January 14, 2010 –
by Brendon
On consecutive early-December nights, Pittsburgh and Connecticut left Madison Square Garden disappointed. On Tuesday, Dec. 8, Pittsburgh played its worst game of the season against a poor Indiana team. The Panthers shot just 37.1 percent eFG and fell by 10 in a game that was either unwatchable or barely so.
A night later in the Big East/SEC Invitational, Connecticut recovered from a terrible start to lead Kentucky through most of the second half. John Wall took over down the stretch, though, as the still-undefeated Wildcats knocked off the Huskies, 64-61.
Five weeks later, Pittsburgh and UConn got together at the XL Center in Hartford, and Pittsburgh remained undefeated in conference, topping the Huskies, 67-57, behind 19 each from Ashton Gibbs and Brad Wanamaker. It would have taken a lot of squinting and copious amounts of alcohol to see this coming five weeks ago.
|
Poss |
PPP |
eFG |
Turn |
Reb |
FTR |
| Pittsburgh |
62 |
1.07 |
0.424 |
0.209 |
0.487 |
0.288 |
| Connecticut |
62 |
0.91 |
0.472 |
0.209 |
0.344 |
0.111 |
It’s not that we didn’t already see cracks in Connecticut in December. The primary transformation has come from Pittsburgh, so that’s on whom I’ll mostly focus. We all know how this team looks different from last year’s team. Sam Young, DeJuan Blair, Levance Fields and Tyrell Biggs have all departed and with them the core of last season’s Elite Eight and No. 1-seeded team. Read More »
Posted in Big East, Game of the Night
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Tagged A.J. Price, Aaron Gray, Antonio Graves, Ashton Gibbs, Ater Majok, Big East, Brad Wanamaker, Carl Krauser, Chevron Troutman, Chris Taft, Connecticut, Donnell Beverly, Duquesne, Gavin Edwards, Gilbert Brown, Hasheem Thabeet, Indiana, Jamie Dixon, Jeff Adrien, Jermaine Dixon, Jerome Dyson, Jim Calhoun, Kentucky, Levance Fields, Levon Kendall, Michigan, Mike Cook, Pittsburgh, Ron Ramon, Sam Young, Stanley Robinson, Syracuse, Texas, Tyrell Biggs, Wofford
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December 10, 2009 –
by Brendon
Games between evenly matched teams are not very common in November and December, which is why Wednesday’s matchup between Connecticut and Kentucky was so interesting. Close games eliminate some of the static that comes between us and the data in a blowout. How much would he have played if it were close? Would he really have taken that shot in a tight game? Close games get rid of the need for such speculation.
In Kentucky’s 64-61 win over UConn at Madison Square Garden, we learned several things — or had them reinforced, depending on your perspective. The first relates to the types of shots each team likes to take, the second to the problems with Connecticut’s offense against good teams and the third to a contrast in depth. Let’s start with the advanced box.
| Team |
Poss |
PPP |
eFG |
Turn |
Reb |
FTR |
| Kentucky |
69 |
0.92 |
0.414 |
0.202 |
0.357 |
0.172 |
| Connecticut |
69 |
0.88 |
0.461 |
0.289 |
0.441 |
0.275 |
This point was pounded home by the television commentators, but it’s rare to see a college basketball game in which the 3-pointer had so little effect. The two teams combined to make just 4-of-18 3-pointers. Neither team attempted a 3-pointer on even 20 percent of its field-goal attempts. The national average is 32.5 percent.
The lack of 3-point attempts and makes is not a departure from how these teams usually play. Connecticut has not finished in the nation’s top 300 in 3-point-attempt rate since Ken Pomeroy began keeping these statistics for the 2003-04 season. This season, none of the 347 Division I teams come in lower than UConn’s 17.4 percent 3-point-attempt rate. So, 3-pointers on 11.8 percent of attempts is right in line. Read More »
Posted in Big East, Game of the Night, SEC
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Tagged Ajou Ajou Deng, Alex Oriakhi, Ater Majok, Big East, Connecticut, Darius Miller, Darnell Dodson, Duke, Eric Bledsoe, Gavin Edwards, Harry High School, Jerome Dyson, Jim Calhoun, John Calipari, John Wall, Kemba Walker, Kentucky, SEC, Stanley Robinson
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