Rev_AK

Nothing much to say. To quote the late Dennis Green- IU “is who we thought they were.” 
Now we know that this team was not worth all the hype, but that’s ok. There is plenty of time to make corrections and get better.

Disappointed in the lack of intensity, though. That IS something that is frustrating. Also do not think the coaching staff has been prepared for AZ and Kansas. Or, could it be that there is still a size able gap between IU and the big dogs? Otherwise, we all need to eat some humble pie, and wait for the REAL reason we did a home and home with Kansas- to see them at the Hall. 

1 hour ago, mrflynn03 said:

It certainly didn't help Arizona had a 7 footer and a 6'11" guy on the floor with another coming off the bench.  

IU has been lacking size for a very long time. Seeing a lot of criticism of Trayce, but our roster could use a 7’ banger, and have needed one for years ( see 2 games vs Purdue on the schedule) . Dickinson, Kofi, and teams with large bigs have always been a weakness for Trayce- but maybe that is more because he is 6’9” and less about anything else. What I wanted to see would have been to mirror what Rutgers did to us, and double team Ballo when he got the ball down low. Threatens to leave an open shooter, but might have saved a foul or two and some fatigue for Trayce. Bad matchup for us. Happy with the heart they played with

I was impressed with Bates. At one point, he basically pushed Reneau into position on offense, then went up and tried to encourage X and Race who are seniors. Feel like he’s coming along. I figured 8-3 or 9-2 would be very likely going into B1G season. People need to stay calm, and realize at this point we are good but not great. Tournament team, but not quite championship team just yet. Plenty of season left. This formula of playing good teams in December has paid off really well for Izzo and others. Sky not falling yet!

This is more like it. This is how they are capable of playing.

So much of this is mental. Only explanation for why they shoot so much differently on the road. Allen Fieldhouse looming in the distance 

I thought from the beginning of the season that we could lose2-3 games during the non conference slate. I’m ok with that. Rhat im not ok with is losing to Rutgers. The sky is not falling but this is reality. Winning the B1G is not given to us just because we are Indiana. No one is scared of us now, at least not outside SSAH. Hopefully JHS is not out long

Rutgers has our number. What an impact JHS has made on this team. Not time to panic, but there has been a lot of hype and over confidence. Hopefully they can understand what it is going to take to win road games this season. Allen Field house looms. 

Lander to Rhode Island?   J/k 

Chiming in from work here.. I usually haven’t worried too much about the rotation and such, and usually leave it to the coaches.

I just don’t want the bizarre changes that FCTC made, that seemed to kill momentum,  as well as FCAM seemed to have some strange habits as well.

This past season, we all noticed how CMW made some wholesale substitutions during the first half, as well as kept the starting 5 in at the beginning of the second, when during some games, they were ineffective. With as many close games as we lost, one could argue that some of those miscalculations cost us a game or two. So now, it is something I pay more attention to. 
 

back to Microsoft Teams meetings!!!!

What to do with XJ is Woodon’s call now. I am disappointed in him, but will refrain from commenting negatively against him on social media platforms because I am grown man, and I have my own children to worry about. I will say that trying to evade police and pulling into a parking lot to switch places with someone is very shady, and sometimes when people are trying to out run cops, very dangerous things can happen. My cousin has been in law enforcement for 15 years or so and has gone through several vehicles because of others’ reckless driving. I was really proud of X, for changing my mind about him earlier in the season. If he stays at IU, there can be a lot of success waiting for him, but he is going to have to prove himself all over again. Without Fife, and now Matta, some voices that were supposed to help guide Woodson are gone, and although others have stayed, it feels like Woodson is solely in charge now. ( maybe that is the way it should have been from the get go?) As I have said elsewhere, it is extra painful to have to have this kind of drama juxtaposed against a fabulous final four game between Duke/UNC, and watching a program like UNC go thru a resurgence, and like UK in the early 90’s, they were not dormant for long. This 20 year funk is getting harder and harder to deal with, but I am IU for life. In a lot of ways, I am glad it is not my burden to bear. Good luck to Coach Woodson. First time I have been whimsical about the Archie Miller days- usually pretty quiet off seasons.

8 minutes ago, Lostin76 said:

 

So basically, the kids ARE reading this, watching our reactions. Not that it justifies them doing stupid stuff, and not that other teams fanbase’s don’t do similar things… But sometimes when the chips are down, we should rally around our team and each other, instead of taking out 20 years of frustration out on them. After watching a dazzling ballgame last night, and seeing an all “blue blood” final four, there is extra saltiness because we know that we are no longer relevant on a National stage. ESPN will not be watching our every move, and won’t show highlights unless we are ranked, or getting spanked by a ranked team. And days like today, it just feels like another ( albeit possibly very small) step in the wrong direction. Again.

4 minutes ago, IUFLA said:

Twitter?

#iubb, yes- sometime yesterday 

1 minute ago, IUFLA said:

?

Can’t find it, but there was a poster yesterday who was praising Hood Schafino and at the end took an unnecessary dig at Lander. TJD responded to it, and rightly so. 

