This guy was sorely missed in the last third of the game. / Photo AP, Al Behrman
It just wasn’t enough. Not enough ball control. Not enough being calm and collected aganst the press. Not enough opportunites to get the ball into the post. Not enough defensive stops in the halfcourt. Not enough shots made near the end. Not enough Dee Davis.
I’ll take on the last one primarily, as Dee Davis’ absence exacerbated the other issues. Dee was efficient, shooting 4 for 7 from the field (2-5 from 3) and 5 for 5 from the line, while doling out 3 assists and grabbing 4 rebounds, all in just 20 minutes of play. He had 5 turnovers, but that will happen against Havoc to any point guard, especially one who was so heavily relied upon by Xavier to break the press. He put up an offensive rating of 114, a very good mark in itself, but he did it while also being involved in an astonishing 41% of possessions.
Dee controlled the offense with a steady hand, generally not trying to force the ball up the court against the swarm of VCU defenders but patiently getting to the timeline. Then, when he got there, he ensured that Xavier settled into their halfcourt sets when there wasn’t an obvious transition opportunity. Basically, Dee did everything to stop the Musketeers from falling into the sped-up and rushed style of play on which Havoc feeds. And on the other end, he did everything to stop easy penetration and to force VCU guards into contested jump shots.
In shot, Dee was the Man, and even when a 17-point lead had turned into a 5-point one during one of VCU’s inevitable runs, he was the calming force for the team, the one you felt could steady his teammates in an effort to retake control of the game. But then he had a head-on-head collision with VCU’s Melvin Johnson with under 14 minutes to play and had to leave the game with consussion-like symptoms.
The game wasn’t over by any stretch, as suggested by the close final margin. It had fundamentally changed though, and Xavier’s chances of victory were diminished without their maint answer to the press, their main playmaker in the halfcourt, and their top perimeter defender against a perimeter-oriented team. Just before Dee had to leave, Xavier still had a 65% chances of winning the game per Kenpom efficency statistics. Yes, VCU was on a big run due to turnovers, but those runs can only be sustained for so long, even with Havoc.
After his departure, Semaj Christon and Brad Redford had to break the press. Redford did a pretty good job when it fell to him and he offensively kept Xavier in the game with some big threes, but the offense in general wasn’t as smooth as before and Redford is nowhere near the defender that Dee is. Semaj carried most of the press-breaking burden in Dee’s absence, and he tried to break it by rushing through it, either through dribble or pass. This tempo did lead to some good transition buckets at times, but it also led to some bad turnovers and easy buckets by the Rams, because it was exactly the kind of tempo that they wanted, the tempo that Dee had helped the Musketeers to avoid.
This team missed Mr. Davis dearly. THat’s why I’m actually impressed that they still amost won. Some would say that no team that turns the ball over 20+ times deserves to win, but that is entirely what VCU’s game is all about. It’s not like a normal team who forced tunovers at that rate but also has strengths elsewhere. VCU reached their average in points off turnovers, but they are always so vulnerable in other areas that the game is winnable if that’s the only place they’re really succeeding. Despite the turnovers, the team just wouldn’t quit and were just a made shot or two from overtime or even victory in regulation. Semaj made a layup on a borderline charge/block, but the call didn’t go his way, making a potential And-1 a turnover instead Taylor beat his man in the post, only to airball a one-foot bunny that would have tied it. Redford put up a three with 41 seconds left for the tie, only for it to go in and out.
They were so close to still winning the game. It just wasn’t enough.
From Staak to Mack 