SWC75
Bored Historian
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I’ll continue doing a statistical analysis of games this year with some of the off-beat numbers I like to look at.
The first thing I’ll look at is “NET POINTS”. The idea is that each statistic in the box score is arguably worth a point, (that is, somewhere between 0.5 and 1.5 points). A point is a point. Teams score an average of a point per possession so anything that gets you possession is a point. A missed shot will more often than not wind up in the possession of the other team. Most baskets are for two points so if the passer who set up the shot is given half credit, that’s worth a point. One half of the blocked shots will likely have gone in and they are almost always two pointers, so that’s a point. If you add up the “positives”, (points, + rebounds + assists + steals + blocks) and subtract the “negatives”, (missed field goals, missed free throws, turnovers and fouls), you have a number that summarizes a player’s statistical contributions to a game. Then, by averaging the net points per 40 minutes of play, you factor out differences in playing time and have a look at the player’s rate of production. Both are important. The game is won based on what you actually did, not the rate at which you did it. But the rate is a better measure of the skills you can bring to the game.
Of course, there are things players do both on and off the court that contribute to victory. Leadership, hard work, keeping the team loose, scrambling for loose balls, (that could be a statistic: when neither team is in control of the ball, who winds up with it?), sneaker-sneaker defense, keeping the ball moving on offense, etc. etc. My experience is that with rare exceptions, the players who are the most statistically productive are the ones who grade highest in the things not measured by statistics, as well.
Here are the NET POINTS of our scholarship players in the most recent game and their averages per 40 minutes of play for the season, (exhibitions games not included):
(Note: This covers the North Carolina and North Carolina State games.)
Michael Gbinije had 40 net points in 78 minutes, has 444 NP in 1136 minutes for the season = 15.6 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 226 NP in 486 minutes =18.6 NP/40. Conference: 218 NP in 650 minutes = 13.4 per 40.
Tyler Lydon had 23 net points in 68 minutes, has 366 NP in 903 minutes for the season = 16.2 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 198 NP in 421 minutes =18.8 NP/40. Conference: 168 NP in 482 minutes = 13.9 NP/40.
Tyler Roberson had 18 net points in 48 minutes, has 336 NP in 923 minutes for the season = 14.6 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 125 NP in 388 minutes = 12.9 NP/40. Conference: 211 NP in 535 minutes = 15.8 NP/40.
Mal Richardson had 12 net points in 74 minutes, has 262 NP in 1019 minutes for the season = 10.3 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 96 NP in 410 minutes = 9.4 NP/40. Conference: 166 NP in 609 minutes = 10.9 NP/40.
DaJuan Coleman had 12 net points in 44 minutes, has 154 NP in 522 minutes for the season = 11.8 NP/40
Pre-Conference: 84 NP in 200 minutes = 16.8 NP/40. Conference: 70 NP in 322 minutes = 8.7 NP per 40.
Trevor Cooney had 4 net points in 65 minutes, has 236 NP in 1106 minutes for the season = 8.5 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 125 NP in 480 minutes = 10.4 NP/40 Conference: 111 NP in 626 minutes = 7.1 NP/40.
Franklin Howard had 3 net points in 23 minutes, has 35 NP in 259 minutes for the season = 5.4 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 19 NP in 93 minutes = 8.2 NP/40. Conference: 16 NP in 166 minutes = 3.9 NP/40.
DNP-CD
Kaleb Joseph had 0 net points in 0 minutes, has 8 NP in 114 minutes for the season = 2.8NP/40
Pre-Conference: 14 in 96 minutes = 5.8NP/40. Conference: -6 NP in 18 minutes = -13.3 per 40.
Chinoso Obokoh had 0 net points in 0 minutes, has 7 NP in 67 minutes for the season = 4.2 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 8 NP in 39 minutes = 8.2 NP/40. Conference: -1 NP in 28 minutes = -1.4 NP/40.
INJURED
None
SUSPENDED
None
Comments: Michael Gbinije had the best game any SU player had has all season with 34NP against NC State, then had a 6NP game vs. North Carolina. He was great for a few minutes in the second half when we were making our comeback but 17 points on 6 for 16 shooting, 3 rebounds, 7 assist but 7 turnovers, (you don’t see guys break even in those stats at that level too often) and 3 fouls is not a sterling game. Trevor Cooney’s numbers continue to be abysmal. He’s down to 7.1NP per 40 in conference games. Mal Richardson’s season has been a roller-coaster, at times excellent, at time terrible or invisible. Tyler Roberson has a good disappearing act, too. Tyler Lydon has been pretty consistent for a freshman. DC is DC. Why so ‘negative’? Because the post season is getting set to start and the key to a strong post season run is to get contributions from everybody. Either the slumps have to be over or the season will be over, very soon.
Michael Gbinije has led us in net points 14 times, Tyler Roberson, 7 times, Tyler Lydon 6 times, Mal Richardson 3 times and DaJuan Coleman and Trevor Cooney 1 time each.
The Other Stats:
POSSESSION
Before you can score you’ve got to get the rock. Syracuse had 17 offensive and 53 defensive rebounds. They had 28 offensive and 50 defensive rebounds. When we missed we got the ball 17 of 67 times, (25.4%). When they missed, they got the ball 28 out of 81 times, (34.6%).
Pre-conference: We rebounded 33.3% of our misses to 36.3% for the opposition and did better in 6 of 13 games.
Conference: We’ve rebounded 33.2% of our misses to 34.4% for the opposition and have done better in 10 of 17 games with one even.
