FWST: TCU needs to get back on track v Oklahoma St; what’s the latest on Kouat Noi? / Game Thread

[TopFrog]

TCU needs to get back on track vs. Oklahoma State; what’s the latest on Kouat Noi?

By Drew Davison

TCU missed Kouat Noi in what became an offensive struggle against Oklahoma on Saturday. And the Frogs may be without Noi once again when they take on Oklahoma State on Monday night.

Noi is still dealing with a left ankle injury, wearing a walking boot during Saturday’s game, and is expected to be a game-time decision Monday. But he made the trip to Sillwater, Oklahoma, and hasn’t been ruled out yet.

If Noi isn’t able to go, expect TCU (17-8, 5-7 Big 12) to start freshman sensation Kendric Davis for the second consecutive game. This is close to a must-win game for TCU as its now two games below .500 in conference play, and Oklahoma State (9-16, 2-10) is on a five-game losing streak.

Read more here: https://www.star-telegram.com/sport...niversity/article226418150.html#storylink=cpy

 

[CountryFrog]

If Noi can't play then this will be a tough game to win, I think. We're just way too thin and now have only a couple real 3 point threats in Bane and Davis. Unless one of those guys has a huge scoring night then we'll need to play lights out defense to win.

 

[Purp]

If Noi can't play then this will be a tough game to win, I think. We're just way too thin and now have only a couple real 3 point threats in Bane and Davis. Unless one of those guys has a huge scoring night then we'll need to play lights out defense to win.

We have JD and RJ spotted up on the perimeter also.

On a serious note, I'm perfectly fine with Alex shooting 3s also, but your point is well taken. Unless RJ gets hot like he did in Lawrence or JD has one of his high percentage shooting performances it will be easier for the Pokes to shut down our best scoring threats. I really think we need to run a lot of offense through Kevin on the block. He's got a nice touch down there and we should be better at getting the ball to him up high when he gets position. That might even help RJ with his shooting.

 

[CountryFrog]

We have JD and RJ spotted up on the perimeter also.

On a serious note, I'm perfectly fine with Alex shooting 3s also, but your point is well taken. Unless RJ gets hot like he did in Lawrence or JD has one of his high percentage shooting performances it will be easier for the Pokes to shut down our best scoring threats. I really think we need to run a lot of offense through Kevin on the block. He's got a nice touch down there and we should be better at getting the ball to him up high when he gets position. That might even help RJ with his shooting.

Agree that Robinson is a decent shooter from 3. He's good enough that you can't leave him wide open but not consistent enough that you have to be super concerned about him defensively. I think most teams are totally fine with him taking perimiter shots.

I don't know about Samuel, but at this point I suppose it's worth a try to get him more involved. He just seems extremely unpolished offensively right now. Unless he catches the ball inside of 5 feet then he doesn't seem to have much of a game. He's not a great passer and he's a very bad free throw shooter. I believe he has a tremendously bright future, but he's still a year or two away from being someone you can actually run your offense through, imo. But if the 3s aren't falling then it's probably worth a try at this point with the limited options.

The other thing with Samuel is that, aside from everything I said above about him, even if he does get it going then it's so much easier for defenses to double him with the limited shooting we have on the floor right now without Noi. So I'm not sure Ok State would allow him to score a lot if we did try to run our offense through him and it proved successful at all.

 

[Eight]

Agree that Robinson is a decent shooter from 3. He's good enough that you can't leave him wide open but not consistent enough that you have to be super concerned about him defensively. I think most teams are totally fine with him taking perimiter shots.

I don't know about Samuel, but at this point I suppose it's worth a try to get him more involved. He just seems extremely unpolished offensively right now. Unless he catches the ball inside of 5 feet then he doesn't seem to have much of a game. He's not a great passer and he's a very bad free throw shooter. I believe he has a tremendously bright future, but he's still a year or two away from being someone you can actually run your offense through, imo. But if the 3s aren't falling then it's probably worth a try at this point with the limited options.

The other thing with Samuel is that, aside from everything I said above about him, even if he does get it going then it's so much easier for defenses to double him with the limited shooting we have on the floor right now without Noi. So I'm not sure Ok State would allow him to score a lot if we did try to run our offense through him and it proved successful at all.

i would love for opposing defenses to choose to double down on samuel during a game.

that is only going to happen if he is getting more than 4 offensive touches a game and while i agree he has a limited offensive game right now the frogs could be getting more from him if they would simply work the ball into the post.

the neglect in the low post game is damn near criminal and it can be summed up that in conferece play rj has played roughly half the minutes of kevin and yet only taken 10 fewer shots.

frogs do need to find points and i hope they don't follow saturday's blueprint of hoping and praying from the 3 point line. bane, jd, and rj need to put the ball on the floor and drive to the basket. force people to guard them and then opens things up for kevin as well as the other players on the arc.

