(12-04-2018 10:29 PM)Anders Wrote:  Just got back but that game was a blast to be at. The first half looked like a completely different team today. It helped that Stuckey was shooting lights out. Dwight didn't seem to get as many minutes which was interesting to me. When Phillips gets in a rhythm he looks good but I wish we could finish more of the fouls going to the rim and get a 3 point play. There were a couple of times when the foul came from a guard and I feel most big men could push through it and finish the basket. Overall I liked what I saw and I hope we can keep building towards CAA play.

Wilson got benched because he is a huge liability on defense. He struggled again and Rowe saw enough easy layups/dunks to take him out. It was a good move and allowed the Dukes to defend a quick and smallish team.

(12-05-2018 04:32 PM)Hart Foundation Wrote:  

(12-04-2018 10:29 PM)Anders Wrote:  Just got back but that game was a blast to be at. The first half looked like a completely different team today. It helped that Stuckey was shooting lights out. Dwight didn't seem to get as many minutes which was interesting to me. When Phillips gets in a rhythm he looks good but I wish we could finish more of the fouls going to the rim and get a 3 point play. There were a couple of times when the foul came from a guard and I feel most big men could push through it and finish the basket. Overall I liked what I saw and I hope we can keep building towards CAA play.

Wilson got benched because he is a huge liability on defense. He struggled again and Rowe saw enough easy layups/dunks to take him out. It was a good move and allowed the Dukes to defend a quick and smallish team.

Wilson lacks foot speed and lateral quickness and I can't comment on his ability to defend the pick and roll, especially if JMU is switching on everything. I have, however, seen him stand his ground, block shots and rebound when he has good interior position on the low block against other bigs.

With respect to Phillips, and DD perhaps alluded to it, he's a pretty good passer on the offensive end and can block shots defensively (although foul prone in doing it).

Hart, if you'll recall, JMU's defense changed completely when Mike Deane came on board with Brady. It was a beautiful thing to watch the choreography of the switching defense in Brady's final year when they posted pretty impressive defensive statistics nationally. I credit Deane for that and it's unfortunate to this point that those principles were not instilled under Rowe during their one year together.

Deane also implemented a lot of 3-2 zone which was very effective against the 3pt shot

The Dukes defense has been ok for the most part. There are weaknesses and guys that need to work on some things but I like the Wilson and Phillips compliment at Center- they bring different looks to the opposing bigs. Wilson will continue to improve- that play on the break last night where he followed a missed shot and got the put back on the run was a nice sign of his development. He also made sure that he grabbed a key rebound on a missed free throw last night to clinch the victory. Both guys bring different things so Rowe is able to work the matchups game by game and also based on who's in foul trouble to see who gets the minutes down the stretch.

Rowe identifies as being a defensive focused head coach- in the last week he's admitted to spending more time on offense. I think this is a good thing and something the team needs constant work on- one feeds the other and depending on how you look at it I could make a case that a good offense where you use a fair amount of the clock and get a high percentage look in turn helps your defense as compared to a quick shot, long miss, etc. that puts your defense on their heels.

Radford had a couple of nice players. They had guile - they weren't overly athletic in my opinion and I think the Dukes have more depth in terms of talented players but the Highlanders had a few guys who were experienced and really knew how to play- including a couple of old school guards who mixed up pace and created some space for elbow jumpers. The forward Polite is a nice player and will likely have a career overseas - their top guy I believe his name is Carlik Jones- was somewhat quiet.

If you follow the bouncing ball you may have noticed that radford’s Donald Hicks didn’t play last night. He scored 16 against the Dukes last year and is hitting on 53% of his 3pt shots this year.
He is pretty much a one trick pony launching awkward looking 3pt shots, but obviously very effective.
Does anyone know if he was injured? Suspended?

I hope that what Rowe said about needing a leader on the team made an impact on Stuckey and helped spur his breakout performance last night. If he can lead the younger players and help develop them we could actually see a solid core in the next couple of seasons.