My Fiver on WVU's victory over Jax State in the Coliseum Tuesday evening...
1. 2-3 zone. We pretty much dared Jax State to beat us from outside with the zone, as we once again gave up multiple open looks from "3". A couple of their made treys were contested - in particular the one that Kyky Tandy made over Ofri Naveh from the top of the key with 4:00 to go to cut the lead to 10. That's one you just say "I'll let you have that all day". But, there were a multitude of open looks. Jax State went 10-26 from beyond the arc (34.4%) and they only had 10 offensive rebounds on their 40 overall misses for a 25% OR. I'm afraid someone is going to burn us badly in this zone look. And often it won't be the first shot attempt. It will be the wide open look off of the offensive rebound, which will then lead to property damage in eer2k's household. The one thing that's bothering me about our 2-3 look is that we have a bona fide rim protector in Jesse Edwards. He's not Sags Konate, but he's a tall redwood tree we can post right in front of the basket. IMO, we should tell him to rim protect, and then expand the 2-3 into a matchup zone where the goal is to run the opposing guards off of the three-point line. I can live with all the mid-range jumpers they want to have. But, sooner rather than later, this zone is going to get torched.
2. We countered the 10 treys from Jax State by repeatedly getting to the FT Line, same recipe for our win over Missouri State. WVU finished 16-25 from the line, while Jax finished 5-10 = +11. This is not exactly the recipe for wins moving forward, as we are going to need to find ways to force more TOs, and crash the offensive glass (just 5 offensive rebounds overall on 18 misses = 27.7% OR). WVU currently ranks 105th overall in OR% at 31%.
3. Kobe Johnson. I'll give Kobe Johnson a lot of credit - he's playing hard, and he's the one guy who is defending very well. 19 points (7-17 from the field), 6 rebounds, 5 assists vs. 1 TO, 1 block in 35 productive minutes. Kobe is now 2-15 from "3" on the season (13%), yet is 8-8 from the line (that's 100% for those wondering) and 13-27 on 2-point FG -48%. Ipso facto, Kobe needs to stay aggressive, get to the tin, get to the line, keep lobbing those Adrian Pledger-esque floaters, and let Quinn Slazinski, Josiah Harris, Seth Wilson, and Ofri Naveh hoist up our threes.
4. Jesse Edwards. Two things on Edwards - first, I liked that we're seeing more of the two-man game with a few lob attempts, most of which were finished with slams or Edwards heading to the FT line (6-11 for the game). Secondly, it's criminal that he had zero assists. He is an assist waiting to happen. Most teams - especially the lower level opponents - are going to collapse on Edwards any time he touches the ball in the paint or on the block. Then, Slazinski, Wilson, Naveh, and Harris can post up on the perimeter and should have a wide open look. This is what I envisioned when Josh Eilert said that we need to play through Edwards on each possession. He should have his pick of either open perimeter shooters, or take the ball to the rim.
5. Formula for success? On to 3-1 SMU, who actually put up a decent battle vs. Texas A&M this past week, before falling 79-66. They were pretty bad last season - 10-22 overall, but they are off to a better start this season for Coach Rob Lanier, who formerly took Georgia State to the NCAA Tournament before taking this post in 2022. This is a game we can win, should win. A loss to SMU would be alarming, but not more alarming than a loss to Monmouth at home* (*no Fiver after that one, as if I would've shared my thoughts, I most likely would've been not only banned from this site, but probably banned from the internets by Al Gore). Still waiting on the waiver appeal for Raquan Battle....but boy, it would be sweet to have it come in today or tomorrow and have him available for this game. I'd like a tune up before we face UVA. Without Battle, Kriisa, and Akok, we still have a roadmap for some success, which would be to keep the floor stretched and the ball moving on offense (15 assists on 23 made baskets Tuesday), keep Edwards and Slazinski out of foul trouble, and crash the glass - in addition to Kobe doing what he can do and staying away from what he can't.
Really hoping for a win over SMU. Really hoping to see Battle suit up for the UVA game - as I'd like to think he gives us a fighter's chance along with Slazinski, Kobe, Jojo and Edwards.
