A Beating Out of the Blue
As much as I would like to profess otherwise, I never saw Wake’s 76-40 thrashing by N.C. State today coming.
It was pretty apparent by the stunned look in the Deacons eyes, nor did they.
And why should they have? Friday’s practice was so spirited, so crisp, so uplifting that the players, to a man, said they woke up this morning feeling great about where they were as a team and where they were headed.
“We were upbeat, we were ready to go, we were energized,’’ senior Ty Walker said. “I just thought it was going to be a much better game today.’‘
As did C.J. Harris.
“Spirits were high, everybody was laughing, having fun, playing hard,’’ Harris said.
And that may have been one reason why coach Jeff Bzdelik had so much trouble explaining how a team that scored 40 points in the second half of Wednesday’s 70-64 loss at Maryland managed only 40 in the whole game against the Wolfpack today. The Deacons shot 25 percent in the first half, 29 for the game and finished with only 16 field goals on 55 attempts and two 3-pointers on 20 heaves.
“Guys were upbeat,’’ Bzdelik said. “We were moving through things, we felt good coming off the second half of the Maryland game. I felt good about today’s game. I really did.
“And to see us kind of just kind of sleepwalk through offense. We got hit and bumped and teams are going to do that.
“This is a league for men only.’‘
I’m not as quick as most to say that one coach out-coaches another. But today, sitting courtside, I heard the Wolfpack assistant coaches yelling to their players, telling them where the Deacons were going to be before they got there. When Wake set its ball screens at the foul line extended, the defender was waiting for the cutter as he was coming around, bumping him off his stride and stopping up all flow of the offense.
“We dealt with their ball screens,’’ coach Mark Gottfried said. “They set a lot of them. And I thought we defended those really well.
“In late-clock situations they like the high ball screen in the middle of the floor. We defended that really well. And that took away a lot of things they’ve been really good at the last couple of games.’‘
The Deacons afterward went on and on about how rugged the Wolfpack were.
“They’re extremely physical,’’ Harris said. “I mean, we didn’t push back when they pushed us, coming through the lane and stuff like that. And that’s something we can’t allow to happen.
“Another team cannot be more physical than us.’‘
And when they are, it’s not a pretty sight.
“You could tell five minutes into the game we had no offensive flow,’’ freshman Chase Fischer said. “No one was screening, no one was moving. And that’s a problem when you have that.
“It’s usually the other way around. There’s usually no defensive intensity. You always have offensive intensity. But tonight we didn’t have that on offense and it’s hard to score when you don’t have that.’‘
The loss had to be one of the most disheartening of Bzdelik’s time at Wake, if for no other reason because no one saw the haymaker before it landed.
“Well first of all give N.C. state credit,’’ Bzdelik said. “They physically hit us every time we went to move, combined with the fact that we had absolutely no offensive intensity. . . We weren’t cutting hard to get open, we weren’t screening, reading screens, using screens, setting screens. We were kind of walking through our offense and that’s not not going to work.’‘
Bzdelik called one timeout to stop the flow and then he called another. Nothing worked.
“During timeouts I was calm from the standpoint of `Guys, this is what needs to be done here. And just execute. And set screens. You can’t walk through offense,’’ Bzdelik said. “We talk about defensive intensity. There has to be offensive intensity where you’re cutting hard and reading how they’re playing you and you’re cutting to get open.
“I can vividly remember several plays where we’re just walking to get the ball, and they’re denying us. Well you’ve got to set your man up and cut hard and catch it and rip it, set screens, use screens. I just think it got the best of them because they want to do well. They do.’‘
Only they didn’t.
Back to the main page.
By Dan Collins on 01/14/2012 (6:55 pm)
Comments
Casey,
Bzdelik’s head will be enough pay for me. I don’t want to be a basketball coach and especially not in the ACC. I’m not qualified. I’m just willing to help the school I love out of a bad situation. Pro Humanitate spirit if you will.
I was among those perfectly willing to let Dave Odom go. His offense, particularly his zone offense was stale. It was only really successful when he had a post player with a capable 18ft jumpshots. In his tenure he had Chris King, Rodney Rogers and Tim Duncan, but overall those guys are hard to come by. I do give credit to him for a laying a foundation for which championships could be built on.
