2024 - 25 Wisconsin Basketball Thread

[Jim French Stepstool]

42 minutes ago, Cool Hand Lucroy said:

Good points, all. Bennett is interesting. I'm surprised Hoiberg hasn't worked out that well at Nebraska--that seemed like a slam dunk hire to me at the time.

Minnesota has been a "sleeping giant" forever, it seems, to the point that maybe they just aren't a giant at all. I'm sure there are a bunch of factors, but being one of the few, true big-city schools in the league (even after adding the two LA schools) must be a challenge. The depth of care for Gopher men's basketball just doesn't run all that deep (four years in the TC taught me that), and maybe no coach can overcome that. McCollum will be a hot commodity. Maybe Medved too, who has Midwest connections with Drake and is a Minneapolis native.

Word I hear from some Iowa friends (and from living relatively nearby) is that Fran's exit is...complicated. Everyone seems to agree it's time for a change, but with Caitlin Clark dating a McCaffery, it's a little awkward.

Back to the main attraction, I'm so pumped for tomorrow. Weekday afternoon hoops. A big game. It'll really feel like March. Glad Klesmit and Winter got to ease back in a little.

 

Yeah, I imagine Medved will at least receive lip service.

I remember in the 70s-80s, Minnesota was usually very good under Jim Dutcher & Clem Haskins & Williams Arena was an absolute house of horrors. Haskins' later antics did them no favors, of course.

I get the feeling the Iowa braintrust would just like to see Fran go away on his own.

[RedStickBrew]

Nice to see ole Franimal reappear tonight. Iowa scores 94 points and loses again.

[Playing Catch]

The University of Minnesota needs to replace Williams Arena. That's the tricky part about turning that program around.

I've defended the Barn for many years, but it is time. The Gophers need to hire a publicly facing cheerleader that can bring some attention to that quickly fading structure. Winning/attention will be needed to make a lot of noise toward the issue, and there's the rub. It isn't easy to find coaches that bring enough verve with them to make big changes.

It may not be possible, but I think making a run at Tony Bennett would be wise. Obviously, his father did something similar when he went to Washington State, of all places. The pros to such a hire don't require elaboration, and there aren't any cons, either, unless their NIL system can't provide enough to be on par with the other middle-tier programs in the B1G.

McCollum, too, looks to be a sure-fire winner. He'd be a great hire.

Aside from home runs like Bennett or McCollum, I think the Gophers should hire whoever the money wants to hire. They need a better roster.

[CheezWizHed]

Living in MN, hiring Ben Johnson was highly publicized as someone who would keep the local talent local... but he clearly didn't.  He seemed to find some gems, but could rarely field a full legit team.  

Before him, they went with a big name (Pitino) and that didn't work either.  

I do enjoy the steady stream of the local boys to UW. 😏

[Playing Catch]

55 minutes ago, CheezWizHed said:

Living in MN, hiring Ben Johnson was highly publicized as someone who would keep the local talent local... but he clearly didn't.  He seemed to find some gems, but could rarely field a full legit team.  

Before him, they went with a big name (Pitino) and that didn't work either.  

I do enjoy the steady stream of the local boys to UW. 😏

I understand the frustration that Gopher fans had with much of their in-state talent going to their biggest rival, but a basketball roster is small, and increasingly made up of national prospects (and international!). It was a short-sighted, safe decision to hire Johnson. And in some ways, it worked. Johnson seemingly ran a solid program, he just didn't have good enough players.

I've said it before, but I don't think the talent exodus out of the Cities is that different from non-athletes. For kids growing up in the Twin Cities, Madison is a very attractive situation. Beautiful campus, great student/academic experience. Just far enough away from parents to be exciting and new. For high schoolers whose college choice is a Big Ten research university, Madison is often viewed as a tier above "The U," which is often VIEWED as the fallback to getting into Madison for local Twin Cities kids.

Add in all of the basketball-related benefits, and it's an easy choice for any player that wants to have something of a typical college experience. Gopher fans that refuse to see this reality are blindly biased.

In my opinion, the most likely type of program that is successful at Minnesota would be pulling in mid-to-upper tier prospects lacking in academic focus or ambition. Their hope is to make money playing basketball. But a recruiter could highlight the fallback benefits of the U of M... an international city (e.g. international airport) with lots of post-playing employment opportunities.

If the Gophers really wanted to get wild, they should hire some hotshot basketball coach out of Serbia.

[Oxy]

1 hour ago, Playing Catch said:

 

If the Gophers really wanted to get wild, they should hire some hotshot basketball coach out of Serbia.

That would be crazy genius, assuming the guy has lots of European connections to pull in top tier teens from that continent.  The NBA phenomenon of guys like Luka/Jokic/Wagner bros/Domantas Sabonis/Josh Giddey[Aussie, but still] is amazing.  They play the game differently and extremely effectively.

