Our beloved Rebels lost to a semi-pro team from Starkville on Thursday in very frustrating fashion.
Renardo "I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGERZ" Sidney and Dee "League" Bost (get it? like D-League b/c he didn't get drafted and found a loophole to go back to State? Lulz) scored 49 and some other guys in maroon flailed their arms around a lot and chipped in another 20 or so.
The Rebels looked unprepared to wage an offensive attack to drive the ball directly at Sidney (even choosing not to make this switch when Sidney was dropping 3's on us) and were unable to contain Bost.
Andy Kennedy is a frustrating coach. He's brought the program to a higher level than when Rod Barnes was coach, however, the progression has stagnated. It seems to be the same athletic, attrition laden, low basketball IQ team year in and year out.
Does it mean he should be fired? Well, WAOM, so probably not though the rest of the SEC schedule will provide more pressure than in year's past.
I told Juco Thursday that if we lost to State, I would be OK with a change at head coach and that if we lost to Georgia additionally, it would be time to write off the entire season and definitely call for a change.
Unreasonable? Possibly, but Georgia is a beatable team as our preview will show.
Travis Leslie and Trey Thompkins. Two NBA-level talent players who anchor Georgia and are likely to take the 'Dawgs as far as they have gone in a decade.
Leslie is a high-flying dunk machine while Thompkins is one of the best all around players in the conference. It is likely our bigs will have trouble with Thompkins and MUST stay out of foul trouble to keep DeMarco Cox and Steadman Short from guarding Thompkins.
Offensively, again, it would be best to break the zone (which will definitely be the base set after coaches watch the State game) by passing the ball to the interior or driving to the basket to draw fouls from opposing bigs. It's nothing monumental that a color commentator won't say during the game, but it works.
The interior game broke down against State, because it started too late. Players were more fatigued, couldn't get enough lift to finish strong and left shots short near the rim. Also, Buckner and Henry were in foul trouble and younger, more inexperienced players did not rebound as well on the offensive end.
Georgia has played fairly well on the road this year recording a seven point loss to Vandy most recently, a one point win over Georgia Tech, a three point win over Mercer and a two point win over St. Louis. But the 'Dawgs were also 1-2 in neutral site games during an early season tournament with losses to Temple and Notre Dame and a win over Manhattan.
Knock on wood, because Georgia has yet to win an SEC road game under head coach Mark Fox. The Rebels should feel some kind of frustration and have a feeling to prove something against a solid Georgia squad.
Remember this Georgia team beat Kentucky in the first SEC weekend, and they do have solid role players in Gerald Robinson as a third scoring threat/ball distributor and Dustin Ware as a three point threat who can drive and dish as well.
BOLD PREDICTIONS
- Zach Graham scores less than 10 points
- Trevor Gaskins scores more than 20 points
- Reginald Buckner leads the Rebels in rebounding with 14 boards
Final prediction
Ole Miss 74
Georgia 70