MeanMag

I'm not debating your points. They're valid. You're right, the remainders are unproven, which is why missing this season and a chance to prove themselves really isn't what JJ had in mind. If you think this year was hard, just wait until next season when just about everyone on the team becomes a question mark going into the season. Also, There's a reason Cam was the first big man off the bench and not the second.

I understand and hear what you are saying. Good D1 basketball players don't exactly grow on trees. Good D1 basketball players who have experience and can make an impact this season would be even tougher to find. I don't think 1 scholly would have made up for what we lost, but you're right, you don't know if you don't try. It's JJ's M.O. to hold on to a scholarship for someone deserving who might be a late qualifier. It's not a bad idea as a mid major.

Not trying to make excuses, Rick. But you can't ignore the elephant in the room that some don't seem to think matters. A lot of people are trying to pinpoint why this team is fading, and I'm only offering up my reasoning. I realize that JJ is not above getting criticism and that he's dealing with a lot of the same issues we held Dodge accountable for last season. There are things you can coach and things you can't. I think we give up a lot of length and athleticism to opponents with the people we have injured and not playing 100% right now. Hell, I heard rumors Josh had some issues after Thursday's game coming into Saturday's. Josh White and Dominique are going to get scored on simply because of the height differences. Tristan has been trying a lot harder on defense and been taking punishment on the offensive end as well. (some unneeded). For the first time this season I think I saw Holmen take a charge, the rest of the time he tries really hard to defend from the side and behind. We have problems on defense because of the personnel we have available. I brought a friend to the game on Saturday who wasn't familiar with the current team and his comment around midway through the first half was, "Johnny doesn't sub a whole lot. Our guys look tired." I started running through the roster and his options on the bench, and to be honest, there just aren't many right now when someone has a bad night or has lost confidence. So, what may seem like bad coaching could be the lack of options right now, and most likely a combination of both. This isn't a bad team, they've run into some adversity. They probably aren't as good as the start indicated, and there were some games we probably should have lost if it weren't for those seniors (and Hogans) lifting us through some games. Texas State on the road and Texas Tech at home come to mind. They proved they have it in them to win against decent competition. I can't help but get this feeling that some cheer for the basketball team to have a bad outing so they can come here and say, "I told you so", or chant "overrated". I don't understand.

It's obvious the team played out of their minds at the beginning of the season. I'm impressed they were able to accomplish what they did. We have match-up issues with every team we have faced this year and opposing coaches are now using a recipe for success against UNT. Don't let us run, force us into a half court offense and extend your defense to cover the perimeter, because everyone has a size advantage on our guards. I'm happy about making the tournament, and I'm happy that we have had a respectable RPI. I'm not happy about losing to La Monroe, but I'll get over it. Consistency is a hard thing to master. I believe that any confidence winning the USA game gave this team, may have just gone away with the ULM game.

Yes, there are 6 seniors who play on any given night. I will keep saying this until someone gets it... These are the guys that JJ was almost counting on at least 1 or 2 stepping up, but for reasons beyond JJ's control haven't. RJ McGee - FR. Never set foot on the court this year. Could have been a 6'6" SG/SF addition that would be developing this year and maybe contributing nicely. Collin Mangrum - SR. Transferred to SMU. The staff may have had time to react to this one, but it still sucks losing a senior from a tournament team that poured in as many minutes as Jacob Holmen did the year before. And look at how many Jacob Holmen is being asked to fill this year. Mangrum could have helped this year. Alzee Williams - SO. injured As a freshmen last year spelled Josh White in Dominique Johnson's absence, and did an admirable making cuts and collapsing defenses. I saw him filling a similar role this year as a sophomore with increased minutes and leadership roles. Cam Spencer - SR. injured Played about as much as Alzee did last year. At 6'8" we lost a much needed inside presence offensively and defensively from last year. His size alone kept defenses from extending to the 3 point line as much as they are this year. Alonzo Edwards - JR. playing injured (supposedly needs surgery soon?) Didn't play with the team last year, and really hasn't played enough minutes or been in a game long enough without fouling out to work on any kind of chemistry with the rest of the team. Tyler Hall - walk-on JR. injured This walk-on didn't play that much this year before he got hurt and still has the 3rd best FT% on the team. His FG% is right up there with Josh White and Tristan Thompson too, even if it is mop up duty time. I simply don't understand how this is all JJ's fault. Things didn't work out like he planned them to, and things don't work out nice and neat all the time.

