Joakim Noah has himself another Andrei Kirilenko-type statline in a dominating all-around performance to propel Florida into the Sweet 16. Brandon Roy does the same for UW, but in much more discreet fashion. James Augustine appeared to be on his way to a career night but was stopped short in so small part due to his teammates. The Dukies click on all cylinders and all find themselves amongst many others in the Stock Up department.
The Stock Down and Neutral prospects for this round can be found HERE.
Stock Up
Joakim Noah, 611, Sophomore, SF/PF/C, Florida
17 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 turnover, 4 blocks, 2 steals, 5-10 FG, 7-9 FT
Jonathan Givony
For the 2nd NCAA tournament game in a row, Joakim Noah produced an Andrei Kirilenko-esqe stat-line in a winning effort for the #3 seeded Florida Gators. And for the umpteenth time this season, he did it in a way that had NBA scouts and GMs salivating at his upside.
Time after time Noah would do things with the ball that 6-11 players are just not supposed to do; starting off a play with an emphatic blocked shot or rebound, handling the ball and igniting the fast break himself 60 feet down the floor, and then delivering a pin-point no-look pass to a streaking teammate. With Corey Brewer in foul trouble or slightly dazed after a hard fall mid-way through the first half Coach Billy Donovan decided to play Noah at the small forward position to let the NBA scouts salivate some more. And salivate they did as Noah broke his man down off the dribble and passed off wonderfully to a teammate for an easy basket. When the full-court press came in the back-court Noah went to help his point guard out and calmly broke it himself. If that wasnt enough to start drawing the Kevin Garnett comparisons, he promptly stepped outside and pulled up off the dribble for an 18-foot mid-range jumpshot, which he swished.
In half-court sets he showed that hes capable of playing like a big man too, utilizing his quickness for a beautiful drop-step move and a thunderous one-handed dunk, or posterizing two rivals at the same time by just exploding over the top of them for the tomahawk jam. His jump-hook shots werent really falling for him today as much as they usually do, struggling a bit with the strength of his UW-Milwaukee opponents who refused to give him any space in the paint, but Noah found other ways to make his presence felt. Just to show off his toughness, Noah took a hard shot to the mouth just a month after having oral surgery in the same place, but brushed it off as if nothing happened and kept on fighting.
At half-time a phone call from an NBA talent evaluator told much of the story about how Noah drove the dozens of scouts present in Jacksonville ballistic with his play. Top 10? he sneered Hes going to get consideration for #1 overall when its all said and done. The stories they missed on TV about the incredible growth spurt he went through between his sophomore and senior years of high school (going from being a 6-2 point guard to a 6-11 center) probably wouldnt do much to change their minds, considering what that means for his upside.
Time after time Noah would do things with the ball that 6-11 players are just not supposed to do; starting off a play with an emphatic blocked shot or rebound, handling the ball and igniting the fast break himself 60 feet down the floor, and then delivering a pin-point no-look pass to a streaking teammate. With Corey Brewer in foul trouble or slightly dazed after a hard fall mid-way through the first half Coach Billy Donovan decided to play Noah at the small forward position to let the NBA scouts salivate some more. And salivate they did as Noah broke his man down off the dribble and passed off wonderfully to a teammate for an easy basket. When the full-court press came in the back-court Noah went to help his point guard out and calmly broke it himself. If that wasnt enough to start drawing the Kevin Garnett comparisons, he promptly stepped outside and pulled up off the dribble for an 18-foot mid-range jumpshot, which he swished.
In half-court sets he showed that hes capable of playing like a big man too, utilizing his quickness for a beautiful drop-step move and a thunderous one-handed dunk, or posterizing two rivals at the same time by just exploding over the top of them for the tomahawk jam. His jump-hook shots werent really falling for him today as much as they usually do, struggling a bit with the strength of his UW-Milwaukee opponents who refused to give him any space in the paint, but Noah found other ways to make his presence felt. Just to show off his toughness, Noah took a hard shot to the mouth just a month after having oral surgery in the same place, but brushed it off as if nothing happened and kept on fighting.
At half-time a phone call from an NBA talent evaluator told much of the story about how Noah drove the dozens of scouts present in Jacksonville ballistic with his play. Top 10? he sneered Hes going to get consideration for #1 overall when its all said and done. The stories they missed on TV about the incredible growth spurt he went through between his sophomore and senior years of high school (going from being a 6-2 point guard to a 6-11 center) probably wouldnt do much to change their minds, considering what that means for his upside.