St. Mary's has been getting it done this way for decades, perhaps never as effectively as this year with Marciulionis and Murauskas anchoring a top 25 team.

[Jim French Stepstool]

32 minutes ago, Oxy said:

That would be crazy genius, assuming the guy has lots of European connections to pull in top tier teens from that continent.  The NBA phenomenon of guys like Luka/Jokic/Wagner bros/Domantas Sabonis/Josh Giddey[Aussie, but still] is amazing.  They play the game differently and extremely effectively.

St. Mary's has been getting it done this way for decades, perhaps never as effectively as this year with Marciulionis and Murauskas anchoring a top 25 team.

It's an interesting idea. But would you survive any scrutinization of having a roster that's 80% from overseas, or 100%, or whatever it would be. We hear about the guys who come over here successfully, but not the ones that don't qualify (UW had one during the most recent off-season). It's one thing for a kid to come over & have the support from teammates to help acclimate. It's another to look to your left, your right, and see a roster full of people that have the same needs. Some real obstacles to overcome.

I will say that for such an experiment, Minneapolis might not be a bad test lab.

[Jim French Stepstool]

As for todays' matchup, I still have trouble wrapping my brain around how we had the defensive issues we experienced at Pauley, but still managed to score 83 pts & hang in until the end. I expect points to be tougher to come by today. Hopefully we do a better job of keeping Mack out of the lane than the first meeting. It would also be nice if Mara doesn't do the Wilt Chamberlain impersonation he pulled in LA.

It would be great to see UW start another hot stretch from 3pt range because right now, they're pretty much OK to very good in just about all other areas.

[AKCheesehead]

22 minutes ago, Jim French Stepstool said:

As for todays' matchup, I still have trouble wrapping my brain around how we had the defensive issues we experienced at Pauley, but still managed to score 83 pts & hang in until the end. I expect points to be tougher to come by today. Hopefully we do a better job of keeping Mack out of the lane than the first meeting. It would also be nice if Mara doesn't do the Wilt Chamberlain impersonation he pulled in LA.

It would be great to see UW start another hot stretch from 3pt range because right now, they're pretty much OK to very good in just about all other areas.

Good call there JFS! 😀

[young guns]

26 minutes ago, Jim French Stepstool said:

It would be great to see UW start another hot stretch from 3pt range because right now, they're pretty much OK to very good in just about all other areas.

Ask and receive to begin the game.

[Jim French Stepstool]

40 minutes ago, AKCheesehead said:

Good call there JFS! 😀

One of the two times a day the stopped clock was correct.😁.

Don't want to see them fall in love w/the three TOO much in the 2nd half. Keep probing.

[RedStickBrew]

OMG the reffing in this game is atrocious. 
 

The second half is almost unwatchable so far

[Oxy]

9 minutes ago, RedStickBrew said:

OMG the reffing in this game is atrocious. 
 

The second half is almost unwatchable so far

It got better😮😃...(the watchability, not the reffing)

[Jim French Stepstool]

You knew, you just KNEW, that Cronin was going to have them come out really physical in the second half, and to an extent the refs were going to let them get away with some of it because down nineteen. But once we built it back from eleven or whatever they cut it to back up to nineteen & got into the one-and-one very early, that was pretty much it. I would've liked to see us press up better on a few of the threes in the 2nd half but I'm nitpicking. 

Nineteen threes, and it may sound funny but I don't think we ever fell in love with the shot too much. Just some really good looks. And Amos was forced to actually play like a 'big' w/Crowl & Winter both sitting. Mixed results, but the guy's a willing soul who stuck his nose in there a little in addition to knocking down a couple from deep. Good to see.

Boy is it great to get McGee back in his old role.

It might be a blessing to have Crowl & Winter sitting some today. They'll be needed bigtime tomorrow. MSU is playing really well. The way they respond to what Izzo wants is just so impressive.

Not important (and actually kinda funny), but I don't know if in the last few years I've seen a team more adept than UW at building a big lead, clearing the bench, then giving up the final 9-10 points of the game. Feel for those guys a little, especially Chris Hodges. People like him who spend so much effort for virtually no glory deserve to see the ball go through the hoop. And if he sticks around Freitag needs a real bump in his 'feel' for the game. He's just really all over the map.

[Jim French Stepstool]

53 minutes ago, RedStickBrew said:

OMG the reffing in this game is atrocious. 
 

The second half is almost unwatchable so far

(Refs)......"Oh, NOOOO!!! UCLA is playing physical. And they're trailing by a lot, so we kinda have to let them!!!!! But we can't lose control of the game!!!!! That guy just looked at his opponent funny!!!! We better go to the monitor!!!!!!!"

When someone for them (I forget who) rode Klesmit up the floor early in the 2nd half & it took them like 30 feet before finally blowing the whistle, you could see it coming. Once they tried to 'take control' I was fine with it b/c we were the ones with the big lead & we shoot FTs well. But it certainly can make it tough to watch sometimes.

