BLUEPRINT to beat WKU:
1) Slow down Charles Bassey. He's an NBA 1st round talent, so you're NOT going to stop him. But you can
slow him down with good, agitating, defense. Tech held Bassey to only 14 pts and won the 2nd game by 5 pts. Also, UNT held Bassey to only 13 pts last Saturday night, and beat WKU in the CUSA Tournament Final. So strong defense --particularly on Bassey, is key.
2) Keep WKU off the foul line. WKU coach Rick Stansberry is a strong believer in driving hard to the basket and
drawing fouls. He's not interested in beautiful, smooth, basketball. Stansberry's goal is to get physical down low, and shoot 25 or more free throws every night. His objective is to get 35% to 40% of his teams scoring from the free throw line. In his first game against Tech, his team got 36% of its total scoring from free throws. However, in game two against Tech --a WKU loss-- WKU only got 22% of its scoring at the line.
So, the choppier and nastier this game gets, the more Stansberry will love it. If his team can shoot 25 or more free throws, Stansberry knows he's likely to win. If not, he's likely to lose. WKU is an excellent free throw shooting team, so getting to the free throw line will be paramount to his chances of winning. -- HogDawg post 3/21
Originally Posted by HogDawg
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