Kingston

[TopGun Pilot]

I scouted the CAK vs. Kingston game. Just for info-Kingston shot the ball 50 something times in the paint..made 12. 0 of 11 from three point range. Not just the three ball thats killing them, so whats the difference? Also, I've seen these same girls make the three in the past. They just seem frustrated right now because its not going in. As for the press, its designed to make the other team make its own mistakes if ran correctly. The problem was Kingstons girls were not rotating correctly. Not the fault of the coaches. They were yelling all night the correct things to do on the press, the girls were just not responding. I assume this team presses the entire game to try to get "easy shots" since they are small, but athletic, and don't shoot the ball well. Almost 70 opportunities to score Tues. night. If they dont press they would be lucky to get 40 opportunities. Girls, just keep trying to do what your coaches (the ones on the bench, not in the stands) ask of you. The seasons young. You will be fine come Feb.

[JacketTurtle2]

I scouted the CAK vs. Kingston game. Just for info-Kingston shot the ball 50 something times in the paint..made 12. 0 of 11 from three point range. Not just the three ball thats killing them, so whats the difference? Also, I've seen these same girls make the three in the past. They just seem frustrated right now because its not going in. As for the press, its designed to make the other team make its own mistakes if ran correctly. The problem was Kingstons girls were not rotating correctly. Not the fault of the coaches. They were yelling all night the correct things to do on the press, the girls were just not responding. I assume this team presses the entire game to try to get "easy shots" since they are small, but athletic, and don't shoot the ball well. Almost 70 opportunities to score Tues. night. If they dont press they would be lucky to get 40 opportunities. Girls, just keep trying to do what your coaches (the ones on the bench, not in the stands) ask of you. The seasons young. You will be fine come Feb.

Kingston is a young team....but you have people that attept to shoot three's that hit them about 2times out of 50. And as for the almost 70 opportunities to score its kinda hard to shoot and make the "easy shots" when you have people that keep shooting three's and constantly missing them. And its hard to rebound and box out if every one doesnt do it. I think that its okay to press when ever its working, or after you score, but to do it ALL the time when it isnt paying off just wears out your players faster. And the end of the game....wow...that was ignorant. WHY DO YOU ROLL THE BALL IN WHEN THERE IS A PERSON FROM THE OTHER TEAM STANDING RIGHT THERE??!!! But i dont think that was the coaches call...least i hope it wasnt.

[bballnuts]

TopGun asks whats the difference in their shooting outside the 3 point arc and in the paint, the biggest difference is that they at least scored when shooting inside the 3 point arc. I never said they were great shooting inside the paint, I was simply making a point their best chances for scoring were inside the 3 point arc. I agree that the girls that normally shoot the 3 have been able to make a few in the past, however, until they get back on track or get a big league during a game and can better afford to miss them, they should concentrate on making shots closer to the basket. As for pressing, I'll bet kingston didnt get 3 "easy" baskets during the CAK game when they pressed, yet Cak scored numerous times because they were able to easily break our press. With that being the case, why continue to do it for the entire game? If the girls arent rotating where they need to, evidently they need more practice before implementing it during a game. Or they can try it when they have a lead just to see if they can do it at game time. As for your comment about them being alright after Christmas, Whats the difference between now and Christmas? These girls have practiced during the summer, attended 2 camps, and played together in the HOF and Food City Tournaments. As long as people keep believing they will be ok, you'll continue to see the same thing we've all seen over the past 3 or 4 years, a team that will never reach their full potential.

Edited December 8, 2005 by bballnuts

[jacketsfan13]

You can ask anyone who has implemented this press and for it to be completely effective it takes a couple of years. I'm not saying it won't work this year, but the concepts are so much different from a regular press- its hard for the girls to do, especially since some are freshman. As for them being ok after Christmas- I think they will be. Camp does not give you the experience you get during the regular season. Its totally different. The inside players are also missing alot of shots as well as the threes that are being missed.

[bballnuts]

You keep dreaming about them being a much better team after Christmas, I wont say a thing at the end of the season when you're proven wrong!

 

As for your comment about the inside players missing a lot of shots too, I never said they didnt. If you know how to figure out percentages, calculate what their shooting percentages are from beyond the 3 point arc and inside the 3 point arc. Here they are, before the CAK game they were shooting just above 7% from the 3 point arc and almost 45% from inside it. That means they are lucky to hit 1 out of every 10 3 point shots they take, whereas, when they shoot inside the 3 point arc, they hit between 4 and 5 shots out of every 10 they take. It doesnt take a mathmatical genius to figure out where they should be trying to score from.

