Tag: Halftime

Halftime analysis of the Rams’ Week 6 matchup vs. Panthers

The Rams face a three-point deficit at halftime and have some serious work to do to get back in contention in the second half.

The Los Angeles Rams are looking to get their season back on track against the Carolina Panthers in Week 6 and face a three-point deficit heading into halftime. They have managed to hold Carolina to just three points on offense and took the lead on a pretty pass from Matthew Stafford to Allen Robinson in the second quarter before a pick-six put them back down by three.

This crucial game will come down to the Rams’ ability to score points in the second half. If they can’t make something happen on offense, they will drop to two games below .500 heading into the meat of their 2022 schedule.

Here are our key takeaways from the team’s first-half effort against the Panthers in Week 6:

First half analysis of Rams’ Week 4 of matchup vs. 49ers

The #Rams are down by eight points at halftime in their Week 4 matchup against the #49ers

The Los Angeles Rams were thought to be capable of escaping their Week 4 tilt against the San Francisco 49ers with a win, but that notion is in question at halftime.

Los Angeles struggled to move the ball on offense through much of the first half. Constant pressure by San Francisco’s defense has kept Matthew Stafford mostly at bay, though the two scoring drives he led gave some indication that the offense might get in gear at some point.

The team has let the 49ers make a few too many big plays on their defense, and are ultimately lucky to only be down by just one point. It will take some serious re-evaluation of the Rams’ game plan at halftime for the team to come back and win this game. San Francisco has all of the momentum and the benefit of a home crowd.

Here is what we saw from Los Angeles’ first-half performance against the 49ers:

3 takeaways from the Vikings first half vs Lions

Things aren’t all sunshine and rainbows for the Vikings at halftime

After the first half of week 3 against the Detroit Lions, the Minnesota Vikings are tied with the Lions at 14 a piece.

The game didn’t start off really hot, as both teams missed field goals on their first possessions. After that, both teams settled in and started executing their game plan.

It felt like two separate games as the Lions dominated the first quarter and the Vikings played much better in the second.

Here are the 3 main takeaways from the first half.

First half highlights from Texas vs. Texas Tech

Texas leads Texas Tech 24-14 at the half.

Texas and Texas Tech are currently locked into a dog fight through one half of football in Lubbock.

The Longhorns got on the board early with a quick three-play touchdown drive, capped off by a 35-yard touchdown reception by Keilan Robinson.

Texas Tech’s offense answered with a gritty 18-play scoring drive, converting two fourth downs on the way.

Hudson Card followed with a nice drive to set Texas up for a field goal.

The Red Raiders kept the foot on the gas on driver No. 2. Tech scored in 13 plays this time to take a 14-10 lead. A costly pass interference penalty on 3rd down and 26 by Texas extended the drive for Texas Tech.

Steve Sarkisian’s squad responded by ending the half on a 14-0 run. Hudson Card found Xavier Worthy on a 39-yard bomb.

A beautiful two-minute drill executed by Texas’ offense got Bijan Robinson into the endzone to take a 24-14 lead into halftime.

Here is a look at the first half highlights of this Big 12 matchup.

Key takeaways from first half of Jaguars’ Week 1 matchup vs. Commanders

Here is how the #Jaguars fared in their Week 1 matchup against the #Commanders.

The Jacksonville Jaguars got off to a bad start in their regular season opener against the Washington Commanders. Their offense was unable to muster more than three points, and the defense gave up 14 points in the first two quarters.

Neither side of the ball has made enough plays to advance the team’s cause in the first half, and Jacksonville faces an 11-point deficit heading into the game’s home stretch. With 30 minutes of football left, the Jaguars will need to get into gear if they intend on making a comeback at FedEx Field.

Here are our key takeaways from the first half of Jacksonville’s first game of the season:

Tennessee-Ball State: Vols’ halftime stats leaders

Tennessee-Ball State: A look at the Vols’ halftime stats leaders

Tennessee kicked off its 2022 season Thursday at Neyland Stadium under second-year head coach Josh Heupel.

The Vols lead Ball State at halftime, 38-0.

Tennessee’s 2022 regular season schedule also features home games against Akron, Florida, Alabama, UT Martin, Kentucky and Missouri.

The Vols have road contests at Pittsburgh in the second edition of the Johnny Majors Classic, LSU, Georgia, South Carolina and Vanderbilt.

Tennessee football: Vols’ season-opening game results since 2000

Tennessee football: Vols’ all-time results on Thursday

Vols Wire looks at Tennessee’s statistical leaders at halftime.

Tennessee’s halftime stats leaders for passing yards, rushing yards, receiving yards, tackles and interceptions are listed below.

Watch: Brad Holmes tells NC A&T marching band they’re playing Lions halftime show

Lions GM Brad Holmes told the marching band at his alma mater, North Carolina A&T, they’re playing Detroit’s halftime show in Week 1

Detroit Lions GM Brad Holmes is a proud graduate of the University of North Carolina A&T. Now Holmes gets to give back to his alma mater, and he did so in a very cool way.

