BOSTON – The Colonial Athletic Association has some teams that are tough to figure out, to be certain. Throughout college basketball, there are teams with whom one doesn’t know which one will show up on a given night. And it seems no team fits that description in the CAA better than Georgia State, who fell to 4-10 in conference play with a 62-53 loss at Northeastern on Wednesday night.
Ever since Rod Barnes took over, expectations for this program have been high. A first season marked by close losses while several transfers sat out raised expectations for his second season, perhaps unfairly. It’s never easy for a new head coach in the second year because many times, the team is full of newcomers. Barnes had the added challenge of having to integrate those newcomers with some good holdovers as well. The Panthers came along later in the season after being up and down for much of the campaign, setting the stage for this season.
Expectations were perhaps a bit diminished after they didn’t make a big jump last season, but there were reasons to think the Panthers could at least be in the top half of the CAA. They had a manageable non-conference schedule that wasn’t loaded with tough road games, and as they played better in the latter part of last season it stood to reason they would enter this season in better shape. They also started the meat of CAA play with a stretch of four games in eight days where they would not be in classes, and Barnes felt that might help them start stronger after a tough stretch last January.
As part of February is in the books, the Panthers look very much like a streaky team. The numbers back it up: their ten losses in CAA play have come in three streaks of five, three and now two consecutive losses. But it goes beyond the team; on an individual level, consistency has been hard to find, so not only does one not know which Panther team will show up on a given night, but also which players will come through if they win or keep it close.
Barnes isn’t frustrated by a lack of effort. He feels it’s been there, and felt it certainly was on Wednesday. Instead, it’s the end result.
“I told the guys I’m not frustrated with them overall because they’re giving me great effort,” said the third-year head coach. “I’m frustrated as a coach because I don’t know when that moment is going to come when we’re going to make the plays.”
Wednesday night was one such example. On a few occasions, the Panthers had some momentum, including a 10-0 run to take the lead in the first half. However, as has been the case often this season, it was short-lived, and the game was tied at the half. They then spent a good portion of the second half playing catch-up, but to no avail. They were able to hang in, but that was all.
Look up and down the roster, and it’s not hard to see that this team has talent, as well as experience, but the consistency one would expect of a team with six seniors has been lacking aside from Dukes and, to a degree, senior Trae Goldston. Trey Hampton had a double-double against Howard in November, but didn’t reach double figures in scoring or rebounds again until four weeks later. He had 22 points against Towson, then didn’t score in double figures until he did so in three straight later in January, and prior to his 16-point effort on Wednesday night had 21 points and 12 rebounds in four games. Ousmane Krubally has on a few occasions followed up a double-double with three or four games with little to show in the stat sheet, and Xavier Hansbro hasn’t been very different. Sophomore Jihad Ali has shot the ball well from long range, but his four double-digit scoring games have all been separated by several single-digit games. And not helping at all is that Dante Curry hasn’t given them the offensive boost off the bench he gave them last year.
It’s no wonder Barnes never knows when his team is going to make the big plays. He also never knows when someone might have a solid game or an off night.
The window is closing on the initial group of players that came when Barnes took over. He took a chance on several transfers, and it doesn’t appear to be paying off, so maybe building around younger players will. Ali and classmate James Fields have shown promise, as has freshman big man James Vincent. Barnes is not about to throw in the towel on this season, as one might expect, but as the regular season winds down it’s fair to say that a lot needs to come together in a short time.
“This is the best team in our league, and I thought we played them well on their home floor, so let’s just keep on working, get to the tournament, and see what happens,” Barnes said of Wednesday’s game.
Barnes feels the Panthers could be a dangerous team in the CAA Tournament. They certainly have the talent and experience for that to happen, and in recent years there have been teams in the bottom half that have made a surprise run in the tournament. If Georgia State becomes the latest, it would certainly fit with the way this season has gone. They’ve been a tough team to figure out already.