Bump In case anyone missed this.

I don't really have an opinion on the roster situation for next year, but you can add him to the list of players JJ was somewhat counting on playing some minutes this year. Cam Spencer Alonzo Edwards Alzee Williams Collin Mangrum Considering all of this and not having a true option for losing Tramiel; what the team was able accomplish in the 1st half of the season is impressive. I know things haven't worked out much since then and excuses suck, but looking at that list can be a big factor this late in the season.

I think they are supposed to open their stadium halfway through this season.

I miss Mangrum. He was a smart player and we liked having him around. It's good that SMU is realizing he's a great addition.

Hurd and Don McGee too if I remember right.

Defense did seem to pick up last night. Tristan and Kendrick were getting after it the first half. Jacob Holmen: Really impressed with his shot selection last night. I thought he made real good decisions offensively. I don't remember who Holmen was guarding, but I do remember he was constantly defending from behind and the side. This also has to go down as one of the most poorly officiated games in recent memory.

I will most certainly be there for the rest of the season. I'm not expecting us to win out, but I'm not expecting us to lose out either. The intensity just isn't the same as it was at the beginning of the season. Bodies aren't flying and people aren't going all out for loose balls or tipped passes. It just isn't the same.

WKU's mid-court logo: Overkill?

Wish we'd retire out road "tuxedos"

I would agree with that come tournament time, just because Denver will have to leave their friendly confines, and I think lose some of the advantage they might otherwise have.

Did WKU lose anyone off of their team from last year?

Josh White and Tristan Thompson are the worst basketball players to ever play shuffle board.

I guess so, even though there's no malice intended. I've removed it.

He doesn't seem to mind the traffic in his back yard. His house looks too far away from the stadium to walk from anyway. I won't be parking in your lawn even if you paid me, John T Weber.

Who's slobbering over TCU and bleeding purple? This is a much more rational (and enjoyable) thread than someone posting about SMU and UT every time they pass wind.

Well, it was a 3rd party trying to put this together, and the article doesn't say Wisconsin doesn't want to come to fort worth. Purely speculation that they don't.

I really doubt that's the reason. I think the real reason is that Baylor and TCU will garner more interest in their fan bases than Wisconsin and TCU. Those 2 fan bases don't really like each other too much. I just saw Wisconsin play TCU last month.

I think you know what he's saying, but in case you don't I'll take a stab at it. Tristan, Josh, George, and DJ have played between 600-800 minutes each thus far. that's 2781 minutes combined. Hogans and Shorter have played around 500 each. around 1000 combined. Holmen/Knox/Edwards split the next 600 minutes. 4 guys are carrying the load of the minutes, probably the ones he's referring to playing long minutes. I don't have a problem with the next 2 guys because of the defense they bring. It's not uncommon to see one or 2 players in the college game get crazy minutes, because those are your race horses. Denver and LaMo both have trios that play 32min+ per game. But, Josh White's 781 total might be a little much (34 minutes/G). Especially for a player that had a really bad night against FAU. In fact, I thought it might have been you, who pointed out at the beginning of the season that Josh might be playing a little much. It'd be great if someone from the Holmen/Knox/Edwards combo would step up to become the clear consistently better player to bring us down to a 7 man rotation and split the minutes more evenly between those 7. I hope that I've come close to TTG's mark with that explanation. Further, I'd say TTG pays very close attention to UNT basketball, college basketball and even more attention to the Sun Belt conference. He is probably one of the most basketball savvy fans we have around here. There are a few others that might be more, and you may be one of them. We are well aware that you are very close to some of the past and present players, and you may feel it's your duty to defend them on this board, because they are above posting here. I understand that perspective, since many are likely your friends. However, I don't think questioning TTGs fandom is really taken seriously. You obviously have some very valid points, good insight and make some very good posts from time to time and I'm glad you share here, but many statements sound emotionally driven from being VERY close to the situation. I think this may be one of them. You're a newcomer to the board, maybe to UNT basketball (obviously not basketball in general), and probably relatively young. The people that post here brave enough to share opinions typically aren't fair weather fans. They're typically season ticket holders and have been for a while. These are the people that put their money and time into supporting, watching and following the team. If you want to question the dedication of fans, you've picked the wrong one to question.

Don't think Johnny Jones was planning on not having Alzee and Cam sitting out all season. Those guys saw a decent amount of minutes last season.

I say chemistry.