We Have a Problem at Point Guard

[DayDayTFS]

The run in the first half where we got blitzed was with Gaffney in the game and Bouknight out.

The game is played by 5 players per team (strange I know). when the run happened we had a bizarre lineup in where literally nobody wanted the ball. Can’t just blame him.

 

[SubbaBub]

Our PG’s are either passing it around the perimeter aimlessly or probing with the dribble and not really getting anywhere. I think they just need to be more aggressive.

I don't think this is quite right. Applies more to the Ollie era guards. Hurley is running a different offense that requires this to move the defense. The test is how successful they are at getting the ball into scoring positions inside or creating driving lanes. If we are taking contested threes at the end of the clock, that is a sign of not getting it done.

This is where Cole gets in trouble, but even he does it less often than AG and CV did as underclassmen. Cole just needs to run the offense and trust hus teammates as better scoring options. He'll still get shots, just not as the first or second option.

 

[Excalibur]

The game is played by 5 players per team (strange I know). when the run happened we had a bizarre lineup in where literally nobody wanted the ball. Can’t just blame him.

No, but that same lineup with Cole replacing Gaffney did pretty well in the 2nd half . . .

We are better with Cole on the floor. Not saying he's been great, but objectively better than Gaffney.

 

[GoDAWGS]

Not to rain on the parade, but a huge takeaway from this game is we have a problem at PG.

It looked like Hurley wanted to get Gaffney some minutes and confidence in the second half but just couldn’t trust him down the stretch.

Carton is a stud and had a beautiful step back jumper and could finish at the rim. I hope we can get something like that out of either gaffney or Cole.

Im gonna say this is a bad take, Rj played a great point, his on ball defense was superior to cartons. Rj is an incredible defender that needs to figure out how to score, but he managed the point really well. I wouldn't want anything carton lol kid disappeared

 

[GoDAWGS]

What has Cole done to show you it shouldn’t be Gaff’s job right now?

Hes played some of the best defense that UConns ever seen, he just played point guard in a 18 point comeback 11 point win

 

[methodology]

Our PG continues to win us games with his defense. RJ Cole might actually be one of the best on ball defenders I’ve ever seen in UConn history.

lol Ricky Moore and others would eat his lunch

 

[SubbaBub]

I appreciate the positivity, but our two point guards together are posting the following numbers in 53 MPG:

.309 FG
.326 3PT
16.0 PPG
5.6 APG
3.3 TPG

They have 26 FGs in six games. Neither can finish at the rim. Both can defend and make their FT (save the Cole dig) but leave a lot to be desired. Cole is struggling in ways I expected to see. The Big East is a massive step up from the MEAC. He can hang defensively but looks overwhelmed and limited on the offensive end.

We stayed in the Creighton game because Bouk played like the best player in America and we won tonight because Polley turned into Klay Thompson. We cannot rely on world-beating performances to win games.

Our point guard situation is a problem and it's been apparent in every game we've played this year.

Shooting 31/33%. Just stop shooting so much guys and we cease having this discussion. Watch tape of Talik, Ricky, and a host of other great UConn PGs.

There are many ways to impact a game. Both can shoot under the right circumstances. Volume shooting isn't part of eithers game right now.

Talent isn't a problem here. Play aggressive, disciplined ball and we win. That's been pretty clear.

 

[Waquoit]

It’s called the eye test.

They have some good drops now, you know.

 

[QDOG5]

I prefer Cole over Gaffney right now. I think he's better at both ends of the floor. Cole deserves the larger chunk of minutes through six games. He was the better of the two last night.

 

[Waquoit]

I appreciate the positivity, but our two point guards together are posting the following numbers in 53 MPG:

.309 FG
.326 3PT
16.0 PPG
5.6 APG
3.3 TPG

Those look like Vital's stats last year.

 

[87Xfer]

My take is that neither Cole nor Gaff is ever going to be remembered as a great UConn point guard. But by BE tourney time, one or both will be good enough that we can win games consistently. Hell, we're winning games now. But with a little PG improvement there won't be as many cringey minutes.

