NC

[Chuck Norris]

I don’t know about that. Gannon had a great team, but the Top of Division II is down from even 4-5 years ago. The no sit out for lateral Division I transfers and Division II to Division I transfers has weakened the top of Division II considerably. The NW MO State teams were 10-15 points better than this iteration of Gannon. I even think the best IUP and Hurst teams from 2019-2022 could easily give this Gannon team a run for their money.

Take nothing away from Gannon though. They are playing by the same rules as everyone else. Prosser is a special, special player, and they surrounded him with good pieces.

I think the Fairmont State team that made the championship game was really good. Unfortunately they ran up against a Northwest Missouri State team that was poised to take over D2 basketball. I think the 2010 IUP team could match up physically with anybody. West Liberty has been around the top of the region so long it’s kind of hard to remember any single team. I think their very first Elite 8 team may still have been their best. The Mercyhurst team that won the region here was another that had the misfortune of running into NW Missouri. They may well have beaten any other team in that Elite 8.

[IUP24]

I think the Fairmont State team that made the championship game was really good. Unfortunately they ran up against a Northwest Missouri State team that was poised to take over D2 basketball. I think the 2010 IUP team could match up physically with anybody. West Liberty has been around the top of the region so long it’s kind of hard to remember any single team. I think their very first Elite 8 team may still have been their best. The Mercyhurst team that won the region here was another that had the misfortune of running into NW Missouri. They may well have beaten any other team in that Elite 8.

This certainly isn't always the case, but I think in a lot of cases the best shot you get at winning anything is the first opportunity when you have a real chance. For programs that are generally at or near the top, there's always some organic factor about how the team was built or put together that can't be replicated. I wasn't an IUP student when IUP made their first trip to the national championship game, but from everything I always hear, the sheer dominance and the "dudes" they had just hasn't existed since. I know we talk about the COVID year as a missed opportunity, but I think their real chance was probably 2010. I think coaches try and search for the missing ingredients to perfect the recipe, but that typically doesn't happen. I've mostly retreated to the idea that teams like IUP and West Liberty, for whatever reason, just aren't going to ever win the last game.

The most overused phrase in sports is "they'll be back." Most never get back. When you have the chance to win, you have to do it. The likelihood you get back to try again is generally pretty slim. Gannon's going to get gutted. Bazzoli is going to leave (maybe not this year, but he will soon). And there's a very, very slim likelihood all the planets align for them again. That was their one shot, and they won. If they didn't, they probably weren't ever getting a shot that good again.

[Chuck Norris]

This certainly isn't always the case, but I think in a lot of cases the best shot you get at winning anything is the first opportunity to have when you have a real chance. For programs that are generally at or near the top, there's always some organic factor about how the team was built or put together that can't be replicated. I wasn't an IUP student when IUP made their first trip to the national championship game, but from everything I always hear, the sheer dominance and the "dudes" they had just hasn't existed since. I know we talk about the COVID year as a missed opportunity, but I think their real chance was probably 2010. I think coaches try and search for the missing ingredients to perfect the recipe, but that typically doesn't happen. I've mostly retreated to the idea that teams like IUP and West Liberty, for whatever reason, just aren't going to ever win the last game.

The most overused phrase in sports is "they'll be back." Most never get back. When you have the chance to win, you have to do it. The likelihood you get back to try again is generally pretty slim. Gannon's going to get gutted. Bazzoli is going to leave (maybe not this year, but he will soon). And there's a very, very slim likelihood all the planets align for them again. That was their one shot, and they won. If they didn't, they probably weren't ever getting a shot that good again.

I can tell you that Jim Crutchfield, even in his NC winning years at Nova, has never replicated a team that could turn you over with full court pressure the way the 2011 WL team could. Their press was devastating. It routinely forced turnovers on multiple possessions in a row. IUP was really good in 2011 and took WL to the wire in that regional final. The difference was two second half runs fueled by turnovers forced by the press. IUP spent the whole second half playing catch up and fell just short.

2010 was Joe’s perfect team except for one flaw. They didn’t knock down 3s consistently. They could get by on pure talent most nights whether the outside shots fell or not. In the NC game, they faced a very good and experienced Cal Poly Pomona team that had lost the previous year’s NC game at the buzzer. They were on a mission. They packed the paint, IUP couldn’t throw the ball in the ocean for about the first ten minutes and the game was lost.

Sadly we were robbed of seeing the full potential of the 2022 team when Shawndale got hurt, but as far as teams that finished the season whole, 2010 was definitely IUP’s shot.

[Scrub]

I can tell you that Jim Crutchfield, even in his NC winning years at Nova, has never replicated a team that could turn you over with full court pressure the way the 2011 WL team could. Their press was devastating. It routinely forced turnovers on multiple possessions in a row. IUP was really good in 2011 and took WL to the wire in that regional final. The difference was two second half runs fueled by turnovers forced by the press. IUP spent the whole second half playing catch up and fell just short.

They could turn everybody over except for Jet Chang from BYU Hawaii. Still have nightmares about that guy.

[IUPNation]

LIT AF released a video of the team coming home to Erie with a fire truck leading the way..nobody on the streets or campus…that’s a bit disheartening..

[bballfan03]

LIT AF released a video of the team coming home to Erie with a fire truck leading the way..nobody on the streets or campus…that’s a bit disheartening..

There were plenty of people in the streets - they restricted them to only certain areas. No one on campus as students just went back today.

[Sec10-A-14]

.https://stream.mux.com/5T01Y01REleEh...jtK1bSnR8.m3u8

[gman16506]

There were plenty of people in the streets - they restricted them to only certain areas. No one on campus as students just went back today.

That confirms what I was told by some old friends who attended the events surrounding the team's return. Was told it was a pretty nice gathering and good interaction with members of the team and coaching staff.