Rutgers vs Wake Forest Quickie

So You're Saying There's A Chance

It's never a good thing when you shoot 26% in a half, only making 10 field goals. The good news for Rutgers was that Wake Forest would shoot 33%, only making 11. The game wasn't pretty early and wouldn't become a thing of beauty, but it was close at the end which always leads to some excitement.

Here were your 1st half shooting numbers...

Wake: 11-33 (33.3%), 3-14 (21.4%) 3PFG

RU: 10-38 (26.3%), 1-9(11.1%) 3PFG

So yeah, it's never pretty when the shooting percentages are that low.

BLF

Blowing leads fast. Wake Forest would hold a 9 point lead with just over 8 minutes remaining in the first half, and a 5 point lead at the break. Rutgers would hold a 12 point lead with just under 9 minutes remaining in the second half. Turnovers killed Wake in this one while horrendous shooting doomed Rutgers, neither would be able to hold onto their lead.

All By Myself

Rutgers finished the contest with 27 made baskets...recording only 6 assists. Need more ball/player movement and better shot selection, same as last season. The good news is the players are learning, it will be figured out at some point...just don't expect it to be in the immediate future.

The Good

Corey Sanders looked very comfortable in the second half as he racked up points. Step back 3 had nice form and rotation on it, attacked the rim well. The more experience he gets, the more Rutgers fans will be able to witness his full arsenal.

Jonathan Laurent had a solid game (ignoring the last defensive possession) going 5-10 from the field for 10 points; while also contributing 7 rebounds. Greg Lewis finished with 9 rebounds, Mike Williams finished with 6...

The Bad

Freeman, 2-9

Williams, 1-10, 0-5 3PFG

Lewis, 4-12

Daniels, 1-5

You get the idea...tough to win when shooting lines look like that.

The Ugly

We can start with the charging call on Corey Sanders which should have been an and1 bucket, but that final play call though...

Rutgers down 1 with 4 second left had the opportunity to steal the victory as they inbounded from under the Wake basket. I get the logic of making sure the ball gets in play; with that being said to have your leading scorer in the game throwing it into a kid having an off night, (Williams was 1-9 before that final shot) doesn't make much sense to me...then again I don't get paid to make these decisions.

Also, if you don't trust anyone else on the roster to be able to get the ball in play there I really don't know what to tell you.

With that little rant out of the way let's remember that this is a process with a very young team and the right head coach for the job. Patience is key...even if that is impossible to explain to those of you who have been watching this act for decades now.