AJC > Sports > Tech > Blog > Archives > 2007 > January > 28
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Three games in a row with same mistakes
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There’s not much positive to draw upon after another lackluster game in the ACC. The 3-ball was working a little better and I thought we played better defensively in the open court (9 steals). We had far less turnovers (11) than in recent games, but those things don’t make up for some glaring deficiencies.
We have no offensive game plan and we give up too many easy buckets around the paint. Please tell me that someone on the Tech staff is working on these things. So far, three games in a row with the same mistakes.
On offense, it’s evident that we’re trying to post-up our big guys down low. However, the ball rarely gets to them. On the perimeter, Javaris dribbles and dribbles and can’t seem to find an open guy. Why is he dribbling so much? Why isn’t someone getting open? Also, I counted 4 times that the big guys (Dickey, Smith, Peacock) attempted 3-pointers. Why are they shooting from behind the arc?
Defensively, we have our breakdowns in the paint. In the open court we’re sound. We get lots of deflections and steals and generally disrupt the other team. Once they start penetrating towards the basket and drawing defenders, we get confused. Before you know it they pass to an open guy and it’s too late to recover.
Have we psyched ourselves out? Is this a chemistry issue (Clinch suspension)? Is it a lack of effort from the players? Is it a coaching problem? All of the above?
The good news is that we had a chance to beat VT despite the poor execution. The Wake game on Tuesday is a winnable road game and is a great opportunity chance to get out of this funk and get back some confidence.
