I have occasionally checked out this message board over the years, but only after Friday night was I motivated enough to sign up (I think MuBar is a great nickname, but considering recent global events I added a little bit to it for my username) and post some thoughts.

I grew up with the Bucs, followed them even when I didn't live in the area, moved back and have followed them quite closely the past six years or so. I have never been a huge fan of MuBar-ick, questioned some of his decisions just like every other armchair coach, but had to give him credit for some of the successes the program has had. But after watching a season that was so full of promise implode Friday night, I needed a forum in which to vent.

I watched the Belmont-Mercer game before our dreadful faceplant, and I was thoroughly impressed by the coaching of Mercer's Hoffman. He was masterful at doing offensive/defensive substitutions for his best player, who had four fouls, and he used his timeouts perfectly to slow the game down when it was about to get away from them. I know they were at home, and it's a gutsy team, but they had no business almost tying Belmont with under two minutes left. I was just so impressed...his coaching gave them the best possible chance to win that game. It's always the players who have to make the plays, of course, but it's the coach's job to put his players in positions where they have the best chance to win.

Look, I don't think MuBar-ick is an idiot; the guy's probably forgotten more basketball than I'll ever learn. But I don't know that in six-plus years I've ever watched the Bucs and thought, "Wow, this guy is giving us the absolute best chance to win." This is most obvious with the offense, which has always been a hit-and-miss affair. There’s an over-reliance on one-on-one play, and not enough emphasis on moving without the ball. The result, as we all know, is a team that can put up 80 on a good team when a couple of guys are hot, but also score less than 60 eight times this season, some of it against dreadful competition (Stetson and USC-Upstate). The defense is usually pretty solid, but it seems like that’s mostly orchestrated by Wagers.

I know that a lot of teams operate this way (somebody needs to grab Bruce Pearl by his jolly orange shoulders, point him toward Belmont and say, “Do that”). Also, I’m not saying you have to run a system like Belmont does (but wouldn’t that be so much more fun to watch?) to be successful, but isn’t it the coach’s job to have something in his back pocket for when the one-on-one, dribble-drive stuff isn’t working? Isn’t there more he could do to give these players a chance to win, other than letting their off-nights sink them against inferior competition? I watched that North Florida game and knew early on that Mike or somebody else was going to have step up and get hot for us to pull it off. I’ve come to expect that, instead of thinking maybe there will be adjustments that help generate more offense. Where was the full-court pressure, until it was too late??? Come on—something, anything.

Like many others, I also think he tightens up the rotation a little bit too much. My main concern coming into the year was that there wouldn’t be enough minutes and shots to go around and keep everybody happy. I airballed that one, obviously. Of course, Tommy and Ryan getting hurt didn’t help matters, and maybe if they were both healthy I’d be wondering about NCAA seeding and not venting. I know playing seven guys works for some teams, but we ain’t Ohio State. You absolutely HAVE TO cultivate a little depth in the event of injuries, and to keep guys fresh for the stretch run. The late dings to Mike and Micah were unlucky and not anybody’s fault, and we probably couldn’t have beaten Belmont in our current state (but I’ll always prefer another chance, even if it means losing by 20), but even with all that we shouldn’t lose to North Florida on a neutral court. No disrespect to them—they’re definitely a program on the rise and Driscoll has done a tremendous job, but they’re a year away from being genuinely good.

I know he’s—and this is generous—raw on offense, and for all I know the guy might be an arsehole and in the doghouse for good reason, but why why WHY didn’t we see more Curtis Wilkinson this year? Most of the time when he did get a chance, he contributed with rebounding, shot-blocking, and general physical presence. Even in his one minute Friday night, he absolutely overpowered one of the Ospreys on a missed free throw, and got the offensive rebound. I could understand it if we were deep enough that the starters weren’t playing 35 minutes every game. But you mean to tell me that the coach couldn’t have found a way to get 10-15 minutes a game from him, which might’ve helped save the legs of other guys? I don’t have an issue with J.C. Ward being above him in the rotation—he’s physically limited, but he plays hard and mostly smart, and isn’t a complete spaz on offense like Curtis, but why why WHY did we sometimes see Poderis off the bench in front of Curtis?? Lukas has not shown me anything in two years that he is a guy who can make anything positive happen.