Total: We’ve rebounded 33.2% of our misses to 35.2% for the opposition and did better in 16 of 30 games with one even.
Effective offensive rebounding: We got 20 second chance points off our 17 offensive rebounds, 1.176 points per rebound. They got 25 for their 27 = 0.926.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 0.956 points per offensive rebound: they averaged 0.928. We led in this stat 9 times in 13 games.
Conference: We’ve averaged 0.965 points per offensive rebound: they averaged 0.961. We’ve led in this stat 10 times in 17 games.
Total: We’ve averaged 0.971 points per offensive rebound: they averaged 0.951. We’ve led in this stat 19 times in 30 games.
Of our 32 turnovers, 18 were their steals and 14 were our own miscues. Of their 28 turnovers, 16 were Syracuse steals and 12 were their fault. It’s an important area as one of the ideas behind the zone is that we will make up for a rebounding deficit with a favorable turnover margin.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 12 turnovers, 6 of which were unforced compared to 14 turnovers and 5 unforced for the opposition. We had fewer turnovers in 8 games but fewer unforced turnovers in only 3 games with 1 even of 13 games.
Conference: We’ve averaged 12 turnovers, 6 of which were unforced compared to 13 turnovers and 6 unforced for the opposition. We’ve had fewer turnovers in 8 games with 3 even and fewer unforced turnovers in 8 games with 2 even of 17 games.
Total: We averaged 12 turnovers, 6 of which were unforced compared to 13 turnovers and 5 unforced for the opposition. We had fewer turnovers in 16 games with 3 even and fewer unforced turnovers in 11 games with 3 even of 28 games.
I’m adding another stat: Points per Turnover, which is “Points Off Turnovers” divided by the number of turnovers the other team had. Syracuse got 18 points from 28 turnovers, an average of 0.642. They had 35 points from 32 turnovers, an average of 1.094, so they did a better job of getting back on defense after a turnover. And maybe we did a poorer job of getting the basket after a turnover.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 1.124 points per turnover. They averaged 0.974. We won this battle 10 times, including the last 9 in a row of 13.
Conference: We’ve averaged 1.101 points per turnover. They’ve averaged 1.048. The team that’s won this stat has won 14 of 17 games. I think it’s a measure of aggression once you get the ball as well as aggression getting back on defense.
Total: We’ve averaged 1.111 points per turnover. They’ve averaged 1.017. We’ve won this battle 18 times in 30 games.
If you add our 70 rebounds to their 28 turnovers, we had 98 “manufactured possessions”. They had 78 + 32 = 110. We are normally well ahead of our early opponents in this stat. Then it levels off in the conference season. This year, it’s been pretty level all year.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 52 MP to 50. We won this battle 7 times with 1 even in 13 games.
Conference: We’ve averaged 48 MP to 48. We’ve won this battle 7 times in 17 games
Total: We’ve averaged 49 MP to 48. We’ve won this battle 14 times with 1 even in 30 games
SHOOTING
It’s still what the game is all about. We were 32 for 60, (.533) inside the arc, We were 40 for 85 (.471) outside the arc and an excellent 30 for 39, (.769) from the line. They were 40 for 85 (.471) inside the arc, 10 for 42 (.238) and 31/43 (.721) from the foul line. Nothing predicts victory or defeat better than two point field goal percentage.
Pre-Conference: We were .482/.355/.681. Our opposition was .444/.333/.636. We led in two point field goal percentage in 8 games, in three point field goals percentage in 8 games, and in free throw percentage in 7 games with 1 even out of 13 games.
Conference: We are .476/.362/.682. Our opposition is .471/.238/.721. We’ve led in two point field goal percentage in 5 games, in three point field goal percentage in 13 games, and in free throw percentage in 7 games out of 17 games.
Total: We are .479/.359/.682. Our opposition was .471/.303/.666. We led in two point field goal percentage in 13 games with one even, in three point field goals percentage in 21 games, and in free throw percentage in 14 games with 2 even in 30 games
We had 56 points in the paint (PIP), 18 off turnovers (POTO), 20 “second chance” points (SCP), 19 fast break points (FBP) and 28 from the bench (BP). Our opposition had 52 points in the paint, 35 off turnovers, 24 “second chance” points, 26 fast break points and 63 from the bench. I’ve decided to keep track of “starter points” (SP) as a counter-weight to bench points. 117 of those to 78. So there! We also had 76 of Pat’s “first chance points” (FCP) (total points minus second chance points, fast break points and made free throws) to 60, so we did well in the initial sets. Here’s an amazing stat: our starters outscored theirs 54-22. But their bench out-scored ours 16-53.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 26-28 PIP, 16-11 POTO, 39-35 FCP, 12-13 SCP, 7-6 FBP, 59-46 SP and 14-17 BP. We led in PIP 7 times, POTO 10 times,(and the last 8 in a row), FCP 6 times with 2 even, SCP 5 times with 2 even, FBP 8 times, SP 11 times and BP 5 times with 1 even in 13 games .
Conference: We’ve averaged 26-30 PIP, 14-13 POTO, 38-36 FCP, 11-12 SCP, 6-6 FBP, 57-45 SP and 12-19 BP. We led in PIP 7 times with 1 even, POTO 8 times, FCP 8 times with one even, SCP 9 times, FBP 9 times with 1 even, SP 13 times with one even, and BP 4 times in 117 games.
