NUdiehard

My question with Deng is whether he fills our true need. He is listed at 6'8" and 215 lbs. That is not exactly what I call a "big man". For instance, Shavon is listed at 6'7" and 219 lbs. Heck, even Petteway is 209 lbs, so Deng is barely bigger than Petteway. Remember, we are "one big man short". I think it is asking too much to expect Hammond, as a true freshman, to fulfill that role as our true big man next year. We know Vooch won't be that guy. That is why I would like to see us get a juco true big man or a transfer big man so that we can have a "complete" team starting next year. If that is not possible, maybe NU would be better off finding another quality freshman and continue to build for the future. I am tired of always being one or two positions short of a good team. With that said, if Miles is prepared to open a couple spots after the season, then he could sign Deng and still possibly get another big and another freshman. If we are all honest, it would make the most sense to replace Rivers with Deng so that he could still sign two more players (I am assuming Vooch is gone already), but it is unclear whether Miles will do that.

I rewatched the first 10 minutes and was even more dismayed than watching the first time. So many fundamental breakdowns and downright pathetic effort. Upon first watch, I was at least trying to convince myself that CU was just playing out of its mind and we were fighting some nerves. But upon 2nd watch, it was so much deeper than that. A few (of the many, many, thoughts): 1. Miles said before the game that the offense is only clicking at about 35%. Wow! Why is this. I realize a lot of the guys are playing for NU first the first time this year, but Shields and Gallegos played huge minutes last year, and Pitchford, Petteway, and Biggs all were on the team all of last year and practiced with the team all of last year. That is 5 out of a rotation of 7 or 8. Did they not learn any of the offense while practicing? Did Miles only allow them to run scout? I just don't understand why these guys aren't a little further along in their knowledge and ability to run the offense since you 5 of out of 7 were on the team last year. 2. Pitchford is just atrocious at defense. He jumps on pump fakes from Gibbs 25 feet from the basket and then just watches him go by. He has no court awareness. When he is in the post, he is ball watching and has no idea when players are cutting right underneath him. Very poor in almost every facet of defense. The only question is whether these are things he can learn and get better. I guess it can't get any worse. 3. The entire team played stuipid and lethargic. This includes EVERYONE that stepped on the floor. I could not believe my eyes when I saw Wragge's man drift all the way into the paint on multiple occasions (including Shields). Huh? Was there not a scouting report? Did anyone pay any atention. Everyone on our team bites on ball fakes. What is this, junior high? Transition defense was a complete travesty. Nobody knew how to help and recover. Manigot had about 15 seconds after he caught the ball and nobody still nobody bothered to rotate or contest the shot. NU players did NOT fight through screens. They did not communicate. No intensity on defense. They did not box out. lazy, lazy, lazy. 4. Lazy and lethargic. The energy level was completely uncacceptable. Leslee Smith played did more jogging in that game than a 100 year old marathon runner. While Mc D, Gibbs,, Brooks, etc were sprinting down the court, Leslee was content to slowly jog. When he finally did arrive down to the defensive end, he parked himself in the middle of the paint and just watched as a CU player shot from the corner--meanwhile, a CU guard crashes the boards and gets the rebound in the middle of 4 (yes 4) NU players who are all just watching the ball rather than putting a body on him. 5. Terran - Terran played an unbelievable 2nd hald and may have even won me over with his 2nd half effort. But with that said, his first 10 minutes were equally bad. He failed to block out on multiple occasions. Its as if this team has never heard the term box out. Terran would be right under the basket when the shot went up and a CU player would slip right in front of him while Terran is still just watching the ball in the air. TP, as so many NU players, was completely unaware of what was going on around him (then TP compounds it by pushing the CU player in the back and getting a foul). I also felt that TP first 4 shots were all bad shots (of course, one could say that NU's first 20 shots total were bad, but I am focusing in TP here). 6. Biggs looked like a chicken with his head cut off to me. 7. Tai - I keep waiting and waiting for him to have a breakout game and it simply has not come. At some point one begins to wonder if he has it in him. But this is only game 7 for a very young true freshman who is clearly trying to be a distributor and not "rock the boat" right now. But he has to find his scoring game soon. He can't play 30 minutes and only take 2 shots. And he needs to start hitting a few jumpers or teams are going to play 10 feet off him and dare him to shoot all game long. 8. Shields, like TP, had a great 2nd half. But his first half was equally bad. He forced multiple shots. Got lost on defense, didn't fight through screens, lost him man (ie left Wragge WIDE open), etc. 9. Discipline - NU got down early and clearly panicked by jacking up 3 after 3 after 3. And they all took there turns, and nobody ever took leadership to stop it. NU shot 1-12 on 3s in the first half. That is Miami bad. Problem is that CU took away Gallegos and Pitchford was cold from 3 land (had 2 rim out though). The rest of the guys are not very reliable from downtown, which allowed CU to pack the paint and dare all the rest to shoot from behind the arc. If NU isn't hitting the 3 point shot, at least enough to keep the opposing defense honest, it is going to struggle. Man, NU's games seem to go sooo much better when Pitchford hits that first 3 ball. I am not giving up on these guys. I realize they are very young and inexperienced. I am more in a discovery and assessment mode. My question is more long-term. I am trying to assess whether these guys can put it all together, whether later this year or even next year or the year after. I just don't know right now. For instance, Pitchford plays sooo soft, I am not sure that 20 years of coaching can change that. The effort and fundamentals should not be this poor for guys who have been playing this long (Pitchford, Petteway and Biggs are in their 3rd year or college ball; Leslee is 23 years old and in his 4th year of college ball; Gallegos is a 5th year senior; Shields played huge minutes last year, etc.). I realize they don't have a ton of game experience, but geez, I hope they are learning something in practice. Some guys just never get it. Let's hope these guys can get it, and the sooner the better.

