Louisiana Tech (3/11/22)

[Pavlovs Eagle]

20 minutes ago, Green Otaku said:

You know I was thinking, in what game did Tylor Perry get injured and had to sit out the road game? Was it after ODU? Has it been since that game that he hasn't looked like his usual self? 

There's just more tape on him as the season goes on.

[TheColonyEagle]

1 hour ago, tmjerm said:

Here's another complaint...the auto-bid goes to a team who wins a weekend tournament and completely invalidates the regular season (in the case of a so called "one bid conference").  Had we not lost to UTEP I think we're still in as an at-large, but still - winning a regular season conference championship is so much harder than getting hot one weekend.  It's a stupid rule.  Again, this is life in C-USA and I'm glad we're leaving.  But damn, so dumb. 

Agree

[tmjerm]

14 minutes ago, TheColonyEagle said:

Agree

I know we’ve benefitted from it in the past but it’s just a money grab thing to have these tournaments and cheapens the regular season.  I know the money helps but from a competition standpoint it’s just a frustrating reality.  We made our bed though with the UTEP loss and it is what it is.  Tryna quit moping and get positive again cause these kids deserve our support with whatever is next. 

[Venson]

2 hours ago, tmjerm said:

Here's another complaint...the auto-bid goes to a team who wins a weekend tournament and completely invalidates the regular season (in the case of a so called "one bid conference").  Had we not lost to UTEP I think we're still in as an at-large, but still - winning a regular season conference championship is so much harder than getting hot one weekend.  It's a stupid rule.  Again, this is life in C-USA and I'm glad we're leaving.  But damn, so dumb. 

I agree with this statement so much. I am not the smartest guy in the world when it comes to basketball, but this is crazy. It's like why does C-USA even play a season? They should just play the tournament at the beginning of the season so they can go ahead and decide who is going to the NCAA tournament. No need to play the other games if they ultimately mean nothing when the tournament comes around. I hate this too. There will be teams that will get in who didn't win their conference and didn't when their conference tournament and will have several losses but because they are in another conference, they get in. Just dumb to me.

[NorthTexasSportsNetwork]

Still experiencing pain on this loss. So many opportunities to win.

I think next year we should be the 3 seed in the west because apparently they can win 🤷🏼‍♂️

[GMG_Dallas]

28 minutes ago, tmjerm said:

Tryna quit moping and get positive again cause these kids deserve our support with whatever is next. 

I'm overly positive but I still think we have a good chance at an at-large. We lost 2 of our last 3, yes, but by a total of 8 points. Our biggest loss it to Kansas by 12. Other than that, it's a few 3 point losses, a 2 point loss, and a 6 point loss. It's a good look that when we lose, it's not by much. Others on the bubble can't say as much.

[TIgreen01]

1 hour ago, GrandGreen said:

Bad time to have a bad game.

La Tech mirrored NT usual game plan and beat NT doing it. 

Slow it down, leave a bad shooter (Murray) relatively open and let him shoot.  Consecrate on stopping the best  scoring threat (Perry).

Don't allow close to the goal baskets. 

Choke job, no it was not, unless you call any favorite getting beat a choke job.

NT won two prior very close games over La Tech and La Tech was actually favored by more than a few. 

If anything, I thank McCasland's only playing 7 caught up with him.   There is the fatigue thing, but it also severely limited the odds of someone coming off the bench and making a positive difference.  

Murray is a good defensive player but a liability on the offense, likewise 

Several NT players were just having bad games, and only having one experienced guard and one forward is a loser when multiple starters are having off games.   

   

Best take so far.  
 

Also, we could very well win the NIT.  CUSA gets no credit, but the top 4 can play.

[Green Lantern]

35 minutes ago, Venson said:

I agree with this statement so much. I am not the smartest guy in the world when it comes to basketball, but this is crazy. It's like why does C-USA even play a season? They should just play the tournament at the beginning of the season so they can go ahead and decide who is going to the NCAA tournament. No need to play the other games if they ultimately mean nothing when the tournament comes around. I hate this too. There will be teams that will get in who didn't win their conference and didn't when their conference tournament and will have several losses but because they are in another conference, they get in. Just dumb to me.

No UNT fans were complaining about making it to the previous NCAA tournaments as a 5 seed in the conference tournaments before. It’s just the way it is. We didn’t play well enough to win.

Hats off to La Tech for finding a way to win their 3rd game in 3 days.

[Green Otaku]

1 hour ago, Pavlovs Eagle said:

There's just more tape on him as the season goes on.

