PDA

View Full Version : Perimeter defense..........



Salt City Sooner
3/16/2008, 08:40 PM
is going to be HUGE in this game. I was just looking at SJU's stats, & they've got 4 guys who can hit the trey. In an interesting role reversal, their frontcourt guys are actually the leaders in this category:

Calathes at 6'10" shoots 40.3% (73 out of 181)
Ferguson at 6'8" shoots 43.8% (56 out of 128)

The guards:

Carr (6'4") is 30 out of 87 for a 34.5% clip
Govens (6'1") is at 37.3% (66-177)

The 5th starter (Nivins, who's 6'9") hasn't taken a 3 all year.

Our bigs HAVE to play smart D, because in addition to foul trouble putting us in a bind on a personal level, their 3 froncourt guys are also their best free throw shooters (Ferguson hits 83%, Calathes 82%, & Nivins 74%).

Big Red Ron
3/16/2008, 08:45 PM
Looks like a big team, I wonder how deep the bench is?

SleestakSooner
3/16/2008, 10:16 PM
From their ESPN profile page.


No team personifies the schizophrenic Atlantic 10 better than the Hawks. Their tourney status shifted by the hour as they went from a lock after a pulverizing win against Villanova to a disaster with three ugly home losses down the stretch to a bubble team with a win against Xavier. St. Joe's got its act together really in the nick of time.

Seniors Pat Calathes (http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=22355) and Rob Ferguson (http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=15429) are tricky to guard. Both big and strong, they can do some damage in the post and with mid-range jumpers, but are lethal from the arc. Calathes shoots 40 percent from the perimeter, Ferguson 44. Ahmad Nivins (http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=26901) is the low-post force.

If there is a disclaimer to St. Joe's, it is its defense. The Hawks can flat-out score, but can fall in love with their offense a little too much. They aren't necessarily good enough to win every footrace, and when their shooting abandons them, they really struggle. The big games that the Hawks won -- against Villanova and Xavier -- they played smart defense. St. Joe's would be wise to load up those tapes as it prepare for the tourney.

-- Dana O'Neil