As reported by Lee B: http://www.omaha.com/article/20131124/HUSKERS/131129235/1001#huskers-pull-away-late-in-win-over-georgia

I believe that one of Dean's main points is that Terran's antics on offense may be affecting the whole team in energy and morale, which may be a reason why we are also struggling so much on defense. Of course, it shouldn't necessarily be that way. The other players should suck it up and still get back and play 100% all out on offense and defense no matter what Terran is doing. But they are college kids and they have emotions and get frustrated like anyone else. If they see Terran jack up a wild shot with 30 seoconds on the clock without ever looking to pass, it is human nature to drop and shrug your shoulders a little. Meanwhile, the opponent is blazing down the court and getting in position to score. Bad shots take the wind out of the sails a little. It is similar to a turnover by the offense in football, psychologically it just makes it a little more difficult for the defense to go out there and try to get yet another stop so soon. And I am quite sure that Miles isn't all that thrilled about all of Petteways shots either. As Dean aptly stated:

Has anyone noticed that Barfknect is writing his own articles about the Charleston Tourney games while the LJS is by "the Lincoln Journal Star." This tells me that the OWH at least forked over the money to fly Barfknect to the tournament while Rosenthal stayed home. Say what you will about the OWH and Barfknect, but it appears that the OWH takes Neb. basketball more seriously than the LJS. Can anyone imagine the LJS doing this in football. Heck, it probably has 3-4 reporters in Happy Valley today.

I'll say this -- while it is JUST a game (and believe me, I've got as much invested in it as anyone), maybe it's a crappy attitude on my part but it's a little, dare I say, refreshing to see so much emotion and hyperbolic expression and conversation had...about basketball. I know it's stating the obvious, because this is, of course, a basketball message board. But even though we may disagree (vehemently at times), we are still having a conversation, mostly civil, about hoops, which is something I know I don't get much of in my everyday life outside of the season (and during the season, it's usually talking to casual or non-fans who ask generic questions that require little in-depth thought or knowledge to answer..."how's the season going?""how's recruiting?""do you like the new coach?") and even when we get carried away, I'm still encouraged by the fact that it's because people care so much about a basketball team. In such a football-centric state, it's a nice change of pace.So agree or disagree, hyperbole or straight facts, sunshine pumper or negative nancy, I'm just glad that we're still having a conversation. Ladyhusker, first, I would like to say welcome to the board. I just gave you my first ever "exalt" button of "up arrow" or whatever its called for your post above. It is refreshing to see there are others on this board who actually get it and what the purpose of this board is and should be. I have heard Tim Miles himself say he is happy when others are critiquing or even criticizing him b/c that means they are at least talking about the team and the program. There are sooooo few fans who know anything of any substance about NU basketball. We all want the same thing, and that is for NU BB to be successful. If can't come here and be honest and put it all on the line, then what is the point?