 

[CountryFrog]

i would love for opposing defenses to choose to double down on samuel during a game.

that is only going to happen if he is getting more than 4 offensive touches a game and while i agree he has a limited offensive game right now the frogs could be getting more from him if they would simply work the ball into the post.

the neglect in the low post game is damn near criminal and it can be summed up that in conferece play rj has played roughly half the minutes of kevin and yet only taken 10 fewer shots.

frogs do need to find points and i hope they don't follow saturday's blueprint of hoping and praying from the 3 point line. bane, jd, and rj need to put the ball on the floor and drive to the basket. force people to guard them and then opens things up for kevin as well as the other players on the arc.

I agree it would be great to see Samuel get doubled because it means he's getting the ball and scoring. I'm just not sure how sustainable that is because he doesn't seem to be a very good passer right now. He's been pretty indecisive (which isn't unusual for a freshman big man) the few times he has seen a double team.

Again, though, it's worth a try and certainly better than launching 30+ threes. I agree that RJ needs to drive more. Good things happen when he's aggressive toward the basket. He's a very good finisher. I'm not sure JD is any more efficient offensively when putting the ball on the floor than he is as a shooter. He just needs to focuson defense and rebounding and be a finisher when he gets the ball right at the basket. I'm totally fine with Bane taking 3s, especially with Noi out. You can't win without making some outside shots and I'd rather see him take the majority than anyone else that's available.

 

[Purp]

Agree that Robinson is a decent shooter from 3. He's good enough that you can't leave him wide open but not consistent enough that you have to be super concerned about him defensively. I think most teams are totally fine with him taking perimiter shots.

I don't know about Samuel, but at this point I suppose it's worth a try to get him more involved. He just seems extremely unpolished offensively right now. Unless he catches the ball inside of 5 feet then he doesn't seem to have much of a game. He's not a great passer and he's a very bad free throw shooter. I believe he has a tremendously bright future, but he's still a year or two away from being someone you can actually run your offense through, imo. But if the 3s aren't falling then it's probably worth a try at this point with the limited options.

The other thing with Samuel is that, aside from everything I said above about him, even if he does get it going then it's so much easier for defenses to double him with the limited shooting we have on the floor right now without Noi. So I'm not sure Ok State would allow him to score a lot if we did try to run our offense through him and it proved successful at all.

That's where I think his value would become creating space for other shooters. I think he has the ability to cause the a lot of trouble down low and force help. You made the point that he's not a polished passer, but I do think he can find an open outlet when the double team comes and then the shooters can swing the ball if the first shot isn't open. I think that's where you could find RJ and JD getting some shots that are less contested. I think we're too easy to defend right now if we don't try something like this. You basically make sure to keep KD and Alex out of the paint and don't let Bane get an open shot. Two guys on the floor are a low priority for you defensively at all times, which becomes an advantage for them. Unless you get a ton of points in transition that's a recipe for a bad loss. If we avoid the bad loss this year I think we get into the dance. OSU and WVU are the only potential bad losses left on the schedule.

 

[Eight]

I agree it would be great to see Samuel get doubled because it means he's getting the ball and scoring. I'm just not sure how sustainable that is because he doesn't seem to be a very good passer right now. He's been pretty indecisive (which isn't unusual for a freshman big man) the few times he has seen a double team.

Again, though, it's worth a try and certainly better than launching 30+ threes. I agree that RJ needs to drive more. Good things happen when he's aggressive toward the basket. He's a very good finisher. I'm not sure JD is any more efficient offensively when putting the ball on the floor than he is as a shooter. He just needs to focuson defense and rebounding and be a finisher when he gets the ball right at the basket. I'm totally fine with Bane taking 3s, especially with Noi out. You can't win without making some outside shots and I'd rather see him take the majority than anyone else that's available.

jd is a guy who does some good things when he does drive the ball. heck, he actually looks for kevin at times which i can't say the same for other players once they drop their head at the free throw line.

highly unlikely we see a new offense roll out tonight with different sets, staggered screens, etc....but we can see some new variations caused be other players driving the basketball.

we don't do a good job of forcing defenses of guarding us and the wing players have to get more involved attacking the basket.

