Which could happen due to Auburn's schedule compared to Duke's. I wouldn't be surprised to see Auburn slip up a couple of times and Duke win out. Their schedule is straight dog water.
Bottom Line
- Thread starter Irish1
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I’ve also been trying to remind myself that anything can happen in March. Lots of really good teams have lost games they shouldn’t have. But when it’s march, your season is over. Weird stuff happens: flukey calls, your opponent shoots out of their mind, or nails a half court shot.
I expect S16 at minimum. Beyond that, we have to play great basketball and have the breaks go our way.
A game like last night could easily happen in the tourney and end our season. Sometimes you play well and still don’t win.
Let’s hope we have a long ride ahead of us.
We make a living speeding up the opponent offense which causes them to make mistakes. I thought AZ did a great job of speeding us up on offense which lead to mistakes. Some bad passes and poor decisions.
Duke's schedule is 10-ply Charmin soft. It's such a joke.
I thought 15-5 in the Big 12 was reasonably achievable, and with that, @ Arizona would probably be a loss. So it wasn't so much that they lost that bothers me, it's that they came one freak play away from winning it. That's mentally tough as a fan, and it has to be tough for the players and coaches. If there's any team and staff that can overcome that quickly, it's this group.
Want to see a brutal schedule the rest of the way? Alabama:
@ #14 Mississippi St.
vs. Georgia
@ Arkansas
@ Texas
vs. #1 Auburn
@ #20 Missouri
vs. #12 Kentucky
vs. #14 Mississippi St.
@ #8 Tennessee
vs. #5 Florida
@ #1 Auburn
@ #14 Mississippi St.
vs. Georgia
@ Arkansas
@ Texas
vs. #1 Auburn
@ #20 Missouri
vs. #12 Kentucky
vs. #14 Mississippi St.
@ #8 Tennessee
vs. #5 Florida
@ #1 Auburn
I don't know man. It just kind of feels like this team needs to make every free throw, value the ball while being aggressive, shoot 75 % from 3 and never allow an offensive rebound. And if we can't live up to that I'm not even sure what the point of playing is.
Let’s let the games play out. Lot of great games all around the conference yet.
It's hard for me to put much of a critical lens when assessing the #3 team in the nation, particularly when that would be me playing arm chair coach when I haven't done so above my son's 3yo pee wee, let alone turned around a program into a national contender...but if I had to
Offensive identity, and flow of our sets, has been one of the weaker areas in TJ's teams. When things are going good, things are good, when they get sluggish, they get sluggish. A lot of times this is because of how defenses are scouting us.
For instance last night, it seemed like we needed a bucket during the run to stop the bleeding. And to my eyes, we rolled the dice figuring out which guy was going to go out and get a bucket to stock the bleeding. Believe Jefferson finally did with his first fg.
In previous years we've had either a more reliable action, or a consistent go to player that could stop those runs. Ejim, Kane, Georges, and Monte in particular.
I don't know if it's a more loose system, but recall in years past the action was Bob Jones 30 ft from the hoop. This year as things have gotten sluggish, it seems it's put Keshon in pnr and hope for the best or have Curtis try to work off ball and get a shot up.
I do believe the most steady/reliable option is two man game with Tamin and Jefferson.
Keshon has a different gear, but dribbling into double/triple teams is not the way.
Again, who am I? TJ assembled these dudes, believes in these dudes, and he and his staff are putting them in the best position to succeed and thus far this year (and TJ's time) the results have been outstanding.
It's not a matter of heart, focus, or want to. Which to me is controlling what you can control.
Is there need at times for a more developed X&O to get a bucket? Maybe?
But that's splitting hairs.
Welcome to sports.
I thought we played well against Arizona. They're #14 on Kenpom. On the road. They were a slight favorite by computer metrics and we outplayed them (barely). That game pretty much went how it should have.
There is no such thing as playing a perfect game. Games are won by being just good enough that day. We were good enough, then the basketball gods smote us.
Don't forget Jefferson feeling like playing and dominating wire to wire even if the opponent has a bigger guy that is limiting his looks in the first half.
Quite reasonable and fair. But that is a 2 seed resume which will be disappointing. Which is unfair but that is the perception.
Arizona had the recipe to defeat Iowa State. I feel like this loss was more about Arizona having an excellent gameplan and the athletes to pull it off than ISU playing poorly. Now the coaches can figure out how to respond when the next team comes along and tries the same strategy. Better for this to happen now than in the NCAA Tournament.
I completely disagree with your analysis of Milan. Defenses are going to sag when there isn't a 3 point threat to kick out to. Milan and Cujo are that threat when KG and Tamin start slashing. There's a reason were getting walled off in the paint and turning the ball over more since he hurt his hand. Defenses are collapsing. I mean the dude is shooting 44 percent from 3 this year.
If Jefferson isn't yelling, screaming and handing out "too smalls" I don't know if he deserves to see the floor.
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We need more of this in the first three minutes of the game and a 4 point lead so we know the players care.
Maybe that's just who this team is. Has the talent, the experience and scheme to win the NC but falls short because the pieces can't seem to all realize the potential in unison.
I agree with others here that the goal now should be to rack up quad 1 wins and to try to develop a rhythm where we can get the players to peak at the right time if there is such a thing. B12 title is secondary.
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