My old HS coach is in Winston-Salem now. He took us, with almost no talent, to the state championship game, so I thought I might lean on him for some advice.
But my coaching philosophy is pretty basic. I want to establish the low post and run the offense inside out. Ty’s hands and footwork are getting better. I think Daniel Greene shows some promise and McKie has great low post presence.
I want my PGs to look more for the pass off penetration. When you break the defense down on penetration the baseline shooter is usually wideopen. Carson, Nikita, Trav, CJ and Chase can all shoot. What I see now is a drive and a hard handoff to the C. That’s not good spacing and can cause bad things to happen.
Defensively I’m going mostly zone with some height big long arms along the baseline and aggressive guard play up front. We have good overall size but I think we’re lacking foot speed to be a good man to man team.
Anyway that’s my plan…
Energy and entusiasm are byproducts of confidence. I don’t believe that will be a problem. I believe in the players we have and I care about their success. In past coaching experience I’ve always found belief and caring to be most important in getting the best from the players you have.
JoeyD on 01/17/2012 (12:13 pm)
You know, I’m not comprehending this junk about how Buzdelik needs all these years to formulate a winning team at Wake. How is it that NC State has a new coach this year and pretty much the same talent as last year but is able to go into another ACC foe’s house and beat them by 40? How many other ACC teams lose by 40 (rounding here) at home? How many times has Wake lost by this many ever? And one comment for Lisa…you’re right about fans showing up late for games and always leaving early. But that has been the norm every year going back as far as I can remember. One problem though, the team has to give us something to cheer for. We can’t just cheer in hopes that our team might do something. There was nothing to cheer about in that entire game. We had 17 points at halftime. Give me a break. My kid’s YMCA team had 40 on Saturday at half. Want some more stats at halftime?? ZERO second chance points, ZERO fast break points, and one 3-pointer. Nothing to be cheering about there. Nothing.
Dano on 01/16/2012 (11:19 pm)
Joey, can I be your assistant head coach? I’d have to ask for some compensation, though. I’d say somewhere around $50,000 or, 10 percent of what the current rate is at Wake for an assistant that keeps track of free throws and fouls and the such. I would suggest you ask for something modest as well, 10 percent of the current head coaches’ salary…so somewhere in the ballpark of $180,000-$200,000. That way when we get to those eight wins, we’ll at least feel like we’ve been compensated somewhat, albeit slightly over minimum wage.
I’ve started work on our first two weeks of practices Tell me what you think.
Practice One - “Caring.” Practice Two - “Defense.” Practice Three - “The Way It Was: An Introduction to Wake Forest Basketball History.” Practice Four - “Perseverance: The Art of Not Giving Up.” Practice Five - “So Your Shot’s Not Falling: How to Stay Involved.” Practice Six - “Basketball: An Easy Game When Not Made Difficult.”
We could even do some training for the administration…“How to Recognize a Dave Odom and How to Not Push Him Out the Door.”
Casey on 01/16/2012 (4:06 pm)
Yikes. It may be difficult to say this, but there will be more games like this. And there will be more games like the VT one. This is what happens to young teams with new systems. I understand the reaction of many fans, but Bzdelik needs 2011-2012 and 2012-2013. Judge him after 2013-2014. His recruits in his system will then be veterans. Right now, we all have to understand that as long as we get a few more games like the VT game, we are on the right track.
Tony on 01/16/2012 (2:16 pm)
Dan,
Thanks for noting that Gottfried greatly outcoached Bzdelik. Of course Gottfried shouldn’t get too excited about that. It doesn’t take much to out coach Bzdelik. It’s PAST time for a change.
Andy Y on 01/16/2012 (1:13 pm)
I volunteer to coach rest of the season for free. If I win 8 games we fire Wellman and Bzdelik. If I win 6 games, we fire Bzdelik. If I win less than 6 games, we all sit down and shut up…
I mean after all if these players aren’t any better, why should Bzdelik’s reputation be tarnished by their incompetence.
JoeyD on 01/16/2012 (12:11 pm)
I’ve always taken the a coach should be given 3-5 years approach. I still believe that should be the case here with Coach B. Apparently patience is a virgin with many fans.
