Wyoming Cowboys
Mountain West (19-13, 7-9)
RPI: 100
Big Wins: 12/13 vs Northern Iowa (74-65), 1/14 San Diego State (83-79), 3/12 vs New Mexico (75-67)
Bad Losses: 12/3 at Boise State (85-86), 1/17 at UNLV (66-83), 1/21 at TCU (78-79)
Coach: Heath Schroyer
Probable Starters:
Brandon Ewing, Senior, Guard, 18.4 ppg, 5.1 apg, 3.3 rpg
Sean Ogirri, Senior, Guard, 14.8 ppg, 2.2 apg
Afam Muojeke, Freshman, Forward, 13.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg
Tyson Johnson, Senior, Forward, 13.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg
Adam Waddell, Freshman, Center, 4.9 ppg, 3.8 rpg
Key Roleplayers:
A.J. Davis, Freshman, Guard, 2.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg
Mikhail Linskens, Sophomore, Center, 2.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg
Djibril Thiam, Sophomore, Forward, 5.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.0 bpg
Why They Can Surprise:
Few teams get to the free-throw line as often as Wyoming. And once Wyoming is there they usually take advantage of the situation. Brandon Ewing is the team’s superstar and he gets to the charity stripe an incredible 8.5 times per game. However, everybody expected Ewing to score a ton of points. Tyson Johnson, Afam Muojeke and Sean Ogirri have stepped up and complimented Ewing very well. Johnson, a 6-6 forward, shoots 5.7 free-throws per contest and has developed into a superb interior scorer.
Muojeke gets to the line a lot too and he can also knock down the occasional long ball. Sean Ogirri is the long range specialist. Unlike everybody else, Ogirri does not shoot free-throws very often since he spends most of his time out on the perimeter, but the former Wichita State Shocker is a great scorer. All four of those players average over 13 points per game and everybody but Muojeke hits over 80 percent of their free-throw attempts.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The Cowboys can score a ton of points in a hurry, but they can also give up just as many. The scoring defense is just plain bad and part of the problem is a lack of a shot blocker in the paint. Johnson and starting center Adam Waddell can block a few shots, as can Djibril Thiam and Mikhail Linskens, but nobody is a very intimidating threat, at least from a shot blocking perspective, under the basket. Still, the Cowboys have plenty of options and they can collectively make an impact on the defensive end.
Who To Watch:
Ewing is the unquestioned leader of this team. And he has been for quite some time. It seems like he has been around forever and the Cowboys wanted to send him out a winner. A trip to the postseason is not a bad way to end what has been a great career. Ewing is a dynamic scorer and it takes a dynamic scorer to reach the 2,000 point plateau. But Ewing is also the point guard and has to play as close to 40 minutes per game as possible due to a lack of a backup ball handler. And it is never a bad thing to have such a capable scorer on the floor either. Ewing is used to playing a lot of minutes and that should not wear him down at the end of campaign, especially when every game could be his last.
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 76.0 (52nd in nation, 2nd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 75.0 (310, 9)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.7 (48, 3)
Field-Goal Defense: 43.2 (158, 7)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.5 (138, 6)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 36.2 (85, 5)
Free-Throw Percentage: 72.9 (49, 3)
Rebound Margin: 1.3 (144, 5)
Assists Per Game: 12.9 (179, 5)
Turnovers Per Game: 14.2 (196, 9)
Joel’s Bracket Says: Elite Eight loss to Nevada
