Offense
The Vandal women’s basketball team has had a pretty tough year so far, posting a record of 5-13 and is on a five-game losing streak. Idaho is a young team and seems to be having trouble getting things together. What has gone right and what has gone wrong this season?
Offense has been a struggle for Idaho this year. The Vandals average 59.5 points per game, which isn’t where it should be. They are not putting up enough points to finish games. The Vandals field goal percentage is 37 percent, which has contributed to their offensive woes. Turnovers have also caused trouble for the Idaho team that has averaged 17.9 a game. When a team turns the ball over, it’s hard to get any offense going.
Grade: D+
Defense
The Vandal defense has held opponents to 37 percent for shooting and 66.5 points a game. Its success has kept the Vandals in a lot of games and made things close. They have also averaged 7.7 steals a game and 4.5 blocks a game. These numbers aren’t bad, especially when you consider the Vandals have faced the likes of Gonzaga and Washington.
Grade: B
Bench
The bench players for Idaho have been pretty solid this year, which is saying something because Idaho coach Jon Newlee likes to run a tight rotation. Freshman Stacy Barr is Idaho’s big star off the bench this year, averaging 10.5 points a game and logging the best 3-point percentage on the team. Adrie Shiels has also been solid for the Vandals, averaging 3.9 points a game along with 3.8 rebounds. Newlee’s tight rotation does not give a whole lot of minutes to others, but they have done what they have been called on to do.
Grade: B-
Coaching
Jon Newlee has had a difficult task this season. After graduating five seniors from last year’s squad he has had to rely on young players and develop them. While the Vandals’ record is not impressive, there has been a lot of improvement. Quite a few of the games the Vandals have dropped have been close, and as the season has progressed they have been able to hang around with solid teams.
Grade: B+
Overall
This may not be a season to write home about as far as victories go, but the future is bright. Idaho has a lot of young talent on roster that just needs more experience and time together. It is going to take time, but if this team plays up to its potential — in the future other teams will have a tough time.
Grade: C