Basketball Film Study- Baylor

With 8:42 left in the game Jared Butler hit a runner off the glass that put Baylor up by a score of 59-46. According to KenPom the Washington win expectancy at that point was just 3.4%. And that’s without taking into account that the Huskies were playing a young lineup which had 2 juniors, 1 sophomore, and 2 freshmen on the court for the rest of the way. While Baylor was playing several upperclassmen all of whom had at least one full year of college basketball under their belt.

Spoiler alert: The Huskies still won. In honor of the biggest non-conference victory since Washington upset #2 Kansas in Coach Hopkins’ first season let’s go to the film to diagnose how the Dawgs were able to pull off the upset. There was plenty of bad in this game, particularly in the first half, but we’re going to be focusing on the good. If you’re on your phone, make sure you’re connected to wifi...gifs await you.

Offense: Down by 13- Stewart 2-Pointer

After the seeming dagger by Jared Butler Washington came right back down the court and found Isaiah Stewart posting up just outside of the key. He’s still 10 feet away from the basket but as Stewart backs his man down it’s clear there isn’t an immediate double team coming. MaCio Teague is shading off of Jaden McDaniels and looks like he’s willing to go for the steal should Stewart turn towards the center of the court. McDaniels realizes this and cuts to the basket which takes two defenders’ attention. However, it’s largely unnecessary as Stewart completely works Freddie Gillespie down low with a perfect up and under move for the “easy” score. If Stewart had wanted to he also had the ability to hit Quade Green who would’ve been wide open for a 3 on the wing.

Defense: Down by 11- Bey Steal

After the Isaiah Stewart score, Jamal Bey came in for Quade Green. This gives the Husky zone a pair of 6’6 players in the front with Bey plus Nahziah Carter and an all 6’9 backline with Jaden McDaniels and Hamier Wright on the wing and Isaiah Stewart at center.

Jared Butler tries to drive past Jamal Bey but he has learned a few tricks from Matisse Thybulle and Bey pokes the ball away from behind. Hameir Wright can’t quite control it and tries to tip it to Isaiah Stewart. This could’ve turned out poorly if Gillespie had been able to control the ball right under the basket but Stewart lunges and tips the ball right back to Wright to complete the steal. He also flattens Gillespie and I’ve seen Pac-12 ref crews that would’ve called a foul on Stewart there.

Offense: Down by 11- Carter 3-Pointer

It worked last time so the Huskies once again decide to post-up Isaiah Stewart with Naz Carter making the entry pass. Stewart catches it in almost the same spot but Carter’s defender saw what happened last time they left Stewart alone on the block and he slowly drifts away from Carter to be able to double. Carter edges to the center of the court though and Stewart immediately passes out of it and hits Carter perfectly in rhythm for Naz to knock down the 3-pointer. Carter’s shot still takes way too long but he’s proven that if he’s wide open and allowed to step into it that it’s accurate and we should see plenty of it this season with the offensive talent around Carter.

Defense: Down by 8- Baylor Turnover

Baylor took a timeout at the beginning of this possession but after they re-enter the ball there is absolutely nothing for them. Tristan Clark sort of tries to get open in the high post with about 8 seconds left on the shot clock but there’s no way for Baylor’s guards to get him the ball over the arms of Naz Carter without Stewart having enough time to contest. MaCio Teague decides to drive as Carter almost leaves his feet but he quickly finds Carter trailing right behind him and Stewart blocking his view of the rim. The call is that Teague loses the ball on his own out of bounds but if he gets off a shot it’s almost certainly blocked by one of Carter or Stewart.

Offense: Down by 10- McDaniels 2-Pointer

Things slow down after a frantic stretch when: Hameir Wright turns it over on an entry pass to Stewart, Carter steals it from Baylor but is blocked going for a transition layup, McDaniels has a monster chase down block, and it winds up in Baylor’s hands for a layup.

The Huskies don’t get into a full offensive set on this position as Jaden McDaniels gets the ball beyond the 3-point line on the wing. Hameir Wright sets a screen for Jaden and he opts not to use it and instead dribbles into the middle of 3 Baylor players. Luckily, Jaden has a quick pull up move and a 6 inch height advantage over his defender. He elevates for a midrange jumper which is not an efficient shot but it rattles home to bring the Dawgs back within 8.

