5fouls

If Geronimo is playing for one of Kopp or Stewart, we get 2 or 3 more offensive rebounds. Lord knows they would have given him the opportunity. Offensive rebounds lead to points.

But, that's the thing. Stewart and Kopp weren't having good games. Jordan Geronimo was. Put the players on teh floor that give you the best chance to win THAT game. Maybe Saturday against Purdue that will be Stewart and Kopp. Tonight it was Geronimo with XJ and Rob capable of more minutes as well. Geronimo only played 9 minutes. Ron Harper played 38 minutes. Why could we only get 32 out of TJD. Geo Baker played 36 minutes. Why could we only get 33 out of XJ. XJ plays 3 more minutes when he was taking over the game and we win.

Not saying that, and I will listen to legitimate arguments for the last 3. The first one, however, is indefensible in my opinion. Each and every game stands on its own. Based on what was happening on the floor, Geronimo was going to help the team be successful tonight, The other two (Race and Stewart) were not. And, I'll even throw Durr into that since he got 5 minutes of time in the 2nd half.that could have went to Geronimo as well. Ride Keith Smart in the '87 championship game when he is hot Ride Christian Watford against UK when he is on fire When a player is making a difference, let them play!

I'm on the more experienced side (older) of posters on here (mid-50's), and I've become pretty adept at reading things during IU games. This one never felt good to me from the opening tip. My comments in the game thread back that up. As poorly as we shot, there were things the coaches could have done differently to win us the game Recognize who was making winning plays (Geronimo) and who wasn't (Race, Stewart). Do not sit XJ down when he's on his tear. Just don't do it. Why???? TJD sat through an entire segment between TV timeouts. That can't happen in a must win game. Rob has to be on the floor at the end of the game. He hits big shots and he plays lockdown D. Does Harper hit that last 3 if Rob is on him?

That may be a veteran group. But, we did start 4 seniors and a very experienced pre-season All-American junior. Experience did not lose us this game.

I thought a turning point in the game was when X was taken out in the 2nd half when he was on a tear. Maybe he was getting a little tired. But, wait until the tear is over before having him sit. It didn't help that TJD happened to be on the bench at the same time. Also, not enough Geronimo. He was a difference maker in the first half, but we got 5 minutes of Durr before any Geronimo in the 2nd. And, once again, Geronimo made some plays in his 3 2nd half minutes.

I'll gladly take you up on that bet.

The program is not a disgrace. That's way over the top.

They out hustled us and played smarter than us the entire second half.

I'm shutting down my computer right now. If this goes as I think it's going, I'm afraid what I will post.

Rob understands what's at stake. Not sure some of these guys do. I repeat. A close win here means nothing if they beat us on a neutral court in the BTT. It gives them an advantage if they are comparing the two teams.

Too long of a stretch to have both TJD and X on the bench. And, where the heck is Geronimo?

I can't understate how much I hate that he took X out right there.

I will never ever understand how there is a significant discrepancy on those plays. At some point, pride has to kick in, doesn't it?

If Coach Shep was coaching this team, we would be getting blown out.

I'll be happy with reduced minutes from the bench this half. See some Geronimo and Phin, and not much else.

That was a winning play by X. Make a mistake with a bad shot, but doesn't hang his head. He does something about it. IU needs more of that from all their players.

I'll go back to the first half. It wasn't good enough. Rutgers went to the locker room feeling fortunate about being down 7. And, we see the results of that now.

Repeat

I don't like where this game is trending.

Like I said. Let's get some 3's.

If we're 4-25 from 3 at the end of the game, we're in trouble. Sitting at 2-11 now, the safest way to prevent 4-25 is not to shoot 14 more, regardless of what the defense is giving us.

'As' Wisconsin? Are you saying he has taken over the identity of the Badger program?

It's not about playing scared. It's about winning the game. If we're having success in the paint, we need to stick with it.

Here's the thing that concerns me most about a close home win against Rutgers. If we face them in the 8/9 game, and they win on the neutral court, it gives them a leg up in the head to head comparison. We need to curb stomp them tonight to take a little sting off that scenario.