Another day, another Raptors loss, another game that was just begging to be won through the first three quarters. But when you let a team hang around for that long, they’re bound to come back and bite you in the ass and bite they did. Chris Bosh’s monster 41 points look really good in the box-score and he did have a great scoring game but when the Cavs were making their run midway through the fourth, CB4 took a series of five questionable shots that help balloon the deficit to 7. From then on, the Raptors kept clawing at the lead but Cleveland did enough (with of course some help from Mitchell) to make sure this thing doesn’t get past regulation. I know it sounds like I’m being really harsh on Bosh but that really is what happened.
Brushing aside for a moment the individual performances of Damon Jones and Daniel Gibson who were left wide open all game long by the Raptors perimeter staff (who played like they hadn’t read the scouting report), let’s get to the key plays of the game. Down 1 with under a minute left, the Raptors choose not to double team Lebron James who drives in for an uncontested layup. OK, I thought, they learned their lesson, next time Smitch will double James. After Kapono cleverly got the two points back on a driving layup (no way that was drawn up), we’re back where we started with us being down a point and James with the ball and Delfino guarding him. What does Sam do? Single coverage again. Yes, single f***ing coverage. Lebron drills an unblockable fade to ice the game. On the ensuing Raptors possession, the best Smitch and the Raptors can come up with is an Anthony Parker fadeway three over two people, no shit it missed. No offensive creativity on the part of the Raptors - couldn’t get a good shot at the basket when we needed it the most.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas was killing us in the post and considering how he’s the most foul-happy player in the league, it would’ve been a wise idea to get him out of the game much earlier than late in the fourth. 16 points and 15 rebounds for the Lithuanian giant hurt us more than anything. One can’t expect Bargnani to guard him down there and the Raptors didn’t do enough to force Big Z to use his feet and in the process pick up quick early fouls. But his contribution would’ve been tolerable hadn’t it been for Jones and Gibson keeping the Cavs in this game in the first half and eventually icing it in the fourth. The blame here has to go as much to the players as to the coaching staff, it’s the players’ job to play defense and even if they were unfamiliar with the scouting reports, Jones and Gibsons’ first half performance should’ve sufficed as fair warning of their abilities. Bad, bad perimeter defense by Calderon, Parker and company allowed the open looks but the fault isn’t all theirs. Defensively, we couldn’t control the paint which often prompted weak double teams that didn’t do anything for us because 1) they weren’t strong enough to pressure ball-handler and 2) they weren’t weak enough to still challenge the shot.
Calderon had a very good game with 13 assists, 7 points and 0 turnovers but the Raptors missed TJ Ford’s scoring punch, the quicker Ford would’ve undoubtedly had much more success guarding the fleet-footed Gibson and Jones than Calderon who played quarterback without ever trying to assert himself offensively. No complaints towards Caldy however, he ran the team well and always made good decisions on our the good ‘ol pick ‘n roll. Lebron James was having success against every defender yet we never actually forced him to give up the ball. At best we used soft double teams from the weak-side which actually allowed him to pick out the shooters. The only aggressive defense we played was with less than two minutes left when a trap forced the Cav into a bad shot, aside from that Lebron had all the time in the world to do what he wanted. For a player that’s completely in the zone, we did nothing to take him out of it and it’s shocking to see Sam Mitchell not even consider double teaming Lebron and forcing somebody else to create the shots.
The Cavs must be given credit, they hit their perimeter shots and their big men dominated the glass and gave them a chance to win, which they took. Thanks for reading, the Bulls tomorrow at the ACC. Get the feed.
With more than half our first-choice midfield (Fabregas, Hleb, Flamini) out due to injury or suspension, Arsenal struggle against a defensive minded Wigan squad that showed resistance through harsh tackling and packing the midfield at times with six men. All for naught though, Bakari Sagna’s cross found William Gallas’ run for the breakthrough. Manchester United lose to Bolton (thanks Nick) so Arsenal are 3 points clear at the top of the table and with a game in hand.
It looked at times that we were destined for a scoreless draw with Denilson being unable to replicate Fabregas’ vision and Lasanna Diarra rarely going forward with any real intention. Rosicky and Walcott were the only apparent threats for the better part of the game, the latter had to be stretchered off after an Emile Heskey challenge from the back that must’ve felt like an earthquake. The sheer height/weight difference between the two was probably enough to see that Walcott had no further part in the game. Yellow cards all around for everybody including Gallas who felt the need to speak up given the hostile nature of the tackle.
How many times have long-balls to Adebayor been successful? I can’t think of one this season so it perturbs me that we continue to look for him in a 4-5-1 setup through long passes that even if he does control, can do little with. I know it’s almost become fashionable to rip on Adebayor but at times he makes it a little too easy to do so. He should’ve scored early in the game after finding himself with enough time and space from 10 yards out, but as expected he delivered a weak shot that the goalie had no trouble saving prompting me to wonder what Eduardo would’ve done with the same opportunity. It’s also apparent that Adebayor’s greatest strength appears to be as a holding forward who can win those balls in the corner and contest for headers, but his suitability as a sniper has always been questionable. It’s also a bit odd that Wenger continues to play the 4-5-1 with a player of Eduardo’s caliber on the bench. Hard to complain however when you’re top of the table. The MOTM has to be our fiery captain William Gallas who’s initial pass that setup Sagna’s cross followed by his determined run for the goal saved Arsenal. Rosicky’s goal was a result of Wigan coming forward leaving them vulnerable at the back. I also enjoyed Galls giving the referee an earful after every debatable call, especially the Heskey foul. The captain fired the Gunners up at just the right time. Arsene Wenger praised Gallas and the team’s ability to generate goals in tough circumstances:
‘He is a forgotten centre-forward because he knows where to be in the box and he can always turn up with a goal when you need it. Once again we found the resources to win the game. It is not the first time, so I do not feel it is a coincidence.’
Eduardo and Bendtner’s introduction seemed to inject some much needed pace up front and although neither had much to do with the Gallas goal, the Wigan defense appeared more stretched when the two were in the game. Theo Walcott’s pace was causing great concern for Wigan and at times looked to be our only chance of unlocking a Wigan defense that was playing for a manager in the stands. A lesson to be learned here is the relative success that Wigan had pressuring our midfield and forwards, not allowing us to play the one-two-touch football that we like to play, then again, we had our Carling Cup squad out there. Robin van Persie is being greatly missed on set-plays, especially freekicks, we didn’t have a single threatening freekick all afternoon with Denlison resorting to chipping the ball in hoping for a header - RVP’s return is the event I’m looking most forward to this season.
The Gunners are cruising, up next is a Champions League clash against Sevilla in southern Spain which if we win, will seal first place in the group allowing our first team to take a break on Matchday 6.
