Various thoughts on Idaho basketball

Here's a piece we've been scribbling for about a week. It still seems a bit too meandering but we're going with it.

======

He wasn't the most athletic, nor was he all that creative with the ball but, damn, Idaho's Jeff Ledbetter could consistently shoot from distance -- 45% on 218 trey attempts as a senior last season -- and really knew how to cleverly employ screens to his advantage. He was also a go-to guy in the clutch.

Now in comparison which is usually inherently invalid due to differences in the equations such as teammates, foes (individuals) and opponents (teams), Idaho's Deremy Geiger is nailing a very impressive 44% of 165 three-point shots so far this season, a much, much better than his 31% of a year ago. But it FEELS like Geiger hasn't enjoyed the same overall effect as Ledbetter because the former has a tendency to blow hot-and-cold. However, as Seinfeld-ians profess, there is nothing wrong with that.

But before this becomes mistaken for a pile-on-Geiger fest (which certainly is not the intent and would be rather silly), the premise of the senior not measuring up to Ledbetter's effect could also be flat out wrong.

Additionally, there are so many factors which invalidate such contrasts.

Such as:

The additions of frontcourters Wendell Faines and the now departed Dazmond Starke had many, including moi, predicting an even better inside game for Coach Don Verlin's squad in 2011-12 and that has not come to the fore.

*** Paint production is a chicken and egg situation as inside scoring threats produce better looks from outside and also vice versa (although in fairness neither Faines nor Starke were expected to be double figure scorers).

A positive in the paint however this season is 6-foot-8 Djim Bandoumel, now averaging 9.5 points per game overall but 13.0 in WAC action. For comparison sake, he scored 3.1 points a contest early last season before being sidelined by academics.

Maybe the absence of Luiz Toledo is felt but then would Bandjoumel be achieving at his current propensity if splitting time with Toledo?

Then there is the whole Kyle Barone situation, of which it's worth noting that he is averaging two more shots a contest this season.

But then there's the emergence of Stephen Madison as a double-figure scorer (12.0) versus last season's 3.7 points per game.

All of these miscellaneous items makes this entire post a veritable to-may-to/to-mah-to analysis conundrum with just too many uncontrollable factors, thus eliminating any "I can tell with certainty that ..."

But before closing, if anyone has the total for Idaho's points-in-the-paint last season and the figure to date, please pass them on for comparison's sake. It currently 'feels' -- there's that word again -- like a lesser percentage but, of course, that actually means nothing. What is is what's important.

======

Speaking of numbers, Idaho Assistant Media Relations Director Spencer Farrin recently posted some interesting Vandals statistics:

* Idaho is shooting 46.4 percent overall and 38.3 percent from 3-point range in the final five minutes of regulation this season. Vandal opponents are shooting 39.7 percent overall and 27.0 percent from 3-point range during that same span. Idaho has also hit 70.1 percent of its free throws in the final five minutes. In the team’s 13 wins this season, the Vandals shot 47.2 percent from the field, 40.9 percent from 3-point range and 70.4 percent from the free throw line, while limiting opponents to 36.6 percent shooting overall and 25.5 percent 3-point shooting. Idaho’s top crunch-time shooter is Landon Tatum, who has a 61.5 percent overall clip and a 71.4 percent 3-point percentage in the last five minutes of regulation this season. Deremy Geiger has made 89.7 percent (26-29) of his free throws in the last five minutes of games.

* Last season, the Vandals earned 48 three-point plays and converted 33. With six regular-season games and at least one WAC Tournament contest remaining, Idaho has already earned 50 three-point plays and converted 34 of them. Junior center Kyle Barone led the team last season with an 8-of-9 success rate in those situations, and he leads the team again this year with 11 conversions on 17 chances. Seven different Idaho players have converted an and-one opportunity this season.

* Idaho started the season 1-5 in its first six games decided by five points or fewer, but the Vandals have won their last six such games since the 63-59 home win over Fresno State. The last time Idaho had a similar streak in close games was Don Verlin’s first season, 2008-09, when the team also tallied fivr straight wins in close games