Game Thoughts

Moses87

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I'm thrilled with the result, but very concerned about Nolen's injury. I think NW will be a nightmare without his presence. Praying for Al's speed recovery.

Other random musings.

* FINALLY!!!!! Finally got to see Rodney Williams step up and take some shots. He just needed one to go in to boost his confidence. Moving forward, we're gonna need Rodney to take 3 or 4 threes per game when defenses sag. If he could hit 2 per game, it would be HUGE for this team.

* It was nice to see that some effort was made to get Rodney some looks on the high-low post sets. Though I think it'll be most effective with Ralph passing him the ball.

* Maverick did a decent, competent job in 2nd half, though most of the offense ran thru Hoff.

* Hoffarber was my MVP for this game because he scored 9 points down the stretch when we were struggling to create chances. He also had 6 assists and ZERO turnovers and most importantly he did a nice job of making sure we got the ball inside. He also did a decent job of defending the three. Hoffarber chose a great night to play his best all-around game of the season.

* Armelin is wild but when he attacked the basket with confidence, he looked great. It looks like he and Maverick will platoon with Hoff taking up the slack for Nolen if Al's causes a prolonged absence.

* Mbakwe played his worst game of the big ten season. 5 turnovers, sloppy with the ball, missed 3 free throws and bobbled a few passes that should have been converted.

* Sampson was solid, and shot the ball well.

* Iverson was up and down for me. 9 pts and 9 rebs means he was productive, but 1-4 on FT's is infuriating.

* 13-23 on FT's is just 56% and simply NOT acceptable for scholorship athletes. I don't know what Tubby's practice regimen is, but if I were coaching, the players would all have to make 20 straight free throws before hitting the showers...Miss one, start again...this team WILL get burned and lose a close game if they keep this crap up.

* Overall, it was a quality win on the road in the big 10. I come away from this one, pleased but worried about Al's injury and the FT shooting.
 

Hoff's performance cannot be overstated. Cool as heck under pressure, handling the ball in Al's absence, finding the open man. NO TURNOVERS!!!

Rodney was a hero, too, and not just for the jumpers. He put his nose in there and grabbed some tough rebounds. That touch pass to Trevor! Big overall game.
 

Thank goodness our offensive end of the floor in the 2nd half was in front ot the bench. Tubby was super busy calling plays for Ahanmisi, Armelin and the Hoff. Super critical in keeping the team poised and patient. We had some super-long/super-fast fast breaks. The camera couldn't keep-up! Keep working on your ball-handling, Chip. You'll make a brute of a point guard.
 

So we need Rodney to be a 50%-67% three point shooter? Really?

Any 3 he makes is a bonus, but he should never, ever take them.
 

Rodney needs to shoot the three

at least occasionally when it is wide open to keep defenses ahonest. He seems to struggle most with the side-pocket three, which is the toughest one to drain. Perhaps that is the one he should not shoot.

Liked him posting up tonight though.
 


at least occasionally when it is wide open to keep defenses ahonest. He seems to struggle most with the side-pocket three, which is the toughest one to drain. Perhaps that is the one he should not shoot.

Liked him posting up tonight though.

But 4 per game is outrageous. That'd be second most on the team
 

I love Rodney's post game, and think we need to give him more low-block touches. That's why he was so effective in high school, and I think it can certainly carry over to Big Ten play.

I can't picture the Gophers without Hoffarber. He means everything to this team. Its going to be a sad day when Blake finally graduates.
 

Rodney can shoot it, I think it's just a matter of game-time confidence for him. If tonight's game boosts that confidence and the defense has to respect him a little more outside the arc, watch out.
 

If Rodney catches it and steps into the shot with confidence there is no reason that he cannot be a 30-33 percent shooter from deep, hopefully. If that make the defender have to match up with Rodney step for step from the perimeter I will take my chances with Rodney being able to beat him off the bounce. Defenders want to play step for step with Rodney will not end well. I think of Rodney as a better version of Summers for Mich St,(because he is 6'7 and long) I remember hearing how he could not shoot and was just athletic and now he is a great shooter. Sorry maybe over served in Western Wisconsin, love being 4-3 none the less.
 



