Griz show character in win over Texas-Arlington
It's been a while since the Griz won a game like this.
Kyle Sharp pumped his fist as the clock clicked to 0.0, celebrating the block of a last-second putback attempt. The bench streamed onto the court, high-fives aplenty after they spent the past 90 seconds bouncing around, attempting to bring the relatively few people in Dahlberg to their feet for the final crucial possessions. It was a character game, showing this team may have the heart to do something to be proud of this season.
Players are beginning to find their roles and you can see Tinkle getting a handle on exactly what those are. We're beginning to find a rotation, lineups that work best together and others that do not. Most importantly, this team played its collective ass off.
The guys showed more effort tonight than any other game I can remember under Tinkle's tenure. Guys were taking charges, throwing themselves around for loose balls and pushing the tempo when it was fitting. We're beginning to see the character of a few guys oozing onto the play of others. Jack had a great block and a sneaky steal from the weakside a la Jordan on Malone in the '98 Finals that inspired the play of others. And how many times did you see the second half of that highlight from Anthony Johnson's deadly midrange game? We've certainly found something in this kid.
This can, and probably eventually will, be spread into its own post but Johnson's already large impact on this team is growing game-by-game. Six turnovers is nothing to write home about but he's emerging as one of the team's best leaders and a fan-favorite who's positive attitude is spreading. In the second half, Johnson entered the game with 14:28 to play and the Griz down 37-43. With 6:22 left they were up 56-49, a 13-point swing. I'll acknowledge there were other factors at play but the team played noticeably harder during this stretch.
More than any other time, the last possession spoke the most about this team. You'd prefer not to have the opponent get three shots at the tie but that was a flukey situation around the rim, including one shot that hit the front rim and then clocked Jordo in the face. The Griz played tough D for the length of the 30 second possession, didn't commit a dumb foul and made sure there was no way in hell that ball was going in, no matter how many shots they had to defend. The bench was into it, everyone wanted this bad.
This team finally showed the emotion and heart it takes to be a great team. Now, onto the road we go. Up next is a road trip that includes the University of Washington and Portland State. We'll get to see if last night was was just an exception or the beginning of something good. I think it's the latter but I'll need some convincing.
Photo credit: Jerek Wolcott for Montanagrizzlies.com
