Re: College Basketball 2008-2009

[Exile on Waveland]

You guys are right. Beating Illinois twice during the regular season was far more satisfying that winning the NIT.

 

8-)

Likewise, making the NCAA tourney was far more satisfying than losing twice to PSU.

 

In all seriousness though, there was a different set of expectations coming into the season for both schools. PSU doesn't have any history of sustained success like Illinois does. A "down" year for Illinois is usually a "good" year for PSU. So, for a school that is trying to establish a higher level of competitiveness, a 5 game run through the NIT was a more valuable playing experience than the NCAA might have been. Now, if PSU had made the NCAA and had pulled an Arizona and gone to the Swet Sixteen, that' a completely different story.

 

Either way, I'm proud of the players for shaking of the disappointment of missing the dance and playing some really good basketball in the NIT. They'll get to hang a banner, and they'll return most of their players for another run in the Big Ten next year. If they can finish in the top half next year, I'll be pretty happy.

 

Sorry, but I seriously doubt Penn State finishes in the top half of the Big Ten next year (and I really like both DeChellis and Battle).

[TruffleShuffle]

I'd rather win the Humanitarian Bowl than lose in the Rose Bowl.

 

i guess this is a valid comparison if 65 teams are playing in the rose bowl and then another 32 played in the humanitarian bowl. seems to me the field would be awfully crowded.

 

and illinois lost as a #5 seed in the 5-12 game, which is probably the equivalent of the outback bowl. penn st won 5 games in the NIT and beat baylor in a matchup of teams probably ranked around #50 out of 340, so that's like winning the peach bowl or something. i'd rather win the peach bowl than lose in the outback bowl.

[SouthSideRyan]

Yeah, admitting ignorance about PSU's incoming class, I've got em 8th-9th next year.

[Magnetic Curses]

yep, i bet you would.

 

 

 

i'd say it's a more rewarding end to the season than... say, losing to western kentucky.

 

Yawn.

 

The Illini overachieved all season, and I was not surprised they lost. But I don't believe for a second most PSU fans wouldn't trade an NCAA berth and immediate dismissal for an NIT championship, nor do I believe the players would. Not for a second.

 

past your bedtime?

 

anyway, i wouldn't, at all. at. all. winning 5 games in a row, two of them at home, at least one of them in really exciting fashion, is a lot more fun than losing a neutral court first round game in the ncaa tournament. i'd say the 36 buses of students that went to MSG today would agree with that.

 

alright, show of hands, who knows that penn state won a game in exciting fashion in the past week?

 

show of hands, who knows that illinois lost to western kentucky?

 

nobody cares about the NIT.

[NeifiIsMyHomeBoy]

Anyone who is proud to be the NIT champ should have their head examined. Last year I was so embarrassed by the Illini's play that I did not want to go to any post season tournament even if we were invited. The ultimate goal is always the Big Dance and to say otherwise is foolish. BTW at Illinois we don't hang NCAA participation banners, that is soooooooooo Iowa.

 

but no one was embarrassed by PSU's performance this year. They were on the bubble and got caught in a numbers game. I'm more disappointed in them losing the finale @Iowa, which would have gotten them into the dance.

 

Again, it's a difference in expectations. If you thought you were a tourney team (eg Kentucky) but had to "settle" for the NIT, then yeah, I totally agree with you. If no one thought you'd be better than 10th in the Big Ten but ended up with 27 wins, what's to be down about?

 

There in lies the problem with Penn State hoops. Your expectations. There is no reason that PSU should not be a perennial tourney team. Penn State has the resources, the facilities, and the players to be successful. It is time for the PSU fan base to raise the bar of success. The NIT is a nice starting point, but there is more out there to be had.

[Magnetic Curses]

Did you guys know that Ohio State won the NIT last year? I actually dont remember that happening.

 

That's because no one cares. I would bet more people were tuned into ESPN2 or ESPNews watching Mark Schlereth wax moronic about the Cutler trade than gave a thought to the NIT final.