There are also occasionally small dubious moves that MuBar-ick makes that, in the absence of the larger issues I have, wouldn’t be so significant. Friday, Mike stays in the game with three fouls and gets his fourth, so he finally comes out. MuBar-ick brings him back in ON A DEAD-BALL DEFENSIVE POSSESSION. I know we had to bring him in sooner than later just to have a chance, so I don’t argue with bringing him back when he did, but he couldn’t wait until a dead ball when we’ll be on offense, to give him one less chance to pick up that fifth foul? Not a huge thing, but after watching Hoffman shuttle that Mills guy in and out like clockwork for several minutes, it was noticeable to me.

Also, I have seen the coach bring players off the bench into a clutch situation, when they have sat the whole game and are cold. The one that comes to mind is a game last year (can’t remember who it was against) when he brought in Jarvis in the last couple of minutes as a sort of designated foul-shooter. Jarvis is not automatic enough to where you’d want him cold off the bench instead of somebody else who might technically be a few percentage points less of a shooter, but actually in the flow of the game. I called it as soon as he brought Jarvis in, and of course Jarvis clanks two critical FTs.

I’m just really disappointed this season went like it did. I felt like this was the season that we could’ve not only made the tourney, but actually had a realistic chance to compete. Even with the injuries, even with the RPI-murdering losses to Stetson and Upstate—if we beat North Florida and somehow come up with an upset of Belmont, our RPI would’ve been in the 70’s, which would’ve been enough to get at least a 15 seed—and who knows, maybe even a 14 with some of the small-conference regular season champs like Coastal Carolina and Fairfield going down in their conference tourneys. It’s still a long-shot to win in the first round, but at least it would be something that’s been done before, as opposed to being a 16 seed. I really feel like the team (and I might be a little optimistic about this, maybe even delusional), when healthy and playing well, could give a 3-seed type team a good game on a neutral court. And if you can keep it close with five minutes left, anything can happen.

So now we are left hoping for an invitation to one of the ridiculous new postseason tournaments, and contemplating an uncertain future (nice article in the JC Press today, http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/Sports/a...p?id=87404 ) in the A-Sun. It’s never just one thing, or one person’s fault, but I don’t think it’s unrealistic to expect more. How many schools our size have had three different teams in fairly recent history that made the tournament multiple times and gave the big boys all they could handle (and even beat Arizona in ’92, before losing to the Fab Five)? And yes, I’m counting the 08-09 Tiggs/Pigram team, because while not at the level of the Jennings/Dennis/Talford and Smith/Wadood/Fields teams, they were quite good by the end of the year and might’ve beaten Pittsburgh if they made a timely shot or two. There is a pretty substantial hoops tradition at ETSU that a lot of schools would kill for, and I hope that it will be sustained, but I have my doubts. The silver lining of Tommy redshirting this year is that we have a pretty nice core returning next year (Tommy, Zeke and Adam), but who will play with them? Who will make any outside shots? In addition to some of the young teams on the rise, Belmont loses little, and it’s very difficult for me imagining them not repeating next season.

And where are we the season after that, when that trio of starters is gone? That’s where some of the recruiting mistakes hurt us—Grimm not sticking, Poderis not really adding anything, the JUCO fiasco of the past season.

