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you know part of the reason for going out and getting all these old ass players is so sh!t like the last four minute don't ever happen. how the hell do you not whether a ten lead point lead that late in the game? that momentum was totally sustainable. lahkin had no bidness being out there. play sage, at least he wouldn't take a three in that situation

IMO the WVU game was another chapter from the same book for UC. It wasn't the number of 3s that drove the dismal % but the type of 3s... most were contested or late in the shot clock. I would like to see UCs "creators" (Skillings, Day Day, JJ, Simas) and "distributors" (Vik, Aziz, Reynolds) be more cognizant of early decision making with the ball. When the creators dribble into the lane or into especially a zone, they seem to go in with the intent score or be fouled and the pass out to a potential 3 pt attempt is an afterthought or escape route resulting in the creator getting stuck in the lane and giving the D time to begin to flow toward the 3 pt line which leads to contested or rushed 3s. Likewise when the ball goes into the post to the distributors, they don't seem to anticipate the ball coming to them so they hesitate which allows the D to collapse and the ball to be stripped or the pass contested as well. By the creators taking one or two fewer dribbles (another issue we seem to have is over dribbling) or the distributors quicker on deciding their next move it will give UCs 3 pt shooters another half second to gather and shoot. And no earth shaking revelation here, UCs 3 point shooters (CJ is the exception... when he plays) are the type that are much better the more time they have to get set. IMO, if the mindset changes the % made will increase.

(02-02-2024 10:09 AM)Cal1362 Wrote:  IMO the WVU game was another chapter from the same book for UC. It wasn't the number of 3s that drove the dismal % but the type of 3s... most were contested or late in the shot clock. I would like to see UCs "creators" (Skillings, Day Day, JJ, Simas) and "distributors" (Vik, Aziz, Reynolds) be more cognizant of early decision making with the ball. When the creators dribble into the lane or into especially a zone, they seem to go in with the intent score or be fouled and the pass out to a potential 3 pt attempt is an afterthought or escape route resulting in the creator getting stuck in the lane and giving the D time to begin to flow toward the 3 pt line which leads to contested or rushed 3s. Likewise when the ball goes into the post to the distributors, they don't seem to anticipate the ball coming to them so they hesitate which allows the D to collapse and the ball to be stripped or the pass contested as well. By the creators taking one or two fewer dribbles (another issue we seem to have is over dribbling) or the distributors quicker on deciding their next move it will give UCs 3 pt shooters another half second to gather and shoot. And no earth shaking revelation here, UCs 3 point shooters (CJ is the exception... when he plays) are the type that are much better the more time they have to get set. IMO, if the mindset changes the % made will increase.

Great thoughts but 3 of the four creators are looking to shoot first, as you have said, have no idea about James he doesn't play enough.... not sure the offensive flow allows much kick out by creators, all about driving.....

Cunningham with another terrific hire! Wes clearly isn't the guy and Satterfield doesn't give me any hope for the future.[/align]

(02-02-2024 10:22 AM)CincyBro Wrote:  

(02-02-2024 10:09 AM)Cal1362 Wrote:  IMO the WVU game was another chapter from the same book for UC. It wasn't the number of 3s that drove the dismal % but the type of 3s... most were contested or late in the shot clock. I would like to see UCs "creators" (Skillings, Day Day, JJ, Simas) and "distributors" (Vik, Aziz, Reynolds) be more cognizant of early decision making with the ball. When the creators dribble into the lane or into especially a zone, they seem to go in with the intent score or be fouled and the pass out to a potential 3 pt attempt is an afterthought or escape route resulting in the creator getting stuck in the lane and giving the D time to begin to flow toward the 3 pt line which leads to contested or rushed 3s. Likewise when the ball goes into the post to the distributors, they don't seem to anticipate the ball coming to them so they hesitate which allows the D to collapse and the ball to be stripped or the pass contested as well. By the creators taking one or two fewer dribbles (another issue we seem to have is over dribbling) or the distributors quicker on deciding their next move it will give UCs 3 pt shooters another half second to gather and shoot. And no earth shaking revelation here, UCs 3 point shooters (CJ is the exception... when he plays) are the type that are much better the more time they have to get set. IMO, if the mindset changes the % made will increase.

Great thoughts but 3 of the four creators are looking to shoot first, as you have said, have no idea about James he doesn't play enough.... not sure the offensive flow allows much kick out by creators, all about driving.....

It's ok that the creators are looking to score first on their drives but the decisions to commit to trying to score or to drive and kick need to be made earlier in the play. That doesn't mean that after the kickout the 3 pt shooter has to shoot at that point but it makes the D shift and creates either another open look or a more open driving lane for the creators which is why having some combo of DD, DS, JJ and Simas is a better option than dribble dribble dribble force and hope to draw a foul. But it all starts with the philosophy of is UC going to predominately play outside in or inside to create better 3 looks. This team is designed to take 3s, now it's just how do they get the least difficult 3s possible

(02-02-2024 11:54 AM)Cal1362 Wrote:  

(02-02-2024 10:22 AM)CincyBro Wrote:  

