Texas vs ND Halftime report

I'm pretty optimistic about this team. They have a huge upside.

Let's not forget that the amazing Damion James is adjusting to a new position so there are going to be growing pains while he goes through the transition process. Hang in there Damion, you will be blowing away people very soon (maybe tomorrow afternoon). BTW, he had 12 rebounds tonight.

Mason's performance was very encouraging tonight. He showed again what a clutch player he is. Maybe he can be the answer at PG. That would be huge.

Ward and Balbay are both going to be significant contributors before this season is over.

Per minute, Dex is looking great (except for the fouling thing). He is definitely more athletic than last year and just needs to calm down and stop fouling so much.

Gary is a load. He shot 5 for 11 and had 8 rebounds in 26 minutes. That ain't bad.
 
Some thoughts...Kudo's to ND...they are pretty darn good.

1) IMO, ND's 3 point shooting was really the difference in the game esp. early on. They made 11 for 24 and some of those were guarded by Texas pretty well. That'll usually get most teams a 10+ point win.

2) ND's big men also did a great job with crafty screens and excellent body position on the inside. Our big guys were confused on defense several times in the 2nd half.

3) We did a much better job of getting the ball inside this game. Problem though was that our big men didn't convert. All of them missed several semi-makeable inside shots. We did get away from the inside game towards the last 8 minutes, but hell they weren't making many anyway.

4) AJ was 8 for 27. Yes...he took 27 shots. That is way too damn many. I don't mind the 3 pointers, but his shot selection needs some refinement.

5) Damion James...??????????????????? I just don't know what to think about him. I certainly hope he doesn't think he's as good as Kevin Durant because he's not even close. I seriously question Damion's basketball IQ and decision making because it's been pretty bad the past couple of games. He plays his best when he's fighting for rebounds, taking the occasion wide open jump shot, and scoring in transition. Past that...I just don't know. He's gotta become more consistant.

6) Justin Mason played a great game. Gary Johnson did some nice things but was lost on defense at times.

7) Unless Balbay is going to become a semi-scoring threat, then I'm not convinced he's the answer at PG. He's got a little time to develop though. I know he can't shoot worth a lick, but he's gotta be able to dribble drive foul/dish eventually.

8) FT's we were 8-14. That really sucks. ND was 10-21 though...so call it even.

Overall I'm not sure what to think about this Texas team yet. Offensively, we were better today, but we look tight on offense, and the offensive chemistry certainly isn't there yet. Having no real true PG threat on the team is a weakness, but we will have to make due with Abrams, Mason, and Balbay. Perhaps it will sort itself out later in the season.
 
I definitely like the idea of Mason starting at the point. He showed that he can create off the dribble, and dished out 7 assists tonight in the process.

Balbay played about 5 minutes tonight...that's not enough to get any kind of feel for the game. I still think he needs to come off the bench before Ward. By the time Ward settles down, he's already turned the ball over once or twice, fouled somebody, forced a shot, and missed an assignment. Ok, I may be exaggerating, but he is an offensive liability, which is the last thing we need right now.

Same is true for Chapman. Why he comes off the bench before Wangmene I have no idea.

And just to add...we were -15 with Ward on the floor tonight.
 
This is PRE-season games to see what we need to work on ,a work in progress if you will.
Positives that I noticed
1. Points in the paint UT 36 / ND 24, when was the last time we scored that many points in the paint.
Did we do a good job in the paint? We missed at least 6-10 shots all with in 4-5 feet of the basket by GJ, Dex,Chapman ets. We did feed the paint but not well or often enough, hope that gets better in the coming weeks.

2. Conner took 5 shots all game long, that can not continue. AC should have 10-12 shots per game to open up the passing lanes for our bigs. Conner should drive at least 2-3 times a game to show it to the defense. What has happened to his baby hook?

3. Mason is getting there, the DRIVE and dunk were awsome , Mason had 7 asst. and one TO. JMason is growing into the PG slot .

4. The bench scored 19 points . This is important in the overall scheme of things to have. Wangmene is earning minutes everytime he comes in, Chapman has a ton of upside and we will see this more as the season gets going.

5. Ward is a freshmen getting to know the college game more, this holds true for Dog also. Dog sat all year and is rusty and playing timid . He can dribble drive and dish but he needs to play 8-10 minutes to do so. Check him out before conference starts. Ward is going to be a stopper on defense and will handle the PG well when he gets used to the game.

6. Look at the starting five FGA.
James 4 of 10 and a poor selection of shots. Did he get to the rim ???
Mason 7 of 12 , I'll take that every game to go along with 7 assts.
GJohnson 5 of 11, and he missed at least 3-4 shots within 4-5 feet of the hoop but he was aggresive on offense and came down with 8 rebs.
AC 2 0f 5, needs 5-7 more shots per game and be overall aggresive .
AJ is AJ he brings alot to the table but 27 shots are a lot but not when everyone else is waiting for someone to shoot.
Dex 2 of 4 in 5 minutes with 4 fouls, I know I know but he is going to stay in longer when he sees the light a little bit.

We played crappy as hell and lost by 1?
The positives are there if we want to take a real clear look at what the team did last night. Much to early but it looks to me that we will be all right as the season goes along.

Ward ,Balbay will continue to grow, not as fast as we all want but will be getting 10 + minutes before this is all said and over with
Chapman will surprise a lot of non believers. Wangmene will continue to to get better everytime he gets minutes. Barnes will have a hard time finding minutes for all the guys, our 9-10- 11 guys are going to have to fight for PT as they all get better during the course of the season. This is going to be a very very good/excellent team in time.
 
I missed the game due to family in town, so thanks to SL, SMH & all the others for the info and feedback.

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Way to go Horns! If the game was in Austin we would have won by ten points. On a neutral court by 5. Great job! Keep fighting!
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another very good post from sky monkey horn. The positive approach is refreshing to read. As excited as I am about this team --- and I am excited to watch them develop over the course of the season --- I have a tendency to dwell on what I'm not liking rather than focus on what I'm enjoying. Thanks for the refresher.
 
I watched the game late last night and my comments are on par with some of what has already been posted. Nonetheless, here are my thoughts from last night.

1) James played awful and has been playing poorly in each game. I am mainly looking at his decision making. In each game, he has made some bonehead plays resulting in unnecessary turnovers. I feel like he is trying too hard to show he has a perimeter game so scouts will know he worked on their advice. Stick to what you know best if you want this team to play on all cylinders and expand your skill set slowly through out the season. Focusing on individual goals (whether that's the case or not I don't know) at the expense of the team won't help things with the scouts.

2) Same thing with AJ, i.e. doing too much. I would still rather see him playing off the ball and let Mason/DB run the point. Watching him penetrate and then pick up his dribble at either block and looking for help is so frustrating. Stop doing that! Keep your dribble alive and clear through.

3) Foul shooting. This facet of our team is hurting and everyone knows it and this year isn't the first year foul shooting has been a problem. Granted ND shot terribly as well, but we have to do better from the line.

4) Why did Balbay get so few minutes? Barnes puzzled me here. He isn't going to give you a lot of scoring, but he can at least manage the team and keep up the defensive intensity.

All in all, I am excited about our team. Like SLX said, I tend to focus more on the things I don't like than what I do like. That's just the pessimist in me, I guess.
 
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