hoosierbgh

After 3 years of Edey being allowed tp commit assault and battery on both ends of the floor with hardly a call, Ballo should never be in danger of fouling out. The BIG being the BIG, I fully expect this will be the year they rediscover the whistle though.

In a way, that's part of their problem since they can neither duplicate the way they played last year nor easily transition to a different style of play. Even if both Smith and Loyer significantly improve their play from last year, an extremely tall order without Edey, they're still going to need one or more freshmen to perform at a high level and/or one or more veterans to take major strides. Kauffman-Renn is probably going to have to carry a lot of the load offensively down low and I just don't see the mini-me version of bully ball working really well without Edey there to command the focus of the opposing defense.

While that would be hilarious indeed, I'm not entirely convinced that Purdue makes the tournament next year and would be even more amused if BYU or FSU were to knock them out of the NIT.

The commitment to Purdue never really made much sense for him from a basketball fit standpoint to begin with. I think he probably realized that early on but couldn't overcome the family pressure. I can't imagine why any skilled, athletic forward wouldn't take one look at what Painter did to Kauffman-Renn and run far, far away from that program.

No one is forcing you. There's also very little chance that Woody won't be back next year unless he chooses not to be. I'd much rather the staff focus more on convincing talented guards and wings with experience and shot making ability to come to IU than worry about the nonsense of playing two bigs at the same time. If anything last night's game was an example of both needing better (or even just more consistent) guard play and having a 2nd quality big when one has an off night.

As much as I dislike him, Izzo has earned his fair share of gushing but this team this year was never very likely to match the hype that it was getting. I wonder how many still think Xavier Booker was a huge miss?

I have no inside knowledge but I'd highly consider making a significant bet that all of the following happens before Malik transfers to a different school: 1. The IU fanbase unites behind and agrees upon a coach. 2. Purdue wins a natty. 3. BIG refs call at least one out of every 5 fouls Edey commits on him.

If the BIG insists on hyping him as anything more than a above average player, then he needs all the help he can get. The other schools and even the conference certainly won't benefit from it in the long run though. My chocolate lab thinks I'm the source of all food and that I make the sun rise in the morning and he still doesn't look at me as lovingly as the BIG refs do Edey.

It seems there are a couple threads dedicated to exactly that... they predate and have nothing to do with the Iowa game though.

The Big 12 has long been expert at gaming the system. You don't have one really good but not truly great program so thoroughly dominate the league for so long if it is as deep and competitive as the metrics show it to be.

There are bench players that are the first and second subs into the game, who are often near starting quality that are pushed to the bench due to fit or need for development. Then there are bench players that are farther back in the rotation, who are often either inconsistent or situational players. Sparks is a near ideal example of the latter. He really wants to be here, he plays really hard, and, most importantly, he provides a big strong body, that will be needed in conference play. Right now, he's here to primarily provide a big body to throw at the big goons in the BIG and other games where that is necessary. With another off season to develop he may be able to provide more in more situations but even if that is not the case, he will still be a player with a role to play.

I wonder how much NIL money the Hunter Dickinson level of officiating from the refs costs? I'm assuming the Edey level of immunity from calls is too cost prohibitive.

An offseason of training like Reneau completed this past summer could do wonders for Mgbako's athleticism.

People are jumping to conclusions a bit but based on the timeline and recent events, I think there are reasons for optimism. If I were a Maryland fan and Queen sets a commitment date relatively soon, I certainly wouldn't feel very good about my chances.