The Cajuns did lose the game at the line. 73% is generally OK but when you are in a tight game on the road you need to be above 80%. Coincidentally ULM was at 84%. Davis did struggle there but he was not the only one who had a problem there. Stroman is usually money but he was at 62 percent today. Although they missed only one each, the ones that Gant and Miller did not convert in the second half proved crucial. In the next game they have to do a better job of controlling Ertel. He had a huge game today. You would need someone that is "long" to give him trouble as he gets his shot off quickly. Not sure we have anyone on the roster this season with those attributes.
I disagree. Few teams go over 80% from the line. While this obviously would have helped today and possibly won the game, its a rarity to shoot that from the FT line in any game. You can't ask your team to do that consistently. I think FT shooting is one of those parts of the game that can lose it for you but you can't rely on it to win it for you.
They are more athletic than we are overall with the squad we are putting on the floor now. Therefore it is not a surprise the stats you mentioned were somewhat in their favor. Kudos to PJ Hardy for shooting us back into the game. Seems he has been improving in many ways recently. That is one guy taking advantage of the increased time due to the Marquetti injury. Experience he is getting now may pay off next season.
As I said anything over 70% is generally considered OK for colleges but we have been better than that in several games this year. What may be causing me to harp on this is several of the critical misses occurred in the latter stages of the game. ULM is generally above 80% which is one reason they are much improved. I understand that is not the norm for the great majority of teams. Someone said earlier they were more ready to play than we were. I would probably agree with that. However, the hot start they got off to from the field gave them even more energy. Defense has to improve for us to pick up a few more wins. You won't beat anybody giving up 99 points. Despite all our limitations, we are generally scoring enough to win. Sounds like I am describing the Pelicans isn't it.
Good thing we locked up our coach with that extension. Would be a shame for him to get hired away by a big boy.
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