Radio_Smuggles on 01/16/2012 (11:01 am)
What is Wellman waiting for? The Joel was empty and lifeless even before the massacre that State laid on us. There is no energy, passion, or life in the players, coaches, or fans and that is sad since WF has usually been in the upper division of the ACC over the last 20 to 25 years. Even Dan Bonner, announcer for the game said, “he has never seen a team especially at home so lethargic and have a total lack of energy”. How can 18 to 22 year old kids who supposedly love to play basketball, not even put up a fight and show some competitiveness? Ronnie Wellman will not make any changes until the Joel is completely empty and the financial coffers are depleted. WF basketball is close to that, and change needs to come NOW, not in April. Let Childress come in as an interim coach to finish out- at least they would play with the passion and competitiveness he did wearing a Wake Forest jersey with pride!
Bobby on 01/16/2012 (1:49 am)
Over and over I read comments about how embarrassed the fans are by the coaching and how bad the team is playing, etc… If I was a player at Wake i would be embarrassed as well - embarrassed by my fans. I am a season ticket holder and quite frankly I am appalled by a majority of the folks that show up on game days 15 minutes late, eat their bojangles, and then leave 15 minutes early. The only yelling I hear is directed at the refs. The only cheering I hear is for the opposing team. Everything else is just the sounds of whining and complaining about the team and the lack of coaching. Even the deacon mascot spends most of his time wandering aimlessly around the arena. How about instead of all the negative talk we attempt to support what we have? Bzdelik isn’t going away anytime soon. Even Wellman isn’t stupid enough to pay 3 coaches at one time. This team and this coach is what we have for now. And as for upcoming recruits? I’m sure the sounds of the LJVM make them really want to come there to play. So how about we all stop sounding like petulant children and throw some of that energy into showing our players that we are in their corner.
lisa sexton on 01/15/2012 (11:17 pm)
I vote we start a Wake Forest basketball fan support group.
Hi, my name is Clark, and I’m a WF basketball fan. (tears)
“it’s ok, let it out”
Dan, would you be our sponsor? (wait, maybe you already are)
Clark on 01/15/2012 (4:12 pm)
I commented on an earlier entry that Wake needs to shoot for respectability. Yesterday was as far from respectable as possible. I have always taken the “give the man a chance” rout with Bzz, but I have to say that the end of his tenure at Wake is a forgone conclusion - how long it takes to come to this conclusion is up to Ron Wellman. I would hope that after a successful career here that he would want to go out without this being the last thing people think of when they think of him. Bzz needs to go. The time is now. It’s not a kneejerk reaction and not even entirely based on the performance on the court. The fan base is stifled. It’s dead. Why would ANYONE want to come play at Wake Forest in front of a bunch of hoity toity doctors and lawyers who are there for a social event? We need to energize the fan base as well as our basketball team. If something is not done, and done soon, EVERYTHING that was built up in the last 20 years will be for absolute naught. I will end with this - While we may have gotten beaten to a bloody pulp on Saturday AT LEAST WE STAYED ON THE COURT TO TAKE THAT BEATING!
Thomas S on 01/15/2012 (3:59 pm)
As you said in your article after the game, the State coaches knew where the ball was going before it got there! Great coaching Buzz!!
Dan on 01/15/2012 (12:40 pm)
What else can be said? As I’ve said too many times before Wellman made a big mistake hiring Bzdelik. He did it all himself and he should pay the consequences. Wake needs changes in its athletic department now. Complacency has no place in any job. To let Wellman and company continue with their tactics will only discredit the university itself. Now is the time for action.
Sam on 01/15/2012 (12:40 pm)
Didn’t like what I saw yesterday. For the first time, we left with 14 minutes left. Don’t know what will be done re. Bzdelick, but need to tell people…stop the “wish Dino was back” stuff. Anyone with an ear to the ground that is around the program knows that Dino had to go and it didn’t have to do with his record…get over it.
Jim on 01/15/2012 (11:48 am)
This mess belongs to Wellman. Frankly, I don’t fault Bzdelik for taking the opportunity to coach here. That said, it’s apparent it’s not working out. It was apparent last year too! Since Wellman is sitting quiet and hoping for a rescue from what I suppose is the worst decision of his tenure, would somebody at Wake on the next level step in and end this pathos. The sooner a decision is made to change coaching, the sooner an answer will be found to this sad low point in WF b-ball. To McKie, your desire to shoulder the leadership for this team stands out. Wake is fortunate to have you! But, it’s a team sport and others on the court have to step it up mentally and game time too! I started with Wellman and I’ll end there. He made a poor decision and is now party to a career setback for Bzdelik. Man up, admit your mistake, and do your job…..or will someone on the next level please do it for him??
