Farad Cobb Season In Review

The Numbers

• 8.5 points, 14.1 per 40 minutes
• 2.5 rebounds, 4.1 per 40 minutes
• 1.4 assist, 2.4 per 40 minutes
• .382/.333/.792 shooting splits

It was a long and winding road that brought Farad Cobb to the hallowed halls of the University of Cincinnati. After playing for Chattanooga in his freshman season, he transferred to Northwest Florida State College, where he was a 15 points-per-game scorer for the Raiders. (You get 10 points if you knew NWFSU's nickname was the Raiders without using a search engine). Cobb made his third stop in as many years when he became a Bearcat, but it looks like he is here to stay.

Cobb's most important role on the team was as a 3-point marksman. While he may not have ripped the nets like Steph Curry, he was never afraid to hoist up a triple, taking a team-high 159 shots from downtown. He also made a team-best 53 of those attempts. Kevin Johnson was second on the team in both categories, with 123 3-point tries and 43 makes. It was no surprise that Cobb made a living on the perimeter, after he nailed 46.3 percent of his treys with NWFSU. However, the increased defensive pressure that came with a higher level of competition obviously took a toll on his efficiency. Still, Cobb was a nifty scorer for the Bearcats, ranking third on the team in points per game, which can never be overlooked for such an offensively-challenged squad.

While his surface numbers support him as a strong offensive force for the team, there is still a lot of room for improvement. Cobb was just sixth on the team in true shooting percentage (.513) and player efficiency rating (16.3), while ranking seventh in effective field goal percentage (.485). To his credit, Cobb boosted his play in conference play, putting up a PER of 19.4 in such contests.

Finding his own shot never seemed to be a problem, but getting his teammates involved was another matter all together. Cobb was far from the only offender, considering the Bearcats offense was often a stagnant mess, but right now we're just putting the lens on the 6-foot native of West Palm Beach. Cobb only had a 13.8 assist percentage, while assisting on 1.4 field goals per game. The slow pace at which Cincinnati plays (340th in possessions per game) doesn't lend itself to a litany of chances to drop dimes, especially for a reserve player who was brought on to shoot, not pass.

The Best of the Best

Wednesday, November 19 vs. Morehead State

In his first game in a Bearcat uniform, Cobb missed two 3-pointers and finished with zero points in 13 minutes. In his second, he did much, much better. He drained 6-of-9 shots from beyond the arc and finished with 24 points, both marks he would never match the rest of the season. However, at the time it appeared that the Bearcats had found the ever elusive 3-point sniper that could push them forward offensively. Cobb may not have lived up to that hype, but just having the memory of this game in their arsenal had to give confidence to Cincinnati fans and players alike.

Wednesday, December 17 vs. No. 19 San Diego State

This was a major resume-booster for both Cobb and the Bearcats. The team survived with a 71-62 win in overtime against the nationally ranked Aztecs, and Cobb tied for a team-high with 12-points, while grabbing five boards and handing out two assists. Of course, 12 points can get lost over the course of a game, but Cobb made sure three of his came in crunch time, as he drilled a triple midway through the extra sessions, fresh off grabbing his fifth rebound on the previous possession. The shot put the Bearcats up 64-60. Of course, if you'd like a visualization of the type of fatality Cobb had in the game, just keep scrolling.

What? You want more ankle snapping crossovers? Fine. Here you go.

Wednesday, March 4 at Tulsa and Thursday, March 19 vs. Purdue

In his second and only other 20-point game of the season, Cobb knocked down 4-of-7 3-pointers and hit 9-of-14 from the floor en route to a 22-point game in which he played 32 minutes. Then, just a couple weeks later, Cobb helped the No. 8 seed Bearcats topple the No. 9 seed Boilermakers 66-65 in overtime,  scoring a team-high 14 points, including a critical layup in the additional period.

For Next Year

Although he's only been on campus for one season, Cobb is one of the elder statesman for a deep and experienced Cincinnati team. He, along with Octavius Ellis, Shaq Thomas and Coreontae DeBerry will all be seniors next season, so there needs to be leap forward made not only in terms of production, but in that abstract grey area pundits call leadership.

In more tangible terms, Cobb's main focus should be on improving his offensive effectiveness. Cincinnati needs all the scoring it can get and it would really benefit from a 3-point shooter sinking around 40 percent of his shots, rather than 33, as Cobb did last season. Clearly, Cobb will have the green llght to keep firing and he has the confidence to do so as well. All he has to do is start making a few more and he could be in for a huge senior season, as could the Bearcats as a whole.