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A lot of interesting things happened yesterday that shed light on not only the programs of each respective school, but the opinions of many posters on both fan boards.
When you compare the game yesterday to the one in Frost back in January, I've come to the conclusion that either we are better than I think we are, or you aren't nearly as good as you think you are. In Brookings, we take a 20-0 lead, then you follow with a 28-2 run, but then the game goes back and forth till the last 3-4 minutes of the game. Up to that point, the game was in doubt. At the under 8, the Coyotes were down 2 with possession of the ball. Yesterday's game was totally different. You start with a good run ( 8-0 ) and goes back and forth till the point in the game when it was about 26-26, and from that point the Coyotes out it away. We led by 10 at half, and expanded on the lead. The Jacks maybe got it back to 7 once, then the Coyotes shut the door. But one thing I saw I didn't ever think I would see was Nagy waiving the white flag. He gave up and surrendered with 2:25 left and we held a 12 point lead. 12 is quite a bit, but not insurmountable. That shocked me. Other than the first 5 minutes, USD dominated the game.
Cody Larson is one hell of a player. Why on Gods green earth you didn't attack the middle each and every time is beyond me. We didn't have an answer for him. Heck, he had almost a double / double at half. Our bigs couldn't contain him.
Many on here discuss your "poor" defense, but many of the shots that were made from the perimeter shooters were contested. They just went in. Our perimeter players are simply better than States. Your inside game is again that much better than the U's. Inside games should score a high percentage of the time, and when you are reliant on outside shooting to win, you live and die by the sword. We shot well, and we won...it's that simple.
Another thing that shocked me was how few of State fans at the game. I was expecting an onslaught where at times it would be difficult to tell which was the home team. I was surprised, there just weren't that many there. You had the corner behind your bench,but even that had sprinklings of USD fans amongst them. Then when you looked back at the permenant seating, there just wasn't a lot of Blue.
Because we have debated on here so any times how you have said that State fans were treated poorly, I observed the student section, seated next to the block of State fans, and although the students were loud, at no point was the a level of disrespect. I visited with some of the State fans at the game, and had the usual banter back and forth,but everyone said they were treated well. My buddy told me that a State fan got close to Coach Glenn and was relentless on his mocking of his team. Several people asked him to be quiet,but he stated that he paid the price of his ticket and could say whatever he wanted. I understand Coach Glenn showed great restraint and simply moved away. The reason I bring that up is because in the past you have said USD fans were horrible, etc. Apparently this guy was trashed and obnoxious, but I don't feel he represented your fan base. I thought the crowd and fans on both sides were respectful. I believe things have changed.
Another surprise to me, and it was discussed on the other thread, was some peoples cavalier attitude towards this being a rivalry or not. I have said this many times, and will say it again. If you don't think it's a rivalry,something is wrong with you. It is indeed a rivalry, and from what I've seen lately, it's a healthier rivalry than what it was. I know in football you want to treat us like the red headed step children we have been,but eventually you know even that pendulum is gonna change, and games will be contested. Right now, in all sports, other than football, it is dead even. Quite frankly I hope you continue feeling like it isn't, and that you feel superior, because that is exactly the kind of fuel that makes the fire burn hotter than it already does. Prior to the game, in talking with the players, they felt disrespected and all that did was Jack them up more than usual. Whether you like it or not, it is a rivalry. The fact we are splitting with you in men's, winning conference titles in women's, makes the recruiting issue that much more relevant. Coach Smith, and his very good staff, will close the gap soon, and after watching what he has done with this group this year, and feeling like he will recruit up, I see us contending for titles with you. And I say that in all respect. We are closer than I thought in basketball.
Then lastly I read on here retain posters claiming how embarrassed they are about this team, and I just want to laugh out loud. Yeah, I would be embarrassed also if I had a team that just shared the title of the regular season. I would be embarrassed by this team heading into tournament play as the number 1 seed. I can't believe that you would even support a team as poor as this one (sarcasm).
You have a good team, in both men's and women's, and I won't surprised one way or another if you win both titles, or one or the other. I won't be surprised one way or another if we win a title or two. Your women's team has the motivation factor if we need up playing you, and mentally that's a big advantage. On the men's side, we now have beaten you and squared up the regular season, and if we happen to win our first game and play you, we may have the motivational factor in the rematch because we now know we can beat you, and our guys still feel disrespected. If I was Coach Smith, I'd play that card right up till game time. We could also lose, that's what's gonna make the tournament fun.
