I think the fix was in during the Cats visit to College Station. I'm not saying that this is an excuse. Chase should have hit that shot especially since they were able to get the ball back to him once he gave it up. Why doesn't he like having the ball for the entire position? It always seems like he needs to get the ball off of a screen.
Other problems:
Fogg and Hill have to hit free throws.
Jamelle Horne should never be in the game during the final shot. He got lost on a switch with Johnson and let the three point specialist have an open look.
That being said....
There was one stretch in the game that initiated the A&M run and the entire sequence was assisted by the refs. With 6.5 minutes left in the game the Cats are up 9. Wise gets called for his 5th foul even though he landed in a jump-stop and the defender used his arms to launch off. Then Chase is called for throwing the ball out of bounds even though it was clearly knocked out from behind and finally Hill gets T'd for verbally responding to a provocation by an Aggie.
Want more evidence:
The Aggies shot 7 more free throws
The Cats had 10 more turnovers (many of them foul induced I would argue)
The Cats had 5 more fouls
The good news is the Cats looked great. When we have 2 of the big three we can hold our own. With 3 of 3 we are tough. Zane Johnson as I predicted hit some big shots and we significantly out rebounded them.
I say consider this a good game and the loss just a Texas Tittie Twister.
I am not surprised that we fouled more, look at the end of the UAB game. Our defensive intensity is so extreme, we did not even allow a 70 foot open jump shot. If anything, this game showed that our "Iron Curtain" can be controlled at the end of the game, as with a lead we did not foul. The tricky thing is we gave up a 3, so if we foul they get 2 and we go to overtime but if we dont they get 3 and we lose. I think Horne might be on to something.
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