(02-02-2024 10:09 AM)Cal1362 Wrote:  IMO the WVU game was another chapter from the same book for UC. It wasn't the number of 3s that drove the dismal % but the type of 3s... most were contested or late in the shot clock. I would like to see UCs "creators" (Skillings, Day Day, JJ, Simas) and "distributors" (Vik, Aziz, Reynolds) be more cognizant of early decision making with the ball. When the creators dribble into the lane or into especially a zone, they seem to go in with the intent score or be fouled and the pass out to a potential 3 pt attempt is an afterthought or escape route resulting in the creator getting stuck in the lane and giving the D time to begin to flow toward the 3 pt line which leads to contested or rushed 3s. Likewise when the ball goes into the post to the distributors, they don't seem to anticipate the ball coming to them so they hesitate which allows the D to collapse and the ball to be stripped or the pass contested as well. By the creators taking one or two fewer dribbles (another issue we seem to have is over dribbling) or the distributors quicker on deciding their next move it will give UCs 3 pt shooters another half second to gather and shoot. And no earth shaking revelation here, UCs 3 point shooters (CJ is the exception... when he plays) are the type that are much better the more time they have to get set. IMO, if the mindset changes the % made will increase.

Great thoughts but 3 of the four creators are looking to shoot first, as you have said, have no idea about James he doesn't play enough.... not sure the offensive flow allows much kick out by creators, all about driving.....

It's ok that the creators are looking to score first on their drives but the decisions to commit to trying to score or to drive and kick need to be made earlier in the play. That doesn't mean that after the kickout the 3 pt shooter has to shoot at that point but it makes the D shift and creates either another open look or a more open driving lane for the creators which is why having some combo of DD, DS, JJ and Simas is a better option than dribble dribble dribble force and hope to draw a foul. But it all starts with the philosophy of is UC going to predominately play outside in or inside to create better 3 looks. This team is designed to take 3s, now it's just how do they get the least difficult 3s possible

Bolded, so true. There are too many wasted offensive possessions where there is simply no flow in terms of passing. Or, they are hitting an open shooter outside the arc without time to set his feet. I don't consider this team a finished product but I really hoped we'd see a more productive offense under Miller. And it's not the whole game--a few better possessions in those conference losses and this team is ranked and contending in the Big 12.

I have been unable to log in from my phone since the game, so I grabbed the laptop tonight. Wanted to get some things off my chest! :

First of all, how dumb is UC. Near the end of the game. You are down 5. Drive the ball to the hole, the D will part like the Red Sea, and you have 2 points in an 8 sec possession. Jack a 3, miss and then you have to foul and game is over. UC has done that same dumb thing for decades!

Coaching- Their big man had the EASIEST 20+ points I have EVER SEEN!! What in world. Where were the adjustments. Heck, have Jamille body him, FOUL HIM, get him out of his rhythm. Learn to defend the pick and roll and their big.
Coach does not have a feel for which lineup to play. AT ALL. and why did he go back to a deeper bench. What in the world are his assistants doing????

Lastly time outs - I totally agree- you are up 10, once they get it to 5 or 7, you call time out. Make an adjustment, or at least break their momentum.

In the first half I saw NO ENERGY by UC. NO FIRE!! So we beat UCF, and lost our urgency?? The small crowd at WVU may have contributed to this, but it was such a disappointment. Tomorrow is winnable. We need it bad. Can we do it?

Mark never came to walk us off the ledge.
After decades following UC, I am losing interest. Part of it is the conference (rivalries and win 1, lose 2 or best case win 4, lose 2). I guess we racked up a LOT of wins over the years in those conferences.

(02-02-2024 09:42 PM)ZCat Wrote:  Mark never came to walk us off the ledge.
After decades following UC, I am losing interest. Part of it is the conference (rivalries and win 1, lose 2 or best case win 4, lose 2). I guess we racked up a LOT of wins over the years in those conferences.

I'm over making the NCAAT this year. I mean, sure if we go on some kind of a run but after watching this team this season we just don't have the horses consistently playing at a high level. This is a big boy basketball league. Arguably stronger than the OBE. It's been both encouraging and maddening at the same time - games we're in and a few we should've won but just can't close them out. When you watch our team - the effort and hustle is there - but it's in the details and the lack of superstar players. I don't see anyone on the team that rises up to the best players Huggs had in the hey day. I'm not blaming Wes for that....yet. He's in year three and trying to make the jump from Tulsane to Kanbayzona. Hopefully, better times ahead.

(02-02-2024 09:42 PM)ZCat Wrote:  Coaching- Their big man had the EASIEST 20+ points I have EVER SEEN!! What in world. Where were the adjustments. Heck, have Jamille body him, FOUL HIM, get him out of his rhythm. Learn to defend the pick and roll and their big.
Coach does not have a feel for which lineup to play. AT ALL. and why did he go back to a deeper bench. What in the world are his assistants doing????

They played Reynolds 10 minutes, he should've played the whole second half against WV.

(02-01-2024 03:16 PM)skyblade Wrote:  Vik isn't the problem, Vik at the 4 isn't the problem. He struggled last night (wonder if he was fully healthy) but he has been one of our best players (if not the best) on the team all season. His decision making was terrible last night, which might be the result of a brain fog from still being sick.

I have been unable to find the stats other than going through the play by play, but I believe in those 18 minutes Lakhin played, that big guy who scored 27 or so points against us only scored 6 or 8. He put in about 20 when Lakhin was on the bench.

Even with his atrocious offense this game, the difference was all the points we gave up inside when Lakhin was on the bench.

Interested to see if Lakhin has gone into an offensive funk, or if he is better when healthier against Texas Tech.