Monday, December 27, 2004
GAME 25: SUPERSONICS 98, JAZZ 88
SuperSonics 98, Jazz 88
[Edit Tue ~3:17a -- Amount of Utah turnovers in the Peek changed from incorrect 33 to correct 26. That's called looking at the wrong column in the boxscore.]
Here's the smattering of game notes I have. I did one Seahawk-style game post this year for the Sonics (the second game of the season) and let's face it, there's way too much that goes on during the course of a basketball game for anyone in their right mind to track it like that for free. So here I've got a sentence or two wherever I thought it was relevant.
1st qtr
In the first half of the quarter, the Sonics seemed to settle for perimeter jumpers on the fast break, with mixed results. Reggie Evans looked good on the defensive end, and got to the line and hit three of four, using his seemingly newfound free throw technique (I swear he's tweaked it). The Jazz turned the ball over a lot early, but still hung close.
2nd qtr
The Jazz chopped a 10-point deficit to come within one about halfway through the quarter. The run was fueled by some Sonic turnovers and the diminutive Raul Lopez. The Sonics eventually lost the lead; they didn't take the ball to the rack enough and settled for too many perimeter jumpers. In addition, one or two finishing opportunities at the hoop didn't go in. The game was tied 52-52 at half. I think I heard Calabro and Ehlo say that the Sonics only had two rebounds the entire second quarter. An earlier stat said that 30% of the Sonics' rebounds this season are on the offensive glass.
3rd qtr
The Sonics were down 8 about halfway through the quarter. No shots were going in, and they were unable to get to the rack. I think I saw Luke Ridnour have three different layups fail to fall. The Jazz turned the ball over twice after the Sonic timeout (after the Jazz opened their biggest lead of the night), then the Sonics hit three quick baskets. Nice Ridnour moves and a layup tied the game at 66 though, with an 8-0 Sonic run. The Sonics got on 10-0 run, forcing turnovers, drawing Utah fouls, and even getting shot clock violations from the Jazz. A Luke Ridnour three from the left corner took the run to 13-0. The run was broken by a Lopez three. There were some stupid Sonic mistakes toward the end of the quarter after they get some Jazz turnovers on defense. The Sonics had one lob pass intercepted as well as a bad outlet pass that Kirk Snyder turned the other way for a dunk. The Sonics led 73-72 after three quarters.
4th qtr
Nick Collison was making some nice defensive plays and even chipping in with a basket down low. Someone tell Ron Murray to stop taking all these long jumpers after holding the ball for ten seconds. Vlad hit a key three to answer a Utah three on the other end with 7:37 left. Rashard Lewis hit a three on the very next possession, probably the dagger shot for the Jazz. The Sonics intercepted another pass but couldn't control possession in the backcourt...again. This is happening a lot. Fortson cradled a rebound for a while and Murray was slow to bring it up; they got whistled for eight seconds in the backcourt at 6:19. The Sonics were in the bonus at 4:17. Fortson's only got two fouls?! Ron Murray doesn't pass the ball enough. The Sonics were 13 of 14 at the free throw line in the quarter. The Jazz are 3-11 without Andrei Kirilenko.
---
The Sonics played a great first quarter, a sloppy second quarter, and then got back into the game with the big 13-0 run in the third quarter. They cranked up the defense in the fourth quarter, forcing the Jazz into turnovers and a bunch of missed shots. They also drew the Jazz into a ton of fouls, and cashed in at the line, going 13-for-14 in the final quarter. The Sonics had five double-digit scorers, and got some nice contributions from the entire bench, with Nick Collison providing some solid defense along with the occasional putback.
PEEK AT THE BOXSCORE
starters: Rashard Lewis 22 pts/6 reb/4 stl (8-17 FG, 4-7 3pt), Ray Allen 19 pts/4 ast/4 reb (8-21 FG, 1-7 3pt, 2-2 free throws), Luke Ridnour 11 pts/6 ast (3-9 FG, 4-4 free throws), Reggie Evans 9 pts/4 reb/2 stl (5-6 free throws)
bench: Ron Murray 10 pts/2 ast/2 stl (2-10 FG, 6-8 free throws), Danny Fortson 10 pts/4 reb (6-6 free throws), Vlad Radmanovic 8 pts/3 ast/3 reb/3 stl (2-3 3pt), Nick Collison 6 pts/7 reb (3-3 FG)
Jerome James Watch: 3 pts/2 reb/1 blk (1 turnover), 18 minutes...the stepback turnaround jumper was a pretty nice shot though
team: shot 31-for-71 (43.7%) from the field, 8-for-21 (38.1%) from three, and 28-for-34 (82.4%) from the line; were outrebounded 40-33; had 13 turnovers compared to Utah's 26; scored 23 points off Utah turnovers; had 12 steals to Utah's 4; bench outscored Utah's bench 34-21
Looking at the boxscore, it's pretty apparent who the horses in this Sonic offense are, but the team did manage to get three more guys into double figures.
