Much criticism has been leveled against Groce for his in game coaching, maybe rightfully so. On the other hand the praise given to the four coaches whose teams made the final four has been effusive. Personally, I think Bo and K are as good as there are.
If we analyzed the in game coaching during the Final Four as critically as we do that of Groce, we would have to admit that:
Calipari did an awful job at the end against Wisconsin. Five possessions with no real shots going up, trying the same failed drives on every possession.
Bo did an awful job, blowing a 9 point lead at the end, and unable to draw up an offensive play that would put points on the board.
In reality, the games are not decided by in game coaching, but by the players, and which ones are hot at the right time. Kentucky couldn't score at crunch time, they were cold and uninspired. In that semi-final game, Wisconsin was hot at the end.
Conversely, in the final game, after building a 9 point lead Wisconsin went cold against Duke, even though the plays they ran were the same as earlier. Duke' guards on the other hand, were red hot and made incredible shots when they eliminated the 9 point deficit, and eventually put the game away. Coach K just sat back and watched, just as Bo did in the final minutes of his win against Kentucky.
This post was edited on 4/7 12:41 PM by stoneaxe27
If we analyzed the in game coaching during the Final Four as critically as we do that of Groce, we would have to admit that:
Calipari did an awful job at the end against Wisconsin. Five possessions with no real shots going up, trying the same failed drives on every possession.
Bo did an awful job, blowing a 9 point lead at the end, and unable to draw up an offensive play that would put points on the board.
In reality, the games are not decided by in game coaching, but by the players, and which ones are hot at the right time. Kentucky couldn't score at crunch time, they were cold and uninspired. In that semi-final game, Wisconsin was hot at the end.
Conversely, in the final game, after building a 9 point lead Wisconsin went cold against Duke, even though the plays they ran were the same as earlier. Duke' guards on the other hand, were red hot and made incredible shots when they eliminated the 9 point deficit, and eventually put the game away. Coach K just sat back and watched, just as Bo did in the final minutes of his win against Kentucky.
This post was edited on 4/7 12:41 PM by stoneaxe27
