Losing Cliff cost us the NCAA Tournament

[PSAL_Hoops]

I know you like that "in the paint" stat, but it extends out to 13 feet from the front of the rim, so it's not really a great measure for accuracy "away from the rim". I am much more comfortable with Sommerville taking a shot in the paint near the FT line than I ever was with Omoruyi.

So far this year, LS is:
5-5 (100%): Dunks
44-65 (67.7%): At the rim
36-88 (40.9%): Other twos (including too many damn-fool 21 footers)
1-8 (12.5%): Threes

Cliff last year:
51-62 (82.3%): Dunks
102-155 (65.8%): At the rim
27-94 (28.7%): Other twos
1-5 (20.0%): Threes

Cliff the year before:
73-82 (89.0%): Dunks
146-229 (63.8%): At the rim
29-102 (28.4%): Other twos
4-22 (18.2%): Threes

LS is already a more efficient scorer on non-dunks as a freshman than Omoruyi was as a junior or senior. They are two very different players with different styles and different physical attributes. You cannot expect LS to fit into Omoruyi's shoes, nor should you.

Lathan has better post moves than Omoruyi had, with more of an ability to receive passes in the high post and work his defender with his back to the basket. He has better touch on layups and short shots than Omoruyi had. On the flip side, Omoruyi's wingspan, elevation, and overall athleticism allowed him to flush damn near anything he caught close to the rim - which Sommerville doesn't have.

It’s the defense that set Cliff apart quietly. He didn’t allow opponents to score easy baskets in the paint.

Lathan’s defense, in contrast, is extremely poor. He’s not going to simply “get better” at it. It’s his whole style and approach on that end.

 

[RUChoppin]

It’s the defense that set Cliff apart quietly. He didn’t allow opponents to score easy baskets in the paint.

Lathan’s defense, in contrast, is extremely poor. He’s not going to simply “get better” at it. It’s his whole style and approach on that end.

Most players who stay with Pike improve on defense. It's something that can be taught and improved through effort over time - though that effort and desire to improve would have to come from him.

 

[goru7]

Getting back to the OP’s title thread , losing Mag and Cliff clearly cost us from making a deep run in the tourney. Teams around the country that are old are excelling . Sprinkle in a top freshman and there are a ton of them this year and those are the teams that will go far in the tourney.
Cliff would have provided the rim protection we drastically missed this year and MAG at the head of the press or locking down the leading scorer on the other team would have been enough defense to match with our offense.
I will say it . It is a damn shame.

 

[G- RUnit]

Getting back to the OP’s title thread , losing Mag and Cliff clearly cost us from making a deep run in the tourney. Teams around the country that are old are excelling . Sprinkle in a top freshman and there are a ton of them this year and those are the teams that will go far in the tourney.
Cliff would have provided the rim protection we drastically missed this year and MAG at the head of the press or locking down the leading scorer on the other team would have been enough defense to match with our offense.
I will say it . It is a damn shame.

Simpson as well for all his shooting faults, he took care of the ball and passed quite well.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Simpson as well for all his shooting faults, he took care of the ball and passed quite well.

Dude - give it up already. He wouldn’t have made a significant difference on this team. His D is pretty good, yes, but he’s not some kind of stud difference maker and he’s tiny so he would not have helped address our interior defense problem at all. We couldn’t stop anyone in the paint all season. Period. And we stink at rebounding. These 2 things combined are why we suck. Cliff alone would’ve made a big difference. Perhaps a Caleb or Mag type who can swing from defending both perimeter and post - and take on the assignment of shutting down an opponents best player - could’ve been the difference of a couple more wins. Simpson again is tiny and skinny and could not have helped mitigate our biggest issues.

