Exhibition Thoughts

[atlantasooner]

Everything must be viewed thru the filter that Cameron was not very competitive at all.

General Thoughts
Almost not fair playing Ellenberg against a team like Cameron.
The improved depth makes a huge difference. OU had 2 legit lineups and Sherri is able to rotate and mix up the player combos. And OU was running and running and running some more.
Edwards/Carter did a great job replacing Hook. Both girls bring serious speed and athleticism. Edwards played more than Carter, and had better stats. They were pushing the ball per Sherri's guidance and made some big time PG plays. Didn't see too much of their perimeter game, but both players can get into the lane and finish.
On ball defense was excellent almost all game. Sooners improved/increased depth and athleticism made things impossible for Cameron.
Rebounding was an issue at times especially offensive rebounding.
Kornet and Campbell looked great. Campbell's going to be a big time scoring threat on the break. Kornet looks more comfortable in all facets of her game.
Kaylon looked fully recovered and in great shape. When the game bogged down to allow post play, Kaylon was the best interior scorer.
Derica Wyatt is a serious shooter. On nights where the shooters are struggling, Sherri will have another option in Wyatt.
Only got the game in SD not HD, and in SD it's hard to tell Kornet from Wyatt
or Ellenberg from Edwards.
Kellogg showed some nice skills. It's not hard to imagine her providing some key minutes at power forward. Durrett or Kellogg will be an interesting battle to watch this year.
Of all the freshman, Gibbs got the fewest minutes. In limited action, Gibbs is super athletic, looks taller than Kellogg almost the same height as Kaylon. There are a lot of physical tools to work with. If Sherri could ever convince a non injured player to redshirt Gibbs would be an ideal candidate. She won't get many minutes behind Nicole G/Kaylon, and Durrett/Kellogg are far more polished.
FT shooting was bad.

Questions moving forward??
Sherri started with the 4 guard look we've debated Edwards, Ellenberg, Campbell, Kornet, and Nicole.
Then Sherri played either Nicole/Kaylon with a "PF" Durrett/Kellogg most of the time along with a freshman PG, shooting guard (Ellenberg, Wyatt, Kornet), and a big wing (Campbell, Kornet).
I don't recall Kaylon and Nicole G on the court together.
The talent rotation tensions appears to be whether to play your most talented foursome
Vegas, Hook, Campbell, and Kornet together or use Kornet or Campbell as your anchor sixth player bench scorer role for the second unit.
Because OU now has the depth and talent to truly play a second unit and go 10 deep in the rotation and run, run, run.
Sherri just has so many possible combos. OU could if need be play Hook together with one of the freshman PGs allowing Hook to be more of a 2 if circumstances dictated the move.
The other tension might be scorers/shooters v rebounders.
It's definitely topics to track.

 

[sybarite]

Having watched the competition, I knew what Derica could do. I just wondered if she could do it against D-1 talent. Apparently, she can.
Sherri has mentioned that this team rebounds well, just not all at C/F.
Sherri wants Hook to lead the fast break. She says Hook is by far the best at getting the ball down court in a hurry.

 

[35TangoTango]

Edwards and Carter were both standouts. While both can play point, I thought that Edwards was more the distributor and the master of the no-look pass, while Carter looks more like the successor to Ellenberg. To me, Edwards was the big surprise of the night. I don't know the final number, but at one time I heard 12 assists.

Wyatt is a shooter. Time will tell whether she's a scorer.

Kaylon will push Griffin at center, and in my opinion power forward is up for grabs. Kornet started there, but Campbell put in quality minutes, as did Durrett. Campbell can play anywhere from 2 to 5.

Kellogg I thought was OK, but not nearly aggressive enough to push the others I've mentioned at power forward.

The thing that impressed me about Gibbs in the little time she got to play was that for someone who is big and physical she was amazingly quick on defense. She was like a jitterbug; everywhere and getting in everyone's face. I think she's way behind the others in skill set and team play, but eventually she could be a force.

I thought the weak points (other than free throw shooting) were blocking out and defensive rebounding. No reason a team as weak as Cameron should get so many offensive rebounds.

