Way to run transition.
RockChalkinTexas
6832 posts
@wissox Got mine too. We will have to catch up before the game.
Told ya -- Josh!
@Crimsonorblue22 Not so fast there sister. I can think of several others b/4 him.
Got to play smarter on defense. Josh needs to drive the lane and make them foul him. He has not been aggressive enough and don't know what to think of LL, Bragg and Doke all having foul trouble. Frank needs to kick it into second gear. Thank goodness for Devonte'.
@Crimsonorblue22 Have a blast. Get to hear the ovation for J. Haase.
Root Root Root for the home team!
Article from the old guy sports writer here in Austin addresses @approxinfinity questions and mirrors somewhat @BeddieKU23 is saying:
Bohls: Shaka Smart’s Longhorns are enduring groaning pains
Posted December 1st, 2016
With the clock ticking down on Texas’ first home loss of the season Tuesday night, it became readily apparent to the small crowd on hand that the Longhorns were missing just one valuable piece of the puzzle.
Yeah, last year’s starting lineup.
A Texas team that said goodbye to all five starters looked a whole lot like just that when a solid, veteran Texas-Arlington team took the Longhorns apart 72-61 at the Erwin Center, revealing some glaring errors that are obvious for all to see:
The lack of a creative, confident point guard to get open shots for his teammates.
Atrocious perimeter shooting from behind the line.
Very little experience inside and an inability to feed the ball there.
Nothing of substance from the few older players outside of guards Kerwin Roach and Tevin Mack.
Otherwise, this looks like a Big 12 contender. Yeah, in 2018.
And the reaction from Tuesday’s loss?
“Everybody’s mad,” said Roach, a sophomore guard and one of the few Longhorns who played well. “A lot of things are not going our way. We’re a young team. We’re not going to be great in one day.”
Where have we heard that before? It’s a recurring theme around these parts. We’ll gladly settle for being great in a month, especially with four newcomers and a fifth on the way in the rehabbing Mareik Isom. Heck, we’ll settle for good. But the concerns are real for a team that’s not playing an overly taxing non-conference schedule, including Alabama here on Friday.
Those growing pains are looking more like groaning pains as Texas (3-3) continues to struggle with forming an identity it can build around. For now, this is not a very good basketball team.
But Tuesday’s game was in November. And Texas does have athletes. And a very good coach. And the Longhorns will get better.
However, is it remotely close to defining a reliable identity?
“No, no,” second-year head coach Shaka Smart said. “That’s something as a coach you can kind of hammer guys over the head with. Some guys on the team are playing with a level of tension or playing not to make a mistake.”
For now, a Texas club that has lost three straight in embarrassing fashion, two of them in New York City, appears to be facing an uphill climb to respectability. Smart continues to keep a stiff upper lip, the same one he may be biting to hold back for fear of being overly critical and paralyzing a roster chock full of impressionable freshmen.
“I’d say our identity should be defense, being aggressive, an offense playing through Jarrett (Allen) and Shaq (Cleare),” Roach said.
The defense has been lacking. Four of Texas’ guards are shooting .250 percent or worse from behind the line, including Roach (two of 12), Eric Davis Jr. (six of 36) and Jacob Young (four of 20). They had nine turnovers in the second half alone Tuesday. Other than a terrific Allen, the Texas bigs are offensively challenged. The foul-prone Cleare averages 4.8 points a game and James Banks just 2.4.
Was Smart stunned by the lethargic, inconsistent performance that produced the school’s first loss to UTA in school history after 11 consecutive victories in the series?
“I’m disappointed,” he said softly. “They’re a really good team. Obviously we struggled to shoot the ball throughout the game, and when your offense isn’t going the way you want it to go as a team or as individuals, and when your offense isn’t going the way you want it to go, there’s a residual affect on your defense. And that’s not acceptable.”
Texas is getting erratic play out of his older players. Kendal Yancy and Davis, two players who were on the floor a lot last season, were no-shows against UTA. The same goes for Cleare. Those three started but combined for two points and hit one of 11 shots with Davis going 0-for-6 from long range.
“I honestly don’t know why (Davis is struggling),” Roach said. “In practice he’s a killer, knocks down shots.”
In the final three-plus minutes of crunch time, Smart had as many as three freshmen on the floor. And he may ride with those newcomers more frequently — namely Allen, athletic Andrew Jones and Young, who has yet to show he’s the pure shooter that was expected.
There’s nothing to say Smart can’t be harder on his rookies.
Did you hear Tom Izzo’s tough-love message on Tuesday night? He’s got six freshmen and three sophomores on his roster.
“I know they’re freshmen, but they’ve played a lot of minutes,” the Michigan State coach said after his Spartans fell to a ranked team for the fourth time this season. “It’s time to stop making excuses.”
So is Shaka coddling his team? Maybe a little. But they shouldn’t be this fragile. If they are, they shouldn’t be here.
