0-3 in close games ….

[Scarlet Shack]

0-3 in close games …actually all decided in the last minute

Getting that record to .500 gonna be one of the keys to the season and getting back to the ncaa

 

[RU205]

The team needs to learn from failure. Let’s see what they are made of.

 

[bethlehemfan]

0-4 imo but osu was a screw job so should be 1-3. Also temple which I consider close was without our main guys.

 

[zebnatto]

Can’t keep myself from playing the what-if game and imagining that Top Ten ranking.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

There were 7-10 possessions that determined our 2021-22 season. Under .500 record thru 4 seed

 

[Doctorzit]

0-3 in close games …actually all decided in the last minute

Getting that record to .500 gonna be one of the keys to the season and getting back to the ncaa

Close games are usually determined by good coaching.

 

[Scarlet Shack]

There were 7-10 possessions that determined our 2021-22 season. Under .500 record thru 4 seed

Yup. Very true ….It’s was even more than that …we weee 8-6 in close games…not even counting Ndame. If we found a way to be 11-3….that would have been a 6 seed.

starting off -3 likely means that we are going to find a way to even thar out and have a good season or we have a big issue on why it’s -3 and the trend gonna continue ….

 

[fluoxetine]

Close games are usually determined by good coaching.

Close games are mostly determined by random variance with a slight edge to the better team.

 

[bac2therac]

Rutgers is 360 in luck on Ken Pom

 

[bethlehemfan]

Rutgers is 360 in luck on Ken Pom

Surprised it’s not lower

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Close games are usually determined by good coaching.

No!

 

[RU-ROCS]

0-3 in close games …actually all decided in the last minute

Getting that record to .500 gonna be one of the keys to the season and getting back to the ncaa

Without Geo and Ron, RU has no closer right now. Someone new has to step up.

 

[RU205]

Close games are usually determined by good coaching.

Or by making layups.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Or by making layups.

Or officials

 

[Knight Shift]

Or by making layups.

Free throws?

 

[nukem]

Without Geo and Ron, RU has no closer right now. Someone new has to step up.

This is it right here. We have no closer. If we are not up by more than a couple of possessions, we are in trouble. No one wants that shot. And as fans, who do you really trust to take that last shot? I have no faith in anyone on that roster.

I think Simpson is the guy who can grow into that role but I'm not sure he's ready right now.

 

[bethlehemfan]

This is it right here. We have no closer. If we are not up by more than a couple of possessions, we are in trouble. No one wants that shot. And as fans, who do you really trust to take that last shot? I have no faith in anyone on that roster.

I think Simpson is the guy who can grow into that role but I'm not sure he's ready right now.

Most college teams don’t have a “closer” that you truly fear. Ron and Geo were actually pretty special in that regard.

 

[Doctorzit]

Free throws?

Who recruited the kids that can't make layups or free throws?

 

[RUJMM78]

Close games are usually determined by good coaching.

Also by poor shooting .

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Who recruited the kids that can't make layups or free throws?

You have entered the GRF ignored list. You add nothing to the message board so you need to go.

 

[MiloTalon13]

Close games are mostly determined by random variance with a slight edge to the better team.

I love that way of saying "luck" (with the slight edge to the better team)
One of the toughest things for people to accept because it's more fun to blame someone

 

[RutgersSouthFL]

I was at the Miami game, which we pretty much dominated until the last 7:30 or so. Aside from the obvious (Mulcahy being out with an injury that was far more serious than a "stinger"), Spencer having what will hopefully be the worst game of his career is why we lost. If he had even a halfway decent shooting night we win that game, period. So between that and Ohio State, which was stolen from us, there was really no need to panic

UNTIL...the Seton Hall debacle. I think all of us are rightfully concerned when the team has like 10 different offensive opportunties to win a game and can't make a single basket. We have to find a way to consistently score or it will be a long year.

 

[Knight Shift]

You have entered the GRF ignored list. You add nothing to the message board so you need to go.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

I was at the Miami game, which we pretty much dominated until the last 7:30 or so. Aside from the obvious (Mulcahy being out with an injury that was far more serious than a "stinger"), Spencer having what will hopefully be the worst game of his career is why we lost. If he had even a halfway decent shooting night we win that game, period. So between that and Ohio State, which was stolen from us, there was really no need to panic

UNTIL...the Seton Hall debacle. I think all of us are rightfully concerned when the team has like 10 different offensive opportunties to win a game and can't make a single basket. We have to find a way to consistently score or it will be a long year.

Take the 70 offensive possessions from Miami game and take 70 possessions from the Ohio State game and take the 60 possessions from the Seton Hall game and the possessions from the Indiana game.

Those 250 possessions represent who we are. A very bad offensive team capable of beating anyone provided our defense remains elite.

Unadjusted...
61,63,66,43 points
64,66,64,59 possessions
233/253 .921 points per possession

.921 PPP can only win if you can hold opponent at .920 PPP or better.
We did that vs. SHU and Indiana

 

[MiloTalon13]

Take the 70 offensive possessions from Miami game and take 70 possessions from the Ohio State game and take the 60 possessions from the Seton Hall game and the possessions from the Indiana game.

