MBB Struggles

The turnovers and horrible free throw shooting has to stop but the skip pass out of our trap to the opposite corner 3 has always been and will always be open against the defense we play. If teams are making that pass successfully and making that 3 we aren't gonna win. It's as simple as that. Maybe against a team like cincy you can still find a way to win but certainly not missing free throws and turning the ball over.
Early game turnovers have been a big problem. FT shooting has been up and down. The open opposite corner 3 is always an issue, but, after making 5 of 8 to start, which resulted in the big early lead, Cincinnati came back to earth. It's definitely frustrating to see guys wide open and making them, but this was a bad 3-point shooting team, so maybe the gamble is worth it. IF the trapping resulted in turnovers, which it didn't yesterday.
 
The defensive effort today was alarming. I was just doing some research. This Cincinnati offense is only a spot above Prohms last team that went 2-22.

ISU was 199th that year, this team is 198th. To go further, they have the 3rd worst ADJO in the Big 12 the last decade......and we gave up almost 80 points to them.

Im not sure what it is, but when TJ plays these teams that have wild gaps in their ADJO and ADJD we play like ****. Remember Pitt in that tourney game, they had a good offense and a terrible defense and we couldn't score on them.
Numbers may be skewed some. Didn't they just get Jizzle back at start of conference play? He helps at least a little. I don't think they're any good but 198th won't likely be where they finish imo
 
Numbers may be skewed some. Didn't they just get Jizzle back at start of conference play? He helps at least a little. I don't think they're any good but 198th won't likely be where they finish imo
Yeah, it never hurts to get a guard like that back but they were 3-4 since he came back so not like they were that much worse without him.
 
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I've reverted to my optimistic pre-season expectations of (i) win 22-25 regular-season games and (ii) finish in the top third of the league.
 
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Unfortunately I think this is the truth. Take away our Q4 games and this team is a 7-9 seed ceiling right now..

No forced TO's, no effort to rebound, limited offense unless Milan goes nuclear, and no consistent supporting cast
I think we are better than that, but good enough to be a team on the verge of being ranked number one in the country. I have a feeling we increase our intensity against UCF.
 
Unfortunately I think this is the truth. Take away our Q4 games and this team is a 7-9 seed ceiling right now..

No forced TO's, no effort to rebound, limited offense unless Milan goes nuclear, and no consistent supporting cast
The offense looks very stale right now. Other teams are working our guys in pick and roll/pick and pops at the top of the key. When help comes they hit that open corner. Time for TJ to counter it and adjust.

JJeff is not a good ball handler and teams know that and are sending a double when he starts his dribble. Resulting in TOs galore.
 
The offense looks very stale right now. Other teams are working our guys in pick and roll/pick and pops at the top of the key. When help comes they hit that open corner. Time for TJ to counter it and adjust.

JJeff is not a good ball handler and teams know that and are sending a double when he starts his dribble. Resulting in TOs galore.
Pretty frustrating stretch for someone that was top 2 for NPOTY. Jefferson has to be better and the coaches had to put him in better spots
 
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Gone is the best chance in two and a half decades to win a conference title... Gone is a 1 seed...

Seems to be an annual thing with the current system... Adding the tweet from Hammer that proves my suspension


It's almost as if conference play starts in January....
 
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I just don't understand why more aren't significantly concerned with the MBB performance since conference play started...

Sorting on Bart Torcvik, we are #83 on offense and #54 on defense since 1/1/2026. Zero wins against teams in the field according to bracket matrix. We are playing like an nit team right now...
 
I just don't understand why more aren't significantly concerned with the MBB performance since conference play started...

Sorting on Bart Torcvik, we are #83 on offense and #54 on defense since 1/1/2026. Zero wins against teams in the field according to bracket matrix. We are playing like an nit team right now...
You're reading this board today, and you think there's no concern?
 
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I just don't understand why more aren't significantly concerned with the MBB performance since conference play started...

Sorting on Bart Torcvik, we are #83 on offense and #54 on defense since 1/1/2026. Zero wins against teams in the field according to bracket matrix. We are playing like an nit team right now...

What would happen if more were signicantly concerned?
 
People would have hated other ISU coaches' January's and Februarys.
I recall a VEISHEA when Johnny Orr was brought out to try to calm the crowd and they responded by saying,

"FU Johnny, your team Sucks!!!!"
(Clearly, they had the performance of the recent January-February schedule fresh in their minds)

It is a good thing VEISHEA was cancelled. 3TrueFans would blow a gasket if this happened today.
 
We don't have an elite head coach. He's hired great assistants that have carried him, but when they can't figure it out they have nowhere to turn. Its been obvious for a while now. Green and the defense is why he have had the success we've had. I like TJ and think he's a good coach but he's not elite.

I would agree. I would never put a coach into the elite level until they get to at least an Elite Eight, but probably, honestly, a Final Four with other sustained success.

There is a difference between elite nationally and elite in the ISU bubble. He is probably the best coach Iowa State has ever had. Eustachy was good, but couldn’t sustain it.

He is very much a CEO coach and allows his assistants to do a lot more than other coaches would from what it seems, which isn’t bad, but there are definitely downfalls to that.
 
What is alarming - among other things not having anything to do with "intensity" - is that we can't make free throws and our inbounds plays are consistently among the worst in the country. Free throws need to be practiced and emphasized. Inbounds plays are pure coaching. The signs are all there.
 
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