We knew that we were going to take a step back. There was plenty of evidence to confirm that last night. If we converted a few more of the makeable shots, maybe we're talking about a season-opening win. I saw a lot that I liked, guys. We're going to compete every night.
First things first, I loved the defensive intensity. We really got after it in the second half and made Columbia uncomfortable. Early on, though, they had too many easy buckets, and obviously shot it well overall. I hope that we can duplicate that effort every night, particularly on the road.
Poor shooting night for us – I'm hoping it's a one-off. 35, 26 and 57 just isn't going to cut it. I was surprised to see Iroegbu starting opposite Woodhouse and I'm hoping that's based on faith that he can shoot it a little. I have to think he's better than what we saw.
We had it at 65-all late. When we need a bucket, where's the ball going to go? It starts with Woodhouse, but who takes the shot? It looks like the offense is going to run through Yeboah and Sturdy. In the second half, there had to have been three or four straight possessions where they fed Sturdy on the block and let him go to work. We didn't see that at all last year. He set a career high in minutes and shot attempts, tied his best in points, and notched his first career double-double. He'll have to finish better – and he may with fewer trees (Columbia had a fair share) – but altogether a good night for him in my opinion.
Yeboah seems like a junkyard dog type – average athleticism, some ability inside, good shot, good motor. A few are ready to anoint him and it's a solid debut for sure. We'll see though.
We saw more aggression offensively pretty much across the board. Woodhouse looked for his shot more (still not enough), and the same with all the vets. I was glad to see Nyama turned loose. His energy, athleticism and perimeter shot are going to have to be there every night this year. I thought Kam played well – don't see how anyone could say he was awful.
Just 16 minutes from Saintel.
We won the rebounding battle. Love the work on the offensive glass. Yeboah and Sturdy with 10 offensive boards combined.
Stage was a little big for Almonacy but he'll develop.
That Campbell and the two walk-ons were the only ones not to see time says all you need to know about what Campbell's going to contribute this year. Hopefully next year at this time he's a contributor off the bench.
As for Boals and the coaches, I thought the ball moved well offensively and we played hard defensively. Solid debut. A few more makes and we're in the win column.
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