Total: We averaged 26-29 PIP, 15-13 POTO, 38-36 FCP, 12-12 SCP, 6.5-6 FBP, 58-45 SP and 12-19 BP. We’ve led in PIP 14 times with 1 even, POTO 18 times, FCP 14 times with 3 even, SCP 14 times with 2 even, FBP 17 times with 1 even, SP 26 times with one even and BP 9 times with 1 even in 30 games.
We had 145 points, 56 in the paint, 51 from the arc and 30 from the line so we had 59 ”POP”, (points outside the paint: 145-56-30) and scored 8 points, (59 POP-51 from the arc), from what I’ll call the Twilight Zone”: that area between the paint and the arc that is the land of the pull-up jump shot, a lost art but a great weapon. They had 141/52/30/31 = 58 POP with 28 from the Twilight Zone. (NC State had 22 points form the “Zone” 10 more than Syracuse or any opponent scored all year.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 31 POP and 5 TZ, our opposition 24/4. We led in POP 8 times. We led in TZ points 7 times with 1 tie in 13 games.
Conference: We’ve averaged 30 POP and 4 TZ, our opposition 24/4. We’ve led in POP 12 times and in TZ points 6 times with 3 even in 17 games.
Total: We’ve averaged 30 POP and 4 TZ, our opposition 24/4. We’ve led in POP 18 times and in TZ points 14 times with 4 even in 30 games.
27 of our 49 baskets were assisted (.551) and 27 of their 50 (.540). Assists tend to come more often from jump shots than lay-ups or dunks so the more assists you get, the more you are settling for jump shots to try to win the game which is often a bad strategy but, as JB says, is the way we have to play this year because of our personnel. One would think that we’d have more assists than our opponents but our leading alternative method to score is these 20 foot drives to the basket where we don’t dish off.
Pre-Conference: We assisted 59.2% of our baskets. Our opposition assisted 71.6% of their baskets. They had a higher percentage in 9 games with one even in 13 games.
Conference: We assisted 57.6% of our baskets. Our opposition assisted 66.3% of their baskets. They had a higher percentage in 14 games out of 17 games.
Total: We assisted 58.3% of our baskets. Our opposition assisted 66.3% of their baskets. They had a higher percentage in 23 games with 1 even in 30 games.
You compute possessions by taking field goal attempts – offensive rebounds + turnovers plus 47.5% of free throws attempted and dividing that into the number of points. We were 112 FGA -17 OREBs + 32 TOs + (.475 x 39) = 145.525 possessions. They were 127 -28+ 28+ (.475 x 43) = 147.425 possessions. Since possessions shouldn’t be more than one per game off, I’ll count that as 146 possessions for us and 131 for them. There were 260 combined possessions in these games, 130 per game.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 132 combined possessions per game.
Conference: We’ve averaged 125 combined possessions per game.
Total: We’ve averaged 128 combined possessions per game.
(I’ve excluded overtime periods as we are trying to measure the pace of games and overtimes would add the possessions from an extra 5 minutes and thus be misleading.)
You compute “Offensive Efficiency” by dividing the points scored by the number of possessions. We scored 145 points in 146 possessions (0.993). They scored 141 points in 147 possessions (0.959).
Pre-Conference: We averaged 1.091 points per possession to 0.959 for the opposition. We won this stat in 10 of 13 games, (the winning team always wins this stat).
Conference: We’ve averaged 1.053 points per possession to 1.016 for the opposition. We’ve won the stat in 9 of 17 games.
Total: We’ve averaged 1.070 points per possession to 0.991 for the opposition and have won the stat in 19 of 30 games.
(These figures include the overtime periods as we are now determining the points per possession and the OT periods are as relevant as regulation.)
Every other level of basketball plays quarters. To check the consistency of our performance, I look at what the score was at the 10 minute mark of each half to see what the quarterly scores would be. At a minimum, I think we want to score at least 15 points in each quarter and try to hold the opposition to less than that. The quarterly breakdown for these games: 34-31, 34-33, 35-36, 42-41
Pre-Conference: We averaged 16-14, 16-14, 20-18, 20-17 OT: 5-13 We won 31 of 52 quarters with 3 even. We scored 15 or more in 38 quarters and held the opposition under that 23 times.
Conference: We’ve averaged 17-14, 15-16, 17-16, 19-20 OT: 12-8.5. We’ve won 33 of 68 quarters with 6 even. We’ve scored 15 or more in 41 quarters and held the opposition under that 27 times.
Total: We’ve averaged 17-14, 16-15, 18-17, 19-18 OT: 10-10. We’ve won 63 of 120 quarters with 9 even. We’ve scored 15 or more in 82 quarters and held the opposition under that 50 times.
Hubert Davis once told us to “Get an offensive dude”. I decided to name an “Offensive Dude Of the Game, or an O-Dog, and use the hockey concept of points + assists. In these games our ODOG was:
Vs. NC State Michael Gbinije 34 + 6 = 40
Vs. North Carolina Michael Gbinije 17 + 7 = 24
Michael Gbinije has been the O-Dog 23 times, Trevor Cooney 3 times, Mal Richardson 2 times each and Tyler Lydon and Tyler Roberson once each. Mike’s our O-Dog, that’s for sure.
