Texas vs Texas St. GameFlow

Player (min)	+/-	+/- per min
A. Bradley (32)	+37	+1.16
D. James (23)	+33	+1.43
D. Pittman (17)	+29	+1.71
J. Mason (22)	+22	+1.00
D. Balbay (18)	+16	+0.89
J. Brown (16)	+14	+0.88
J. Hamilton (26)	+12	+0.46
A. Wangmene (13)	+9	+0.69
M. Hill (4)	+3	+0.75
S. Williams (6)	+1	+0.17
C. Chapman (6)	-5	-0.83
G. Johnson (17)	-6	-0.35

A few thoughts...

Pittman has only played 25+ minutes in two games this year (averaging 19.8 min per game), but wow... when he does play, he is pretty damn efficient and productive. While the box score suggests he wasn't that active, accumulating a +29 in just 17 minutes is incredible. It's pretty clear his intimidating presence is the focus of opposing defenses, allowing his teammates to flourish with less attention. I noticed that he still hasn't had a double digit rebound game this season, but it's mainly because of his lack of minutes. Check out his averages per 40 minutes:

27.6 points, 78.6 FG%, 12.4 rebounds, 4.6 offensive rebounds, 5.3 blocks

To compare to our other super senior in James, who has averaged 26.6 min per game:

24.6 points, 55.0 FG%, 12.0 rebounds, 3.4 offensive rebounds, 1.3 blocks

Pretty nice. Expect big box scores out of both of these players against UNC and Michigan St. assuming neither player gets into foul trouble, and that the game is close. Can't wait!
I like Gary Johnson. He's a hard worker, but to somehow play 17 minutes (same as Pittman) and net a -6 in a game that we won by 33 points is hard to pull off. He was also a -9 in the USC game where we won by 19 points. Maybe it's just bad luck, and he was simply a part of some bad rotations. Besides, in blowout games, the intensity just isn't going to be at a very high level as much as that would upset Barnes. Also, he was one of our best productive players as far as +/- per minutes goes in the Pittsburgh game. I'll just consider it a fluke for now, and will re-evaluate after the bigger games.
Mason's box score looks awful with 6 turnovers and limited offensive production, yet he must have been on some good rotations to have the 4th highest +/- on the team. Is he still a good "glue guy" player? Will he be seeing less playing time due to Lucas and Hamilton getting more minutes? Or will Barnes stay with the senior and give him 15-20 minutes a game?
It looks like the best rotation of the game was Pittman, James, Mason, Bradley, and Balbay.

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Comments

I love this focus on basketball.

Seriously, it’s beautiful, and to me speaks of a sense of impending doom significant enough that football is no longer a pleasure for a Longhorns fan to talk or even think about. Alabama’s defense is far stingier than Nebraska’s, and their offense is far more potent. Even though I don’t entirely agree with the Heisman voters, and think Suh would probably have been a better choice, Ingram earned his place atop college football’s elite.

Just because I'm an occasional to frequent troll, doesn't mean I lack a heart or don't have a point. Rocky Top Talk blog ban: I did it for teh lulz.

by Anarchon on Dec 13, 2009 5:38 PM CST reply actions

In this case, you don't have a point.

by ctex80 on Dec 13, 2009 5:53 PM CST up reply actions

Ah, but I do.

The point is to do it for teh lulz, and lulz were had by me. Also, Texas’ 7-0-1 record against Alabama will have its first loss on January 7. Cheick Kongo had a better time against Frank Mir than the Longhorns will have against the Southeastern Conference Champion Alabama Crimson Tide.

Just because I'm an occasional to frequent troll, doesn't mean I lack a heart or don't have a point. Rocky Top Talk blog ban: I did it for teh lulz.

by Anarchon on Dec 13, 2009 7:46 PM CST up reply actions

The focus here...

is about basketball. Maybe its tough to understand the concept of it, but Texas isn’t just a football school.

-Baseball was one game away from the NC last year and returns one hell of a team for 2010.
-Basketball (M): We’re currently ranked number 2 in the nation and a favorite for the Final 4.
-Basketball (W): Currently ranked in the top 20, and our only losses on the year were to top-5 ranked teams.
-Volleyball: Currently in the Final 4, and a heavy favorite to meet Penn St for the NC game next week.
-Swimming and Diving: Completely dominant squad and upset in last years game by your rival, Auburn.
-And I currently hold the record for never losing a match in Air Hockey for the past 5 years.

Get off your knees Greg, you're blowin' the game.

by kriess on Dec 13, 2009 11:02 PM CST up reply actions

Gameflow

These gameflow charts are incredibly helpful to see whose actually productive with all the substitutions this year. I didn’t think Bradley had been that productive until I looked at these.

by InDKR'sShadow on Dec 13, 2009 6:17 PM CST reply actions

Yes, incredibly helpful

I’m right there with you, Shadow. These diagrams are excellent supplements.

For instance. When I was watching the game, I noticed Pittman played well but was conspicuously off the floor for great stretches.

The gameflow confirms that his impact was much stronger than I would have deduced based solely on my watching of the game. +29 in 17 minutes. Wow.

As for Bradley, it hasn’t taken long to adjust to the new level of competition, huh? I can’t help but notice the care he takes in his possessions. He’s cautious about taking shots when he’s open and holding back when the look isn’t right. And of course, his defensive presence is not easily overstated.

Loving this team and cannot wait until the games against UNC, MSU, UConn. In the meantime, I have enjoyed watching this new look Horns team put on “How to dominate the way superior teams should” clinics.

by Kool Hand on Dec 14, 2009 2:30 PM CST up reply actions

Pittman is the best scorer in the country by %

Looking at points per minute production for James and Pittman is eye popping. I don’t know if crummy 3 point shooting is even going to matter with all the other scoring going on.The sagging zones haven’t really been more than a speed bump. Having Balbay not be able to make a shot hasn’t caused much problem. If the rebounding becomes a problem they can always add third big man.
With Pittman in the game it does more for the team than having a player like Kevin Durant.

by Xerxes on Dec 14, 2009 8:15 AM CST reply actions

Pomeroy

Since the Pomeroy link appeared on the BON page, I’ve been enraptured by his ratings. By now, we are getting enough games to see some definite trends, and though we are ranked #1 and have some gaudy stats in some areas, there are also some sources of real concern.

. Our 62.2% free throw percentages ranks #313
. Our 12.4% steal percentage ranks #308

Now the free throws I can understand. Our players are lazy and shortsighted, too self-involved to practice a fundamental skill of their sport. In short, the kids these days…

But why aren’t we generating steals at a better rate? From watching the games, it appears we are keeping the pressure on and making deflections. Maybe I’m not clear on what is being measured here, since the DivI average is given as 10.0%.

Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. If they get mad, you're a mile away AND you have their shoes.

by Caradoc on Dec 14, 2009 9:09 AM CST reply actions