Upset SOB

Coaches,

Make sure to check out my blog daily so you won’t miss my scouting reports. I will be delivering a big one on the most exciting NCAA Tournament games of 2011.
I also want to apologize for the lack of stock these days. I am so busy with my clubs, our league Final Four is taking place this weekend and we are practicing/preparing so much so we can get State-Title (actually it’s Provincial down here) !

Butler winning play : http://www.box.net/shared/18n61syfu8

Enjoy the F4,

Coach M

Butler upset

Once again,

Butler might be this year's Tournament Cinderella team ... Very fun to watch, the Bulldogs always give us great performance in crunch time.

Here is one of their great action:

http://www.box.net/shared/x956nzvoso


Coach M

Flair and slip play : Go Pats !

Coaches,

With playoffs coming, workouts and practices makes it difficult for me to give daily plays. However, it's March and I will find time to give you my favorite plays from Tournament teams. Here is a Villanova play ran late in yesterday's game.

http://www.box.net/shared/q58ro5z0cj


Coach M

Great tempo-free article

Coaches,

Ever heard about tempo-free stats ? Here is a great article given to me by Ray Floriani, a solid college basketball writer ( http://www.collegechalktalk.com/ )

Enjoy:

LYNDHURST, NJ - Tempo free statistics can get involved. But the basics , which enhance our understanding and appreciation of the game, are as simple as the name. Tempo free statistic- a metric that is derived without regard to game pace. Case in point.

Team A gives up 75 points per game. Team B surrenders 55 an outing. The assumption on the surface is team A plays ’matador defense’ and is only interested in getting the ball back, even it means grabbing it out of their own net. Team B in the mind’s eye is a team well versed in defensive principles, the type offenses dread when they line up against this club.

Taking it further if we know team A averages 85 possessions per game, we realize they love a ’NASCA R’ paced contest. Team B may average 50 possessions which suggests a much more pedestrian and deliberate style. But look at the numbers for a minute.

Dividing points by possession we get points per possession. This figure is a much more reliable number to get a read on as team. There are various ways to play the game but no matter the game plan and/or pace, points per possession gives us a read on a club’s offensive and defensive efficiency. Team A , with their 75 points allowed per game divided by .88 possessions per contest gives up .85 points per possession, an outstanding figure. On the other hand, computing team B’s numbers we see they generously allow 1.10 points per possession. A figure which all but guarantees second division status in their conference.

It is assumed that 1.00 is the cutoff for points per possession. That figure or greater is the offensive objective. On the defensive end, teams strive to keep opponents under that mark.

Possessions are easy to track in the college and pro games as post game statistical sheets are detailed and thorough. On the high school level, they would be recorded long hand as it is rare to find a high school producing a detailed final stat sheet.

For the sake of understanding, a possession begins when a team secures the ball and ends when it is given up. You can ‘give up’ the possession by scoring, turning the ball over (the coaching nightmare) and missing a shot that is rebounded by the defense. Shooting and getting one’s own offensive rebound extends the possession, it doesn’t start a new one.

The Tempo Free stats just noted are the tip of the iceberg. On the college level a number of staffs have assistants record possessions and break them down for more intense study. For instance what was our opponents offensive PPP against our zone as opposed to times we went man ?

On the high school level this is still relatively unchartered area. The preps however could greatly benefit from tempo free studies. Players could appreciate better the value of a possession. Also, a team eliminated from its conference race or a shot at a state tournament bid can close out the season by trying to better their average offensive/defensive efficiency. For the high school coach there is a host of ways to utilize tempo free stats. As noted they would be a great teaching tool and they are relatively easy to compute. You do not need a math degree , just a calculus.

There are a number of other tempo free stats and some can get very involved. The game pace (total possessions) and efficiencies are the starting point. They are utilized and studied at all levels, even by more and more NBA front office personnel. More and more colleges are gradually utilizing and employing tempo-free studies. Chris Mack and his Xavier staff is one program of note that charts and keeps a read on possession and pace, even with the game in progress. It stands to reason adopting them in high school would be of utmost benefit to both players and coaches.

Ray Floriani has been writing on college basketball over 30 years. Some of the sites he writes for include Basketballtimes.com, Collegechalktalk.com, Villanova by the Numbers and CollegeInsider.com. He was selected 1999 Media Man of the Year by the NIT.