I guess so, he just wasn't hitting as much as he was. I know I'm just looking for something to rationalize the last few games. 😅

[Mean Green Matt]

1 hour ago, GMG_Dallas said:

I'm overly positive but I still think we have a good chance at an at-large. We lost 2 of our last 3, yes, but by a total of 8 points. Our biggest loss it to Kansas by 12. Other than that, it's a few 3 point losses, a 2 point loss, and a 6 point loss. It's a good look that when we lose, it's not by much. Others on the bubble can't say as much.

Lunardi put out this morning that if we lost to La Tech we were toast. I’d look for us to land in the next four out and have a top 2 seed in the NIT. 
 

if we’d have won UTEP or today I think there’s still a chance. But not after today, especially how they lost. 
 

They need to regroup and make it to Madison Square Garden. 

[MCMLXXX]

3 hours ago, GrandGreen said:

If anything, I thank McCasland's only playing 7 caught up with him.   There is the fatigue thing, but it also severely limited the odds of someone coming off the bench and making a positive difference.  

  

   

I don't blame James Reese for transferring to South Carolina, He was an important part of our success last year and I think he also graduated. South Carolina will probably be in the NIT. However, I think if he had stayed this year we would have won at least two more regular season games and would be in the Conference Tournament finals.

Edited March 12, 2022 by MCMLXXX

[Andrew]

2 hours ago, tmjerm said:

I know we’ve benefitted from it in the past but it’s just a money grab thing to have these tournaments and cheapens the regular season.  I know the money helps but from a competition standpoint it’s just a frustrating reality.  We made our bed though with the UTEP loss and it is what it is.  Tryna quit moping and get positive again cause these kids deserve our support with whatever is next. 

All conference champs get an auto bid to the NIT. They get to go to a post season tournament regardless. 

[GMG_Dallas]

8 minutes ago, Mean Green Matt said:

Lunardi put out this morning that if we lost to La Tech we were toast. I’d look for us to land in the next four out and have a top 2 seed in the NIT. 
 

if we’d have won UTEP or today I think there’s still a chance. But not after today, especially how they lost. 
 

They need to regroup and make it to Madison Square Garden. 

That's a shame.

[GoMeanGreen1999]

6 hours ago, UNTcrazy727 said:

They were playing scared. No one wanted to step up and make a play. Just a lot of passing the ball around the perimeter until someone had to force a shot because the shot clock was about to expire. 

They did this all year, it just caught up to them today.  The games I was at this year I noted to myself, "this passing the ball around for just the perfect shot, only to have the shot clock expire before getting a shot off" is not going to work in a close game.

[GoMeanGreen1999]

7 hours ago, TheColonyEagle said:

Hold your opponent to 42

get beat…..okay  

score 13 points in the first half….we’ll there you go

But here’s the kicker……I believe we started the game up 10-2

Having a hard time figuring that one out 

So I had to go into an appointment right as they went up 10-2.  Didn't get out till well into the second half and I went to check the first half stats when I saw the score was so low and my jaw dropped when I saw we only scored 13 in the first half.  3 points in the final 9:38 of the first half.  WOW

[Matt from A700]

People have been quick to put down our team after today, which is shocking. Well how the turntables after everyone was saying we wouldn't be as good this year after our Buffalo and Miami collapses. The reality is that it's been a great season and it would take more than one hand to count the number of games we probably should have lost but didn't. "Luck" was going to run out.

It is a harsh reality for mid-majors that one loss will turn a "strong 12 seed" into NIT participants. And today was really deflating. But if the committee leaves us out, we need to get over it and be there at the Pit to support the team all the way to MSG.

Different group of guys, but I remember Mac's first team here at UNT that got off to a 14-10 overall start then lost 6 of their last 7 conference games then got bounced by #10 seed LA Tech in the first round of the conference tournament. Mac was able to rile them up to of course make their historic CBI run. I know these guys are pissed as well, and if we are NIT-bound, I know Mac will get them motivated to make it to the Big Apple.

[UNTLifer]

7 hours ago, UNT Texas Hooligan said:

On the bright side, Mac is staying for another season

He was staying either way. 

[greenminer]

22 hours ago, Gibbz said:

I didn't say that. We should, however, be somewhat better than 36 points against them with a homecourt advantage in Frisco with net rankings of #41 vs. #103.

I'm with you.  I was responding more to the "choke" label being thrown around.  Sorry if it felt like I was targeting you.