For the primary time in a very long time, the Bulldogs might be underdogs tonight because the face-off in opposition to the College of Texas at Austin Longhorns in Portland for this Candy 16 sport that might be televised on ESPN at 10pm EST.
The Longhorns are a supremely gifted and massive workforce that completed the season ranked #4 within the ultimate AP Ballot with a 30-4 document in addition to claiming the the Huge 12 Convention Event Championship. Let’s check out this Texas workforce.
On the season, the Longhorns common 80.8 factors (eleventh nationally) and, not like Utah, will look to do their major injury contained in the arc as they common the 51.5 such makes an attempt per sport (4th nationally) and full 26.8 of these pictures (prime within the nation), which ends up in a two level shot proportion of 52%. Whereas they’re no slouches capturing from deep (36.5%), they solely take a median of 10.8 such pictures per sport.
Texas boasts an extremely sturdy and deep entrance courtroom as three of their prime scorers are listed as forwards and their three major scorer choices from the bench are additionally listed as forwards. Their chief comes within the type of 6’4” ahead Madison Brooks who set information this 12 months by turning into the primary freshman to win Huge 12 Participant of the 12 months whereas additionally being named an AP All American and to the Naismith Trophy Nationwide Participant of the 12 months Watch Record. She averages a powerful 16.8 factors per sport, 4.9 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 1.5 steals. Her subject aim proportion is probably not horrible spectacular for a ahead of her measurement at simply 48.4% from two level vary, however it’s clear that she makes a distinction for her workforce as within the workforce’s Second Spherical sport in opposition to Alabama, she dropped 21 factors on 9-15 capturing.
The 4 losses suffered by the Longhorns this 12 months have come by the hands of Baylor, Oklahoma (twice), and Kansas State. All of these groups made the event, all performed the within the Second Spherical with solely Baylor shifting on to the Candy 16 (they play tomorrow in opposition to USC), and the mixed loss margin in these matchups is available in at a whopping 14 factors whereas averaging 73.5 factors that’s dragged down by an outlier of 58 factors in opposition to Kansas State.
One thing to notice in these video games isn’t actually the offense as they scored close to their season common in these matchups, however somewhat, their protection. For a workforce that has held opponents to simply 57.4 factors per sport and all season, in these loses, they allowed 85, 91, 61, and 70 factors. It’s not completely clear what led to a few of these less-than-ideal defensive performances because the workforce didn’t actually flip the ball over greater than their common (13.5 per sport; 14.5 of their losses), loss the rebounding battle (40 rebounds per sport with 14.4 being on the offensive glass on the season; solely two video games with a destructive rebounding margin of their loses), nor shoot notably unhealthy (48.7% of their loses).
As such, it’s actually onerous to search out weakspots for this workforce to take advantage of when merely trying on the boxscores/statistics as I’ve completed as regards to our different two event groups in UCI and Utah. So let’s at the very least spotlight some areas that the Zags must grasp in the event that they’re going to move to their second ever Elite 8 and first below Lisa Fortier:
Rebounding: general the Zags are a reasonably middle-of-the-road rebounding workforce as they rank 89th within the nation with whole rebounding (38.6), a hundred and twenty fifth in defensive rebounding (25.6), and 82nd in offensive rebounding (12.8). Rebounding numbers are at all times onerous to essentially discern for my part as a result of they’re depending on alternatives from missed pictures, one thing the Zags don’t actually do with their offense. Nonetheless, Texas is a large workforce with their complete entrance courtroom listed as 6 foot+ and two gamers listed as 6’4” so the Zags might want to defend the glass and restrict attainable second probability alternatives.
Transition: given the dimensions drawback, it could make sense that Gonzaga ought to attempt to push the ball when the alternatives come up and forestall Texas from entering into their formal defensive units. It’s onerous for me to know the way correct this assertion could also be provided that longitudinal stats on quick break factors, and so on don’t actually exists exterior of some particular person boxscores, however Gonzaga has made groups like Portland pay with such play earlier than so I’ve a hunch this can be an essential side for this workforce to dominant in to safe the win.
Capturing: the Texas protection is stout and limits their opponents to simply 41.9% capturing from contained in the arc and 31.1% from vary. If Gonzaga can proceed their sizzling capturing from exterior, it may lengthen a much bigger Texas workforce to the perimeter which may permit the mobility of Ejim to shine in opposition to her bigger defenders.
Be sure to tune in tonight after the Males play earlier within the day to cheer on our Girls and hit the feedback under to offer your ideas on the matchup!
