The Rhode Island Rams entered Atlantic 10 play averaging 85.7 points per contest and an 11-1 record. Now, the team is 1-2 since league play, and would be 0-3 if not for another signature Sebastian Thomas moment, while scoring just 61.3 points per game…what changed?
There are three main factors that have played into the drop off in scoring, all of them fixable but some will take more time than others.
The first factor is senior forward David Green, Green has been dealing with a shoulder injury he suffered on Dec. 21, 2024 in the Rams win against Temple University at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Massachusetts. Green started the Rams two league opening games against Duquesne and George Mason but was not available in the loss to George Washington on Wednesday. Green scored 7 points in each of the matchups, shooting just 27% from the field over the two games. URI Head Coach Archie Miller called Green’s injury “significant” and added “I don’t have a timetable for either guy,” the other being David Fuchs who missed the GW loss as well. Green was seventh in URI single-season three point shooting a season ago, while averaging a team high 14.3 points. If Green misses significant time Rhode Island will need to adjust, will senior guard Jaden House slot back into the starting lineup? He started every game a season ago and scored 14.1 points per game; he tallied double digits against the Colonials in 28 minutes off the bench. Miller could go large with forward Drissa Traore who started in place of Green on Wednesday but Traore isn’t much of a scorer. His highest point total in a game this season is just 8, which is also a career high. Either way the Rams will need to replace Green’s production and it’s up to Miller and his staff to determine what path is the correct one.
Secondly, rebound and turnover issues. Rhody has had turnover issues for some time now, first noticeable in its first defeat against Brown University on Dec. 10, 2024. URI is giving away 11.7 possessions per game in league play, with 15 against GW. Boomerang transfer Sebastian Thomas is still averaging more assists than TOs in league play, but the margin isn’t as wide as previously hoped. Thomas has 10 assists and 7 giveaways in the three conference matchups, but he has been the main bright spot for Rhody so far. Guard Jamarques Lawrence has taken up a secondary ball handler role, where he excelled during non-conference, with 7 turnovers during the three games. The group as a whole needs to do a better job protecting the ball. The Rams have been outrebounded in two of the three games since league play began, but they were missing the teams best rebounder in Fuchs against George Washington. Rhode Island has the height to succeed on the glass but have not found its groove since A-10 play began. These issues can be fixed and with Thomas leading the charge there’s a large chance they will.
Lastly, the slow starts and lapses in scoring all together. The Rams have trailed at the break in all three conference games and have climbed back into the last two. URI went over 10 minutes scoreless against George Mason but freshman guard Cam Estevez’s triple before the break kept Rhody within double digits at half. The Rams would come back to win that game on Sebastian Thomas’ floater and foul but could not overcome halftime deficits against GW and the Dukes. The men in Keaney Blue did take the lead against GW in the second half but having to claw back into the game is not a good place to be. Rhode Island need to play better in the first half of games, as the group average just 27 points in the first half during A-10 play. URI are 3-23 from behind the arc during first halves in conference play, a low total of just 13%. Estevez has struggled this season, making under 29% of his three point attempts. A season ago Estevez shot 41.5% from three in his rookie season, a highly respectable mark. Estevez and Rhody need to get going in the first half because playing from behind every game is not a recipe for success.
Rhode Island will look to correct its issues and fill the hole Green left on Saturday at 6 p.m. against Richmond, its third true away game.
