Rutgers is probably the most talented team we faced all year. They couldn't figure how to play defense as a team early on, but are figuring it out now in the second half of the season. 2 potential lottery picks but young. They'll make the tourney and probably do some damage!
Hoiskers return to the Vault against Rutgers as 9 favorite
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We have to do something to improve our perimeter defense. Teams are killing us with the 3 ball.
Oh I agree with you - Worster’s offensive repertoire is extremely thin. But like you say, he protects the ball, rebounds really well for a guard and isn’t a defensive liability. And on this team, that means lots of minutes. I wish Worster was about the 3rd or 4th guy off the bench, but here we are.
Kind of a meaningless stat in a lot of cases. Rollie is more often on the floor with better scorers/defenders.
Essegian -10
Ace Bailey +1
Dylan Harper +0
The beer-bellied Armo kind of sucks, too
Maybe he will get hot for a stretch
Guess we’ll see
I don’t disagree with you that NU is doubling too much, just pointing out one of the reasons behind it. If Fred doesn’t want to mix in more zone, maybe they need to fight through more screens and switch less often.
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I don't think fans realize how scheduling works.
Racking up lame wins really doesn't do much for you anymore, it is really based on your metrics, Kenpom, Torvik, that stuff.
Back in the day, 20 wins was kind of the magic number to get you in.
Sigh. It seems as if Nebraska can never turn the corner with its basketball program. The past several years have been a big tease. Play well at home but lose on the road. And now we don't even win at home. I get that Rutgers has some NBA caliber talent. But that is my point. Why don't we have NBA caliber talent? Why do we rarely get that kind of talent? I like Hoiberg. I hope we stick with him. He is as good as anyone we would get to replace him. But I do wish we could turn that corner.
And please don't come back at me with, "But we do have NBA level talent!" Well, if that is true then we cannot make excuses for losing to Rutgers on the grounds that they have NBA level talent. The implication is that our loss is "understandable" because they just have more talent than we do. And that is my point. Why do they have more talent than we do? Granted, we only lost by three points but where in the hell has our defense gone? And why is our offense lousy in the clutch? To be a great basketball program requires a consistency of play that we just do not have.
And please don't come back at me with, "But we do have NBA level talent!" Well, if that is true then we cannot make excuses for losing to Rutgers on the grounds that they have NBA level talent. The implication is that our loss is "understandable" because they just have more talent than we do. And that is my point. Why do they have more talent than we do? Granted, we only lost by three points but where in the hell has our defense gone? And why is our offense lousy in the clutch? To be a great basketball program requires a consistency of play that we just do not have.
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Was last the year the outlier for FH and the program? All indications would say yes. Hopefully they can they can stop this loosing streak soon. As far as NBA talent on this team I don’t see it.
It's Nebraska Basketball. We can never have nice things.
NBA talent is hard to come by. Look at a program with the pedigree of Kansas, they have one guy (freshman Flory Bidunga) who is an NBA talent and they are struggling.
Harper and Bailey are two of the best players I’ve seen in a long time (at any age).
My biggest knock on Fred is losing in state talent. Rutgers is located in fertile recruiting grounds and sometimes kids just want to stay home. Not sure where all of their NBA talent comes from but I doubt it's that far from home. Nebraska rarely has that level of talent and when we have been close, those players tend to go elsewhere. Disappointing. In the end it's hard to get NBA level players to come to the middle of nowhere. Especially when that nowhere has never been a basketball power.
Yeah, but how will a guy convince kids to stay and play for the worst team in America? Basketball is the 1 sport Im letting my kid leave the state of NE for (if one of my kids had the chance, which they wont). Or at least the city of Lincoln for.
I think I noticed last night how much we miss Tominaga's ability to actually get open for 3s. I dont see that kind of off the ball motor or hustle out of Essegian. KT was all over the floor making guys run him down.
Feels like its Nebraska athletics. Gets you exciting thinking we're good, only to be let down.
Rollies FT shooting and missing an open 12 foot jumper in the lane cost us hugely last night. His turnover on that out of bounds play was mind numbingly gradeschoolish. He has to be better than that. Once again free throw shooting cost us a game. Rollie missing several. Gary missing the front end in 1-1. Mesh missed 2 late. Killer.
Because we refuse to go after them. We just get by and accept what we have seen forever.
Sadly most of the threes Rutgers knocked down were with a hand in their face. IF we guarded tightly though their guards dribbled around them even when doubled. Bottomine was their guards were better than ours last night.
Bottom 3 teams don't make the BTT.
I DOUBT that NU will be in the bottom 3, but currently there are seven teams with 2 conference wins or less.
If I was the AD and if Fred doesn't make the BTT, you have to get rid of him.
Now if that happens, you call the WVU coach first and see if you can get him to leave WVU after only a year. The draw being the money and that is about it.
I DOUBT that NU will be in the bottom 3, but currently there are seven teams with 2 conference wins or less.
If I was the AD and if Fred doesn't make the BTT, you have to get rid of him.
Now if that happens, you call the WVU coach first and see if you can get him to leave WVU after only a year. The draw being the money and that is about it.
Ace Bailey is from Georgia. Rutgers has never been a basketball power. I don't know how TF they got him there.
