| Arroyo's play
He brought the ball down 9 times. We got a good shot off 8 times. The only time we did not was as the 1st quarter ended, as we were working with a short shot clock.
We scored 7 of the 9 times down. (Should have been 8 if Rip had not fumbled that rebound right under the basket.)
On defense, not once did a point guard score on Arroyo, nor get away from Arroyo to break down our defense. Their scoring was Mihm once working the post, and Kobe getting away from his guy on picks and nailing some shots.
Arroyo played 5 minutes. No assists, nor any other stats. No fouls. It was a 6 point lead when he entered the game, and an 8 point lead when he left. Plus 2.
Two factors kept Billups in the game. One, Billups was our first option in this game as far as who we were putting on Kobe. Second, Billups had sustained a nasty knee to his thigh. He stood the risk of that thigh tightening up on him if he sat any in the 2nd half.
In sum, we got 5 minutes of flawless play from Arroyo. The one thing Arroyo could not bring that Billups does is defense on Kobe. (And just like Tay, the fact that CB can defend Kobe so well makes him one darn valuable player. MVP of the league, why not.) |