Previewing Western Carolina

2008 Scouting Report / 2007 Scouting Report
2008 Schedule
2008 Roster

Western Carolina Offense 06-07

Four Factors	Percent	Nat'l Rank
eFG%	46.4	282
Turnover Rate	19.9	87
Off Reb Rate	32.9	189
FTM/FGA	22.3	260

Western Carolina Offense 07-08

Four Factors	Percent	Nat'l Rank
eFG%	43.9	317
Turnover Rate	22.6	195
Off Reb Rate	36.2	86
FTM/FGA	17.4	313

Larry Hunter returns to the RBC Center, and he's brought... oh man, what is that smell? Throw it away, Larry, it's gone bad. Whew.

At 87.2 pts/100 poss, WCU ranks 313th in offensive efficiency. Five games into the season, the Catamounts' leading scorer left the team:

WCU spokesman Daniel Hooker would not discuss the nature of Aldridge’s team-rules violation except to say the issue occurred during practice before the Elon game and that Aldridge did not break the law.

Aldridge was a massive part of the offense--his usage and %shots numbers both ranked in the top five nationally. He wasn't exactly lighting it up, though, as he was only shooting 42.9%.

The Catamounts are a perimeter-oriented team, and while they don't shoot it well from outside, you can't say they aren't playing to their "strength."

 2FG%(Rk)     3FG%(Rk)
32.8 (239)   40.6 (321)

Starters:

Michael Porrini (6-2, 185) -- WCU's point guard and leading scorer. Boasts an anomalous 9.8 offensive rebounding percentage.

Brigham Waginger (6-2, 175) -- Nothing if not a possession-killer. Despite being a low-usage player, he's horribly inefficient. He'll mostly shoot from outside. When he doesn't turn the ball over.

Brandon Giles (6-6, 200) -- Giles is taking 28.2% of WCU's shots, the highest proportion on the team. As a sophomore, he's become a better outside shooter and taken better care of the basketball, which makes him the most prudent scoring option.

Arnold Gore (6-6, 210) -- Invented the turnover.

Jake Robinson (6-8, 205) -- Three-quarters of his attempts came from three last season, and he hit over 40% of them. He's easily their biggest three-point threat. Horrible rebounder, though.

Bench:

Blake Gallagher (6-8, 240) and Eric Wilson (6-1, 210) will get most of the work.

Gallagher has shot the ball well in limited opportunities, and he is an excellent rebounder at both ends.

Western Carolina Defense 06-07

Four Factors	Percent	Nat'l Rank
eFG%	54.6	317
Turnover Rate	22.0	121
Off Reb Rate	34.7	230
FTM/FGA	49.0	321

Western Carolina Defense 07-08

Four Factors	Percent	Nat'l Rank
eFG%	51.0	206
Turnover Rate	22.6	134
Off Reb Rate	34.7	214
FTM/FGA	41.7	262

Should be another field day for the Wolfpack inside the arc. The Catamounts do a bit of fouling, too:

       PF/40min
Gore     6.3
Giles    4.9
Wilson   4.9