 

[husky429]

Thank you @kansashusky. I’ve been saying this from day 1. Glad you started this thread and not me. I’d be getting dumped on. Cole is barley AAC material, forget BE. I like Gaff running point much better for us. And I don’t want any stats thrown in my face. It’s called the eye test. That run last night was basically all without Cole in the game.

Cole was in the game for the beginning and end of that run. Are we just making things up now?

 

[NJHusky]

There's a huge difference between holding out hope that Gaffney can turn into something, lack of practice time is an issue or he's still developing and those saying things like there's some eye test that proves he's a better option than Cole and should be our PG.

In four games against Power 6 teams this season, Gaffney's line is:

4.75 points per game in just over 20 minutes.
20% FG
22% 3FG
5 assists to 6 turnovers.

That is simply not a usable player at this level, and that's why the minutes split has become what it is and why Hurley took him out for the rest of the game at the first sign he was overwhelmed in the second half last night.

You know what they say about statistics....look who Cole is playing with and who Gaff is playing with. I've not counted, but it seems like Gaff looses 3-5 assists per game because guys can't catch or finish sometimes

 

[XLCenterFan]

Cole was in the game for the beginning and end of that run. Are we just making things up now?

The run started with about 16 min left in the half and went til there were about 8 min left. In this span we went from down 18 to up 1. Is there anywhere we can see which players were in during this time frame. I distinctly remember watching the comeback and thinking to myself “probably because Cole isn’t in.” It was either that or he barely touched the ball. Either way - good for us.

 

[selles]

The run in the first half where we got blitzed was with Gaffney in the game and Bouknight out.

True, but Gaffney actually played ok during that run. Most possessions we got a decent shot, it wasn't his fault that Martin and Carlton were having a tough time putting the ball in the net. At least we weren't aimlessly tossing the ball around the perimeter.

I think it's apparent that Hurley took Gaffney aside at some point earlier this year and told him that he needs to create more on offense. Because of their relative sizes, Gaff has potential to create offense through penetration that Cole does not.

Against Depaul, he played a much different style than normal. He was very aggressive looking to drive and at times out of control. All part of the (painful) process of taking the next step in developing the type of game we need from him. Gaining confidence in what to do off a drive is probably the most difficult skillset for a young point to master. Last night he was again more aggressive, but he was also more in control and - while it wasn't great - it was an improvement over Depaul.

My guess is that Gaffney will improve a great deal over the next month, and that in March our winning time lineup will feature Cole (whose defense really has been a wonderful surprise), Gaffney and Bouk all on the court together.

 

[navery12]

The run started with about 16 min left in the half and went til there were about 8 min left. In this span we went from down 18 to up 1. Is there anywhere we can see which players were in during this time frame. I distinctly remember watching the comeback and thinking to myself “probably because Cole isn’t in.” It was either that or he barely touched the ball. Either way - good for us.

I can look for you. There's a site they shows every substitution but for some reason last night's game is missing

 

[bgermain]

Wow!

Our PG continues to win us games with his defense. RJ Cole might actually be one of the best on ball defenders I’ve ever seen in UConn history.

🙄

 

[Waquoit]

Everybody is playing team ball. The PG's are a big part of that. The team kept working after Bouk went down. They get credit for that, too. Let's not forget the things these guys are doing right. That was a nice win.

 

[CL82]

My prediction is half the board argues for Cole and the other half argues for Gaffney for the rest of the season

40% for Cole
40% for Gaffney
2.5% for Gilbert
2.5% for Diggins
5% randomly shaking their fists at the clouds.

 

[CL82]

I can look for you. There's a site they shows every substitution but for some reason last night's game is missing

Cover up?

 

[navery12]

The run started with about 16 min left in the half and went til there were about 8 min left. In this span we went from down 18 to up 1. Is there anywhere we can see which players were in during this time frame. I distinctly remember watching the comeback and thinking to myself “probably because Cole isn’t in.” It was either that or he barely touched the ball. Either way - good for us.

