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W: WNIT

Lady Hornets fall to St. Mary’s 77-69. An early dry spell let SM jump out to an early lead but the Lady Hornets were able to battle back. The game went back and forth until another Hornet dry spell in the last 5 minutes of the game let SM put it away. The Hornets had a handful of 3’s go in and out and that was the difference tonight. Attendance was pretty solid; I’d estimate that it was at least ¾’s full.

Great season and great WNIT run by the Lady Hornets. Very exciting and fun style to watch. Well done!
:nod: :clap:

St. Mary's Highlights:
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hygyj4RbPYY[/youtube]
 
Just looking at the box from the Moraga game. Some things jump out rather quickly.

First, Sac was still running the press. That's reflected in the large lead the Hornets had in the steal and turnover departments, as well as fast break points. Sac also had an advantage in bench points.

Second, it looks like Sac did a rather poor job blocking out on rebounds. I don't think I've ever seen such a huge rebounding deficit in my life.

Third, the Hornets suddenly went ice cold all over the court, and couldn't make threes, either. Outstanding shooting was one of the elements of the wins over UOP and EWU, and was mysteriously gone against Moraga.

Fourth, officiating discrepancies enabled Sac to generate huge leads against both the Tigers and the Eags. That went away against Moraga. Not only were many more fouls called against Sac than before, but more SHOOTING fouls were called. One Hornet fouled out, and another had four. No Moraga bench player had ANY fouls, and the same could be said of a starter. You guys there would be able to vouch for the veracity of those fouls. Given the presence of a decidedly incompetent ref (same as at the UOP game), it wouldn't surprise me if Sac was getting screwed.

I don't really know what to conclude? Was Sac destined to lose this game? Would more time for the bench players have helped? The press was apparently still effective, so strategy isn't an issue here. I think it just comes down, as SD said, to poorly timed dry spells and some bad luck with the zebras, with the dry spells being more important. Given the chain of discussion throughout the year on the UOP board, Coach Harkleroad's comment in the interview SD posted re Moraga's height advantage was quite cogent, explaining the large rebound discrepancy. The fact that Sac was able to put up thirty more shots than Moraga did helped keep the Hornets in the game. The effectiveness of that press against teams of varying styles this season, particularly in the postseason, bodes well for next season even with the loss of a potential HOFer in Fantasia Hilliard. Perhaps if Sac could recruit some taller players who can run (not an easy task, I realize), we could have a different result next time. Regardless, the team played their tails off, and the coaches coached well until the end, and that's all anyone can really ask for. Good things will continue to fall Sac's way.
 
SM had a big size advantage. The Hornets played a perimeter game, when they did drive it was largely unsuccessful. That explains the lesser foul calls on SM compared to the Hornets that ran press the entire game. SM had very disciplined defense. They didn't extend much to counter the Hornets perimeter game and when they did they were still able to get back to prevent the dribble drive. Almost all of the points inside from the Hornets were off of turnovers/fast breaks.

The Hornets had a handful of 3's rim in and out in the 2nd half. If those fall they probably win. It was a solid effort, just a tough match-up against a well disciplined team.
 

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