 

And I can say with all honesty that even if the Illini were in the same position, I would hardly care then, either.

 

I just remember West Virginia winning it two years ago and their shirts were misprinted saying "West Virgina".

 

http://blog.spreadshirt.net/uk/files/2007/05/west_virgina.jpg

 

that's one of the funniest things i've seen in a while.

[Exile on Waveland]

Yeah, admitting ignorance about PSU's incoming class, I've got em 8th-9th next year.

 

In whatever order, I see little chance they finish higher than Michigan State, Purdue, Minnesota, Illinois, or Wisconsin. It's hard to say what Ohio State or Michigan will look like until early entries are finalized. Northwestern loses less than Penn State and finished only two games behind them.

[TruffleShuffle]

taran buie (talor battle's younger brother) committed to penn st after last night's game. he's more highly rated at this point than his brother was - he's 4 stars on both scout and rivals.

[TruffleShuffle]

alright, show of hands, who knows that penn state won a game in exciting fashion in the past week?

 

show of hands, who knows that illinois lost to western kentucky?

 

nobody cares about the NIT.

 

penn state had 2 extra home games that were attended by 12,000 people, then a game at florida attended by 6,500 people, then 2 games at MSG attended by more than 20,000 people, including 52 buses of penn state students. you're probably right about one thing, that illinois fans don't care that penn state won the NIT, but winning 5 games in the NIT was a lot more meaningful to penn state fans that going to the ncaa tourney and losing immediately.

[NeifiIsMyHomeBoy]

PSU has not been to the dance in a decade, and you are trying to tell me an NIT title is more meaningful? Put down the bong. Ask a Michigan fan what they think. Making the tourney this year was a huge accomplishment, and I am sure they enjoyed this year more than their plethora of NIT title winning seasons.

[TruffleShuffle]

Yeah, admitting ignorance about PSU's incoming class, I've got em 8th-9th next year.

 

In whatever order, I see little chance they finish higher than Michigan State, Purdue, Minnesota, Illinois, or Wisconsin. It's hard to say what Ohio State or Michigan will look like until early entries are finalized. Northwestern loses less than Penn State and finished only two games behind them.

 

next year's incoming class isn't going to accomplish much; the best player coming in is a point guard and we already have battle for that. if andrew jones (not the baseball player) develops as a low-post threat and chris babb can replace pringle, then they should be about as good as this past year, but on paper they're probably a little worse.

[TruffleShuffle]

PSU has not been to the dance in a decade, and you are trying to tell me an NIT title is more meaningful?

 

yup

 

Put down the bong.

 

is this necessary? or do you just have an inability to disagree with someone without insulting their intelligence?

 

Ask a Michigan fan what they think. Making the tourney this year was a huge accomplishment, and I am sure they enjoyed this year more than their plethora of NIT title winning seasons.

 

that's because michigan made the NIT for 50 years in a row. most years penn st didn't make anything, so making the NIT is an accompishment over losing in the first round of the big ten tourney and then going home with a losing record.

 

i understand that most people don't care about the NIT, but penn state grads and students got into it and got to watch some good games.

Edited April 3, 2009 by TruffleShuffle

[SouthSideRyan]

Apparently 16 more buses showed up to MSG in the last hour.

[Magnetic Curses]

alright, show of hands, who knows that penn state won a game in exciting fashion in the past week?

 

show of hands, who knows that illinois lost to western kentucky?

 

nobody cares about the NIT.

 

penn state had 2 extra home games that were attended by 12,000 people, then a game at florida attended by 6,500 people, then 2 games at MSG attended by more than 20,000 people, including 52 buses of penn state students. you're probably right about one thing, that illinois fans don't care that penn state won the NIT, but winning 5 games in the NIT was a lot more meaningful to penn state fans that going to the ncaa tourney and losing immediately.

 

hahaha

[TruffleShuffle]

alright, show of hands, who knows that penn state won a game in exciting fashion in the past week?

 

show of hands, who knows that illinois lost to western kentucky?

 

nobody cares about the NIT.

