Well, let’s just throw that one out the window for the Bobcat women. Georgia College wrapped up their four-game home stand on Saturday afternoon against #15 Clayton State.
It might have been better to just let the team stay at home. As harsh as that sounds, the Bobcats were torched in every facet of the game, falling to the Lakers 70-35. GCSU was outscored in points in the paint 50-20!
As a coach, and if I’m John Carrick, I’m chalking that one up as the worst performance of the team this year. There was no energy, enthusiasm and pride present in the Bobcat women.
Those games happen, however. Some days, teams just don’t have it. And putting that into a broader perspective, some days we don’t bring our best effort in our daily life. We, and the Bobcat women, must learn from it, and move on.
That’s exactly what the ‘Cats will do on Thursday night in Augusta. The Bobcats (15-6, 8-3 Peach Belt Conference-west) will hit the Christenberry Fieldhouse hardwood and take on the Augusta State Jaguars (1-21, 0-13 PBC-east).
Obviously, the records indicate who the better team is. But I can tell you this: bring the effort that was present on Saturday against Clayton, things will get ugly.
The Jags are winless on the home pitch and are desperately attempting to reverse that trend. Give a team that’s yearning for any sign of hope like the Jaguars, then you could be snuck up on. Led by freshman guard Waneta Carlisle at 10.9 points and 5.5 rebounds, the Jaguars look to have their foundation for the future. Junior forward Stacey Lampkin (8.2 points, 5.5 rebounds) will also be one of the players the Jags will rely to reverse a long eighteen-game skid.
The Jaguars are relatively balanced. Augusta has five other players that draw over six points per outing. If this team can get all facets going at once, who knows what could happen.
With that, here are my keys for Georgia College on Thursday:
1) There has to be some return of energy. Being beaten on two passes up the floor like we saw against Francis Marion and Clayton State on this past home stretch will not cut it. Now is the time to start playing your best basketball with the conference lurking around the corner. Bring a sense of pride and humbleness knowing that it is an honor to play sports at the collegiate level.
2) Junior guard Chimere Jordan, the offensive leader of the team, has been quiet the past two games. Jordan has been held scoreless three of the past four halves. I am interested to see how Jordan responds.
3) I’ll be watching the rebounding battle. Augusta allows 39.3 rebounds per game. Specifically, I’ll be keying in on defensive rebounding. If senior center Antoinette Reames can establish positioning inside, things should end right at the buzzer for GCSU.
4) The defense for the Bobcats must be present, both in transition and the half-court. During four road games this year, GCSU has been stellar in opponents gym’s, allowing just 57.5 points per game.
5) I would like to see a balanced game from all the starters. By that, I mean effective ball rotation. Having four players in double-figures would be nice.
Basically, which team will show up, is the question. The one with or without energy?
If the answer is he first of the two, things will be fine loading the bus back to Milly-Vegas.
But, we’ll have to wait and see for ourselves.
Talk to you at 5:20 in Augusta on Country 102.3 fm or online at www.country102fm.com
Looking forward to re-joining Scott MacLeod, veteran “Voice of the Bobcats,” who will bring you the play-by-play. Yours truly, with the analysis!
No comments:
Post a Comment