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Not going over all the little stats I usually would look at in prep for a game. Looked at a few. Houston is like WSU in that it does not have a lot of size. I mean, if you lined up our players back to back with Houston players, they would be pretty similar. WHen the balls is in play, however, the Houston players "play bigger" than their size. And I would say that Houston plays more physical than the Shocks. I am in NO WAY meaning the Shocks would do well to try and match their physicality. Being on Houston's home court, those calls will not go WSU's way. Period. End of story - end of ballgame. I would say that Houston is also quicker on the perimeter and in help defense. So they get hands in the passing lanes and they get hands on interior shots from dribble penetration - leading to blocks and easy transition offense. In summary: they get after it on both ends of the floor. There's not a lot NOT to like about the way the Cougars play.
Being younger and still a little inexperienced, I think the Shocks play better when they are sped up a little. I'm hoping we can find a way to speed up our game on offense and score in transition, and at the same time, slow Houston down on their end in a half court game, and prevent them from scoring in transition as much as possible. The way I see it is this: Houston is good at "chaos" basketball. If the Shocks were used to "play angry", I would say Houston does well when they can create chaos. The only way I can see a WSU victory is to keep the slashers from crashing the offensive board, get a few easy buckets on our end to boost confidence, and keep those turnovers down. That's a tall order, something we don't have a lot of practice at yet.
Being younger and still a little inexperienced, I think the Shocks play better when they are sped up a little. I'm hoping we can find a way to speed up our game on offense and score in transition, and at the same time, slow Houston down on their end in a half court game, and prevent them from scoring in transition as much as possible. The way I see it is this: Houston is good at "chaos" basketball. If the Shocks were used to "play angry", I would say Houston does well when they can create chaos. The only way I can see a WSU victory is to keep the slashers from crashing the offensive board, get a few easy buckets on our end to boost confidence, and keep those turnovers down. That's a tall order, something we don't have a lot of practice at yet.
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