Disqus - Latest Comments for MikeinNC

Re: Former IU guard Wilkerson says Knight’s return would be “absolutely huge”

MikeinNC — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 18:14:46 -0000

Sounds like a guy headed in the right direction. Good for him!

Re: Somebody finally told ESPN about Michael Santa

Kreigh_Smiths_Short_Shorts — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 14:57:43 -0000

Tijan has one field goal.

Re: Somebody finally told ESPN about Michael Santa

MikeinNC — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 07:14:04 -0000

I am amazed Jobe was able to hold onto the initial pass from Santa....in his day, I saw Uwe Blab drop many, many easier bounce passes than that one...

I haven't really paid attention to it, but has Jobe actually scored this year?

Re: Pay to play? I don’t think so

MikeinNC — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 14:18:45 -0000

Make the NBA fully fund and promote their own minor league....make a simple rule...when you graduate high school you make a choice - college route, or developmental route....if you choose the college route you are committed for 3 years, no exceptions....if not, you can go into the NBDL, Europe, whatever. This would just be a more rigid and formalized version of what has worked very well for baseball for quite a long time....

Re: Taber talks senior night and Michigan State

MikeinNC — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 08:57:42 -0000

Tabor rocks. Even though these last two years have been rough, no matter where he goes from here in his post basketball life, he will go there knowing he embodied what Indiana basketball is supposed to be all about. That will serve him well in life. I hope it is a packed house that gives him a deafening standing O.

Re: Hoosier loss overshadowed by Dumes’ shenanigans

Phillip — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 10:22:51 -0000

Dumes should sit 5 games, apologize to MSU players, Coach Izzo and Hoosier fans. This behavior challenges everything Crean has put in place throughout the year both on and off the court and can NOT be tolerated and must be dealt with immediately.

Re: Hoosier loss overshadowed by Dumes’ shenanigans

JerryCT — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 10:20:45 -0000

Agree. DO we need him to win ? Yes with about a 70% probability. On a scale of 1 to 10 winning is about a 2 in importance this year. Therefore he is worth about .7*2=1.4, . .............. or not that much.

Re: Hoosier loss overshadowed by Dumes’ shenanigans

MikeinNC — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 09:29:46 -0000

He needs a couple game suspension to send a clear message...one of the key themes of this season is that we are bringing back true Indiana basketball and "playing the right way" even though we know the won/loss record is going to be very disappointing. Send the boy a clear message, I suspect that while he is out of the lineup we will be surprised with the way someone else steps up.

Re: Video: Tom Crean tackles band director, calls him a lightweight

JerryCT — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 09:02:11 -0000

Agree. I keep remembering a team in the 60's with Vernon Payne that went from 9th to 1st in the B10 from one year to the next. Maybe we donot do that but I feel it becoming possible

Re: Video: Tom Crean tackles band director, calls him a lightweight

MikeinNC — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 08:27:29 -0000

Pardon the sappy commentary, but watching this video and reflecting on the season thus far, I can't help but feel that while IU is losing a lot of games, we are somehow rediscovering everything that was once good about Indiana basketball...it feels like we are finding our Hoosier basketball identity again....don't mean to sound overly dramatic, but it feels like that's what is happening.

Re: Report: Knight interested in Georgia opening

MikeinNC — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 17:53:18 -0000

I don't see how this is a good move for Georgia. It is questionable whether or not Knight can still recruit top talent, and I can't imagine he is more than a 3-4 year coach. He recruits a very specific type of player for his system. So you are likely to see 3-4 years of solid, but still average teams, then he leaves, and someone spends 2-3 more years rebuilding because they can't use his players in their system. They are much better off going after a hot mid-major coaching talent and building for the long haul. The only programs for whom Knight would make sense are programs that need major rebuilding and publicity...and those are not the kind of programs Knight wants to go to....

Re: Pat Knight is not gonna take it anymore

MikeinNC — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 17:44:01 -0000

He was looking for an excuse for an outburst because a) he can't coach and has no answers, b) he needs desperately to find a way to motivate his players, and c) attendance sucks at Tech and he needs some way to draw attention back to the program. He's in over his head and on his way out.

Re: Candy Stripes: Go fisch

Matt_J — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 09:13:14 -0000

If you have TWC, you can get it with one of the sports packages. I have it; it costs $4.50 a month.

Re: Good, Bad and Ugly: Northwestern

MikeinNC — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 07:00:42 -0000

They are so close now. I think it is now 99% mental and when they get that first win to get them over the threshold we will see rapid improvement going forward....right now there is a pattern consistent with a team that, deep deep down, does is not really sure it can win the game - they can stay close, come back from a deficit and make it close, even get a lead, but in the end they just cannot finish. It's like a salesperson who can do everything right but just can't close the deal at the end because they haven't done it yet and lack the belief - once they close their first deal they start closing more and more...you see signs of this in the variety of ways that they are losing the winnable games - a poor decision with the basketball, poor FT shooting, poor 3 pt shooting, a dumb foul...whatever...it is not the same thing all the time, which tells me they are still finding ways to lose instead of finding ways to win....when they finally break through this (and they will pretty soon) I think we will be surprised at the rapid progress. TC is going to build one he** of a program over time.

