We run the same offense that has won us 23 games and averaging 77.4 points per game. The reason we are scoring less against tough opponents are…wait for it…they are tough opponents.
The other teams play defense too. Sometimes, like yesterday, it’s really good defense.
Look whom we can’t beat this year. High level competition. We use to be able to overcome this with lockdown defense
We will see this competition in B12 Tourny and March Madness
So yes our offense is not overcoming the better teams. It happens. We had some great runs in the B12. I’m hoping we figure it out and get hot at the right time
Pesik, great points, as always. Keep up the great work showcasing your passion on this board. I wish more would offer as much insight.
Not sure I’m willing to say this is the best offensive team of the Sampson era, though. It’s probably the most talented of this era, but last year’s team was far more efficient in terms of the shooting percentages. Better shooting percentages overall last year combined with the customary prowess on the offensive glass made it extremely difficult for teams to keep us off the scoreboard, especially when you got to combine that with a defense that just wore others down. It was a big reason why (after the slow start in November) we were able to go on such the run we did in conference and then through to the title game. Very difficult to ‘lose’ with that kind of efficiency, IMO. Last year’s Duke team was probably one of the top five single-season teams of the last 50 years, and even they couldn’t ‘outscore’ us in the end.
That being said, this is certainly the best free-throw shooting team we have had, but a lot of that is most of our team being perimeter-type players. You’d like more bangers (or should I say, quality bangers…more on that later), sure, but the efficiency at the free-throw line shouldn’t be understated. I see that as a considerable edge provided we are able to get there with enough volume. The lack of an inside scoring presence does make that volume a little tough to attain (especially given our own trouble with the whistles). But I do see our guards penetrating enough and taking a good share of mid-range shots to keep it relatively close most nights. They are also all quite quick off the dribble, so, that’s always gonna help in terms of drawing fouls.
As far as our own fouling problems, the big one really is Tugler (although Flemings has really started having his own issues there, too). But the issue with Jo Jo is more of who we have playing behind him as being a problem. Tugler’s always been foul-prone, but with J’wan and Francis along the middle as enforcers in the past, a lot of what you’d lose in terms of minutes with Tugler was mimimized with having the other 2 quality bigs. We don’t have that at all this year. Sakho is an offensive liability and the only other one who comes close to providing depth there would be Lath, and really no need to assess his value because he wouldn’t see the court at all if this coaching staff had their druthers. I don’t really consider Cenac a BIG, either. He’s more of a stretch guy rather than a quintessential big man. But it’s a mine field you gotta wade through when Tugler gets in foul trouble. Love your point on managing the minutes vs maximizing them. Yeah, that could be a challenge, especially if one of our other guards (namely Sharp or Flemings) is going to be joining him on the bench. I don’t worry so much about Sharp most of the time, the last couple games notwithstanding. But Flemings needs to stay out of harm’s way for sure. All the same, Sharp and Kingston’s availability throughout affects the game a lot less negatively when you know what you’re gonna get from Tugler.
I still see this as a national title team. There’s too much talent to say we’re outmatched here, we’re outmanned there. The last week or so, no, but losses happen to the best of them. It is what it is. Losing close games like we usually do doesn’t really speak to a lack of ingredients as much as it does to general happenstance. The ball bounces funny sometimes, a bad pass will be made, a couple missed free throws, a bad shot here and there…and boom, there’s your 4 losses.
I trust this coaching staff more than I have ever trusted any one of any team (pro or college) as long as I’ve been following sports.
And whatever deficiciencies we have, I’m certain CKS will know how to make adjustments. It’s his job to do so, and he does it better than anyone. The best teams don’t always win anyway. It’s a funny game, especially in single-elimination format.
Let’s enjoy the ride once more and see what happens. Lots of basketball left to be played!
My honest thoughts are we have way too much hyperventilating on this blog. The sky is NOT falling! We didn’t just play Pierre’s Pizza Palace from the rec league. We played freaking Arizona, a team that has been in the top 5 most of the year.
We can go out there nightly and beat most teams, but we have shortcomings that might haunt us in The DANCE when we get to the really GOOD teams… Shortcomings that can, and hopefully will, be fixed.
When we come up against the long/tall teams on offense we are not moving much. Our offense goes as flat as a pancake if we don’t keep moving. Maybe we should start moving more and driving the paint? If we are standing still we are not hard to defend. If we are standing still the other guys can gather their feet quicker and challenge our shots. We have guys that can drive but they aren’t the biggest guys out there. Movement might help us get separation.
I thought Uzan played well against UA but it would have helped us if he had hit a couple of threes and he had tried to drive the paint and hit floaters. This would be a different team if we were driving the paint more often. It is the one part of offense the other guys can’t account for.
Flemings is young and seems to need to handle the ball quite a bit to be effective, but he has had some problems with bigger quicker players that he isn’t used to seeing. Plus, to me Flemings looked tired. Maybe the season’s length is catching up to him?
Sharp is Sharp, but he had a tough day against UA. I dare say if Sharp had hit a couple more 3s this game would have been entirely different. Looks to me that if Sharp is not out there our offense completely disappears. We need Sharp out there because then they have to guard him and that opens things up for us for others. When Sharp is hitting he is a ‘force multiplier’. He causes big problems for the other guys when he’s hitting 3s. And I would like to add I will take Sharp against anybody in the country and yes I mean it.
