I don't think Alex has had a better half all season than his second half against South Dakota State. After going just 2-7 for 5 points, he absolutely erupted. 8-10 shooting (6-8 FT) for 22 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals - all in the second half. That is including the game-sealing steal at half court followed by a monstrous slam.
Six Man of the Game: Anthony Williams, IUPUI.
Not because of his stat line (1-2, 2pts, 1blk), but because of the impact he made inside. He took a charge, was tipping balls out to other guys, and was overall a giant force inside, giving Christian a break. Smooth played 10 minutes of really solid basketball.
Stat of the Game: 26-56
South Dakota State came into the game as the #12 three point shooting team in the nation against IUPUI's #228 three point defense. The Jacks decided to go 'ape' from outside, taking nearly half of their shots from beyond the arc. Griffan Callahan had four, Nate Wolters had five, and Clint Sargent exploded for 12.
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Et Cetera...
- I'm not sure if we'll see someone as good as Wolters on any team not from Oakland. Though he had some iffy shots here and there, on the whole the kid was phenomenal. He looked like he was playing at a whole different speed than everyone else.
- Oh, but wait, there's more. Alex Young: WOW. If you watch the video highlights at the bottom of the page, or if you were there, you'll know what I mean. He weaved in and out of traffic, he hit step back jumpers, he played solid defense...All that was missing was a barrage of superhoops. It's hard to dispute his ability, but more consistent performances need to be the goal moving forward.
- The back door cut worked insanely well. It didn't appear SDST had any kind of weak side help, and any kind of cutting dribble penetration would move the defense however the ball handler wanted. Ashworth was the main focus of that penetration, including three or four insanely good no-look passes.
- PJ starting the second half over Stephen raised some eyebrows, but I think Ron Hunter was trying to get some better looks from beyond the arc. PJ's passing still needs some work, but that will come with playing time and learning how much faster the college game is that the high school game.
- If you haven't seen Alex's "Jungle Roll" off the back of the iron, you've got to check it out. An insanely lucky, slow roll off the back iron is the second of its kind in three games for the Jaguars. The first came via a Sean Esposito shot from the corner at IPFW. The ball hit side iron, bounced straight up in the air, off the top of the backboard three times, then slowly fell into the cylinder. To say the 'bounces have been going our way' is actually, for once, an extremely tangible cliche.
- After the game, I caught up with the players on their way to the locker room (by accident, actually). They were all bursting with confidence and ready to play another game. This weekend might be the turning point in the season where IUPUI really takes off and challenges Oakland for the Summit League regular season title. They'd have to win out, including beating OU at home in February, as well as hoping someone else can knock the Griz off at some point.
- IUPUI's next three games are against opponents that should be easily handled. UMKC, SUU, and WIU are all near the bottom of the League standings, and the Jags already dispatched the Leathernecks once this year.
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Team Statistics: Post Game
67.6 | Points/Game | 80.8 |
66.8 | Points Against/Game | 70.8 |
60% | Fieldgoal % | 48% |
66% | 2-Point % | 53% |
38% | 3-Point % | 42% |
62% | Free Throw % | 92% |
15 | Assists | 15 |
7 | Turnovers | 12 |
24 (10 O/14 D) | Rebounds | 25 (10 O/15 D) |
3 | Blocks | 3 |
14 | Fouls | 17 |
60 | Possessions | 64 |
1.35 | Points/Possession | 1.19 |
1.28 | Points/Shot | 1.23 |
40.0% | O.Rebounds/Missed Shot | 41.7% |
58.3% | D.Rebounds/Missed Shot | 60.0% |
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By The Numbers...
Leroy Nobles: 39 M; 9-16 FG, 1-3 FT, 2-4 3P, 21 PTS; 3 R (1/2); 2 A; 1 STL; 2 TO; 0 F; 15 EFF
Alex Young: 39 M; 10-17 FG, 7-10 FT, 0-3 3P, 27 PTS; 7 R (3/4); 3 A; 2 S; 1 TO; 2 F; 28 EFF
Stephen Thomas: 34 M; 4-7 FG, 1-2 3P, 9 PTS; 6 R (1/5); 3 A; 4 F; 14 EFF
John Ashworth: 38 M; 3-5 FG, 2-3 3P, 8 PTS; 2 R (0/2); 7 A; 1 S; 1 TO; 1 F; 15 EFF
Christian Siakam: 25 M; 6-8 FG, 12 PTS; 6 R (5/1); 2 TO; 1 B; 4 F; 14 EFF
Anthony Williams: 10 M; 1-2 FG, 2 PTS; 1 B; 3 F; 2 EFF
Donovan Gibbs: 6 M; 1-1 FG, 2 PTS; 2 EFF
PJ Hubert: 7 M; 0-1 3P, 0 PTS; 1 TO; 0 EFF
Mitchell Patton: 2 M; 1 B; 1 EFF
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Key Matchup: Revisited
SDST Perimeter Play
vs
IUPUI Perimeter Play
While it would appear SDST had the better shooting night from behind the arc, taking 46.5% of your shots from long distance is not a good idea. IUPUI launched just 22.8% of their shots from deep, and were far more efficient on offense. In four less possessions they scored five more points, as well as a fantastic 60% from inside the arc, compared to just 48% from the Jacks. While normally one would just look at the percentages and call this one for SDST, I'm going to have to call it a push. While the Jacks did shoot better from the perimeter, they had a much lower percentage all around because of the obscene number of low-percentage shots they took.
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Keys To The Game
1) Stop Nate Wolters. (Eh...)
While it's hard to really say you stopped the Summit League's leading scorer...eh, who am I kidding, the kid was really good. 24 points on 60% shooting, 5 assists, and an efficiency rating of 23. He upped his minutes-per-game, going from his average of 32.4 to 35 in this game. Oh, and did I mention he's only a sophomore? Yikes.
2) Share The Wealth. (Yes.)
I realize I wanted Leroy to get the ball more, that was only because I felt he wasn't getting enough good looks. When IUPUI scores the way they did Saturday, they are tough to handle. The starters all contributed at least 9.8% (Ashworth) of the scoring. Thomas (11.1%), Siakam (14.8%), Nobles (25.9%), and Young (33.3%) were able to force SDST to stick to their assigned man because each player on the floor was dangerous. That is a very good sign of things to come.
3) Keep Rebounding Well. (Sort Of...)
There weren't a ton of misses to corral on the offensive glass, but a 40% offensive rebound rate is really fantastic, especially when you look at performances like Christian's (5 offensive rebounds in 25 minutes). Being out-rebounded by just 1 against the #3 rebounding team in the League isn't exactly bad.
4) 48% FG; 83% FT; 40% 3P. (Good enough?)
60% FG; 62% FT; 38% 3P. I'm waiting for a game that all three categories are there. I think when the Jags can finally do that, they might get their first real blow-out win of the year.
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Video Highlights
Wow. That schedule sets up nicely for IUPUI to build on the confidence of these past two wins. Then they get two games at the home of the Pacers. I love this conference.
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