Who do we go to when we have to have a basket?

[Townie72]

In his interview last night, Triche said that this year's team was better than last years. He said there is more of a willingness to share the ball and less one-on-one.

I have my doubts. I think the defense this year is better. But the offense is erratic.

Last year, when we had to have a basket at crunch time, it seemed to me that Waiters going to the hoop was nearly unstoppable.

But what about this year? Where do we go when we have the ball and there's 20 seconds left? Where do we go to stop a run by the opposing team? Who is the go-to guy and the go-to play?

Is it MCW driving to the basket for a lay up or a dish?

Is it Triche bombing away from outside or pulling up short on a drive to shoot a 15 ft jumper?

Is it kicking the ball back to Southerland for a three?

I think our best chance is getting the ball inside to Fair to see if he him twist and lean and stretch and put up a short shot. I know he missed a bunch of these last night. But I think this is the highest probability thing we have.

So based on what I have seen so far (and last year) Fair in the paint is the go-to guy and the go-to play.

 

[Marsh01]

I think its by committee.

At times it will be Triche. Last night it was CJ. Basically it is what the defense will allow you to get. Last night CJ was scoring from about 8-10 feet at will.

 

[UnderHisOwnPower]

He said there is more of a willingness to share the ball and less one-on-one.

I have my doubts. I think the defense this year is better. But the offense is erratic..

Last night, when PC got to within a basket late, they went to both CJ and James at the foul line. Both hit nice little jumpers in the wide open middle of their zone. It will come down to matchups and who has the hot hand. Lack of an obvious, emergent single go to guy does not mean that the team does not have guys they can go to.

 

[Townie72]

I think its by committee.

At times it will be Triche. Last night it was CJ. Basically it is what the defense will allow you to get. Last night CJ was scoring from about 8-10 feet at will.

So when JB takes a TO and call them over to the side, he tells them, "Whoever is open, shoot it?"

I don't know about that as a strategy. You may not be right. I'd prefer he called a play and who was going to be involved in the paly.

 

[jec1521]

My bet, by the end of the season, is that it will be Brandon. He's the Senior with experience.

 

[Marsh01]

So when JB takes a TO and call them over to the side, he tells them, "Whoever is open, shoot it?"

I don't know about that as a strategy. You may not be right. I'd prefer he called a play and who was going to be involved in the paly.

No what I am saying is by then he should know who has a favorable matchup based on how the game is going to draw up a play based on that.

 

[billsin01]

In his interview last night, Triche said that this year's team was better than last years. He said there is more of a willingness to share the ball and less one-on-one.

I have my doubts. I think the defense this year is better. But the offense is erratic.

Last year, when we had to have a basket at crunch time, it seemed to me that Waiters going to the hoop was nearly unstoppable.

But what about this year? Where do we go when we have the ball and there's 20 seconds left? Where do we go to stop a run by the opposing team? Who is the go-to guy and the go-to play?

Is it MCW driving to the basket for a lay up or a dish?

Is it Triche bombing away from outside or pulling up short on a drive to shoot a 15 ft jumper?

Is it kicking the ball back to Southerland for a three?

I think our best chance is getting the ball inside to Fair to see if he him twist and lean and stretch and put up a short shot. I know he missed a bunch of these last night. But I think this is the highest probability thing we have.

So based on what I have seen so far (and last year) Fair in the paint is the go-to guy and the go-to play.

I think one thing that complicates it too is that I think we'll be seeing far more zone this year than year's past -- perhaps due to our personnel and perhaps due to an increase in the amount of zone played in the BE (purely anecdotal, but G'town is almost exclusively zone, PC was in a zone a ton and I've seen several other BE teams running. Don't remember that before).

But I think ultimately it goes to MCW. I think he's learning what it takes to score and play under control in the BE right now. Hopefully a few more BE games under his belt helps him in that department. But uncanny his ability to find the open guy combined with his potential as a scorer make him our best option there. CJ and James move without the ball, Triche is the outlet and MCW driving the bus. Gotta figure that's how it will go as we get closer to March.

 

[Townie72]

No what I am saying is by then he should know who has a favorable matchup based on how the game is going to draw up a play based on that.

Lets try it this way.

You are the coach of the opposing team. SU has the ball with 20 seconds left needing a 2 pt. basket to tie. In spite of what has hpeened in the first 39 mins and 40 seconds, what do you try and shut down first, second, etc. And what do you want SU to do?

Clearly, preventing MCW from driving the lane is a high priority.

And getting the ball in the hands of Keita or Christmas or Grant sounds like a good idea ... especially with SU's foul-shooting.

 

[Marsh01]

Lets try it this way.

You are the coach of the opposing team. SU has the ball with 20 seconds left needing a 2 pt. basket to tie. In spite of what has hpeened in the first 39 mins and 40 seconds, what do you try and shut down first, second, etc. And what do you want SU to do?

Clearly, preventing MCW from driving the lane is a high priority.

And getting the ball in the hands of Keita or Christmas or Grant sounds like a good idea ... especially with SU's foul-shooting.

