URI Is Shooting Well on 3-Pointers But Terrible From Charity Stripe

Saturday, February 03, 2024

Jim Malachowski, Sports Columnist

In their first game of the season, the first three-point shot arched through the air and swished through the net. Hitting their first three-pointer of the season was a good omen for the URI Rams. Last season, URI shot 30.4% from behind the arc, which ranked them 343rd in the country. Less than 25% of their points came from threes, placing them in the bottom 30 of all Division 1 teams. 

 

Hitting threes and field goals but terrible in foul shooting

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It was important for URI to improve their three-point shooting this year, and they have. URI is shooting threes at 35.65%, placing them at 56th best in the country. This is a significant improvement over last year. 

This Ram team is also shooting well from the field. They shoot 46.8% from the floor, which is second in the A-10. What is strange about this team is they are a good shooting team but are terrible from the foul line. On free throws, they shoot only 62.4%, which is last in the A-10 and one of the lowest free throw percentages in the country. 

Generally, teams that shoot three-pointers well also shoot foul shots well. In the A-10, with one exception, the top seven three-point shooting teams are also in the top seven in free throw shooting. URI is an exception, ranking 4th in three-point percentage but last in free throw percentage. No other team in the league has that type of spread. 

 

Three for me, two for you

Hitting one-third of your three-point shots is the same as hitting half of your two-point shots. If a team can shoot more than 33.3% from beyond the arc, they are better off increasing the number of three-point attempts they take in a game. This point expectancy plays a factor in a coach’s strategy and is driven, in part, by how good the team is at shooting threes. When asked about this math, Coach Archie Miller said, “I think that equation works well when you have tremendous shooting.”

  

URI-low number of three-point attempts

These Rams do not take many three-point shots, as Miller does not focus on shooting threes. Opponents have attempted 100 more threes than they have. The Rams average 18.2 three-point attempts per game, which places them 310th out of 351 teams in Division 1.

Miller was asked about the low number of three-point attempts and responded, “We stress shooting more threes as the season continues. I would love to be able to get another half dozen good looks on threes.”

Miller continued, “We are taking more threes now, and we are taking better threes. We are starting to get more rhythm threes as guys are starting to understand where the shots are coming from.”

Miller also pointed out that three-point shots, in part, are connected to defense, “We are not creating a lot of turnovers… and our defense has not been great. A lot of times, when you are able to get stops and transitions, threes come that way as well. We are not getting the simple ones that a lot of teams get.”

 

URI’s offensive strategy – pound the ball inside

Miller has not emphasized shooting threes because they are not part of his core offensive strategy. He wants to pound the ball inside and has said, “We are a team that is built to attack the rim, get fouled (and) we have a lot of different guys who can play that way.” He stated, “We have a unique way of getting the ball inside.” When you get the ball inside, you get fouled more often, and getting to the line is part of the strategy. Miller has said, “We are getting fouled at an unprecedented rate.” 

Statistics back this up. URI averages 22.7 foul shot attempts per game, which ranks them 44th in the country.

 

Poor foul shooting hurts offensive strategy

The shortcoming in Miller’s strategy is URI is terrible at shooting foul shots. They have the worst foul-shooting percentage in the A-10, and it’s costing them games. Their 81-78 loss to Fordham was the most recent example. The Rams made only 60% of their foul shots, which included 7 for 15 in the second half, missing critical free throws down the stretch. After the Fordham game, Miller said, “In a one-possession game, when you get fouled and earn the right to get to the foul line, you need to make them, and you can’t come up empty, and we kept coming up empty.”

The team’s terrible foul shooting is hindering Miller’s offensive strategy. The Rams score 73.4 points per game. If their free throw shooting were 10% better, it would move their points per game from 10th in the A-10 to 4th and place them close to the top third in the country for points per game. More importantly, they would have a few more wins under their belts.

URI’s foul shooting finally came through during the LaSalle game. The Rams had one of their best free throw shooting nights, hitting 18 of 27 attempts for 66.7%. Significantly, during the last two and a half minutes of a very close game, they hit 5 of 6 foul shots to secure a two-point victory.

 

Threes fire up the crowd, and the team

Shooting and making threes certainly helps an offense. In addition to the extra point, there is an intangible benefit to hitting a three-point shot. The crowd gets excited when one of these long arching shots is all cotton. The bench explodes. The shooter puts the obligatory three fingers into the air, and a burst of energy runs through the stands and team. 

 

The power of the three-point shot

The power of the three-point shot was on display when URI hit an astounding 60.9% on threes, making 14 of 23 in their win over UMass. This percentage exceeded the team’s solid overall field goal percentage of 52%. For this game, 47% of the Rams’ scoring came from threes.

URI was on the other end of a great three-point shooting effort when the University of New Hampshire came into the Ryan Center and made 13 of 24 beyond the arc for 54%, handing the Rams a disappointing defeat.

 

To three or not to three

The question for the Rams is whether to three or not to three. As a typical coach, Miller wants it all. He will continue his strategy to feed the bigs down low but also wants his team to shoot more – but better, three-point shots.

Two goals for the Ram’s offense are to improve their foul shooting and attempt more three-pointers. URI can garner more victories in A-10 play if they accomplish these two goals.

 

 

The statistics in this article are as of 2/1/24.

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