Five Takeaways: Doherty versus Grandview
The 2019-20 season finally got started on Monday evening and it was two very talented teams going at it on opening night in Grandview versus Doherty. Doherty made their trek up from Colorado Springs into the Centennial league and gave…
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Continue ReadingThe 2019-20 season finally got started on Monday evening and it was two very talented teams going at it on opening night in Grandview versus Doherty. Doherty made their trek up from Colorado Springs into the Centennial league and gave the Wolves all that they could handle. It was Grandview who was victorious as they won 51-47, but there were plenty of things to take away from this one. Here are my five takeaways.
Close game early
Doherty came out and showed that they are a team to take seriously this season as they not only kept it close early on but matched every single thing that Grandview was doing. Grandview is a preseason Top-10 team with one of the very best big men in the entire state leading the way. They have a game plan and have all bought into it and Doherty was able to execute on their end as well. After the first quarter, Grandview led 17-15 off of a buzzer-beater, at the half, it was tied up at 23-23 as both teams gave some early pushes but Grandview could not shake Doherty as they had an answer back each time down which called for a close finish.
Grandview takes away the game plan
One thing that you are for sure going to get against Grandview is a slow it down and a methodical game where you have to stick to the game plan and not get sucked into what they are doing. They are going to defend well and pass the ball around until they get the shot that they want and with their personnel, it is difficult to not match what they are doing. The second quarter was a perfect representation of this as Doherty matched exactly what they were doing in the first quarter so Grandview head coach Michael Rogers went to what he knows and it worked. The pace was slowed down which worked to the Wolves advantage as both teams tied 8-8 in the second frame. Teams will have to try and win the early quarters and get Grandview rushed and a bit out of their element. If they keep it close or have an early led a team will be hard-pressed trying to overcome that.
Grandview has others step up
It was a bit shocking to have to go to a Grandview game and be forced to look at a roster to see who was who. The Wolves have almost a brand new team, but what was easy to see was the usuals step up and take over. Alongside McGill and Ramiro as players to step up were two players that were there last year in CJ Thomas and Tanner Holtman. Thomas was very productive. He only scored seven points in the game but came up with some huge rebounds, he hustled on both ends of the floor and one thing that will go under the radar was him sacrificing his body for charges which changed Doherty’s mindset of attacking the rim. He took two charges and also was great in help-side defense. Holtman opened up the floor with his outside jumper. He hit three 3-pointers in the game and his gravity opened it up for McGill to operate. If he is consistently able to knock down jumpers with the way that Grandview shifts the defense, he will have a great year.
Stock riser watch
Doherty only had five people get on the scoreboard in Monday’s game with Moerman having a big chunk of the offense. But another player emerged as a player to keep an eye on and that is point guard AJ Guiao. Guiao defended well all night as he moves his feet and stays in front of guards, on offense he pushes the pace, has a good handle and is able to get inside the defense and make the defense have to respect his finishing ability. After a quiet first half where he just got others involved he started to get going late in the game. He hit a big 3-pointer to keep Doherty in it, he then attacked and got to the free-throw where he went 5-6 to try and take down a top-10 team. I liked what I saw out of him and will be following closely as the season progresses.
Battle of the bigs
The highlight of the opening night was the battle of two of the top-5 big men in the entire state going at it in Lucas Moerman and Caleb McGill. Both will be playing Division I basketball next year, Moerman (Air Force) and McGill (UC Davis) and it was quite the header for the first game. Moerman had multiple blocks and changed the way that the game was played as there were no easy shots in the lane, he also was able to get going offensively as he had 18 points including a 3-pointer. He got Doherty started with 12 first-quarter points and then stepped up defensively as the Spartan’s best player. He also gobbled up eight boards, he will surely be one of the top rebounders in the state this season. This will be a great year for him as he gets more comfortable as a scorer and then the sky is the limit for him. For Grandview, it was an easy game plan, feed McGill. Somehow they got away from it at moments as he did not score in the second or fourth quarter but when he was getting the ball, he was dealing as he finished with 17 points to lead the Wolves. He is an aggressive big with good footwork but he can also knock down the 3-pointer consistently which separates him. The play of the game is where he caught it on the wing and powered through the defender for the finish. He has great strength and is a skilled big that will be the focal point of Grandview’s offense. Moerman won the battle, McGill won the war in a very fun opening night.