I think we got a glimpse of what this team is against UNC. We're not a 75% shooting team from 3, like against Miami and we're not lost and lazy like we looked against UNCW. This team is loaded and built to play any style thrown at us on a given night. If we get hot from outside and continue to share the ball, we're unstoppable but I think we're gonna see a lot of conference games that resemble the UNC game, where it's a dog fight and isn't always pretty.
Nobody lit it up last night. There was no one guy that was hitting from outside and we didn't shoot the ball well overall. But we made enough shots and no one seemed to try to do too much. Wagner played his best game and was able to create shots for himself and led the team in assists. He very much played within himself and had a very solid game. Shep played solid but not his best outing and had some lazy, ill advised passes that led to turnovers...Unlike him. He'll be fine. UNC is good and he looked a little unsure with some of those passes all game. Dilly quietly led the team in points but took a few bad shots too. He probably tried to force things a little more than anyone last night and needed to slow down just a tick at times. He'll find his comfort zone soon.
Thiero is just a dog and a baller. Love the muscle he's added and his maturity is showing in big games. He and Mitchell take a lot of pressure off of Bradshaw while Bradshaw is finding his role and figuring it out fast. He's gonna be a stud by year end. Would love to see him add a little more muscle and size. He looked horrid in his first game but is catching on at lightening speed. He got pushed around a little and didn't block out as well as I had hoped but it'll come.
Ugo gave us solid and much needed minutes that kept Bradshaw from fouling out with dumb, freshman fouls. Our bigs only gave us 4 rebounds, so lots of room to improve there but neither have played or even practiced much yet. I feel good about both of them and I think Ugo is gonna surprise a lot of people very soon.
I think Edwards and Reeves are still searching for where and how they fit in. We all know Reeves can get hot and can create his own shot against most defenders. Edwards shows flashes of greatness but just needs time. He'll be huge for us this year, just a little later that I hoped. He and Reeves both had off shooting nights but they both played solid and didn't force things too much, which Reeves does at times.
We have other scorers on this team. Reeves doesn't have to carry us offensively.
The big question with this team is defense. Last night was by far our best defensive game, I think. The chemistry seems to be there and Reeves and Thiero need to set examples and lead these young kids on d. I haven't been to a live game yet this season but I wanna see them communicate on defense. I think the older players can play big roles there. If the defense catches up with the offense, which still needs a lot of work, we'll be crazy good by March. If we end up playing UConn, we'll have to be much, much better on defense to win that game, just my own eye test in that regard. They have shooters that stretch any team and open up lanes to the basket. They're just a very good team overall and are a tough matchup for anybody, but we have the pieces to do it if we progress on defense, substantially. If Big Z gets cleared, he might be the difference maker in that game because we can give them a taste of their own medicine, hopefully better than anyone in the country by then.
I'm far from any kind of expert but just my thoughts after seeing the growth this team showed in this win. Lace em up tight and hang on. It's gonna be fun!
Nobody lit it up last night. There was no one guy that was hitting from outside and we didn't shoot the ball well overall. But we made enough shots and no one seemed to try to do too much. Wagner played his best game and was able to create shots for himself and led the team in assists. He very much played within himself and had a very solid game. Shep played solid but not his best outing and had some lazy, ill advised passes that led to turnovers...Unlike him. He'll be fine. UNC is good and he looked a little unsure with some of those passes all game. Dilly quietly led the team in points but took a few bad shots too. He probably tried to force things a little more than anyone last night and needed to slow down just a tick at times. He'll find his comfort zone soon.
Thiero is just a dog and a baller. Love the muscle he's added and his maturity is showing in big games. He and Mitchell take a lot of pressure off of Bradshaw while Bradshaw is finding his role and figuring it out fast. He's gonna be a stud by year end. Would love to see him add a little more muscle and size. He looked horrid in his first game but is catching on at lightening speed. He got pushed around a little and didn't block out as well as I had hoped but it'll come.
Ugo gave us solid and much needed minutes that kept Bradshaw from fouling out with dumb, freshman fouls. Our bigs only gave us 4 rebounds, so lots of room to improve there but neither have played or even practiced much yet. I feel good about both of them and I think Ugo is gonna surprise a lot of people very soon.
I think Edwards and Reeves are still searching for where and how they fit in. We all know Reeves can get hot and can create his own shot against most defenders. Edwards shows flashes of greatness but just needs time. He'll be huge for us this year, just a little later that I hoped. He and Reeves both had off shooting nights but they both played solid and didn't force things too much, which Reeves does at times.
We have other scorers on this team. Reeves doesn't have to carry us offensively.
The big question with this team is defense. Last night was by far our best defensive game, I think. The chemistry seems to be there and Reeves and Thiero need to set examples and lead these young kids on d. I haven't been to a live game yet this season but I wanna see them communicate on defense. I think the older players can play big roles there. If the defense catches up with the offense, which still needs a lot of work, we'll be crazy good by March. If we end up playing UConn, we'll have to be much, much better on defense to win that game, just my own eye test in that regard. They have shooters that stretch any team and open up lanes to the basket. They're just a very good team overall and are a tough matchup for anybody, but we have the pieces to do it if we progress on defense, substantially. If Big Z gets cleared, he might be the difference maker in that game because we can give them a taste of their own medicine, hopefully better than anyone in the country by then.
I'm far from any kind of expert but just my thoughts after seeing the growth this team showed in this win. Lace em up tight and hang on. It's gonna be fun!