 

[annabelle]

I'm sure Wyatt will be fine but Cameron is not D1 & doesn't have D1 talent.

 

[j2d2]

Our rebounding, both offensive and defensive, worries me. That has to be good. If we dont get the rebounds then we dont have the ball so our hotshots can score-the other side's hotshots have the ball so they have the opportunity to score.

 

[SoonerNorm]

Because Griffin is not a great rebounder, I expect to see Kaylon get more minutes at the 5 and eventually start there. Even having a conversation about how many rebounds Cameron got is not good.

It does appear we will have good depth at all guard positions which is extremely important. We still don't know how good the freshmen will be but some certainly have potential.

I just don't see Gibbs getting more than a couple of minutes here or there. If she doesn't redshirt it will be a wasted year for her, IMO. The same may be true for Shaya too.

It would be outstanding if Sherri can develop two complete teams that she has confidence in and substitute 5 at a time. I know that isn't her style to play like that but I think it would be fun to watch but also keep fresh legs on the court throughout the games and more importantly, throughout the season.

 

[SoonerNorm]

In the past, Sherri has been very reluntlant to sit Aaryn when she is having a cold shooting night. It will be interesting to see what she does this year with players like Carter and Wyatt ready to go.

 

[euphguy]

Because Griffin is not a great rebounder, I expect to see Kaylon get more minutes at the 5 and eventually start there. Even having a conversation about how many rebounds Cameron got is not good.

Wishful thinking. I know you aren't high on Nicole G., which is understandable, but there's no way Sherri would pull her from the starting lineup her senior year unless she digressed big time. And According to Sherri, Nicole G. (along with Aaryn) was the most improved player. Sorry.

Nicole G. seems to run the floor a bit better, in my opinion (from the limited clips I saw). I don't think she's picking her legs as high up off the floor like she did in years past, and that's something I kept barking at the screen about.

 

[atlantasooner]

Norm,
It's one of the obvious coaching decisions that will exist with a deeper more talented roster.


euphguy. to be fair OU's fast break was so exaggerated versus Cameron that OU barely ran any post plays for Nicole G when she was in the game. Kaylon did look better getting down the court on the break.
It's early but I can see who gets the minutes at post as one of the bigger storylines.

 

[rocjunkie]

I was a little surprised at how well the kids moved their feet and tempered their hand checking. For the most part the kids played very solid fundamental defense. Granted the competition, but you still have to perform.

The rotation in the first half was really pretty solid. I agree we didn't need a lot of post play against Cameron, I would just like to see some for practice to see how the kids react when they have to get into half court situations. However it was nice to see the speed this team has and the easy baskets that they can produce because of it.

I really do wish Gibbs would red shirt. I think she has a lot of up side potential, and could become a very good player for us.

 

[SoonerNorm]

Wishful thinking. I know you aren't high on Nicole G., which is understandable, but there's no way Sherri would pull her from the starting lineup her senior year unless she digressed big time. And According to Sherri, Nicole G. (along with Aaryn) was the most improved player. Sorry.

Nicole G. seems to run the floor a bit better, in my opinion (from the limited clips I saw). I don't think she's picking her legs as high up off the floor like she did in years past, and that's something I kept barking at the screen about.

It is hard for me to believe that Sherri would start a player (regardless of past years) if we have a better player on the roster. That would make absolutely no sense.

 

[35TangoTango]

Having looked at the box score, I think I should revise my comments on Kellogg. She's so smooth, you don't notice what all she's doing.

 

[tycat947]

Having looked at the box score, I think I should revise my comments on Kellogg. She's so smooth, you don't notice what all she's doing.

I think Shaya is going to be a very good player for us by the time she graduates.

 

[Mutron76]

It is hard for me to believe that Sherri would start a player (regardless of past years) if we have a better player on the roster. That would make absolutely no sense.

