Norm Peterson

Oh. So I'm not going to retire on it if they win, huh? Dang.

I'm not a gambler, so someone please explain this to me. If I put down 10 bucks on the Huskers and they win the Big Ten tourney, that pays 25,000 x 10? Do I read that right? If so, I got a Benjamin in my pocket burning a hole.

I feel like it's not implausible that we could reach the semis. We don't have bad match-up problems with any of those teams and we don't pose a revenge-game scenario for them. In fact, quite the opposite. We owe Northwestern a good drubbing. And I've grown to despise Jordan Bohannon almost as much as Brad Davison. And our guys would have to REALLY want another shot at Rutgers given how things went down losing that one at home. The question is would we have any gas left in the tank, if we got that far, to even make a game against Illinois? And we just have terrible match-up issues with both Illinois and Purdue. So, we'd need a lot of luck and a lot of balls to bounce our way. The first three, I think we have a shot. A legit shot. But after that, it's like Miracle Max time: "Good luck stormin' the castle!"

This is an excellent point. We'd have been even more of a hopeless disaster without Verge than we were with him. We were lucky to pick him up. Even so, he's nowhere near GOAT discussion unless they go on a deep Big Ten tourney run. And 2 weeks ago, I wouldn't even have contemplated the possibility they could go on a deep run, let alone win the thing. But any team in the league that can win 3 straight on the road, including two against ranked foes, can win the league tournament. I mean, even the best teams in the conference often don't win 3 in a row on the road against other teams also at the top of the conference. And we just did that. And if we can do that, we can win the conference tournament. And we could also lose to Northwestern in the first game and spend the next several years imagining what might have been. I'll hold out hope for the former unless or until it doesn't happen.

I think he would flourish under Tim Miles.

The question mark at the end of the thread title was deliberate. He's not the GOAT yet. But if this team miraculously manages to win the next five (which is what Trey Mac *repeatedly* talked about in his IG video) and get into the post-season, it'll be because of Verge. And then he will definitely belong in that GOAT discussion.

To summarize what people were saying earlier in the season: He's talented but selfish. You can tell he cares and at least he's trying, but he keeps on trying to go 1-on-5 to get to the rim and he's just not efficient enough to beat our opponents by himself. Some thought he was the most frustrating player to watch; others thought he was the scapegoat for our struggles because he had the ball in his hands the most, and he deserved credit for effort and talent, like he was the one guy who was giving his all on every play. Fast forward through a massively disappointing middle of the season to a surprisingly successful and energizing end, and Alonzo Verge is the straw the stirs the drink. I mean, we don't pull off any of those dubs without him. His quickness in change-of-direction situations is otherworldly. He has an uncanny ability to bank in circus shot layups. And he's beginning to leverage those around him better and better, particularly over the last 4 or 5 games. With the guys he has around him, he makes us a tough out. Our last road win against a top-10 team was against Michigan St under Tim Miles. The last time we had a dominating performance by a point guard against a top-10 team in a win on the road was ... gasp ... Jack Moore knocking off #1 Missouri in Columbia. In 1982. Yeah. That's right. I just compared Alonzo Verge to Jack Moore. Deal with it.

Not just the corner but the weakside wing or slot or whatever nomenclature Fred is using for the spots in between the top of the key and the corner. Yes, I agree, he's kicking the ball out more now than he was previously. And that makes the P&R more deadly with Walker. One thing really noteworthy about Alonzo is that his change of direction makes him as good as we've had for a very long time at attacking a zone. You try to collapse on Alonzo to prevent penetration and you're leaving someone open. And he's finding them.

All the ppl who say McGowens and Zo don't like each other need to watch this video. I think there may have been friction early in the season, but that's a thing of the past now.

I hadn't heard about this until today. Doesn't seem like it's gotten much attention. Future WNBA hall of famer in custody for 3 weeks in a foreign land and the media is like "hey, did you hear about those truckers in Ottawa?"

Like a lot of people who go to prison, Brittney will probably come out a changed man.

Hmmm. Same talk happened with Scott Frost. Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking? Hello natty champs in football!

Lamont Simpson has always been horrible. This is nothing new.

It has the added attraction of going down in history as an L for Wisconsin on Brad Davison's senior day.

Right now, we are guaranteed a better March record than either November or December. When has that EVER happened before?

We hit rock bottom so hard we bounced.

Good plan. I'll put it in the suggestion box.

The GREAT news is that the selection committee can't screw us by sending us to Starkville, Mississippi as a 5-seed in the NIT.

You all know *exactly* what I’m talking about.

Whenever anyone asks me to guess where something happened, I always guess Tucumcari, New Mexico. Other than that, no, it’s been a pretty ordinary day. Oh, and I won Powerball, almost forgot.

Given that we are only at 10 wins now, it is entirely irrelevant how well we do in the Big Ten tournament unless we win the whole damn thing. Having said that, I kinda like the way things set up for us. I would hate having to face Penn State again right off the bat. Instead, we face Northwestern with a little bit of revenge on our minds. After that, we get another shot at Iowa followed by Rutgers? You just about couldn’t dial in a better opportunity for us to make the semifinals than that particular road. And after that, it’s anybody’s ball game. Go big red!

When was the last time we had a better record in March than we had in either November or December?

Um, Minnesota is a loss at NW away from us finishing 13th in the league.

Sorry to hear. I'll hit you up next time I'm in Iowa City and buy you a beer. A number of us on here have been through this and know how it feels. Saw a guy at the store today that I went to high school with and fuck he looked old. Next thing you know, you no longer have relatives living from the generation older than yours. It's a sobering feeling. The pain subsides over time. I miss my parents terribly; I'm so thankful I have kids.