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You are literally the one changing your standards for someone you perceive will do a better job.

We really should have gone to Sparks on Omureyi earlier on the game. Ware was bothered by all the physicality, frustration was clear. Someone else mentioned how it seems like when Ware and Reneau are on the court together, they're either clogging up the paint or it's Reneau who gets put in the high post passing situations/perimeter shooting opportunities. I'd be curious about switching those roles and wonder if KW crashing down from the elbow/foul line extended would help get some offensive boards/easy second chances. Malik is who we go to when we need a bucket and he is a reliable option, but I cringe every time he tries muscling through a wall of 3 defenders. Can the staff PLEASE coach him up on how to recognize the double team coming and kick out/reverse to opposite wing for a 3? There will be so many opportunities for Mack and CJ if we can get that right. Mack plays stiff, he's limited athletically, but he's not close to the biggest issue with this team right now. A second year would be great if he sticks around. Absent that, you have to wonder if the Mgbakos have any buyers remorse... his decision will say a lot about the direction of travel for the program. At the end of the day you're not gonna win too many D1 games with barely any backcourt at all.

Completely agree with your entire post - congratulations to your son! I've heard great things about Luddy. He will have a great time and earn a great degree. I'm sure Mom and Dad are very proud. Cheers! Those football tailgates are one of a kind.

UConn would've pieced up Rutgers by about 50 yesterday. Any good team, really. It's laughable how many shots they missed and how many missed opportunities we blew. It was a very physical game but we just had no semblance of intensity. Looking an awful lot like an 18 win season if we're lucky at this rate...

Hand Pearl a blank check.

That's what makes me think there's basically no way anything happens on this front until after the 2024-2025 season

Idk, I don't see the administration getting rid of Woody this offseason but I hope I'm wrong. If I'm not, it's really a really tough year and a half ahead. Guess you just have to savor the good moments when you can get them as a fan. A win at home vs. Minny would be nice. Please Lord just give us a better performance than tonight.

Please elaborate

I'm less high on Painter than some I guess. I'm not the one who made the original claim, just throwing out a few that come to mind. Anyone pushing for Dusty May at this point is basically begging for Archie 2.0

Bruce Peal, Shaka Smart (maybe), Porter Moser (maybe), Micah Shrewsbury (maybe) ... I'd also be interested in hearing names

Ware can probably get drafted based on potential at this point and go develop on the bench/G league somewhere. Mack I think would hit the portal but that's my own speculation based on nothing but my gut lol.

Totally agree with you man!

I really can't give this staff a ton of credit for Mackenzie Mgbako. I think he completely fell into IU's lap when his mother reached out to Woody. The Mgbako's have been very engaged in helping their sons navigate the basketball landscape and they've said as much that Woody's NBA pedigree was appealing to them. Given the short recruiting window, credit where its due for making the family comfortable with the staff/university. But their first priority is going to be about evaluating his progress toward making the NBA, and frankly I'd be surprised if he is here a second year at this rate. Just my opinion.

"Like we play at home, we gotta play that way on the road" Brilliant observation Mike. Those coaching insights are definitely worth millions.

I thought when X got kicked out that could be a turning point for this season.... for about maybe 3 minutes. That we'd rally to overcome this obvious attempt at screwing us over and play our hearts out to win a tough victory on the road without XJ like we've had to do so much of this season already. That CJ would show more potential, Gallo/Mack/Ware would turn it up and they'd show real focus. They were a really cool 3 minutes... it was great in my head, while it lasted anyway...

I totally see that at times too. But I also see moments of kids caring a hell of a lot. Malik cares so much he could cry half the time lol. I think they want it in their own way, maybe, but they just don't look like a team at all... I bet you finish near the bottom of conf in assists

Okay, after seeing Woody's comments in the post game thread, I'm officially done... I paid hundreds of dollars and drove through a freakin monsoon to go watch that steaming pile of crap. You can't even entertain the legitimate questions of beat writers? Get off your high horse and hang it up then dude. That's BS. I'm gonna root this team on, always, and as long as Woody is the coach I will support him. I just don't want us all to be subjected to much more of this absolutely awful basketball past this season... Hope conversations are happening in Bloomington...

I just don't understand how we are so tall/long and unable to rebound? I actually don't get it. Our starting lineup looked wayyy bigger than theirs. Just zero boxing out. It's grammar school girl's team level bad at times. Ware did not have his best game.... at all. Reneau is definitely a guy but he still has sooo much room to grow. Honestly we can still pull off a streak but this team has given me no reason to believe they will do anything other than more of the same the rest of this conference season. Probably miss the tourney. Only reason to be optimistic next year is if you can delude yourself into believing we retain all of Ware, Mack, and Reneau IMO. And that seems very unlikely.

If the idea of Woody is to be a bridge guy, can we reasonably say "Mission accomplished" in the sense that he helped heal the wounds between the IU of old and the new IU and has shown you can recruit here at a high level? Coz if the idea is for our bridge guy to build a foundation of a program for "the guy" to take to the next level... we need a bridge guy, and soon, before the fanbase (read: $$) dies out / walks away. Have a sit down with Woody after the year and figure out how both sides can save face then do what's best for them. Honestly, he made such a fuss about IU being his dream job at one point... make Bruce Pearl say no. Two years younger than Woody and we know he will leave the team in good shape for the next guy/win along the way consistently.

Kinda funny sequence from early on when the game was 18-11. Malik tried to touch/tip pass into the corner but it went out of bounds. Woodson had his dumbounded look on and I clearly read his lips saying "Never do that again." Lol it was funny at the time. He shortly after got on Walker for getting the ball taken from him on a would-be rebound. Walker was trying to make his case that he got hit in the face/was fouled. It's just sad to see them make excuses, be confused, scared of making a mistake... clearly the staff is in the head of the players, but not necessarily in a good way considering how many straight up dumb plays we make.

Rutgers missed soooo many shots, not because we played great defense but because they couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. Unfortunately we couldn't either yet it was still close. To have less than 40 points with about 6 mins to go, with this roster, is insane. A good coach should be able to manufacture points against a team like Rutgers. For a myriad of reasons, we p*ssed this game away. It's almost impressive how many ways we played poorly. Kids didn't execute and staff isn't putting them in good position.

How'd Banks play today?

Your opinion on Mgbako is already understood lol

When you've got think for half a second first before the shot if the coach will chew your a$s out for shooting it, your timing gets thrown off. When you barely get sets run for you then are asked to come in cold and do it, it's even harder.

Woodson may be putting in the walk ons soon. They took off all their warmups