 

[RUChoppin]

Dude - give it up already. He wouldn’t have made a significant difference on this team. His D is pretty good, yes, but he’s not some kind of stud difference maker and he’s tiny so he would not have helped address our interior defense problem at all. We couldn’t stop anyone in the paint all season. Period. And we stink at rebounding. These 2 things combined are why we suck. Cliff alone would’ve made a big difference. Perhaps a Caleb or Mag type who can swing from defending both perimeter and post - and take on the assignment of shutting down an opponents best player - could’ve been the difference of a couple more wins. Simpson again is tiny and skinny and could not have helped mitigate our biggest issues.

Simpson would have helped a bit with our perimeter defense, with the accompanying sacrifice we'd need to make on offense. He would not have been able to as effectively switch onto wing players like JWill does.

We lacked defensive beef in the paint this year, certainly - especially help defense in the paint to make up for mistakes/gambles made by our guards.

Both Mag/Omoruyi are foreign nationals, though, and I know there were some additional challenges discussed at the time about how to get them NIL in a year we couldn't play internationally - and Omoruyi was commanding a price tag we weren't willing/able to pay. Seems Alabama and BYU managed to get around those challenges.

Agree, though, that this year would have been very different with those two on the roster and fully committed to playing here. We probably wouldn't have targeted Martini if both were returning and wouldn't have had a scholarship spot available for Hayes.

 

[goru7]

Simpson as well for all his shooting faults, he took care of the ball and passed quite well.

I would like to say yes but cannot truly say he would have made a difference whereas I am clearly of the opinion Mag and Cliff’s loss for defense alone would have made a huge difference.
To your point I think JMike , Jordan , Tyson and to a lesser extent Jeremiah have had terrible defensive seasons. Derek might have been better than all of them defensively. Maybe his dribble penetration looking to pass instead of shooting would have been helpful but all the guards apparently have the green light to shoot , even bad shots , so not sure his clanking 12 foot shots would have helped. Would Derek had been equal to all our guards ? Likely unless he reverted backwards like the others.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Simpson would have helped a bit with our perimeter defense, with the accompanying sacrifice we'd need to make on offense. He would not have been able to as effectively switch onto wing players like JWill does.

We lacked defensive beef in the paint this year, certainly - especially help defense in the paint to make up for mistakes/gambles made by our guards.

Both Mag/Omoruyi are foreign nationals, though, and I know there were some additional challenges discussed at the time about how to get them NIL in a year we couldn't play internationally - and Omoruyi was commanding a price tag we weren't willing/able to pay. Seems Alabama and BYU managed to get around those challenges.

Agree, though, that this year would have been very different with those two on the roster and fully committed to playing here. We probably wouldn't have targeted Martini if both were returning and wouldn't have had a scholarship spot available for Hayes.

Oh to be clear, I’m not saying there was a realistic chance of keeping either of them. My point is that those were the holes (and to be fully fair - I was hard on Hyatt but him too - veteran 5 year player in our system a while) we desperately needed to fill on defense.

While Simpson is a pretty good perimeter, the blended mix of defenders replacing him and Noah in the backcourt isn’t what drove our free fall from 5th ranked Ken Pom D down to 121st. It’s the front court. Cliff/Mag/Hyatt. Even Austin Williams played solid D and could shift to the 3 like Jeremiah.

The bottom line is when you replace Cliff with Ace that is a massive drop at D. Ace is a frosh, and yes, this is the right comparison the 5 spot. Ace is the closest thing we have to a rim protector and he, not Lathan, leads the team in rebounding by a wide margin. Going down the line - I can’t even believe I’m on here offering defensive praise to Hyatt, but I’d take 5th year Hyatt at the 4 or even the 5 (which he occasionally played) over frosh Lathan on D with Ace any day of the week. It’s not even close. Those are the straight up comparisons of full season players not even accounting for having Mag for 17 games. Oskar wasn’t materially worse on D than Zach - he knew where to be position wise. And Grant isn’t currently a defensive upgrade over Wolf except he plays way more minutes. This is why we are so bad at D. It’s not the backcourt.

