Thursday, March 05, 2015

Final Look at Kent

A final look at the stats from last night's heartbreaker.

We have already noted that it was Kent's best 3FG shooting game and the best 3FG shooting against BG all season.  It wasn't the only superlative.  Kent scored 1.3 points per possession, by far the most allowed by BG and scored by Kent all season.  Kent had an effective FG% of 66% which is also the best against a BG team this year and their best this year.  Beyond the shooting, Kent also took really good care of the ball.  They didn't do much on the offensive boards and BG did a good job of keeping them off the FT line, though they shot much better than normal from the line, making 12 of 15 for 80%...their 4th best game of the year.

BG obviously also had a strong offensive game, at 1.29 points per possession.  (The game was played at 62 possessions, a pretty slow pace).  It was kind of a landmark in that respect.  It was BG's 3rd best offensive game of the year and BY FAR the best offensive performance that has not resulted in a victory.  Previous to this, they were undefeated over .97 points per possession.

BG shot pretty well....48% and 40%, combined with taking excellent care of the ball and having a strong game on the offensive boards.  Everything about BG's offense was good enough to win, except in this game Kent's shooting advantage meant that it wasn't enough to win.






Individually, Richaun Holmes had a career night on Senior Night.  He scored 29 points on 11 of 20 shooting, 3 of 5 on 3FGs, 9 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.  Jehvon Clarke had 12 points on 5 of 9 shooting.  Pep Joseph scored for the first time in quite a while, with 10 points on 4 of 7 shooting with 4 assists and no turnovers and Delvin Dickerson scored 10 on 5 of 9 shooting.

So, that's the story.  Just an incredible way to lose all around in such a big game.  It is now over.  BG has put themselves in a big hole.  With a big win Friday, they can still get a bye and even finish first or second.  It will be tough.  Buffalo is playing well and I'd expect a loud sell-out.  But, you never know.  BG has played better on the road.  Maybe they can put together a truly great win in Buffalo.  I will be watching eagerly and in admiration for what they have done this year, even if it has not been an unqualified success.

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