NSIC - conference season chat

[DapperDan]

Even with all the clamoring for a big the Winona fans have done on here the past few years, I was still surprised how ‘little’ their lineup was/is. Scrappy for sure, and fun to watch. They lead 18-5 with 12:00 to go in the first half. But you’re right, scrappy doesn’t quite finish out games and their lack of any size ends up hurting.

Of course, they’ll have nights when the shoot 50%+ from 3 and blow teams out. But that’ll be the exception.

And BTW it does not appear Eisner and Co. give a crap what we want on this site, or they can’t recruit impacting size even if they do.

[Purple Mav Man]

And BTW it does not appear Eisner and Co. give a crap what we want on this site, or they can’t recruit impacting size even if they do.

ha. I’d be surprised if any of them give more than zero F’s about what fans say here :) What I meant was, even though you guys had said you were missing size, I was still shocked at how little the lineup was. I should have known from all the noise previously…

[DapperDan]

ha. I’d be surprised if any of them give more than zero F’s about what fans say here :) What I meant was, even though you guys had said you were missing size, I was still shocked at how little the lineup was. I should have known from all the noise previously…

Yea I know. We are on the same page about what they care of the MB. Nor should they. If we were coaches we would all be battling for last place. Except maybe Coach.

[vikingfaithful]

It seems that the Warriors have been vertically challenged for 3-4 years. What is the root of this problem?

[DapperDan]

It seems that the Warriors have been vertically challenged for 3-4 years. What is the root of this problem?

The root of this problem is pretty obvious isn’t it? They have a tough time recruiting decent bigs or have tough luck playing them when they do. Case in point, Alou Dillon, who they did not get one minute out of and who is now a stud elsewhere. Thanks for the scholarship dollars I guess. Maybe they don’t try enough and focus more on athletic guards. Maybe they try and just can’t score with consistency. They have had some. Tommy Gathje was pretty good but think Eisner inherited him. Lo Biondo was a good JC transfer so I’ll give him that one. The latest Italian JC must not be so good as he rarely plays. The kid who starts (6’7”) is decent but he alone is not enough. His backup (6’8”) is ok I guess but that’s about it. Eisner says it’s unlikely they’ll be on the court together because of the teams style of play. So that pretty much means one tall and four not tall all the time. I don’t know a lot. In do know that what is being done isn’t working. Eisner wants to build teams around three point shooting. The three revolutionized the game but you live and die by it. It of course suffers when you have limited alternatives to keep the defense in check at the perimeter. Basing your whole game around short guys who you think can shoot will work at times when they are hot but it’s not a recipe for long term success. Limited post season performance of the program since Eisner arrived is a testament to that.

[The Yette]

Mankato is living by the 3 and UIU is dying by the 3 today.

[NSU4LIFE]

Wolves dying by the three as well. Minot has been aggressive taking it in and hitting virtually all of their open threes. Wolves have literally done nothing inside and just take the first three they can and they are not falling. Wolves down 15 with six minutes to go.

[Purple Mav Man]

Mavs win 97-68 over the Peacocks

[vikingfaithful]

Six games had passed since the Cougars had bested the Vikings. Tonight, the experienced USF squad won 80-59, Augie's women won by 35. Without Dylan LeBrun harassing Matt Cartwright he put up 22 points. Coach Billeter was surprisingly upbeat and was happy the way two of his true freshmen played in Sam Rensch and Jackson Loge.

[MrAugustana]

Not Augie's best performance against USF. Would imagine some of the heretofore non-existent (on the basketball side) USF fans will be jumping on to express their excitement and optimism for the season. Whether or not that excitement is merited remains to be seen, as they are pretty frequently disappointed as they reach the tail end of the season.

[Otis Day]

Not Augie's best performance against USF. Would imagine some of the heretofore non-existent (on the basketball side) USF fans will be jumping on to express their excitement and optimism for the season. Whether or not that excitement is merited remains to be seen, as they are pretty frequently disappointed as they reach the tail end of the season.

Lolz. Just here enjoying the roller coaster like always.

If USFs inevitable March disappointment helps you stomach an early December loss to them, you do you Mr. A.

[MrMustang]

Mustangs were bad in Wayne, America. The Cats has something to do with that, but woof.

We'll be ok and I like much about this team especially some of the youngsters, but that was ugly

[cat fan]

Mustangs were bad in Wayne, America. The Cats has something to do with that, but woof.

We'll be ok and I like much about this team especially some of the youngsters, but that was ugly

Looked like a different kind of Mustang team to me. A little less aggressive, fewer floor burns, and fewer bruises than what I typically associate with Mustang-ball.

Mustangs do have some shooters though, and McCray certainly has some talent at the point.

Good win for Wayne. The guards shot well in this one..

[MrAugustana]

Lolz. Just here enjoying the roller coaster like always.

If USFs inevitable March disappointment helps you stomach an early December loss to them, you do you Mr. A.

There's no me doing me. I just was assuming one of you guys who hasn't posted most of the year would pop up to share your excitement after a good game against us. Much less stomachable for me is Cartwright earning player of the week on a weekend we played so poorly against him.

Honestly, if the Cougars don't make the Regional this year, with Cartwright doing the heavy lifting offensively, I don't see how they'll ever get over the hump. Regardless, my hope is that the Vikings will have gelled and figured out rhythms better by the time we get to the game in USF's sweaty shoebox gym and we can put together a more solid performance.

I had high hopes for this team coming into the season despite the newness of the squad. So far Ryan Miller has been the biggest bright spot. I was hoping for a little more from Graves and a couple of the young bigs in particular (and was somewhat hoping for Bennett Otto to take a big step up), but it looks like there's still more for those guys to figure out. Even knowing about his knee injury, Fink struggling has been a bit of surprise. Akoi stepping up offensively has been a nice boost. Just need one or two other guys to give us some consistency night in and night out.

Lots to figure out. Still time to do so, but the part of me that's used to seeing the Vikings higher up in the standings is ready for it to get figured out quickly. I suppose I just need to learn to be patient. You'd think I'd have a little more patience now that I'm becoming an old man like I am.

[Stanger86]

Part of me wonders if these Thursday/Saturday splits are more frequent this year as the conference knew the UIU departure was coming. Maybe less Friday/Saturdays going forward?