1. 2-3 zone. We pretty much dared Jax State to beat us from outside with the zone, as we once again gave up multiple open looks from "3". A couple of their made treys were contested - in particular the one that Kyky Tandy made over Ofri Naveh from the top of the key with 4:00 to go to cut the lead to 10. That's one you just say "I'll let you have that all day". But, there were a multitude of open looks. Jax State went 10-26 from beyond the arc (34.4%) and they only had 10 offensive rebounds on their 40 overall misses for a 25% OR. I'm afraid someone is going to burn us badly in this zone look. And often it won't be the first shot attempt. It will be the wide open look off of the offensive rebound, which will then lead to property damage in eer2k's household. The one thing that's bothering me about our 2-3 look is that we have a bona fide rim protector in Jesse Edwards. He's not Sags Konate, but he's a tall redwood tree we can post right in front of the basket. IMO, we should tell him to rim protect, and then expand the 2-3 into a matchup zone where the goal is to run the opposing guards off of the three-point line. I can live with all the mid-range jumpers they want to have. But, sooner rather than later, this zone is going to get torched.
2. We countered the 10 treys from Jax State by repeatedly getting to the FT Line, same recipe for our win over Missouri State. WVU finished 16-25 from the line, while Jax finished 5-10 = +11. This is not exactly the recipe for wins moving forward, as we are going to need to find ways to force more TOs, and crash the offensive glass (just 5 offensive rebounds overall on 18 misses = 27.7% OR). WVU currently ranks 105th overall in OR% at 31%.
3. Kobe Johnson. I'll give Kobe Johnson a lot of credit - he's playing hard, and he's the one guy who is defending very well. 19 points (7-17 from the field), 6 rebounds, 5 assists vs. 1 TO, 1 block in 35 productive minutes. Kobe is now 2-15 from "3" on the season (13%), yet is 8-8 from the line (that's 100% for those wondering) and 13-27 on 2-point FG -48%. Ipso facto, Kobe needs to stay aggressive, get to the tin, get to the line, keep lobbing those Adrian Pledger-esque floaters, and let Quinn Slazinski, Josiah Harris, Seth Wilson, and Ofri Naveh hoist up our threes.
4. Jesse Edwards. Two things on Edwards - first, I liked that we're seeing more of the two-man game with a few lob attempts, most of which were finished with slams or Edwards heading to the FT line (6-11 for the game). Secondly, it's criminal that he had zero assists. He is an assist waiting to happen. Most teams - especially the lower level opponents - are going to collapse on Edwards any time he touches the ball in the paint or on the block. Then, Slazinski, Wilson, Naveh, and Harris can post up on the perimeter and should have a wide open look. This is what I envisioned when Josh Eilert said that we need to play through Edwards on each possession. He should have his pick of either open perimeter shooters, or take the ball to the rim.
5. Formula for success? On to 3-1 SMU, who actually put up a decent battle vs. Texas A&M this past week, before falling 79-66. They were pretty bad last season - 10-22 overall, but they are off to a better start this season for Coach Rob Lanier, who formerly took Georgia State to the NCAA Tournament before taking this post in 2022. This is a game we can win, should win. A loss to SMU would be alarming, but not more alarming than a loss to Monmouth at home* (*no Fiver after that one, as if I would've shared my thoughts, I most likely would've been not only banned from this site, but probably banned from the internets by Al Gore). Still waiting on the waiver appeal for Raquan Battle....but boy, it would be sweet to have it come in today or tomorrow and have him available for this game. I'd like a tune up before we face UVA. Without Battle, Kriisa, and Akok, we still have a roadmap for some success, which would be to keep the floor stretched and the ball moving on offense (15 assists on 23 made baskets Tuesday), keep Edwards and Slazinski out of foul trouble, and crash the glass - in addition to Kobe doing what he can do and staying away from what he can't.
Really hoping for a win over SMU. Really hoping to see Battle suit up for the UVA game - as I'd like to think he gives us a fighter's chance along with Slazinski, Kobe, Jojo and Edwards.
