After Maurice Barrow tied the game with six seconds left, Washington dribbled down the left side, pulled up a good three steps behind the 3-point arc -- and with Marcus Gilbert, Steve Johnston and K.J. Rose all in his face -- swished a game-winning 3 with 1.4 seconds to go, giving St. Peter's a 65-62 overtime over the Stags win Thursday night at the Mass Mutual Center.....
Still, tied at 58-58 and with 3.3 seconds left in regulation, Marcus Gilbert drove to the basket, only to have his layup try bounce off the rim, forcing overtime. "To be honest, I don't think (Marcus) was as aggressive as he's been," Johnson said. "I think he settled for some jump shots and so I think attacking the basket a little bit more would have produced some buckets but all that being said, he had a layup at the rim to win the game. As good as their defense was, he had a clear look at the rim to close it out but we just couldn't get it done."....
The loss ends the Stags season at 7-25, the most losses in school history in a single season. The light at the end of the tunnel is that Fairfield loses Barrow and will have 11 players returning for next season.
"There's tremendous light. The future is bright," Johnson said. "It's going to be brighter because of him (Barrow). I'll always have the ability next year to tell these guys that they have to be like him. It's been a hard season but Mo empowers me to push these returning guys hard because that's what I did with him and he answered the call every time. Next year we have some stuff to work with but they've got to be like (Mo)." ....
"Sometimes the basketball gods are cruel," Johnson said. "We'll bounce back ¦ but the basketball Gods were short on love for Fairfield this year."
Next year we will be so young, with new players who have to figure out their roles. Be patient. We came so close to winning some of these games. We are still building...the coach has an Ivy coaching pedigree. His brilliant game strategy almost knocked off Kentucky who were not looking past Princeton and taking them lightly.
Last Edit: Mar 7, 2014 7:48:29 GMT -5 by stagparty
I've been defending Sydney to some degree this season. While the players have things to work on this offseason, Sydney needs to work on his postgame comments. These read very poorly.
Next it will be the fans' fault because we are too demanding. Don't we realize you can only reach the top tier of the MAAC once every 20 years? We are on track for a top 5 spot in 2017.
SJ: "the basketball Gods were short on love for Fairfield this year."
So true. But with the Desi Washington trifecta, the basketball gods hath vexed us.
Only the Stags! Has there ever before in the history of college basketball been a case where in three straight games the winning 3 point shot (at or near the buzzer) was made by the same player? My guess is NO! So yes Sydney might want to blame the basketball Gods, there is some bad luck (and maybe karma) involved. But at least last night the real blame should have to go to the terrible rebounding, poor execution down the stretch, and yes, some inexplicable manpower decisions by the coach as the contest came down to its fateful conclusion. Certainly a gut wrentching way for a season to end for those who truly care about Fairfield Stags basketball!
I for one am getting sick and tired of all the people telling us what agreat coach sid johnson is based on almost beating georgetown. Additonally, i am getting tired of all the basketball insiders(announcers/ university administrators/school VP's/ newspaper guys etc.) telling me how great a coach sid johnson is. They follow the unwritten rule never to crticize their own. Great coaches are based on the results they produce. Sorry, but Sids tenure at FFLd. have produced minimal results!
Next year it will be easy to improve on a 25 loss season...that's my fear. Another few wins will be a sure sign we are moving forward! Yea, right . I want drastic, out of the gate, undeniable, exciting improvement. Winning streaks, dominating 20 point wins, huge OOC upsets. Doris and fans should accept no lesser redemption from these coaches. Make us proud again
I for one am getting sick and tired of all the people telling us what agreat coach sid johnson is based on almost beating georgetown. Additonally, i am getting tired of all the basketball insiders(announcers/ university administrators/school VP's/ newspaper guys etc.) telling me how great a coach sid johnson is. They follow the unwritten rule never to crticize their own. Great coaches are based on the results they produce. Sorry, but Sids tenure at FFLd. have produced minimal results!
It was Kentucky not Georgetown, but your point is well stated.
It is very disappointing that we lost this game in the same manner as other games..... By not being able to execute down the stretch. It has masked some of the improvement that this team has made. However, losing leads down the stretch is a major issue that has to be addressed. The SPC tip in's, the SPC blocked shots, and not being able to get good shots off down the stretch were just as much the problem, as Desi Washington's shot.
I also think we lost a lot of the 50-50 loose balls, and the offensive rebounding differential was shocking. We out played them except for those oBoards. That means we got out worked .
I for one am getting sick and tired of all the people telling us what agreat coach sid johnson is based on almost beating georgetown. Additonally, i am getting tired of all the basketball insiders(announcers/ university administrators/school VP's/ newspaper guys etc.) telling me how great a coach sid johnson is. They follow the unwritten rule never to crticize their own. Great coaches are based on the results they produce. Sorry, but Sids tenure at FFLd. have produced minimal results!
We need to bring back Paul Cormier. He almost beat North Carolina. And didn't Mitch Buonguoro almost beat UConn one year? I hear he's looking for work.
Until Sydney gets a job launching grenades in Afganistan, "almost" means nothing. I am one who believe significant progress needs to be made next season. And I won't consider 500 significant progress. Lets assume for a moment that next season we are 500. Gilbert, Gilbert, Sidibe, Johnson and Jenkins will be Juniors and Johnston will be a senior. Even if the next year, the team has a big year, Sydney will be starting all over again the following year with another "young team" as every starter but rose will graduate. So if the team does not win 17 or 18 games next year, I'd say the job is not getting done. You can't wait until everyone graduates and saddle a new coach with nothing, asking that coach to rebuild the program completely from scratch. Next year has to be a top 4 finish.
Last Edit: Mar 7, 2014 23:19:02 GMT -5 by reindeerfan