True. We thought we needed a true stretch 4, but really wouldâve been better with a good sized 3 who could slide down to 4 if needed at times.
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Did you mean 75?
We scored 74 vs Manhattan which projects to be our season high this year âŚ. Wow!
In 2021-22 we scored 82 in our last buy game to do itâŚwas only game above 75 that year.
2022-23 got above 75 - 6 times
2023-24 got above 75 - 7 times
2020-21 got above 75 - 6 times - also scored 75 that year in a 23 point loss.
2019-20 - only got above 65 twice - and both were Acc games including a loss to Louisville.
For those who donât remember how historically awful our offense was that year - averaged 57 points per game - 351st out of 353.
That team was also historically great on Defense though.
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Donât underestimate how pace/scoring affects winning and recruiting today. Gone are the days of playing lock-down packline defense and scoring/winning games in the 60âs and 70âs. We have to score more to even sniff being elite again.
But letâs look at the AP Top 25 and their respective scoring averages per game:
Tenn 82.4
Auburn 87.1
Iowa State 87.9
Duke 79.7
Kentucky 91.1
Marquette 83.4
Alabama 89.2
Gonzaga 90.2
Florida 86.6
Kansas 78.8
Purdue 78.3
Oregon 79
Oklahoma 81.7
Michigan 80.5
Houston 77
Clemson 77
Texas A&M 75.1
UConn 84.2
Ole Miss 83.4
Wisconsin 81.8
Michigan State 82.3
Cincinnati 82
San Diego State 75.7
UCLA 77.7
Miss. State 78.8
The average scoring across the AP Top 25 is 82.036 ppg. We are averaging 61.4 ppg. The lowest scoring team in the AP Top 25 is Texas A&M at 75.1 - about 14 ppg higher than us. And in 16 of the last 17 years, a team from inside the AP Top 25 at the end of November has gone on to win the title.
To be elite, we have to score in the high 70âs or mid 80âs. This doesnât mean we have to shoot better percentages - it means we have to play faster, be more opportunistic, and let it fly. And maybe more importantly, we have to play faster to be able to recruit players who are elite and not beat the instincts out of them when they get here.
It also doesnât mean that we canât âhonorâ our historical pack-line defense. But I do think we need to mix in a zone periodically (especially this year when we are athletically outmatched) to throw a wrinkle at teams and to take a bit of a breather for a few minutes defensively so we can expend the energy of offense. Most teams ârestâ a little on defense. We ârestâ on offense.
Just my two cents.
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This this and this
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And this
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I think the staff and this team are intending to play faster than the teams of past years but I also donât think playing faster with the personnel we have is the solution. I also think anemic offense and lack of ability to get downhill is limiting the number of possessions this year to an extent.
This is different than last year where the personnel (Reece, Ryan, Elijah Getrude + shooters like iMac & Groves) was more suited to quick run-outs but there was an intentional choice not to outside of a clear 2-1 situation or a Ryan/Reece interception.
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We are roughly a top 60 team in Dai Daiâs minutes. Not like thatâs amazing, but itâs much better than 100 or so, and would give some hope for run to the bubbleâŚ
(Per hoop exlplorer, and comparing against Kenpom stats, which still have preseason bias)
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Hey look at that - a 14 place uptick in NET today thanks to the Cavalanche âŚ
Now 107!!!
It also moved the Hoos ahead of NC State and Wake forest in the Acc and into 10th.
By way of comparison every single team in the Big 12 and SEC is ahead of the Hoos.
TB had a habit of reverting when things werenât going wellâŚspecifically in one of his non-negotiable areas. Transition D, committing turnovers, giving up 2nd chances. Basically you revert to the basics until you get that down then maybe the reins will be loosened. Discipline comes before freedom, etc. I actually think Sanchez is even more conservative than TB in this way.
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I think this is 10000% true - Sides worked pretty well at the beginning against SMU, but it crept back in again last night after a sloppt start.
It was always going to happen. Every off season we hear about changes, they get implemented to a degree, we struggle, anddddâŚBlocker/Mover.
Tale as old as time
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Agree, but Iâve been listening to most of the games this season initially on radio and Jimmy Miller has been pointing out that Sanchez has been screaming âgo, go, go!â on many of our defensive rebounds and our guys are not going. I think that theyâre catching their breath sometimes and thinking too much other times. Iâm thinking that with such a young roster, our guys need a lot more time in the weight room before they have the strength and stamina to play at the level our program demands. We were exhausted in the last minutes of our losses. Iâve also wondered if our guys are putting in the dedication to the weight room that previous teams have when they worked with Mike Curtis. Or have changes been made to their weight training? I havenât seen the tremendous physical growth recently from our guys like we saw with Dre, Ty, Zay, Akil, and others.
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Hey Tony, say the most dystopian thing that comes to your head.
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Go go go is fineâŚexcept when itâs go go go but donât turn the ball over or take a bad shot.
The turnover problem is a mostly a scapegoat thoughâŚlast night was the worst game as far as actually just making bad passes, legit careless turnovers. But more often the turnovers are a result of bad offense. Guys having to force things when nothing is there, possessions that they wouldnât score on anyway.
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Beating about the bush. If high level winning does not come with these systems then we should move on. Ready to fail another way.
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It was crazy. So many aired out passes over screens that were slow. It also didnât help that BC was overplaying offball and taking some risks, so they were well suited to see those and take advantage. We couldâve made them pay with backdoor stuff, but never really did until later in 2nd half.
Iâd like to see adjustments like that a bit quicker in-game. We donât need a sample size of 7-8 before knowing what the deal is. 2-3 should suffice.
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Maybe having our immobile Center cover DJ Laster just one more time, it will workâŚ
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Wow even Wisconsin is averaging 81
This is a very good post. A prerequisite for any reasonable candidate moving forward is modern offense and scoring. The game has completely passed our program by. Luckily, a good coach can change this quickly.
Wisconsin is the perfect indicator of this. UConn also made this shift. We are significantly behind, and Ron has shown zero ability to adjust towards this.
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This was a good video message by Bilas. We are missing ârelentlessâ this year. I think we had it last year with Reece and RD defensively, and certainly before that with so many of our great players. We always try hard, but thatâs different than being ârelentlessâ.
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