UTA coach Scott Cross, whose NCAA Tournament-caliber team returned six starters if you count future NBA forward Kevin Hervey coming off knee injury, suggests Longhorn fans won’t recognize this team in February.
“They’re going to be really good by the time they get into conference,” Cross said. “Coach Smart is one of the best at rallying his team together and getting everybody on the same page. Once they find their rhythm and identity, they’ll give teams a lot of problems.”
As for now, Texas is the one with a lot of problems.
@BeddieKU23 Broke that 43 home game win streak vs. non-con teams too!
Big 12 Standings - Texas at the bottom. Who would have thunk it? Clones lost last night in OT to Cincinnati :joy:
First two lines of the article in the Austin newspaper this morning :kissing_heart:
First, Texas football lost to Kansas. As if that wasn’t unbelievable enough, Texas men’s basketball lost UT-Arlington on Tuesday.
These are jaw-dropping times for Texas athletics.
KU Live Tweets/News @kutweetsandnews
Vick 23 pts 2 reb 1 ast
Svi 14 pts 2 reb 1 ast
Jackson 13 pts 5 reb 4 ast
Graham 12 pts 2 reb 4 ast
Mason 8 pts 6 reb 8 ast
Doke 8 pts 7 reb
Matt Tait @mctait · 11h11 hours ago
Self to Lightfoot, who just checked in and was whistled for a foul: "Mitch! What are you doing? Get your hands off him!" #KUbball
Jesse Newell Retweeted Amir
Feel like Wiggins at KU was watching a future star in single-A baseball. Jackson is like a triple-A guy about to be called up next week.
There was barely any fans there watching when we looked in at halftime. On the radio broadcast they said there were 17 NBA scouts there to see Jarret Allen. Were they sorry for watching that game?
We saw in the Austin paper that Cheik Diallo was recalled back to the Pelicans. He did well playing for the Austin Spurs so good for him to get a better paycheck.
@brooksmd When I watch on my Nook I can't do the chat thing.
That is 3 losses in a row. The "fire Shaka" rants should be starting soon.
Josh shoots his free throws flat footed. Gonna have to see if any others do. He has his MENACE socks on again. He needs to throw down a dunk or 2!
Rock Chalk---Hawks Need To Keep The Ball Moving Like They Did In The First Half. Fun to watch. :exclamation: :boom:
Anyone else notice the "MENACE" he has worn on his socks every game? No one else has it.
Eating turkey was lots of fun,
watching the Cowboys improve to 10 and one.
Dak and Zeke are two of a kind,
but our 2 guards will blow opponents' minds.
Josh has been improving each game
and will put Wiggins' stats to shame.
It is great to finally be back at AFH
to kick some UNC Assh!
@globaljaybird I as a child was forced to watch Lawrence Welk. Are there STILL Lennon Sisters or are they 3rd/4th generation?
A glorious day for all -- My daily :church: :pray: for my fellow Bucketeers. :kiss:
Think Jarrett Allen wishes now that he picked KU instead of UTurd?
@Crimsonorblue22 I still need to gain back 10+ pounds. Was my birthday Sunday so made myself a choc. cake AND choc. cupcakes. I am going to eat lots of turkey and mashed taters. Hope you have a great day.
Night All.
You are all in my prayers for a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.
@jaybate-1.0 No freakin' way jay. I took great delight in ribbing the radiation techs and staff and people in the waiting room about our Jayhawks beating UT Saturday. Once a Jayhawk, Always a Jayhawk!
Winning ugly is still a win. What would we do w/o Frank?
Had my LAST radiation treatment today and looking forward to the 4-day holiday/weekend. Give thanks for all that you have as life can throw you some bad stuff from time to time.
Happy Rock Chalk Thanksgiving!
P.S. UT lost again to Tad Boyle's team. Whah Whah Whah.
I read in the Austin paper last week that this year we are having a TRUE round robin schedule, in that each team will play all the other teams once and then the second half of the season each team will play all the other teams. This means that you will not have a scenario where in the past we played Baylor twice before we played another team the first time during the first half of the season and then we played ISU twice towards the end of the season a couple of weeks apart.
I likey. What say you? Were you aware of this change?
Just didn't know if you were aware of this or if anyone had previously posted (if so, I apologize).
And Down Goes Texas to .............Northwestern.
Not a good day for UT fans.
:stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:
Way to go Hawks. Got to play better inside vs Georgia.
Strong has a $10 million buyout. Rumor was he had a 1- way ticket to Lawrence! I can't believe Hawks beat them. Going to be sober at work tomorrow. I wore my Rock Chalk Jayhawk shirt Friday and I had to tell them it was for our basketball game and NOT football that I was wearing it for. The Houston coach was who they were all vying for earlier but after a couple of losses they cooled somewhat but think he is back in the mix now.
My guess is after the TCU game next Friday, especially if the lose that and become bowl INelligible.
@Texas-Hawk-10 but those suburbs are getting bluer as the millenials move in and the old ones die off.
