There is a pretty strong correlation between tempo/pace and scoring. It's generally accepted that tempo -- even more than shooting -- is the biggest factor in scoring. The idea is you would make the same percentage of shots whether you take 25, 50 or 100 per game, so the more you take, the more you make.
Think back to the stellar Princeton teams of yesteryear. They were usually among the lowest scoring teams in the country despite their success. That's because they controlled tempo -- on both ends of the floor. They were a good shooting team but because of the slow pace they preferred they didn't take as many shots as most teams. Since their opponents were usually more athletic, they used tempo to mitigate that disadvantage.
Obviously, there are no guarantees here but last year, with no point guard and seemingly no offensive system, we played very slow. Having Clark holding the reins of the offense has to be an improvement.
However, it's our defense that will have to fuel our tempo. Somehow we forced 66 more turnovers than we committed last season. Unfortunately, our opponents made 49 more shots on 143 fewer attempts and outrebounded us by nearly three per game.
Live ball turnovers will allow us to get out and run and hopefully score easy baskets. Likewise, we'll need to improve our rebounding -- again with the hopes of creating fast break opportunities. Perhaps most importantly, we have to be much better in the half court in general. We were outscored by about 8.5 points per game and allowed a 46..5 FG percentage.