Dean, I think you are spot on with this post.

Dimes, you are right, that probably wasn't the best way to end it. I regret that phrase. We are all frustrated. I find this board a bit therapeutic in that I can vent a bit to others who are also fanatical about our team and then move on. But sometimes it seems like others take a little "venting" as being a "hater" and a "want to fire the coach" guy, etc. Heck, Norm has already accused me of being a Creighton fan in disquise, so maybe I was just trying to preempt that a bit.

My two cents before I let this one go and move on to the next: 1. Fahro - Of all the things in this game, it is the Fahro situation that bothers me the most. And yes, since we happened to play UAB today, and since yes, Fahro played quite well, and since yes, he is 6'10" 250 lbs, and since yes, we all know that we are in desperate need of size, then now seems the best time to vent on this one issue. After today, I will do my best (can't make any 100% promises though) to put it behind me and move on. Many people want to completely trivialize the Fahro situation. To me, that is difficult to grasp. The "decision" to cut Fahro was not just one of many "decisions" coaches make in individual games throughout the year--ie, to play zone, run sets, press or not press. The decision to cut Fahro did not affect just one game, it affected two full seasons of games. That is over 60 games! And we will never know just how much it affected us, but it could be very significant. If this teams gets its stuff in order this season, it could even possibly be the difference between NCAA tourney this year and sitting at home. Is that stretching it? Maybe. But having his size and skill available would do wonders for this team, not to mention add much needed depth and experience. He also would have been very nice to have last year when we were patching together a team of walk-ons and student managers. Making the correct "decisions" on things like this can make or brake a coach in the long run. It is why they get paid the big bucks. Now, we all know this is just a blip on the radar for Miles career here b/c he is here to build a program and will have a long time to do it--as he absolutely should. I am NOT trying to say this decision should have any bearing at all on his standing here, so please don't flip out and go all crazy about this. Just saying that it is frustrating that Miles had this kid signed and delivered and took the active step of cutting him for nothing. He got nothing in return. That scholarship went to no one. We could have had Fahro for two years and lost absolutely nothing to do so. That is a major blunder, and it could be the difference in a 6 point UMASS loss, heck even UAB, if we have Fahro and they don't, could be a different outcome, and so on, game after game, after game. And please, for those want to say that Fahro "disappeared" or "robbed the bookstore", good grief. Miles must have "found" him soon enough to tell him his schools was being pulled. And as for the bookstore incident, c'mon. Petteway cold punched an opponent at TTU, but that was not a problem. Biggs had a DUI, but that wasn't a problem. Let's not just make up excuses for this one. Just call it what it was, a huge blunder. Doesn't mean anyone is calling for his head or wants him to be fired or anything. OK, now that I've got that out of my system, on to today's game. 2. Why did Smith only play 11 minutes? 3. Why is it that our starting lineup seems to struggle so much, both at the beginning of the games and the beginning of the 2nd half? Miles is definitely going to have to look at whether that truly is the "best" lineup? 4. Miles is a strict "man-to-man" guy. I doubt they had practiced much zone before yesterday' game. I remember having this same "discussion" about Doc who rarely practiced zone even after he said he was going to try it more. Not sure why some coaches are so stubborn in their ways. Zone has its place, but it has to be practiced before it can be effective in games. 5. Serg - I know I am not going to be popular on this one. But I just don't understand why he couldn't just get a few minutes there in the 2nd half. How could it have been any worse? Put him under the basket and tell him to put his hands up and see what happens. Why does he absolutely refuse to play Serg? Same could be said about yesterday when virtually everyone had fouled out and yet no Serg. If Serg comes in and absolutely stinks up the joint, then take him out and we move on. 6. Tai - I was REALLY high on Tai after the first two games, but I have been disappointed in him the last 2 games. He simply must be more of a factor. He also needs to start hitting his outside shot. By the 2nd half, UAB was not even guarding him on the perimeter. Tai is afraid to take the jump shot and when he does, he misses. Not good. He is young, so hopefully it is just a confidence thing that he can get worked out. 7. On a similar note, UAB packed the paint in the 2nd half. Dared us to shoot from the outside. The man guarding Shields played at least 5 feet off him when Shields was outside the arc. You could see Shields debating whether he should shoot it or not. If he can't or won't hit the 3 point shot, every team will play him that way from here on out. 8. On a similar note, but reverse, why doesn't NU pack the paint on the defensive end against teams like UMASS and UAB? As LK1 has repeatedly pointed out, there is no need to be all over most of the guys when they are 25 feet from the basket. Lay off them, pack the paint and make them hit the jumper. Under they hit it repeatedly, stay in the paint and quit ball-hawking so far out. THis will also reduce all those stupid fouls 25 feet from the basket. 9. As everyone has mentioned, we need to learn to play defense without fouling. UAB only had 6 fouls in the first half, so apparently it can be done. 10. No, the sky is not falling. But, the bummer about these early losses is that it takes a lot of momentum out of the season so early. Sure, all of us diehards will continue to attend/follow every single game just like we have done year after year after year. But what about those 7,000 "new" season ticket holders? Are they going to attend every game now, or are they going to give up? And even if they do attend, will they have the same energy? The same excitement? The same hope? It is hard to "get up" for every game when it seems like NCAA hopes are dashed already in November (and I would say that is true even for the diehards). Personally, I would rather lose late in the year if I had to choose. At least I could "live the dream" (even if it is an allusion) until February. Now, it is almost back to "well, we have everyone back next year, so let's see if we can improve." OK, I've said my piece. Now all the sunshine pumpers can jump all over me and say I am just negative nancy and sky if falling guy and all that.