I’ve thought of another stat to keep track of that also relates to individual offensive efficiency, although I’m sure there nothing all that new about it. I heard that Steph Curry had an amazing game in terms of the number of points he scored compared to the number of field goal attempts he had. I decided to compare the number of points scored to the number of shots taken, except I’ll include free throw attempts as they are shots, too. I originally thought of doing it on a percentage basis but a reserve who hit his only shot would out-rank a starter who scored 15 points on 10 shots. Instead I’ll keep track of the most points scored more than the number of shots- or the fewest points scored less than the number of shots if nobody has a positive number. I’ll call it “scoring efficiency”. In these games, the following players led us in scoring efficiency:
Vs. NC State Michael Gbinije 34-18-6 = +10
Vs. North Carolina DaJuan Coleman 4-3-0 = +1 and Franklin Howard 4-2-1 = +1
Michael Gbinije has led in this stat 11 times, Tyler Roberson 6 times, Trevor Cooney 5 times, Mal Richardson and Tyler Lydon and DaJuan Coleman 4 times, and Franklin Howard and Kaleb Joseph once. Gbinije had the best game a +13 Charlotte on 26 points vs. 9 for 11 from the field including 6 treys and 2 for 2 from the foul line. What I like about this stat is that totally different types of players can compete for it. Somebody’s had a positive score in every game.
I also like to keep track who sits us down in each half. Besides being fun it gives an indication of who Coach B likes to design plays for since opening possessions are more likely to be scripted. In these games, these are the players who sat us down:
Vs. NC State Trevor Cooney jumper after 2:13 and Tyler Roberson jumper after 1:01
Vs. North Carolina Tyler Roberson jumper after 2:33 and Mal Richardson lay-up after 2:22
The average time we’ve had to wait is 1 minute 10 seconds. The shortest time has been 7 seconds in the second half of the Texas Southern game. The longest time is 4:51 in the second half against Georgetown. But we haven’t had to wait long very often. Mali Richardson has sat us down 16 times, Michael Gbinije 14 times, Tyler Roberson 11 times, Trevor Cooney 10 times, DaJuan Coleman 8 times and Tyler Lydon once, (he’s always coming off the bench). We’ve been sat down by 20 treys, 13 lay-ups, 9 two point jumpers and 4 dunks. It’s interesting that the lost art of the two point jump shot has set us down as many as 9 times.
Another fun fact is the “Taco Bell MVP”: the guy who gets us to 70 points, (it used to be 75), so people can get free, (or is it discounted?) tacos at Taco Bell. In these games the following players got us tacos:
Vs. NC State Michael Gbinije trey with 2:44 left (3)
Vs. North Carolina Mal Richardson dunk with 44 seconds left (2)
Trevor Cooney has gotten us tacos 6 times, Michael Gbinije3 times, Mal Richardson and Tyler Lydon twice, DaJuan Coleman, Franklin Howard, and Tyler Roberson once each. The average amount of time left in the game- when we’ve made it to tacos- has been 4:35 left.
FOULS
My theory about fouls is that the team that attempts the most two point shots and scores the most in the paint will tend to get fouled the most. If the numbers are as predicted or close, there’s nothing to be read into them but if there’s a big disparity, it makes you wonder about how the game was called.
In these games, we attempted 60 two point shots to 85, scored 56 points in the paint to 52 and got fouled 34 times to 38, attempting 39 foul shots to 43. The ratio of two point attempts to times fouled was 1.8 for us and 2.2 for them, meaning we were more likely to get a call than they on two pointers. The ratio of points in the paint to times fouled was 1.6 for us to 1.4 for them, meaning they were more likely to get the call when we were scoring in the paint. The ratio of free throw attempts to fouls called on the other team was 1.1 for us and 1.1 for them.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 1.7 two point shots per foul, 1.3 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.1 foul shots per foul. They averaged 2.2 two point shots per foul, 1.8 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.0 foul shots per foul. We were fouled more often compared to our two point shots in 11 games and more often compared to our points in the paint in 10 games. We’ve gotten more fouls shots per foul in 9 games out of 13 games. So numerically, the calls favored us.
Conference: We’ve averaged 1.8 two point shots per foul, 1.5 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.1 foul shots per foul. They’ve averaged 2.0 two point shots per foul, 1.7 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.1 foul shots per foul. We were fouled more often compared to our two point shots in 11 games with one even and more often compared to our points in the paint in 11 games. We’ve gotten more foul shots per foul in 8 games out of 17 games with 2 even.
Total: We’ve averaged 1.8two point shots per foul, 1.4 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.1 foul shots per foul. They averaged 2.1 two point shots per foul,1.7 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.0 foul shots per foul. We were fouled more often compared to our two point shots in 22 games with one even and more often compared to our points in the paint in 22 games. We’ve gotten more foul shots per foul in 17 games out of 28 games with 2 even. We can’t very well claim we haven’t gotten a fair shake from the refs.
“MY MAN”
A reporter once asked Casey Stengel how come he won so many games with the Yankees. He said “Because I never play a game without “my man”. The reporter wondered who his man was. Casey suggested “You could look it up.” The reporter did look it up and found that Yogi Berra had played in every game that season at some positon: catcher, left field, pinch-hitting, something. He was the player Stengel had the highest regard for and the most trust in, so he didn’t want to do without him.
Who is Jim Boeheim’s “man” this season? The only way to tell is to see who plays the most minutes each game. In these games the following players played the most minutes:
Vs. NC State Michael Gbinije 39 minutes
Vs. North Carolina Michael Gbinije 39 minutes
Trevor Cooney and Michael Gbinije have played the most minutes 15 times, Mal Richardson twice and Tyler Roberson once (there have been three ties). Gbinije and Cooney, of course, are our two seniors. It was interesting that in the Boston College game that Tyler Roberson tied for the lead in minutes played for the first time in the season. He’s become one of Boeheim’s “men”.