For some reason Marquette isn't on this site so had to piece it together from the ESPN box score and TCF's highlights. Cole was in when the lead got up to 43-25, Gaffney was subbed in some time around 47-40 and subbed out at either 48-47 UConn or 50-48 Marquette and Cole finished the game.

So of the 29 point swing depending on when Gaffney came out that's either +21 Cole and +8 Gaffney or +24 Cole and +5 Gaffney

 

[Kemba Time]

From a look through my DVR, so my math is pretty quick here, this is what it appears 2nd-half Cole/Gaff usage during the comeback was:

• Cole came out for first time in half at 10:29 mark (47-40 MQ at substitution. UConn on 17-6 run from down 18 to down 7).
• Gaffney in from 10:29-6:28 mark (50-48 MQ at sub. UConn on 8-3 run during Gaffney's time in from down 7 to down 2.)
• Cole in from 6:28 on (65-54 UConn at final buzzer. UConn closes with 17-4 run from down 2 to 11-point win.)

 

[navery12]

From a look through my DVR, so my math is pretty quick here, this is what it appears 2nd-half Cole/Gaff usage during the comeback was:

• Cole came out for first time in half at 10:29 mark (47-40 MQ at substitution. UConn on 17-6 run from down 18 to down 7).
• Gaffney in from 10:29-6:28 mark (50-48 MQ at sub. UConn on 8-3 run during Gaffney's time in from down 7 to down 2.)
• Cole in from 6:28 on (65-54 UConn at final buzzer. UConn closes with 17-4 run from down 2 to 11-point win.)

Matches up exactly with what I found and posted above so this seems right to me

 

[Sphinx]

The name of the play is "Waiting for Diggins." The shame is that Diggins and Bouk will never see the court together. This will definitely make both this year's and next year's NCs harder than they might have been.

 

[DayDayTFS]

No, but that same lineup with Cole replacing Gaffney did pretty well in the 2nd half . . .

We are better with Cole on the floor. Not saying he's been great, but objectively better than Gaffney.

It was Gaffney, Polley, Carlton, Adams and Martin IIRC... putting Bouk in opens things up for everyone substantially, not to mention we couldn’t put the ball in an ocean during the first 25 min.

 

[UCSouth]

Cole was in the game for the beginning and end of that run. Are we just making things up now?

What do you expect from someone who thinks that the XL Center is better than Gampel?

 

[XLCenterFan]

What do you expect from someone who thinks that the XL Center is better than Gampel?

You again? XL is better IMO. Literally 5 minutes from my house. Holds more fans. Serves beer. Has actual bars and restaurants around it. Is centrally located and isn’t out in the sticks like where you live. I see far more friends and family at XL games. All of that makes it better IMO. Most people I know complain when they find out a certain game is at Gampel.

 

[mauconnfan]

lol Ricky Moore and others would eat his lunch

Fair point but they'd eat Gaffs breakfast, lunch and dinner in comparison. Give Cole credit he may not be Ricky Moore but he plays his man very tough and relentless without the super quickness of Ricky or Boat. He's kind of more like Bazz on man but not as good as an anticipator off his man. He did his job well last night and was really good against Zegs/Creighton too.

 

[Spaceman213J]

I'm hoping for growth from both of them,, but they both are in a hard position. Everyone who knows who the 'Alpha' is and that can actually be hard for a true point guard to play with. Much of the time it's "give it to Bouk and get out of the way".
Gaffney is afraid of making 'the mistake' and getting pulled. RJ doesn't seem to understand 'the moment' a game is in once in a while, but he is getting better at it.
Both will improve, but maybe not as much as we would like in a year like this. I think in the fans eyes, we're wanting more knowing that Bouk is leaving at the end of the season.

 

[rip7774]

I’ve been a fan since the 90s, have we ever had such a weak pg room? Even the dark years w Ollie we had Jalen, who was a stud. I really want gaffney To try to work thru his confidence issues, Cole really struggling Offensively at this level. Both will likely improve, I think gaffney can improve a lot more.