@truehawk93 So why worry about them?
Rock Chalk. Gritty down to the wire and thank God for Frank Mason. I can't wait to listen to Coach K show on Sirius Thursday as I believe he will give us the credit we are due for fighting back in the second half with great D and being in the position to win it. Vick had a couple of great drives to the hoop and Bragg may be getting his role worked out in his own head. You gotta know everyone was beyond exhausted after that game and tired of hotels. Bet they can't wait to get back home.
Did Larry Brown and Sasha Kaun bring the mojo we needed? Thought our fans showed up big time.
Got my tickets today for the UT game here on 2/25!!!
Night all.
I agree that he has to find a way to NOT bring the ball down but he has done it his whole time here and I don't see him changing now. How do you make a major change in something that is just so natural for him to want to do?
@Texas-Hawk-10 THANKS for the info. I didn't see KU listed in the 5 or 3 game miniplans.
@wrwlumpy VERY good point. I don't recall EVER seeing such a lineup in any game before when there is so much on the line. Have you? I thought there would be a lot of fouls but our 3 best players not being there in OT is not what we can afford ever again.
UT barely beat Incarnate Word. Going to be a long non conference season for Shaka if he has to play teams you have heard of before AND are good :boom:
Just saw this on the NBC Sports page under the 20 Bold Predictions for the 2016-2017 college basketball season:
Kansas will go 18-0 in Big 12 play: The Jayhawks have a near-impenetrable homecourt advantage and the rest of the league will be down significantly, making their 13th-straight title their most definitive. (Travis Hines)
Texas Tech will finish second in the Big 12: The Red Raiders were a surprising NCAA tournament team last season and they return most of last season’s core. With the rest of the Big 12 outside of Kansas having a significant amount of question marks, Texas Tech has a chance to make a major move. (Scott Phillips)
@jayballer54 They are flying straight from Hawaii to NYC. That is one long flight, but not as bad as going to So. Korea!
@BeddieKU23 The Spurs do use the ones from the Austin Spurs in their rotation regularly so he just needs to prove himself.
I will be able to watch him here in Austin!!! I also saw something in the paper this week that Naadir Tharpe was picked up by the Delaware DLeague team. Wasn't that where Brannen Green was drafted?
I started back to work this week part time and made it through the week! I also received from Bill Self's assistant a package of goodies - 2 posters (one signed by all players and coaches and the other one that is of all the players with the schedule posted below them that is 4 feet long) along with a media guide and 5 pocket schedules. She is someone that I have written each year to get the pocket schedules and she went out of her way to send me stuff this year due to my health issues. I have the poster signed by everyone hanging up on my office wall for all the Longhorn fans to see :laughing: .
Got my 12Straight t-shirt on today, KU necklace, Jayhawk socks and Jayhawk earrings. The day I got out of the hospital I had to stop at my pharmacy for medicine before heading home and I had on my Rock Chalk Jayhawk shirt and the pharmacist was telling me about the medicine and she pointed to my shirt and asked "Big Fan?" Found out that she graduated from KU and after talking for awhile I found out that she had worked at the Walgreens in my hometown, Leavenworth, before moving down here. So yesterday on my way home I stopped and found her working and gave her one of the pocket schedules. We are going to try and get together for a watch party out in our area for some upcoming games. The Hawk fans do go to a bar in South Austin but that is too long a drive for me. Can't wait to see a real game tonight!
Rock Chalk Jayhawk Go KU!
@jaybate-1.0 Mason rock solid. Can score at will. Slashing, coast to coast and from either side.
I liked Vick's short shorts! Wish I was going to Hawaii. See you all for Indiana!
@Crimsonorblue22 he has been holding it most of the half. Tough hombre!
I go back to work part time tomorrow. Last time I worked AND drove my car was June 23 rd. Nothing though would keep me from watching the Jayhawks. Liking what I am seeing.
Bragg got the quick pull after failing to get a rebound AND hold onto the ball after it came back to him on the same play. And Josh learned 23 seconds into the second half that HCBS holds power over even the freshman phenom. Lucas' quick fouls can't happen that fast ever. We need him and his experience in there. Liked Svi's threes but he did miss some bunnies.
Going to be hell to pay at practice Wednesday! Night all.
First game jitters for Josh.Hope he gets to play second half.
I am watching on my Nook so can't comment during the game. Rock Chalk 2016-2017.
They have extended his contract a few more years just based on last year. He had his guys go through the Navy boot camp, copying what we did. I don't think he gets any more fans to the games than he did last year, With Charlie Strong on the short end of his time at UT I think Smart is the fall to guy. What were they picked in the Big 12 coaches poll? 3rd. Other coaches aren't on his band wagon it seems.
@Crimsonorblue22 The board somehow took away my pic of Josh and put back the old one I used to have on my profile. Read where @approxinfinity did something with the server so guess that is why my profile picture reset.
Too bad this one is too large to upload:
@Crimsonorblue22 always you make me smile!