First, I don’t blame Anderson for not recruiting better or for not signing 5 star players because it wouldn’t surprise me to learn that other teams are buying the 5 star players.
However, I’m not at all happy with his style of basketball. It may have worked in the 1980’s to mid 1990’s, but now it is out of date. First there is all the rule changes that results in Arkansas getting way too many fouls. Second, with all the TV and other time outs, that style doesn’t tire out the other team. Third it leaves players open and apparently it prevents us from getting rebounds.
No matter how well Arkansas plays, if the other team gets ten extra wide-open shots, ten or more rebounds and ten or more free throws, it is extremely difficult to win even if we have better players.
I don’t like it either because you can go fast paced without giving up all the open 3s, leaving the lane open or not rebounding because your bigs are on the perimeter in a switch while Macon or Jones are getting abused covering a 4 or 5 in the paint. Cuonzo used our trapping man against us when we left their bigs free or in mismatches in the paint. If their bigs couldn’t make it they could pass out to wide open 3 as a result of our trapping man defense.
Gashog, I really go along with allyour posts and enjoy reading them, But I don’t agree with this post. First- I like coach Anderson and some what like his coaching. Coach Cuzno Martin went from last to first in two years–Coach Anderson went from last to 4t or 5th in ten years??? He has not even sniffed first place in his 10 years??? I know you will and many others have an anwser.
There’s a ton of styles that don’t win Championships. Even the style that wins a Championship in a particular year, the same style doesn’t win it waaaay more in the same year. Now that’s a brain twister!
When your players get fouled and the refs don’t blow the whistle there’s not much u can do but get a T! Which I would have done! The free throw line was the difference in the game along with the poor decisions hog players made with the ball!
It has nothing to do with style.
What do you want Stan Heath’s build a lead and blow it or John Pittiful and his wore out junk? Next year we will have freshmen that can play and just maybe they won’t be making the same stupid decisions in their 2nd, 3rd or 4th year like these seniors do! They played like they looked today in those sorry uniforms.
I read through this thread and I am puzzled. Hogs finished tied for fourth after being picked fifth and sixth in preseason. Missouri didn’t finish first? They tied for fourth. Now the teams that did much better than expected were Auburn and Tennessee. I am not impressed by anything that Bruce Peal does. I have read enough on his background and what happened with his assistant coach. I do know that Mike does it with a clean program.
I have thoroughly enjoyed watching this team this season. I also know that more good players are on the way and expect to be entertained in the future, too.
The SEC is loaded now. It’s the best it’s ever been. And, to finish above .500 in the league this year is an accomplishment.
I have been happy with Mike Anderson for a long time and I don’t suspect that’s going to change. For others, you are welcome to feel how you want to. To each their own.
I’m with you Clay. As a fan, I’m so competitive and I hate losing. The disappointment of losing results in negative thoughts. I really hated losing to MO today. In that disappointment, it’s easy to lose perspective. The hogs had a good year. They are not done yet.
I understand your feeling on Bruce Pearl. I have posted that he is a tainted coach. However, his team played hard and got the championship.
I sometimes struggle with Anderson’s teams in that sometimes they often stand around on offense, don’t set good screens for our shooters and on defense try to trap and leave players wide open. Like tonight Thompson tried to trap in the paint and Missouri got three dunks…doesn’t make sense…I can see one time but 3 times and no correction from the coach. Frustrating
I hope the best for the team and wish that we win the SEC tournament and go deep in the dance.
I hear you, but I see this as more of Year 5, it was a travesty what had become of this program. The last couple of years we have been closer. But in the corruption era of college basketball, it’s really rigged to keep the top the top. This is another reason I like our style and system, you will never beat ‘The System’ with its system. We have be different. I firmly believe the top of The System just rotate amongst themselves. Everyone else is just trying to figure out a way to get in or in some cases buy in. Being irrelevant for a decade comes with a cost, and is tough to get back in as part of that cost.
Seriously though,he did a great job. They where obviously better as was Auburn than everyone thought. Barnes is a great coach just like Mike. Even though Mike has a slightly better overall winning percentage as a coach overall.
We don’t get the McDonald All Americans that Kentucky gets, but our players are about as good as any other team in the SEC. We had good players last year, we have a good recruiting class this year and about equally good players. And, our incoming recruiting class is about equal to this year’s class. Likely, next year we will be about as good as we are this year and last year. You may hope that next year our players will make better decision, but I don’t believe that is realistic. Better decisions will only result from a different style of basketball that doesn’t require as much from the players.
Nevertheless, you are right about the uniforms. Even if I didn’t dislike black and I do since black is not our school colors, the fact that the numbers are almost unreadable makes them terrible.