SFA (8-2) vs. Houston Baptist (0-8)
WHEN: DEC 18 (WED) 6:30 P.M.
WHERE: William R. Johnson Coliseum (Nacogdoches, TX)
WATCH: ESPN3
If you take a glance at the Southland Conference standings today, you'll notice SFA at the top of the board. Eight wins and two losses through their first ten games is better than any other #SouthlandStrong team. Let's face it, it's been another disappointing non-conference slate for the SLC. Nicholls put a scare into Illinois before topping Pitt, McNeese played tough with Texas, and there were a couple other second half dreams, but all in all teams saw W's when getting to face off against our league. Then, of course, there was that Duke game...
That has the opportunity to change this week. Every team in the Southland now gets to try to put their name at the top of the board in conference play. Winless Houston Baptist faces off against Duke slayer SFA, and both of their by-lines say 0-0 in the SLC standings. Some committee in their infinite wisdom thought about how to make a weak conference weaker, and what they came up with was an expanded 20 game slate of conference play. (I could belabor the point on why this is not only terrible but very stupid, but I'll leave it for now). But, a team like HBU now has reason to believe that all the abuse they have taken playing the 6th toughest schedule so far this year will translate into enough wins to make the SLC tournament. Yay.
Houston Baptist is not terrible. Oh if you look at the stats, they are terrible. Or dreadful. Or gutter slime...or something else that means the worst. 101.1 points a game allowed - that's good enough for dead last of all 353 D1 teams. Yikes! 53.9% of opponent shots are going through the basket - another worst. Yet, on KenPom it says that there are 43 teams worse than this winless team, and I believe them. While every game has been a loss, they have played decently against good teams. Dayton, Tech, Michigan all beat them soundly, but not before HBU got some licks in. This team's big fat zero is about to roll over to a one soon, and they know it. They are hungry for it.
The Huskies are (I know its hard to believe) the FASTEST team in all D1. No need for defense - especially interior defense - offense is the name of the game right now. They shoot, and shoot fast. Jalon Gates (Sr. 6'0" G) and Ian Dubose (Jr. 6'4" G) are no strangers to the Jacks, and both of them will probably end up on all-SLC teams. They can run and run and run. As much as UL-Monroe tried to slow down the game Saturday, HBU is going to try to use their good shooting and quickness to build an early lead and never look back. Honestly, the Jacks are susceptible to that kind of play. We'll see who dictates tempo in Nacogdoches.
Wednesday night after the students leave, the campus is sleepy. Facing an 0-8 team when you've taken down the best team in the nation is almost yawn inducing. Remembering that coming into conference two years ago when you were giant killers and lost that first conference game and could never get back in the standings - terrifying! The Jacks better wake up. Paper may say that this is a good team, but history says that in the last three years of Keller's tenure, the Lumberjacks have lost multiple games at the beginning of conference and have never been able to catch up. Should we win by 25? Yes. Will we? Records say we will have to do work to change the past.
We control the bucket. On both ends. That's it, and we win. We are bigger and stronger and play a tougher defense. Fast paced at home should open up a lot of fast breaks and dunks. But, control will win this game. Control to not let an early deficit break us up mentally. Control to keep the ball in front of us to force more turnovers (still #1 in nation). Control to trust our passes and rely on our depth to tear the Huskies apart limb by limb. Everyone knows this is the time that work has to start. 20 games of work. Every one of them has to be a mission. It starts Wednesday.
Axe 'em!
WHEN: DEC 18 (WED) 6:30 P.M.
WHERE: William R. Johnson Coliseum (Nacogdoches, TX)
WATCH: ESPN3
If you take a glance at the Southland Conference standings today, you'll notice SFA at the top of the board. Eight wins and two losses through their first ten games is better than any other #SouthlandStrong team. Let's face it, it's been another disappointing non-conference slate for the SLC. Nicholls put a scare into Illinois before topping Pitt, McNeese played tough with Texas, and there were a couple other second half dreams, but all in all teams saw W's when getting to face off against our league. Then, of course, there was that Duke game...
That has the opportunity to change this week. Every team in the Southland now gets to try to put their name at the top of the board in conference play. Winless Houston Baptist faces off against Duke slayer SFA, and both of their by-lines say 0-0 in the SLC standings. Some committee in their infinite wisdom thought about how to make a weak conference weaker, and what they came up with was an expanded 20 game slate of conference play. (I could belabor the point on why this is not only terrible but very stupid, but I'll leave it for now). But, a team like HBU now has reason to believe that all the abuse they have taken playing the 6th toughest schedule so far this year will translate into enough wins to make the SLC tournament. Yay.
Houston Baptist is not terrible. Oh if you look at the stats, they are terrible. Or dreadful. Or gutter slime...or something else that means the worst. 101.1 points a game allowed - that's good enough for dead last of all 353 D1 teams. Yikes! 53.9% of opponent shots are going through the basket - another worst. Yet, on KenPom it says that there are 43 teams worse than this winless team, and I believe them. While every game has been a loss, they have played decently against good teams. Dayton, Tech, Michigan all beat them soundly, but not before HBU got some licks in. This team's big fat zero is about to roll over to a one soon, and they know it. They are hungry for it.
The Huskies are (I know its hard to believe) the FASTEST team in all D1. No need for defense - especially interior defense - offense is the name of the game right now. They shoot, and shoot fast. Jalon Gates (Sr. 6'0" G) and Ian Dubose (Jr. 6'4" G) are no strangers to the Jacks, and both of them will probably end up on all-SLC teams. They can run and run and run. As much as UL-Monroe tried to slow down the game Saturday, HBU is going to try to use their good shooting and quickness to build an early lead and never look back. Honestly, the Jacks are susceptible to that kind of play. We'll see who dictates tempo in Nacogdoches.
Wednesday night after the students leave, the campus is sleepy. Facing an 0-8 team when you've taken down the best team in the nation is almost yawn inducing. Remembering that coming into conference two years ago when you were giant killers and lost that first conference game and could never get back in the standings - terrifying! The Jacks better wake up. Paper may say that this is a good team, but history says that in the last three years of Keller's tenure, the Lumberjacks have lost multiple games at the beginning of conference and have never been able to catch up. Should we win by 25? Yes. Will we? Records say we will have to do work to change the past.
We control the bucket. On both ends. That's it, and we win. We are bigger and stronger and play a tougher defense. Fast paced at home should open up a lot of fast breaks and dunks. But, control will win this game. Control to not let an early deficit break us up mentally. Control to keep the ball in front of us to force more turnovers (still #1 in nation). Control to trust our passes and rely on our depth to tear the Huskies apart limb by limb. Everyone knows this is the time that work has to start. 20 games of work. Every one of them has to be a mission. It starts Wednesday.
Axe 'em!
Ryan
Kinnaird Guitars
Kinnaird Guitars
