Ok so I have been very critical of Mark Fox and his recruiting efforts, and that is not going to change anytime soon. I think the 3 kids he has signed that will be coming in next year are all solid and will help the program. I think KCP is a very talented kid as well. I think what has troubled me the most about his recruiting efforts is lack of quality big men. But, I DO believe we are getting some improved play from our guys inside-especially Donte' Williams. I think the EURO kid, Djurisic is playing better than anyone could have expected. I do have questions about why we offered and signed John Cannon in particular when we already had signed Tim Dixon-a kid that could be decent in a year or two, also the JUCO Florveus who is blocking a few shots, contributing a little bit but nothing special. The problem Fox has to me is he recruits guys that are NOT college ready immediately-second tier guys and they develop into strong players by year 3. I think that is certianly the case with Williams, heck, I think Thornton is much better this year than last although he still doesn't score like I thought he might. But, we just don't usually get a bigger guy that can help us from day 1 like KCP has done at the guard/wing spot. That is what keeps us at our level, and allows the teams like UK, UF etc to play at a much higher level. Obviously those two have longer traditions of winning-UK is on another level than anyone else in the SEC, but the fact that UF, Bama, Miss State, Arkansas, those type programs can win pretty consistently, that is what I want to expect for UGA. With the talent this state produces in hoops, we continue to be a sleeping giant in hoops, we have just got to get something started/established and keep it going. Just seems like every time something good happens for UGA hoops, something equally as bad happens next.
The bottom line is that we have some decent parts but they rarely are working together at the same time. Meaning, the guards might play well one game but we get nothing from the inside, or vice versa the big guys actually do something and the guards can't throw it in the ocean-that was the case last night. Donte' had 11 pts and 8 rebounds, Djurisic had 11pts-he is a tweener but gets a lot of his points down low. Robinson led us with 16 pts but he had to take 19 shots to get his 16 pts, hitting only 6 of his 19 shots. Ware our other senior guard, only scored 5 points, shooting 2-9 from the floor, and freshman leading scorer KCP scored 9 but only hit 4 of 14 shots, including 0-8 behind the three point line. Thankfully for us, UT was equally as bad shooting the ball. But honestly, our point totals now for SEC games, 59, 48, 66, and 57. So we average 57.5 points per game in SEC games. That is NOT going to get you many wins in this conference. But where can we get any more points from our team?? We have to me two legit scoring threats in Robinson and KCP and Djurisic is probably third in that respect. Ware is proving that without a true force down low, he has trouble knocking down shots. If teams don't really respect your post play, they are not going to clog the middle and give up the wide open shots that Ware proved he could knock down last year with Trey in the middle. Robinson is the guy we have that can cause some problems for the defense because he is so quick and can penetrate, shoot, or dish for wide open looks. But, GR is not really a true point guard. SO again, we just have some pieces and it will be up to Coach Fox to somehow assemble those pieces in a way that will allow us to pull out a few more wins. Our next game is at home against Ole Miss-a team we really should and need to beat. Ole Miss is not a pushover, as evidenced by their win at home last night against a pretty quality Miss State team, but still this Saturday presents our team another chance to pick up an SEC game at home against a team that does not have a huge talent advantage. A little about Ole Miss, they are 12-6 on the season, compared to our record of 10-8. SEC play they are 2-2 compared to our 1-3. They have wins against Miss State (75-68) and Arkansas (71-63) both those games at home. Losses on the road to LSU (81-55 OUCH) and Auburn (69-68). So, obviously we have had the MUCH tougher schedule and the fact they have lost both conference games on the road is a good sign. They have won a couple noteworthy games on the road, at DePaul 70-68 and Penn State 72-70. By and large though, they have struggled on the road, also losing at Marquette, at Southern Miss, Middle Tenn State, and Dayton. This one of those we must protect this house/home court games. With UK coming up next Tuesday, yep, we need to get this W. Game is Saturday at 4p on the SEC network-likely to be Peachtree TV for those in the ATL area.
So nothing new to report on recruiting front, except a few surprises, Mike Davis immediately committed to SCarolina after Gurley picked UGA. He may or may not still visit UGA and Clemson. His older brother played at Clemson so I would not rule them out, either way we will see him soon. We are due to play Clemson in 2013 and 2014. Kendarious Whitehead who had been leaning to UGA for many months yesterday committed to NCST. It was actually down to Clem and NCST. You have to believe that Jordan Jenkins surprise pick of UGA might have swayed his decision as well as our hard pressed recruitment of Josh Harvey-Clemons from Lowndes. Speaking of JHC, he has a great visit to UGA last weekend and now heads to FSU this weekend. Per my recruiting sources, FSU although typically appears to be the school of choice for most Lowndes players, JHC will be the exception to that rule as his grandparents who are raising him don't want him there. Many believe he will ultimately pick UGA and we really need to secure his signature on signing day-I have watched him in person and he is quite the athlete.
We now have 17 commitments, with three of those actual signees-early enrollee kids, Keith Marshall, Fauta Baton, and Mark Beard. Considering we only lost one JR to the NFL, I think it is quite possible we will not sign a class of 25 this year. If you look at 17, which is really 14, and look at the kids we are after, I am not sure we get above 20 or so honestly. I do think that next year will be a monster year. We should have a couple early enroll kids yet again and considering how many SR's we will have, also some JR's you feel sure make the jump next year, I expect a full 25 or 27 with EE's. Next year appears to be a great year for talent in the state of Ga, so I really believe our talent level is going to continue to be at an all time high-the kids we are getting now in this class, many are difference makers and are adding to our quality depth. If you really want to know how Bama/LSU seem so dominating, you have to look beyond their top 22, the fact they have such quality depth waiting in the wings-it helps you cope with injuries during the season, helps you deal with early NFL defections etc. I think this is the path we are on right now. Yes, UGA and Coach Richt have always recruited well but I think some years have been MUCH better than others and now I believe our coaches realize, you simply can't afford a bad year in recruiting. You have to keep stacking that talent and building depth.
All for now, I will be back early next week for a hoops update and also any recruiting news I might have. Hope everyone has a great weekend.
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