The Return of the Tweak

[Joneslab]

Maybe he will go to the pick and roll with Ulis and Poythress. It was deadly in the one game he used it.

Totally agree.

We give Poythress grief all the time, and rightly so for the most part...but how many chances did he get to score the other day? He was in foul trouble, yes, but I just can't remember any plays being drawn up for him. We get into these long sequences of the game where we just seem to be running Murray off of screens or having Ulis calling for a sequence of ball screens. Kind of like the offensive coordinator who gets myopic, the sets this team runs can become too one-dimensional.

I like Skal in the pick-and-pop a lot, but I understand why you can't play him extended minutes.

Or we could just run the play where we fan the ball out to Briscoe for the wide-open trey in the corner.

[Wonderstruck]

"NO"???? The last tweak took us to the championship. Tweak away, Cal.

I don't care that there's a tweak. It's the hysteria that comes with it.

[Joneslab]

I don't care that there's a tweak. It's the hysteria that comes with it.

It's Kentucky basketball. There's hysteria and doom and hyperbole with pretty much everything that happens.

[Matt Dillon]

It's Kentucky basketball. There's hysteria and doom and hyperbole with pretty much everything that happens.

That's for sure.

[Wonderstruck]

It's Kentucky basketball. There's hysteria and doom and hyperbole with pretty much everything that happens.

This one is especially eye-rolling, however.

Rarely am I a curmudgeon about stuff, but I'm going to allow myself this one instance. I can't stand tweak-talk (but I'm fine with the results).

[justafan]

This one is especially eye-rolling, however.

Rarely am I a curmudgeon about stuff, but I'm going to allow myself this one instance. I can't stand tweak-talk (but I'm fine with the results).

I agree. I love Cal's masterful handling of the fans and media. But, the tweak stuff is TOO over the top for me. Most coaches would just silently make small changes (I can't imagine any decent coach not making necessary changes).

What, you're going to have your guys make an extra pass? Unheard of in the history of basketball! There should be wholesale celebration/discussion of this monumental achievement!

Sigh.

[Joneslab]

I think the reason that it becomes public is that Cal is always trying to find an angle with the team, esp. when they're struggling.

You put your comments in the echo chamber that is Kentucky basketball, it gets back to the players, the players start to feel that something is different...it's a psychological ploy. I've seen Cal coach in practice: he's as much a psychoanalyst as he is anything.

It's amazing how much media there is following UK. I'm a big Reds fan, and you have to scratch to find information sometimes from their writers. And that's a pro team. Kentucky basketball has a legion of reporters tweeting and analyzing constantly. It's jaw-dropping and incredible. I think Cal uses them to try and get into the players' heads occasionally.

Last time, it obviously worked. This team is very similar to that team in its makeup and how the season has gone so far.

[KCKUKFan]

The "tweak" this time is simply a psychological tool, obviously.

Unless you're counting Skal starting and shooting more. But my guess is that was a flash in the pan and once Derek returns to the lineup, Skal will go back to benchwarmer status in no time.

[justford]

I think starting Skal and having Briscoe run the point a little more was the tweak. I know it got my attention when I saw Skal in the starting lineup. Maybe just a confidence boost for him.

[Blue Heaven]

I think starting Skal and having Briscoe run the point a little more was the tweak. I know it got my attention when I saw Skal in the starting lineup. Maybe just a confidence boost for him.

That's what I figured the tweak was. We are going to need Skal and Alex if we plans on making ANY noise in March. If Briscoe starts hitting jumpers and FTs like he did against Florida and Willis comes back strong, we will be a tough out.

[85 Fly]

to tweak or not to tweak...all I know is we better beat LSU, finish reg season going in the right direction.

[lilproUK98]

The Tweak worked for Skal alright....

[KCKUKFan]

Was the tweak pick and pops for skal? If so, I'd say it's working.