...In the 2nd half Pope limited our rotation to primarily 6 guys (Jax, Rudi, GG, Fouss, Saunders and Hall) and this unit jelled really well on both ends of the floor. Waterman sat the entire 2nd half and Stewart and AAA only played 3 and 4 mins respectively (AAA played 1 min in OT). This group took much better care of the ball (only 3 TO's in 2nd half), rebounded better (only allowed Dayton 1 off rebound in the 2nd half compared to 9 in the first half) and slowed down the Dayton big man who killed them in the first half (held him to 4pts in 2nd half and 3 in OT).

Dayton played 7 guys in the 2nd half all getting double digit mins. I don't think the excuse of a smaller rotation holds much water here. Our rotation was even smaller. Playing fewer guys helped us get some much needed continuity on the floor and it helped us play better as a unit in several key areas (PPP, rebounding, defense eff all improved and TO's decreased sharply) as the 2nd half showed.