I’m disappointed in this. Not as much as what may have happened- college kids do stupid things.XJ is temperamental, and seems like he is going to have ups and downs. But we don’t know the facts, and so far no one’s head was run over that we know of. ( Devin Davis reference) After watching TJD interact with a bitter fan yesterday who criticized Lander, and seeing the absolute disparity between the talent I saw in the UNC/Duke game, ( which was everything that we would have wanted an IU/Purdue Final Four match up would be) It has finally dawned on me exactly how far we have fallen. I am disappointed in the distance IU is from where they are and where we want them to be. Or feel like they should be. Whether this is a big deal or not, it isn’t good- I’ll with hold any judgement about XJ the person, because he is young. And mostly because it isn’t my responsibility. If our fans continue throwing shade at kids on social media, it WILL scare off recruits. But, couple this with Matta leaving, and the Fife situation, and it is apparent there will only be one person accountable if the restoration of IU basketball is delayed further, and that is CMW. So, hopefully this is the end of off season disappointments, but something tells me it isn’t….

St Peters living our ultimate dream of beating UK and Purdue in the Tournament. We chanted IU sucks at the TV when Ivey’s shot missed. ( still hate KY more) lol

By all accounts, Rob seems like a really good kid. I feel like he is someone who paid more attention to negativity on social media  more than others do. Always someone I rooted really hard for, wanted him to succeed. The shots just wouldn’t go down. 

Phinese entering portal

Wow, Ark is tough. Lotta contact in that game. Lots.

I think most of us have politics fatigue. Our country is polarized and it has even pervaded deep into churches and religious organizations. My theory is that the spread of social media 10-15 years ago has changed discourse, and not for the better. We are no longer able to discuss our beliefs openly, and now days there is fear of being blacklisted, canceled or whatever they call it. I think most of us are older guys, and mature enough to handle different points of view, however, this is about basketball and IU basketball at that. It used to be fun to talk that way, as men, in the barber shops and town squares and all. Not anymore. So, to me, it doesn’t really have a place in our workplaces, and also on message boards about our favorite escape- IU basketball. ( is it really my favorite anymore????) 

in this situation, there are some connotations that this polarization filtered into some of the reasons Dane Fife was let go. Unless Dane or Coach tells us directly, we should try our best to let it go, or go to the political forum and have at it. There seem to be other legitimate reasons he was let go, including that it just wasn’t a good fit. For my part, I think all of this is really fun, believe it or not

Just now, btownqb said:

Hey man, after everything I've heard, I want DF gone.... and I'm more then willing to assume I align with his political opinion. 

I just can understand that basically forcing that opinion on my players is not a good thing. 

Absolutely. I totally agree! Just that… I think that bringing the political piece into the conversation changes people’s opinions so much about Fife- from heir apparent to “I’m glad he’s gone.” ( not meaning you) 

Fife did not mesh with CMW, and probably needed to go. Just seems like there was some extra hot sauce thrown on it, from the way it was handled down to Rabjohns “spilling the beans” post.

I think it is safe to assume that the chip on Dane’s shoulder we all loved as a player may have remained there as an adult and coach, and that maybe he was a bit argumentative?

I’ll add another thought, it will be much harder for the “insiders”, “fanboys” , blogs, etc. to get real concrete info moving forward. 

In all honesty, I think the fanbase’s love of Fife as a player, and that he played much more recently in people’s minds and memories than Woodson, had carried over in to a disproportionate love of him as a coach. I like Fife, but never really heard too much of his exploits as a coach. The thought that he was heir apparent was part of the overall mindset as well.

To understand how toxic political discussion is, especially in a University setting where only one view is widely accepted, or “tolerated”, so to speak, all you have to do is see the reactions by fans who are now saying they are glad Fife is gone.

I agree that definite damage has to Dane’s reputation by what Rabjohns did. Seems to me his post could have been a little payback to one of IU’s supposed favorite sons, to paint him in a more negative light than was probably necessary. And to prove to someone like Dackich that he is a “real insider”, not just a “fanboy.”

I feel like there is a lot more going on here, but, I’ll keep that aspect of it to myself. This seems to have a lot of potential to be ugly, and I’m sure Dakich will fan the flames to make it worse

I think a lot of fans are going to be unhappy. I think they were expecting CMW to be a bridge to the Dane Fife era. I do think that is part of the reason he was brought on, to help ease the fanbase’s uncertainty about the move. Wonder if Matta will stay? 

Not to say I saw it coming in any way, but Fife’s level of engagement did indeed drop off as someone else said. I watch the bench alot during time outs and commercials, and I hardly saw Dane interact with players. CMW never seemed to consult with him during any games. Seemed to me like Hunter was CMW’s right hand man. He seemed unhappy during the stretch run of the season. More went on than we know. Maybe Dane was brought in to help pacify fans, and after a seemingly successful first year, a move was made? Pure speculation on my part, but what is IU off season with no drama??

Actually, Kentucky fandom in the Hoosier state goes back alot further than that. Several Mr Basketball’s from the state went to play there, and I know this is a partial list. Kyle Macy, Jim Master, and Roger Harden were a few, and other notable in-state players who played at UK rather than for Coach RMK, that I can think of, include Walter McCarty, James Blackmon, and more recently “Ketchup” guy, and I’m sure many more. This really stoked the rivalry in the late 70’s/ early 80’s, and cheering for UK grew on a lot of Hoosiers during that time. They are one of the winningest programs of all time, so it makes sense.

Anecdotally, members of my own family became fans of UK when Adolph Rupp took a “stand” against desegregating teams in the mid 60’s. This made me hate them even more, ( if possible) but, as I said, that is opinion an based on things I heard in my own family and may be a bit of a stretch, although Rupp’s racism is documented.