EricLA
Cronus
- Joined
- Aug 24, 2011
- Messages
- 15,007
- Reaction Score
- 81,759
First of all I want to say emphatically that yes it is. But something occurred to me while watching ECU that I've not seen addressed before, at least not in the same conversation as "good defense".
I noticed that a good number of times vs. ECU that they actually ran really good offense and did get an open shot. I'm not referring to the block party that Kiah (mostly) and Breanna were part of, but open mid range jumpers. Even some drives to the basket when Kiah was not close enough to block.
The problem is that none of these kids could put the ball in the basket. Open shots don't mean squadoosh if you can't get the ball to go thru the hoop... and that brings me to my point.
Geno said, several years ago at least, that he likes to recruit kids who know how to put the ball in the basket. That's why it's called "basketball". His point being that he likes to recruit kids who really know how to score. One of the reasons UCONN scores so many points every game (besides the fact that they really do run terrific offense) is because all the players are really good at scoring from wherever their comfort zone is.
Contrast that to teams like Kentucky or Duke (or Tennessee) who even often struggle to even make layups. And look at ECU last night - they did actually get open shots. Their players simply could not get the ball to go in.
I know there are exceptions to my main point. UCONN is not the only team who has players who can score. ND has Loyd for example. Kentucky has O'Neill. There are scorers on almost every team. The problem is none of those teams can put 5 on the court at the same time...
I noticed that a good number of times vs. ECU that they actually ran really good offense and did get an open shot. I'm not referring to the block party that Kiah (mostly) and Breanna were part of, but open mid range jumpers. Even some drives to the basket when Kiah was not close enough to block.
The problem is that none of these kids could put the ball in the basket. Open shots don't mean squadoosh if you can't get the ball to go thru the hoop... and that brings me to my point.
Geno said, several years ago at least, that he likes to recruit kids who know how to put the ball in the basket. That's why it's called "basketball". His point being that he likes to recruit kids who really know how to score. One of the reasons UCONN scores so many points every game (besides the fact that they really do run terrific offense) is because all the players are really good at scoring from wherever their comfort zone is.
Contrast that to teams like Kentucky or Duke (or Tennessee) who even often struggle to even make layups. And look at ECU last night - they did actually get open shots. Their players simply could not get the ball to go in.
I know there are exceptions to my main point. UCONN is not the only team who has players who can score. ND has Loyd for example. Kentucky has O'Neill. There are scorers on almost every team. The problem is none of those teams can put 5 on the court at the same time...