Brian Minicus Finds Success Off-ball in Victory Over Atlas
“It’s great, especially on this field I was fortunate enough to play a couple of high school games on that field so it’s great to play on familiar turf,” said Minicus. “And to have those guys up there was an extra bonus. I knew a few of them were coming, but I didn’t know the army was coming and yeah they seemed to enjoy themselves.”
With increased versatility to their offense and more threats to utilize, there’s a new sense of life in this Chaos unit. With all the talent throughout this offense, they’re knocking on the door of a 15-goal performance each game.
“We’re just really lucky to have an offensive group that reflects the joy of being out there and being able to compete at the highest level in the game they love,” said Andy Towers in the post-game press conference.
It’s not the individual accolades that make Minicus special, but the new sense of versatility he’s brought to the offense has had a big impact.
Chaos’ Indiana Set
The “Indiana” set, which they use as a framework when attacking from X, has become prominent since Minicus arrived.
The 1-1-4 set has led to X becoming Chaos’s most efficient area to dodge from.
Chaos has shot 17-for-55 (31%) when initiating from X, good for second in the PLL. They’ve created the most shots when dodging from behind and have their best shooting percentage compared to any other area they initiate from.
With Tye Kurtz given the opportunity to play his natural position of attack against Atlas on Saturday, Dhane Smith came out of the box. Matching up against a short stick on numerous occasions made it ideal for Dhane to be the invert initiator.
Mainly the primary initiator from X, Minicus had to find another way to impact the game. Against Atlas, Minicus added another layer to his already deep bag of tricks – off-ball finishing. He was able to capitalize by rolling off the crease and finishing backdoor passes.