Defense: Down by 8- Missed Baylor 2-Pointer

This is a really nice pass by Jared Butler to give Baylor a shot at getting off a good look. The Bears offense is again fairly stagnant but he whips it to Freddie Gillespie who is open on the baseline about 6 feet from the rim with Isaiah Stewart under the hoop. Gillespie had made 2 previous shots from the same location earlier in the game and this time Stewart knew to expect him to instantly pull up and Isaiah gets all of his 7’4 wingspan into the shooter’s face. The ball rims out and Jaden McDaniels is in good position to seal off the offensive rebound attempt by Tristan Clark and allow Jamal Bey to come down with the board

Offense: Down by 10- Hameir Wright 3-Pointer

Naz Carter missed a 3-pointer early in the shot clock and Baylor countered with a beautiful no look bounce pass for a layup to extend the lead back out to 10. It was also Baylor’s last made field goal of the game.

Washington is a little lackadaisical with their set here but it still results in an open 3-pointer. Jamal Bey brings up the ball with Hameir Wright and Isaiah Stewart both setting up at the top of the arc. Bey doesn’t use them as screeners and instead retreats a bit to the opposite wing. Wright and Stewart both slowly collapse to the free throw line but just after getting there Wright sprints out the to the 3-point line. Stewart takes a step to the side in order to screen out Wright’s man Tristan Clark. Stewart’s defender stays next to Stewart and so despite Wright not having the quickest release he still has plenty of time to let it go before his man catches up. It swishes through.

Defense: Down by 7- Stewart Block on Baylor 2-Pointer

Baylor again tries to get it down on the left baseline and this time it’s Tristan Clark there. He wants no part of that shot as Hameir Wright also collapses on him and instantly gets it back out behind the 3-point line. Naz Carter and Wright decide to try to double team but Bandoo gets off a nice bounce pass back to Clark before they’re set and Clark dishes it to Gillespie at the top of the cylinder guarded by Jaden McDaniels. Gillespie attempts a fade away 5-foot jumper but both McDaniels and Stewart from the weakside contest the shot and it has no chance. It’s tough to tell whether only one or both of them get the ball but Stewart was officially credited with it and McDaniels comes down with the ball.

Defense: Down by 6- Stewart Block on Baylor 2-Pointer

Before this play Jamal Bey gets matched against Gillespie and correctly decides to drive on the Baylor center. Gillespie fouls him but he can’t quite get the layup to go down and Bey makes 1 of 2 free throws to pull it to 6.

Baylor here gets a screen on the perimeter for Jared Butler and he takes advantage of the space to whip a one handed no look pass to Tristan Clark on the baseline. It happens right as Isaiah Stewart takes a step to his left seeing an open Davion Mitchell in the corner and not expecting Butler to fit the ball through that window. Against 99% of defenders Clark just dunks that ball and gets an and-1. Instead, Stewart has the agility to slide over and meet him at the summit. Clark hangs on the rim after the dunk attempt and the ball goes through the basket but while he’s still holding it for offensive basket interference and a turnover.

Defense: Down by 4- Missed Baylor 2-Pointer

Prior to the clip above, Hameir Wright has a nice block but after a scrum Baylor gets control and misses an open corner 3-pointer although with Stewart closing out hard. Wright is barely able to control the ball as he’s falling out of bounds and gets it to Carter. Washington can’t get an open look and are bailed out as McDaniels is fouled with 4 seconds left on the shot clock and makes both free throws to close it to within 4.

Baylor gets multiple contested offensive rebounds on their possession including 2 that went off of Husky players out of bounds. Ultimately, Butler inbounds it here with a shot clock reset to 20 and Mark Vital gets just enough of a screen on Jamal Bey to let Jared Butler turn the corner. He’s 1 on 1 heading towards the basket against Isaiah Stewart and wisely chooses to shoot a floater over Stewart’s outstretched arms. However, Stewart has an amazingly quick second jump after turning around and is able to sky everyone for the defensive rebound.

Defense: Down by 5- Missed Baylor 2-Pointer

Jamal Bey missed a wild layup and after Baylor came down with it Jaden McDaniels was called for flopping when a Baylor player jogs into him heading down court. Despite the flop warning earlier in the game going against Baylor. The Bears make the free throw to go up 5.

As Baylor puts the ball back in play the Huskies clearly show their intention to put on a full trap on ball handler Jared Butler. But he was ready for it and with no hesitation launches a half court pass to Tristan Clark who is camped under the rim. Luckily for the Huskies when Clark catches the ball he decides to bring it back down rather than try for an alley-oop layup. That gives Isaiah Stewart, who was at the free throw line, time to recover and contest the shot. Mark Vital goes over the back of Jaden McDaniels on the rebound and McDaniels comes up clutch by nailing the pair of resulting free throws.