 

[seansherm]

I would like to say yes but cannot truly say he would have made a difference whereas I am clearly of the opinion Mag and Cliff’s loss for defense alone would have made a huge difference.
To your point I think JMike , Jordan , Tyson and to a lesser extent Jeremiah have had terrible defensive seasons. Derek might have been better than all of them defensively. Maybe his dribble penetration looking to pass instead of shooting would have been helpful but all the guards apparently have the green light to shoot , even bad shots , so not sure his clanking 12 foot shots would have helped. Would Derek had been equal to all our guards ? Likely unless he reverted backwards like the others.

Yeah, while a little better perimeter defense would have been nice, it's probably useless without having the paint defender behind it. Cliff and healthy Mag on this team, we may have 6 more wins.

 

[goru7]

Yeah, while a little better perimeter defense would have been nice, it's probably useless without having the paint defender behind it. Cliff and healthy Mag on this team, we may have 6 more wins.

Not going to get into it with PSAL Hoops , but his opinion that was all above interior defense and no rim protector and had nothing to do with perimeter defense is such hogwash. Leaky perimeter defense starts the rotations that never properly occurred. Once the guard got beat , the next guy in the paint came up leaving his man alone and because the proper rotations never occurred we had chaos. The thing we were missing on the interior was a rim protector and with Cliff and Lathan sliding in for minutes , it would have worked fine. Derek might have stopped some of the ridiculous dribble penetration to occur this year. Mag would have locked down their wing and also be a tremendous help defender. The losses were massive. If RU had Mag and Cliff this year , we wouldn’t be where BYU is now ,?
The transfer portal both ways cost us a team that would have had a deep run in them.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

I would like to say yes but cannot truly say he would have made a difference whereas I am clearly of the opinion Mag and Cliff’s loss for defense alone would have made a huge difference.
To your point I think JMike , Jordan , Tyson and to a lesser extent Jeremiah have had terrible defensive seasons. Derek might have been better than all of them defensively. Maybe his dribble penetration looking to pass instead of shooting would have been helpful but all the guards apparently have the green light to shoot , even bad shots , so not sure his clanking 12 foot shots would have helped. Would Derek had been equal to all our guards ? Likely unless he reverted backwards like the others.

Yes - this is why we can’t pencil in Lathan and Grant at the 4 and 5 spots for next season and assure that our recruiting plans keep them happy. Do you understand? It’s nothing against either of them. Both show promise on offense but if we don’t fix the front court D we’re going to be in trouble no matter what .

 

[Jerseylegends]

I agree and I'll add mag to this...say what you want about him but I've never seen anyone single handedly disrupt offenses from even getting the ball over half court the way he can. He was like a Energizer bunny out there, when he was on the team, the full court press was a weapon and actually generated offense for Rutgers. I would have liked to add a veteran guard like Matt alocco but just keeping mag and cliff this team would have been near the top of the big ten..

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Not going to get into it with PSAL Hoops , but his opinion that was all above interior defense and no rim protector and had nothing to do with perimeter defense is such hogwash. Leaky perimeter defense starts the rotations that never properly occurred. Once the guard got beat , the next guy in the paint came up leaving his man alone and because the proper rotations never occurred we had chaos. The thing we were missing on the interior was a rim protector and with Cliff and Lathan sliding in for minutes , it would have worked fine. Derek might have stopped some of the ridiculous dribble penetration to occur this year. Mag would have locked down their wing and also be a tremendous help defender. The losses were massive. If RU had Mag and Cliff this year , we wouldn’t be where BYU is now ,?
The transfer portal both ways cost us a team that would have had a deep run in them.

Dude - you cannot say this unless your going to confirm G-Unit’s position that Simpson would've /could’ve been our Savior. Either both are true or neither. Unless you think GG and Noah Fernandez were the difference makers in perimeter D that is. But it’s none of these things. Your delusional if you think even the very best perimeter defenses don’t allow penetration. The guys playing the 3-5 need to be there on the help to at least slow it down so that the guards can reestabliah position. Ours don’t. It’s basically lay up lines man.

