Jerome Tang wants K-State guard PJ Haggerty to stop worrying about drawing fouls
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Jerome Tang urges PJ Haggerty to shoot decisively instead of hunting fouls.
- Haggerty’s free-throw attempts have fallen to 7.3 per game amid Big 12 defense.
- Coach notes Haggerty’s scoring rose to 23 PPG, so free throws needn’t define him.
Shortly after PJ Haggerty missed a potential game-tying shot from 3-point range in the final seconds of a 59-54 loss at West Virginia, the junior guard extended his arms out in frustration and flashed a confused look at the nearest official.
Haggerty thought he was fouled on the shot, which bounced harmlessly off the backboard. So much so, that he contorted his body in a way that guaranteed he would make contact with the nearest WVU defender as he began an off-balance shooting motion.
He wanted to know why he wasn’t heading to the free-throw line.
Interestingly, his coach had a different reaction.
Instead of joining his player and protesting for a foul, K-State head coach Jerome Tang approached Haggerty and shared some critical words.
“I want him to rise up and shoot the basketball, not worry about the foul,” Tang said later. “He’s a shot maker. Rise up and make the shot. He felt he got fouled, but you can’t worry about a foul in that situation, even though it happened to us before.”
If Haggerty had quickly gone into a normal shooting motion, he likely would have gotten a clean look from beyond the arc. But he hesitated and tried to make a more difficult shot through contact.
Haggerty could have tied the game by draining the outside shot or by drawing a foul that was worth three free throws. But neither of those scenarios played out, and the Mountaineers went on to win.
A few moments earlier, Haggerty tried to make a layup over a pair of WVU forwards. On that play, Haggerty also appeared to go out of his way to make contact with his defenders in an attempt to draw a foul before missing.
Fox Sports analyst Nick Bahe had a similar reaction to Tang after both of the no calls.
“Haggerty has gotten too hyper-focused on drawing the foul,” Bahe said on the broadcast. “Sometimes it’s about getting a good shot off and not seeking out contact.”
It has been hard for Haggerty to learn that lesson this season.
Haggerty was the king of free throws before he transferred to K-State. As a sophomore at Tulsa, he averaged 10 trips per game to the charity stripe and scored 237 points while there. A year later at Memphis, he averaged 7.8 free throws per game and scored 224 points at the line.
Tang described Haggerty’s ability to get to the free-throw line as his “superpower” at the beginning of his junior season. But he is only averaging 7.3 free throws with the Wildcats. It’s still a big part of his game, but he is on pace to have his least productive year as a starter from the stripe.
Playing in a strong conference could help explain the drop in attempts. Big 12 defenders know how to contest shots without fouling better than their counterparts in the American. But Haggerty’s overall scoring is up a tad from his Memphis days. He averaged 21.7 points with the Tigers. He is currently averaging 23 points with the Wildcats.
Tang has taken that as a sign that Haggerty doesn’t have to live at the free-throw line to score. And he hopes Haggerty realizes that the next time he tries to make a clutch shot.