We haven't been playing well, for sure, but those guys are studs. We may be deeper, but it's usually the studs that get you big wins. I watched the entire game and kept saying to myself "what are these two doing at Rutgers."
Ace Bailey, a highly-touted five-star recruit, chose to attend Rutgers University for several compelling reasons:
- Relationship with Coach Steve Pikiell: Bailey was impressed by Coach Pikiell's loyalty and genuine care for his players, both on and off the court. Pikiell's persistent presence at Bailey's games and his commitment to player development resonated with Bailey, influencing his decision to commit to Rutgers.
SB Nation
- Opportunity to Play with Dylan Harper: Bailey expressed enthusiasm about the prospect of playing alongside fellow top recruit Dylan Harper. Their combined talents were seen as a means to elevate Rutgers' basketball program to new heights.
Yahoo Sports
- Desire to Transform Rutgers' Basketball Culture: Bailey aimed to contribute to a cultural shift at Rutgers, helping the team achieve significant victories and gain national recognition. He believed that with the incoming talent, Rutgers could "shock a lot of people" in the upcoming season.
New York Post
Sources
I agree and I like Fred. But he has had enough years for sure. Last year we turned the corner and it would be a let down to finish below that mark. I'm not for firing coaches but this team should be good enough to get to 18-20 wins.
Great, thanks for contradicting yourself. You said you didn't know where all their NBA talent came from, but you assumed it was from close to home. I simply pointed out that's not the case - Bailey is from Georgia. Now you're telling me all of the reasons why your assumption that the only reason they got him is because he's from the area is wrong. I appreciate it. Nebraska got Trey McGowens for the same reasons you just listed for Bailey - it's not impossible to recruit NBA talent to Nebraska.Ace Bailey, a highly-touted five-star recruit, chose to attend Rutgers University for several compelling reasons:
These factors collectively influenced Ace Bailey's decision to join Rutgers, reflecting his confidence in the program's direction and his desire to make a meaningful impact.
- Relationship with Coach Steve Pikiell: Bailey was impressed by Coach Pikiell's loyalty and genuine care for his players, both on and off the court. Pikiell's persistent presence at Bailey's games and his commitment to player development resonated with Bailey, influencing his decision to commit to Rutgers.
SB Nation
- Opportunity to Play with Dylan Harper: Bailey expressed enthusiasm about the prospect of playing alongside fellow top recruit Dylan Harper. Their combined talents were seen as a means to elevate Rutgers' basketball program to new heights.
Yahoo Sports
- Desire to Transform Rutgers' Basketball Culture: Bailey aimed to contribute to a cultural shift at Rutgers, helping the team achieve significant victories and gain national recognition. He believed that with the incoming talent, Rutgers could "shock a lot of people" in the upcoming season.
New York Post
Sources
Good Game, Boys. Good Luck the rest of the way. We got NBA talent because our Wall Street Alumni paid up. Definitely not me. Unfortunately, that’s what matters most to players these days.
This is excellent advice, but it requires Williams to be more assertive than he's been in conference play.
Worster's free throw woes are a puzzler. Shot +80% his first three years, then dropped to 70% last year and is hovering there this year. Strange trajectory.
Jersey Mike's Sub money. A Rutger's grad and wants to help their basketball program. And with their two players we witnessed last night the NIL money will only have to be paid for one year. All that money and NBA talent still won't get Rutgers in the NCAA this year.
I wasn't trying to prove my point. You asked how and I researched and provided it.
I'm not going to delve too deeply into the makings of the Rutgers basketball team. I simply stated that Rutgers is in a more fertile recruiting ground. The fact that Bailey is from Georgia doesn't change that.
With that said Harper is from the New Jersey area. As are several other players on Rutgers team.
I'm not saying that its impossible, but the fact is it happens very rarely. I wouldn't say that Rutgers even with it's proximity is killing it in that arena either.
My original point was simply stating that maybe it was because Rutgers was in a more fertile recruiting area. I definitely wasn't saying it as a fact.
Pikell has been on Bailey for about 6 years or so, maybe longer. They have been tight.
Harper, well, his brother played for RU.
This is how we also landed our highest rated recruit of all time
And this Harper apparently spends more time in the gym and a lot less time at the fast food drive thru.
If someone said “We (Nebraska) have NBA talent too” that person is fvcking retard. Brice is marginal, maybe if he can play point he might be able to make it in the league for a bit. Meah has NBA size, but you have to be more than just big to play the post in today’s NBA. Just doesn’t really have the skill set the league looks for these days. Gary, great effort and a great defender but he’s just not big enough to defend at a high level in the NBA and he’s not a natural scorer or shooter. And that’s about it, nobody else (IMO) is even close.
Ultimately, I don’t see anyone on our team that will be even a solid contributor at the next level. Doesn’t mean you can’t have a really good team that wins games in March. Most teams don’t have legit NBA talent on their roster. Only 30 NBA teams with about 15 roster spots each. Roughly 450 players total. D1 basketball has 364 teams. Roughly 5,500 players total. IMO we don’t necessarily need NBA caliber players (nice when you can get them but you only have them for a 1 year, maybe 2 at the most) but we definitely need better players. We need better play from our backcourt and we need an athletic wing that can defend and shoot.
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