Sporting news on the loss to IPFW

[MtPeter04]

written by DeCourcy over at the Sporting News. A summary is, while it sucks that we did lose to IPFW, it's not too surprising given the many circumstances. Those being a short turnaround from the Notre Dame game, no guard play, and a lack of depth. I thought it was interesting how he mentioned Duke's loss to UVa in the 1983 ACC tournament, and Coach K's response to it.

Link:

http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-ba...rs-crean-krzyzewski/l7rch4ewo2vc1bvw6fge5xosd

edit: deleted the last version of this because it had IPFP in the title, and that's something we're working with in the lab, but fortunately not dealing with here.

 

[Paterfamilias]

written by DeCourcy over at the Sporting News. A summary is, while it sucks that we did lose to IPFW, it's not too surprising given the many circumstances. Those being a short turnaround from the Notre Dame game, no guard play, and a lack of depth. I thought it was interesting how he mentioned Duke's loss to UVa in the 1983 ACC tournament, and Coach K's response to it.

Link:

http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-ba...rs-crean-krzyzewski/l7rch4ewo2vc1bvw6fge5xosd

edit: deleted the last version of this because it had IPFP in the title, and that's something we're working with in the lab, but fortunately not dealing with here.

I like DeCourcy, but the "Indiana hired Archie Miller to perform a rebuild with the Hoosiers, not a miracle" title is pretty lame. Nobody would be complaining if we had just beaten ISU and Fort Wayne at Assembly Hall.

In both games IU was a 13.5 point favorite and lost by 20... at home! I have serious doubts that I'll find another example of that happening to another team in the same season ever. Maybe it's happened before, but I've been looking and I haven't found it yet. In fact, I still haven't found where it happened to another team once. I don't just mean other IU teams either, I'm talking nationally.

It hasn't changed my confidence in Miller going forward, but to pretend that 8-4 right now is somehow expecting miracles is too absurd to even contemplate.

Hopefully, the Fort Wayne debacle will be a catalyst for these players removing their heads from their asses. They should be embarrassed for disgracing McCracken Court like that twice in one season.

 

[Chasrich]

I like DeCourcy, but the "Indiana hired Archie Miller to perform a rebuild with the Hoosiers, not a miracle" title is pretty lame. Nobody would be complaining if we had just beaten ISU and Fort Wayne at Assembly Hall.

In both games IU was a 13.5 point favorite and lost by 20... at home! I have serious doubts that I'll find another example of that happening to another team in the same season ever. Maybe it's happened before, but I've been looking and I haven't found it yet. In fact, I still haven't found where it happened to another team once. I don't just mean other IU teams either, I'm talking nationally.

It hasn't changed my confidence in Miller going forward, but to pretend that 8-4 right now is somehow expecting miracles is too absurd to even contemplate.

Hopefully, the Fort Wayne debacle will be a catalyst for these players removing their heads from their asses. They should be embarrassed for disgracing McCracken Court like that twice in one season.

This isn’t a rebuild when u have the kind of recruits IU has. Archie is clearly I under achieving .

 

[minneman]

This isn’t a rebuild when u have the kind of recruits IU has. Archie is clearly I under achieving .

Under-achieving? This was a team that was around .500 last year and lost three of its top players. Those were replaced by a so-so recruiting class that included one redshirt, and two three star recruits. Two of this recruits, including the highest ranked one, get very little PT and the third only does because of need at his position. The team was picked to finish near the bottom of the B1G and miss postseason. I'd say they're playing as poorly as expected

 

[cryano]

Under-achieving? This was a team that was around .500 last year and lost three of its top players. Those were replaced by a so-so recruiting class that included one redshirt, and two three star recruits. Two of this recruits, including the highest ranked one, get very little PT and the third only does because of need at his position. The team was picked to finish near the bottom of the B1G and miss postseason. I'd say they're playing as poorly as expected

IU played without OG, Hartman, and Blackmon for most of the season last year.
When Blackmon and Bryant did play, most IU fans bitched about them anyway.
Losing by 20+ the same way to 2 small schools at home is unacceptable.

