It's no secret that, since ACC play opened up, Sammy Zeglinski has reached a certifiable scoring drought in his game. While he's found some success every now and then, or even during an entire game here or there, you can't, as Florida State football fans will tell you, simply declare that he's "baaack" just by virtue of some glimmers of success.
Consider that, prior to ACC games, Zeglinski shot 29-of-67 from beyond the arc, or 43.3%. However, in only conference games, this number dropped drastically, to 12-of-45, or 26.7%. His season average from last year was 38.7% (compared to 36.6% this season).
Part of this, of course, can be attributed to increased talent levels in the ACC, as compared to the likes of George Mason, Seattle, Towson or LSU, all games in which Zeglinski shot 50% or better from the three. But against Florida State this past weekend, Zeglinski came up short four times -- all four catching nothing but the sound of a ball whizzing through the air, not a net, rim or backboard to be found.
While Bennett blamed a couple of those air balls on tipped balls, he also noted that FSU simply rushes a shooter's delivery more than most teams.
"It wasn't that he was leaving it short," Bennett said on the ACC's teleconference yesterday. "He certainly shot them strong, but I didn't see anything particularly from, I guess, a square up technique or an issue that looked different in his shot."
But in the world of college basketball, it's, "What have you done for me lately?" Following the FSU game, many fans started calling for Malcolm Brogdon to be inserted into the starting lineup in Zeglinki's stead. Brogdon, a freshman, averages 35.9% from the field, including 31.5% from beyond the arc.
When asked about whether he would consider playing Zeglinski off the bench, Bennett said that, while it's not out of the realm, he doesn't think that that's the answer. Bennett noted that, in a six-man rotation, everyone is going to get a lot of minutes. He also complimented Zeglinski's guard play, even if his shot wasn't necessarily going in.
More follows the poll and jump.
"It's just a matter of finding the right kind of looks to impact the game as many ways as you can, including shooting, but also in the other areas. So I feel like that wouldn't necessarily be the [solution]. But, again, we'll just keep looking at how things go."
I have to agree with Coach here. While Zeglinski's shot was nothing short of atrocious against the Seminoles last week, he plays with more hustle than just about any other player out there. He's bringing to the court a lot of things that don't show up in box stats, and in a world where points are all that matters, he's getting the short end of the stick.
Brogdon, while many argue is the more consistent shooter of late, is still just a freshman and continues to make freshman mistakes -- I have in my mind, in particular, him trying to go up on two big men, without the strength or space to do so, and ultimately turning the ball over.
But looking at the numbers, I'm not really sure that, all things considered, he is the more consistent shooter. In ACC play, Brogdon is shooting just 5 of 18 from beyond the arc, or 27.8%. Where his numbers are better, though, are in his overall percentage from the field -- 18 of 49, or 36.7%. Zeglinski, on the other hand, is just 17 of 60, or 28.3%.
Part of that can be attributed to a more consistent shot. Another part is, does anybody have any doubt that Bennett is telling Zeglinski to just keep shooting the ball, hit or miss, because we are all assuming that the shot will find its way back to Zeglinski? On the other hand, if Brogdon is given free reign out there, I'm not entirely convinced that he'll be able to maintain his 36.7% shooting (which already is nothing to phone home about).
Plus, if you think he's shooting poorly now, what do you think will happen to his confidence if this fifth-year senior gets benched for a freshman?
For me, I like Zeglinski. I think that while Brogdon plays very well and has the energy to be a starter, Zeglinski's intangibles aren't something that's easily replaceable -- whether it's his defense, his leadership, his swagger, or whatever else you want to call it. But I'm just one man's opinion. What do you think, Wahoo Nation?