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Chemistry
I have been thinking back to a point in the game which has been making a big impact on me. EO had just cracked a player in the jaw with his elbow and was feeling the shame after receiving an F1. You could see it in his eyes. It wasn't too much later the camera was on him and his head was down but his hair had some pieces of fuzz in it (probably due to putting a towel over his head). Just then a teammate's arm enters the picture and gently brushes EO's head in an attempt to clean the fuzz away. Damn, I'm getting all misty eyed again... This team is so bonded it is scary. They are truly like a family. Contrast that with the Spartans the other night against Memphis when one of the players went off in the huddle against another player snapping him in the head with a towel. A fight almost broke out. This Shocker squad are truly a very special bunch of men.
Important Shots
Many will remember Stutz's last second shot in the 2012 NCAA's that fell short ending our hopes of advancing. In the game against GU, Carl Hall was in a very similar position on the court - about 15ft out and right of the paint. When Carl let go of that shot, my mind flashed to Stutz's shot. Both were very unusual shots for the big men at the time. When Carl's shot went in, it put us up by 1 and I felt like it was symbolic of how things are/and will be different in the tournament this year. This Shocker team will now hit the big shots, this Shocker team won't be denied. And the rest of the game against Gonzaga illustrated that perfectly.
Expectations
Gregg Marshall is knocking down old records that have stood for a long time. He seems to be pretty proud of what he has done as he continually brings up records he has broken. I caution him and the fanbase to enjoy the moment and maintain perspective. Right now we are on a tremendous upswing, but what is happening right now was not supposed to be happening. This was supposed to be a rebuilding year, even HCGM himself said he would have jumped at the opportunity in November to accept a spot in the post-season NIT. Beating expectations by large margins can turn a fanbase into a spoiled bunch of brats in no time. We must continue to build this program, remain unsatisfied (even in the face of tremendous success), and most importantly.. stay thankful.
Just like we will never see the kind of environment in Koch arena in an NIT game like we did against Florida State, we are not going to get that excited beating BCS teams going forward either. We must work very hard to maintain our reputation as one of the toughest arenas/crowds in the nation. It's going to be hard to get up for Evansville when our recent memory has us pounding Pitt and GU. We cannot become spoiled, we cannot become greedy, and we cannot become satisfied. I think the biggest risk to the solidarity of our fanbase is success. We need to appreciate the success we are having, and be thankful during the years when we aren't as good. This year is turning into one that is going to be hard to top when you consider what our team has been through. In the future we are going to have better players, a better schedule, and even higher top-25 rankings. But we may not go as far in the NCAA's as this year for a long, long time. And I say that because I believe we are going to play at least a couple more games before we are done.
Be thankful yet unsatisfied. Trust in coach because he has the ultimate green light.
T
...:cool:
I have been thinking back to a point in the game which has been making a big impact on me. EO had just cracked a player in the jaw with his elbow and was feeling the shame after receiving an F1. You could see it in his eyes. It wasn't too much later the camera was on him and his head was down but his hair had some pieces of fuzz in it (probably due to putting a towel over his head). Just then a teammate's arm enters the picture and gently brushes EO's head in an attempt to clean the fuzz away. Damn, I'm getting all misty eyed again... This team is so bonded it is scary. They are truly like a family. Contrast that with the Spartans the other night against Memphis when one of the players went off in the huddle against another player snapping him in the head with a towel. A fight almost broke out. This Shocker squad are truly a very special bunch of men.
Important Shots
Many will remember Stutz's last second shot in the 2012 NCAA's that fell short ending our hopes of advancing. In the game against GU, Carl Hall was in a very similar position on the court - about 15ft out and right of the paint. When Carl let go of that shot, my mind flashed to Stutz's shot. Both were very unusual shots for the big men at the time. When Carl's shot went in, it put us up by 1 and I felt like it was symbolic of how things are/and will be different in the tournament this year. This Shocker team will now hit the big shots, this Shocker team won't be denied. And the rest of the game against Gonzaga illustrated that perfectly.
Expectations
Gregg Marshall is knocking down old records that have stood for a long time. He seems to be pretty proud of what he has done as he continually brings up records he has broken. I caution him and the fanbase to enjoy the moment and maintain perspective. Right now we are on a tremendous upswing, but what is happening right now was not supposed to be happening. This was supposed to be a rebuilding year, even HCGM himself said he would have jumped at the opportunity in November to accept a spot in the post-season NIT. Beating expectations by large margins can turn a fanbase into a spoiled bunch of brats in no time. We must continue to build this program, remain unsatisfied (even in the face of tremendous success), and most importantly.. stay thankful.
Just like we will never see the kind of environment in Koch arena in an NIT game like we did against Florida State, we are not going to get that excited beating BCS teams going forward either. We must work very hard to maintain our reputation as one of the toughest arenas/crowds in the nation. It's going to be hard to get up for Evansville when our recent memory has us pounding Pitt and GU. We cannot become spoiled, we cannot become greedy, and we cannot become satisfied. I think the biggest risk to the solidarity of our fanbase is success. We need to appreciate the success we are having, and be thankful during the years when we aren't as good. This year is turning into one that is going to be hard to top when you consider what our team has been through. In the future we are going to have better players, a better schedule, and even higher top-25 rankings. But we may not go as far in the NCAA's as this year for a long, long time. And I say that because I believe we are going to play at least a couple more games before we are done.
Be thankful yet unsatisfied. Trust in coach because he has the ultimate green light.
T
...:cool:
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