Tough to play a second game in 6 days. Get blown out 70-54 by LSU. If Wally could get his nose out of Anderson's butt long enough he might realize they are simply bad, not tired. Not saying they won't get better, but right now they are simply a bad, poorly coached team.

This isn't a #5 recruiting class. Had Aaron Ross been eligible it would have been better, but it's an average class that Anderson inherited. BJ Young reminds me of Solo. He doesn't ever want to give the ball up and will dribble all day to try and take a shot. That has to change. You can say that's bad coaching on Anderson's part, but if you're going to do that, then you'd have to attribute the same type of coaching to Steve that allowed Solo to do the same thing. I think Anderson is a heck of a coach, and will be back in the NCAA on a regular basis within two seasons, three at the most. By the way, BJ Young is an outstanding player, but the Hogs are hurting on inside players. They can't rebound with anyone in their league. Got to get the right players to win, and I think he will soon.

(03-08-2012 05:31 PM)outsideualr Wrote:  This isn't a #5 recruiting class. Had Aaron Ross been eligible it would have been better, but it's an average class that Anderson inherited. BJ Young reminds me of Solo. He doesn't ever want to give the ball up and will dribble all day to try and take a shot. That has to change. You can say that's bad coaching on Anderson's part, but if you're going to do that, then you'd have to attribute the same type of coaching to Steve that allowed Solo to do the same thing. I think Anderson is a heck of a coach, and will be back in the NCAA on a regular basis within two seasons, three at the most. By the way, BJ Young is an outstanding player, but the Hogs are hurting on inside players. They can't rebound with anyone in their league. Got to get the right players to win, and I think he will soon.

Average classes don't have 5 and 4 star players. Aaron Ross was the lowest rated player they signed last year. Young was a 5 star, Mickelson and Madden were 4 stars, and Ross was a 3 star. Anderson apparently didn't want Ross (a kid who has wanted to play up there since he could walk and committed in 8th grade) so he recently committed to Texas Tech. There's really no excuse for them to be this bad. I understand Anderson has to get "his type of player". I assume that means Mickelson will be gone, since he clearly doesn't fit the mold. I believe he will be successful, since you'd have to be a very bad coach not to be able to win with all the advantages they have. Just don't think they will be an elite program with the rag-tag style he plays.

Don't want to get in a Solo argument, but he was "the man" that got us to the NCAA tournament almost single-handedly. He was the go to player we didn't have this year. Obviously, you want the ball in his hands. Just like Foley wanted the ball in Taylor Gault's hands at the end of regulation. One thing I can't blame Anderson for is wanting the ball in BJ Young's hands. He is head and shoulders better than anyone else on the team.

Anderson's style may be different, but it's certainly not "rag tag". There is a method to his and Nolan's madness that works, but you have to have enough players, and he doesn't right now. I agree that BJ Young is the best player on the team, but I'm not sure how many true SEC players Anderson inherited. Marshawn Powell and Rotnei Clarke would have certainly helped the team, but he has to get some big men who can play. And he will. He hasn't had a recruiting class yet, has he? As for Solo, we just saw him in completely different lights, and the only thing I'll concede is he made one shot that will help him be remembered fondly by most Trojan fans, including me. Other than that, we didn't do too well the two years he was the "go to guy".

Arkansas is a bad SEC team. UALR finished the season with a losing record. Arkansas did not. Arkansas has a better RPI than UALR. Which team is worse?

If you only look at their conference records, UALR was much better against the people they are supposed to be equal to. How many conference road games did Arkansas win? I recall one. The Trojans had a very good conference road record. Is UALR a better team?
Maybe not. But we can't really say because they don't play. Both went out in the first game of the tournament. UALR went out against the tournament winner. Unless LSU wins the SEC tourney, you'd have to say the Trojans had the better performance. But let's face it. It's like comparing apples and oranges. Unlike some, I root for both teams.

(03-09-2012 01:11 AM)ez272 Wrote:  Arkansas is a bad SEC team. UALR finished the season with a losing record. Arkansas did not. Arkansas has a better RPI than UALR. Which team is worse?

Despite the tournament loss, UALR was a very good Sun Belt team, who improved greatly the second half of the season. The Chickenhawgs totally fell apart at the end of the season. They won one game away from Bud Walton all season. They just lost by 16 to an LSU team that lost to South Alabama who we beat by 20. No doubt in my mind we would beat them on a neutral court right now (I guess that might have to be in Alaska or Hawaii). I realize that, all things being equal, a good SEC team is better than a good Sun Belt team. So the only fair way to compare how successful 2 teams were is to look at how they did against the teams they compete against in their own conferences- 12-4 is a lot better than 6-10.

You made my point better than I was able to.

Fayetteville was a significantly better team than we were, but they should have been, even in a bad year. Comparing the resources available, we did a much better job with what we had to work with than they did, though.

I'm not sure they were that much better. The only thing we have to compare is teams we both played. Kentucky blew them out early.
We led at the half. They lost to South Alabama and we blew them out. So although they might be better, I'm not sure they're that much better, and if we played them on a neutral court, maybe it would be a very competitive game. But it's all total speculation.

(03-09-2012 08:28 AM)MICHAELSPAPPY Wrote:  Fayetteville was a significantly better team than we were, but they should have been, even in a bad year. Comparing the resources available, we did a much better job with what we had to work with than they did, though.

I hardly ever disagree with you Pappy, but do here. They are normally better and should be with the resources they have, but had we bought the kind of Fayetteville OC schedule they did, and always do, we would have won 25 games this year. Yes, I think we could have beaten them on a neutral court(if one could be found)and with good honest officials(if any could be found). They played a very weak home OC schedule other than the Michigan game. And by playing them in Fayetteville, where they could normally beat the NBA champs, by stealing the games when they can't do it by just being better. Even the midget thinks it's time to pull the plug on this years team.

(03-09-2012 10:02 AM)LRTrojan Wrote:  

(03-09-2012 08:28 AM)MICHAELSPAPPY Wrote:  Fayetteville was a significantly better team than we were, but they should have been, even in a bad year. Comparing the resources available, we did a much better job with what we had to work with than they did, though.

I hardly ever disagree with you Pappy, but do here. They are normally better and should be with the resources they have, but had we bought the kind of Fayetteville OC schedule they did, and always do, we would have won 25 games this year. Yes, I think we could have beaten them on a neutral court(if one could be found)and with good honest officials(if any could be found). They played a very weak home OC schedule other than the Michigan game. And by playing them in Fayetteville, where they could normally beat the NBA champs, by stealing the games when they can't do it by just being better. Even the midget thinks it's time to pull the plug on this years team.

I usually agree with Pappy as well, but I don't know how anyone can believe they were a "significantly" better team than we were. I'm talking about at the end of the season, which is what counts. I don't care if they had "tired legs", "hit the wall", or if Anderson "lost the team" we are better than they are right now. I think the best teams in the Belt are better than the bottom feeders in the SEC. MTSU won at Ole Miss (actually in Southaven, MS), and Ole Miss beat the Chickenhawgs twice. South Alabama (who we beat easily) won at LSU who just crushed Arkansas. I'd have to grudgingly agree that UAF is better than us most seasons, but not this one.

Well, I am just going by Sagarin. They are about six points higher on a neutral court. Might not be considered significant. Maybe marginal would be the better term.