 

[RUChoppin]

Not going to get into it with PSAL Hoops , but his opinion that was all above interior defense and no rim protector and had nothing to do with perimeter defense is such hogwash. Leaky perimeter defense starts the rotations that never properly occurred. Once the guard got beat , the next guy in the paint came up leaving his man alone and because the proper rotations never occurred we had chaos. The thing we were missing on the interior was a rim protector and with Cliff and Lathan sliding in for minutes , it would have worked fine. Derek might have stopped some of the ridiculous dribble penetration to occur this year. Mag would have locked down their wing and also be a tremendous help defender. The losses were massive. If RU had Mag and Cliff this year , we wouldn’t be where BYU is now ,?
The transfer portal both ways cost us a team that would have had a deep run in them.

Having Mag (4 years in system), Omoruyi (4 years in system), and even Simpson (2 years in system) would have also gone a long way toward having more guys on the floor knowing the rotations and helping their teammates in real time. We lost a truly massive amount of experience between last year and this year.

 

[goru7]

Yes - this is why we can’t pencil in Lathan and Grant at the 4 and 5 spots for next season and assure that our recruiting plans keep them happy. Do you understand? It’s nothing against either of them. Both show promise on offense but if we don’t fix the front court D we’re going to be in trouble no matter what .

We can pencil in Lagan and Grant. We can also go and get a rim protector. Depth is the single biggest strength on a team. Cliff only plays some nights 17-20 minutes a night at Alabama . Then Alabama trots out Diobate and now he is back from injury Derrion Reed. All play. and all contribute.

I strongly disagree with your narrative and negative comments consistently about Lathan. In my opinion they are wrong and short sighted. You think he will never get better and serviceable on defense . He did get better as the year went on and played Biddle of an Oregon well.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Having Mag (4 years in system), Omoruyi (4 years in system), and even Simpson (2 years in system) would have also gone a long way toward having more guys on the floor knowing the rotations and helping their teammates in real time. We lost a truly massive amount of experience between last year and this year.

Gotta be fair to 5th year Hyatt. Him too compared to what we have now.

I agree Simpson’s D is better than our current guards and he chases loose balls better. But we’re not talking major upgrade. Most PGs can break their first defender in penetration whether that’s Derek, Harper, Davis, etc. even J Young. The second level on help is the bread and butter of team defense is usually differentiates good defenses from poor ones (after like grade 3 or whatever age most kids start to develop their left). Perimeter D does matter, but not as much as being terrible at interior D. We were able to overcome GG sucking at close out.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

We can pencil in Lagan and Grant. We can also go and get a rim protector. Depth is the single biggest strength on a team. Cliff only plays some nights 17-20 minutes a night at Alabama . Then Alabama trots out Diobate and now he is back from injury Derrion Reed. All play. and all contribute.

I strongly disagree with your narrative and negative comments consistently about Lathan. In my opinion they are wrong and short sighted. You think he will never get better and serviceable on defense . He did get better as the year went on and played Biddle of an Oregon well.

Nobody decent is coming to Rutgers to be a depth piece if we’re penciling in Lathan as our starting center. Do you really believe that could happen?

 

[goru7]

Dude - you cannot say this unless you’re going to confirm G-Unit’s position that Simpson would've /could’ve been our Savior. Either both are true or neither. Unless you think GG and Noah Fernandez were the difference makers in perimeter D that is. But it’s none of these things. You’re delusional if you think even the very best perimeter defenses don’t allow penetration. The guys playing the 3-5 need to be there on the help to at least slow it down so that the guards can reestabliah position. Ours don’t. It’s basically lay up lines man.

A rim protector helps that issue a lot. The problem this year is our guards do not fight over screens like almost all the other guards in the big 10. If you do not see that , then I can call you delusional because the breakdown starts because our guards sucked at defense , first and foremost . If our guys keep their man in front of them , which we did a much better job of that yesterday against Minnesota , a lot of the chaos and layup lines do not occur

 

[goru7]

Nobody decent is coming to Rutgers to be a depth piece if we’re penciling in Lathan as our starting center. Do you really believe that could happen?