[jacketsfan13]

I can do precentages and I understand them just fine- however look at how difficult it was for the posts to score at L.C. Any coach with any sense is going to pack it in on Smith and Gentry. If (and its a big IF) the girls can start hitting some outside shot- not necessarily threes- it will take some pressure off the posts. I am not saying they will magically start winning after Christmas, I just think they need a little more time to gel together. I thought they would do better than they have so far also. I never dreamed they would lose to CAK, however they are young and in my opinion they are about a year away from being really good. I just think its a bit early to start coach bashing- its only DEC. you know.

[bballnuts]

Finally, I agree with everything you wrote except your last sentence. I'm not necessarily "Coach Bashing", I'm simply trying to make a point. Lets use the group of girls that consisted of Rachel Sitzler, Brittney Cottrell, Lindsey Cole and that bunch. I know Rachel received a basketball scholarship, however, if you look at what she did as a Freshman and what she did as a Senior, there wasnt that much difference. What that is, is an indication of these players didnt show a lot of improvement in their 4 years of high school basketball. Brittney Cottrell probably had as much potential as any girl that has come through that school in the past 6 or 8 years and she never developed into a better than average b-ball player. If you feel different, give some examples of girls you think have developed from their Freshman to Senior year.

 

From today on, I'll hold my opinion until after this season, say by district tournament, we should see some improvement, would you agree??

[JC20]

Finally, I agree with everything you wrote except your last sentence. I'm not necessarily "Coach Bashing", I'm simply trying to make a point. Lets use the group of girls that consisted of Rachel Sitzler, Brittney Cottrell, Lindsey Cole and that bunch. I know Rachel received a basketball scholarship, however, if you look at what she did as a Freshman and what she did as a Senior, there wasnt that much difference. What that is, is an indication of these players didnt show a lot of improvement in their 4 years of high school basketball. Brittney Cottrell probably had as much potential as any girl that has come through that school in the past 6 or 8 years and she never developed into a better than average b-ball player. If you feel different, give some examples of girls you think have developed from their Freshman to Senior year.

 

From today on, I'll hold my opinion until after this season, say by district tournament, we should see some improvement, would you agree??

I TOTALLY AGREE WITH BBALLNUTS!!!! LIKE IT OR NOT IT'S THE TRUTH

[bballnuts]

The Lady Jackets play Greenback tonight. They should match up pretty good with them. Greenback is an agressive team with some good talent. If the Lady Jackets can go there and come home with a win, it could really give them a boost of confidence. Good luck girls!!

[TopGun Pilot]

No dog in this fight, but I would like to make one more defense for the Kingston (or anyone else who utilizes it) press. By my stats, CAK did score 10pts on the Kingston press. However, the press also resulted in 11 CAK turnovers (from the press only) and 9pts for Kingston. As bad as the press was, it is still effective for them. When the girls learn their assignments, look for their press to cause teams some major troubles. As far as "mastering" it in practice, I would think this would be difficult against inferior talent (JV). Afterall, the season is basically practice anyway to prepare you for the post season. You dont have to be first in the regular season to do well in the post season (i.e. Livingston Academy Football, 2005 3A State Champs, 4th place in the region). My advice to them-stick to your guns and do what you feel will better serve you in the long run.

[TopGun Pilot]

No dog in this fight, but I would like to make one more defense for the Kingston (or anyone else who utilizes it) press. By my stats, CAK did score 10pts on the Kingston press. However, the press also resulted in 11 CAK turnovers (from the press only) and 9pts for Kingston. As bad as the press was, it is still effective for them. When the girls learn their assignments, look for their press to cause teams some major troubles. As far as "mastering" it in practice, I would think this would be difficult against inferior talent (JV). Afterall, the season is basically practice anyway to prepare you for the post season. You dont have to be first in the regular season to do well in the post season (i.e. Livingston Academy Football, 2005 3A State Champs, 4th place in the region). My advice to them-stick to your guns and do what you feel will better serve you in the long run.

[blackhawkdown]

Coach Plemons is a good young coach. As with any coach, he'll get better each year at figuring out what works and what doesn't. You have to be at practice each day to know what is going on and to truly judge him. Don't judge the program by what scholarships players get. Some of player development is up to the individual player. And again, we don't know how much work they put in on their own. All the outsider can judge on is the won-loss record. But there is more to a total program than that. Are the girls playing hard? Staying out of trouble? Making the grades? People want instant winners, but there is more to the high school program than that.