Notebook: Missed Layups Spell Doom for Eagles in Winston-Salem
Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom)Publisher
Boston College men’s basketball has made the second-fewest 3-pointers (102) of any ACC team this season. The Eagles also have the third-lowest free throw percentage (68.9%) in the league.
BC, which has the ACC’s lowest effective field goal percentage (43.9%) in conference play, doesn’t have much wiggle room. The Eagles have to make their “easys,” as first-year head coach Earl Grant says.
They didn’t Monday night at Wake Forest. In fact, the Eagles were 8-of-27 on layups and even missed their lone dunk attempt. When all was said and done, their 25.4% field goal percentage was their lowest against an ACC opponent. Ever.
It’s time to unpack the 87-57 defeat, which yielded BC’s largest margin of defeat this season.
Why can't BC finish at the rim?
What’s appalling, really, was this wasn’t a one-off performance. Last week at Louisville, the Eagles were 13-of-27 on layups. That means that, in two of their last three games, they’ve shot below 50% on layups. Wake Forest converted at a higher clip from beyond the arc (40%) Monday than BC did at the cup (29.6%). Grant was asked about his team’s struggles at the rim after the game.“I thought the fact that we were at the rim meant that we did a pretty decent job of getting to that spot,” he said. “So I think we just got to keep working at it. Maybe their length bothered us some. … But we had opportunities. We’ve got good players. We’ve got a good team. We just didn’t capitalize.”
Wake Forest, which is 102nd nationally in block percentage (8.1%) according to KenPom, piled up 11 blocks. Often, however, the Eagles were just erratic on their way up to the basket, and their shots were off the mark. When you’re a team that struggles to shoot from deep and at the charity stripe, there isn’t much margin of error at the rim.
Brevin Galloway has fallen back to earth
Since his heroics at Clemson, a jaw-dropping performance that capped a four-game stretch where he was 14-of-40 from deep, Galloway has shot a combined 0-of-12 from long range. He missed the Virginia Tech game—his eighth absence of the year—before returning to the lineup Monday night.His knee is clearly still limiting his mobility. While Galloway was showing a willingness to mix things up with an inside game after returning from midseason surgery, all but one of his attempts against Louisville and Wake Forest have come from downtown. And his minutes have been down. Galloway didn’t check in until the second media timeout Monday. Usually, he’s inserted after the first one. This time, freshman guard Kanye Jones got the nod.
Missed shots led to fastbreak opportunities for Wake Forest
It’s hard to play sound defense when you’re missing everything on offense. That was the case for BC in Winston-Salem. Long rebounds were the gateway to transition opportunities for a Demon Deacons team that ranks 50th nationally in adjusted tempo, according to KenPom.It helps that they have Alondes Williams, an Oklahoma transfer who is the current favorite for ACC Player of the Year. Williams leads the conference in not only scoring but assists per game. During BC dry spells, the Williams-led Wake Forest offense got on the break and extended its lead, like when Williams lofted a perfect alley-oop pass for forward Jake LaRavia, who threw down an electric, two-handed dunk. The Demon Deacons outscored BC, 21-3, on the break.
BC failed to capitalize on Demon Deacons turnovers
Wake Forest coughed up the ball 14 times and committed three turnovers before the first media timeout. BC was active with its hands on the defensive end of the floor, at least initially, but it finished with just nine points off Demon Deacons turnovers. Meanwhile, Wake Forest scored 20 points off 12 BC giveaways. The Eagles’ stinginess on defense is one of their strengths. Just as it’s important for them to convert their “easys,” they also can’t afford to squander possessions off opponent turnovers.It was Quinten Post's turn to score
Just look at the split between BC centers James Karnik and Quinten Post over the last five games.Vs. Georgia Tech: Karnik (8 points, 1 PF), Post (24 points, 4 PF)
@ Clemson: Karnik (17 points, 1 PF), Post (0 points, 3 PF)
@ Louisville: Karnik (1 point, 5 PF), Post (11 points, 1 PF)
Vs. Virginia Tech: Karnik (26 points, 1 PF), Post (2 points, 2 PF)
@ Wake Forest: Karnik (4 points, 2 PF), Post (13 points, 2 PF)
The last time they both reached double figures was the Notre Dame game, BC’s most dominant performance this season. Usually, though, one big man is on, and the other isn’t. Sometimes foul trouble is a factor. Other times, it isn’t. Like last night when Karnik picked up only two personals yet was 1-of-6 from the floor. On the flip side, Post had the highest shooting percentage on the team—yes, that’s a low bar—and was 6-of-7 from the free throw line.
