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KenStuckInJersey OP
Nov 17, 2025 at 09:21 AM ET
Offensive doubts
To me the issue was Charlotte double teaming Neo as soon as he crossed midcourt, getting it out of his hands. That left 4 on 3, but two of Charlotte’s three were big shot blockers. We were afraid to drive to the hoop and reluctant to shoot the midrange. The 3s went in or they didn’t. Against the zone the Tech guy in the middle (no matter who) rarely even looked to threaten the midrange jumper. I’m thinking these things are correctable..

31 Replies

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GoldCoast
8mo
And we still scored 84, pretty crazy.
HtownHokie HtownHokie
8mo
if we had Mutts + Neo handing out assists & scoring where would we be now?
hokiepro hokiepro
8mo
I’d put Neo at high post if they decide to stay zone
Hammond or Bedford point to feed Neo. If he received it in high post he’d destroy that zone
U
uber hokie
8mo
Agree
KiloZulu KiloZulu
8mo
Yes, thought the same thing when Charlotte went to zone. Passer & shooter.
V
VT ChemE 1986
8mo
Seems like a no brainer
V
Vippie1
8mo
I kind of thought that would be the best way to defense us
Get the ball out of Neo's hands near half court- and as you point out, given Charlotte's interior size , made a lot of sense. I think the remedy is quickly out of Neo's hand to a wing, then quickly back to Neo after the double team peels off somewhere in the vicinity of the top of the key. Neo probably needs to work a tad harder with purposeful v cuts to make him available for a quick return pass.
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hokiehill1117
8mo
whatever we were doing yesterday was actually working and resulting in open
looks are the ability to drive the lane. We just 1) missed shots or 2) ran into a 7-footer under the basket. Other teams may take a similar approach but if we make open shots or they don't have a stopper under the hoop, they will be "picking their poison," which is what our broad depth has created.
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SC_Hokie
8mo
It’s said pretty much everyday on here but if offense is the problem…
I will never be worried! Hard to find someone who is 7’2 to replicate that defense! I can imagine teams might follow a similar game plan against us, but that zone was very loose, and we got a butt ton of open looks.
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HokieEngineer
8mo
I was much more worried about our inability to keep them off the offensive
boards than I was about our zone offense. I remember two great looks that Bedford and Schutt missed. After one, Young's reaction seemed to be a "I can't believe we missed that shot." We missed a lot of shot we normally make, got beaten up on the glass, and still won because we didn't turn the ball over and made some free throws. I'll take it.
Pylons Pylons
8mo
A mature butt ton!!!
UTPr0sim UTPr0sim
8mo
That's why you play these "prep" games to get a feel for what you need to
work on. CMY is an O Guru. He knows how to modify to beat a D. The more different D's this team sees before ACC play the better for CMY to adjust.
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jms41
8mo
I’m not sure if we were afraid enough of driving to the hoop
Most attempts were complete failures. But I am probably remembering more of those than actually occurred.
RhinoVT RhinoVT
8mo
Big difference between Dorn and Mutts in the middle of a zone. They'll get
it right b/c that is an easy fix and we used to light up the SYR zone. ** Edited by RhinoVT at 11/17/2025, 11:27:18 AM
hoosnowahokie hoosnowahokie
8mo
Midrange Jumpers don't exist in basketball anymore.
NBA Heat map of where shots are taken. ** Edited by hoosnowahokie at 11/17/2025, 10:45:07 AM
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vt88hokie
8mo
They doubled Neo on the pick and roll every time. It was always a big, so
the next pass was to that big. Maybe we will set up the pick and roll with one of the wings so the next pass would go to a ballhandler if they double Neo. What say you GChokie?
Bmackattack Bmackattack
8mo
Pick with Bedford or Schutt and those double are deadly!
C
chagerma
8mo
Definitely coachable. That zone looked very weak and extended. A lot of...
room for a pass to the FT line. Like almost every zone you want a good passing big at the FT line. We had Lawal and Dorn that I noticed and Dorn took a 15footer on one possession. If you've seen his FTs to date, you would probably say that's not his shot. That needs to be Neo or even Hansberry. We did have Bedford bring it up a time or two so that's certainly a play. Coach even said at halftime that we're not shooting it as well as we capable. Aside from Schutt and Bedford, it was an off night shooting the ball. We'll have those. Luckily we go to the line as much as we did in the 2nd half. Announcers noticed that was difference then and the 3pt shooting of Bedford was difference in first half.
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jfhokie
8mo
Charlotte also missed some 3s at the right time
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SC_Hokie
8mo
So far on the season the only players shooting well are Schutt and Bedford
And by well, they are hitting over 50% of their threes. Nothing to worry about players go up and down sometimes
U
uber hokie
8mo
I’m going to out on a limb and say they won’t finish at 50%. 40% is
fantastic. 35 + is good.
Pylons Pylons
8mo
Dear lord,
let us never have anyone shoot less than 50% from 3!!! The horror!!!
A
ancient alien 2018
8mo
LOL He's prone to hyperbole on occasion!!
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HokieEngineer
8mo
That cut line was a bit strange. However, if he had made it at 33% (the D1
average), we'd only have three players shooting above it. (Avdalas would also make the cut.) I expected Hammond to shot it better based on last year's results and a summer of work. It's still early, so I'm looking for him to pick it up.
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chagerma
8mo
Agree. You have to assume these guys are shooting it at over a 55-60% clip
in PRACTICE to get the green light from coach during games. It's hard to tell Hansberry or Lawal, who have both shown the ability to make open 3s, to stop shooting it when they're left all alone out there. Maybe not shoot it when there are 15 sec left on the shot clock but if they've had a couple ball reversals and a paint touch, why not? Now if they keep shooting it at 28% and 17% then we might need to dial it back a bit.
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uber hokie
8mo
yes Johnson was at high post and did not even turn in and look at the
basket, instead he immediately passed to the wing for a 3 , passing up a wide open 15 footer for a contested 3. He never turned looked at basket and made them respect him. As just an average HS player i loved playing high post against a zone. It’s the sweet spot to allways get an open “free throw “ ( 15” shot ) or drive and make big man commit and then dish
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BleedinOandM
8mo
Agree....very good post.
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goodbadugly
8mo
Why don't we put Neo in the middle and have Hammond / Pasha bring it up?
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Vippie1
8mo
well that is a remedy if a Hammond can get to the spot efficiently and
just do a simple dribble handoff to Neo.
hokiepro hokiepro
8mo
Talking zone; high post feed to Neo IMO would’ve been deadly. He either
Feasts on 12-15 footers or drives and dishes
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KenStuckInJersey OP
8mo
It remains to be proven that we can finish at the rim against skilled bigs