The problem is the end of the first half

[Smitty10]

By now, hopefully the team has learned not to start playing desperate and making a bad situation worse. When we get down by somewhere around 15, the team starts playing out of control and throwing up terrible shots.

AM needs to use the timeouts and tell his team to slow it down and work the offense and give them small goals at a time before he can get them to the locker room at the half. When things were bad and then they kept getting worse, it's easy as a fan to throw up your arms and say "what difference does it make, this game is history". Seems the players are playing with a similar mind set. But when we were down by double digits, every bad play after that was the nail in the coffin that showed up when we lost by 3. This is the 3rd time this has happened and it needs to stop. Go into half time down by 12 or 14, and we all feel this team has a chance, down by 23 and it's going to take the best play possible and chances are you are still going to come up short.

DD passing up that open 3 and JC then shooting a terrible jumpshot was the 3 points we needed at the end. I'm sure there are many, many more instances we can think of that looked like desperation, undisciplined plays that took place when we were down 15, 18, 20 etc that without them, would've made the difference.

This team needs to play under control at all times and the game will come back for them most of the time. I think this starts with AM and goes through Scoochie. Cooke needs to also stop trying to play lone ranger at these points in time as well as Pollard. Run the darn offense.

[priceg75]

The problem is that every loss this season has followed the same pattern. Come out and get absolutely OWNED for the first 10-25 minutes. Wake up and start playing with the same effort you should've been playing with the whole game. Come up short because you dig yourself too big a hole.

It's painfully obvious when they aren't ready to play. How can this continue to happen the same way that it was happening last year?

Somebody wake the eff up and lead this team, or play in the NIT. It's really their choice.

[Piqua Flyer '66]

Back in the day Blackburn attacked the "poor start" problem by having a 5 min 5 on 5 half court scrimmage just before the line-ups were announced.
Maybe a good idea.......jump start these guys.

[CraSch]

I don't know. I think falling behind by 15 because they act like the game hasn't stsrted yet is the problem. They wouldn't "play desperate" at the end of the half if, as priceg75 said, they didnt get owned from the start. Start strong, no panic/desperation later.
As the other thread says, i'm proud of the 2nd half, but all 3 losses had bad starts. Don't give the opponents the huge head starts and all will be good

[jack72]

Maybe it's senioritis. These guys just think they can coast and still beat teams. Archie pulled out the seniors in the first half and made them sit, which made things worse. It seemed like a bad move, but maybe it was a teaching moment. In retrospect we should have full court pressed at that point.