The first thing I’ll look at is “NET POINTS”. The idea is that each statistic in the box score is arguably worth a point, (that is, somewhere between 0.5 and 1.5 points). A point is a point. Teams score an average of a point per possession so anything that gets you possession is a point. A missed shot will more often than not wind up in the possession of the other team. Most baskets are for two points so if the passer who set up the shot is given half credit, that’s worth a point. One half of the blocked shots will likely have gone in and they are almost always two pointers, so that’s a point. If you add up the “positives”, (points, + rebounds + assists + steals + blocks) and subtract the “negatives”, (missed field goals, missed free throws, turnovers and fouls), you have a number that summarizes a player’s statistical contributions to a game. Then, by averaging the net points per 40 minutes of play, you factor out differences in playing time and have a look at the player’s rate of production. Both are important. The game is won based on what you actually did, not the rate at which you did it. But the rate is a better measure of the skills you can bring to the game.
Of course, there are things players do both on and off the court that contribute to victory. Leadership, hard work, keeping the team loose, scrambling for loose balls, (that could be a statistic: when neither team is in control of the ball, who winds up with it?), sneaker-sneaker defense, keeping the ball moving on offense, etc. etc. My experience is that with rare exceptions, the players who are the most statistically productive are the ones who grade highest in the things not measured by statistics, as well.
Here are the NET POINTS of our scholarship players in the most recent game and their averages per 40 minutes of play for the season, (exhibitions games not included):
(Note: This covers the North Carolina and North Carolina State games.)
Michael Gbinije had 40 net points in 78 minutes, has 444 NP in 1136 minutes for the season = 15.6 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 226 NP in 486 minutes =18.6 NP/40. Conference: 218 NP in 650 minutes = 13.4 per 40.
Tyler Lydon had 23 net points in 68 minutes, has 366 NP in 903 minutes for the season = 16.2 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 198 NP in 421 minutes =18.8 NP/40. Conference: 168 NP in 482 minutes = 13.9 NP/40.
Tyler Roberson had 18 net points in 48 minutes, has 336 NP in 923 minutes for the season = 14.6 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 125 NP in 388 minutes = 12.9 NP/40. Conference: 211 NP in 535 minutes = 15.8 NP/40.
Mal Richardson had 12 net points in 74 minutes, has 262 NP in 1019 minutes for the season = 10.3 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 96 NP in 410 minutes = 9.4 NP/40. Conference: 166 NP in 609 minutes = 10.9 NP/40.
DaJuan Coleman had 12 net points in 44 minutes, has 154 NP in 522 minutes for the season = 11.8 NP/40
Pre-Conference: 84 NP in 200 minutes = 16.8 NP/40. Conference: 70 NP in 322 minutes = 8.7 NP per 40.
Trevor Cooney had 4 net points in 65 minutes, has 236 NP in 1106 minutes for the season = 8.5 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 125 NP in 480 minutes = 10.4 NP/40 Conference: 111 NP in 626 minutes = 7.1 NP/40.
Franklin Howard had 3 net points in 23 minutes, has 35 NP in 259 minutes for the season = 5.4 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 19 NP in 93 minutes = 8.2 NP/40. Conference: 16 NP in 166 minutes = 3.9 NP/40.
DNP-CD
Kaleb Joseph had 0 net points in 0 minutes, has 8 NP in 114 minutes for the season = 2.8NP/40
Pre-Conference: 14 in 96 minutes = 5.8NP/40. Conference: -6 NP in 18 minutes = -13.3 per 40.
Chinoso Obokoh had 0 net points in 0 minutes, has 7 NP in 67 minutes for the season = 4.2 NP/40.
Pre-Conference: 8 NP in 39 minutes = 8.2 NP/40. Conference: -1 NP in 28 minutes = -1.4 NP/40.
INJURED
None
SUSPENDED
None
Comments: Michael Gbinije had the best game any SU player had has all season with 34NP against NC State, then had a 6NP game vs. North Carolina. He was great for a few minutes in the second half when we were making our comeback but 17 points on 6 for 16 shooting, 3 rebounds, 7 assist but 7 turnovers, (you don’t see guys break even in those stats at that level too often) and 3 fouls is not a sterling game. Trevor Cooney’s numbers continue to be abysmal. He’s down to 7.1NP per 40 in conference games. Mal Richardson’s season has been a roller-coaster, at times excellent, at time terrible or invisible. Tyler Roberson has a good disappearing act, too. Tyler Lydon has been pretty consistent for a freshman. DC is DC. Why so ‘negative’? Because the post season is getting set to start and the key to a strong post season run is to get contributions from everybody. Either the slumps have to be over or the season will be over, very soon.
Michael Gbinije has led us in net points 14 times, Tyler Roberson, 7 times, Tyler Lydon 6 times, Mal Richardson 3 times and DaJuan Coleman and Trevor Cooney 1 time each.
The Other Stats:
POSSESSION
Before you can score you’ve got to get the rock. Syracuse had 17 offensive and 53 defensive rebounds. They had 28 offensive and 50 defensive rebounds. When we missed we got the ball 17 of 67 times, (25.4%). When they missed, they got the ball 28 out of 81 times, (34.6%).
Pre-conference: We rebounded 33.3% of our misses to 36.3% for the opposition and did better in 6 of 13 games.
Conference: We’ve rebounded 33.2% of our misses to 34.4% for the opposition and have done better in 10 of 17 games with one even.
Total: We’ve rebounded 33.2% of our misses to 35.2% for the opposition and did better in 16 of 30 games with one even.
