From the play-by-play the assists by Xaivian were to: Malik, Byriel 3, Pierce 3, Malik, Seals 3, Peters 3, Pierce (7 in 1H), then Byriel 3, Byriel 3, Pierce (3 in 2H). So, Princeton got 26 points on his 10 assists.
interesting data, but not sure how it cuts.
Some assists, like the last pass to Pierce, lead
to easy layup buckets. Hitting an open player
for a 3 point shot is only credited if the shot goes in.
If the recipient of the pass gets fouled and makes two free throws,
there is no assist.
In the aggregate, 10 assists shows Lee was seeing the floor and
creating opportunities for teammates. Not sure the points yielded tells us much.
I was unable to watch the second half until later. Thoughts:
-Thanks for mentioning the postgame presser; very complimentary of Xavian.
-Davis has been “off” on his shooting for a little while now. I suspect, since he shoots mostly off the dribble, that the ball is not in his hands enough. I hope he adapts.
-Abdullahi looks more and more comfortable on the court, and is a good defender.
-We scored better in the paint than previously. Lee has been below average scorring in the paint. I suspect that Xavian has adapted to defenders collapsing on him and is looking to dish. And Caden et al. are following him to the rim looking to receive the dish.
-We did not hit ANY mid-range jumpers. Time to stop taking them! (Except maybe Davis when he finds his stroke.)
-Still no corner 3’s.
-Can PhilBy keep up this shooting? Likely no, but we can hope.
I loved the starting lineup for this game. Might have found something permanent.
Davis / Lee / Pierce / Abdullahi / Byriel with Peters playing starter’s minutes off the bench.
Pierce avoids early foul trouble with Abdullahi providing physical defense inside. But when it’s time to close the game, it’s good to have Peters on the floor to avoid freshman mistakes and hit pressure FTs.
I like that line-up too. An unsung hero last year was Zach Martini who was an undersized 5 but played very physical defense down low. When Pierce is forced into that role it seems to disrupt the team’s balance and also results in fewer RBs for Cade.
Through 10 games Tigers are shooting 39% 3FGs!
Caden Pierce, at a respectable 36%, is the only player with 10+ attempts who is shooting <40%.
- Davis 44%
- Byriel 42%
- Lee 41%
- Peters 40%
Martini is missed, and would be a big, big help to this team.
We’ll be playing against him in a couple weeks, which will seem strange.