Re: We’ve tried everything, but Kelvin Sampson won’t go quietly

MikeinNC — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 06:51:37 -0000

You know, when everything went down, despite the swath of destruction Sampson had cut through IU basketball, I still had some little twinges of compassion for the guy....I felt like he was just a guy who wanted to win and please so bad that he just couldn't help himself in bending the rules, almost like an alcoholic or a compulsive gambler....I felt a teensy bit of pity.

Those days are long gone. This guy pi**es me off more and more every time he opens his mouth....he needs to be tarred and feathered - with red and white feathers in a candystripe pattern (sure, it would be a lot of extra work to do the candystripe, but it would be worth it). What an unbelievable weasel.

Re: Candy Stripes: Go fisch

MikeinNC — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 06:45:27 -0000

Don't subscribe to BTN...don't even know if I can get it from my provider in NC, but no real desire to have it anyway on principle....but everything I hear about it is bad....is Keady doing color commentary, or is he in the studio?

Re: Q & A: Matt Carlino

monica — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 17:03:35 -0000

hi ur really nice

Re: So, about DeMarcus Cousins, Jeff Withey and the scholarship situation…

MikeinNC — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 01:14:11 -0000

I would think this could be a slippery slope...I think everyone realizes we are in a huge rebuilding situation so things could be a little more fluid with regards to scholarships, but by the same token you don't want to get the reputation that commitments get reneged all the time in your program...tricky. Do you think Crean was upfront with some of these kids that their scholarship situation could be tenuous in a year or two?

Re: Good, Bad and Ugly: Open Thread

MikeinNC — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 02:50:55 -0000

I would really like to see Crean pick one upcoming game against a heavily favored opponent where we have nothing to lose (that doesn't narrow it down much, I know) and say this to the team: "guys, our goal for this game is to have less than 10 turnovers, shoot 70% from the free throw line, and have as many rebounds as the other guys. I literally don't care how many points we score, how many they score or anything else, in fact I don't even want to pay attention to the score or talk about it - we are only going to focus during the game on those 3 measures and nothing out, and let the chips fall where they may."

Personally, I'd be curious to see what would happen.

Re: The Morning After: TCU

MikeinNC — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 15:35:50 -0000

I'll take an ugly win over a moral victory any day....

Re: Good, Bad and Ugly: Texas Christian

MikeinNC — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 06:58:24 -0000

If they can get turnovers under control and improve free throw shooting, they will steal a few surprise wins in Big Ten play. It is fun to watch a team playing this hard. Fun to watch Pritchard maturing before our eyes.

Re: Know Thy Opponent: Texas Christian Horned Frogs

MikeinNC — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 18:00:04 -0000

Actually this guy has a history of legally changing his name to whatever program he is coaching...it is pretty bizarre....he started his career as "Jim Indiana School for the Deaf" then moved on....it got really embarrassing for his family when he was coaching at Morehead State, and when he coached at Harvey Mudd college, well, his name literally was mud....

Thanks folks, try the veal...and don't forget to tip your waitresses and bartender...they're working hard for you....I'll be here all week.

Re: Know Thy Opponent: Gonzaga Bulldogs

MikeinNC — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 01:46:12 -0000

This one definitely has the potential to get ugly. I haven't been able to watch a lot of our games this year, but it struck me against Wake Forest that it will be tough to run an uptempo, running offense with Moore at point, he is just not quick enough plus we don't have the size to rebound strongly and get out fast on the break. I wonder if we would be better off trying to slow the tempo down and run a more deliberate offense against teams like Gonzaga. It might fail, but you know we can't run with them, so what do you have to lose?

Re: Dan Dakich rules Joe Hillman on Indianapolis radio

redandy75 — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 13:24:22 -0000

Listen, every kid has a different background and upbringing. Some of these kids are not influenced by it, some are. Some grow up in nice neighborhoods with big houses, excellent schools, and a great home life - but STILL end up as thugs.

This discussion about "thugs, punks, and at risk players" is not about where they come from and upbringing, but rather their character and attitude.

I work in higher ed and see kids all the time who have come from bad homes, bad schools, and bad communities that do nothing to encourage or help their kids. Some of them are the brightest, most motivated kids I work with. Some are pretentious little pains in the ass. I see the same thing from the well off kids, so it is not about whether they are from the rough parts of town, or from broken homes. It is about their attitude, and their willingness to play by the rules and not engage in activities that hurt their team or the university. Character kids may not win as many games for you, but you at least have a team dedicated to upholding the university traditions and winning the right way.

Sampson and Co. did not look at the CHARACTER of the kids they were recruiting. they saw a skill set and name, and that's it. So long as they were beating folks, it didn't matter how. Sampson looked at NCAA compliance the same way, and you see how bad that went down.

Bottom line is that walking a mile in their shoes is BS, Mike. These were kids that NEVER should have been wearing the Cream and Crimson. I am not saying some kids don't need a chance. I am saying that if we get kids with GOOD CHARACTER, their upbringing and background is irrelevant.

Re: Dan Dakich rules Joe Hillman on Indianapolis radio

MikeinNC — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 06:31:52 -0000

Great statement by Dakich...sometimes we forget that these are just kids, some of whom have lived their entire lives in a really bad, dysfunctional setting....unless we've walked a mile in their shoes, we really have no right to cast dispersions.