Bullet points on Wharton’s loss to South Miami

• The Wildcats started on fire. Out running and gunning South Miami. Early looked like the more talented and athletic team
• Wharton scored 16 1st quarter points but then just 2 points of free throws in the 2nd quarter
• Cats shot 33% from the field and 19 % from behind the 3 point line.  Tough day shooting the ball
• Wharton did a pretty good job scoring points in the paint. 20 of their total 38 points came inside the paint. South Miami scored 24 points inside the paint
• Jaken Grier led Wharton in scoring with 13 points, 3 of 7 from the field. Was very involved early. Active on both ends of the court
• Though Wharton was outsized at every position, size did not Kill them.  Artravious Simmons was a handful. scoring 16 points and 15 big rebounds.
• Wharton is an outside/in team.  They depend on the fast pace game, beating the defense in transition and scoring a lot of fast break points.  It worked to perfection early in the game when South Miami was sleep walking and Wharton was getting up and down the Court.  Once S. Miami started to play some defense and Wharton was forced into a half court set, nothing was going inside.  The motion offense was revolving around perimeter passes and all S. Miami did was extend the defense.  Wharton did not show an inside presence.  Chase Litton, who Wharton has been leaning all all year to clean up inside, did all he could to neutralize South Miami’s big man and work the glass.  Tough going as Litton ended with 6 rebounds, none on the offensive glass and 4 points.
• There were no real staggering statistics that heavily favor S. Miami except for second chance points.  S. Miami scored 7 second chance bucket and Wharton just 1.
• Wharton was not outmatched!  They jut did not work the inside of the paint and took far to long to find a slashing player, hit an open shot or force the issue.  The ball was moving around the 3 point line and not inside out to compress the defense and make South Miami’s Simmons work.  He was not active on defense because he did not have to be.