I say that because I want them to come out today and shock everyone with a great game from start to finish. I think today’s performance comes down to shooting. They need 45 plus percent from the field and 70 plus percent from the free throw line. I think they win if those 2 things happen. I almost went to the game today but didn’t have enough faith to make the 9 plus hour drive over from Columbus Ohio today.
I think there are probably 4 or 5 teams in the SEC better than Illinois, and we beat three of them (remember Misery popped them by 22 in nonconference play). We don’t have to play a great game; I think B+ will do. But we do have to sustain B+ for 40 minutes or darn close to it; 20 isn’t enough.
Yes and they beat the Texass team that stomped all over us. I hope they have not been sneaking in any Kansas prep assuming they got the first game with no sweat. Getting beat in the first round of NCAA would be a bad way to end this season.
It was an exhibition. I think Muss scheduled that to get the team’s attention before going to Maui, and to see what we needed to work on.
What I expect for today is really just a repeat of what I’ve watched playout throughout the season.
I expect us to come out gang busters and get go in at halftime with about a 12-14 point lead. Then I expect a second half where we can barely hit a basket and lose that lead and it come down to a last shot or FTs at the end.
Who will win… at this point a I think a coin toss would be about as accurate a way to figure that out.
Some will say I’m being overly pessimistic, but I’ve just seen us do this way too much this season to think its an aberration and feels more like its habitual now. Hope I’m super wrong and we blow their doors off both halves and show a killer instinct. I just only saw that in 1 or 2 games this year.
The key ingrediant this team has been missing is a Mason Jones or J.D. Notae who you can give the ball at crunch time and good things will happen. We all hoped that Nick Smith would be THAT guy but, so far, not so much. Opponents have figured out how to surround Black and make him charge them or hit a difficult shot so he is not the one to count on when the game and shot clock wind down. Early in the year, Council looked like THAT guy but he is in a late season slump. Add the team’s very poor free throw shooting and non-existent rebounding at times and we got a lot of things that need to suddenly turn around if we are going to be strong in the tourney again this year. Here’s hoping for a miracle and Go Hogs.
I think we are who we are this season. I expect us to play well early and fall apart late. If we hit them hard enough in the first half, we should be OK. if we only have a 5 or 6 point lead at half, it doesn’t bode well for us.
Keeping our bigs out of foul trouble so they can help in the second half is a big issue for us. Teams seem to pound us in the second half and wear us down.
I wish for the best understanding this team is going to be a hard one for this team. The questions are plentiful for a team that has not consistently demonstrated it can put its best game on the floor in multiple games. Maybe Baylor is the comparable game for me and we did complete well enough to win. If the Mitchells can put a good sustained effort on the floor; if Jordan is focused and understanding he is near always energized; if Devo can hit his shots; if Ricky drives and takes close-in jump shots, if NSJ is where AB thought he was, and if everyone makes their foul shots, and CEM can pull out his game plan for Kansas. I think win by 12 points.
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You know what they say…
The greatest predictor of future performance….
Is past performance
I am watching Devo today, I think the Hawgs go as he goes in the tournament. He has been given key player to guard so he can set the tone and he has in prior tournaments. He is the most experienced bell cow the Hawgs have and it matters when things go south in tournament play.
Gut feeling here is that we pull out a squeeker. The teams mirror each other so it should be exciting from tip to final seconds…
I just don’t know what too expect either. We are you and less experienced than they are in the Big Dance so not sure if that will impact us early with shooting. D is D and we can live through the early anxiousness with it so long as we stay out of foul trouble. Once through it, settle in and ball with our damn shorts on fire until the very end!!!
Young
You can edit a post, you know. Click the pencil icon below the post and then change it.
Well chit the bed daddy!!! No….I didn’t bud, but thanks for alerting me to that.
No problem. Took me a while to figure that out when we went to this format too. And I edit posts a lot, not just fixing spellings but adding new thoughts or info.
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go D.D.!