Heading into March Madness

[NickTheGreat]

I think we eventually pull our heads out of our asses. Whether it's this weekend or next is debatable.

 

[MartyFine]

 

[Gibbon]

How dare Demarion had his face where the K State offensive player's elbow needed to go

 

[ISUKyro]

Time to unleash the secret. TJ been saving Omaha for this moment. He drops 20 per game for the rewrite of the games and we win both titles!

Or at least one had some odd dream about that

 

[4theCYcle]

Losing to a 14 or 15 seed isn't crazy any more. A 1 losing to a 16 isn't even that crazy.

Who knows what kind of match up is out there and there's not much of a David/Goliath thing to the NCAA tourney over the last decade and this year won't be any different.

Anyway, ISU at times remind me of how they tended to look in the ESPN tourney like driving to the lane without much intent.

After that, the team seemed to operate like a point was made; perhaps it took those losses to drive the point home.

A few weeks ago when the offense was better, it seemed like the ball moved much better including hitting skip passes for good looks or making the defense have to respond in positioning.

Maybe defenses are showing looks that take that away and things get much more one-dimensional and there's more of a ceiling to adjust with, not as low as the two previous seasons but still there.

Maybe this one will be used as rebooting the message again.

They also seemed to take care of the ball better. There have been some ugly forced TO's the last few games. Guys driving into the lane with no plan, then jump up b4 going out of bounds trying to make something happen and then up in the air with no plan. Unfocused TO's. Driving to the lane head down and boom TO. The ball has been more sticky in hands and has not been consistently moved around in the offense and their scoring droughts have been longer. It also hasn't been great when nobody outside of CJ is hitting 3's consistently. Couple weeks ago Gilbert, CJ, Lipsey and King were hitting them more often and with an occasional Milan make too. But lately not the case.

Hopefully they'll right the ship and they're just a little tired and need to get their legs some rest.

 

[4theCYcle]

A first weekend exit wouldn't surprise me in the slightest. Bigger upsets have happened the last few years so it's not at all crazy to see the possibility of us losing on day 1. The offense is just not good. Tamin has looked better, which is really encouraging. C. Jones has been phenomenal. Watson has been fun to see come around. Milan has been, well.... yeah. Keshon needs to get back to the late January and February version.

Match ups are everything so if we get the right match up... finesse teams that we can physically bully and just stuff in a locker, a Sweet 16 is achievable. I think an Elite 8 is very, very unlikely. And a Final 4 is just wishful thinking.

What the eyes are telling me right now is we are a 1st round win in a game that is close for longer than it needs to be before we pull away for a 12-15 point W followed by a second round loss. The starters have got to come alive.

I'm glad Kansas is getting throttled because I would be sick if they'd won today after what we did.

I think you're forgetting how good our defense is and will be outside of the B12. They will be a force and they can play many different styles. Our offense has shown it's abilities, they just have to get their shot back and get some movement again. They're definitely capable of a run and don't act like other teams don't go through lull periods too. I think the b12 schedule is wearing on them a little and maybe some injuries we just don't know about that could be lingering or flying under the radar.

 

[Cyclonepride]

We need Milan to start knocking down shots again and become more aggressive. If Milan isn't doing much then the defense isn't going to be worried about giving us the perimeter so they'll be able to stop us every time we drive the lane with no mission. It sucks that Milan has gotten cold at the wrong time, but hopefully he can come out of this slump and be a hero for us again. When we draw up plays to get him to shoot it's genius when he's not in a shooting funk. Maybe this team is just banged up and needed a little time to rest. Let's see how the guys react tomorrow.

I think we need to run sets specifically for him, even if it's just clearing a side and letting him go to work.

 

[4theCYcle]

On paper and from watching all season, this team is not much different from the past two years. The main difference is the grit this year’s team has continually shown to get wins. Which has deservedly resulted in a 2 or 3 seed and confidence that we can win close games down the stretch. While our recents results have tapered final four discussions, let’s just get through the 1st weekend and then take it one game at a time.

Exactly, they have been able to turn on the juice and go on runs during the 2nd half to win games. They'll get their mojo back.

 

[CascadeClone]

I'd like to see ISU win at least 1 game in KC. That would help lock down a 2 seed and give them some confidence going into the NCAA tournament.

100. It's verra verra bad to lose your last two games going into the NCAAs.

 

[Cyclonepride]

I think you're forgetting how good our defense is and will be outside of the B12. They will be a force and they can play many different styles. Our offense has shown it's abilities, they just have to get their shot back and get some movement again. They're definitely capable of a run and don't act like other teams don't go through lull periods too. I think the b12 schedule is wearing on them a little and maybe some injuries we just don't know about that could be lingering or flying under the radar.

If we can enforce our will on the defensive end, those 20 odd points off turnovers start to make your offense look really good again, and I think that's just what we will do.

 

[madguy30]

100. It's verra verra bad to lose your last two games going into the NCAAs.

If ISU gets some things going Thursday and still gets beat it's something to grow on and hopefully can continue the next week.

If it's the same trends of the last few games it would be surprising and may not bode well.

However, 21-22 team lost their last three games, scoring 36 and 41 points, respectively and got the right matchups to get to the 2nd weekend.

 

[Cyclonepride]

If ISU gets some things going Thursday and still gets beat it's something to grow on and hopefully can continue the next week.

If it's the same trends of the last few games it would be surprising and may not bode well.

However, 21-22 team lost their last three games, scoring 36 and 41 points, respectively and got the right matchups to get to the 2nd weekend.

Yeah, I've seen way too many seasons take unexpected turns to think beyond the next game and what happens on the court. Hot teams that make an early exit. Slumping teams that suddenly make a run.

 

[goody2012]

I think we need to run sets specifically for him, even if it's just clearing a side and letting him go to work.

It seems like he's had plenty of looks but he just hasn't taken them. He's passing up a lot of shots right now.

 

[Cyclonepride]

It seems like he's had plenty of looks but he just hasn't taken them. He's passing up a lot of shots right now.

That's part of my thought process in running sets specifically for him. It gives him the green light to put a shot up and the direct proof that the staff wants him to.

 

[madguy30]

That's part of my thought process in running sets specifically for him. It gives him the green light to put a shot up and the direct proof that the staff wants him to.

He might just be a guy that needs that 'the court is yours, just play ball man' kind of situation.

Some of the 'next-level' type of difficult shots this year that he's gotten have been when it looked like he was doing just that.

 

[SayMyName]

Hot take:

I think we'll be fine