I could see Iowa scrapping to a .500 or above season next year. They've got some guys that hustle and can flat out shoot the ball and Gatens is a good all around player. All that playing time Lickliter's son gets, though, that's just embarrassing. I'm fairly certain I could take that dude one on one.
MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:I could see Iowa scrapping to a .500 or above season next year. They've got some guys that hustle and can flat out shoot the ball and Gatens is a good all around player. All that playing time Lickliter's son gets, though, that's just embarrassing. I'm fairly certain I could take that dude one on one.
Well the only reason Little Lick is playing is because Anthony Tucker is suspended right now. I will say, dude's busting his balls out there and actually given us some quality minutes. That's all I can ask for.
I really don't have any prediction quite yet for next year. I am encouraged with what I've seen the last couple of weeks. Hopefully Tucker has will grow the fuck up and quit getting suspended because we really need him. The incoming class next year seems to be decent. I don't expect many of them to make major impacts right away but if we can just get a couple of quality role players out of them maybe we'll have an NIT or NCAA bubble team next year. But that's getting WAY ahead of myself right now.
All I wanted coming into this year was IMPROVEMENT. Nothing else. I could care less about wins and losses right now. And I was very frustrated with the first 15 games or so because we saw absolutely nothing in the way of improvement, but finally we're at least making strides. I am very curious to see how we play against Ohio State on Wednesday. Obviously, I don't expect a win but I think this game will be the measuring stick on how far they've actually come. Play them tough and I think it's safe to say we really are headed in the right direction.
Hawkeye basketball will be back. I have no doubts about that. I just hope the rebuilding process moves along quicker than most think.
I think the key for Iowa to get back to a respectable level is the fans realizing where Iowa ranks in the conference. For some reason Iowa fans have deluded themselves into thinking they should be an elite powerhouse program. Fact is Iowa is a very hard place to recruit to and they'll always be second tier to the true heavyweight programs of the Big 10. Iowa fan has run off solid coaches in the past like Raveling, Olsen and even Dr. Tom because in their minds they didn't win at a high enough level. To an extent that happened with Alford but his real issue was that everyone kept expecting him to leave for the IU gig at any second. Lickliter is a very good coach and if the fans are patient and give him time to stock the roster with his type of kids and allow him to teach his system Iowa can be back at an NCAA level. But if you expect to be an annual top 20 team with deep tourney runs then you'll once again find yourself getting rid of a good coach who will go somewhere else and win at a high level without the unrealistic fan expectations.
"Our staff is going to ensure that anyone who attends this University and wears the Indiana uniform will make this privilege among their highest priorities and not treat the opportunity as an entitlement,'' Crean said in a statement. "We fully expect our student-athletes to accept the responsibilities academically, athletically and socially that come with representing one of the top programs in college basketball history."
I expect this program to make the NCAA tourney consistently and þo occasionally contend for a Big-10 title. We ran Dr Tom out because this program needed a change. He was on the downhill with his recruiting and the program was going to collapse if he stayed. I have no doubt in my mind about that. We did not run Raveling out. Raveling felt out of place in this state. He wanted the bright lights. Lute left because his wife wanted the West Coast. From what I hear it didn't matter what the fans did, he was bound to leave. Alford was a pile of garbage. A TERRIBLE coach and an even worse person. His arrogance and moral hypocrisy was comical at best.
You're right, Lick is a good coach and we should be patient. I keep telling my Hawkeye buddies that Lick is gonna get it done but they don't listen. They'll see. We're gonna be in the NCAA tournament sooner than they think. This isn't Lick's fault. It's Bob Bowlsby's fault for not canning Alfraud years before he left.
I'm encouraged by the improvements this team is making. We're finally learning how to play against more athletic teams by wearing them down physically. Now we need to learn how to win close games down the stretch. I think today's game against Michigan is big in our rebuilding project. A win moves us up in the standings, shows we can win games on the road, and might actually get fans thinking that the future is not complete doom.
one of my best buds from college grew up in Iowa City and is a big Hawk guy. so, i've followed Iowa casually for 15 years now. Tom Davis had to go. did great things, had some really good teams and great players....the BJ Armstrong era guys were stout. but, it was over. Alford on paper was a good hire but really hurt the program. I thought Licklighter was a good hire....and should be able to improve Iowa but they just aren't very good right now.
Tucson, Arizona is not on the west coast.
""On a lonely planet spinning its way toward damnation amid the fear and despair of a broken human race, who is left to fight for all that is good and pure and gets you smashed for under a fiver? Yes, it's the surprising adventures of me, Sir Digby Chicken-Caesar!"
"
TheJON wrote:. I think today's game against Michigan is big in our rebuilding project. A win moves us up in the standings, shows we can win games on the road, and might actually get fans thinking that the future is not complete doom.
So, uh, how's that working out for you?
with 11 mins to go...
UM-47
Iowa-24
"Gentlemen, it is better to have died as a small boy than to fumble this football."
-John Heisman
"Any street urchin can shout applause in victory, but it takes character to stand fast in defeat. One is noise --- the other, loyalty." Fielding Yost
TheJON wrote:We ran Dr Tom out because this program needed a change. He was on the downhill with his recruiting and the program was going to collapse if he stayed. I have no doubt in my mind about that.
didn't you have the complete opposite take on michigan and carr?
TheJON wrote:We ran Dr Tom out because this program needed a change. He was on the downhill with his recruiting and the program was going to collapse if he stayed. I have no doubt in my mind about that.
didn't you have the complete opposite take on michigan and carr?
I don't think Michigan was on the downhill with Carr. Dr Tom got us to the Sweet 16 in 1998 and it was over for him. There would have been no more success after that. I don't think the same thing about Michigan with Carr.
TheJON wrote:I expect this program to make the NCAA tourney consistently and þo occasionally contend for a Big-10 title.
Dude! You're Iowa, not Wisconsin.
Right, because Wisconsin has been a good program for many years. Or not.
It's cyclical. Iowa is going through rough times and Wisconsin is going through years of boring the shit out of the fans watching their games errrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr winning basketball games.
Not gonna lie, I'd rather lose than have to fucking watch a Bo Ryan coached basketball team. Jesus christ, that shit is fucking brutal. First one to 40 wins. Fuck that.
Oh, I'd take Wisconsin's wins right now. But I'm saying for a casual observer it's damn near IMPOSSIBLE to sit through a Badger game.
Dribble, dribble, pass, dribble, dribble, pass, hold ball, dribble, pass, hold ball, feed big man and see if he has a good look, if big man doesn't have a good look kick it out to wing player to jack up shot as clock expires.
