If there?s one issue from last season that new Stanford men?s basketball coach Jerod Haase wishes to address in 2016-17, it?s the team?s lack of assists.
The Cardinal finished dead last in the Pac-12 in assists last season, dishing out just 11.7 per contest. Stanford also finished last in scoring with 69.6 points per game ? the only team in the conference to average less than 70 ? and one of the worst field-goal percentages (42.6 percent).
Haase believes those numbers are connected. Based on what the coach has seen in practice, however, that shouldn?t be a problem this season.
?We want to be a high-assist team,? said Haase, whose team will leave Saturday for China, where it will face Harvard in Shanghai on Nov. 11. ?We?re moving the ball well and moving ourselves well. We?ve done a good job of emphasizing that and a good job of incorporating that into what we?re doing.?
Better ball and player movement will lead to more quality shots, according to Haase.
?The strength of our team is our interior,? the coach said. ?We want to get them touches as often as possible. I?m not opposed to 3-point shots, but we want to be more productive in our inside game.?
The Cardinal finished dead last in the Pac-12 in assists last season, dishing out just 11.7 per contest. Stanford also finished last in scoring with 69.6 points per game ? the only team in the conference to average less than 70 ? and one of the worst field-goal percentages (42.6 percent).
Haase believes those numbers are connected. Based on what the coach has seen in practice, however, that shouldn?t be a problem this season.
?We want to be a high-assist team,? said Haase, whose team will leave Saturday for China, where it will face Harvard in Shanghai on Nov. 11. ?We?re moving the ball well and moving ourselves well. We?ve done a good job of emphasizing that and a good job of incorporating that into what we?re doing.?
Better ball and player movement will lead to more quality shots, according to Haase.
?The strength of our team is our interior,? the coach said. ?We want to get them touches as often as possible. I?m not opposed to 3-point shots, but we want to be more productive in our inside game.?
