What's the problem?

[caveman]

Player development:

Kids have no idea of the importance of spreading the floor, clearing the lane, boxing out, making good passes etc etc etc.

They are not conditioned to play a full game.

They are not taught to play through contact.  Very important in P5 conference play.

They do not improve athleticism 

Outside Sam attacking glass better both offensively and defensively, I cannot find one definenant example where individual player skills have definitely improved.

TKiss, Cain top 20 class

Haiby's class top 20

 

Q: do you think Beck or York would do this poorly with back to back top 20's.  I don't

 

[Tom Jones]

I am a long time fan and observer.  I am no X and O analyst, but I think I have watched long enough (not just UNL but in general) to know good basketball when I see it. And its absence is easier to spot than its presence and right now its absence catches the eye as would a buffalo in a flock of sheep.  I have no inside sources of information so I can't credibly comment on the unmeasurables like program management and team chemistry. 

 

In the survey I answered "player development and roster turnover", but Sam's one word first sentence is more apt - that being "myriad".  But Sam (Sam, your expertise and insight are far superior to my own but I will add ...) could accurately have added one more word ... so as to have said "recruiting/acquisition/RETENTION".  What may first appear to be quality recruiting dissolves away if (1) the recruits don't stick around and play or (2) they don't get better both as individuals and as team mates. Two years ago when the Haiby/Brown/Mitchell/Verbeek class showed up, I thought that the future was bright - that in their junior and senior years, presuming some other missing pieces (PG) came along, we were looking at seasons contending for conference championship and certainly NCAA tourney trips.  SH is the only one who stuck around and got better so what at first looked like a really good class turned into an empty bench.

 

Of course, the the first job of a coaching staff if to get and retain talented players and the second job is develop them into better players and turn them into a team.  

 

There is a lot about our recruiting that I don't understand. First, we have so many unused scholarships.  I keep seeing 7.,8,9 players on opponents' benches. We start out with too few players thus making ourselves vulnerable to losses due to injuries and transfers.  Second, I don't understand our repeatedly having taken players with a history of injury problems who end up taking up a scholarship and not being able to contribute.  Third is our experience in the "transfer market" the advent of which (by NCAA making it easier) created another arena in which coaches compete for players.  And we have been losing in that market place -the quality of our losses having outweighed that of our gains. Considering all this one is left to wonder .... is our staff just unable to get the players needed to compete at this level?  If the answer to that is "no", we are bringing knives to a gun fight.  

 

I will end this on a, hopefully, positive note .... next year's recruiting class looks solid - probably even better than the class of four of two years ago.  That leaves the coaching staff to move from HAVING players to the task of retaining, developing, and molding them into a team.  Moos' decision is whether to give them another 2 or 3 years to get that done or pull the plug and start over from near zero with a new staff.  Not that my opinion on that matters, but I am 50-50. 

 

 

[All About the Corn]

I would question Haiby having developed. She came in having a pretty good game going to the basket as we seen during her first two years. I would have liked to see her be a better passer and that just has not happened to this point. I do think it is a host of issues and it goes back to the coaches. I think back to a video I seen of Gino and Breanna Stewart when she was a Freshman. She was the top recruit in her class and Gino had her working on a defensive drill. She did the drill like 20-30 times until she could consistently get it correct. That is attention to detail. There is a reason he has won as much as he has besides getting 4-5 star type players. I wonder how much they work on the little details. Part of my selecting the X's and O's and game management is we have talent here. I do not think we put them in a position to be as successful as they could be. I think Cain could be a really good passer out of the post but our spacing as time is just bad. Plus how often has she changed the line up to start the third quarter? Almost never. So we have the nice class coming in. If nothing changes how many will leave after year one or year two? Coach Cook talks how much he has learned from his new assistants so a change could be a benefit. 

[12dozen]

A bit off topic, but this seems to be the thread getting the most attention at the moment.   A simple reminder.  Girls play Purdue today at 1:00 on BTN.  

[HUD]

19 hours ago, Norm Peterson said:

 

I just wanted to know, of the people who have expressed strong concerns on the game threads (and there are many), what you think the problem is.

I'm going to narrow it down to what has been my biggest concern and it drives me crazy.  The lack of a high quality point guard.  They are the quarterback of the team and makes everyone around them better.  Haven't had one since Theriot.  Misses there in recruiting and the transfer portal.  Having Doyle and then Emily Ryun would have helped.

Another year without one like we are now experiencing is very disappointing.  5 years to correct this issue.  Hopefully Allision Weidner will be a step up next year.

[tcp]

I haven't followed women's ball much since Connie got booted (damn shame, that, since she built a nice program at NU). 

