Wofford and BYU are actually fairly similar. They play a tight 7-man rotation. They are even more undersized than the Cougars and rely on hustle and tenacity. They have a guy pegged as the Jackson Emery-like defensive stopper (Jamar Diggs). They have a Brandon Davies-like player in the post (Noah Dahlman), who isn't the biggest guy or the most physical, but he plays smart and he knows his limitations and how to exploit his advantages. He is a much more prolific scorer than Davies is now, but Dahlman is a senior, and Davies, only a sophomore, may become that over the course of the next two years.
The 7-man rotations look like this:
6'6" 235 pounds vs. 6'8" 230
6'6" 228 pounds vs. 6'6" 210
6'6" 215 pounds vs. 6'6" 210
6'6" 200 pounds vs. 6'8" 195
6'2" 180 pounds vs. 6'5" 215
6'1" 190 pounds vs. 6'3" 190
6'0" 180 pounds vs. 6'2" 195
Wofford is a little beefier on the top and a little smaller on the bottom. What BYU lacks in thickness, it makes up for in height. Physically-speaking, this is certainly going to be BYU's best draw in any tournament game. The further they go, the worse it will get for them.
Wofford shoots at an amazingly high percentage, and they score a lot of points. They are weak in rebounding, but strong in defense. While it's tough to trust the stats, as they played much inferior competition, it can show you tendencies.
Wofford played in the tournament last season and played Wisconsin tough. They will not be shell-shocked. They played 4 NCAA Tournament teams this season, going 1-3. They lost by 8 at 12-seed Clemson, lost by 15 on a neutral court to 6-seed Georgetown, they lost by 4 in triple OT at 6-seed Xavier, and beat 8-seed George Mason in OT on a neutral court. They will not be intimidated. They know they can play with the Cougars.
As far as the game goes, BYU is probably going to do one of two things: shoot poorly and anything can happen in a tight game or shoot lights out and win by 20. This game is all about how BYU plays on offense, Wofford will not be able to overcome a good shooting night by BYU. If BYU is scratching and clawing its way through, then Wofford may be the first 14 to get the job done this tournament. With that said, I don't think Jimmer will be denied Thursday night in Denver. He will win the game by himself if he has to. He will draw contact/fouls, and test that 7-man rotation of the Wofford Boston Terriers. He will get out and run in transition and wear those sea-level boys out. I'll call it a tight contest at halftime, but BYU steps on the gas in the second half in a relatively high-scoring affair. Call it 80-70 for the BYU Cougars.
How did I do, Shane?
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