It appears to me like Tugler and Sahko have become everybody’s whipping boys on this blog. That crap should stop. When Sahko is out there he is doing exactly what we got him for: to be a presence in the paint. He plays D, rebounds, sets nasty screens, and scares the hell out of people trying to drive on us. Tugler is a guy in his own dimension. Yes, he fouls a lot. SO WHAT? I’ll take Tugler, fouls and all, any day.
Cenac and Tugler are who they are- they are beastly. Cenac shows flashes of another gear that says “I am taking this game over now!”. He is almost there. Sometimes he looks scary.
There are other players too and we would be less without Walker, Harwell, McCarty, and Miller.
I think this team will be OK in ‘The Dance’.
This year’s team has more overall depth than in past years, which has helped when we get into foul trouble. Not having an inside threat like Roberts has hurt this year but there’s still time to adjust. Maybe a greater role for Cenac, trying to get more attempts from Tugler/Sakho? We’re not losing by that many points. We don’t need major adjustments. And yes, there’s still time. Tomorrow against Kansas is another opportunity for us.
Our low post offensive issues can be overcome by driving, but we have issues there too. Our guards drive and end up with centers in their faces and they can’t pass the ball because our bigs might drop it. Our bigs catching those passes cleanly, and finishing, would go a long way to helping the offense.
My prediction is Sweet 16. Last time I had us stopping there we lost to Baylor in the Final Four.
My uncle, is an avid college basketball fan (who can’t stand Kansas). He told me he thinks we’ll reach the Final Four. I hope he’s right and I’m wrong.
Just be glad this isn’t the Brooks through McCallum years and the James Dickey experiment. Those years, we’d have been happy to make the first round of the NIT.
UH should just sit Tugler for the entire first half. He usually sits there for most of that time anyway. Let him have 5 fouls to work with for the second half.
To be fair, I have been bringing up this issue throughout the whole season. The offense isn’t optimal for the talent we have and have shown. The defense is close to the best it will be, which is very good.
Going 10 minutes without scoring a bucket clearly indicates there is an issue with the offense moreso than us playing a good defense. Especially with the talent we have.
We aren’t even asking for much more on offense. The adjustments aren’t huge lifts. Just call more dynamic plays and/or quicken up the tempo on certain possessions. If our defense is good to knock down 20 seconds off the clock, then each score will help do that.
Oh FFS with this bs again…
We’ve seen what happens with Flemdawg off the court… NOTHING GOOD!
Who you puttimg in PG 1B/SG that’s better than Uzan…?
Mercy, Harwell, McCarty… c
Come on man!!!
We lost 2 very tough games to other contenders… it’s not hard to figure out why… Sharp has to stay in the game!
This negativity is so extreme it is comical. I think it is funny.
Kyle must not have read my post.
When Flemings goes out he is replaced by Uzan. Not Miller, not Harwell, not anybody. He is replaced by Uzan. Then vice-versa.
They do not play well together. It makes Uzan assume the position that Cryer had last year. But he isn’t the shooter that we saw with Cryer.
Indeed, he dribbles around instead of shooting.
Real problems here.
For whatever reason that beautiful floater Milos had last year is gone. We see it in glimpses but nothing like last year
I’d like to see Milos play point and Kingston play the 2 sometimes , would free king up to hit the 3 , and maybe bring back the floater for Milos … worth a try … snap big Monday streak tonite … 40/1
Last year Milos was our PG. specifically recruited for that job.
Then he is replaced by Flemings.
Making Milos into Cryer.
But he isn’t. A core problem.
Make Kingston cryer
And when Flemings goes out and Milos is running it the offense tanks…
To think there are better line-ups that don’t have Flemings & Uzann in it is just plain silly
Not only is it silly… it’s statistically inaccurate… the line-up with Flemdawg. Uzan, $har, Jojo & Cenac is statistically a top 3 line-up in the counyry.
@Hill where is that breakdown of best line-ups…?
I think it’s the Evan Miya lineup brrakdowns… our starting line-up is always statistically one of the best… period.
Comparing this year’s team to last years is apples & oranges…
Most of last year we had two guys on the court who could score down low and 3 guys that could shoot the lights out from 3…
This year we have one elite 3 point shooter, one very good statistically at over 38%, and one that’s been average (Milos) combined with a stretch 4 and a center that really doesn’t have much offensive game down low…
Of course the offense is different this season… it’s actually been BETTER…
And technically Flemdawg has a higher 3pt percentage than $harp right now but $harp averages 4 more attempts per game.
It’s pretty simple… $harp & Jojo HAVE to stay in the game…
All this other stuff doesn’t mean anything.
Also,to @pesik point that their stars beat us isn’t even true…
Who had Dell’Orso dropping 22 on us…
NOBODY… That’s who.
Uhh… Dell’Orso basically earned his starter spot last year shot 41% from 3. He was in a slump earlier this year but seems to be back on track. Him and Awaka would start on most teams in the country. He’s not a nobody dude.
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