Defense: Down by 3- Missed Baylor 3-Pointer

Jared Butler again finds Tristan Clark on the baseline but this time Clark has learned not to put the ball on the floor and passes it to MaCio Teague before hitting the ground. Naz Carter frantically closes out to prevent a 3-point attempt but his momentum carries him too far and he opens up a driving lane to the middle. Quade Green (who just re-entered the game) helps and shuts off the drive attempt but Teague finds Butler with his feet set 5 feet behind the arc. Green makes a valiant attempt at a contest but at 6’0 he has no shot. Luckily for the Huskies the open 3 is slightly off target and another contested rebound goes out of bounds off Baylor.

Offense: Down by 3- Carter 3-Pointer

The Huskies are trying to post-up Jaden McDaniels on the left block as he has the 6’3 Jared Butler defending him. Quade Green gets the bounce entry pass but right as he’s about to let go, Butler jumps the lane going for the steal. Green compensates and puts the pass to space instead of directly to Jaden. Luckily McDaniels is long and agile and he gets to the ball before it can bounce out of bounds.

After corralling the pass Jaden spins towards the baseline to avoid Butler who is now outside of him. Freddie Gillespie is still between McDaniels and the rim though and so he takes one dribble then rifles a pass to the opposite wing where Naz Carter is waiting wide open. Carter’s defender, Devonte Bandoo, had crept in to front Isaiah Stewart after Gillespie left Stewart to cut off the drive by McDaniels. Bandoo makes a valiant effort at a close out but Carter drains the open look and ties the game.

Defense: Tie Game- Missed Baylor 3-Pointer

Baylor gets off a corner 3 on the next possession and the contested rebound goes out of bounds off Washington. The Bears throw a football pass past half court to get the ball back inbounds and afterwards have just some token passing on the perimeter. Quade Green shades to the free throw line to cut off an entry pass to Mark Vital. MaCio Teague is set up about 4 feet behind the 3-point arc and is ready to launch from straight away as soon as he gets it. The 6’0 Green has no chance to truly contest but the shot is well short and ultimately is out of bounds off Bandoo and Washington’s ball.

Offense: Tie Game- Stewart Made 2-Pointer

Before the clip starts the Huskies try to run the same action to get Jaden McDaniels the ball down on the left block. However, Baylor sandwiches Jaden and there’s no way for Quade Green to get him the ball. Quade resets and Baylor switches when Stewart sets a pick which puts the 6’5 Mark Vital on Stewart and the 6’9 Gillespie on Green. Everyone on the Husky offense realizes what’s about to happen at the same time and as Hameir Wright catches the centering pass, Isaiah Stewart puts out his butt and backs Vital down under the basket. The pass from Hameir is perfect and in one motion Stewart catches it, turns, and with feathery touch shot puts it at the rim over the arms of Vital. The ball hits the back iron but bounces off the backboard and in to give Washington their first lead since 5-3.

Defense: Up by 2- Wright Block on Baylor 2-Pointer

Jamal Bey re-enters the game for Quade Green with the Huskies just needing a single stop after Baylor calls timeout. When the Bears bring the ball up the court Washington is in man rather than zone for essentially the first time all night. The 6’2 Davion Mitchell tries to blow past the 6’9 Hameir Wright and takes it to the rim. Jamal Bey has left his man to guard the basket. Bey’s guy is sealing off Isaiah Stewart to take away the threat of rim protection or a defensive rebound. Both Bey and Wright contest the shot and Wright is able to get his fingers on it when Mitchell pulls the ball back to avoid Bey. Stewart is able to get his touch the loose ball but can’t corral it. Luckily, Carter swoops in and gets it and is fouled.

Defense: Up by 3- Missed Baylor 3-Pointer

Carter can’t make both free throws so Baylor has a chance to tie with 15 seconds left in the game. The Huskies are once again in man defense and by the time Baylor brings the ball up court there are 10 seconds left. A pair of Baylor players set picks as Isaiah Stewart sits back defending the rim. Hameir Wright jumps out defending Butler on the switch. Butler tries to drive on Wright but Hameir completely shuts him down and is still in position to prevent Butler from getting off a 3-point attempt. He’s still able to find MaCio Teague who quickly cuts to the wing but Jaden McDaniels is still all over him and his 7+ foot wingspan forces a slight hesitation from Teague. That extra little move throws off Teague’s rhythm and it ends up an airball in the hands of Stewart. Huskies win.

***
You can follow me @UWDP_maxvroom for all your UW Men’s Basketball news and notes