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[MrMac]

[Acorn]

I must be mellowing in my old age because Friday’s loss didn’t bother me as much or for as long as it would have in the past. Obviously I would prefer for Davidson to have wonâ€"or at least to have played better. But I’ve seen this movie before. The offense stagnates as everyone figures out their roles in it. Players aren’t sure what they should do at certain momentsâ€"in large part because they’re not sure what their teammates are doingâ€"and the resulting hesitation grinds everything to a halt. Kellan, especially, seems to be finding his way. Many times he receives the ball he hesitates just long enough for the defense to recover. It looks like a habit that’s come from playing one on one. He’ll give a little head fake or shoulder shake, but he doesn’t really do anything to attack the defender, who is able to guard him by simply staying put in front of him.

I do worry a bit about the team’s ongoing struggles against long, athletic teams that attack the passing lanes. And I think the minimal outside shooting threat posed by Davidson’s bigs will mean Bob et al. may need to add some new wrinkles to keep defenders from being able to clog the middle of the court, which is important space for Davidson’s cuts and passes.

The good news, I think, is that Davidson hasn’t played well yet (and especially hasn’t scored well). But they’re still winning and they hung around with a top-25 team for 30 minutes (though it never felt as close as the score indicated). As someone said, that wasn’t App State from last year. I have great confidence in KG and JAG. And I think Luke and Luka will figure out how to get theirs. Carter has been a nice surprise to me.

[mccabemi]

To extend on points above, Kellan has not seemed to have the space to drive to the basket. He's holding the ball in the offense waiting for the proper spacing, and when it doesn't develop either 1) passes the ball a second late disrupting the offensive flow 2) drives to the basket and is forced into a shot that has been altered or the angle of attack made more difficult by the clogged middle. You can see the frustration in his eyes, and toward the end of the game when he hit a 3- he was more vocal about it (which is ultimately good if he can express it in a way that teaches rather than out of frustration). I think a lot of the best opportunities for attacking the basket come out on the wing where the big man has been used to reverse the ball at the top of the key and then down screen for shooters (rather than posting up). Kellan had a nice reverse lay-up in the 1st half utilizing this idea.

Luka tends to be most comfortable back to the basket. He moves so well though that eventually I see him being extremely effective in the screen and roll. This is how we used Andrew and Boris to unclog the middle. The 5 defender has to hedge the screener if you're scared of the shooter and now the middle is clear for back side cutter or slip screen. So far we've looked a bit awkward in those opportunities. Nate had a nice slip drawing a foul on pass from Kishawn and then on a dribble handoff with Luke in a nice sequence in the 2nd half.

Offensively it really frustrates me that we never have a weak side rebounder. I'm not sure if this is by design but the only player we generally have going after an offensive rebound is our 5. If we play perimeter oriented offense there are opportunities to attack the glass opposite the side of the shooter where boxing out is generally more difficult because the defender is less aware the ball has been shot. If the defense need only be responsible for boxing out the 5 the task of gathering a rebound is made rather easy. It's essentially 5 on 1 unless there is a long rebound.

Has nobody mentioned Luke? Man does he play with a chip on his shoulder and I mean that in the best way. Has the MPG attitude on defense and picked up some frustration fouls, but I kinda liked it. He wants to win, and thinks we should win.

[mccabemi]

Also, what was said on tv about that crap call on Nate where the Purdue big guy hooked Nate's arm and dragged him down? And then all of a sudden Nate was called for the foul? That baseline ref had Purdue and the points.

[BDF]

JAG and Luka ran some great pick and rolls in the first couple of games. I remember being impressed by Luka's hands.

And you are right, Luke is every bit as tough (and smart) as advertised. Regarding the smart, at the end of the Wichita St. game, you can see him repeatedly asking the coaching staff "do you really want me on the box for this foul shot. He knew the only really bad outcome at that point in the game was picking up a foul going for a rebound. They left him there, but when the shot went up, he just quietly backed away. No chance he was making the wrong play there.
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This is a post by BDF, not BDL.

[TOK]

[quickcat]

[stevelee]

App just came back from a 9-point deficit in the last minute to take Ball State into OT.
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Μεγάλη ἡμέρα εἶναι Λύγξ

[stevelee]

Ball State had a 9-0 start in OT, and won by 8.
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Μεγάλη ἡμέρα εἶναι Λύγξ

[rbarney]

I'm obviously not as astute a watcher on offense, but the one thing that impressed me about Purdue is that they never let off the gas. Once we were down, they never let us narrow the margin. When we scored, they came right back with a score of their own. It will be interesting to see how they fare in the Big Ten this year (not to mention the top 25).

[straycat]

[BDF]

[mccabemi]

There is a substantial cost of a big taking a 3.... which is that your opportunity for an offensive rebound can decline (especially so if you don’t have to guard the big shooting it).

[catnhat]

I think that "one per half" is an effort to get him to shoot at least one per half. If he ever starts taking too many they can revise their instructions,

[wildforthecats]

We are only scratching the surface of what many of our guys are capable of doing.