 

[CountryFrog]

That's where I think his value would become creating space for other shooters. I think he has the ability to cause the a lot of trouble down low and force help. You made the point that he's not a polished passer, but I do think he can find an open outlet when the double team comes and then the shooters can swing the ball if the first shot isn't open. I think that's where you could find RJ and JD getting some shots that are less contested. I think we're too easy to defend right now if we don't try something like this. You basically make sure to keep KD and Alex out of the paint and don't let Bane get an open shot. Two guys on the floor are a low priority for you defensively at all times, which becomes an advantage for them. Unless you get a ton of points in transition that's a recipe for a bad loss. If we avoid the bad loss this year I think we get into the dance. OSU and WVU are the only potential bad losses left on the schedule.

Definitely agree with all this IF Kevin can be an effective decision maker and passer. I just haven't seen that from him yet and have a feeling that's why he hasn't been involved as much as many think he should be. He also hasn't had there opportunity much in a game so I can't say that I know he wouldn't be effective as a passer, either.

Again, it's worth a try at this point and is better than the 3 point barrage we saw Saturday from mostly low percentage shooters. Fact is we're incredibly limited offensively right now unless we get huge production from Davis and/or Bane.

 

[CountryFrog]

jd is a guy who does some good things when he does drive the ball. heck, he actually looks for kevin at times which i can't say the same for other players once they drop their head at the free throw line.

highly unlikely we see a new offense roll out tonight with different sets, staggered screens, etc....but we can see some new variations caused be other players driving the basketball.

we don't do a good job of forcing defenses of guarding us and the wing players have to get more involved attacking the basket.

I definitely agree with those last two paragraphs. I don't know for sure what the answers are but there's no doubt that we're not doing a good enough job of forcing teams to guard everyone.

It's almost like we came into the season with Fisher/Bane/Noi with the plan of being a spread out drive and kick offense kind of like what the Rockets do. Then when we lost Fisher we didn't have a Plan B to go to and now that Noi is out also we're just totally lost. That's just compete reckless speculation on my part though.

 

[Eight]

Definitely agree with all this IF Kevin can be an effective decision maker and passer. I just haven't seen that from him yet and have a feeling that's why he hasn't been involved as much as many think he should be. He also hasn't had there opportunity much in a game so I can't say that I know he wouldn't be effective as a passer, either.

Again, it's worth a try at this point and is better than the 3 point barrage we saw Saturday from mostly low percentage shooters. Fact is we're incredibly limited offensively right now unless we get huge production from Davis and/or Bane.

i have no problem with tcu feeding kevin and he unleash a barrage of 5 foot jump hooks and nothing else until the cowboys cheat back on him.

no different than running a dive play again and again for 3-4 yards until the defense adjusts to it.

davis and robinson would be so much more effective off the drive if tcu could find a way to get them an extra half a step. kevin trying to set a pick 25 feet from the basket isn't doing it, everyone knows what the frogs are trying to do offensively so attack the interior of the defense to pull them back off the perimeter.

 

[King of Fun]

OSU sucks. If we can’t beat them we have serious problems.

At this point I think we’re in the tourney, but feels like we’re primed for another first round bounce. We have trouble closing.

 

[satis1103]

The good news is that Okie Lite is shorthanded too. Let's get em.

 

[Eight]

The good news is that Okie Lite is shorthanded too. Let's get em.

might be interesting to watch as 3-on-3 half court

 

[CountryFrog]

OSU sucks. If we can’t beat them we have serious problems.

At this point I think we’re in the tourney, but feels like we’re primed for another first round bounce. We have trouble closing.

We do have serious problems. Half our team is gone. That's a serious problem. That doesn't mean we can't win but it sure makes it a lot harder.

 

[Pharm Frog]

We do have serious problems. Half our team is gone. That's a serious problem. That doesn't mean we can't win but it sure makes it a lot harder.

You mentioned serious problems...as in more than one. You mention that the loss of half the team is a problem...a serious problem. What’s the other problem or problems?

 

[Rose Bowl]

We need to dribble drive with the guards and maybe JD to try to get as many easy buckets as we can. We need to drive and dish to with Bane staying connected to the driver to get shots when the drive is stopped. The problem with Samuel is he can’t make a 15 footer and that means the lane gets clogged. Get him out of the lane and put pressure on the defense by driving and then rebound like crazy. This is the time that we need RJ to give us more points as Barlow won’t be giving us much. Broken record but Bane has to be our best player tonight.

 

[YA]

Noi isn’t playing tonight

 

[PurplFrawg]

Is this the game thread?

 

[CountryFrog]

You mentioned serious problems...as in more than one. You mention that the loss of half the team is a problem...a serious problem. What’s the other problem or problems?

I would say that's the overriding problem which has resulted in other problems. Not enough 3 point shooting, not enough depth (which leads to its own set of problems), not enough skilled size.

And then of course there is whatever has led to all the personnel losses. I won't even try to guess at that but I'm sure there are no shortage of theories.