than just one pitch.

I agree. By having just one type of pitch, the pitcher becomes predictable. Obviously, this would frustrate the pitcher too, because he is able to throw multiple types ... fastball, etc... The pitcher doesn't want to be limited either.
 
I think sometimes when you struggle as bad as this team is playing man defense you have to make a team shoot you out of a zone.
I don't like saying we can't play zone against this team because they shoot it too good.

Btw Baylor showing a zone to Kansas.
 
No coach is perfect. Cal's biggest flaw is he doesn't seem to like to scheme his way to a W. It forces some guys to improve, but some just don't have the ability to play man to man defense well. Kyle Wiltjer would have been an All-American here if Cal would have used some zone.
 
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