Those 250 possessions represent who we are. A very bad offensive team capable of beating anyone provided our defense remains elite.

Unadjusted...
61,63,66,43 points
64,66,64,59 possessions
233/253 .921 points per possession

.921 PPP can only win if you can hold opponent at .920 PPP or better.
We did that vs. SHU and Indiana

Good stuff.
43 points is an outlier (hopefully).
0.979 PPP without that game.
Your point stands regardless
Would be interesting to know how much the staff looks at stuff like that and prioritizes what they work on in practice and other times with players like film sessions and individual stuff.
Is it easier to get our PPP up ever so slightly, or get our defensive PPP down?
It SEEMS to me like getting Cam more 3's would do more for our PPP than anything we could do differently defensively, but I'm not the one getting paid the big bucks.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

I think the only real personnel change that significantly impacts defense at the expense of offense is taking minutes from Mag and giving them to Hyatt.

I think a lineup with Hyatt instead of Mag improves our offensive efficiency, but in my mind, it isn't much. I think the hit defensively is more than any increase offensively.

The key is Cam. There are replacements defensively that improves or keeps it constant. Cam needs to add to our offense and not keep it constant.

 

[richthedentist]

I think the only real personnel change that significantly impacts defense at the expense of offense is taking minutes from Mag and giving them to Hyatt.

I think a lineup with Hyatt instead of Mag improves our offensive efficiency, but in my mind, it isn't much. I think the hit defensively is more than any increase offensively.

The key is Cam. There are replacements defensively that improves or keeps it constant. Cam needs to add to our offense and not keep it constant.

Not sure how much it improves our offense the fact that he can’t make a layup has cost us at least 2 games
Just dunk the GD ball already

 

[MiloTalon13]

I think the only real personnel change that significantly impacts defense at the expense of offense is taking minutes from Mag and giving them to Hyatt.

I think a lineup with Hyatt instead of Mag improves our offensive efficiency, but in my mind, it isn't much. I think the hit defensively is more than any increase offensively.

The key is Cam. There are replacements defensively that improves or keeps it constant. Cam needs to add to our offense and not keep it constant.

Cam and Simpson are the keys. If they are what they have been and that's it, then we are what we have been. Maybe Paul gets better offensively but anyone else helping more is going to be marginal.
If Cam or Simpson or both can step it up offensively, we can be really good, top 25ish good.
Big IFs

 

[winfield102]

Poor shooting and too many turnovers = loss.

Gotta cut down on the unforced TO's.

 

[FinalFourOrBust]

We just don’t have guys who can create their own shots and that kills you in close games. Thankfully that should change with Gavin next year but this year will probably be a struggle. It was always gonna be this way after geo and Ron left.

 

[bitnez]

I agree Cam is key but I think he should be off the ball a lot more. He can’t create his own shot against P5 defenders and his best skill is shooting. He also said his favorite shot is the corner 3 so not sure why we aren’t taking him off the ball, putting him in the corner, and running ball reversal for him. We do run from time to time but we have Mag and/or Hyatt taking those shots.

 

[MiloTalon13]

I agree Cam is key but I think he should be off the ball a lot more. He can’t create his own shot against P5 defenders and his best skill is shooting. He also said his favorite shot is the corner 3 so not sure why we aren’t taking him off the ball, putting him in the corner, and running ball reversal for him. We do run from time to time but we have Mag and/or Hyatt taking those shots.

I think the problem is we don't have Cam to pass to Cam.
When under pressure, Hyatt and Mag (and even Caleb) struggle to make the right pass or dribble/pass that would end up getting the ball to Cam in the corner.
We don't get many ball reversals, a lot of corner 3's come from ball reversals

 

[Scangg]

A closer would be nice, but Hyatt is missing clutch layups. 2 losses bc he can't make gimmies. A 3rd bc of a historic ref job. We are almost dead last in KenPom luck. Horrible at the rim percentage.

Some of that has to at least somewhat even out...

 

[SantaFeScarlet]

Most college teams don’t have a “closer” that you truly fear. Ron and Geo were actually pretty special in that regard.

Yeah....they have 'closers'.... plural

 

[Scarlet Shack]

Rutgers is 360 in luck on Ken Pom

That’s interesting …whixh is part of the reason I think close game number reverses itself and we get back to close to .500 and have a lot of hope for the rest of the season

 

[Salvi's Headband]

We could very easily be 8-1 and ranked. Problem is our style leads to a lot of close games and close games by their nature are decided by a healthy dose of luck.

 

[RUsojo]

Some of it’s luck some of it is consistent end of game mismanagement. More luck

 

[bac2therac]

Stop turning the ball over

 

[Local Shill]

Still 0-3 in close games. Good win today!

 

[DJ Spanky]

Still 0-3 in close games. Good win today!

But we are 7-0 in games we win by a large margin.