JB has typically always gone with what is working. Obviously MCW will be the catalyst. I just hope we would crash the boards hard in case we need a putback!

 

[Townie72]

I think one thing that complicates it too is that I think we'll be seeing far more zone this year than year's past -- perhaps due to our personnel and perhaps due to an increase in the amount of zone played in the BE (purely anecdotal, but G'town is almost exclusively zone, PC was in a zone a ton and I've seen several other BE teams running. Don't remember that before).

But I think ultimately it goes to MCW. I think he's learning what it takes to score and play under control in the BE right now. Hopefully a few more BE games under his belt helps him in that department. But uncanny his ability to find the open guy combined with his potential as a scorer make him our best option there. CJ and James move without the ball, Triche is the outlet and MCW driving the bus. Gotta figure that's how it will go as we get closer to March.

I wonder how our resident "M2M lovers" on here like to watch SU struggle against zone defenses that aren't as good as the SU zone (like at Providence last night).

Back to the original thread. I hear what you are saying... but if I'm the opposing coach, I'm telling my team, "If MCM wants to shoot a three pointer, let him. Just don't crowd him and let him drive. If they attempt to pick you off then switch. You cannot let this 6'5" freak into the lane to score or dish.

Lets have them pass it to Keita and see if he can beat us.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

Lets try it this way.

You are the coach of the opposing team. SU has the ball with 20 seconds left needing a 2 pt. basket to tie. In spite of what has hpeened in the first 39 mins and 40 seconds, what do you try and shut down first, second, etc. And what do you want SU to do?

Clearly, preventing MCW from driving the lane is a high priority.

And getting the ball in the hands of Keita or Christmas or Grant sounds like a good idea ... especially with SU's foul-shooting.

Personally, I think you have just summed up perfectly why having only one "go-to-guy" can be counterproductive. Unless you have a superstar type, the other team can easily draw up a decent defense that has a real shot of preventing the game winning/tying bucket.

We had Dion last year, but I'd guess that Scoop had as many game winning/saving/tying opportunities as Dion did in the last minute. Spreading the wealth and having good options is a great thing.

 

[BostonOrange]

Lets try it this way.

You are the coach of the opposing team. SU has the ball with 20 seconds left needing a 2 pt. basket to tie. In spite of what has hpeened in the first 39 mins and 40 seconds, what do you try and shut down first, second, etc. And what do you want SU to do?

Clearly, preventing MCW from driving the lane is a high priority.

And getting the ball in the hands of Keita or Christmas or Grant sounds like a good idea ... especially with SU's foul-shooting.

I space the floor, run MCW off a high screen and let him create from there. I think that is our best offensive play.

 

[Townie72]

Personally, I think you have just summed up perfectly why having only one "go-to-guy" can be counterproductive. Unless you have a superstar type, the other team can easily draw up a decent defense that has a real shot of preventing the game winning/tying bucket.

We had Dion last year, but I'd guess that Scoop had as many game winning/saving/tying opportunities as Dion did in the last minute. Spreading the wealth and having good options is a great thing.

Well, we are going to see how this works out. I'll guarantee you that in the balance of the season we are going to have some tight games at the end. If if not, certainly in the BET or the NCAA.

The problem I have with these multiple options is that all of them have shown themselves to be erratic and risky at times.

Dion going to the hole was "money". Southerland from 3-pt range is scary. Triche from 15 ft is scary. MCW in the lane can work all sorts of ways.

 

[Townie72]

I space the floor, run MCW off a high screen and let him create from there. I think that is our best offensive play.

And I am going to pack that defense in the paint. I am not letting anyone --- especially MCW --- down the lane.

The play I like is getting the ball into Fair ... who happens to be one of our better foul shooters. (Remember MCW on the line vs. Temple?)

 

[CuseFaninVT]

Well, we are going to see how this works out. I'll guarantee you that in the balance of the season we are going to have some tight games at the end. If if not, certainly in the BET or the NCAA.

The problem I have with these multiple options is that all of them have shown themselves to be erratic and risky at times.

Dion going to the hole was "money". Southerland from 3-pt range is scary. Triche from 15 ft is scary. MCW in the lane can work all sorts of ways.

No question about it. I still am not completely sold on Fair either as the best option. I've yet to see him make a good interior pass (on purpose) to Rak or James. If he gets stuck, he never looks inside, just out to one of the guards. He leaves his feet without a plan almost as much as our two guards and seems dangerously close to charging on about half his drives. But he's one of our best options.

 

[OttoMets]

I think one thing that complicates it too is that I think we'll be seeing far more zone this year than year's past -- perhaps due to our personnel and perhaps due to an increase in the amount of zone played in the BE...

Funny - near-consensus on this board all summer was that we'd be running out the Great Zone-Busting Team in 2012-2013, mainly due to improvements in personnel (Triche is better than Scoop and going to become a 40% shooter again, Mike's a very good shooter, look at how much C.J. has improved his shooting since his freshman year (at that time, not at all - he'd only increased his volume), South will be lights-out, Cooney will be the best in history because McNamara said so).