Of course , it happens with every team. Do you just watch only 10 teams in college basketball? Most teams have 2 or 3 centers.

 

[goru7]

Of course , it happens with every team. Do you just watch only 10 teams in college basketball? Most teams have 2 or 3 centers.

You calling for a Shaq Doorson type as a rim protector aren’t you. ? Why do you think someone like him averaging 2 points a game , will not come here ? Common now.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Of course , it happens with every team. Do you just watch only 10 teams in college basketball? Most teams have 2 or 3 centers.

Do you not get that Lathan probably isn’t going to stay if we bring in an established 5 with a strong profile? Keeping him happy goes against the logic of bringing in a good defensive 5. Doing both is going to be very difficult if not totally impossible. You seem to be saying keeping Lathan should be top priority even if it means all we can get is another Reiber or Martini type back up center. I believe we need to bring in the best defensive center we can afford regardless of how Lathan feels about it. I’m certainly not saying kick him off the team if he’s ok with this approach.

 

[RUChoppin]

Gotta be fair to 5th year Hyatt. Him too compared to what we have now.

I agree Simpson’s D is better than our current guards and he chases loose balls better. But we’re not talking major upgrade. Most PGs can break their first defender in penetration whether that’s Derek, Harper, Davis, etc. even J Young. The second level on help is the bread and butter of team defense is usually differentiates good defenses from poor ones (after like grade 3 or whatever age most kids start to develop their left). Perimeter D does matter, but not as much as being terrible at interior D. We were able to overcome GG sucking at close out.

Hyatt had no eligibility left. Was only talking about guys who we could have had, but didn't have.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Hyatt had no eligibility left. Was only talking about guys who we could have had, but didn't have.

Got it. I’m talking about the guys we had to replace. I think it’s fair to say despite all the heat Hyatt took, we’ve downgraded the defense at the 4 in replacing his 26 mpg.

 

[goru7]

Do you not get that Lathan probably isn’t going to stay if we bring in an established 5 with a strong profile? Keeping him happy goes against the logic of bringing in a good defensive 5. Doing both is going to be very difficult if not totally impossible. You seem to be saying keeping Lathan should be top priority even if it means all we can get is another Reiber or Martini type back up center. I believe we need to bring in the best defensive center we can afford regardless of how Lathan feels about it. I’m certainly not saying kick him off the team if he’s ok with this approach.

You’re repeating this narrative on Lathan is ridiculous. He will be a starting center on a BiG 10 team as a sophomore. Who is going to give him that chance in the Big 10 , SEC or Big 12,? He is not going anywhere as long as our NIL money is competitive. We lost MAG and Cliff to NIL. We shouldn’t lose Lathan or Dylan Grant because of NIL.
You also minimize Lathan’s offensive game which will also get better. We haven’t had such an offensive minded center since Echnique

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

You calling for a Shaq Doorson type as a rim protector aren’t you. ? Why do you think someone like him averaging 2 points a game , will not come here ? Common now.

I said that as it turned out, a pick up like the senior version of him would’ve been a huge help THIS year with 2 NBA stars en route and lack of experience. There actually weren’t that many 4th year centers who played 12 mpg for a power conference team to choose from in the portal - so that point is a good starting point.

Shaq Carter is a better player to point to in illustrating my concerns with Lathan as a 25+ mpg starter for us next year. I see them as similar style players. As a senior, Carter actually played less. Only 12 mpg. He too struggled with defense. I don’t think Lathan is going to want this role but as a sophomore on a decent power conference team I think that’s the role suited for him. I don’t think he will make enough improvements to give our defense enough of a chance to be restored - and Pike doesn’t have the luxury of waiting more than one offseason to turn it around. Just my opinion. You seem to think otherwise. Again - I’d love to be wrong, but I haven’t been wrong historically all that much when it comes to assessing defensive potential in the shorter term. Hyatt would be the best example you could point to and it took him 3 seasons to approach serviceable.

