madtownvol
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Yes, the LVs had their four game win streak broken on the road against GA. And of course, the predictable "Fire Holly!;" "the LVs suck" reactions are flooding the board. For all of you who only show up after defeats, welcome back and enjoy your short-lived stay! :hi:
Indeed the LVs did not play well. And again, poor shooting was their Achilles heel. In that incredibly low scoring first quarter, the LVs should have had an 8 to 10 point if they had hit their open shots. Poor shooting has been the sword upon which the LVs have fallen all season; during their wins streak, they were shooting well above their season average and they were bound to fall back to their mean at some point.
Outside of Diamond and Mercedes, the team shot 5 for 26 (with Nared going 1 for 6). Meme was 0 for 6, including some late wide open threes that could have won the game. Jordan had two back to back wide open shots that could have forced another OT. Of course, we can point to other flaws on the defensive end that cost the LVs the game. But, it is hard to overcome such paltry shooting. Of the teams 78 points, 58 came from our big two for the night. That is a lot of goose eggs from Nared and other role players like Nunn, who had been stepping during their win streak.
In terms of coaching, Holly made some good changes in shifting her defensive scheme to a zone but once Nared got into foul trouble, her options were again so limited. Though Alexa hit two big 3s, she was once again over matched against must quicker guards. Nunn was similarly unable to match-up against more athletic posts. The quickness of the GA post players also created all kinds of problems for Mercedes (who despite good numbers), lost a lot of the inside battles.
The most disappointing thing about this loss is that the LVs are still struggling to match up against teams that can bring a swarming of defense (reminiscent of Mitchells KY a few years back). GA followed the Auburn template; in the LVs four game win streak, they did not face that kind of defensive pressure and were able to take the game to the opponents.
The LVs 24 TOs were obviously costly (lets not forget that the LVs forced GA into 20 TOs). About half of those were due to the LVs not handling pressure well or Mercedes getting caught in bad positions in the post. As the game went on, the LVs, particularly Diamond, really started forcing passes which contributed to the rest. That can go on Holly as well; the team should be more disciplined and not succumb to the stress of the moment. But, without much 3 pt. shooting, the paint got packed and there were not always good options. Had Jamie been stretching the court with the threat of her outside shot, some better options might have availed themselves.
The plus side is that the LVs showed a lot of fight, particularly Diamond. They did give up some easy baskets toward the end; the end to end play that tied the game in regulation should not have happened. But, that was a mental and physical breakdown of a tired team; that is not an excuse, they gave up a play that should not have happened but it is hard to put that one all on Holly.
These are the games were the injury to Tea looms large. She would provide another quick player to help beat the defensive pressure and another 3 pt. shooting option (who could also defend).
With this short bench and the reality that there will be nights when the big three are not firing on all cylinders, you have to expect some set-back games.
But this loss definitely feels different from their early season debacles. GA is not a great team but they have really good athletes and they played well above their baseline in front of the home crowd (much like the LVs did against ND). On the whole, the LVs had an off night but were still one three pointer that rattled out from walking off with W.
This loss aint the end of the world.
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