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Jim French Stepstool

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Everything posted by Jim French Stepstool

  1. Jim French Stepstool
    I was referring to UWs' losing to Oregon & Penn State possibly keeping them from being sent to Milwaukee for the NCAAs. But for the record, I don't like schools turning down the NIT either.
  2. Jim French Stepstool
    IMO Montana had a pretty good defensive philosophy in the 1st half. That & their hitting five 3pt in the half is keeping it relatively close. Just enough intermittent sloppiness from UW doesn't help. I think Amos would avg double figures in the Big Sky. Hopefully he can approach that next year in the Big Ten. Five blocked shots in a half by Bucky is a pretty rare animal. High Point making things a little interesting.
  3. Jim French Stepstool
    I don't know if UW was Freemans' 2nd choice out of HS or exactly where we fell on his list, but there was some mutual interest & that's where the possibility lies. If it's simply a case of him looking for the largest check then yes, it would be a challenge. The rumors are there; it just comes down to where everything lands on the BS meter. An issue w/Zrno is that with the Indiana coaching change, a few more schools have come sniffing around. It's not just a case of him looking at the remaining schools on his original list.
  4. Jim French Stepstool
    I was wondering about that. So these were games that otherwise would've been in Chicago? Good! All the sweeter.
  5. Jim French Stepstool
    Not holding my breath or anything, but now that DeVries has been hired at Indiana it might be worthwhile to keep an eye on a couple of their incoming recruits. Both Trent Sisley & Harun Zrno were being pursued pretty heavily by Wisconsin. FWIW Sisleys' initial comments sound positive toward the hiring & suggest he's still committed, while Zrno appears to want to meet with DeVries & then decide. Also, Owen Freeman of Iowa is entering the portal. All these rumors should be taken with a rather large saltlick of course, but one or two of the many sources indicate UW is a very serious player for his services. He'd be a great get.
  6. Jim French Stepstool
    I think UNC favored is certainly possible. These SEC teams have been through such a meat grinder. Battle tested for sure. The shine is off him a little bit, but I loved Beard when he coached at Texas Tech.
  7. Jim French Stepstool
    I'm a big McCollum fan. Nothing agin DeVries but I think McCollum should be Iowas' #1 target all along-----heck, I'd have gone after McCollum if I was Indiana, too. Fran is making noises like he wants to stay in the biz. Lots of schools & potential jobs in his old east coast stomping grounds, but the dude's 65 & it sounds like he disdains the idea of constantly rebuilding through the portal. I hate the portal too, but I don't think mentioning that is going to sound good in an interview.
  8. Jim French Stepstool
    Methinks UNC sat & listened to 48 HRS of the "you shouldn't be in the tournament" rhetoric & that fueled them big time. I expect them to give Ole Miss all they can handle. Bama State had many opportunities to hang their heads & get buried after being down 5-8 pts much of the game & never did. Credit due.
  9. Jim French Stepstool
    As nice as Milwaukee would've been for UW, I think along these same lines...........don't wilt vs Oregon, don't take the day off defensively vs PSU, and it probably happens.
  10. Jim French Stepstool
    This is very non-scientific, but someone (might've been Dick Vitale) once floated the idea that you can't go to the tournament if you aren't at least .500 in your conference. As overly simplistic as that sounds I think it has some merit. To me, VCU-BYU is one of the most intriguing matchups in the entire round of 64 & a must-see even if UW wasn't opposite in the bracket. I'm taking the Rams in what to me is a really tough call. One of the kids on Montanas' roster is Amari Jedkins, a 6-7 sophomore from Racine Case. He's played in 28 games. I go along with@RedStickBrew. Florida to cut 'em down.
  11. Jim French Stepstool
    There's many precedents to the committee considering injuries. One year Cincinnati was looked at as a clear #1, lost Kenyon Martin to an injury & IIRC was bumped down to a 3. It's why Otzelberger timed his announcement of Keshon Gilbert being done AFTER the pairings came out. I don't blame him; it's just part of the dance you have to perform. I get a kick out of the people that try to blow off UNCs' AD being the committee chair by saying "well, he can't be in the room when they discuss UNC". These guys develop relationships & at some point, the door swings open & he comes back in. I doubt anyone relished giving him bad news. I just didn't 'feel' Indiana all season. But I agree about WVU having reason to boil. And I kinda feel for Boise State.
  12. Jim French Stepstool
    My bad. I saw a listing that incorrectly had LU/Creighton facing Houston. I actually was half-expecting to see UW facing the Cards in a 3 vs 6.
