by PointGuard » Mon Dec 10, 2018 1:06 am
Durst Evaluates Penguins’ Play
By Steve Porter
Coach KD Durst responded to questions after his team’s recent loss to Valparaiso which was in 8th place in the league coming into the game against YSU. Besides the loss to Valparaiso, earlier this season the Penguins lost to last place Milwaukee. “We’ve got a good team this season, but we’ve played inconsistently in league play. It’s disconcerting that 2 of our 3 losses have been to teams in lower ranks of the Horizon League. And even in a few other games, we’ve let teams come back against us requiring us to scramble to eke out wins. We need to avoid these letdowns in our effort. By the time the League’s Tournament begins, we have to have a consistent high level of effort and effectiveness if we want to have a chance of getting back to the NCAA Tournament,” said Durst.
Durst analyzed play at each position by saying, “Pat White has played very well at PG. He’s become the team leader. Pat is tied for 12th in the nation in assists per game. William Swan, who played SG for us in prior seasons, has been White’s main back up and has done a good job but recently freshman Matt Stafford has been getting more playing time since he’s shown the ability to come in and put some quick points on the board. B.J. Dennis and Matt Angner have split time at SG. Both have had some good games and I’m comfortable starting either player. Colin Chambliss has been the starter at SF in each of his three seasons. He’s a good scorer and a very good rebounder as well as being a solid defender. James Asbury has been backing him up this season, and as he becomes more experienced, is becoming more valuable to us. When freshman Andre Lilly showed strong capabilities early this season, we began starting him at PF as well as having him also play some at C. He’s scoring well and his rebounding is improving as he gains more experience. Lee Pauly has been the primary backup at PF and while he originally was a SF, he’s shown some real strength on the boards. Will O’Neil continues to be our.top scoring threat and is now also our strongest rebounder. Freshman Morris Phelan has come off the bench to play both C and PF and is improving with each and every game. As a team our guys play tenaciously on defense, we rebound well, and we also make few turnovers in most of our games.”
When asked about weaknesses, Durst replied, “Our overall shooting is OK, but as in prior seasons, our 3-point shooting still is subpar. We have yet to develop a go-to shooter beyond the arc. Colin Chambliss has been our best outside shooter, but needs to put up more 3-point attempts. I’d also definitely like to see our FT shooting improve.”
In response to how he saw his team doing the rest of the way in league play Durst was unwilling to make a prediction, but said, “We still have to play our 4 toughest competitors [Oakland, Detroit, UIC and Wisconsin-Green Bay] and two of those games [Oakland and UIC] are on the road, so anything can happen. But to end this on a positive note: We’re the 65th best scoring team in Division 1 while we’re the 30th best defensively in points allowed per game by our opponents. Also, we’re the 18th best in rebounding, 33rd best in assists, and have the 15th fewest turnovers per game.”
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