Push the tempo

[CalallenStang]

We have got athletes all over the floor, but there's no size inside to threaten in the half-court. We need to get points when we can and we definitely can on breaks.

[Rebel10]

Need that speedy point guard to push the tempo.

[hoopmanx]

Lol, you don't need a speedy PG to run. That's compkete and utter peruna poo. What you need is to play D and board. You can't run when teams are shooting from the field at a high percentage, especially deep 3s. Stop easy penetration, close out, board, run.

[Rebel10]

Love those speedy pg 's that push the ball. Nic did that when it the opportunity presented itself.

[hoopmanx]

We played just as slow w Nic as we do now. Speedy PGs can't run after made 3s either.

[Rebel10]

Nic made the offense go. And he did push when the opportunity presented itself. We really miss him. I like point guards like Nic and you may not. So be it.

[Charleston Pony]

We miss Nic's ability to "take charge" when it was needed and we aren't going to have any one guy assert himself this year like we had become accustomed to with Nic, but pushing tempo with as thin a roster as we have is not necessarily the answer

[Rebel10]

We miss Nic's ability to "take charge" when it was needed and we aren't going to have any one guy assert himself this year like we had become accustomed to with Nic, but pushing tempo with as thin a roster as we have is not necessarily the answer

Well most team run a 7 or 8 man rotation. We have 9 on scholarship.

[hoopmanx]

Nic made the offense go. And he did push when the opportunity presented itself. We really miss him. I like point guards like Nic and you may not. So be it.

I love Nic and don't have a prob w smaller PGs in college at all. You just attribute what's happening on O as Shake vs Nic. Nic wasn't even running this current system last year, at least not the identical one. Nic had inside options etc. This isn't apples to apples

[hoopmanx]

We miss Nic's ability to "take charge" when it was needed and we aren't going to have any one guy assert himself this year like we had become accustomed to with Nic, but pushing tempo with as thin a roster as we have is not necessarily the answer

Again, we want to push tempo, just aren't getting stops. That's where it starts and ends. It's not about depth or having a speedy PG. You have to force misses and board to advance the ball. We haven't been doing that.

[CalallenStang]

We miss Nic's ability to "take charge" when it was needed and we aren't going to have any one guy assert himself this year like we had become accustomed to with Nic, but pushing tempo with as thin a roster as we have is not necessarily the answer

Again, we want to push tempo, just aren't getting stops. That's where it starts and ends. It's not about depth or having a speedy PG. You have to force misses and board to advance the ball. We haven't been doing that.

Hoop, several times today we got stops and the rebound and slowed up the play to run a half-court O. It wasn't until about 5 minutes into the second half that we started running after defensive boards...coincidentally that's when we started to put Delaware State away:

[hoopmanx]

I hear you, but I'm pretty connected to their party line. Essentially, they'd like to play faster, but can't if they arent defending and rebounding. That's straight from the bench, but to run, have to be committed to it. Right now, we don't seem to know when to go and when to slow. Ultimately, by them saying they can't run if they don't defend makes sense. OTOH, it's an admission that we're bad defensively, so none of it is good

[Rebel10]

We miss Nic's ability to "take charge" when it was needed and we aren't going to have any one guy assert himself this year like we had become accustomed to with Nic, but pushing tempo with as thin a roster as we have is not necessarily the answer

Again, we want to push tempo, just aren't getting stops. That's where it starts and ends. It's not about depth or having a speedy PG. You have to force misses and board to advance the ball. We haven't been doing that.

What guard on the team had the mentality to push the ball? When I say speedy point guard within that I don't just mean a fast point guard but someone that has the mentality to push the ball.

[JasonB]

As a case in point - the stretch after the 5 minute mark when we started running was during the 10 minute stretch Deleware didn't hit a field goal.

Shake especially, and a lot of the rest of the team are playing afraid to make a mistake. They loosened up a little in the second half and played faster and better.

A couple of years ago I used to cringe when Nic went too quick because he would force tempo and turn it over on the break. This year, our turnovers tend to come in the halfcourt when we are playing too tentative. Hopefully the second half will give some confidence to run and gun.