A tired excuse
Weir weighs team’s need for rest against the ‘work ethic and the grind’
Pit runs while wearing weighted training vests.
Practices on travel days. Game-day sprints during walk-throughs.
Regular full contact, full-speed live scrimmaging.
All the things Paul Weir says his team must do so it will be the better conditioned, tougher team in the closing moments of games might not matter — if they are the same things that are leaving his Lobos out of gas before the game even starts.
And from the lethargic way the Lobos played defense and shot the ball in a pair of blowout road losses by
a combined 60 points — 100-65 at New Mexico State on Tuesday and 85-60 vs. Saint Mary’s on Friday in Los Angeles — it’s hard to dismiss the notion that just seven games into the season, the Lobos might be in need of a bit of a break from their regularly intense practice routine.
“My strength coach and trainer both told me that after the New Mexico State game,” Weir said. “They just said, ‘Coach, we’re tired.’ Could I have not practiced Wednesday? Could I have not practiced Thursday? Maybe. But, again, I just think that what we’re trying to do — these are younger guys and we’re trying to indoctrinate them into the program.
“Could a day off here or there maybe have given us a better performance (Friday)? Maybe for sure it could have, but I just don’t think that’s the right foundation for these young guys. I think they have to understand the work ethic and the grind ... but if you look at the shooting numbers tonight, it’s definitely warranted to say that we looked tired.”
The Lobos (4-3) played only four
regular-season games in November (excluding an exhibition vs. Northern New Mexico on Nov. 10). No Division I team played fewer games in November.
As most basketball coaches will tell you, nowhere does a team having tired legs show up more than in shooting statistics.
In November, the Lobos shot 54.5 percent (66-of-121) on 2-point shots and 47.9 percent (45-of-95) on 3-pointers, said to be the team’s bread and butter.
The Lobos ranked in the top five among 353 Division I teams in effective field goal percentage, which weighs more heavily 3-pointers over 2-pointers since they are worth more points.
In three December games, all on the road, in the span of seven days and played in three time zones while Weir practiced the team hard in each city in addition to the games, the Lobos shot 40.6 percent (41-101) on 2-point shots and just 29.2 percent (2689) on 3-pointers.
And in case you think the road or the intense workouts are just starting to hit the newcomers experiencing their first dose of Weir’s style, consider that the two players who maybe have regressed most offensively in December, in particular the past two losses, are seniors Anthony Mathis and Dane Kuiper.
In November, the fresh-legged Mathis hit a blistering 66.7 percent (16-of-24) and Kuiper was shooting 50 percent (7-of-14) from beyond the arc.
In the three December games, Mathis is shooting 29.6 percent (8-of-27) on 3 tries, and Kuiper 16.7 percent (2-of-12). The seniors are a combined 1-of-20 from 3 in the past two losses.
“UTEP (on Nov. 24) started to do some things against us defensively that New Mexico State obviously did and now Saint Mary’s is doing,” Weir said. “That’s three straight games and however many practices where we’re talking about the things we want to do to respond to that. Unfortunately we just don’t have the on-court wherewithal and experience and presence to go out and do that.”
FOR STARTERS: Weir said he realizes his decision to base starting lineups on who has the most deflections (or hustle plays) is under the microscope because the team continues to get off to slow starts. But he also pointed out that it’s hard for him to take away the reward of starting from the young players who are actually the ones doing what he is asking of all his players defensively — and when the older players are not yet doing so.
Freshman Tavian Percy has started each game in December, freshman Drue Drinnon has started twice, and walk-on freshman Jordan Arroyo from Atrisco Heritage once.
“As you can see from who the starting lineup is, our young kids are the ones that are going out and making plays defensively, and a lot of our veterans are not being able to get into the starting lineup because frankly they’re not doing enough defensively,” Weir said.