Luke Ridnour is continuing on his not-so-good shooting ways, but one of the shots he did nail was a key three during the Sonics' big run, and he was perfect in four attempts at the line. Building off what I had for the last game, Luke Ridnour is now shooting 9-for-46 (19.6%) in his last five games. But Luke got 11 tonight, and his 6 assists are a welcome sight as well.
Danny Fortson managed to stay on the floor for 18 minutes, which isn't much more than he had in his last three games combined. Fortson only ended up with three fouls.
Nick Collison had a more Reggie Evans-type line tonight than Reggie Evans did. I think I noticed a change in Evans' free-throw technique about three games ago, and he seems like he's doing way better since; he only missed once tonight. Still, if Evans gets that part of his game shored up, he might possibly give this team two Fortsons, as the fact that he hasn't been good at the line in the past is the one thing keeping him off the floor late in the fourth quarter. Okay, two Fortsons is a bit of a stretch, but if the Sonics can get another low-post guy that can grab an offensive board, put it back up, get fouled, and then hit the two shots, it's definitely a good thing. Fortson and Evans were a combined 11 of 12 from the charity stripe tonight.
Ray Allen had 19 points, but only got to the line twice and had four assists. Ron Murray missed 8 of 10 shots from the field, was 6-for-8 from the line, but only had two assists. For me, there's no way Allen should have more assists than Murray, and there's definitely no way that should be the case if Murray bricks 8 of 10. But I'm doing this comparison because Ray Allen doesn't get to the line as much as he did when he was under the weather, but at least his jumper is finding its way back to form.
From a purely defensive standpoint, the Sonics held Carlos Boozer to 5-for-12 shooting and he turned the ball over eight times. Boozer still got his 16 points and 14 boards because, well, he's good.
VICTORY FOR SONICS!! O-KAY!
[Edit Tue ~3:17a -- Amount of Utah turnovers in the Peek changed from incorrect 33 to correct 26. That's called looking at the wrong column in the boxscore.]
Here's the smattering of game notes I have. I did one Seahawk-style game post this year for the Sonics (the second game of the season) and let's face it, there's way too much that goes on during the course of a basketball game for anyone in their right mind to track it like that for free. So here I've got a sentence or two wherever I thought it was relevant.
1st qtr
In the first half of the quarter, the Sonics seemed to settle for perimeter jumpers on the fast break, with mixed results. Reggie Evans looked good on the defensive end, and got to the line and hit three of four, using his seemingly newfound free throw technique (I swear he's tweaked it). The Jazz turned the ball over a lot early, but still hung close.
2nd qtr
The Jazz chopped a 10-point deficit to come within one about halfway through the quarter. The run was fueled by some Sonic turnovers and the diminutive Raul Lopez. The Sonics eventually lost the lead; they didn't take the ball to the rack enough and settled for too many perimeter jumpers. In addition, one or two finishing opportunities at the hoop didn't go in. The game was tied 52-52 at half. I think I heard Calabro and Ehlo say that the Sonics only had two rebounds the entire second quarter. An earlier stat said that 30% of the Sonics' rebounds this season are on the offensive glass.
3rd qtr
The Sonics were down 8 about halfway through the quarter. No shots were going in, and they were unable to get to the rack. I think I saw Luke Ridnour have three different layups fail to fall. The Jazz turned the ball over twice after the Sonic timeout (after the Jazz opened their biggest lead of the night), then the Sonics hit three quick baskets. Nice Ridnour moves and a layup tied the game at 66 though, with an 8-0 Sonic run. The Sonics got on 10-0 run, forcing turnovers, drawing Utah fouls, and even getting shot clock violations from the Jazz. A Luke Ridnour three from the left corner took the run to 13-0. The run was broken by a Lopez three. There were some stupid Sonic mistakes toward the end of the quarter after they get some Jazz turnovers on defense. The Sonics had one lob pass intercepted as well as a bad outlet pass that Kirk Snyder turned the other way for a dunk. The Sonics led 73-72 after three quarters.