So we need Rodney to be a 50%-67% three point shooter? Really?

Any 3 he makes is a bonus, but he should never, ever take them.

He or anyone playing on the wing needs to step up and shoot when the defense sags. If we don't take that shot and hit a few, we'll have another 9-9 season in the Big 10 and be 1 and done in the big dance if we make it. If we don't have someone shooting that shot, we become too easy to guard.

The 2 keys for Rodney or most shooters are catching the ball and shooting in RHYTHM and CONFIDENCE. Maybe now, Rodney will have the confidence. Now, its just a matter choosing his spots. I believe he could shoot a decent %(35 to 50%) over the final 12 games if he shoots in rhythm and with confidence.
 

its true, rodney was a stroke in warmups. its really just a matter of confidence.
 

I'm thrilled with the result, but very concerned about Nolen's injury. I think NW will be a nightmare without his presence. Praying for Al's speed recovery.

Other random musings.

* FINALLY!!!!! Finally got to see Rodney Williams step up and take some shots. He just needed one to go in to boost his confidence. Moving forward, we're gonna need Rodney to take 3 or 4 threes per game when defenses sag. If he could hit 2 per game, it would be HUGE for this team.

* It was nice to see that some effort was made to get Rodney some looks on the high-low post sets. Though I think it'll be most effective with Ralph passing him the ball.

* Maverick did a decent, competent job in 2nd half, though most of the offense ran thru Hoff.

* Hoffarber was my MVP for this game because he scored 9 points down the stretch when we were struggling to create chances. He also had 6 assists and ZERO turnovers and most importantly he did a nice job of making sure we got the ball inside. He also did a decent job of defending the three. Hoffarber chose a great night to play his best all-around game of the season.

* Armelin is wild but when he attacked the basket with confidence, he looked great. It looks like he and Maverick will platoon with Hoff taking up the slack for Nolen if Al's causes a prolonged absence.

* Mbakwe played his worst game of the big ten season. 5 turnovers, sloppy with the ball, missed 3 free throws and bobbled a few passes that should have been converted.

* Sampson was solid, and shot the ball well.

* Iverson was up and down for me. 9 pts and 9 rebs means he was productive, but 1-4 on FT's is infuriating.

* 13-23 on FT's is just 56% and simply NOT acceptable for scholorship athletes. I don't know what Tubby's practice regimen is, but if I were coaching, the players would all have to make 20 straight free throws before hitting the showers...Miss one, start again...this team WILL get burned and lose a close game if they keep this crap up.

* Overall, it was a quality win on the road in the big 10. I come away from this one, pleased but worried about Al's injury and the FT shooting.

I agree with all of your points. The best thing for me last night was never having any doubt we would win the game. It was nice to feel that way in a road game this year. Even when Michigan went on their three pointer run's, I wasn't worried.
 

The 2 keys for Rodney or most shooters are catching the ball and shooting in RHYTHM and CONFIDENCE. Maybe now, Rodney will have the confidence. Now, its just a matter choosing his spots. I believe he could shoot a decent %(35 to 50%) over the final 12 games if he shoots in rhythm and with confidence.

I saw in the box score that he played the most minutes last night. I think we are slowely starting to see him improve over this season. The added minutes he is playing is really improving his confidence. And those minutes came from getting better on the defensive end. Now, like you said Moses, if we can get him to just hit 2 or 3 open jumpers it will do wonders for him.
 



* 13-23 on FT's is just 56% and simply NOT acceptable for scholorship athletes. I don't know what Tubby's practice regimen is, but if I were coaching, the players would all have to make 20 straight free throws before hitting the showers...Miss one, start again...this team WILL get burned and lose a close game if they keep this crap up.

* Overall, it was a quality win on the road in the big 10. I come away from this one, pleased but worried about Al's injury and the FT shooting.

If you were coaching, nobody would ever hit the showers.
 


So we need Rodney to be a 50%-67% three point shooter? Really?

Any 3 he makes is a bonus, but he should never, ever take them.

