tired team lack of depth

So, 4 starters never came out and we ran out of gas.

You have to be able to strategically substitute and have some rotations.

Chaps my butt that the Aggies lose to Vic and Mississippi State, that team is very beatable. Look at Vic he acts like he just won a championship!

Next year is the year. Everybody comes back one more time and we get the transfer point guard.

Texagsubscriber said:

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Next year is the year. Everybody comes back one more time and we get the transfer point guard.

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I don't think everyone will be back at all but that is my opinion. We lose three seniors with one with major minutes and two as the first off the bench and likely lose Carter based upon all that has been said

The breakdown of our defense was the beginning of the end. They kept driving in for those easy layups out of their halfcourt offense. We didn't give them those in the first half. I can understand it happening once, but 2, 3, 4 times??? No way. It all went downhill from there.

The Aggies will lose 3 seniors: Sham, Cheah and Jazz and I assume Carter will be gone. Jordan Nixon the transfer guard from Notre Dame will be eligible and McKinze Green the freshman guard should be able to play some solid minutes. I don't remember who the recruits were that signed, but definitely will need more inside help.

We need a solid, aggressive, fearless center.

This year's not over.

Wicked Good Ag said:

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rc_cat said:

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I know I'll get slammed for it, but, I'm not sure Blair is our best bet going forward. I know Carter was on the bench, but, like the announcers kept saying, it's been 7 games. I also know that Blair wasn't out there making bad passes and poor shots - but, someone has to coach the players to react, or not, in situations like they were just in in the 4th qtr - and they basically fell apart like a bunch of freshmen who've never played in front of a crowd before. I don't know who, if not Blair, but for the first time I'm feeling he needs to start considering hanging it up. I started the season thinking that this would be the year if the team was to make a big splash in the post-season - and, if not this year, then who knows when? So, go ahead and tell me I'm wrong - I'd love to be. I'm just not sure he's the guy anymore.

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An all American is out and we lose to a team who is ranked higher than us on the road and it is time to move on from a Hall of Fame coach ??

Hmm look I agree on mistakes being made and I would honestly love to see more bench minutes during the season if for no other reason but to rest the starters for the long haul and to get valuable minutes for players in the future but other than the LSU loss everything else was expected if your think about the schedule even with Carter potentially on the floor

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If it was just this game, then I would agree with you. But, Gary historically forgets he has a bench - a player (pick one) plays in the first half and gives the team a spark off the bench or does something notable, and they don't see the light of day in the second half. My opinion that Gary is no longer the guy isn't based just on this game - it's a cumulative "decision" over this year. This is the most talented team we've had in I don't know how many years - and, if Carter, as rumored, doesn't come back for her senior year, there's no one who will take her place - and we start over rebuilding. Maybe it's not Blair - maybe it's his assistant coaches - but I think someone isn't doing the job they're paid to do. Anyway - just my opinion.

Yes I noticed Erich was not there. I was just stating Carter probably could have played about 2 games ago. This is the first game we really needed her and she knew that too.

aggieFann said:

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Rudy, if people are as sick as you say, which by the way happens every season, then wouldn't that be more of a reason to use your bench? Just a thought

Side note: what is going on with Johnson lately? She misses far too many bunnies and makes countless turnovers and fouls. With that being said, I'm still rooting for this team but it is frustrating to see that there isn't much improvement other than N'Dea since last season.

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One thing I noticed that she gets to far under the basket and ends up reaching back to shoot

I don't know if it because she is pacing herself ot what but her feet don't leave the ground that much....
she is not a jumper



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Have you noticed are injuries use to always be knees Acl etc

Now we are into ankles.....what happened to the ankle wraps?

One of our biggest recurring problems is our team being worn out in the second half of tough games vs good teams. Today we scored 37 points in the first half and only 20 in the second half with only 8 points in the 4th quarter.

We had 4 starters play 39-40 min...so the whole game. That is why you miss bunnies and don't shoot as well when you are tired! I don't do anything very well when I am tired. Do you? MSU played 11 and we played 7.
MSU had 9 who played 7 min or more, We had 6.

What I have described above is pretty typical since the NC in 2011...that is either lack of quality depth, or the unwillingness to play the bench. I guess today without Carter or Jackson, the whole thing is magnified.
Not sure that Jackson would have played all that much if healthy. She has not in the past.

