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It's not just free-throws, it's missing on the front end of one-and-ones.

Also, three-pointers.

Everything about this team seemed to collapse when we hit conference play..

Free throws, 2 pointers, 3 pointers, confidence, playing down to opponents, losing close games..

It's not like cusa is a Big10 or ACC gauntlet, either. If anyone can explain to me what happened, ill buy you lunch.

Regularly missing FTs is not just a FT scoring problem. When a team gets that reputation, the other team's defense is much more free to man-handle our players on all kinds of shots without having to "pay the piper" by giving up points for fouls. My feeling is that every kind of shot we might attempt is affected when the opponent is thereby enabled to use rough play to stop all kinds of our shots by intimidation tactics. Were any of our injuries possibly the result of this rough play?

UAB also struggled to handle pressure and rarely tried to make the pressing teams pay for pressing us. That's fine if our identity is not to press other folks but we darn well better be prepared to punish teams that do. I remember us getting hammered by Kansas in the Sweet 16 in precisely this way. They weren't necessarily known that year as a pressing team but that didn't stop them from punishing us for trying to press them.

We need a jitterbug PG like Squeaky or AJ. We have really been missing having a stable ball handler that could single handedly break pressure.

This is why I foresee big problems even if we beat Charlotte because we were very weak in attacking La Techs pressure.

AJ was a one man press and press-breaker.

If we get by Charlotte, I like our chances against La Tech. Allegedly, it's hard to beat a team three times in a season. We'll see.

(03-09-2014 10:33 PM)The Answer UAB Wrote:  Everything about this team seemed to collapse when we hit conference play..

Free throws, 2 pointers, 3 pointers, confidence, playing down to opponents, losing close games..

It's not like cusa is a Big10 or ACC gauntlet, either. If anyone can explain to me what happened, ill buy you lunch.

Our 3 point shooting sucked all year. I don't know why you think that was something that happened in conference play.

I don't know what happened with the FT's, but that is something that we need fixed for next year. We were all over the place with them for most of the season though. We missed 20 FT's against FAMU, and I remember being worried about that at the time.

We played down to opponents all year. Go back and look at how we played against some of the crap teams on our early season schedule. We barely squeaked by at home against bad teams.

I really don't even think our two point percentage changed much this year. We got into conference play, and couldn't quite keep up the torrid rebounding pace we were at. Getting 50 rebounds a game really allows a wide margin of error. When it gets down closer to 40, things change.

I've said it multiple times, but we just didn't have the personnel this year. Haase finally has all Haase guys starting next year, and I'm excited to see how that will work out.

La Tech only beat us once?

Our side of the bracket is definitely tougher. If make a run or win the thing, well have definitely earned it.

With this team I wouldn't be surprised if we lose the first game. I'd also only be mildly surprised if we went on a run. I'd be very surprised if we won it all, but it's not out of the realm of possibility. All these teams are beatable.

"It'll be something I work on before the (Conference USA) tournament."

I appreciate Rod's desire to improve his FT shooting, but that should be happening twelve months a year, not in March.

I've been hard on Rod in the past, but to rip him for that comment is very unfair. He worked very hard on his FT shooting this off season, and it really did show. He shot 57.6% last year, and this year he is just a tick under 70%. That is a huge improvement on something he worked hard at in the off season.

Fair enough. I actually didn't intend to single him out even though it probably seemed that way. My intent was to emphasize that FT shooting is a learned motor movement that requires continuous repetitive practice.

We would really be F-ed without Rucker this year and at least he did try and work on his free throw shooting during the off season.

(03-10-2014 08:39 AM)the_blazerman Wrote:  We would really be F-ed without Rucker this year and at least he did try and work on his free throw shooting during the off season.

Rucker tried and succeeded in working on his FT shooting. How many guys have you ever seen improve over 10% from the line while shooting a significant amount both years? I don't know how much worse off we would be without him though. He brought a limited skill set to the table. I love what he can do well, but I hate what he can't do well.