I'm surprised by South's recent struggles and a little surprised that Mike isn't making more (though shot selection and inconsistent form have played a role). Beyond that, though, the zone-busting thing seemed a bit much to hope for. Shooting aside, it is disappointing that we're struggling against zones - we should have improved simply by virtue of the fact that all our veterans have seen a lot of zone by this point.

 

[OttoMets]

No question about it. I still am not completely sold on Fair either as the best option. I've yet to see him make a good interior pass (on purpose) to Rak or James. If he gets stuck, he never looks inside, just out to one of the guards. He leaves his feet without a plan almost as much as our two guards and seems dangerously close to charging on about half his drives. But he's one of our best options.

I'm not entirely convinced that that late "airball" was not a pass to Christmas. In real time, I was sure it was a lob. The replay was inconclusive.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

I'm not entirely convinced that that late "airball" was not a pass to Christmas. In real time, I was sure it was a lob. The replay was inconclusive.

I was watching on a laptop so I'm in no position to offer a conclusive statement, but it sure looked like an airball. At least he was being defended unlike the Coleman one from the last game.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

When you have a committee approach to being the go-to guy..it just means you have no go to guys at all. Not always the best situation to be in come Sweet 16, elite 8.

If we had 14 seconds to go, down by 1...I'd like to see the ball go in to CJ and see what he can do. Probably our highest percentage chance of something good happening there.

 

[CorduroyG]

I space the floor, run MCW off a high screen and let him create from there. I think that is our best offensive play.

this. if a game comes down to a final possession, this is what we'll see. obvious choice for me. the ball will be in mcw's hands.

 

[billsin01]

Funny - near-consensus on this board all summer was that we'd be running out the Great Zone-Busting Team in 2012-2013, mainly due to improvements in personnel (Triche is better than Scoop and going to become a 40% shooter again, Mike's a very good shooter, look at how much C.J. has improved his shooting since his freshman year (at that time, not at all - he'd only increased his volume), South will be lights-out, Cooney will be the best in history because McNamara said so).

I'm surprised by South's recent struggles and a little surprised that Mike isn't making more (though shot selection and inconsistent form have played a role). Beyond that, though, the zone-busting thing seemed a bit much to hope for. Shooting aside, it is disappointing that we're struggling against zones - we should have improved simply by virtue of the fact that all our veterans have seen a lot of zone by this point.

I think teams that perform the best against zones are disciplined and run zone-specific sets -- just don't think that's our style. As for MCW you hit the nail on the head (in my completely subjective opinion). Shot selection has been huge -- his form isn't great, but when he sets his feet and takes his time, he's shot well. Thought the three he hit in the second half (I think) was great. It was the one where he was open from a few feet behind the line and thought about it, but passed it up to triche on the wing. MCW got a little closer and more prepared to catch and shoot and when he got it back, he went straight up and nailed it. I think for much of the season he's somewhat impulsively just shot that first three from deeper and without his feet set.

 

[billsin01]

I wonder how our resident "M2M lovers" on here like to watch SU struggle against zone defenses that aren't as good as the SU zone (like at Providence last night).

Back to the original thread. I hear what you are saying... but if I'm the opposing coach, I'm telling my team, "If MCM wants to shoot a three pointer, let him. Just don't crowd him and let him drive. If they attempt to pick you off then switch. You cannot let this 6'5" freak into the lane to score or dish.

Lets have them pass it to Keita and see if he can beat us.

I agree with all of this (including the first part) but I still think I -- and I"m guessing JB -- will at least go with the theory that you give your best player the ball at crunch time. I'm guessing Dirty on a pick-and-roll or pick-and-pop type scenario as one option, with Xmas and CJ in or around the paint and Triche spotting up and/or crashing the boards. Not sure I love that but that would be my guess as to what they'd do.

 

[OttoMets]

I think teams that perform the best against zones are disciplined and run zone-specific sets -- just don't think that's our style. As for MCW you hit the nail on the head (in my completely subjective opinion). Shot selection has been huge -- his form isn't great, but when he sets his feet and takes his time, he's shot well. Thought the three he hit in the second half (I think) was great. It was the one where he was open from a few feet behind the line and thought about it, but passed it up to triche on the wing. MCW got a little closer and more prepared to catch and shoot and when he got it back, he went straight up and nailed it. I think for much of the season he's somewhat impulsively just shot that first three from deeper and without his feet set.

It'll be nice to see him improve as he learns those little things - he's capable of being a good jumpshooter.

 

[Gabjon]

I space the floor, run MCW off a high screen and let him create from there. I think that is our best offensive play.

That play can only be run against man...

 

[CuseFaninVT]

That play can only be run against man...

They used it a couple times last night. It's really only effective if the other guard is wary of a three point shooter out top, so it's imperative Triche hit a couple during a game to earn that respect. Or move James up to that area on a night he's actually hitting.