Fast Starts

[orangeandbrown]

I'm wondering about a sense of deja vu I am having this season about our fast start in MAC play, and then cooling off.

In fact, its something that has happened each year in the post-McCleod/Pardon/Matela era.

2002 We started 5-1, and then went 3-9 down the stretch.
2003 We started 4-2, and then went 4-8 down the stretch.
2004 We started 4-0, and have been 2-4 since then.

Is there something about our team that lets us start fast, but causes us to burn out? Or is it just chance that we have some easier games earlier? Or, do we get less healthy and have less depth as time goes along? (Certainly possible).

Anyway, curious if anyone has any thoughts.

[Falconboy]

I think its a simple case of us starting to play the really good , and athletic teams in the Mac and losing an athletic defensive guy in Fitch to go on top of that. There might be more to it , but thats I what I mainly think it is.

[BleedOrange]

Over the past couple of years we've been plagued by:

1) an overall lack of team speed, especially on the front line
2) reluctance by DD to use whatever depth that we have
3) reluctance by DD to occasionally mix in a zone defense

Over the season, our players get tired and our rotation becomes tighter, to the point where simply run out of gas. Throw in extra-hard offseason and all of the extra early mornings, and you have a bunch of guys that a running on fumes by February.

The "depth" issue really bothers me. Currently, Vandermeer and Lefeld, both very capable of contributing right now, are rotting on the bench. We could use them this year and we will depend on them next year. Starting next year, they will be freshman-equivalents. When Austin Montgomery first arrived at BG, he looked like he would be a good player after some time in the weight room. Late in sophomore year, he looks greener and and less confident then when he first arrived.

[Dayons_Den]

[quote="BleedOrange"]Over the past couple of years we've been plagued by:[quote]

Our inability to run a motion offense
and
or
a poorly designed half court motion offense




(in my opinion)