Hard to believe, but it's been 9 years since the infamous Silent Night game. Every Gannon visit reminds me of it. That was GU's last win in Indiana.
A record crowd (to this day) filled the KCAC that night.
IUP, of course, blew a halftime lead and lost.
It's amazing what has happened to these two programs since that night.
IUP went to the national title game the following year. Gannon beat IUP 2 of 3 that year, including a walk-off Hail Mary in the PSAC final at the Hammermill. The Knights we're upset the following week by Slippery Rock in Round 1 of the NCAA Tournament (a team they hammered three times that year).
IUP then went on a very long winning streak against Gannon. John Reilly was eventually run out of town. Kelvin Jefferson has been there since mostly with mixed results. In fact, Gannon's lone win against IUP since that PSAC Final came during the Covid season when GU played a season and IUP agreed to play a game after two practices. So, take that game for what it's worth.
Had SRU not upset Gannon that Saturday down at West Liberty, I'm not sure Joe would have got past them in Round 2. Perhaps.
The Saturday night games of that era had a special vibe. The coaches, all younger then, often put on quite a show, too.
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Originally posted by Scrub View Post
That's well put. And I can't say I disagree with you.
IUP has a very difficult stretch starting tomorrow with Gannon, (at) Mercyhurst and Pitt-Johnstown (that's a tough three games in 5 days).
Gannon is who they are at this point but, as usual, it will be a physical war with them tomorrow. That's just how they play and just how every IUP/GU game is -- chippy, dirty, cheap shots, etc. Mercyhurst has a bye tomorrow. So, some stars are perhaps aligning for them Monday night.
UPJ is also a very tough game for IUP. They are extremely tough in a half court game and Joe wanted to beat them at their own game in the first meeting (and did but it was tight). Kromka won't get the same golden leash in the KCAC that he gets in the Sports Center, but nonetheless they are a very tough opponent.
They can worry about Monday on Sunday.
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Originally posted by EyeoftheHawk View Post
IUP’s scariest opponent is IUP. Obviously the favorite doesn’t win every time and we’ve now seen #1 seeds knocked off by #16s in the NCAA Tourney, but I feel pretty strongly we’re watching at least a Final Four team here.
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Originally posted by EyeoftheHawk View Post
Diop is one of the big “Joe” mysteries along with keeping starters in late in blowouts. Every time the kid is on the floor he makes things happen. He alters shots and has pretty good hands for a guy of his stature. Maybe he’s not a good practice player. Maybe KJ is a great practice player so he gets more time. Hard to say with not being in the building everyday and also hard to question Joe’s reasoning. It’s just mysterious to those of us on the outside looking in.
Diop is just a nameless gray face. It'll be somebody different next year. And the year after. And the one after that.
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Originally posted by Scrub View Post
Agreed. IUP's more clear and present worry should be a team like Mercyhurst (we've seen that movie before where IUP handled them in the regular season but a badly timed loss in the Regional ended a nice IUP run). It's clear that IUP is making the Regional. So even dropping the remaining regular season match-up with Mercyhurst won't hurt (in fact, as IUP24 might have been implying yesterday, dropping the regular season contest with Hurst might actually help take the pressure of perfection out of the equation). But that's a team that has proven to be dangerous to IUP in Regionals before. Familiarity breeds danger in this case.
And, in truth, WVSU is a team that has the personnel to match up with IUP in a Regional game (if they ever actually play a complete 40-minute game with any sense of focus). So you might have to become fans of Charleston & Concord down the stretch in hopes of WVSU picking up 1-2 more losses that would cripple their chances of even making a Regional.
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Originally posted by IUPbigINDIANS View PostJoe said in the paper today they have to get Ousmane Diop 'ready'.
I swear we've been saying that on here since November.
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Joe said in the paper today they have to get Ousmane Diop 'ready'.
I swear we've been saying that on here since November.
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Originally posted by Scrub View Post
Agreed. IUP's more clear and present worry should be a team like Mercyhurst (we've seen that movie before where IUP handled them in the regular season but a badly timed loss in the Regional ended a nice IUP run). It's clear that IUP is making the Regional. So even dropping the remaining regular season match-up with Mercyhurst won't hurt (in fact, as IUP24 might have been implying yesterday, dropping the regular season contest with Hurst might actually help take the pressure of perfection out of the equation). But that's a team that has proven to be dangerous to IUP in Regionals before. Familiarity breeds danger in this case.
And, in truth, WVSU is a team that has the personnel to match up with IUP in a Regional game (if they ever actually play a complete 40-minute game with any sense of focus). So you might have to become fans of Charleston & Concord down the stretch in hopes of WVSU picking up 1-2 more losses that would cripple their chances of even making a Regional.
IUP beating Cal a fourth time last year was a miracle in itself. That's incredibly hard to beat a good team 4 times in one year.
To paraphrase Redshirt Joe: "We're worried about Gannon and only Gannon."
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Originally posted by IUPbigINDIANS View Post
We're all a long ways away from worrying about his Holiness down at the beach.
And, in truth, WVSU is a team that has the personnel to match up with IUP in a Regional game (if they ever actually play a complete 40-minute game with any sense of focus). So you might have to become fans of Charleston & Concord down the stretch in hopes of WVSU picking up 1-2 more losses that would cripple their chances of even making a Regional.Last edited by Scrub; 02-03-2023, 08:10 AM.
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Originally posted by IUP24 View Post
What is the obsession all you WL fans have with that guy? My goodness.
They all said that last year. And a physical team just bullied them in the Elite 8. I’m not saying they aren’t the best team in the country. I’m not saying they are either. But Jim Crutchfield’s teams always light it up. And then they run into a physical squad and just “shoot it badly.”
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Originally posted by Columbuseer View Post
This year, I think the elephant in the room, or should I say, the shark near the beach, is Nova se. Been watching their games. Numerous matchup nightmares, like a 6-9 pg who can handle the rock. Ten deep with positionless muscle and height, all great shooters. No knucklehead shots.
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Originally posted by Columbuseer View Post
This year, I think the elephant in the room, or should I say, the shark near the beach, is Nova se. Been watching their games. Numerous matchup nightmares, like a 6-9 pg who can handle the rock. Ten deep with positionless muscle and height, all great shooters. No knucklehead shots.
They all said that last year. And a physical team just bullied them in the Elite 8. I’m not saying they aren’t the best team in the country. I’m not saying they are either. But Jim Crutchfield’s teams always light it up. And then they run into a physical squad and just “shoot it badly.”
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Originally posted by Columbuseer View Post
This year, I think the elephant in the room, or should I say, the shark near the beach, is Nova se. Been watching their games. Numerous matchup nightmares, like a 6-9 pg who can handle the rock. Ten deep with positionless muscle and height, all great shooters. No knucklehead shots.
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