[tmwiese55]

I can't see anyway Bennet would even consider the MN job outside of just an absurd amount of money that's not even in the realm of reality.   He just quit a great job in the ACC 9 months ago where he could have sat for years and years.  I'm almost sure his wife is from that VA/NC area, he's probably old enough that they don't have little kids anymore though. 

I don't see why a year later he'd take on the mess that is MN.  He can take a few years off and relax while the NCAA sorts out the quirks of the NIL system, wait for a legit good job to come open and he'll get it.  Heck he can probably just go back to VA in 3-4 years whenever he's ready.   Or if he just doesn't want to deal with the NIL bs just go be a defensive coordinator type assistant in the NBA, collect a couple mil a year. 

[AKCheesehead]

Hearing these commentators saying the Badgers will have to shoot 3s that well in order to have a chance vs MSU.  Come on.  Bucky just gave them all they could handle in their gym with a generous amount of 2nd half home cooking from the zebras and bad shooting from WI. 

[Jim French Stepstool]

21 hours ago, Cool Hand Lucroy said:

 

Word I hear from some Iowa friends (and from living relatively nearby) is that Fran's exit is...complicated. Everyone seems to agree it's time for a change, but with Caitlin Clark dating a McCaffery, it's a little awkward.

 

 

I don't have a link, but apparently ESPN is hearing rumblings that Iowa is looking to move on from the Franster. If so, I think the only way McCollum isn't immediately moved to the head of their wish list is if he plays the 'not interested' card (which would surprise me).

[Jim French Stepstool]

4 minutes ago, tmwiese55 said:

I can't see anyway Bennet would even consider the MN job outside of just an absurd amount of money that's not even in the realm of reality.   He just quit a great job in the ACC 9 months ago where he could have sat for years and years.  I'm almost sure his wife is from that VA/NC area, he's probably old enough that they don't have little kids anymore though. 

I don't see why a year later he'd take on the mess that is MN.  He can take a few years off and relax while the NCAA sorts out the quirks of the NIL system, wait for a legit good job to come open and he'll get it.  Heck he can probably just go back to VA in 3-4 years whenever he's ready.   Or if he just doesn't want to deal with the NIL bs just go be a defensive coordinator type assistant in the NBA, collect a couple mil a year. 

I just don't see him being an NBA-type guy. But I agree with everything else in your post.

[Jim French Stepstool]

4 hours ago, AKCheesehead said:

Hearing these commentators saying the Badgers will have to shoot 3s that well in order to have a chance vs MSU.  Come on.  Bucky just gave them all they could handle in their gym with a generous amount of 2nd half home cooking from the zebras and bad shooting from WI. 

Agreed. They have to shoot them well enough to make MSU guard the line. But limiting TOs, keeping them from runouts & rebounding are all more important IMO.

Tomorrows' game is on CBS. As good as he is at his job I'm hoping Gus Johnson isn't behind the mike. I really don't want to listen to two hours of Gus with his nose up Coen Carrs' shorts.

[AKCheesehead]

Wellp that's it for Fran.  I have to admit, it makes me a little sad knowing I won't get to see him blow his top anymore.

[RedStickBrew]

38 minutes ago, AKCheesehead said:

Hearing these commentators saying the Badgers will have to shoot 3s that well in order to have a chance vs MSU.  Come on.  Bucky just gave them all they could handle in their gym with a generous amount of 2nd half home cooking from the zebras and bad shooting from WI. 

Should be a good game. MSU is playing really good team D right now. IMO Badgers need to keep the ball moving on O and knock down those open shots. Would be nice to see some more post touches this game. I thought they got perimeter happy in the last game with MSU.
Badgers are picking it up on the defensive end lately too

[RedStickBrew]

11 minutes ago, AKCheesehead said:

Wellp that's it for Fran.  I have to admit, it makes me a little sad knowing I won't get to see him blow his top anymore.

 

He will be missed

[Cool Hand Lucroy]

Coaching notes: Fran gone so quickly surprises me a little, but guessing pretty much everyone was ready to move on from that situation. It was time.

Feel kind of bad for Drake. They go Medved, Devries, McCollum, and lose all three to bigger jobs (in all likelihood). That's gotta sting for the Valley, still a really darn good basketball conference that just can't quite find the breakthrough NCAA tourney wins a la Gonzaga or the A-10 schools.

Badger notes: Wow. What a shooting performance. Got a lot of open looks and knocked them down. A dominating Q1 win like that probably gets them to the 3 line, I would think. I doubt a two is possible, and it's hard to see an MSU loss knocking them back to a 4. Maybe they get moved down due to bracketing principles or for geographic purposes, but I'll say 3 and be pretty confident about it.

Will be a fun afternoon tomorrow. Badgers got to rest some guys, MSU had to grind, maybe that helps a little at the margins. Today definitely showed what this team can do when they're clicking. They just demolish even good teams.

[HarryDoyle]

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