NCAA Tournament 2019: Strengths and weaknesses of Midwest Region teams
No. 9 Washington Huskies
Strengths: The Huskies won the Pac-12 regular-season title but were knocked off in the tournament final by Oregon, despite a down year for the conference they were awarded an at-large bid. Mike Hopkins was a longtime assistant of Jim Boeheim at Syracuse so it is no surprise that Washington plays zone on defense, and Hopkins has the perfect roster fit for the defense, no starter is shorter than 6-4 and with that kind of length, passing zones are at difficult to find. That length also leads to the 5.7 blocks per game which are only behind Duke’s 6.8.
Weaknesses: The Huskies are one of the worst rebounding teams in the country, only 22 teams pull down fewer rebounds per game and their 22 defensive rebounds per game are even worse, ranking 340th in the country. On offense, the Huskies can struggle because the perimeter shooting can be inconsistent and outside of Jaylen Nowell there isn’t much in the way of consistent scoring to look at.
No. 10 Seton Hall Pirates
Strengths: There aren’t many teams in the country that play better on-the-ball defense than Kevin Willard’s Seton Hall Pirates. Their goal isn’t to turn you over, although they do force over 14 per game, they stay with their opponents on the perimeter and try and force you to take bad contested shots. That type of defense leads to a lot of fast break opportunities and the chance to get the ball in the hands of their dynamic guard Myles Powell.
Weaknesses: As dynamic as Powell is, he has a tendency to have questionable shot selection often relying on step back jump shots instead of attacking the rim. There can be times when the Pirates think they are a good three-point shooting team, they aren’t, only shooting just over 32% on the year. If Seton Hall isn’t attempting to get inside the lane, that is a good sign for their opponents.
No. 11 Ohio State Buckeyes
Strengths: Chris Holtmann and his team ended up on the right side of the bubble, and their defense is a big reason why. They allow just over 66 points per game and their opponents shoot just 41% from the field. In the tournament close games usually become the norm and the free throw line becomes even more important and the Buckeyes shoot it at over 73% from there.
Weaknesses: With just two double-digit scorers in Kaleb Wesson and C.J. Jackson for a team that scores just 66 points per game, the offense can and has been a major issue at times for Ohio State. Another problem for Ohio State is they don’t have a ton of size and that leaves them vulnerable to get eaten up on the glass, ranking outside the top-170 in all three rebounds per game categories.
No. 12 New Mexico State Aggies
Strengths: The Aggies are a winning program, having averaged 26 wins over the last three seasons, including 30 so far this season under head coach Chris Jans. They are balanced on both ends of the floor, scoring over 78 points per game and giving up just 64. On the glass, they are very good as well, the 3rd best team in rebounding margin and a top-20 team in offensive rebounds per game at nearly 13 per game. The balance is also because of their depth, 13 players play double-digit minutes, which keeps them a lot fresher than some of their opponents.
Weaknesses: The Aggies fall in love with the three-point shot, ranking 8th in total attempts and 23rd in total makes, the problem is they only shoot the shot at 33.5%. The Aggies like to initiate their half-court offense with spacing, so if they are forced to go inside the paint to initiate their offense that becomes a problem and they struggle to get points in their offense.