How Marcus Garrett led KU against Dayton ... by helping the team away from disaster
Kansas coach Bill Self stood on the sideline, but with the ball in play, he might as well have not been there at all.
The Lahaina Civic Center was loud. This was overtime in the Maui Invitational championship game, and Self admitted afterward it was one of the most helpless feelings he’s had as a college coach.
Self, scream as he might, couldn’t communicate with guys even a few feet away from him.
It was in this moment — and with this one play — where Self was able to take comfort for one simple reason: Marcus Garrett was on the floor to do the coach’s work for him.
KU went on to defeat Dayton in overtime, 90-84 on Wednesday, and oftentimes in games like this, crucial sequences can get lost in the aftermath simply because there’s so much to talk about.
Let’s not miss one here, though. KU led by one with 1:56 left in OT when Garrett changed the outcome in a unique way.
Multiple times — in a 20-second stretch — he helped KU to a successful possession by keeping the Jayhawks away from the pitfalls that could have led to disaster.
Start with Self’s original play call. This had just worked 90 seconds earlier, when Udoka Azubuike’s ball screen at the elbow led to Garrett throwing an alley-oop pass over the top.
Dayton defended the play better this time ... and this is where everything could have gotten away from KU. Garrett could have forced a drive. He could have tried to squeeze in a pass to Azubuike.
Instead, he backed it out. KU still had time on the shot clock to reset.
Self signaled another play, but there was one problem: Ochai Agbaji didn’t get it and was in the wrong spot.
“I was just tired,” Agbaji said with a smile outside the team bus later. “A lot was going through my head.”
This still had the potential to throw everything off. If Agbaji remained on the wing where he was, KU’s spacing would be out of whack. In a chaotic environment, many teams would have run the play anyway while simply hoping for the best.
Garrett, as KU’s most experienced player, didn’t allow that. The junior — he was supposed to initiate the second playcall — displayed poise, simply standing in place while motioning for Agbaji to cut across the lane to the corner.
“It was so loud in there, I don’t think Ochai could hear what Coach was asking him,” Garrett said. “So I was trying to let him know.”
How many players would do this? How many not only understand the call from their own perspective, but also know the roles of each of their four other teammates, while able to diagnose in real-time when one of those pieces is misaligned?
Garrett did it ... and it’s a good thing too.
One can see how Self thought this whole thing might go awry. TV cameras showed him looking on helplessly from the bench, at one point putting both hands on his head as things seemed to be drifting off course.
Instead — with everyone soon in the right spots — Garrett executed. He faked a ball screen for point guard Devon Dotson, which opened up a driving lane to the right. Dotson took it, then was able to get to the rim for a layup, partly because Agbaji’s defender couldn’t help ... as Agbaji had to be respected as a shooter in the corner.
It wasn’t the only time Garrett showed his basketball savvy. A minute later, when KU ran an action to get a post touch for Azubuike, Garrett was alert when he saw he wasn’t being guarded, instinctually going off script to get to the rim for an up-and-under layup.
“After he was back in there,” Self said of Garrett, “we were obviously a much better team.”
That showed in overtime.
With Garrett’s contributions, KU went 5-for-5 in the additional period. The Jayhawks “got the ball where it needed to go” as Self said in the postgame press conference, with Azubuike attempting the team’s first three shots in extra time.
Dayton, meanwhile, failed to get the ball to its best player, with forward Obi Toppin failing to even get a shot up in the final five minutes.
Maybe Toppin deserves some blame there. More likely, his teammates should shoulder some responsibility as well.
This much is certain: With the game in the balance, one team executed better during chaos without full assistance from the sideline.
KU, as it turns out, had an advantage here for a simple reason:
One of its best basketball minds was on the court.
This story was originally published November 27, 2019 at 9:46 PM.
