Texas Christian 2/24 3:00 ESPN+

[sedz]

Apples and oranges. You're talking about motivation. Statistics measure the result of that and everything else that went into and occurred during the game. Players can be prepared to run through a brick wall for their coach and teammates, but it has to translate statistically or it's useless for winning games.

Bruce Pearl gave an intense locker room speech ahead of the UK game that was all over ESPN. Auburn lost by double digits on their home floor.

[leo from jersey]

You do realize points are stats, right? They literally win games.

Yes but not in the way you reduce the game to stats. Stats don't win games -TEAMS DO -- There is a big difference. The whole team wins and there is more to BB than stats.

Planning and staying flexible: “There are things you can talk about and plan and then there are things that just happen. Sometimes players do things that bring out the best in each other?
“Making shots counts, but not as much as the people who make them.”
“A common mistake among those who work in sport is spending a disproportional amount of time on “x’s and o’s” as compared to time spent learning about people.”
“Leaders should be reliable without being predictable. They should be consistent without being anticipated.”
Mike Krzyzewski

People win games

[sedz]

You do realize points are stats, right? They literally win games.

[leo from jersey]

A good coach should scout his own team and the other team, identify several keys on both sides of the ball, and come up with several strategies to address those keys. All of that involves statistical analysis and basketball intuition to inform decisions. Step one should always be use what works until the other team stops it.

I know, but things often change - also stats don't always reflect what is happening in the game. That's what separates a good coach from others. The ability to think and plan on the fly as well as motivate the players is step one. Stats often doesn't show the ability to see the game in front of you. Yes, you scout, but the ball takes funny bounces at times. Bounces that were not seen/predicted. A good coach realizes this and can adapt and overcome. You are dealing with coaches from two teams and what they plan might be different than past stats. I may have poor shooting stats because I was u against a great defender. In another game that great defender may be off his game due to various things, so you play accordingly. I would have a game plan(s), but would be aware of what is actually happening during the game. Step one implies doing what you must to win the game and sometimes it is not the other team stopping it or the stats. That is so easy to say, (follow the stats) but on the court things are often subject to change by my team and their play on that particular night. I am not against stats, but winning coaching is so much more Stats don't win games - teams do. Stats can lose games though. It is why we play the game. I am old but some aspects of the game have not changed. A sound plan is a must, but sometimes a new plan is necessary and not always due to stats or the opponent.


Reporter at Pitt game: "Coach, what are your plans for the second half?"
Huggy: "Score more points than they do."

[GoBearcats31]

UC men's basketball media contact, David Cohen ("Director of Strategic Brand Engagement") is a 2015 TCU grad. His dad heads up the media relations/communications department for TCU athletics (though not the basketball contact).

https://gobearcats.com/staff-directory/david-cohen/1592
https://gofrogs.com/staff-directory/mark-cohen/224

[sedz]

A good coach should scout his own team and the other team, identify several keys on both sides of the ball, and come up with several strategies to address those keys. All of that involves statistical analysis and basketball intuition to inform decisions. Step one should always be use what works until the other team stops it.

[leo from jersey]

The question CWM is faced with is how you win a game if your game planning doesn't come to fruition. What If something is thrown into the game which the stats hadn't foreseen? A game in play is never static. This is why the coach has to see what is being played on the floor and not just past games. We are dealing with human players. Have a game plan, but also many variables based on the individual game circumstances. So much can happen on the floor, and we need to go beyond why we losing to how we can win. Sometimes the formula at the start of a game is not what will work in the middle of the game. So many want adjustments and that means a change based on a choice to play differently for a win. The TCU coach has watched the last game, and I am sure he has made a different game plan. Perhaps even alternates. The point is to still win the game. The Marines had a saying. When you didn't have the weapon needed for some reason, you grabbed anything that would work. They called it weapons of opportunity. In an actual live game, you might not have a large window of opportunity so you do what you must in the time remaining in order to win. No two games are the same has been my experience. There are just too many human variances.

[sedz]

We had a good offensive gameplan in the first one, getting to the rim 35 times and converting 23. That allowed us to overcome poor free throw shooting and only 9 offensive rebounds. Day Day, Skillings, and Newman all got to the rim at least 8 times. Day Day had as many rim looks (10) as our entire team had midrange shots. That's an incredible stat. He also had 6 assists and 3 steals, just abusing Avery Anderson all game, handing him a negative 11.5 box plus minus.

Defensively we were able to hold TCU under a point per possession, despite giving up 11 threes and allowing them to rebound over 40% of their misses. We held them to 40% inside the arc and forced 19 turnovers.

Vik was our best player, putting up 6.2 net points and a 13.7 box plus minus. He scored 11 points on only 6 shots with 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, a steal, and only one turnover and one foul in 34 minutes. I miss that Vik.

Udeh was TCU's best player, posting a game high 6.8 net points and 19.4 box plus minus. He was 5 for 8 at the rim, pulled down 6 offensive boards, and even had 5 steals. Tennyson made 5 threes but didn't do much else.

Hopefully we can get to the rim another 35 times. Might as well go to Day Day early and see if he can torch Avery Anderson again. I assume we'll need to replace Vik's production, maybe Jamille is up to the task.

[GoBearcats31]

Q1 road win opportunity...

Ted Emrich/Tim Welsh on the ESPN+ call.