Effective offensive rebounding: We got 20 second chance points off our 17 offensive rebounds, 1.176 points per rebound. They got 25 for their 27 = 0.926.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 0.956 points per offensive rebound: they averaged 0.928. We led in this stat 9 times in 13 games.
Conference: We’ve averaged 0.965 points per offensive rebound: they averaged 0.961. We’ve led in this stat 10 times in 17 games.
Total: We’ve averaged 0.971 points per offensive rebound: they averaged 0.951. We’ve led in this stat 19 times in 30 games.
Of our 32 turnovers, 18 were their steals and 14 were our own miscues. Of their 28 turnovers, 16 were Syracuse steals and 12 were their fault. It’s an important area as one of the ideas behind the zone is that we will make up for a rebounding deficit with a favorable turnover margin.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 12 turnovers, 6 of which were unforced compared to 14 turnovers and 5 unforced for the opposition. We had fewer turnovers in 8 games but fewer unforced turnovers in only 3 games with 1 even of 13 games.
Conference: We’ve averaged 12 turnovers, 6 of which were unforced compared to 13 turnovers and 6 unforced for the opposition. We’ve had fewer turnovers in 8 games with 3 even and fewer unforced turnovers in 8 games with 2 even of 17 games.
Total: We averaged 12 turnovers, 6 of which were unforced compared to 13 turnovers and 5 unforced for the opposition. We had fewer turnovers in 16 games with 3 even and fewer unforced turnovers in 11 games with 3 even of 28 games.
I’m adding another stat: Points per Turnover, which is “Points Off Turnovers” divided by the number of turnovers the other team had. Syracuse got 18 points from 28 turnovers, an average of 0.642. They had 35 points from 32 turnovers, an average of 1.094, so they did a better job of getting back on defense after a turnover. And maybe we did a poorer job of getting the basket after a turnover.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 1.124 points per turnover. They averaged 0.974. We won this battle 10 times, including the last 9 in a row of 13.
Conference: We’ve averaged 1.101 points per turnover. They’ve averaged 1.048. The team that’s won this stat has won 14 of 17 games. I think it’s a measure of aggression once you get the ball as well as aggression getting back on defense.
Total: We’ve averaged 1.111 points per turnover. They’ve averaged 1.017. We’ve won this battle 18 times in 30 games.
If you add our 70 rebounds to their 28 turnovers, we had 98 “manufactured possessions”. They had 78 + 32 = 110. We are normally well ahead of our early opponents in this stat. Then it levels off in the conference season. This year, it’s been pretty level all year.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 52 MP to 50. We won this battle 7 times with 1 even in 13 games.
Conference: We’ve averaged 48 MP to 48. We’ve won this battle 7 times in 17 games
Total: We’ve averaged 49 MP to 48. We’ve won this battle 14 times with 1 even in 30 games
SHOOTING
It’s still what the game is all about. We were 32 for 60, (.533) inside the arc, We were 40 for 85 (.471) outside the arc and an excellent 30 for 39, (.769) from the line. They were 40 for 85 (.471) inside the arc, 10 for 42 (.238) and 31/43 (.721) from the foul line. Nothing predicts victory or defeat better than two point field goal percentage.
Pre-Conference: We were .482/.355/.681. Our opposition was .444/.333/.636. We led in two point field goal percentage in 8 games, in three point field goals percentage in 8 games, and in free throw percentage in 7 games with 1 even out of 13 games.
Conference: We are .476/.362/.682. Our opposition is .471/.238/.721. We’ve led in two point field goal percentage in 5 games, in three point field goal percentage in 13 games, and in free throw percentage in 7 games out of 17 games.
Total: We are .479/.359/.682. Our opposition was .471/.303/.666. We led in two point field goal percentage in 13 games with one even, in three point field goals percentage in 21 games, and in free throw percentage in 14 games with 2 even in 30 games
We had 56 points in the paint (PIP), 18 off turnovers (POTO), 20 “second chance” points (SCP), 19 fast break points (FBP) and 28 from the bench (BP). Our opposition had 52 points in the paint, 35 off turnovers, 24 “second chance” points, 26 fast break points and 63 from the bench. I’ve decided to keep track of “starter points” (SP) as a counter-weight to bench points. 117 of those to 78. So there! We also had 76 of Pat’s “first chance points” (FCP) (total points minus second chance points, fast break points and made free throws) to 60, so we did well in the initial sets. Here’s an amazing stat: our starters outscored theirs 54-22. But their bench out-scored ours 16-53.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 26-28 PIP, 16-11 POTO, 39-35 FCP, 12-13 SCP, 7-6 FBP, 59-46 SP and 14-17 BP. We led in PIP 7 times, POTO 10 times,(and the last 8 in a row), FCP 6 times with 2 even, SCP 5 times with 2 even, FBP 8 times, SP 11 times and BP 5 times with 1 even in 13 games .
Conference: We’ve averaged 26-30 PIP, 14-13 POTO, 38-36 FCP, 11-12 SCP, 6-6 FBP, 57-45 SP and 12-19 BP. We led in PIP 7 times with 1 even, POTO 8 times, FCP 8 times with one even, SCP 9 times, FBP 9 times with 1 even, SP 13 times with one even, and BP 4 times in 117 games.
