Aggressive Offense

[Jacks-02]

Was just looking through the NCAA stats and was surprised to see SDSU is currently ranked #13 in the nation in free throws made with 294 and #14 with 430 attempts in 17 games, which is an average of about 17-25 shooting per game. Last year we were 442-631 in 33 games for an average of about 13-19 per game.

4 extra points per game doesn't sound like much, but considering we lost 8 games last year by 5 points or less it can mean a huge difference.

This is really evident during our current 4 game winning streak where we are averaging 21.8/28.8 for 76% per game while our opponents average 13.5/18.8 for 72% per game, which equates to an 8 point advantage per game.

What it comes down to is our increased aggresiveness in defense and rebounding I think is also leading us to increased aggressiveness on offense and more opportunities at the foul line, which is really helping us in the games. Not only are we getting an extra 8 points per game from the foul line, we are also creating havoc with opponents regular lineups because teams are frequently getting into foul trouble as they are also averaging about 6 fouls per game more than SDSU.

[JimmyJack]

Re: Aggressive Offense

I was watching a "big-time" team play yesterday and was struck by how much their offense reminded me of the NBA (stifling a yawn). Four guys stood around while one guy made a move and took lousy shot after lousy shot. Now, that guy was talented enough that half of those terrible shots went in, but that kind of game is only going to work when you have access to certain kinds of players. We don't get those kinds of guys. And we won't. And that's OK.

Seems to me that, given the kind of talent we have access to, Coach Nagy has this game pretty much figured out. What he has lacked in recent years, was sufficient talent (and enough role-players on the bench) to pull it off. Funny how things start to work out when you have the kinds of players you need and a sufficient number of them.

I'm not yet ready to say we've turned a corner. But we are almost there.

And I should add, relating to Jacks-02's post: Dale Moss seems to be one of the catalysts to this newfound aggressiveness.

[rabidrabbit]

Re: Aggressive Offense

I was watching a "big-time" team play yesterday and was struck by how much their offense reminded me of the NBA (stifling a yawn). Four guys stood around while one guy made a move and took lousy shot after lousy shot. Now, that guy was talented enough that half of those terrible shots went in, but that kind of game is only going to work when you have access to certain kinds of players. We don't get those kinds of guys. And we won't. And that's OK.

Seems to me that, given the kind of talent we have access to, Coach Nagy has this game pretty much figured out. What he has lacked in recent years, was sufficient talent (and enough role-players on the bench) to pull it off. Funny how things start to work out when you have the kinds of players you need and a sufficient number of them.

I'm not yet ready to say we've turned a corner. But we are almost there.

And I should add, relating to Jacks-02's post: Dale Moss seems to be one of the catalysts to this newfound aggressiveness.

And a bow to Engen, who had a GREAT game at SUU. He's one of those catalyst ROLE players, that can make a difference for the team. 9 rebounds in 13 minutes. A great job last night.

[JimmyJack]

Re: Aggressive Offense

And a bow to Engen, who had a GREAT game at SUU. He's one of those catalyst ROLE players, that can make a difference for the team. 9 rebounds in 13 minutes. A great job last night.

Good point. Mark has been playing really well and has earned more minutes.

[Chains]

Re: Aggressive Offense

Good point. Mark has been playing really well and has earned more minutes.

We are going to need Mark's size in some upcoming games. Oakland (Benson) is big and talented. Mark can cause some problems for the other teams offense in the paint. I hope he continues to play well as it will add additional depth to our bench.

Nice win last night SU. Great road sweep. Two teams you need to beat to contend in the Summit.

GBGBGJ

[TeaJackrabbit]

Re: Aggressive Offense

Clearly Nagy reads this board daily. I imagine it's the first thing he does when he wakes up and last thing he does before he goes to bed and that he bases his decision making off of what we say. I say that b/c many of us started clammering for Engen to get on the floor and Nagy listened to us. You're welcome Nagy and Mark . Seriously, not sure why Engen wasn't seeing many minutes early but I think he deserves an oppotunity every game.

[SF_Rabbit_Fan]

Re: Aggressive Offense

Clearly Nagy reads this board daily. I imagine it's the first thing he does when he wakes up and last thing he does before he goes to bed and that he bases his decision making off of what we say. I say that b/c many of us started clammering for Engen to get on the floor and Nagy listened to us. You're welcome Nagy and Mark . Seriously, not sure why Engen wasn't seeing many minutes early but I think he deserves an oppotunity every game.

I think Mark's increased playing time may have something to do with matchups and Mark has taken advantage of the opportunities he has received. It seems like he played more than 13 minutes on Saturday, but maybe that's because he did so much in the time he was in there.

[SF_Rabbit_Fan]

Re: Aggressive Offense

Was just looking through the NCAA stats and was surprised to see SDSU is currently ranked #13 in the nation in free throws made with 294 and #14 with 430 attempts in 17 games, which is an average of about 17-25 shooting per game. Last year we were 442-631 in 33 games for an average of about 13-19 per game.

4 extra points per game doesn't sound like much, but considering we lost 8 games last year by 5 points or less it can mean a huge difference.

This is really evident during our current 4 game winning streak where we are averaging 21.8/28.8 for 76% per game while our opponents average 13.5/18.8 for 72% per game, which equates to an 8 point advantage per game.

What it comes down to is our increased aggresiveness in defense and rebounding I think is also leading us to increased aggressiveness on offense and more opportunities at the foul line, which is really helping us in the games. Not only are we getting an extra 8 points per game from the foul line, we are also creating havoc with opponents regular lineups because teams are frequently getting into foul trouble as they are also averaging about 6 fouls per game more than SDSU.

Good work Jacks-02.

Another interesting free throw stat: SDSU has made 316 free throws this season so far. Our opponents have ATTEMPTED 297. SDSU continues to make more free throws than our opponents have shot. A very good sign.

As of this morning, we're up to #8 in the country for free throws made.

We're #43 for free throw shooting percentage, making 73.5% from the line.