Not really this particular game, but overall. I thought going in, it was going to be a tough season. Starting a TRFR PG, two transfers at the 2 and 3 that were streaky shooters at best, Kunc and Enaruna were P5 role players at the 4, Conditt showed flashes as a FR, but regressed. That's zero knock down shooters, zero post up game, some decent defenders and some other role players/garbage men. Basically two guys on the roster that could create their own shot. Well, the season started great. They had more wins in the noncon than I thought they'd have all season. Still, the worry was, how sustainable was winning with good defensive rotation and creating turnovers? How long could they play that hard? Especially when the 2-23 night from 3 was a legit possibility every night?
Teams figured out how to stop Brockington. Hunter showed FR inconsistency. Conditt never improved. Kalcheur continued his downward trend from Minnesota. Kunc and Enaruna disappear for multiple games in a row. I've been impressed with Grill's improvement and Jackson played better backup PG than I thought he could. But now we're clearly out of the tournament and probably headed for last place in the conference. Still, I'd view the season as a success given preseason expectations.
Where to go from here? Just my opinion, but I'll give some thoughts here. You obviously build around Hunter, who is a future all Big 12 player. A summer in the weight room will do him wonders. Grill is a solid player...either as a starter or backup. His defense has improved, needs to work on the handle, but he's obviously made huge strides from when he was in Ames as a FR. Enaruna has huge upside, but needs to be more aggressive. Work on the handle so he can take guys off the dribble and also the corner 3. Kunc can be a valuable big too. He needs to shoot more, but also figure out how to create his own shot. If Jackson sticks around, he's a solid backup PG that can play the 2 at times. Jones shouldn't be starting, as he's pretty much a body with 5 fouls, but at least we know he isn't getting pushed around. They add Tre King, who is probably more offensively skilled than any of our bigs. Eli King is a good all around player that can shoot, defend and dribble. It wouldn't surprise me to see him starting right away. Lipsey will be a good backup early on that can defend but probably won't score much.
I think that they need to hit the portal hard for a few more guys. Don't spend a lot of effort trying to get Conditt and Kalscheur to come back. We need a wing like Shayock that can defend and hit shots. And then a big that can post up. Our offense is beyond limited this season. If they had a big that they could throw the ball to down low, that opens up everything. It's definitely easier said than done to get really good guys out of the portal, but they can show what they did with Brockington as proof that good players can come here and make a difference. TJ is a good recruiter and a good talent scout. I think when he locks in on a few guys, we have a decent chance of landing them.
Teams figured out how to stop Brockington. Hunter showed FR inconsistency. Conditt never improved. Kalcheur continued his downward trend from Minnesota. Kunc and Enaruna disappear for multiple games in a row. I've been impressed with Grill's improvement and Jackson played better backup PG than I thought he could. But now we're clearly out of the tournament and probably headed for last place in the conference. Still, I'd view the season as a success given preseason expectations.
Where to go from here? Just my opinion, but I'll give some thoughts here. You obviously build around Hunter, who is a future all Big 12 player. A summer in the weight room will do him wonders. Grill is a solid player...either as a starter or backup. His defense has improved, needs to work on the handle, but he's obviously made huge strides from when he was in Ames as a FR. Enaruna has huge upside, but needs to be more aggressive. Work on the handle so he can take guys off the dribble and also the corner 3. Kunc can be a valuable big too. He needs to shoot more, but also figure out how to create his own shot. If Jackson sticks around, he's a solid backup PG that can play the 2 at times. Jones shouldn't be starting, as he's pretty much a body with 5 fouls, but at least we know he isn't getting pushed around. They add Tre King, who is probably more offensively skilled than any of our bigs. Eli King is a good all around player that can shoot, defend and dribble. It wouldn't surprise me to see him starting right away. Lipsey will be a good backup early on that can defend but probably won't score much.
I think that they need to hit the portal hard for a few more guys. Don't spend a lot of effort trying to get Conditt and Kalscheur to come back. We need a wing like Shayock that can defend and hit shots. And then a big that can post up. Our offense is beyond limited this season. If they had a big that they could throw the ball to down low, that opens up everything. It's definitely easier said than done to get really good guys out of the portal, but they can show what they did with Brockington as proof that good players can come here and make a difference. TJ is a good recruiter and a good talent scout. I think when he locks in on a few guys, we have a decent chance of landing them.