Yesterday was our day. No doubt. I hope both teams play each other again in the tournament,it's good for the state.
When you compare the game yesterday to the one in Frost back in January, I've come to the conclusion that either we are better than I think we are, or you aren't nearly as good as you think you are. In Brookings, we take a 20-0 lead, then you follow with a 28-2 run, but then the game goes back and forth till the last 3-4 minutes of the game. Up to that point, the game was in doubt. At the under 8, the Coyotes were down 2 with possession of the ball. Yesterday's game was totally different. You start with a good run ( 8-0 ) and goes back and forth till the point in the game when it was about 26-26, and from that point the Coyotes out it away. We led by 10 at half, and expanded on the lead. The Jacks maybe got it back to 7 once, then the Coyotes shut the door. But one thing I saw I didn't ever think I would see was Nagy waiving the white flag. He gave up and surrendered with 2:25 left and we held a 12 point lead. 12 is quite a bit, but not insurmountable. That shocked me. Other than the first 5 minutes, USD dominated the game.
Cody Larson is one hell of a player. Why on Gods green earth you didn't attack the middle each and every time is beyond me. We didn't have an answer for him. Heck, he had almost a double / double at half. Our bigs couldn't contain him.
Many on here discuss your "poor" defense, but many of the shots that were made from the perimeter shooters were contested. They just went in. Our perimeter players are simply better than States. Your inside game is again that much better than the U's. Inside games should score a high percentage of the time, and when you are reliant on outside shooting to win, you live and die by the sword. We shot well, and we won...it's that simple.
Another thing that shocked me was how few of State fans at the game. I was expecting an onslaught where at times it would be difficult to tell which was the home team. I was surprised, there just weren't that many there. You had the corner behind your bench,but even that had sprinklings of USD fans amongst them. Then when you looked back at the permenant seating, there just wasn't a lot of Blue.
Because we have debated on here so any times how you have said that State fans were treated poorly, I observed the student section, seated next to the block of State fans, and although the students were loud, at no point was the a level of disrespect. I visited with some of the State fans at the game, and had the usual banter back and forth,but everyone said they were treated well. My buddy told me that a State fan got close to Coach Glenn and was relentless on his mocking of his team. Several people asked him to be quiet,but he stated that he paid the price of his ticket and could say whatever he wanted. I understand Coach Glenn showed great restraint and simply moved away. The reason I bring that up is because in the past you have said USD fans were horrible, etc. Apparently this guy was trashed and obnoxious, but I don't feel he represented your fan base. I thought the crowd and fans on both sides were respectful. I believe things have changed.
Another surprise to me, and it was discussed on the other thread, was some peoples cavalier attitude towards this being a rivalry or not. I have said this many times, and will say it again. If you don't think it's a rivalry,something is wrong with you. It is indeed a rivalry, and from what I've seen lately, it's a healthier rivalry than what it was. I know in football you want to treat us like the red headed step children we have been,but eventually you know even that pendulum is gonna change, and games will be contested. Right now, in all sports, other than football, it is dead even. Quite frankly I hope you continue feeling like it isn't, and that you feel superior, because that is exactly the kind of fuel that makes the fire burn hotter than it already does. Prior to the game, in talking with the players, they felt disrespected and all that did was Jack them up more than usual. Whether you like it or not, it is a rivalry. The fact we are splitting with you in men's, winning conference titles in women's, makes the recruiting issue that much more relevant. Coach Smith, and his very good staff, will close the gap soon, and after watching what he has done with this group this year, and feeling like he will recruit up, I see us contending for titles with you. And I say that in all respect. We are closer than I thought in basketball.
Then lastly I read on here retain posters claiming how embarrassed they are about this team, and I just want to laugh out loud. Yeah, I would be embarrassed also if I had a team that just shared the title of the regular season. I would be embarrassed by this team heading into tournament play as the number 1 seed. I can't believe that you would even support a team as poor as this one (sarcasm).
You have a good team, in both men's and women's, and I won't surprised one way or another if you win both titles, or one or the other. I won't be surprised one way or another if we win a title or two. Your women's team has the motivation factor if we need up playing you, and mentally that's a big advantage. On the men's side, we now have beaten you and squared up the regular season, and if we happen to win our first game and play you, we may have the motivational factor in the rematch because we now know we can beat you, and our guys still feel disrespected. If I was Coach Smith, I'd play that card right up till game time. We could also lose, that's what's gonna make the tournament fun.
Yesterday was our day. No doubt. I hope both teams play each other again in the tournament,it's good for the state.
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