Actually it is news b/c Miles himself said "we are one big away." Norm also brought Fahro up a few weeks ago, before this game was really even on the radar. I wish we could go back and read the thoughts about this when he was initially cut. I know I had a few at the time.

What does Serge have to do wtih anything? Just curious because NU had an open scholarship both last year and this year. So, I am just not getting the connection with Serg.

You mean except Tim Miles

At that time, Fahro = 2 years and Vooch = 4 years. Tim wasn't building to win games in the first 2 years....he was building to win for the next two. Given the choice between the two at the time, the majority of us would have went with Vooch as well if that was the choice. First of all, he didn't sign Vooch instead of Fahro. He could have signed both. He ended up cutting Fahro and was left with a scholarship that went completely unused (unless you count the gift to Menke) both last year AND this year. That scholarship was completely wasted. Second, what most people on this board would have wanted is irrelevant. It is the HC's job to be able to identify talent. In the end, how many stars a guy has or how many teams are recruiting a guy is irrelevant. The only thing that matters is whether the recruit can play at a high level in Div. 1 basketball. The good coaches identify that talent and sign them. It was a mistake. Plain and simple. He has to live with it. We have to live with it. A mistake that I am not sure I will ever fully understand considering that Fahro was signed and delivered and Miles chose to cut him and simply eat the scholarship instead. But I guess we have to move on. Nothing we can do it about it now. But man, he really blew it on that one, no doubt.

I thought I remember reading that Miles had tried to get in touch with Fahro several times but communication was silent on Fahro's end. At that point, Miles released him. Not sure if true but I swear I read this somewhere after Miles got hired. Wasn't he also involved in that little bookstore "issue" at his old school? That may have had something to do with it too. And Biggs had a DUI, yet he is still on the team. No doubt in my mind which is the greater offense. Gallegos has acted the complete fool this year, and he is still on the team. Things happen. He obviously is working out at UAB, so he can't be a complete delinquent.