Total: We averaged 26-29 PIP, 15-13 POTO, 38-36 FCP, 12-12 SCP, 6.5-6 FBP, 58-45 SP and 12-19 BP. We’ve led in PIP 14 times with 1 even, POTO 18 times, FCP 14 times with 3 even, SCP 14 times with 2 even, FBP 17 times with 1 even, SP 26 times with one even and BP 9 times with 1 even in 30 games.
We had 145 points, 56 in the paint, 51 from the arc and 30 from the line so we had 59 ”POP”, (points outside the paint: 145-56-30) and scored 8 points, (59 POP-51 from the arc), from what I’ll call the Twilight Zone”: that area between the paint and the arc that is the land of the pull-up jump shot, a lost art but a great weapon. They had 141/52/30/31 = 58 POP with 28 from the Twilight Zone. (NC State had 22 points form the “Zone” 10 more than Syracuse or any opponent scored all year.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 31 POP and 5 TZ, our opposition 24/4. We led in POP 8 times. We led in TZ points 7 times with 1 tie in 13 games.
Conference: We’ve averaged 30 POP and 4 TZ, our opposition 24/4. We’ve led in POP 12 times and in TZ points 6 times with 3 even in 17 games.
Total: We’ve averaged 30 POP and 4 TZ, our opposition 24/4. We’ve led in POP 18 times and in TZ points 14 times with 4 even in 30 games.
27 of our 49 baskets were assisted (.551) and 27 of their 50 (.540). Assists tend to come more often from jump shots than lay-ups or dunks so the more assists you get, the more you are settling for jump shots to try to win the game which is often a bad strategy but, as JB says, is the way we have to play this year because of our personnel. One would think that we’d have more assists than our opponents but our leading alternative method to score is these 20 foot drives to the basket where we don’t dish off.
Pre-Conference: We assisted 59.2% of our baskets. Our opposition assisted 71.6% of their baskets. They had a higher percentage in 9 games with one even in 13 games.
Conference: We assisted 57.6% of our baskets. Our opposition assisted 66.3% of their baskets. They had a higher percentage in 14 games out of 17 games.
Total: We assisted 58.3% of our baskets. Our opposition assisted 66.3% of their baskets. They had a higher percentage in 23 games with 1 even in 30 games.
You compute possessions by taking field goal attempts – offensive rebounds + turnovers plus 47.5% of free throws attempted and dividing that into the number of points. We were 112 FGA -17 OREBs + 32 TOs + (.475 x 39) = 145.525 possessions. They were 127 -28+ 28+ (.475 x 43) = 147.425 possessions. Since possessions shouldn’t be more than one per game off, I’ll count that as 146 possessions for us and 131 for them. There were 260 combined possessions in these games, 130 per game.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 132 combined possessions per game.
Conference: We’ve averaged 125 combined possessions per game.
Total: We’ve averaged 128 combined possessions per game.
(I’ve excluded overtime periods as we are trying to measure the pace of games and overtimes would add the possessions from an extra 5 minutes and thus be misleading.)
You compute “Offensive Efficiency” by dividing the points scored by the number of possessions. We scored 145 points in 146 possessions (0.993). They scored 141 points in 147 possessions (0.959).
Pre-Conference: We averaged 1.091 points per possession to 0.959 for the opposition. We won this stat in 10 of 13 games, (the winning team always wins this stat).
Conference: We’ve averaged 1.053 points per possession to 1.016 for the opposition. We’ve won the stat in 9 of 17 games.
Total: We’ve averaged 1.070 points per possession to 0.991 for the opposition and have won the stat in 19 of 30 games.
(These figures include the overtime periods as we are now determining the points per possession and the OT periods are as relevant as regulation.)
Every other level of basketball plays quarters. To check the consistency of our performance, I look at what the score was at the 10 minute mark of each half to see what the quarterly scores would be. At a minimum, I think we want to score at least 15 points in each quarter and try to hold the opposition to less than that. The quarterly breakdown for these games: 34-31, 34-33, 35-36, 42-41
Pre-Conference: We averaged 16-14, 16-14, 20-18, 20-17 OT: 5-13 We won 31 of 52 quarters with 3 even. We scored 15 or more in 38 quarters and held the opposition under that 23 times.
Conference: We’ve averaged 17-14, 15-16, 17-16, 19-20 OT: 12-8.5. We’ve won 33 of 68 quarters with 6 even. We’ve scored 15 or more in 41 quarters and held the opposition under that 27 times.
Total: We’ve averaged 17-14, 16-15, 18-17, 19-18 OT: 10-10. We’ve won 63 of 120 quarters with 9 even. We’ve scored 15 or more in 82 quarters and held the opposition under that 50 times.
Hubert Davis once told us to “Get an offensive dude”. I decided to name an “Offensive Dude Of the Game, or an O-Dog, and use the hockey concept of points + assists. In these games our ODOG was:
Vs. NC State Michael Gbinije 34 + 6 = 40
Vs. North Carolina Michael Gbinije 17 + 7 = 24
Michael Gbinije has been the O-Dog 23 times, Trevor Cooney 3 times, Mal Richardson 2 times each and Tyler Lydon and Tyler Roberson once each. Mike’s our O-Dog, that’s for sure.