The 06-07 and 07-08 teams ended each season with absolutely brutal losses. The championship game in 2007 was one of the few times I left a game before the final buzzer; I was so disgusted I left during the final media timeout. And the semifinal loss to Belmont in 2008, with the Swader technical (though the bigger issue was that we had them on the ropes before one of our traditional offensive meltdowns) was just about as bad a gut-punch, deflating loss as I’ve seen of a team I follow. So feeling hollow at the end of the year is nothing new. And yet, I somehow feel worse for the future and overall direction of the program than I did either of those years. I’m truly concerned.

Enough of this rambling wreck of a post that I’ve composed while I should’ve been working—but it’s nice to vent. I only know a couple of people who follow this like I do (people I go to the games with), and it just amazes me that ETSU isn’t a bigger deal in this community. As some other posts have mentioned, it’s wall-to-wall UT around here. The Sports Monster gives them the obligatory coverage (though when it comes to actual analysis, they don’t really offer any). It’s like most people in the area aren’t really invested in the Bucs. There are plenty of great fans, but the home games too often seem filled with parents who just want a place for their kids to run around for a couple of hours, and people who get offended if you raise your voice a little too loudly in support of the team (or in opposition to bad calls against us). And where are the frats, except when it’s a CSS-televised game or Greek Week? In my opinion, the team has spotty student support.

At any rate, I just find it all a bit disappointing…I think this program could be more than what it is right now.

Welcome and a very interesting post. I share some of your concerns especially MuBar's tendency not to push for and use a strong bench throoughout the season. In his defense he had three good players redshirt so part of not having a strong bench play may be a result of just not having a strong bench. This seems however to have been a tendency over time, even when he had some talent on the bench. That being said, he is a winning coach for us, perhaps with a winning percentage better than any of his predecessors (some of you statistics folks might want to check that, by the way...I might be wrong.) but that many 20 plus win seasons and postseason appearances with different teams can't be ignored.

I'm not enamored at playing in a postseason tournament that isn't the NCAA or NIT. NCAA is out and NIT may be a long shot, and if we don't get the NIT I think we should whistle in the dogs, pee on the fire and turn our horses homeward for the year.

Welcome to the board.

You need to post more often. You will feel better.

As I read this board...there is consensus. ETSU athletics is not close to it's potential.

Here's the question...try and stay where ETSU is or do something to bring forward progress?

(03-07-2011 02:51 PM)buccaneeroldtimer Wrote:  Welcome and a very interesting post. I share some of your concerns especially MuBar's tendency not to push for and use a strong bench throoughout the season. In his defense he had three good players redshirt so part of not having a strong bench play may be a result of just not having a strong bench. This seems however to have been a tendency over time, even when he had some talent on the bench. That being said, he is a winning coach for us, perhaps with a winning percentage better than any of his predecessors (some of you statistics folks might want to check that, by the way...I might be wrong.) but that many 20 plus win seasons and postseason appearances with different teams can't be ignored.

I'm not enamored at playing in a postseason tournament that isn't the NCAA or NIT. NCAA is out and NIT may be a long shot, and if we don't get the NIT I think we should whistle in the dogs, pee on the fire and turn our horses homeward for the year.

Welcome to the board.

Thanks for the welcome. I don't mean to completely dog MuBar, as there are some positive things one can point to during his tenure. He does generally have winning teams. He recruits pretty well; no one can say we don't get some nice talent. He's never done anything embarrassing to the university (no allegations of wrongdoing, etc.). I'm an outside observer, so for all I know the kids like playing for him and he has a positive impact on them. He deserves some credit for last year's team somewhat unexpectedly making the dance, even if it was in large part due to a fluky A-Sun tourney where we somehow missed the top 3 seeds.

However, for all the wins we've had, I still think we leave too many on the court, and I think the coaching of the team is a big reason for this. And there are lots of different areas where this is true--playing too much zone; not trying to press at least a little bit more, when it's been successful in the past; the over-reliance on one-on-one offense; dubious personnel decisions, including too short of a bench.

