Stat of the game

[RUBigFrank]

RU FG attempts 79
SHU FG attempts 49

Well the obvious answer is put the ball in the damn hoop.

Think about it - can this offense get better through the season? Likely yes.

Shot selection needs to get better. My thought is that this bodes well for future play.

 

[koolraddad]

I saw that. Almost shocking. The other stat of note, free throws. 31 to 15.

 

[ScarletKid2008]

@RUBigFrank

I dunno about shot selection being the problem. They were getting open looks , especially from 3. Ron was open all day.

SHU blocked a ton of shots too.

I thought Eugene had too many back downs without ending up with a shot. He actually should’ve forced it a bit more considering he’s now our #2 scorer

 

[ScarletDave]

I saw that. Almost shocking. The other stat of note, free throws. 31 to 15.

It was that way last year too. For some reason we haven’t been taught how to “try to get fouled” like other teams have. Instead we settle for half court 3s in desperation.

 

[kcg88]

It was that way last year too. For some reason we haven’t been taught how to “try to get fouled” like other teams have. Instead we settle for half court 3s in desperation.

Huh? We had 34 free throw attempts last year to their 11.

 

[rufeelinit]

Our bigs don't finish second chance opportunities inside. I don't want EO forcing things inside.

 

[TDIrish27]

Especially in the first half saw several times where they got him matched on a guard due to a screen.

You have to take the ball to the rim under those circumstances.

 

[rufeelinit]

Especially in the first half saw several times where they got him matched on a guard due to a screen.

You have to take the ball to the rim under those circumstances.

Maybe but over the course of this year, EO pounding the rock with his back to the basket in the post has not been a high percentage play. Admittedly I am thinking about situations when he was guarded by guys of similar height or taller.

 

[SirScarlet]

We had a ton of really good looks...Harper especially...and couldnt make them. That needs to change and this team will be extremely difficult to deal with.

Harper is too good to continue to shoot this way...so i would focus on him and many other positive benefits will follow as teams will HAVE to respect that.

He is young and he clearly has a sweet stroke...just needs some tune ups. And before some of you guys dismiss that suggestion go read the article about Willard spending the week tuning up Mamu's shot...and look at the impact that had on the game.

It's not a silver bullet but I believe this improvement can have the most benefits to the team.

 

[RUBigFrank]

With that many looks it seems we can improve greatly on offense as the season progresses. Need to come together as a team in the half court.

 

[ScarletDave]

I agree, the good news is the coaching is there and clearly we are getting very good looks. But at some point the guys have to execute!! They are great recruits too, Harper, Kiss, McConnell .. how many open 3s did we miss. Bunny layups. The ball needs to go in the basket, that it!

 

[bac2therac]

Our bigs don't finish second chance opportunities inside. I don't want EO forcing things inside.

bingo....when you get a rebound you go up strong, yesterday RU missed at least a half dozen chippies. Our lack of inside awareness is killing the offense. They do a great job rebounding and playing defense but its the opposite when it comes to shooting point blank

 

[bac2therac]

Just saying the shooting will get better will not mean it will, it doesnt have to get better...remember they wont have 79 tries in most games. I thought yesterday at times the shot selection was poor and rushed but even when we were fairly open we were bricking.

 

[JQRU91]

If Thiam and Harper each make a three and Mathis gets another putback, we win the game. Not trying to lay blame, just saying we weren't that far from pulling this one out.

 

[kcg88]

I don't understand why the bigs don't use the backboard more... Everything they try seems to be a lay-in. Even in warm-ups.

 

[Proud NJ Sports Fan]

It was that much a disparity?

I was not too far from the RU bench and Pike was getting so frustrated when they were missing open looks.

I yelled at him to put in Downes , anyone here me?

 

[TDIrish27]

Evidently he didn't.

 

[willisneverrana43]

RU FG attempts 79
SHU FG attempts 49

Well the obvious answer is put the ball in the damn hoop.

. . . . .

This has been the problem for years, and it was last year when we were in the bottom ten in the country in almost every shooting category.

Now, this year, we may have more people capable of scoring than we've had in the past, but many of them are young and have not developed enough to be current, consistent scorers.

There's a reason RU was picked at the bottom of the conference yet again. Yes, we got promising recruits, but we also lost three key veteran pieces. Bad timing, but that's how it can go when you're rebuilding from scratch.

 

[RCBeta79]

This team is built for physical Big Ten play.

I like our defense most of the time...we don't fare well against smaller, quicker guards that rely of three pointers.

Our offense gets many good looks, more shots, and offensive rebounds, but we do not finish down low on the rebounds or try to draw fouls. Drawing Fouls on offensive rebounds can make up for poor outside shooting.

We have a lot of new players and Pike is looking at combinations....My guess is the lineup and minutes for players will look very different when Big Ten games resume after the New Year.

Pike got the team to peak last year in time for the Conference Tournament.

The talent is young, but we have better depth as a team than last year....I believe we will win 5 or 6 Big Ten games by the end of the season....and hope we can peak for the tournament.

Next year....we start moving to the middle of the pack in the Big Ten.

 

[rudad02]

bingo....when you get a rebound you go up strong, yesterday RU missed at least a half dozen chippies. Our lack of inside awareness is killing the offense. They do a great job rebounding and playing defense but its the opposite when it comes to shooting point blank

Yes

 

[rudad02]

Just saying the shooting will get better will not mean it will, it doesnt have to get better...remember they wont have 79 tries in most games. I thought yesterday at times the shot selection was poor and rushed but even when we were fairly open we were bricking.

Yes

 

[RUJMM78]

Maybe but over the course of this year, EO pounding the rock with his back to the basket in the post has not been a high percentage play. Admittedly I am thinking about situations when he was guarded by guys of similar height or taller.

Eugene was over matched inside against taller defenders.

 

[RUBigFrank]

when you have thirty more shots - you would expect to win.

 

[RU848789]

bingo....when you get a rebound you go up strong, yesterday RU missed at least a half dozen chippies. Our lack of inside awareness is killing the offense. They do a great job rebounding and playing defense but its the opposite when it comes to shooting point blank

In many ways it's a simple game - you win more if you shoot better. And the missed chippies/putbacks killed us yesterday. Should've easily had another 10-14 points from rebounds/putbacks, but our guys just couldn't put the ball in the hole. Worst example was near the end of the game when Johnson got a rebound on the block, 5 feet from the basket and tried a little teardrop shot that got blocked, rather than going to the hole, which was a no-brainer with nobody in his way - worst case, he gets fouled and best case he makes the basket (think we were down 5 at the time).