If you watched the Gonzaga, Western Kentucky game yesterday you realized one thing. Players play, and coaches coach. Let's recap the final moments from the game copyright ESPN.
Steffphon Pettigrew hit a tip-in for the 12th-seeded Hilltoppers (25-9) that tied it at 81 with 7.2 seconds left. But Goodson took the inbounds pass and went straight to the basket with little resistance, hitting from close on the left side.
You can click on the title of this blog to watch the video. It was a pretty entertaining finish to say the least. But what I like most is the Gonzaga coach didn't take a time out after Western Kentucky made their shot. I would be willing to bet that 95% of coaches would have called a timeout in that situation. Maybe they didn't have any left I don't know. But that Gonzaga kid would have never been able to do what he did had a timeout been taken. The defense would have had time to set up and find their guys. Tubby Smith took a timeout in this situation a few weeks ago, and it might have cost them the game. Westbrook made the 3-Pointer right as Tubby was taking the timeout. No this is splitting hairs I know. But sometimes letting the players play is the best option. Coaches often times over coach. These college players have played thousands of games in their lives. And hundreds of these games come down to the final minute of play. So why do some coaches feel the need to stop play completely and design a play. When often times all you're doing is letting the defense get set. You saw it yesterday, the players on Western Kentucky were part giddy because they just made the shot, and part confused because they didn't know what was going on. So Gonzaga is moving on because they took advantage of this chaos.
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