Last year in the NCAA Tournament, Jakob Poeltl couldn’t be counted on to make a late-game free throw, and teams knew it. This year, it’s a different story, and Poeltl hopes he can make his sophomore season at Utah worth it.
Most people expected Poeltl to declare for the 2015 NBA Draft after a freshman season full of potential, but he surprised everyone instead by electing to stay another year in college, and it proved to be a wise decision. Last year he averaged just 9.1 points per game compared to this year, where he is averaging 17.6. His rebounds per games is also up from 6.8 to 9.0. He was named Pac-12 Player of the Year and, if he declares, is a potential lottery pick in the upcoming NBA Draft.
While he won’t necessarily say what exactly his plans are after the NCAA Tournament, he is making sure to do one big thing — everything he can to help the Utes move on to the next round.
“I don’t want to go into this tournament thinking it could be my last tournament,” Poeltl said. “I know it might be last tournament, so I’m just going to go in it and try to enjoy every second, try and make the biggest run possible, play as many games as possible.”
Head coach Larry Krystkowiak thinks Poeltl is what makes this Utah squad unique. In today’s game, where shooting reigns supreme, teams don’t typically have a go-to guy down in the paint. But with Poeltl, this is arguably Utah’s strength, and Krystkowiak has no plans on changing Utah’s recipe for success.
Aside from Poeltl’s height, which presents a problem for plenty of teams, a lot of players are unfamiliar with passing the ball down low. Basketball has been more of a guard’s game, as of late, so throwing a player like Poeltl into the mix kind of disrupts the flow. However, it works to Utah’s advantage.
“It’s a lost art. There’s fewer and fewer throwback centers,” Krystkowiak said. “With that, we’re losing some of the skill. We’re throwing the ball into the post. Just the simple skill of feeding the post. A lot of kids grow up, and they’ve never had to throw it to anybody in the post.”
Krystkowiak thinks Poeltl continues to improve each day he is in the gym and it shows when the game starts, but he is not doing it alone. Krystkowiak attributes part of Poeltl’s success to the play of the other Utes because without it, Poelt wouldn’t be nearly as effective.
In the same breath, Krystkowiak knows Utah has its best shot at winning with Poeltl leading the way.
“We need everybody,” Krystkowiak said. “There’s a correlation with the backcourt playing well. But we still are going to start with trying to get him the ball, whether or not there’s double-teams and different things to focus on.”
Poeltl will continue to power his way in the post, no matter what or who he is up against. At times, teams try to play him straight up, they double him or they even triple-team him. Whatever it is, Poeltl isn’t too worried about what his defenders are doing. He is worried about what he and his teammates can do to score.
“I’m just going to take whatever they throw at me,” Poeltl said. “If they come and double me, I’ll find open teammates. And if they don’t, I’ll be aggressive and look for my own shot a little more. I’ll see what comes to me, what kind of game plan they have, and I’ll adapt to it.”
If the game is on the line, and Poeltl has to go to the charity-stripe to knock down a pair of free throws, where he is shooting 68.9 percent this year, both Krystkowiak and Poeltl are confident he can get the job done.
“I know I feel good about it, but I think Jakob feels good about it,” Krystkowiak said. “These games will come down to some little things. As silly as it sounds, the free throw is going to be a big part of it. It’s comforting to know he can make three out of four.”
@kbrenneisen