JR Weighs in on Senior Night

Courtesy of JR:

I'll be in Memorial tonight for Shan's farewell tour. JRI and JRII will be there as well, along w/ several other Tupelo Rams. I'll snap some photos and upload 'em to DailyDore tomorrow.

State is a tough matchup for us. They play excellent defense, rebound as well as any team in the conference, but they also shoot a high percentage (since they get a lot of easy buckets around the rim). However they're last in the league in FT%, and they don't shoot the 3-ball particularly well either.

I'm especially worried about how Nelter will match up with Rhodes, who's big and athletic. Beal also faces a stiff test in Jamont Gordon, who'll likely be playing in front of a lot of family and friends, since he grew up in Glencliff just outside of Nashville. I wonder if they'll put Gordon on Shan, as there other guards are shrimps. We'll need a big night from Red and AJ, and hopefully Metcalf has a big final game as well.

If the game is up-tempo, I like our chances. If they can force a grind-it-out defensive slugfest, we're in trouble. We have more depth, so if we can wear them down w/ the B team and keep the game close, we'll have an advantage down the stretch.

It sucks that Vandy's early spring break always ensures that our students miss Senior Night. CKS should file a petition to move it back so the students could hit up the SECT and/or Big Dance over the break.

I've seen that we're a 4.5 favorite, which I think is a bit generous. CKS is 1-7 career on Senior Night, which does not bode well. However, this year apparently they've moved the festivities to being after the game, so maybe that will help. State is 5-2 on the road in the SEC this year; we are 17-0 at home. Should be a good one.

Dores.