The tournament is 3 games over 4 days.  Beat K State and we will then play on Sunday and Monday.  Lose on Friday and we will play Saturday and then again on Monday.

Fair enough.  I saw the brick Jun put up also.  His shooting from 3 is reminiscent of Lindo.  He’d make 1 and then hit the side of the backboard. 
Foul shooting and 3 point shooting are all confidence and rhythm.  They’re also contagious.  If they come in rhythm, Jacoi, CJ, Autry, and Drumgoole will eventually get hot.  My guess is CC is happy with 44 pts in the paint and 22 at the foul line. Going to the rim and finishing isn’t a bad idea.  They’ll be fine as long as they get after it and don’t fixate on any 1 aspect of the game

Long Suffering Fan wrote:

BC wrote:

Medical stuff is (appropriately IMO) not for public dissemination.  It would be nice to know from our perspective, but still HIPAA laws are sound.

FYI...HIPPA only applies to health care providers and their associated service provicers.  Notwithstanding, it would certainly be  imprudent for a university to release medical information to the public, assuming that this isn't already protected under other laws.  
 

With legalized gambling there’s now an expectation that injury information be released to the public. Gross stuff, but it’s the world we live in.

There's no doubt that the team is going to have to lift its overall outside shooting to at least the low 30s moving forward, but I have faith in CC on offense that he'll figure out a way for the team to put up points efficiently without this team being as good as last year from outside.

It might be a bit of a lazy comparison, but I am reminded of the first team under CC where the team was so good inside (ranked 11th nationally in 2P%) while only shooting 32% from 3. That team finished just outside the top 100 in offensive efficiency per KenPom. Obviously, that three point shooting number is a lot higher than what this team is at right now, but positive regression is coming the team's way. On that first team a couple years ago, only BA and Max were consistent three point threats and the team still managed (EJ would have maybe been another option had he not been lost during OOC play). I still think this year's team has more threats overall. Obviously Ricky and Jun aren't the exact some player (Ricky was a frustrating watch at times) and Hunter and Rafael aren't the same either (although both are effective at finishing inside, decent at the FT line, and can pass) but point is that CC changed his approach when the team wasn't shooting the three well. Funnily enough, last year the problem offensively was that the team couldn't finish inside at all (and it wasn't just not having any production at center).

That team was also less analytically focused, partly because JB and BA were so good in the midrange and as others have mentioned above this team isn't doing that, but this team can find similar advantages to offset the inability to shoot threes. Moss and Drumgoole have to show consistency on at least one side of the ball as the year progresses - for all of JB's faults defensively, he was a bucket. Right now Moss has one of the lowest BPM on the team according to EvanMiya (poor rating especially on defense). Drumgoole isn't just struggling from 3, he's also 58% at the FT line which is terrible for a guard.

CC mentioning offensive rebounding is interesting. While it wasn't seen against NJIT, extra shot opportunities will help the offense, especially if GW's opponents are going to be out of position playing zone so much trying to take away inside looks. Some tradeoffs will have to be made regarding transition defense, but it may be worth it for this team. As an aside, I was looking at stats on KenPom this morning and never realized just how good GW has been with regards to offensive rebounding since 1997. It's only more recently (the past six teams) that it's been ignored, as the modern way suggests that getting back on defense is more beneficial than crashing the glass for extra shot opportunities. Before that 20 of the previous 22 teams were top 100 nationally in OR%.

The bigger focus should be on defense still. CC will have to adjust the offense once he plays tougher competition this weekend, but outside of Hampton even against poor competition other teams have still been getting too many open looks along the perimeter, or beating guards off the dribble. I think regardless of competition we will be able to see whether the team improves in their ability to switch and limit clean looks. This is D1, anybody can make an open shot regardless of the team, as both NC A&T and NJIT have shown the last two games. Unlike that team two years ago, hopefully this team doesn't have to try to outscore the other team in order to win. The depth is better now, but injuries haven't helped (reminds me of a couple Miami teams that underperformed in consecutive years because they couldn't stay healthy). Rotating in fresh bodies would help if GW could get more guys to play, and to tie everything back to the three point shooting - better defense will keep the game from getting out of hand on a cold shooting night. Otherwise, a ton of threes will have to be shot in order to get back in the game and I think we all prefer that not happen given this year's squad based on what has been shown so far (although again, improvement is coming - hopefully on Friday).
 

If we are not going to become a good 3 point shooting team it will really put more of a premium on maximizing possession differential. GW can do this by limiting GW turnovers, creating opponent turnovers, guarding and limiting offensive rebounds (one and done possessions) while trying to generate offensive rebounds. To me, maximizing possession differential will be the way in which GW can have a chance in most games.

Last edited by GWRising (11/20/2024 11:19 am)

Drumgoole certainly can give us a lift at time and competes hard. And is appreciated for coming to GW.
But offensively is a poor man's James Bishop so far in terms of shooting and scoring--and James was still largely inconsistent at times and may not have helped balanced team efforts.
    So yes, good idea above if the shots aren't falling--and using the roster we have constructed for even a few fresh minutes might help.
Given the reputations and experience of some of our transfers, it would seem we are due for at least a decent, if not a good to real good outside shooting performance from Gerald and the other new players. Just based on the odds.
   That's what we can hope for, to complement the positives, like Jun being Jun, the defensive deflections and Castro's ability to score opportunistically. But certainly not count on the better overall performance, based on what we have seen so far against a weak schedule.
   We'll see what happens in St. Thomas when we play a decent team or two.

I don't know for sure, but a friend told me they heard or saw on the broadcast that Jun appeared to be taunting (in the eyes of the ref), but that it likely was just his enthusiasm that made it appear that way.