cncchris33
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My apologies for not being able to do individual postgame reports. Travelling and family obligations led to busy weekend and I only caught parts of each game. Following three games vs quality competition, these are my thoughts...
The Good:
1. Armani Moore has stepped it up. I was critical after an 8-21 start from the field and 3-10 from the line in two games (#s that were much worse than they looked). He was 13-23 from the field and 15-21 from the line in the tournament, & collected 20 rebs to go with 41 points. KU game was a dud because of foul trouble that limited him to 16 minutes.
2. The effort and intensity are there in spurts. The press is very effective and leads to easy point opportunities.
3. Jabari McGhee has been veey efficient offensively. 8-9 from the field for 17 points and 14 rebs in an average of 16 mpg. I see freshman mistakes and defensive lapses, but he is a contributor much earlier than I imagined. Maybe that is his talent, and maybe it's an indictment of where we are at this point. You can't fault his hustle though.
4. Robert Hubbs; at one point I thought I was watching him take over a game against Marquette, if even for one fleeting moment. Then like a fart in the wind, it vanished. Perhaps some confidence is welling up inside somewhere though.
The Bad:
1. JRich is a steadying influence on the court, but his usage is robbing him of his ability. He isn't a PG and never will be. 11 TOs and only 8 FT attempts is testament to that. His FG% is suffering and he can't pass it to himself. I feel like him playing PG is akin to Kentucky playing a WR at QB against us two years ago.
2. We. Cannot. Play. Defense. Without. Fouling. Tennessee is dead last, dead freaking last in the nation in fouls committed. #345 out of 345 teams!!! Move your dad-gum feet and stop reaching!!! We have committed a season's worth of hip-check blocks and reach-in fouls in 5 games. Unreal, absolutely unreal. 26.8 fouls per game.
3. Along the defensive lines, we are allowing our opponents to shoot almost 42%. That is way too high for a team that struggles to score themselves. We are allowing teams to hit 37.5% from 3. Conceding looks from deep is a concern of running a zone defense, and you just have to hope that your opponent misses them, so maybe we have just been unlucky in this regard.
4. We are being outrebounded consistently. This has to change. We miss way too many easy looks and haven't shot well from deep yet, so we have to give ourselves more opportunities and limit the opportunities for our opponents.
5. I see no one ready to step up offensively on a consistent basis to help JRich and Armani. He cannot do anymore than he is, and is honestly trying to do too much, leading to way too many TOs. We see flashes from Mostella and Punter (even Hubbs in short flashes), but they vanish as quickly as they appear. We need aome offensive consistency.
Bottom Line:
Overall, I'm displeased with the results, especially of the Marquette game because I felt we started strong, and then looked lackadaisical and uninterested. We have yet to play a 40-minute game where we put it all together mentally, which is disheartening. Maybe it is the NCAA distractions, maybe they need time to become more cohesive as a team on the court, and maybe they just aren't any good. Lots of unanswered questions that I was hoping to see ironed out to some extent this weekend. Going into the Tennessee Tech game, we stand a strong chance of being 2-6. Not where I had hoped to be, but I am staying patient and looking for improvement, both individually, and as a team.
The Good:
1. Armani Moore has stepped it up. I was critical after an 8-21 start from the field and 3-10 from the line in two games (#s that were much worse than they looked). He was 13-23 from the field and 15-21 from the line in the tournament, & collected 20 rebs to go with 41 points. KU game was a dud because of foul trouble that limited him to 16 minutes.
2. The effort and intensity are there in spurts. The press is very effective and leads to easy point opportunities.
3. Jabari McGhee has been veey efficient offensively. 8-9 from the field for 17 points and 14 rebs in an average of 16 mpg. I see freshman mistakes and defensive lapses, but he is a contributor much earlier than I imagined. Maybe that is his talent, and maybe it's an indictment of where we are at this point. You can't fault his hustle though.
4. Robert Hubbs; at one point I thought I was watching him take over a game against Marquette, if even for one fleeting moment. Then like a fart in the wind, it vanished. Perhaps some confidence is welling up inside somewhere though.
The Bad:
1. JRich is a steadying influence on the court, but his usage is robbing him of his ability. He isn't a PG and never will be. 11 TOs and only 8 FT attempts is testament to that. His FG% is suffering and he can't pass it to himself. I feel like him playing PG is akin to Kentucky playing a WR at QB against us two years ago.
2. We. Cannot. Play. Defense. Without. Fouling. Tennessee is dead last, dead freaking last in the nation in fouls committed. #345 out of 345 teams!!! Move your dad-gum feet and stop reaching!!! We have committed a season's worth of hip-check blocks and reach-in fouls in 5 games. Unreal, absolutely unreal. 26.8 fouls per game.
3. Along the defensive lines, we are allowing our opponents to shoot almost 42%. That is way too high for a team that struggles to score themselves. We are allowing teams to hit 37.5% from 3. Conceding looks from deep is a concern of running a zone defense, and you just have to hope that your opponent misses them, so maybe we have just been unlucky in this regard.
4. We are being outrebounded consistently. This has to change. We miss way too many easy looks and haven't shot well from deep yet, so we have to give ourselves more opportunities and limit the opportunities for our opponents.
5. I see no one ready to step up offensively on a consistent basis to help JRich and Armani. He cannot do anymore than he is, and is honestly trying to do too much, leading to way too many TOs. We see flashes from Mostella and Punter (even Hubbs in short flashes), but they vanish as quickly as they appear. We need aome offensive consistency.
Bottom Line:
Overall, I'm displeased with the results, especially of the Marquette game because I felt we started strong, and then looked lackadaisical and uninterested. We have yet to play a 40-minute game where we put it all together mentally, which is disheartening. Maybe it is the NCAA distractions, maybe they need time to become more cohesive as a team on the court, and maybe they just aren't any good. Lots of unanswered questions that I was hoping to see ironed out to some extent this weekend. Going into the Tennessee Tech game, we stand a strong chance of being 2-6. Not where I had hoped to be, but I am staying patient and looking for improvement, both individually, and as a team.
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