🏀 KuBuckets Archive

Well, looks like 0-2 this week is a reality as I feared. One seed will be tough now

I guess the best we will ever play WVU is one good half

I think they're done. Going zone not a good sign at all

They can't let this get out of hand...

Have to be careful not to foul!

Our guys have to play smart and avoid further foul trouble.

@BShark four losses in conference puts us out of contention for a one seed.

@DCHawker we are not CONSISTENTLY better or worse without him defensively. This team was not looking like a juggernaut defensively when he wasnt hurt for whatever reason. We are still in a good position without him. While it is nice to discuss hypotheticals and what ifs, there is no use in saying we would be much better. Who knows how much he would have played anyway and would Landen have been able to get back to where he was?

@approxinfinity I agree, but they really can't use those descriptors and adjectives on national TV. I do think Allen should take time to reevaluate his game and what he needs to do. He is a talented player that for whatever reason thinks playing dirty is OK and he is now viewed as one of the biggest jerks in basketball.

I am with you though - this feels more like Dr. Phil and less of Sports Center. Florida State and Arizona are looking really good and I would much rather hear analysis of their games than Allen's latest antics. Enough is enough.

@ralster OT clock? I dont think the game went to overtime...

@approxinfinity I don't know - Arizona looked really good and their defense was terrific.

@Crimsonorblue22 very complementary!

@approxinfinity I agree - Texas is getting better. Allen is probably gone after this year - he is a really talented player.

@drgnslayr I have no qualms with Huggins or West Virginia. I like that our guys play against them two or three times a year as it tests their poise and basketball maturity. I am sure Bill appreciates those games also, as he is all about toughness.

@ralster our loss to Shaka made him into something he is not. Is he a capable coach? Yes. Is he on the level of Kruger, Huggins and Underwood? I say no, for the reasons you stated.

@drgnslayr I think there is some truth to our guys not playing with full effort all the time in an effort to prevent wear and tear. I would like to see us blow out teams by 25 every night, but that requires a lot of energy and there is a lot of battles in the middle and end of the season.

I agree about our guards. While it would be a great boost to have Carlton playing better, and I think we will start to see more and more every game, guards rule the tournament. I think people quickly forget what Nova, Michigan and UConn have accomplished the last few years due to their strong guard play. People always seem to be so paranoid about getting destroyed by teams that have multiple bigs, but in reality, you only need to play one big at a time. I would take four out one in over the traditional two big set as it is more versatile and any advantage a big lineup has is negated by another guard on the floor. I really don't think people remember just how brilliant Nova was last year - most if not all of their tournament games are on youtube and I recommend people rewatch them.

When you take an in depth look at it, that Nova team was at a major disadvantage to both us and Carolina, yet they won both games. Most people thought Carolina would dominate inside, yet they didnt. Why? Its a little concept called team defense. I know our guys can play final four caliber defense - we saw the energy necessary on Saturday, against Davidson and for moments against Iowa State and Siena.

I'm not sure I agree about losing games in order to improve. Landen, Svi, Frank and Devonte have all taken some bad losses in their careers and I don't think they need any more. The West Virginia game tomorrow is a very winnable game. We have lost to them three times in a row because our guys always seem to be panicked and completely out of sorts. I hope it changes this year and our upperclassmen take charge and get the W.

Bragg in the second half yesterday was more aggressive and had a quick and strong spin move in the post in which he was fouled. Maybe thinking too much is his problem. He needs to make a quick move and go instead of being slow. He was definitely looking to score more

@truehawk93 the way I view it, when our whole team is focused on stopping the other team, which we have seen a few times during the season but never for very long, opposing bigs have trouble scoring and guards cant get in the lane to dish it off. But when they arent focused, guards get in the lane and bigs score. The correlation is simple: focus and energy = elite defense; unfocused, just getting the game over with = teams score on us with little difficulty.

@jaybate-1.0 exactly. The ultimate test will be the next two weeks. Really brutal schedule, but still possible to clear.

@kjayhawks your good - I thought you were correcting me.

@truehawk93 I still don't agree with him

@Blown Landen was very sick, Bill said

@Texas-Hawk-10 I think your analysis is accurate.

@Texas-Hawk-10 yes, that would put WVU out of the conference race

@kjayhawks hey bud, how many times have you heard me whine about the refs? Don't I usually talk about what OUR players need to do? The call, IMO, was not flagrant and was unintentional and it did change momentum. I don't want a "We don't do that at Kansas" speech. Thanks.

@BShark interesting development

@kjayhawks maybe, but things changed A LOT after that call

@truehawk93 I disagree - they didn't get exposed. Clark didn't say that did he?

@BShark what?

That very questionable call changed the momentum completely. If K State loses, it's on the zebras

@kjayhawks could be saving their energy for when they really need it. Our defensive energy for certain stretches was terrific

@jayballer54 we probably wouldn't face UNC until the final four, hopefully. If we do, we would just need to play our best defensively and play at our tempo. We would be fine.

@kjayhawks I know, I remember. There is still no excuse, in my mind

@jaybate-1.0 we should have legs enough for Tuesday. Today was not exactly a barnburner and hopefully Landen will be better.

@kjayhawks with a veteran group, we should not go 4-4. We have experienced a bad stretch the last several years, so why experience it again? Besides, it could cost us the conference and a one seed.

The good thing is it can be so bad at times it can only get better with time and practice.

@KUSTEVE tough scheduling. if they play smart, I like our chances

@KUSTEVE next week would be a great time to play smarter.

Yeah, this team is not playing anywhere near the level they could be. Hopefully Bill will help them to play at their potential at the right time. A W Tuesday is essential

@Texas-Hawk-10 that is a definite possibility. The 2012 team was kind of the same way

@RockChalkinTexas yeah, makes you pull your hair out. They only focus enough to win.

@bskeet focus and energy

@BeddieKU23 this shouldn't be the first time if you have watched the games

Well, hopefully we FINALLY are through with all the sloppy bad defense games. Can't afford anymore of those. No reason to either with a veteran group.

@BShark I still think we could throw it in to him more

@globaljaybird and yes, the defense is very, very good when they want it to be. Otherwise, we see other teams score easily, which creates an erroneous impression that this is how it is going to be.

@globaljaybird eh I don't know about that. We can match up if they execute correctly. Unfortunately, we too often see careless defense and poor focus which has resulted in easy points. When our guys were locked in at the beginning, did Texas score easy points? No.

Wow for being upperclassmen our guys are so sloppy with the ball.

@DCHawker part of the solution is for us to go inside and draw fouls on them

@Jayrawks1 terrible call. Zebra assumed there was a foul