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Shaun Noriega's Big Moments Against Providence

The last time Shaun Noriega made a shot from the field before Saturday's game was way back on January 5 against Villanova. Since then, he's fallen completely out of the rotation and has mostly seen mop-up duty in the last few weeks:

-- January 10 at Notre Dame: 17 minutes, 0-for-3 FG, 0-for-3 from three, 2 FTs, 2 points
-- January 13 vs. Seton Hall, 2 minutes, 0-for-1 FG, 0-for-1 from three, no points
-- January 18 vs. St. John's, DNP-CD
-- January 22 vs. DePaul, DNP-CD
-- January 24 vs. Marquette, 6 minutes, did not attempt a shot, no points, 1 assist
-- January 29 vs. Providence, DNP-CD
-- February 4 vs. Georgetown, 6 minutes, 0-for-1 FG, 0-for-1 from three, no points
-- February 8 vs. Pittsburgh, DNP-CD

But with USF desperate for offense and down 46-41 with less than three minutes left on Saturday, Stan Heath decided to roll the dice and give Noriega a shot.

"I looked at him on the bench and said, ‘Shaun, we're going to need you,'" Heath said. "I said, ‘Can you do it?' He said, ‘Yeah, I got one coach.' He gave us two."

Bringing a cold shooter in doesn't work every time (just ask Mike Dunleavy). But it was the perfect move in this game. Let's take a look at those two shots and how the Bulls set him up to save the day.

THREE-POINTER #1 - BULLS TRAIL 46-41

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Noriega starts out by the coach's line and gives the ball to Anthony Collins about 30 feet from the rim. As he and Hugh Robertson pass it back and forth...

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Noriega works around the back end of Providence's 2-3 zone and sets up behind the 3-point line, about perpendicular to the left elbow of the lane.

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Robertson jumps into the lane to create some traffic and force the Friars' defense into the paint with him. This is Collins' cue to begin driving.

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Gus Gilchrist comes out to the 3-point line on the opposite side of Noriega to wait for a kick-out. But his man also leaves to guard Collins as he gets into the paint. Vincent Council also follows Collins...

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so when Collins dishes to Noriega, who has been sliding down the sideline along with him, Shaun has just enough time to get off a 3-pointer from the left corner. Swish.

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(Council does a great job of recovering and closing out, but it doesn't matter. Collins also does well to throw the pass so that Noriega continues moving to his left, giving Council a little bit further to go to defend it.)

THREE-POINTER #2 -- BULLS TRAIL 46-44

USF called a timeout, and Noriega came out for defensive purposes. Providence was called for a questionable offensive foul on their next possession. This gave Heath a chance to put Noriega right back in the game. Unlike the first three-pointer, which came off a drive and kick by Collins, this play was specifically designed to get Noriega open for a three.

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Again, Noriega is on the right side beyond the arc. Robertson flashes out on the left side to get the pass from Collins, while Toarlyn Fitzpatrick starts to extend out.

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When Robertson begins to drive toward the middle, Noriega starts circling around the back of the defense again.

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This time, the Friars are in man, but LaDontae Henton is late to follow him around the corner. Gilchrist had stepped out to set a screen for Noriega, but he doesn't really need it, so Gilchrist backs off and just brushes Henton, to make sure he doesn't get called for a cheap foul the way Kadeem Batts had just been called for on the other end of the court.

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As Noriega comes around to the left wing, Robertson passes him the ball. Fitzpatrick shuffles down to set a pindown screen on Henton while Shaun pulls the trigger. Batts, who has been loosely guarding Fitzpatrick, isn't fast enough to challenge the shot, and Noriega hits another one.

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The best part of this play was seeing Noriega coming around the corner, and realizing they were setting him up for a go-ahead three, and telling yourself, "This would be so awesome if he made this one too." And then he did, and the bench went crazy, and Providence called a timeout, and the Bulls ended up winning, and it was the most satisfying win of the season so far.