Well … that was certainly an interesting game. I could easily write several paragraphs repeating and expanding upon all of the negative aspects displayed by the team. But despite all the woes, they won by 27 points. In other words, a blow-out. I was there watching it yet I can’t fully explain how the game went from even-Steven (and the Lions actually behind) to that 27-point differential.
I counted 15 (!!!) missed layups by our guys. That’s A LOT!!
Hill was 1 for 10.
Leaupepe scored a 3-pointer to start the game and then went crickets for most of the game.
… and so on ….
I want to give Central Arkansas credit. They aren’t very good but they played with intensity and they played together very well. They only have one upper class man yet played with a unity that our Lions could really use.
Harris kept us in the game with an outstanding shooting night. That guy is fun to watch. He has sooo much talent!
Alex though is the one who turned the game around. He played with tremendous confidence and aggressively pounded the middle. He really ignited that second half explosion.
I know nbd can be a disagreeable sort, but I spent most of the game having the same thoughts about Coach Stan. Our penetration defense is hopeless and that just shouldn’t be. Last year’s guards had no lateral movement and we had little interior defense. But this year we have athletic guards and a big center, but we still can’t stop the penetration. We don’t keep our defense balanced so we’re always vulnerable to back doors and swing passes to the weak side. On offense we quickly succumb to tight man pressure despite having 4 guards who are all capable of breaking a press. I don’t see Coach Stan making a positive impact on the team’s ability to build schemes and plays that address these problems.
Re Harris’ injury - while I don’t have any inside information, it certainly looked like a muscle spasm and not a real injury. I hope I’m right. We really need his firepower and athleticism.
I think Johnston is hustling a lot and he can be disruptive on defense but he’s showing almost nil on the offensive end of the court. He’s supposed to be a scorer. What’s going on there?
Kelli - PLEASE get your muscled body inside where you can do some damage and get back into a scoring mode.
We’ve got some serious work to do before facing Nevada and CSU!