 

penn state had 2 extra home games that were attended by 12,000 people, then a game at florida attended by 6,500 people, then 2 games at MSG attended by more than 20,000 people, including 52 buses of penn state students. you're probably right about one thing, that illinois fans don't care that penn state won the NIT, but winning 5 games in the NIT was a lot more meaningful to penn state fans that going to the ncaa tourney and losing immediately.

 

hahaha

 

:rotfl:

[TruffleShuffle]

Apparently 16 more buses showed up to MSG in the last hour.

 

for what purpose?

[Derwood]

Yeah, admitting ignorance about PSU's incoming class, I've got em 8th-9th next year.

 

which is why i'd be happy with a top 1/2 finish.

 

also, who expected PSU to do as well as they did this year? no one. so with all due respect, your preseason predictions don't mean much of anything

[SouthSideRyan]

Apparently 16 more buses showed up to MSG in the last hour.

 

for what purpose?

 

I don't know the # just went from 36 to 52 buses.

[Derwood]

Apparently 16 more buses showed up to MSG in the last hour.

 

for what purpose?

 

I don't know the # just went from 36 to 52 buses.

 

16 on tuesday night, 36 on thursday night

[SouthSideRyan]

Apparently 16 more buses showed up to MSG in the last hour.

 

for what purpose?

 

I don't know the # just went from 36 to 52 buses.

 

16 on tuesday night, 36 on thursday night

 

shhhhhhhhhut it

[illiniguy]

and you know this because you've been an athlete at a school when a change is made? thought so.

 

Oh is this the I was a big time athlete speech from Illiniguy? How was basketball at D3 bumbleF University?

 

There's a big difference between making an honest assessment of how somebody fits into a system, say a pocket QB committed to an an option system, and coming in and telling a kid, I don't care that you committed to the program, get your ass out of here, and take a nice mandated year off from college ball while you're at

 

do you also realize that illlinois is one over right now on scholarships. the one over would be jereme richmond, crandall head, or myers leonard. i imagine you want weber to do the honorable thing and tell jereme we can't take him as he would have to run someone off in order to get the scholly?

 

I'm just gonna be a spaz like you and assume they're all going to decommitt. Or realize that there's already a player who will have used 4 years of a scholarship by then. Or realize there's a slight difference between being oversigned by 1 2 years ahead of time and attempting to run off 3-4 kids right away to bring kids with you that committeed to another school already.

 

like it or not schollys are one year renewable

 

Like it or not, when a kid signs with a school, he's not expecting to be trying out for the team every summer. If it's so widely accepted among kids and coaches, why do teams ever have less than 13 on scholly? These kids who are so understanding and actually appreciative of being run off a team, should love the chance to go get a scholarship for a year and then get the privilege of sitting out for a season before moving on to Hofstra.

Again it is just simply a fact, a new coach is going to tell the players if they fit or not. I also did not play d3 sports. I was definately on scholarship.

[illiniguy]

Apparently 16 more buses showed up to MSG in the last hour.

 

for what purpose?

 

I don't know the # just went from 36 to 52 buses.

Shocking you're pretty much an expert on everything.

[TruffleShuffle]

SSR wasn't a math major, not his fault.

[illiniguy]

SSR wasn't a math major, not his fault.

Ah, I thought when you were the smartest person alive sometimes you were able to branch out into other fields. My bad.

[Keener98]

I'd rather win the Humanitarian Bowl than lose in the Rose Bowl.

 

i guess this is a valid comparison if 65 teams are playing in the rose bowl and then another 32 played in the humanitarian bowl. seems to me the field would be awfully crowded.

 

and illinois lost as a #5 seed in the 5-12 game, which is probably the equivalent of the outback bowl. penn st won 5 games in the NIT and beat baylor in a matchup of teams probably ranked around #50 out of 340, so that's like winning the peach bowl or something. i'd rather win the peach bowl than lose in the outback bowl.

 

Yea I like how you have failed to mention that the Illini lost to a 12 seed that was a Sweet 16 team the previous year, and also didnt have their starting PG....