Your right. She would not. That is why Nicole G is starting. This may change as the season moves along if KayKay blows up and that would be great. We would be better for it. Some posters love N.G. and some do not but it is clear Sherri believes she is currently our best post player. Also, our depth this year allows Sherri to do quite a few things so ultimately KayKay may average more minutes. Imho, Aaryn, Morgan, and Griffin were always going to be the starters. It has been that way for a while. They only real question was if Maddie, Kornet, KayKay, or Sharane took the other two spots. Or someone else.

 

[gosooner2]

Not sure how the fouls are going to go we had 2 starters with 4 and one with 3 all of them only played a little over 20 minutes! Might be interesting.

 

[Mutron76]

One thing I remind myself of this season is how special Vegas is. Something seems different about her this year. She may have off shooting nights but I do not see any situation rattling her this year. The game has slowed way down for her and it is wonderful to watch.
Regardless of the opponent the freshman seem somewhat D1 ready as a group. Usually for me there is a freshman that surprises in a good way. Last year not so much because I had a feeling about Maddie and Kornet fitting in and contributing right a way. Sharane though was not the player in her class I thought would have the most impact. I thought Hook would be the best of her class based on how early she choose OU and her reputation in highschool. Then she starts her freshman year bombing threes and winning a tough game for us. Once Harden did not jell with the team she did a great job of taking over the position out of need and has handled her point duties well. Griffin was clearly a project but had some very good games in some bigtime moments in league play. Whatever you think of her she has improved every year and worked hard and it has paid off. She will have a good year. But of course, although Vegas was a Burgergirl she has surpassed the loftiest of expectations.
We are doing well with our Oklahoma kids. TT and Carter are ready to go and both are pleasant surprises for me. I agree Gibbs and Kellogg have some work to do to see much of the court this year but both seem capable. Wyatt is a good player. We had some ladies in recent classes whom for whatever reason never put it together here but this class as a whole seems engaged and D1 ready as far as freshman go. Carter may be the one that has the chance to be a star.

 

[brokebacksooner]

I'm excited to see Carter and Edwards this year. Really liked how the guys moved without the ball during the first half. Lot's of room for improvement (rebounding and free throws) but I'd be fine with 40 more games ending with the same results.

 

[sybarite]

In Dallas, the game will be telecast on FSSW at 8:00 AM tomorrow.

 

[sybarite]

I'm watching now on soonersports.com.

Did anyone notice that Maddie is sitting between Sherri and Morgan?
Edward gets moving.
As long as we have upperclassmen on the floor, we're pretty solid.
Carter gets around, not completing much yet.
Derica with a nice three on her first shot. Also got a nice reb, then shot.
Good feeds inside on cuts.
So, we didn't offer Edwards until late? She is the best point that we have had as a freshman. She isn't making freshman mistakes. Even DRob made freshman mistakes. Edwards isn't. Stunning performance.
Aaryn has grown up. Lots of confidence.
I'm impressed by the movement and feeds.
Guards seem to have hands everywhere.
Carter with a nice fast break.
Good zone and steal.
Gibbs is a bit of a presence.
The freshmen are impressive. They aren't like freshmen. Halftime.

 

[sybarite]

78-19 early in the second half as Vegas and Sharane put on a defensive show. Steal, fast break, layup. Steal, fast Break, layup. I think they've done it four times in the first two minutes. Vegas again, 80-19.
We are not hitting jump shots early in the second. 15:50 80-21. Neither team can hit a shot.
Lots of running and shooting. Not much hitting. Defense is still forcing the outside shot. One of the Cameron players probably travels every time she shoots. Shuffles her feet to get set.
84-30 as the freshmen make a few errors. A lot of it is due to lack of motion by those who don't have the ball. Standing around without the ball. Portia is active, but not completing anything.
I like what I see of Shaya, except for the free throws. Since she hit them in high school, I guess it is nerves.
Kaylon settling down after an erratic start. Sharane is more mature and a better finisher this year.
Right now, I think our order inside may be Griffin, Sharane, Kaylon, Nicole Kornet, Shaya, Portia, and Felisha. Shaya makes fewer mistakes than Portia. Gibbs may pass Portia.