I thought I remember reading that Miles had tried to get in touch with Fahro several times but communication was silent on Fahro's end. At that point, Miles released him. Not sure if true but I swear I read this somewhere after Miles got hired. Considering how much effort the staff has to put into getting just one big man recruit to visit or sign, no effort should have been spared to find Fahro and talk to him face to face. When Doc was hired, he flew all the way to Australia to meet with Maric and talk to him face to face. I am NOT saying that Fahro is of Maric quality, but I am saying that Miles still should have done whatever was necessary to meet with Fahro, talk to him face to face, and give him every opportunity to be on the team. NU has had an open scholarship for both this year and last year. What a waste. Fahro had already signed his LOI. No reason to cut him at that point.

There is a Nebraska Basketball "Pre Game Show" on 1480 AM, starting 2 hours before tipoff of each game and lasing 1 hour. It is on right now.

NU is actually shooting better from the FT line this year than its opponents. NU is at 72% for the year and its opponents are shooting 67%. 72% isn't great, but it isn't terrible either.

I am trying really hard to overlook the fact that Fahro had actually signed his LOI to play for NU and Miles cut him. Man, major blunder by Miles. As Norm said, "Just one big man away." I will eventually let bygones be bygones after today, but for today it is difficult.

What is the line on this game?

My app is now showing it as on ESPN3, not ESPNU.

I can't find this game on the ESPN3 lineup. Is everyone sure it is scheduled for ESPN3?

Is the NU v. UAB game on ESPN3 again or is it on ESPNU?

This is another game where I thought Serg should have at least gotten a few minutes to see what he could do. Why not? We weren't stopping anything anyway, and everyone was in foul trouble. Put Serg in the game and tell him to just stand under the hoop and put his hands up. At least they would have to shoot over him. And, as someone has pointed out already, with how soft the refs were calling things, it really diminishes his disadvantage of not being strong enough yet.

I find it more than a bit ironic that a "student" is the OP for this tread about "loyal" fans. I say that because I attended the Western Illinois game and with 3 minutes to go before tipoff there was all of about five "students" in the entire south side of the arena (Lower Bowl). I am pretty sure they started letting other "non-students" come down from the 200s and 300s to sit in those seats. "Students" get lower bowl tickets practically for free, yet are the most fair weather bunch I have ever known (and I am not talking about the core group of students that come to every game like Jadler, or even you Skerfan, I am talking about the rest). Students should ALWAYS take the lead in attendance and in bringing the most energy and excitement to ALL games. So Skerstudent, if you truly want to be a "loyal" fan, I suggest you take some of your frustrations out on your fellow "students" who have cheap tickets to lower-bowl seats and don't even bother to show up at all. I am not going to complain about fans leaving a few minutes early of a blowout game. What most students often don't consider (and this is somewhat understandable) is that other people have famlies and jobs. This includes variables such as young children, early morning work schedules, wives they haven't seen all day b/c they went straight to the game from work, etc. Some people would rather spend their last 30 minutes before bedtime with their spouse and children at home as opposed to watching that last minute of Menke and KyKurkoski on the court and then getting stuck in 30 minutes of traffic to do it. Some maybe brought their young children to the game and need to get them home for bedtime. Students, on the other hand, probably don't have anyone to get home to and don't have class the next day until 10am, so of course they are in no rush. I am just happy the non-student fans are at the game and I hope they continue to come every game this year and for years to come. We had over 10,000 in attendance for South Carolina State. That is double what we would have had in years past. Now, we do need to get a bit more energy, but I am telling you, that is where the STUDENTS come in. It must start with the students. The students must fill ALL of their seats every game and bring the energy. Look at the big time programs like Kansas and Duke, etc. Those students are absolutely fanatical for every single game, no matter how lame the opponent. The energy is palpable and rubs off on everyone else. Time for the students to step up. If they do, the rest will follow.