But forget the details...what it boils down to for me is that I never/rarely get the feeling that this team is put in a position to do as well as possible. I get that feeling from Byrd @ Bellmont--sure, they've got some talent, but there is no way they could be any better than they are this year. He does an amazing job with them. I get that feeling from Driscoll @ NFLA. I got that feeling this season from Hoffman @ Mercer--not saying he wins sportsman of the year or is any sort of b-ball genius, but I thought he did a very fine job with that team this year, considering all the injuries they had. And that's where it gets a little more intangible/subjective, but I watch the Bucs a lot and can't shake that feeling, even when at certain times things are going pretty well, as they often have the past few years.

It also probably doesn't help my mood on MuBar that our competition to dominate this league, Belmont, is very much the opposite of us. Deeper bench, better movement and passing on offense. Not saying we should copycat their system, but after their domination of us, can't we figure out that we could learn something from what they do?

And let's be honest--right now, even with us winning the tournament the previous two years, Belmont is easily the class of this league. I can live with them winning it this year; I don't expect ETSU to make it every season, and Belmont has been terrific this year. It would've been very hard for us to beat them without all hands on deck (Tommy, other redshirts). As much as I hate them as a rival, it's hard not to appreciate the way they play the game, and I will definitely be rooting for them to pull an upset in the NCAA.

My larger fear is that things might stay this way in the coming seasons. I can't stomach the thought of becoming an afterthought to a Belmont mini-dynasty.

ooohhh..I would hate to be an afterthought to a Belmont dynasty, but I have to give them their props for a first rate program, one of the best in the mid majors. I don't think we would be able to find a coach as good as good as Bartow, so I'm for going with the devil we have as opposed to getting a new coach. Bartown knows how to recruit talent, which is half the battle. He seems to win more than 20 games a season, which is another big plus, but you have a point that he seems to be lacking the "little plastic thing that holds the six pack together" as we used to say. I agree with others who point to his failure year after year to develop and use a strong bench. I say work with him to address that and we'll have a team that will give Belmont all it can handle. Given the way some of the other teams in the A-Sun are improving I don't think standing still is an option.

From the JC Press:

The Bucs (22-11) saw their quest for a third straight NCAA tournament bid go astray last Friday night when they were upset 59-55 by North Florida in the A-Sun semifinals. Belmont went on to beat the Ospreys by 41 points in the championship game.

Bartow said he was “very disappointed” by his team’s failure to at least get another shot at the Bruins, who have won 30 games this season and will be playing in the NCAAs for the fourth time in the last six years.

“We’ve done that three of the seven years we’ve been here,” said Bartow. “It’s incredibly hard to get to one. You have to win three games in the (conference) tournament, and seven coaches go home disappointed. I’m one of them this year.”

After going 16-4 in the league during the regular season, the second-seeded Bucs struggled to make shots in a quarterfinal win over Campbell and again in their loss to North Florida. Both games were in the 50s, and the Bucs shot about 35 percent from the field in each.

Mike Smith scored 24 and 20 points, respectively, but didn’t get much help. Fellow seniors Micah Williams and Justin Tubbs never found their shooting strokes, combining for just 25 points in the tournament.

“In the last game, when your seniors go 10 for 38, you know it’s going to be hard to win,” said Bartow. “I thought we defended hard and competed, but we were not good offensively. There are a lot of theories about that … I don’t know if we were out of sync or rhythm (because of late-season injuries to Smith and Williams), or if we just couldn’t make shots. I certainly take accountability for it.”

The coach thought maybe the Bucs had gotten the bad out of their system when they held off Campbell 54-53.

“I hoped it was an aberration,” he said. “We played some ugly ones the last two years and were able to survive.”

The sixth-seeded Ospreys obviously didn’t have much left in the tank after beating Jacksonville, the 3-seed, and then the Bucs. They were flattened by the Belmont express, 87-46.

“It didn’t surprise me who won,” said Bartow, “but the margin of victory did surprise me. Belmont and North Florida played two weeks ago and it was a two-point game.”