Holmes addressed the Aggie marching band via teleconference to let them know they’ll perform at halftime of the Lions’ season home opener against the Philadelphia Eagles. The reaction from the Blue and Gold Marching Machine says it all:

The Lions have typically stuck with Detroit-based musical acts for halftime performances. Bringing in the extravagant HBCU marching band is a welcome change of pace. The fact that it has a connection with Holmes makes it even better.

The NBA Finals will be decided in the third quarter

Boston is -35 in the third quarter through Games 1 and 2.

Here’s a breakdown of scoring by quarter between the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics through two games of the NBA Finals.

First quarter: Warriors 63, Celtics 58 (5-point margin)
Second quarter: Celtics 48, Warriors 43 (5-point margin)

Halftime margin: 0

Third quarter: Warriors 73, Celtics 38 (35-point margin)
Fourth quarter: Celtics 64, Warriors 36 (28-point margin)

The numbers that jump out are in the second half, and the largest margin is the third quarter where the Warriors have a 35-point advantage. Each game went to halftime with a two-point margin, and each game was blown open in the third by the Warriors. They outscored Boston 38-24 in the third quarter of Game 1 and 35-14 in the third quarter of Game 2.

Boston was able to lead a furious comeback in the fourth of Game 1, thus the large margin there. But overcoming double-digit deficits against a team this good is not something the Celtics can or should rely on going forward. If they want to win this series, they need to do a better job carrying over the same intensity and effort from the first half into the third quarter.

It’s not simply a matter of the Warriors heating up, either. While the third has been their highest scoring quarter of each game, it’s also been the lowest-scoring quarter of each game for the Celtics. Boston’s 31% shooting in the third is their lowest of any quarter.

It’s difficult to pinpoint any one reason why they’re coming out of halftime flat, but one potential reason could be the adjustments of Warriors coach Steve Kerr. A three-time championship coach with even more NBA Finals experience to boot, he’s likely more in tune with what his team needs to hear and do, and what counter-adjustments might be necessary. Celtics rookie coach Ime Udoka apparently hasn’t cracked that combination yet.

Another thing to consider is simply that this has been a hallmark of the Warriors under Kerr. In their best years, the Warriors have always been a team that could use the third quarter to overcome halftime deficits — no matter how large — or turn a five-point lead into a 25-point lead. That ability had diminished in recent years, including this season, as player departures and injuries took effect. But now that the roster is mostly complete again, it’s possible that it’s returned.

The Warriors have scored at least 35 points in the third quarter of six games this postseason, best in the NBA and already more than half the amount of times they did it in the regular season. The Dallas Mavericks are the only other team to do it more than twice this postseason. The Celtics have only scored that much in the third quarter once this postseason — in the first round. Their third quarter net rating has plummeted from a league-best 11.8 in the regular season to -7.6 in the playoffs.

If you eliminate the third quarter of Games 1 and 2, these teams have been close to even. So if the Celtics fix the issue, they have a good chance to beat the Warriors and claim their first title since 2008. If not, the Warriors may be headed for a fourth title in eight years. After two games, they’re only slightly favored to do so at -115 odds to Boston’s -105 on Tipico Sportsbook.

[tipico]

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO).

[listicle id=1906797]

[mm-video type=video id=01g4gk0vnc4bqs56jvj0 playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g4gk0vnc4bqs56jvj0/01g4gk0vnc4bqs56jvj0-f7ecf4992c64e742e98f5c5b880e2207.jpg]

Key takeaways from first half of Chiefs vs. Bengals AFC championship game

The first half of the #Chiefs vs. #Bengals AFC championship game is in the books, and here is what we’re taking away:

The beginning of this game has been an absolute masterclass by the Kansas City Chiefs on both sides of the ball. They lead the Cincinnati Bengals by 11 points heading into the half after near-perfection on offense. The defensive game plan has also limited the Bengals’ biggest offense star. Cincinnati started to get their feet under them on offense in the second quarter, as did their defense with a stop to close things out. Kansas City gets the ball to open the second half, which could prove to be the dagger.

Here are our biggest takeaways from the first half of the Chiefs’ AFC championship game against the Bengals:

Key takeaways from first half of Chiefs vs. Steelers Week 16

The first half of the #Chiefs vs. #Steelers Week 16 game is in the books, and here is what we’re taking away:

The Kansas City Chiefs have taken a commanding 23-0 lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first half of the game. At this point, it feels like the Chiefs are just biding their time in this one. A win against Pittsburgh will mean that Kansas City has notched their sixth consecutive AFC West win and seventh consecutive postseason berth.

Here are our biggest takeaways from the first half of the Chiefs’ Week 16 game against the Steelers: