Posted:
#51
....The bigger result in all of this? Not only were they taken out of that game mentally from the start, they had two more road games to compete in after consuming all of that energy to try and get back in the game. Up next? Fell behind Tennessee Tech early, were down double digits in a high tempo game, closed the gap right before half, and competed with them the rest of the 2H, just ran out of gas. That was roady #2. Roady #3, and most recently, came at one of the worst teams in the country in Jacksonville State. When you look at the first few results of the road trip, I think it’s pretty conceivable that they weren’t going to have one of their better performances in game three of the roadtrip here, and even though they were favored, they found themselves down at the half by 17. The result? They got back in it, actually had a chance to take that ball game as well. As an outsider, you look at Tennessee State and see that the three games on the road, they just flat out sucked, but in reality, once they were woken up, they played far above their competition. If they can avoid those slow starts, then the team is obviously in a better situation, and that better situation should come at home, and should come in a situation where they need to focus. Going back to what I was saying earlier, this Tennessee State offense is pretty much designed around the three-pointer. They get into their offense, and I’d almost call it a modified Memphis dribble drive, but the only reason they’re using the dribble drive is to attack and kick out if that makes any sense. They don’t look to take the first open shot, they look to take the best shot they think they’re going to get. Against the press, I’ll take my chances with Miller beating the press by himself, but I also expect Jay Harris to see some more minutes b/c of it. The thing with Miller is that he’s familiar with the press, and he’s not going to be going crazy if he is able to beat it. If you watched last year’s meetings, a lot of the turnovers came b/c they beat the press with ease and they tried to go two-on-one against Faried in the paint, and that obviously wasn’t a good thing to do. With the current state of the team, they’re in a spot where they play better at home, in a spot where they’ll need to focus, and the offense should show up because of one more thing within the matchups. You’ll notice that I brought up what Morehead State wants you to do and that’s get the ball in the paint, force the offense into the middle where they can defend at their best. Tennessee State’s not going to do that. The dribble drive and kick is designed to be a dribble drive and kick, it’s not a dribble drive and break your guy off the dribble and get to the hoop, and I think that’s where Morehead State is at a disadvantage here. They’re not only thinking you are going to get into the lane, but when you do, they’re collapsing on you with multiple players, which is going to leave wide open shots on the outside for a good three-point shooting team. And that’s where I get value. I don’t get a Tennessee State offense that’s running set plays hoping for just one shot, I get a Tennessee State offense that’s going to take the first available shot against the zone, and it should be a good look. The game really comes down to one thing, and that’s how Tennessee State starts out. I’m willing to invest that they don’t start out as slow as they did in recent games on the three game roady. The shoe is on the other foot now, and it’s Morehead State and it’s complacent jump shooting offense that will be taking part in the back end of a three game roady, before returning home to play the current #1 and #2 teams in the conference on its home floor.
5* Tennessee State -5
Couple more coming...
GL
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