Rev_AK

One thing that may have diminished the dominance of Coach Knight a little, was the advent of the shot clock, and to a lesser extent, the 3 point shot. 
I say this because if coach had a 3 point lead in the 2nd half, they could stall and put a lot of pressure on the opponent. To be honest, Dean Smith and his “four corners” did some of the same things. High School games are more exciting when it’s close and there is no shot clock. It’s almost like some of the rule changes were made to keep teams from holding on to their lead. I also feel like the 3 point shot led to guys jacking up 3’s in practices and not working on simple things like lay ups and free throws. 
Being 49, I lived thru these changes to the game as I played in elementary and middle school. I feel there are aspects of the game that were more pure and fundamentally sound before those two major changes.

And don’t get me started on palming/ carrying the ball. I think of a Kyrie Erving and many other NBA’ers today who would have been called for violations faster than a JHS double dribble.

Anyway, the game seemed more pure back then. 

Trayce fell back to Earth a little tonight even though he has something like 21 boards. Seems to be slightly rattled. 
No excuses, BUT, this team is very hobbled right now. 
This one was there for the taking. 
On to the next

Last year we cried out for CMW to have the team work on 3 point shooting. This year can it be not falling for shot fakes?

Part of the foul problem is IU leaving their feet for every shot fake.

If people think we are stuck in ‘87, what about the guy they keep showing in the Len Bias shirt?

Winnable game, but we need someone who will step up and stop Young driving. And someone else who will score the ball besides TJD

IU looking like the team we were expecting. 
Im stoked about the Purdue game, hope they don’t overlook Maryland. 
Banks played with energy and hustle and it made a difference. 
Hope JG is not in a boot for long, as my only negative is that Race is not quite back to his old self yet.

altogether, things are trending up

Missing Fife right about Now

Just now, kyhoosier29 said:

Trayce also missed his fair share of bunnies. Certainly not without fault.

That has been a baffling part of his game since the beginning of his career. But I think his play recently earns him a bit more leeway, otherwise, I agree.

Ramberg doing his best Falzone ( from NW a few years ago) imitation. 

There’s always a guy who goes off against IU who hasn’t done anything all year or blah blah.

Kids seem to be feeling the pressure of this being a must win game. Shots rushed, ball looks slippery. 
 

Normally I am against a Big bringing the ball up since Hollowell during the FCTC “point forward” days. But, I have a different spin tonight. Trayce is our Senior All American Captain and seems to be wanting to will IU to a win. Couldn’t trust some of the guys to do anything, so he brought it up himself. I hope his leadership and will will help preserve this game, it’s not a must win, necessarily,but it IS a game we can’t afford to lose. 
Hopefully, we will finish this one out. I don’t want to go back to the ledge with the bandwagon fans after a late night loss.

“I think the offense tonight looks great.”

-Matt Ryan

Our boys playing some ball now!

I think this is what this team has been capable of, and why so many people were frustrated. I’m thrilled with the effort the last 2 games

To me, it seems like CMW was cognizant to the grumbling from the fans. Duncomb played, Leal even played. Substitutions were better and more related to the flow of the game, and this was by far the best game since UNC. Let’s hope this is something we can build on and seize the momentum! 
Also hope a certain QB got a lot of love and realized the impact he can make at IU

Back to Life.

I am not in the fire Woody camp yet, but I’m not happy with the direction of the program. I wanted to believe the hype this year, but for me, the Rutgers loss was the beginning of my serious doubt. I think CMW is a victim of the fanbase’s PTSD, and I hate it that we are so quickly turning against one of our favorite sons, and an all time great. There were so many boxes he checked, but the tactical one, ala coach RMK, doesn’t seem to be one of them. I’m not ready to give up on the team, but I think CMW gets paid enough to have to deal with the fallout from all of this. I don’t think he’s “the guy”, but who is? I’m not ready to go on social media and call him out, and especially not the players. It makes is look like our blue-clad brethren to the south, and living here in New Albany, I am seeing the hateful things their fans are doing, and they have had an infinitely better 20 years than we have had. So… I’m kind of ambivalent at this point. The worst part about the fall of IU is the apathy. That’s the worst.