I’ve thought of another stat to keep track of that also relates to individual offensive efficiency, although I’m sure there nothing all that new about it. I heard that Steph Curry had an amazing game in terms of the number of points he scored compared to the number of field goal attempts he had. I decided to compare the number of points scored to the number of shots taken, except I’ll include free throw attempts as they are shots, too. I originally thought of doing it on a percentage basis but a reserve who hit his only shot would out-rank a starter who scored 15 points on 10 shots. Instead I’ll keep track of the most points scored more than the number of shots- or the fewest points scored less than the number of shots if nobody has a positive number. I’ll call it “scoring efficiency”. In these games, the following players led us in scoring efficiency:
Vs. NC State Michael Gbinije 34-18-6 = +10
Vs. North Carolina DaJuan Coleman 4-3-0 = +1 and Franklin Howard 4-2-1 = +1
Michael Gbinije has led in this stat 11 times, Tyler Roberson 6 times, Trevor Cooney 5 times, Mal Richardson and Tyler Lydon and DaJuan Coleman 4 times, and Franklin Howard and Kaleb Joseph once. Gbinije had the best game a +13 Charlotte on 26 points vs. 9 for 11 from the field including 6 treys and 2 for 2 from the foul line. What I like about this stat is that totally different types of players can compete for it. Somebody’s had a positive score in every game.
I also like to keep track who sits us down in each half. Besides being fun it gives an indication of who Coach B likes to design plays for since opening possessions are more likely to be scripted. In these games, these are the players who sat us down:
Vs. NC State Trevor Cooney jumper after 2:13 and Tyler Roberson jumper after 1:01
Vs. North Carolina Tyler Roberson jumper after 2:33 and Mal Richardson lay-up after 2:22
The average time we’ve had to wait is 1 minute 10 seconds. The shortest time has been 7 seconds in the second half of the Texas Southern game. The longest time is 4:51 in the second half against Georgetown. But we haven’t had to wait long very often. Mali Richardson has sat us down 16 times, Michael Gbinije 14 times, Tyler Roberson 11 times, Trevor Cooney 10 times, DaJuan Coleman 8 times and Tyler Lydon once, (he’s always coming off the bench). We’ve been sat down by 20 treys, 13 lay-ups, 9 two point jumpers and 4 dunks. It’s interesting that the lost art of the two point jump shot has set us down as many as 9 times.
Another fun fact is the “Taco Bell MVP”: the guy who gets us to 70 points, (it used to be 75), so people can get free, (or is it discounted?) tacos at Taco Bell. In these games the following players got us tacos:
Vs. NC State Michael Gbinije trey with 2:44 left (3)
Vs. North Carolina Mal Richardson dunk with 44 seconds left (2)
Trevor Cooney has gotten us tacos 6 times, Michael Gbinije3 times, Mal Richardson and Tyler Lydon twice, DaJuan Coleman, Franklin Howard, and Tyler Roberson once each. The average amount of time left in the game- when we’ve made it to tacos- has been 4:35 left.
FOULS
My theory about fouls is that the team that attempts the most two point shots and scores the most in the paint will tend to get fouled the most. If the numbers are as predicted or close, there’s nothing to be read into them but if there’s a big disparity, it makes you wonder about how the game was called.
In these games, we attempted 60 two point shots to 85, scored 56 points in the paint to 52 and got fouled 34 times to 38, attempting 39 foul shots to 43. The ratio of two point attempts to times fouled was 1.8 for us and 2.2 for them, meaning we were more likely to get a call than they on two pointers. The ratio of points in the paint to times fouled was 1.6 for us to 1.4 for them, meaning they were more likely to get the call when we were scoring in the paint. The ratio of free throw attempts to fouls called on the other team was 1.1 for us and 1.1 for them.
Pre-Conference: We averaged 1.7 two point shots per foul, 1.3 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.1 foul shots per foul. They averaged 2.2 two point shots per foul, 1.8 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.0 foul shots per foul. We were fouled more often compared to our two point shots in 11 games and more often compared to our points in the paint in 10 games. We’ve gotten more fouls shots per foul in 9 games out of 13 games. So numerically, the calls favored us.
Conference: We’ve averaged 1.8 two point shots per foul, 1.5 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.1 foul shots per foul. They’ve averaged 2.0 two point shots per foul, 1.7 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.1 foul shots per foul. We were fouled more often compared to our two point shots in 11 games with one even and more often compared to our points in the paint in 11 games. We’ve gotten more foul shots per foul in 8 games out of 17 games with 2 even.
Total: We’ve averaged 1.8two point shots per foul, 1.4 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.1 foul shots per foul. They averaged 2.1 two point shots per foul,1.7 points in the paint per foul and attempted 1.0 foul shots per foul. We were fouled more often compared to our two point shots in 22 games with one even and more often compared to our points in the paint in 22 games. We’ve gotten more foul shots per foul in 17 games out of 28 games with 2 even. We can’t very well claim we haven’t gotten a fair shake from the refs.
“MY MAN”
A reporter once asked Casey Stengel how come he won so many games with the Yankees. He said “Because I never play a game without “my man”. The reporter wondered who his man was. Casey suggested “You could look it up.” The reporter did look it up and found that Yogi Berra had played in every game that season at some positon: catcher, left field, pinch-hitting, something. He was the player Stengel had the highest regard for and the most trust in, so he didn’t want to do without him.
Who is Jim Boeheim’s “man” this season? The only way to tell is to see who plays the most minutes each game. In these games the following players played the most minutes:
Vs. NC State Michael Gbinije 39 minutes
Vs. North Carolina Michael Gbinije 39 minutes
Trevor Cooney and Michael Gbinije have played the most minutes 15 times, Mal Richardson twice and Tyler Roberson once (there have been three ties). Gbinije and Cooney, of course, are our two seniors. It was interesting that in the Boston College game that Tyler Roberson tied for the lead in minutes played for the first time in the season. He’s become one of Boeheim’s “men”.