The team this year is deeper and more talented than many years past, that I believe is true. My question with this team (beyond the lack of a physical post presence other than Smith) is team chemistry. I am not trying to say that the story on this has already been written. Rather, it is the story that I am curious to follow as the season plays out. I have attended the scrimmage, the exhibition and all three games so far. It is always interesting to watch not only the skills and talent level of the new players, but also their personalities, demeanors and body language, as well as how they play together as a team. Last year, we were very short-handed. Everybody knew their role and where they fit in with the team. It really wasn't that difficult because there were only 4 legitimate players (Shields, Ubel, Talley and Gallegos) and about 3 or 4 role players. There was not problem about guys "getting their shots" because there were plenty of shot to divide between those 4 players (especially considering that Shields was a freshman who didn't even play early in the season b/c of injury and had to slowly work his way into the top rotation). This year is different. We have more options, and as a result we have more guys who think they should be "getting their shots". Many of us pointed this out with a few players after the first couple of games in regards to a couple of players. However, I think it has gone to a whole new level with the introduction of Gallegos and Biggs to the lineup. Just reading their quotes after the game was quite revealing of some mindsets of the players. For instance, Gallegos said: We NEVER heard anything like this last season. It simply was never an issue. Even when Gallegos jacked up 13 3 pointres and missed them all, most people simply accepted that it was necessary b/c of our limited options. But this year is different. We have more options, and players now notice when someone gets "out of system" and tries to get their own. Look at the box score for the game. Biggs and Gallegos combined for 21 shots! Shields and Pitchfor only shot 5 times each. Petteway shot 7 times and only made 2 of them. Now, look at Biggs quotes after the game: Biggs thinks he can do more and he didn't even "showcase" his shot. Does this mean he intends to shoot even more. He obviously thinks very highly of his talent level: So, Biggs mindset coming into the game was to "showcase" his talent. I don't want to make a bigger deal of this than it is at this point. I realize those quotes do not necessary mean Biggs is selfish and only concerned about himself. I am just saying that he is very confident and thinks he can score almost at will. He also said he thinks he can get to the line 10-12 times a game (personally, I think Biggs is in for his rude awakening sooner than later. He put up big numbers against a terrible team, things will not come so easy in the B1G where defenses are physical and scout well, but that is not my point here). In the 2nd half, when NU got some baskets and started to make its run and pull away, I remember when SCSU called a timeout and all the NU players ran excitedly to the bench. Well, all except Terran Petteway. That dude looked like someone just killed his dog. He had his dead down and was not happy. My feeling at the time was that Petteway was not happy with his personal production at that stage in the game. Granted, I am just reading body language and I could be completely wrong, but there certainly have been other indications that he likes to have his shots. (As a side note, Petteway reminds me a lot of Standhardinger. Standhardinger was ULTRA competitive in practice and games, and he always felt he could score the next bucket. Thing is, I am not sure that Petteway is as skilled or talented as Christian-who was a legit 6'8"-but time will tell). Shields should be getting more than 5 shots in EVERY SINGLE game we play this year. Period. Pitchford may have his limitations, but shooting isn't one of them. If he is in the game, his teammates should be looking to get him shots. With that said, Pitchford seems to get frustrated easily and I am unclear if it is b/c of lack of shots or ticky tack foul calls or Miles on his butt for not being physical, but whatever it is he just seems to get frustrated and then loses his focus. I guess my point is that for the first time in a long time, we may have a team that has to worry about things like team chemistry and getting guys to buy in to the team concept. There is only one basketball and only so many possession per game. Everyone cannot get 10-15 shots every game. How will this team adjust to that reality. How will each individual player accept their role. We know guys like Rivers and Parker will defer. But what about the rest. That leaves 7 other guys who all think they are the best man to get buckets. In the end, I am not complaining. I would much rather have this "problem" than last years "problem". Having too many scorers should not be a bad thing. But it is something worth keeping an eye on. A breakdown of team chemistry can have a big impact if it gets out of control.