 

[goru7]

I said that as it turned out, a pick up like the senior version of him would’ve been a huge help THIS year with 2 NBA stars en route and lack of experience. There actually weren’t that many 4th year centers who played 12 mpg for a power conference team to choose from in the portal - so that point is a good starting point.

Shaq Carter is a better player to point to in illustrating my concerns with Lathan as a 25+ mpg starter for us next year. I see them as similar style players. As a senior, Carter actually played less. Only 12 mpg. He too struggled with defense. I don’t think Lathan is going to want this role but as a sophomore on a decent power conference team I think that’s the role suited for him. I don’t think he will make enough improvements to give our defense enough of a chance to be restored - and Pike doesn’t have the luxury of waiting more than one offseason to turn it around. Just my opinion. You seem to think otherwise. Again - I’d love to be wrong, but I haven’t been wrong historically all that much when it comes to assessing defensive potential in the shorter term. Hyatt would be the best example you could point to and it took him 3 seasons to approach serviceable.

Hyatt was never great and his impact is drastically overrated. He had a few weak side great blocks but nothing much otherwise. Unless you are advocating to Pike getting back to a Houston or St. John’s defense , which in my opinion the ship has sailed , as we were Houston for 2-3 years , we will win with better offense and serviceable defense with a rim protector .,
Lathan is already better than a 4th year Shaq Carter.

 

[seansherm]

Hyatt was never great and his impact is drastically overrated. He had a few weak side great blocks but nothing much otherwise. Unless you are advocating to Pike getting back to a Houston or St. John’s defense , which in my opinion the ship has sailed , as we were Houston for 2-3 years , we will win with better offense and serviceable defense with a rim protector .,
Lathan is already better than a 4th year Shaq Carter.

Where is the better offense coming from? Other than Lathan, who as of right now, is decent mostly because of his foul drawing and free throw shooting. Yes, just a freshman, but will probably never have this little attention paid to him, his efg% of barely over 50% is terrible for a center, at least an offensive focused one. Most of the bigs in the big ten are the teams higher rated defensive players.
No body else on the roster is even average offensively. The quickest way back to the bubble is going for defense.

We really need two defensive big's and two guard/wings. I think Grant has a profile that his defense will improve but not sure he's a 4ish guy. Dortch may still need yet another year, but has some defensive potential too. I think we are more likely to see us go back to defensive focus than we are to try to win w better offense. Obviously, better offense would be nice though.

 

[goru7]

Where is the better offense coming from? Other than Lathan, who as of right now, is decent mostly because of his foul drawing and free throw shooting. Yes, just a freshman, but will probably never have this little attention paid to him, his efg% of barely over 50% is terrible for a center, at least an offensive focused one. Most of the bigs in the big ten are the teams higher rated defensive players.
No body else on the roster is even average offensively. The quickest way back to the bubble is going for defense.

We really need two defensive big's and two guard/wings. I think Grant has a profile that his defense will improve but not sure he's a 4ish guy. Dortch may still need yet another year, but has some defensive potential too. I think we are more likely to see us go back to defensive focus than we are to try to win w better offense. Obviously, better offense would be nice though.

Pike has got to go get 2 portal guards that are 2 way players like Williard got this year from Maryland . We need a rim protector. I will then roll with the returning freshman and the incoming freshman some of which will be impact players. At least I think Mark and Nuiwl will be impact freshman , one at guard providing depth and one at wing which we desperately need and he plays defense.

Not expecting anything impactful from JMike , Jordan or Manny.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Hyatt was never great and his impact is drastically overrated. He had a few weak side great blocks but nothing much otherwise. Unless you are advocating to Pike getting back to a Houston or St. John’s defense , which in my opinion the ship has sailed , as we were Houston for 2-3 years , we will win with better offense and serviceable defense with a rim protector .,
Lathan is already better than a 4th year Shaq Carter.