While I am on my rant, I would like to see us recruit some 5 position players who are 6'2 to 6'3 jumping jacks
who are quick, can run the floor and figure out where they are in the lane and the angles to use to score!
Congrats to N'Dea....she is the epitome of what I am talking about, and she has worked very hard to get where she is. If we had two out there like her playing the two post positions, we would be very hard to beat. Some of these 6'4 and up players are not challenged in HS and are not used to working that hard. Some have hands of stone and weak forearms and upper body., and are just too slow for the college game vs good teams.

Carter coming back to play.this year will help overcome some of the problems.

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Yes very true it's as if she doesn't have good court awareness of where she is when she makes her move.

I also find the ankle injuries intriguing. Most programs require all their athletes to wear ankle braces but I'm not sure if that's the case here.

Season after season there are only 6 or 7 players, on Coach Blair's teams, who seem to be capable of contributing in a conference game.

This likely indicates a lack of depth.

Enjoy reading the "mostly good" conversations about how the game went and what some of the problems are holding the team back (flu, injuries). Speaking of injuries what is/was the injury with Jackson, I never heard anything and did not realize she was unavailable until the announcers mentioned she was injured.

This....she's done. She's not coming back next year and she's not putting her pro career in danger by playing this year at anything less than 100%.

They said on the radio she sprained her ankle either in warmups or practice - I can't remember which

Much as I REALLY want Chennedy back, and I know she's been working out with the team. It's one thing to practice with your teammates. It's another jumping as much as she does, landing on that foot/ankle & feeling confident in your game. I hope she comes back & plays hard. I remember seeing that injury & it was BAD! I didn't know ankles could bend that way (and I know that it SHOULDN'T do that!)

Thanks, I should have listened to the radio call instead of the tv announcers. I am sure I would have gotten a lot more information and probably enjoyed the game a little more.

Cedar09 said:

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Carter has checked out physically and mentally, I doubt she will play again.

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Eligible to enter the 2020 WNBA draft as she turns 22 in the 2020 calendar year.

Let's have an honest assessment -

Do you think she is mature enough - the days of pampering and charter flights are over.

The way she plays she does get injured .....what will she do if she gets an injury that
prevents her from playing....she needs to get her degree and have an Aggie degree
and Aggie Network for her foundation

Because of the new CBA she will be coming into the league at a time when pay and benefits are
increasing
https://www.si.com/wnba/2020/01/14/wnba-cba-labor-salary-raise-players-association

Rudybryan said:

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Cedar09 said:

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Carter has checked out physically and mentally, I doubt she will play again.

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Eligible to enter the 2020 WNBA draft as she turns 22 in the 2020 calendar year.

Let's have an honest assessment -

Do you think she is mature enough - the days of pampering and charter flights are over.

The way she plays she does get injured .....what will she do if she gets an injury that
prevents her from playing....she needs to get her degree and have an Aggie degree
and Aggie Network for her foundation

Because of the new CBA she will be coming into the league at a time when pay and benefits are
increasing
https://www.si.com/wnba/2020/01/14/wnba-cba-labor-salary-raise-players-association

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I don't think she cares about that. I think she wants to get into the league ASAP but we could be really really good if she stayed another year as Jones has really moved forward in her game. Wells wouldn't be pressing as much with her on the court and trying to create shots which have led to numerous charges by not pulling up and Nixon is really good and will be a heavy rotation minute player next year regardless if Carter returned.

Would seem to me that a college degree is much more important to a student athlete that leaving early to make only $100K +, especially since that money (and maybe more) will still be waiting for her after her senior year. IMO it would be different if we were talking about a first round 7 figure signing bonus and a multi-year 7 figure salary--but the WNBA is not going to offer that. Maybe she can make big money by playing in Poland or Japan.

I'm going to show my ignorance of the internal organization of the WBB team , but Im assuming that RudyBryan is in fact a staff member or someone who is extremely close to Coach Blair.

Those of us who are not as" connected" as RudyBryan apparently is are expressing an overall concern with the fact that this team was positioned as the deepest and most experienced team that Gary has had in years and that it was legitimate to expect a possible run to the Final Four.

In the absence of specific details as to Carters return we are left with wondering if this team can win big in her absence. Can we see similar responses from the entire bench that we have seen from N'Dea? Isn't it fair to note who isn't picking up the slack ?