4th qtr
Nick Collison was making some nice defensive plays and even chipping in with a basket down low. Someone tell Ron Murray to stop taking all these long jumpers after holding the ball for ten seconds. Vlad hit a key three to answer a Utah three on the other end with 7:37 left. Rashard Lewis hit a three on the very next possession, probably the dagger shot for the Jazz. The Sonics intercepted another pass but couldn't control possession in the backcourt...again. This is happening a lot. Fortson cradled a rebound for a while and Murray was slow to bring it up; they got whistled for eight seconds in the backcourt at 6:19. The Sonics were in the bonus at 4:17. Fortson's only got two fouls?! Ron Murray doesn't pass the ball enough. The Sonics were 13 of 14 at the free throw line in the quarter. The Jazz are 3-11 without Andrei Kirilenko.
---
The Sonics played a great first quarter, a sloppy second quarter, and then got back into the game with the big 13-0 run in the third quarter. They cranked up the defense in the fourth quarter, forcing the Jazz into turnovers and a bunch of missed shots. They also drew the Jazz into a ton of fouls, and cashed in at the line, going 13-for-14 in the final quarter. The Sonics had five double-digit scorers, and got some nice contributions from the entire bench, with Nick Collison providing some solid defense along with the occasional putback.
PEEK AT THE BOXSCORE
starters: Rashard Lewis 22 pts/6 reb/4 stl (8-17 FG, 4-7 3pt), Ray Allen 19 pts/4 ast/4 reb (8-21 FG, 1-7 3pt, 2-2 free throws), Luke Ridnour 11 pts/6 ast (3-9 FG, 4-4 free throws), Reggie Evans 9 pts/4 reb/2 stl (5-6 free throws)
bench: Ron Murray 10 pts/2 ast/2 stl (2-10 FG, 6-8 free throws), Danny Fortson 10 pts/4 reb (6-6 free throws), Vlad Radmanovic 8 pts/3 ast/3 reb/3 stl (2-3 3pt), Nick Collison 6 pts/7 reb (3-3 FG)
Jerome James Watch: 3 pts/2 reb/1 blk (1 turnover), 18 minutes...the stepback turnaround jumper was a pretty nice shot though
team: shot 31-for-71 (43.7%) from the field, 8-for-21 (38.1%) from three, and 28-for-34 (82.4%) from the line; were outrebounded 40-33; had 13 turnovers compared to Utah's 26; scored 23 points off Utah turnovers; had 12 steals to Utah's 4; bench outscored Utah's bench 34-21
Looking at the boxscore, it's pretty apparent who the horses in this Sonic offense are, but the team did manage to get three more guys into double figures.
Luke Ridnour is continuing on his not-so-good shooting ways, but one of the shots he did nail was a key three during the Sonics' big run, and he was perfect in four attempts at the line. Building off what I had for the last game, Luke Ridnour is now shooting 9-for-46 (19.6%) in his last five games. But Luke got 11 tonight, and his 6 assists are a welcome sight as well.
Danny Fortson managed to stay on the floor for 18 minutes, which isn't much more than he had in his last three games combined. Fortson only ended up with three fouls.
Nick Collison had a more Reggie Evans-type line tonight than Reggie Evans did. I think I noticed a change in Evans' free-throw technique about three games ago, and he seems like he's doing way better since; he only missed once tonight. Still, if Evans gets that part of his game shored up, he might possibly give this team two Fortsons, as the fact that he hasn't been good at the line in the past is the one thing keeping him off the floor late in the fourth quarter. Okay, two Fortsons is a bit of a stretch, but if the Sonics can get another low-post guy that can grab an offensive board, put it back up, get fouled, and then hit the two shots, it's definitely a good thing. Fortson and Evans were a combined 11 of 12 from the charity stripe tonight.
Ray Allen had 19 points, but only got to the line twice and had four assists. Ron Murray missed 8 of 10 shots from the field, was 6-for-8 from the line, but only had two assists. For me, there's no way Allen should have more assists than Murray, and there's definitely no way that should be the case if Murray bricks 8 of 10. But I'm doing this comparison because Ray Allen doesn't get to the line as much as he did when he was under the weather, but at least his jumper is finding its way back to form.
From a purely defensive standpoint, the Sonics held Carlos Boozer to 5-for-12 shooting and he turned the ball over eight times. Boozer still got his 16 points and 14 boards because, well, he's good.
VICTORY FOR SONICS!! O-KAY!
/ Click for main page