 

[Paterfamilias]

IU played without OG, Hartman, and Blackmon for most of the season last year.
When Blackmon and Bryant did play, most IU fans bitched about them anyway.
Losing by 20+ the same way to 2 small schools at home is unacceptable.

Yeah, I'm weary of the "lost our 3 top players" routine myself. OG was gone most of the season anyway and few were shedding tears for Blackmon's early departure.

I'm not ready to call this season an underachievement either though. I don't have any idea what lies ahead, but I bet that Archie is just as irate as some of the fans over the performance the other night. The interesting thing about first seasons with a new coach is seeing how the team responds to adversity. Just a few days ago I thought the team was progressing nicely, then splat!

My gripe here is DeCourcy providing cover fire for the new coach by acting as if fans were expecting a miracle. The only miracle of note so far is IU pulling off the near impossible Daily Double of getting bludgeoned by two mid-major teams in the same season... at home as 13+ point favorites.

We've been providing cover fire for head coaches in Bloomington for far too long. Even Knight with all of his banners required near constant excuses. I'm thinking Archie Miller don't like excuses any more than we do, so we should just move forward without them at long last!

 

[minneman]

If you want to discount the loss of this three players that's fine. It was still a bad team last year that didn't add much this season, certainly no difference maker.

 

[ndhuntington]

I'm fine where we are now once Archie get's the house creaned we will be ok..

 

[trailrunner]

I'm fine where we are now once Archie get's the house creaned we will be ok..

I think besides the seniors at least a couple of others will transfer

 

[speroni]

If you want to discount the loss of this three players that's fine. It was still a bad team last year that didn't add much this season, certainly no difference maker.

OK, but if you want to talk about the three we lost, let's also remember that we gained a 5th year senior who started many games in Hartman. I don't think anyone disagrees that we lost the best talent from a .500 team last year. But I also think getting upset about home losses - bad losses - to ISU and IPFW is quite reasonable. We have enough talent that those kind of losses should not happen.

 

[Tony79]

Under-achieving? This was a team that was around .500 last year and lost three of its top players. Those were replaced by a so-so recruiting class that included one redshirt, and two three star recruits. Two of this recruits, including the highest ranked one, get very little PT and the third only does because of need at his position. The team was picked to finish near the bottom of the B1G and miss postseason. I'd say they're playing as poorly as expected

A lot of teams win with three star players. IU's problem is Crean appeared to love guys who were ball-centric, i.e., they only know how to play with the ball in their hands. Also, and while it appears to be getting better, ball, you, man defensive concepts appear to be a foreign language to a lot of the players on the IU roster. In my mind this is another reason why AAU bball has, in many ways, ruined the game.

 

[MG80]

This isn’t a rebuild when u have the kind of recruits IU has. Archie is clearly I under achieving .

To any serious fan of the game it’s very obvious just how deep a talent deficit we have. The Ft Wayne guys had superior quickness at every position and multiple shooters. The terrible past roster management has left us with mediocre guards at best and a low post center, though with good hands and post moves, is totally lacking in explosiveness or the ability to guard mobile big men. There is no real depth anywhere on the roster. Rob and Josh look like average back ups at best. Also, can anyone ever remember an IU team with players with such a low basketball IQ and lack of natural leaders? It’s highly doubtful that this team, with a physically challenged Davis in the middle, a rusty Hartman with limited lateral quickness, and players who, lets face it, were very poorly coached at the defensive end in the past, will ever effectively and consistently play the pack line? So in my book, Archie is playing with a very bad hand right now and working with what he’s got. It will take another season or probably two, to see if he’s up to the challenge.

 

[Myhurricane]

Did anyone really expect to be really good this year? I was hopeful but also realized we added no real game changing talent this year and the team was gonna have to adjust to the wants and desires of a new coach. My hopeful optimism was not brought to fruition. No big deal, I’ll enjoy the process.