  13. Jim French Stepstool
    I find that interesting, and not without merit. During his presser after Saturdays' game, Izzo said when he's done coaching he wants to get on the selection committee. He's a real anti-analytic, pro eye-test guy. I'd love to see it happen, just for the headaches he'd cause.😁
  14. Jim French Stepstool
    I suppose they aren't going to flat-out lie about it, but It's hard for me to imagine them having a contingency bracket. I guess, if they say so.........I know they mentioned a contingency for if UAB beat Memphis, that it would've knocked out UNC. Maybe UW gets Milwaukee over ISU or UK had they won? AFA who UW is podded with, I think the only grouping I'd rather be in as a 3 would be UK's, and that isn't possible w/Illinois there as a 6. Now, when you throw in the geography, yeah, BYU in Denver does them no favors. If they DO make it to the 2nd weekend, I agree Alabama isn't a bad #2 to face compared to the others. Haven't studied the bracket real hard yet, but one thing that stuck out to me right off the bat for a potential upset is High Point-Purdue. Boilers just look to be running on fumes at times. Agree totally about the Michigan possession late in the game that was timed not with a shot clock but a calendar, Just couldn't get the stop no matter what they did. Quite possibly the most important sequence of the game. I'm not a big follower of the "quad 1, quad 2" thing. But 1-12 in quad one games, and you dance? Uh, no. Something about Hepburn & Louisville being put in an 8/9 game w/Houston on deck made me smile.
  15. Jim French Stepstool
    I don't disagree with that. I understand why it doesn't happen more often but yeah, your 7-ft SR post guy who is 3rd on the team in points scored, you'd like to see him get a few more opportunities. I suspect there are times he has the option to slide down low & just doesn't. In this particular game, I also suspect they felt Crowl might have chances from the arc. And he did, but then shoot the ball. He only put up 3 from out there. I agree re making Goldin defend down low. Wolf, too.
  16. Jim French Stepstool
    Yeah, I think it's been a long time since they've had to 'compete' for a 3, with the possible exception being had they lost to NU last Thursday. And even then..........
  17. Jim French Stepstool
    Both teams lost their legs sometime during their last game, so the poor shooting wasn't some kind of huge shock. Michigan made a few deep ones in the last 10 min or so, Wolf dug down for a little extra, and we didn't have enough to respond. No big complaints, except maybe with the basketball gods w/around a minute-and-change to go when Michigan had the ball on their end for about nine days before finally scoring. Some really solid defense, but every ball goes out off us, and it sucked but every call was correct. Especially the time we pried one loose, It goes to Blackwell, Wolf knocks it away but OF COURSE it touches Blackwell last. Frustrating. Very impressive tourney run.
  18. Jim French Stepstool
    Always a good idea to go inside-out. I think there have been situations this year when Crowl could slide down later in the clock. But most of the threes were pretty good looks. They're also real super-cognizant of keeping the lane open for Blackwell & Tonje, I'm sure that has something to do with it.
  19. Jim French Stepstool
    Agree.
  20. Jim French Stepstool
    "Gosh dang it!!!! Whaddya mean tired legs? We used to play in a fastpitch league on Friday night, go out & drink beer, and THEN travel to a weekend tournament!!!!" Both teams look really gassed, obviously. If Wolf & Goldin continue to be meh, maybe this WILL be a day Amos or even Ilver can get enough minutes to shine. I like that we're at least not ignoring trying to get into the lane. I love how we scored 23, Michigan 21, but "Michigan is playing suffocating defense", or whatever the talking head said.
  21. Jim French Stepstool
    As for X factors in todays' game, Max Klesmit hasn't exactly played a ton of minutes the last three days. Maybe this is one of those games where he steps up & knocks down four or five from deep? It's good to see the energy & contribution from the bench guys this week. What Gilmore & McGee have turned in is well-documented. But Janicki has been a disruptor & plays with confidence, and Amos is starting to contribute things even if the shot isn't falling for him, which is great to see.
  22. Jim French Stepstool
    A couple of fortunate bounces & some favorable matchups and yeah, it's not out of the realm of possibility. So many variables though. I guess that's what makes this such a fantastic time of year for college hoops fans. I hope starting next week, there are some advantageous matchups coming down low for Crowl. Could be an X factor.
  23. Jim French Stepstool
    Fortunately we're guarding much better now. The screen & roll was ridiculously easy for Michigan last time. Real tough matchup no matter who we'd play tomorrow, but If I had my choice I'd take Michigan because they're much more likely than MD to make dumb decisions on offense & turn the ball over. And MAYBE Crowl/Winter can effectively pull their defenders away from the cup. It's too bad Greppi was on again, off again healthwise this season. Had he had a full season of daily work this would be a perfect game to get him 2-3 minutes of warfare in the post. I don't think Ilver would be much help in that regard.
  24. Jim French Stepstool
    #1 kinda reminds me of Mike Flowers down in Austin, Texas when he got his hands on the ball as he was falling out of bounds, flipped it up in the air & the clock ran out before it came down. As for #2, I think most coaches like setting up conventionally so they can plan to switch through a screen (or not), and the potential 'scramble' mode you refer to probably makes it easier for someone to get screened without chance for recovery. But if you're talking 4-5 seconds then yeah, 3/4 court pressure is a good idea. I DID want to see them 'press up' on the 3pt line when they were up 5 & Kohler hit the three. One of those situations where I really want them shooting inside the arc.
  25. Jim French Stepstool
    Yep. And the play late where Blackwell was fouled. It was the right call, but I could see them letting that be a "play on". Fortunately they didn't.
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