Steve on 01/15/2012 (9:21 am)
The following is an email sent to Ron Wellman’s office yesterday afternoon. It’s time to put more pressure on the man in charge to do the right thing.
Mr. Wellman: I’ve been a faithful fan since I enrolled at Wake in 1967. Today’s game with State was the worst performance from the standpoint of effort, passion, strategy and pride I’ve ever seen from a Wake Forest basketball team. My professional career is in psychology . . . understanding human behavior. What I saw today is a basketball program of players and coaches who have hit rock bottom. It is just not working as players appear to be regressing instead of improving. Coach Bzdelik appears clearly incapable of moving the program forward to being consistently competitive and respected. Let’s not blame the slide on the lack of talent because there are talented players on this team. The time is now to make an immediate change by terminating Bzdelik’s employment. And I’m willing to bet that the Deacon Club would back you 100%.
You pulled the trigger on Dino. It’s now the time to pull the plug on Jeff. Waiting until March will only further scar the psyche of the players and the fans.
Boo on 01/15/2012 (9:11 am)
I’m not sure how anyone could be surprised to see Wake lose like this. Our team has turned in a number of performances just like this over the last year and a half. I’m just happy that the team makes an effort at least occasionally not to embarrass the university.
Jonathan on 01/15/2012 (1:36 am)
EMBARRASSING TODAY!!!! Coach Bzdelik all I am gonna say is, if you think Wake Forest nation is gonna be happy if and when you make the NIT, you’ve got another thing coming. With all of the “talent” coming in next year and the more experienced guys coming back, some things had better start to change. I could probably give a pass for last year and this year to some extent because Wake just isn’t very talented or deep right now. I see only 3 ACC players on this team: Mckie, Harris (at times), and Ty Walker (at times) and that’s it. The rest need more time to develop and COACHING. I love my Deacs but this is getting hard to watch. No energy in the arena today at all from the fans or the players and this was before the game got out of hand. I also love the puppy fans chanting “Wolfpack” at the end of the game. Good for State as they are usually the only ones I can tolerate but then again maybe it’s because they’ve experienced the pain we are now going through for several years. Not sure what to think at this point. I’m not sure what Dino did that was so bad and I know he stunk in the postseason but at least he could bring in some talent (there’s that word again) and get folks excited about Wake Forest basketball…...at least until the postseason got here. I’m frustrated so I can’t imagine how the players feel right now.
Cliff Daniel on 01/15/2012 (1:28 am)
Unfortunately, this loss didn’t bother me too much. I’ve come to expect to lose big each game and am pleasantly surprised when they actually win. What has this program become? This is just embarrassing.
I agree with beach deac- Bzdelik might be a decent assistant coach in some mid-major conference, but no way is he qualified to coach in the ACC. Wellman needs to undo this mistake or he will be run off by the Alumni. As long as Bzdelik is coach of our basketball team, I feel no desire to donate any money to the program.
Ron Burgundy on 01/14/2012 (11:53 pm)
Can we now dispense with the bull and recognize ineptness for what it is? Can we now decide that this team is going nowhere? I really feel for the guys because they committed to a college in Winston-Salem when they had offers from others. For Buzdelik to be such an X’s and O’s guy, there was certainly no offense to speak of. I coach YMCA basketball and I could not believe my eyes today. One guy dribbling, 4 guys standing. Wow, what a great offensive scheme. And as usual, the team we’re playing has people wide open for 3’s. I looked at our bench several times and not ONE assistant coach was even looking half-way into the game. Rusty LaRue looked like he was more worried about keeping the stats right than what was going on. I even saw Jeff Battle kinda looking into la-la land a few times and digging into what seemed a gum ball bucket searching for candy or something. No emotion, no leadership, nothing. Where is the fire? Where is the excitement? Can we as the Deacon nation now please do something about this? This is just plain pitiful and not worthy of watching anymore. Sorry for putting it out there like that, but this is a joke. I hope Mr. Wellman is pleased.
Dano on 01/14/2012 (11:13 pm)
