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MBB Game 29: WF at Clemson - Wednesday 7 pm - ACCN

Pilchard said:
If it's accurate that the team was hit by the flu, hope its a 24 hour deal because isn't going to give WF a pass for stumbling down the stretch because of the flu.
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If it's the stomach bug that just tore through my household here in the Dash, then it is 6-18 hours of hell and then at least a couple of days of feeling like a husk, but I'd hope 20-something year old college athletes are quicker to recover than me.
 
My guess on the problem with zone defenses is the lack of a midrange shot. Forbes was clear after the Syracuse game that taking a jump shot at the free throw line was discouraged. "It is open because the defense wants you to shoot it" was his wording. Jake passed on the shot frequently, despite being wide open and Forbes praised his restraint. Williams and Hildreth were both hitting from midrange at the beginning of the year but don't take the shot anymore. Forbes seems to want a shot at the rim or an open three. Open midrange shots are frequently available against a zone and can force a team to play man defense.

If it's not an option for our offense you lack an important tool in your toolbox.
 
BlackjackMc said:
My guess on the problem with zone defenses is the lack of a midrange shot. Forbes was clear after the Syracuse game that taking a jump shot at the free throw line was discouraged. "It is open because the defense wants you to shoot it" was his wording. Jake passed on the shot frequently, despite being wide open and Forbes praised his restraint. Williams and Hildreth were both hitting from midrange at the beginning of the year but don't take the shot anymore. Forbes seems to want a shot at the rim or an open three. Open midrange shots are frequently available against a zone and can force a team to play man defense.

If it's not an option for our offense you lack an important tool in your toolbox.
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Somebody, preferably multiple somebodies, needs to be able to hit from 10-15 feet. The so-called "elbow jumper" that Al McGuire used to talk about.

Against the ND zone, LaRavia would get that deep then dribble back out, rather than taking the shot that was there a with a step or two less penetration.
 
Deaconblue said:
Somebody, preferably multiple somebodies, needs to be able to hit from 10-15 feet. The so-called "elbow jumper" that Al McGuire used to talk about.

Against the ND zone, LaRavia would get that deep then dribble back out, rather than taking the shot that was there a with a step or two less penetration.
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That's by design from the coaching staff. Forbes left no doubt about it in the post game interview after Syracuse. Open jumpers from 15 feet should be a 60%+ shot. Makes me crazy.
 
when i last saw it, we were tops in the acc and towards the best (iirc 98th percentile) in the country in shot selection metrics. i think precisely because we don’t take things like midrange shots that maybe seem like they should be easy but that isn’t really borne out by the numbers.

there is still a lot of anti 3 point sentiment still among fans (not as much in the nba) but i think that will start going by the wayside the same way other old school myths have (establishing the run, hitting the ball on the ground, sac bunts, etc.).
 
I’m with IAppreciateIt. On a different thread someone said there’s no way we should be shooting 40% of our shots from 3 given the high percentage we shoot from 2. I don’t hate the sentiment but I disagree with the conclusion.

We shoot 59% from 2 BECAUSE of the shots we take and don’t take. And I’d bet our incremental percentage from 2 would be well below 52%, which is the equivalent of what we shoot from 3.

Or put differently, our eFg% at over 55% is basically the best in school history and 15th in the country because of the mix of shots we are taking.
 
IAppreciatIt and Haros, I have no problem with the the mix of shots the coaching staff prefers. The problem occurs against zone defenses. The Deacs struggle to score and the percentages diminish. The goal is to make the opponents abandon the zone or improve our percentages against it. Hitting open midrange shots is a means of forcing a team out of zone defense. It's a means to an end. Show it and see if it works.
 
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