A rout and a heartbreaker

E here.

Time for some talk about basketball. IU gave Kentucky the smack down yesterday...without their starting backcourt (including freshman phenom Eric Gordan) even playing. It was pretty embarassing for Kentucky, which is pretty much what we wanted. Plus, it was nice to see Indiana freshman Jordan Crawford outshine (and outscore) his older brother, Kentucky senior Joe Crawford. I also like new Kentucky head coach, Billy Gillespe's take on the game: "They whipped us in every aspect and did it with a short-handed team, and I don't take to that very well. I thought we did a few things a little bit better, but you couldn't tell that unless you know what you're looking for."

We only got to see the second half of that game because we were attending the Washington - Pittsburgh game. In case you didn't see highlights, the game ended with a last second drive by point guard Justin Dentman, a bucket, and a long review. When the ball went in, everyone stood up, cheered, thinking UW had pulled off the last second upset of #9 Pittsburgh. Then, the long review by the officiating crew...the basket didn't count...what a heart breaker.

So, now UW is 4 and 4, with all of their losses coming to good teams, 3 of 4 of whom are ranked. But it's frustrating. There were some good things that came out of the game; senior Ryan Appleby was back in his first game of the season. He's lights out from 3, and continues to improve his defense, which was nonexistent his sophomore year. Jon Brockman had his requisite double double, and senior transfer Tim Morris had a good game. Which is good because they have a tough road ahead of them in the Pac Ten. There are some things that worry me, mainly sophomore forward, Quincy Pondextor. He's showed promise in some games, but he's also looked awful in other games. Yesterday, it was the latter. He looked completely lost the entire first half and wasn't much better in the second. He seemed like he was playing hungover on an hour of sleep. The thing that really got me was that Coach Romar left him in. I have always liked Lorenzo Romar, partly I admit because I think he looks like a koala. He's certainly had success at UW. But he missed the tournament last year, even with (underutilized?) touted freshman Spencer Hawes (who randomly watched the movie 3:10 to Yuma at the same theater as us). His coaching decisions yesterday (and on many other days...) brought more questions. It really seemed to us that taking Quincy out in the first half was the obvious decision, and arguably could have even won the game for them. He didn't score in the first half and seemed like a liability on the court. I am really rooting for the Huskies and Romar. Even after we move, I think I will continue to follow and pull for this team.

I can't post about Indiana and UW without saying something about Carolina. They are 7 and 0 and the number 1 team in the country in both major polls. They are also off until next weekend.