I was VERY hard on Hyatt throughout his tenure here… Let me allow my defensive counterpart to weigh in here in my stead. @ Green Rice FIG - if you can only have one on the defensive end - 5th year super senior Hyatt or Lathan - who ya got? Dylan Grant?

 

[RUChoppin]

Where is the better offense coming from? Other than Lathan, who as of right now, is decent mostly because of his foul drawing and free throw shooting. Yes, just a freshman, but will probably never have this little attention paid to him, his efg% of barely over 50% is terrible for a center, at least an offensive focused one. Most of the bigs in the big ten are the teams higher rated defensive players.
No body else on the roster is even average offensively. The quickest way back to the bubble is going for defense.

We really need two defensive big's and two guard/wings. I think Grant has a profile that his defense will improve but not sure he's a 4ish guy. Dortch may still need yet another year, but has some defensive potential too. I think we are more likely to see us go back to defensive focus than we are to try to win w better offense. Obviously, better offense would be nice though.

Lathan was also lower usage this year, because we had Bailey/Harper as our primary offensive weapons. Should he still be here next year, it will be interesting to see how he adapts to having more focus on the offense - both from having the ball in his hands more, and from drawing more double teams and being a good passer.

As for eFG%.... Sommerville was .503 this year as a sophomore and Omoruyi was .514/.513 the last two years here, but Sommerville averages an extra 2.0 pts per 100 possessions at the FT line, too. Question is what would his numbers look like with more touches and more defensive attention (but also more time in the weight room and film room). Time will (may?) tell.

 

[seansherm]

Lathan was also lower usage this year, because we had Bailey/Harper as our primary offensive weapons. Should he still be here next year, it will be interesting to see how he adapts to having more focus on the offense - both from having the ball in his hands more, and from drawing more double teams and being a good passer.

As for eFG%.... Sommerville was .503 this year as a sophomore and Omoruyi was .514/.513 the last two years here, but Sommerville averages an extra 2.0 pts per 100 possessions at the FT line, too. Question is what would his numbers look like with more touches and more defensive attention (but also more time in the weight room and film room). Time will (may?) tell.

If Lathan provided defense, I'd be ecstatic with him. I agree, I'm looking forward to see how he grows, but he really needs to grow defensively to be the starting C on a good team. He'll score.

 

[bac2therac]

What a waste of money. He got stuffed so bad today…

There was no need for a volume scorer like that

Big strategy miss by Pike

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

If Lathan provided defense, I'd be ecstatic with him. I agree, I'm looking forward to see how he grows, but he really needs to grow defensively to be the starting C on a good team. He'll score.

Correct. The likelihood that he improves as much as he would need to in one off season for this to happen is very unlikely though based on where he’s at right now.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Where is the better offense coming from? Other than Lathan, who as of right now, is decent mostly because of his foul drawing and free throw shooting. Yes, just a freshman, but will probably never have this little attention paid to him, his efg% of barely over 50% is terrible for a center, at least an offensive focused one. Most of the bigs in the big ten are the teams higher rated defensive players.
No body else on the roster is even average offensively. The quickest way back to the bubble is going for defense.

We really need two defensive big's and two guard/wings. I think Grant has a profile that his defense will improve but not sure he's a 4ish guy. Dortch may still need yet another year, but has some defensive potential too. I think we are more likely to see us go back to defensive focus than we are to try to win w better offense. Obviously, better offense would be nice though.

This is Pike’s best offense ever. By far. And it’s mostly because we have 2 NBA bound stars who excel at scoring in iso who average over 18 ppg each. There’s no way it will be better next year.

Bob Huggins coaching style at WVU should be Pike’s blueprint for turning this around and stands as proof it can be done with defense first. The 2014-15 season in particular. Polar opposite personality, near replica vision of how to build a competitive program. Huggs had dug himself a similar type of hole following a pair of down seasons. Definitely on the hot seat in 2013-14. That Sweet 16 bound press Virginia team he built was a defensive work of art… Terrible halfcourt offense.