I can see why you say this considering the discrepancy between raw individual talent and results. It's a fundamental human tendency to explain behavior in terms of personal dispositions rather than the situation (i.e., what's happening on the court). But if you sit near the bench, you can see the engagement is total and the effort is max. I actually appreciate these guys from the top to the bottom of the roster for hanging in there and fully supporting one another despite the embarrassing results.

They're trying, but they aren't always trying to do the right things. It's not just the raining of three-point shots; if they were going in, we'd be celebrating. The problem is that so many of those shots are bad shots. Watch the feet of the shooters and how often they are not set. It's not that there is no defense or just lazy defense. Watch the positioning that doesn't prevent what the opponent wants to do (like cheating in the direction he wants to go), the footwork, anticipation, playing defense with arms and hands instead of feet. We're getting out-musculed on rebounds not just because of muscles but also for not blocking out. And if you want a statistical clue as to what's wrong with the offense compare assists/made FG this year to to the 20-win years we've had since 2018. (I haven't run the numbers because MY motivation and inspiration are too low at this point). These fundamentals are what we have come to know as Loyola basketball. This team needs to get back to them.

We are 18th in the country in assist rate (assists per made field goals). We've been top 50 in eight of the past nine seasons. I don't love all the shots we take, but we're just plain missing, as you said. Defense is by far the bigger problem.

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I see them on the bench too supporting one another, which I do appreciate. But when I watch on the court, I see guys watching loose balls. I see guys not boxing out. Guys doing a light jog down the court as the opponent is breaking away. All of those, to me, are effort-driven.