 

But when I saw that score against "mighty" Indiana, my reaction was, "really"?

 

B1G's just  tough basketball conference all the way around now, and it's had to build a top half program in it without a staff that's good at damned near everything. But as a general rule, the coaches that are keepers reveal themselves fairly early in their tenures. I'm not certain that's WIlliams.

 

 

 

[Cazzie22]

8 minutes ago, tcp said:

I haven't followed women's ball much since Connie got booted (damn shame, that, since she built a nice program at NU). 

 

But when I saw that score against "mighty" Indiana, my reaction was, "really"?

 

B1G's just  tough basketball conference all the way around now, and it's had to build a top half program in it without a staff that's good at damned near everything. But as a general rule, the coaches that are keepers reveal themselves fairly early in their tenures. I'm not certain that's WIlliams.

 

 

 

Indiana is very good.

[Husker22]

I dont even know where to start with this topic but Id say the biggest thing is we lack athleticism, We are soooo slow. Haiby and Bourne are high major athletes no one else on the team is. Its easy to see why a player like Scoggins had no other offers, shes small, slow, cant create her own shot, and cant defend anyone, you just cant get away with players like that and Williams is building rosters full of them.

[HB]

14 minutes ago, Husker22 said:

I dont even know where to start with this topic but Id say the biggest thing is we lack athleticism, We are soooo slow. Haiby and Bourne are high major athletes no one else on the team is. Its easy to see why a player like Scoggins had no other offers, shes small, slow, cant create her own shot, and cant defend anyone, you just cant get away with players like that and Williams is building rosters full of them.

 

Nailed it.   Been like that for a couple years at least.  Don't have players who can defend the dribble drive, but we survived that to some extent with a shot-blocking big controlling the paint.   Also not many who can break anyone down off the dribble (especially Scoggin).    Some people on here think we have enough talent, but it's pretty obvious watching film we don't have nearly enough of it.    And lack of athleticism is a glaring deficiency.   

[tcp]

3 hours ago, Cazzie22 said:

Indiana is very good.

 

I'll take your word for it and plead the Dylan defense: apparently the times, they are a-changin'. 

 

But we're still not. 

[mwm89]

5 hours ago, tcp said:

 

I'll take your word for it and plead the Dylan defense: apparently the times, they are a-changin'. 

 

But we're still not. 

By my recollection IU started turning things around near the end of the Yori era.  They beat us in Lincoln near the end of the season in her final year here, and have steadily improved from the beginning of Moren's tenure onward.  Kind of disgruntling that we haven't done that.

[HB]

13 hours ago, mwm89 said:

By my recollection IU started turning things around near the end of the Yori era.  They beat us in Lincoln near the end of the season in her final year here, and have steadily improved from the beginning of Moren's tenure onward.  Kind of disgruntling that we haven't done that.

 

We've actually done the reverse.   And its been painful to watch.  

[Red Don]

Thinking about it (always dangerous, at least for me), anyone after Coach Yori would have been a fall-off!    

 

I guess the only questions are, How Much, and for How Long?

[Fastbreaker]

2 hours ago, Red Don said:

Thinking about it (always dangerous, at least for me), anyone after Coach Yori would have been a fall-off!    

 

I guess the only questions are, How Much, and for How Long?

 Nebraska at the time that Yori left was a top 15 job with fantastic facilities.  The AD whose name I will not say, did not even try to see who might be interested.  I have heard that some pretty high level coaches would have been interested.

[Red Don]

Well, (happily ) this poll doesn't seem to be aging particularly well. 

(not trying to criticize anyone any more than myself )

 

What a Difference a Month Makes! 

 

Is it just me or does something seem to be changing in the way the WBB team is performing?  They've been competitive or won several games they should have lost on paper. For some reason it feels like they are playing a lot better together as a team; their teamwork seems to be maximizing individual strengths and overcoming deficiencies.  I cannot believe the differential in rebounding between now and earlier in the season.

 

Huskers WBB Now Getting Votes. 

 

 

 

 

 

[mwm89]

2 minutes ago, Red Don said:

What a Difference a Month Makes!

For sure!  I'm guessing Coach has put in some plays and strategies to get more production on offense.  Then the gals have worked to execute those proficiently.  Also some more zone play on D to help out on that end with the lack of bodies

[HUD]

GOOD CHEMISTRY!  Kate Cain addressed it in her interview after upsetting O.S.  She said it is similar to 3 years ago during her freshmen year.  She said playing for each other has really helped this year.  If we would have had Issie Tues. we would not have lost to Minny.