Storyline: Seton Hall will rue “what could have been” all summer long. It won’t be about “The Call.” It will be about failing to execute.
So much is being made of Seton Hall’s Desi Rodriguez’s flagrant foul on Arkansas’ Jaylen Braford. Barford made both free throws and sealed the win for Arkansas.
Courtesy: Deadspin
It was a questionable call to say the least. It was a basketball play. Rodriguez fouled him to avoid a score.
Braford deserves an Oscar for his flop. It sold the ref that Rodriguez hurt him hard. There’s nothing more underrated than a basketball player pulling a con job on the refs by flopping. Duke has it perfected.
But that wasn’t the reason the Hall ended up with a 77-71 loss on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Pirates lost because they were awful at the free-throw line (13-of-21), committed 15 turnovers, and didn’t make shots down the stretch.
That’s a recipe for a loss.
To Seton Hall’s credit, no one talked about the call. Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard mentioned his team shouldn’t have been in that situation in the first place. He’s right about that. If Seton Hall had made shots at crunch time, then Rodriguez would have been in a position to foul Braford.
Arkansas was struggling to make shots down the stretch, just like Seton Hall. But the Pirates never took advantage. The Hall lead, 68-62, with 6:47 to go in regulation, but they scored only three points, went 1-for-11 from the field, and committed four turnovers the rest of the way.
When a team doesn’t get it done and can’t take advantage of another team’s struggles, then the outcome is self-afflicted.
Courtesy: NJ.com
It’s a loser’s lament to pin a loss on a call. A bad call and awful play are two different things, and one has nothing to do with another.
Willard did the right thing by not mentioning the call–even when he was asked by the media. That response shows Willard’s maturity as a coach. Just a few years ago I suspect Willard would have harped about it and his players would have echoed his thoughts. While the difference between then and today may not mean much to some, it’s refreshing to see that level of accountability.
But fans often rationalize a bad call to make the outcome sound good to their team. That’s making excuses. The reality is this: What did the team do to put itself in that position?
Calls can go either way in a tight game. They are a judgment decisions. That was the case in Rodriguez’s foul. It was justified as a push, even though that may not have been apparent from this eye. Seton Hall didn’t have to be in that spot … and the Pirates know it.
Credit Arkansas for not only making plays, but for playing 40 minutes of hell defense and that forced Seton Hall to be skittish offensively. Down the stretch Khadeen Carrington turned over the ball and traveled. Angel Delgado had a tough time putting the ball in the net (not to mention that he had to play tentatively because of foul trouble). Desi Rodriguez was a non-factor.
Khadeen Carrington (photo, Zimbio)
Myles Powell was Seton Hall’s offense on Friday. No offense to Powell (he has played well the last few weeks), but if he’s Seton Hall’s best player, then trouble looms the the Pirates. The fact of the matter is that Seton Hall relied on Carrington and Delgado all year, and those two failed yesterday–when it mattered most.
Friday’s loss against Arkansas was a blown opportunity for Seton Hall. It’s a game the Hall should have won. The team knows it–as much as anyone–and that makes for a bittersweet season. Yes, it was a good season, but Seton Hall didn’t play in the NCAA Tournament with the intent of being one-and-done.
The Pirates were good enough to beat Arkansas. But Seton Hall is heading home while Arkansas will be playing UNC on Sunday for the right to advance to the Sweet 16.
Seton Hall will rue “what could have been” all summer long. It won’t be about “The Call.” It will be about failing to execute.