I don’t understand why guys on other teams are able to drive on IU practically at will, and we can’t seem to stop it. It seems like Hoiberg exposed IU for the inability to stop the drive last year, and it looks like we have not improved. Buie tore us up on the drives today. I don’t understand why the other teams sometimes get wide-open 3’s at points during games, and it looks like a turkey shoot. I’m not a defensive expert, but it seems like there would  be some kind of adjustment. Honestly thought the zone was a decent adjustment. Coaching seat warming up. I hate that.

Can’t wait to play UK.

in the NIT

IU seems 1/2 step slow on just about everything. Mis timing passes, rebounds…just seem to be doing everything wrong. Out of sync.

This one was one of the more frustrating games of the many in the last 10 years. My brother called out this morning from his job, and I deeply considered it.

I’m at work, so I don’t have time to rewatch, but I did look at texts during the game and was commenting to friends that both JG and MR looked “lost.” A bigger concern to me than the injuries is how some players appear to be regressing. I don’t want to harp on these kids with the mild example TJD shared this week, ( I am sure he has gotten far worse) so it doesn’t matter to me what half it was in- they have both regressed. Only a couple of years ago, Geronimo and Leal helped Archie beat Iowa at Iowa, against a better Iowa team than the one we saw last night.

My concerns are several. One, the aforementioned regression of players. Although the McCaffery clan are all punks, them criticizing our handling of a zone is not the first time ( or last time) we have heard that. Subbing multiple people in with a large lead against a team who has made their living coming back on us may not be the wisest choice, especially in the first half. 
injuries have played a huge part in out losses this year, but starting at the Rutgers game, I think I am seeing the same old IU, ( not the Old Old IU) but the IU since Samson left. We need to temper our expectations and find a way to deal with it. 
Having said that, there is still plenty of season left, and the last thing I want to do is put a bunch of young men on blast who have to deal with something the “Old” IU never dealt with. The only insults they got were from RBK, not hundreds of bitter fans behind a keyboard- it’s a new era.

Effort was not even bad last night.

But after 1 1/2 seasons, I’m having my doubts about Woodson. 
Not saying I’m ready to get rid of him, just want to say that there have been some squandered opportunities.

“I think Woodson is coaching a heck of a game.”

-Jeff Saturday

Feeling really salty now. I have to say I have reserved judgment, but after a season and 1/2, I can say I don’t think CMW is a very good tactician. Also, we may need a new strength and conditioning coach, as we seem to be injured disproportionately. ( just kidding…or AM I?) 

To the trolls out there that question TJD, I am admiring him giving his all tonight. 
To the XJ haters, he makes a huge impact. 
This just really stinks. We are better than this. 

Bsllgame

Trayce becoming a liability. Gotta put in Malik and even Duncomb.

Frustrating team to play against. Never seen a team panic more with a lead than this team for at least the last 5 years, maybe longer. I’d unleash Logan Duncomb, but I wonder if Trayce sits too much, will the back tighten up?

3 hours ago, NAHoosier62 said:

Thanks for sharing!  I was there to witness that shot.  In the first semi-final New Albany beat Andrean and Dan Dakich in another nail-biter.  Stacey Toran was quite an athlete and played in the NFL for the Raiders.  He was killed at 27 in a car accident.  Broad Ripple also had a pesky little point guard named King Duke.  New Albany was favored to win the Championship.  It just wasn't meant to be.  For anyone interested, here's a good read on that tournament and what Indiana high school basketball meant to the town.

New Albany loves basketball – and 40 years ago that love was rewarded with ecstasy then agony | KentSterling.com

I believe that game was one of the reasons Dakich was always so hateful to Romeo- calling him “shoe guy”- because of sour grapes over that game. I was 6 years old and watching it on some kind if cable feed they had. NA has a rich basketball tradition but never gets mentioned with some of the northern schools. Great sports school. We currently have 1 NBA player, 1 MLB player, and one in the NFL ( Rondale Moore, who also played basketball)

Bates trying to show off for his family has really hurt the team today. The missed layup was out of control, he’s jacked some ill-advised 3’s and clearly missed Trayce open several times. Should have gotten the hook sooner, but I guess without X there were not a lot of other options. I’m not wholly impressed with coaching today. Feeling grumpy but not ready to bail on this season