Miami (12-10, 6-4) at Western Michigan (13-10, 7-3)
The Broncos enter Tuesday night's game 7-3 in league play after losing a heartbreaker in Athens after leading for most of the 2nd half. Western has not lost in league play at home, winning by at least 13 points including a 20 point win over Akron. Western had a so-so non-conference season, defeating Davidson and Southern Illinois while losing at home to Northwestern and at Iona. Coach Steve Hawkins has an experienced team who can score the ball and play hard at both ends. Western is looking to stay in command of the West and remain in striking distance of the #1 seed for the conference tournament.
Projected Starters:
G Michael Redell, 6' Jr. 6 pts, 4 ass. 39% FG, 34% 3PFG, 80% FT. Primary job is to get into the lane, even though he's not the quickest point guard, and create for his teammates. Can hit the perimeter shot when needed late in the shot clock. Still struggles sometimes when pressured handling the ball. Plays very hard defensively, creates steals by getting in passing lanes. But he has trouble guarding 1on1.
G Shawntes Gary, 6'2 Jr. 8 pts, 5 reb. 41% FG, 34% 3PFG, 73% FT. Quickest and most athletic player, he can finish at the rim. Plays bigger than 6'2, especially on the glass. Streaky outside shooter. Team's best on-ball defender.
G David Kool, 6'3 So. 15 pts, 3 reb, 3 ass. 42% FG, 37% 3PFG, 88% FT. Best offensive player, can do a number of things. He can shoot the 3, pull-up jumper, floater and finish at the basket. Does a good job of drawing the defense and kicking the ball out.
F Andrew Hershberger, 6'7 Sr. 3 pts, 3 reb. 48% FG, 56% FT. Inserted into the starting lineup to play defense and bring a little more size. Scores mainly off of offensive rebounds.
C Joe Reitz, 6'7 Sr. 15 pts, 8 reb. 56% FG, 72% FT. Big body who is tough to move underneath. Once he gets position on the block, it's 2 points. Have to try and move him off the block. Doesn't like to try and score outside of 8 feet usually. Defensively, plays good position defense, but can be scored upon.
Off the Bench:
F Derek Drews, 6'5 Jr. 8 pts, 2 reb. 44% FG, 42% 3PFG, 92% FT. Started 14 games, brings offense off the bench. Very good 3-point shooter, have to make him put it on the floor.
G Andre Ricks, 5'9 Jr. 6 pts, 34% FG, 32% 3PFG, 80% FT. Quick little guard who likes to push the tempo. Better shooter than his numbers indicate. He likes to look for his offense more. Puts good defensive pressure on the ball.
F Derek Fracalossi, 6'5 Sr. 4 pts, 2 reb. 43% FG, 36% 3PFG, 76% FT. Improved his shooting from last year. Can handle the ball well for his size. Not the greatest defender.
Offensively, Western will play 4 out and put Reitz down low and let him work in the lane. With Hershberger starting, look for a little more motion offense with Kool and Gary coming off the 2 big men down low. Western will pass and cut you to death, so you have to be alert. Spacing is the key to their offense, and they space the floor well, averaging 71 points a game while shooting 43% from the floor, 36% from 3. In terms of offensive efficiency, Western is in the top 100 nationally. Where they get into trouble is when they face teams who are quick and athletic, especially on the perimeter. If Western can't score outside, Reitz becomes a non-factor.
Defensively, Western has improved from a year ago. They're in the top third of Division 1 in defensive efficiency and in the top 100 in field goal percentage defense. They play extremely hard on defense and are always in good position. On the boards, they are +5, thereby not giving up many second shot opportunities. Where they struggle is defending quick, multi-talented guards outside. They can be beaten off the dribble if you attack them 1on1. Western won't let you finish at the basket, they'll foul you and send you to the line. They only force 13 turnovers a game, putting a lot of pressure on the defense to be able to guard every possession.
Last year, we trailed by 14 at the half at our place against these guys, but we came back and won on a Penno 3 at the horn. We turned the ball over 9 times and shot 35% in the 1st half; we only committed 2 turnovers and shot 68% in the 2nd half. We were more aggressive, attacked them inside and shut them down on the perimeter. More of the same has to happen Tuesday night. Western will take the first good shot they see, but they won't push the tempo too much because they want to wait for Reitz to get down the floor. We have to keep the ball on the perimeter, contest shots, then fight hard on the glass. Offensively, we'll need the same balance from our 3 main cogs that we've had lately. TPo had a big night last year. I think he and Kenny could have nice games this year. But we can't waste possessions with turnovers and we have to be careful with fouls since they are deep.
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