We asked coaches who have seen Amherst play this season to weigh
in on the Lord Jeffs. Here's what they said:
How to beat Amherst
- Play them straight up and guard them – they exploit
traps, pressure, zones, junk, etc… with their great size,
vision and unselfishness.
- They are very dangerous in transition – must make them
play in the half-court and guard.
- Your half-court defense has to be better than their half-court
offense, and you must do a great job winning the
physical battle on the glass – you have to find a way to get
the ball back.
- Contain Toomey, make him work for everything, stay tight on him
on step backs – he will make 1-on-1 plays when their offense
doesn’t work, and he can get a little hungry and force
against good defense.
- Recognize Workman as a playmaker – he’s not just a
talented scorer, he facilitates – sometimes more than Toomey.
Must contain him.
Starters
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2 Aaron Toomey
6-1 Jr. G
- Quick, skilled, hungry scoring point guard. More than half his
attempts are 3’s and he has deep range.
- Smart, great vision, can make others better but likes to
score.
- Quick first step, very good hesitation, will go right or
left.
- Plays physical – seeks contact in paint on pull ups and
floaters. Also will hunt help defender on ball screen and act
to get a call.
- Excellent step back shooter, even from deep. Must stay
tight on him. Great FT shooter.
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1 Willy Workman
6-6 Sr. F
- Lefty talented, bouncy, smart face up
forward.
- Athletic playmaker who makes others better when he drives
– finds open teammates.
- Good 3-point shooter (40% of his attemps are 3’s) who
likes to pull when trailing in transition.
- Will use pump fakes and step through moves when stopped on
drives – stay physical on him.
- Aggressive energetic offensive rebounder.
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54 Peter Kaasila
6-9 Sr. C
- Big, strong post who plays physical and wants to bury you for
position – limited skill but has improved.
- Where he catches it is key – very effective close to the
rim, less effective the further out he gets.
- Most comfortable over left shoulder with jump hook or short
jumper – but has added a little right shoulder/left hand post
game this year.
- Physical and aggressive offensive rebounder.
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10 Allen Williamson
6-4 Sr. G
- Physically strong, athletic wing who likes pull up jumpers and
plays mostly inside the 3-point line.
- Likes to post up off of back cuts.
- Prefers strong drives to his right for pull ups.
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22 Tom Killian
6-4 Jr. G/F
- Sneaky athletic wing who is primarily a catch-and-shoot
guy.
- Must make him dribble and pressure him – will put
his head down and go hard to the rim when going right, likes
one-bounce pull-up when going left.
- Aggressive rebounder who will crash the boards hard.
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Key reserves
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30 Ben Pollack
6-7 Fr. F
- Skilled, somewhat green backup post.
- Not very physical. You can make him uncomfortable by playing
tough on him.
- Will shoot jump shots out to 15 feet and likes to turn middle
when he catches it in the post.
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24 Connor Green
6-4 Fr. G
- Hungry wing who comes off the bench hunting shots – loves
quick pulls in transition.
- More than half his attempts are 3’s and he will take and
make contested 3’s.
- Must pressure him and chase him off the line – against
pressure he goes to hard righty drives.
- Quick release on his jumper – must be tight on the catch
and make him dribble.
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11 David Kalema
6-0 Jr. G
- Athletic guard who is a driver by nature but can make a step-in
3 – makes about one per game.
- Key energy guy for them who has really helped them when they
are sluggish – been an X factor for them off the bench.
- Good off the bounce, likes to use a fake spin to create
space.
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