Disagree. His shot is his weakness & he needs to establish it, not avoid it. As someone else posted he needs to drain 2 per game to keep 'em honest. People talk about his inability to beat his defender off the dribble, well it's hard to blow past a guy who doesn't respect your shot & is giving you a 3 foot cushion. Drain a couple 3's a the defender has to come out & defend you, NOW you go to the hoop. The jumper is the key, it opens up everything else for Rodney.
 

Needs to drain 2 per game? At what cost? How many shots do you think it will realistically take for him to make 2 threes? If he's taking enough threes to make 2 a game, I think he'll quickly find himself on the bench.

Disagree. His shot is his weakness & he needs to establish it, not avoid it. As someone else posted he needs to drain 2 per game to keep 'em honest. People talk about his inability to beat his defender off the dribble, well it's hard to blow past a guy who doesn't respect your shot & is giving you a 3 foot cushion. Drain a couple 3's a the defender has to come out & defend you, NOW you go to the hoop. The jumper is the key, it opens up everything else for Rodney.
 

Needs to drain 2 per game? At what cost? How many shots do you think it will realistically take for him to make 2 threes? If he's taking enough threes to make 2 a game, I think he'll quickly find himself on the bench.

If he shoots them in rhythm and confidently, I don't think it takes him too many attempts to hit two.
 



In 18 games he had hit 2.

And a lot of them are where he catches the ball, holds it, dribbles a bit, holds some more and then shoots.

You don't make many three's like that. Especially with each miss, the next one becomes harder and harder to make. If he shoots it as soon as he catches it, doesn't think about it, is in rhythm and is open they will fall more regularly.
 

And a lot of them are where he catches the ball, holds it, dribbles a bit, holds some more and then shoots.

You don't make many three's like that. Especially with each miss, the next one becomes harder and harder to make. If he shoots it as soon as he catches it, doesn't think about it, is in rhythm and is open they will fall more regularly.

Due respect. And I sure hope you are right.

But Dude, Rodney has made 4 three pointers all season. He made 10 all last year. Yes, I know he was getting less than half the minutes last year....but is this actually a good defense of your position??

I've seen him shoot some threes "in rhythm," including one in the Michigan game, that were absolutely God-awful shots. I hope it gets better. It almost *can't* get worse.

But I don't see him hitting 2 a game anytime soon.
 

Due respect. And I sure hope you are right.

But Dude, Rodney has made 4 three pointers all season. He made 10 all last year. Yes, I know he was getting less than half the minutes last year....but is this actually a good defense of your position??

I've seen him shoot some threes "in rhythm," including one in the Michigan game, that were absolutely God-awful shots. I hope it gets better. It almost *can't* get worse.

But I don't see him hitting 2 a game anytime soon.

I can't help but agree, I mean, 2 of whatever were pretty bad numbers. I don't think his jump shot is THAT bad though, I mean it looks better, to me anyways, than Chip's does or Austin's does. I think the announcer comments on his jumping differently has merit (he makes a decent percentage in warm-ups at least) and I think he has missed so many his confidence is way down shooting three's and confidence is a big part of shooting.

Do I think he will shoot 50% from three? No way. But if he can shoot 30% the rest of the season that would be a significant improvement and be big for him and the team.
 

What percentage do you think Rodney can honestly shoot? I can't imagine his shooting ability ever reaching a point where we're better off with him shooting enough threes to make 2 a game. I think it's fine for him to shoot occasional wide open threes, but he should never shoot more than 4 in a game in my opinion. Every player has his limitations.

If he shoots them in rhythm and confidently, I don't think it takes him too many attempts to hit two.
 

If Rodney catches it and steps into the shot with confidence there is no reason that he cannot be a 30-33 percent shooter from deep, hopefully. If that make the defender have to match up with Rodney step for step from the perimeter I will take my chances with Rodney being able to beat him off the bounce. Defenders want to play step for step with Rodney will not end well. I think of Rodney as a better version of Summers for Mich St,(because he is 6'7 and long) I remember hearing how he could not shoot and was just athletic and now he is a great shooter. Sorry maybe over served in Western Wisconsin, love being 4-3 none the less.


Rodney is absolutely not better than Summers.
 

Rodney jumps very high on his 3 pt shot. I wonder if he could try a shorter jump with more balance if he would be more consistent.
 




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