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Freshman are pretty impressive. Last night they were hitting...which I stated elsewhere...is what will make AG's offense productive. If individual players are shut down, the offense will not be nearly as effective.
AG did draw up a few one hitters which is good...the but to that is that fact that 80%+ of your possessions aren't drawn up. AG's switching of defenses is nice to see. We hit Akron out of a timeout in zone which threw them off...it is the same thing guys are doing to us. Draw up a play out of a timeout and you get hit with zone instead of man. General motion offense was exactly the same as it was in Charleston...guys just happened to hit shots. That makes this offense look really good...hit the open shots and get the ball inside. STF hits it in the original post, assists...21 on 27 fg's. Rebounding. I thought we were in for a long night when Akron got 3 shots on their first possession...then UD got their stuff together on the boards. Rebounding is huge with these guys and as short as we are in depth we can't afford to give up defensive rebounds...creating more shots for the opponent and more chances to get in foul trouble.
This team did a better job flashing to the ball in the paint and back cutting off the wing. The problem still...is the players have to create the shots versus the offense creating them. It is hard to execute when you have young players or guys that aren't accustomed to having to create. DD has embraced that role which is why he is being successful. Cunningham is a workhorse and it getting his on the glass. He got into a few nice positions on offense where the guards found him...specifically on some back cuts. If these guys would simply set a proper screen, the offense would be much more reliable. Akron drilled our guys on back screens from the wing and got open shots heading towards the rim. All by doing the same thing UD was doing, but actually setting a screen. It is kind of like the wide out that is thinking touchdown before he catches the ball...just set a screen...then roll or flare. Don't just occupy space and move...the defense doesn't have to do anything.
Great second half. They came out working the ball much better than the first. Being short in depth they did a good job by sustaining effort and working with the foul trouble. Great effort on the defensive boards in the second half. Akron wasn't the most skilled team by any means, but they must have one hell of a weight program. They were strong at every position except for number 11 who looked like a midget Brittney Griner with that hair.
Definitely a tale of two halves and winning the half that meant the most. They need to figure out how to get the 2nd half results in the first half. Whether it is lineups or what.
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