Maybe that St. John’s loss ain’t so bad now?!
- Thread starter newAD
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No, it was still bad. Worse loss of the year. Beat soundly and didn’t resemble anything that would lead us to believe that we were a good team. Good win for them yesterday but following an 11 game losing streak.
What matters is now... not what that loss would lead us to believe who we would be, lol
It is still a bad loss for us and it is a terrible loss for Duke but it isn't quite as bad as it once was (for us obviously). It is definitely better to lose to a team like that early in the season when you are still trying to figure things out rather than in February. The committee has always cared more about what you have done lately leading into the tournament rather than November.
If we don't get into the tournament it has nothing to do with St. John's or UCF and everything to do with not beating enough good-to-great teams. Need to close the year out strong.
It is still a bad loss for us and it is a terrible loss for Duke but it isn't quite as bad as it once was (for us obviously). It is definitely better to lose to a team like that early in the season when you are still trying to figure things out rather than in February. The committee has always cared more about what you have done lately leading into the tournament rather than November.
If we don't get into the tournament it has nothing to do with St. John's or UCF and everything to do with not beating enough good-to-great teams. Need to close the year out strong.
Also, road wins make a big difference to the committee, and we're not that good on the road (3-6, as opposed to 12-1 at home and 2-1 at neutral sites).
23 wins seems to be the magic number for Nebraska to make the NCAA tournament. That means win out in the regular season, or displace any remaining regular season loss with a Big Ten tournament win.
St John's is a team who on any given day could beat anybody. I don't know what the heck happened to them after they played NU, but they looked like a top 5 team that day against NU and then once again against Duke. They're really a Jekyll and Hyde team. I don't know if it's coaching or just their style of play that causes that. Their guards were phenomenal against NU. Part of that was that the refs let them beat the hell out of Watson, Gill and Allen in that game and we couldn't match their physicality. I didn't see the Duke-St John's game so I don't know what happened there, but I would lay money that officiating played a role and that St John's shot well that day.
St. John's shot 43% from the field against Nebraska, including 5-17 (29%) from 3-point range. And given that they still won the game by 23 points, I don't think the officiating was a critical factor.
Maybe it would just be easier to say that Nebraska was not a very good team back in November, but NU has gotten better over the past three months while St. John's has regressed.
I was referring to their Duke game when I assumed that St John's shot well and the officiating was a factor. No doubt NU did not play well against St John's and the refs did play a role by letting their guards mug Watson in particular.
If you know the history, Duke travels to NYC to play St Johns regularly. I’m not sure if it’s every year, but it’s often. They get a chance to expand their national footprint and play in Madison Square Garden. St Johns plays them tough consistently.
The St Johns loss for Nebraska was still a bad one but it was also when the team was getting comfortable with each other and understanding their roles together. This is common when you’re bringing in transfers who have never played together. I’d suggest if Nebraska played St Johns now, the outcome would likely be different.
The St Johns loss for Nebraska was still a bad one but it was also when the team was getting comfortable with each other and understanding their roles together. This is common when you’re bringing in transfers who have never played together. I’d suggest if Nebraska played St Johns now, the outcome would likely be different.
Who cares. When the game mattered St. John's won. The excuse factory is running OT. Was St. John's a well oiled machine with 10 returners early in the year? It was a OOC game that one team won and the other lost. Since they won't get the chance to play the game again, it goes down as a bad loss for Nebraska. That loss, alone, isn't why Nebraska is on the outside looking in right now.
This season has a few too many IF ONLYs during it's course. KU, Penn St, etc. Man but for a couple of more made shots along the way... That said, I thought the ceiling for this team this year would probably be the NIT and a top half finish in the B1G. Barring a total late season collapse, I'm a happy camper. NIT should be a lock and the NCAA is still a realistic possibility.
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