McLovin
Gangstas, what's up?
- Joined
- Dec 3, 2018
- Messages
- 2,966
- Reaction Score
- 18,880
First of all, a win is a win. And we desperately needed the W. Great job by Hurley and the team going out there and getting the job done. We're on the board in conference play.
Now onto the meat of the matter...
Polley: The energy he played with last night was awesome, something we haven't ever seen from him before for a full 40 minutes. Bravo. But let's not get ahead of ourselves and expect these same results from him going forward. Tulane is one of the worst defensive rebounding teams in D1 and more than half of Polley's rebounds were offensive boards. With that said, as long as he brings this energy going forward, even if the results aren't the same, it's a big step in the right direction.
Carlton: Had his moments last night and that dunk might have been his first dunk of the year. In 18 minutes I thought he played well on the offensive end. Defense was average. I suspect the reduced minutes was more about the match-up and Hurley mixing it up than his play.
The line-up: First time this year we saw a more fluid substitution pattern and also a much tighter rotation. The unit that played the last 10 minutes of the game seemed to really play well together on both ends of the floor. However, I don't think we will see extended runs with this line-up (Akok at the 5) all the time, it will be dependent on the opponent. Tulane didn't have any big bangers down low so it give Hurley the ability to play Akok at the 5 for extended minutes. Glad to see Hurley tinkering, mixing, matching and playing our guys to the opponent and not just playing the "a team" and "b team" rotation.
Offense: Still leaves something to be desired. 67 points at home against a team that gives up 69 points on average isn't great. The offense moved well at times last night but also went stagnant from time to time. We gave up a few runs, 7-0 twice in the opening minutes and 10-0 early in the second half. Luckily they never let the wheels fall off. Gilbert took and made some tough shots last night. My favorite shot of his was the 15 foot pull-up in the second half. Instead of trying to drive it, he recognized he had space and drained the little jumper. A glimpse of the maturity and leadership we have been looking for from him.
Final possessions: We need a play we can run at the end of halves. Almost every game that we have the final possession its one of the guards trying to break down the defense and go 1-on-1 to the rim or a step back 3. Last night, Gilbert made the lay-up but that has not usually been the case. Please please please have a few plays we can run at the end of the half / game. Those possessions can be the difference between a W and a L in a close game, let's not waste them.
Now onto the meat of the matter...
Polley: The energy he played with last night was awesome, something we haven't ever seen from him before for a full 40 minutes. Bravo. But let's not get ahead of ourselves and expect these same results from him going forward. Tulane is one of the worst defensive rebounding teams in D1 and more than half of Polley's rebounds were offensive boards. With that said, as long as he brings this energy going forward, even if the results aren't the same, it's a big step in the right direction.
Carlton: Had his moments last night and that dunk might have been his first dunk of the year. In 18 minutes I thought he played well on the offensive end. Defense was average. I suspect the reduced minutes was more about the match-up and Hurley mixing it up than his play.
The line-up: First time this year we saw a more fluid substitution pattern and also a much tighter rotation. The unit that played the last 10 minutes of the game seemed to really play well together on both ends of the floor. However, I don't think we will see extended runs with this line-up (Akok at the 5) all the time, it will be dependent on the opponent. Tulane didn't have any big bangers down low so it give Hurley the ability to play Akok at the 5 for extended minutes. Glad to see Hurley tinkering, mixing, matching and playing our guys to the opponent and not just playing the "a team" and "b team" rotation.
Offense: Still leaves something to be desired. 67 points at home against a team that gives up 69 points on average isn't great. The offense moved well at times last night but also went stagnant from time to time. We gave up a few runs, 7-0 twice in the opening minutes and 10-0 early in the second half. Luckily they never let the wheels fall off. Gilbert took and made some tough shots last night. My favorite shot of his was the 15 foot pull-up in the second half. Instead of trying to drive it, he recognized he had space and drained the little jumper. A glimpse of the maturity and leadership we have been looking for from him.
Final possessions: We need a play we can run at the end of halves. Almost every game that we have the final possession its one of the guards trying to break down the defense and go 1-on-1 to the rim or a step back 3. Last night, Gilbert made the lay-up but that has not usually been the case. Please please please have a few plays we can run at the end of the half / game. Those possessions can be the difference between a W and a L in a close game, let's not waste them.
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