| | NEW YORK -- The new look of college basketball barely has stubble being
formed. Their bodies are still awkward. Some of them aren't quite sure what
to do in the halfcourt, on the break, or for that matter on defense.
But they've got energy.
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TO SHOOT ... OR NOT
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Stanford was trying to beat Duke in regulation. The Cardinal got fouled,
but chose to take the ball out of bounds.
Huh? It's an experimental rule, only in use for the exempted tournaments
like the Coaches vs. Cancer, Preseason NIT, Maui Invitational and other
nonconference tournaments.
The rule allows for teams to decline shooting free throws after the 10th
foul. The intention was to speed up the game.
"We wanted to shorten the clock," said Stanford coach Mike Montgomery,
a member of the rules committee. "It had nothing to do with who was shooting
foul shots. We had to put the pressure back on them to make plays. It was
arbitrary."
But if Iowa coach Steve Alford has a vote, this rule will end as fast as
the experimental four-quarter trial two years ago.
Alford, who spent years shooting free throws as a kid in Indiana, is a
purest. Alford was aghast that a rule would be changed to make the game speed
up for television.
"Free throws are a very important part of the game and kids ought to
have to make them," said Alford, who chose to put struggling Jacob Jaacks at
the free-throw line late against Connecticut instead of taking the ball out
of bounds. "I don't care if you're a 40-percent shooter or a 95-percent
shooter, make the foul shot. That's why a lot of teams don't win
championships, because they can't make foul shots ... that crazy rule has no
place in college basketball."
-- Andy Katz
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Stanford beat Duke Thursday night in the opener of the Coaches vs. Cancer
Classic by leaning heavily on fresh faces like point guard Julius Barnes,
center Curtis Borchardt and wing Casey Jacobsen. Duke didn't go one
possession without a freshman on the floor.
Connecticut was forced to play freshmen guards Tony Robertson and Marcus
Cox a few lost minutes in its two-point loss to Iowa.
The mass defections to the NBA (Duke lost three players and Connecticut
one) and a few transfers sitting out the season (Duke's Chris Burgess is at
Utah) have a bunch of unknowns masquerading as the marquee players on at least
two high-profile programs.
"I'm accustomed to seeing guys on the teams that I know," Duke senior
wing Chris Carrawell said. "I don't know nobody anymore. Where'd everybody
go? That's how the game is changing."
The opening games Thursday at Madison Square Garden were sloppy as
expected. Few of the players knew which play to run.
But instead of standing still, this new breed is more aggressive. Duke's Jason Williams didn't
hesitate in Duke's open offense to look shot first, pass second. It worked
for 13 points and three 3s. But, too often, he penetrated past his teammates
and got into trouble in the lane. The still-developing Duke post players
(Carlos Boozer, Nick Horvath and Casey Sanders) had trouble finishing.
Stanford's Borchardt blocked three shots in eight first-half minutes. But
he got carried away, too. On one block, he grabbed the ball and screamed
instead of looking for an outlet. During his moment of expression, the ball
got stripped. Barnes took a few too many chances for the usually structured
Cardinal. Jacobsen stroked a few 3s but also committed three turnovers -- too
high for a wing.
"They're all fearless," Stanford junior point guard Mike McDonald said.
"We've got Curtis who looks like a big 12-year old blocking shots."
But it was Borchardt's enthusiasm that lifted the Cardinal. Stanford
senior and all-American Mark Madsen was slowed by a pulled hamstring, an
injury that will keep him out of Friday's championship game against Iowa. But
when the 23-year old forward was in the game, he tried to mimic the
baby-faced frosh.
"I feed off him," Madsen said.
Duke and Stanford had no choice but to go with freshmen late. With Madsen
injured, Borchardt shared timed with Jason and Jarron Collins. Barnes spelled
McDonald and Jacobsen was on the floor in overtime. Duke stuck with Williams
for all but seven minutes.
"Duke had young guys, we had young guys but you can't be young on the
basketball court," Borchardt said. "You've got to be a basketball player.
We're not rebuilding, just reloading."
And they're ready to play. Barnes said playing a number of big-time
summer-league games prepares players to contribute early.
"We're recruiting great players and a McDonald's All-American and with
that, you get players who are used to that exposure and used to playing in
front of this many people," Stanford senior guard David Moseley said.
"You've got to be more patient and just make sure we're on the same page.
Sometimes we were confused and flustered."
Not nearly as much as the coaches. Playing this many freshmen may have
been entertaining but the coaches probably found a ton of mistakes. But
that's today's game: it's young, and filled with uncertainties. Few teams
have an all-veteran lineup.
"Last year was a good year for quality student athletes and sometimes
it's not," Stanford coach Mike Montgomery said. "There were enough good
players to accommodate both of us (Duke and Stanford). But these kids knew
how to play. The intensity was great. But there was a lot of nervous energy."
Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com
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ALSO SEE
The Weekly Word on college basketball
Katz: Alford proves he belongs on national stage
Opening-night shocker: No. 1 Huskies fall
McDonald's OT outburst sends Stanford past Duke
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