SRP
Postdoc
Posts: 4911
Reg: 02-04-06
|
12-22-17 09:18 PM - Post#241085
In response to gokinsmen
That was a tough loss against a good team. Could have used the refs seeing the opponent step out of bounds before passing out for a trey.
Obviously, too many ORs given up to the Blue Raiders and too few FTs made (especially a couple of front ends that could have led to an extra three or four points; just hitting the season average would have added a couple even ignoring the bonus). Some missed layups in the first half, including the very first play of the game off the tipoff, and too many turnovers in the first half, too. First half also saw numerous cases of dangerous MTSU jump shooters getting left wide open on bad switches off screens.
The three-point shooting wasn't awful at 36%, but it felt like they could have nailed a lot more given the looks PU got. Cannady normally hits better than that. A few stagnant possessions, and some trouble when MTSU extended their D, but mostly the offense looked pretty darn good in terms of ball movement and looking for cutters. 11 assists and 11 TOs isn't where you want to be, but the Blue Raiders were pretty much daring Princeton to drive and trying to stop the threes and the backdoor cuts (which is why they committed so many fouls).
As far as individual performances, Bell earned his non-scholarship, taking a lot of punishment on the way to a solid performance. Cannady had a tough road to 16 points, but his usage was really good and he mostly made good decisions. Stephens carried a gigantic load defensively--he lapsed on the last play against jump-shooter Potts by playing him for the drive, but was otherwise pretty effective at harassing whomever he guarded and vacuuming up those 12 boards. Offensively, his scoring prowess one-on-one was impressive a couple of times, but he didn't look in sync in the passing game either as a receiver or a delivery man, plus he missed a lot of FTs.
Much was mostly good on offense, especially that late three off the dribble and step-back. Arirguzoh looked terrific to me, the occasional mistake outweighed by his energy and activity. LeBlanc had one tough defensive possession against a great drive by a Blue Raider but was otherwise pretty solid in his brief minutes. Young had by far his best game of the season and looked like a calming rather than frazzled influence, more like years past and a good sign. Don't know why Schweger and Derosier got so little run, but they were OK in their limited appearances.
I still think this team would benefit from the return of Gladson, and Morales would have been handy tonight against the MTSU defensive pressure with Bell having four fouls.
|
