#12 WSU @ #18 UNI - Game Thread

[im4wsu]

UNI being good helps us a lot. They turned a conference road loss that would have been a problem into an okay loss by being a respected team this year. This loss barely hurts us at all and we will be stronger for it later on.

The next big thing will be for ILL St to keep developing. If UNI and the Redbirds find a way to stay strong next year and we get a little outside help from the brewing senior class in Evansville plus Loyola rallying around Milton Doyle, the MVC could be very strong next year.

Here is UNI stats this year-to-date:

	Min	FGM	FGA	FTM	FTA	3FM	3FA	OReb	DReb	TReb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	Pts
Seniors	2115	268	526	193	266	53	130	97	291	388	143	45	28	151	146	782
Others	2552	235	522	143	200	97	254	44	238	282	122	93	31	101	204	710
Total	4667	503	1048	336	466	150	384	141	529	670	265	138	59	252	350	1492
Sr. %	0.453	0.533	0.502	0.574	0.571	0.353	0.339	0.688	0.55	0.579	0.54	0.326	0.475	0.599	0.417	0.524

And here are Illinois State's

	Min	FGM	FGA	FTM	FTA	3FM	3FA	OReb	DReb	TReb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	Pts
Seniors	3753	449	986	342	454	129	337	159	518	677	218	93	80	242	292	1369
Others	3372	355	846	192	254	168	446	101	339	440	241	85	38	172	296	1070
Total	7125	804	1832	534	708	297	783	260	857	1117	459	178	118	414	588	2439
Sr. %	0.527	0.558	0.538	0.64	0.641	0.434	0.43	0.612	0.604	0.606	0.475	0.522	0.678	0.585	0.497	0.561

[Fozzy]

Worse than that, my wife went out and bought us Elite 8 shirts on that Friday between the Los Angeles games. I kinda scolded her on that, saying that if WSU won the next night, that shirt instantly would become obsolete. Sure enough...

I remember last year seeing shirts for sale that marked the undefeated regular season, then soon after one with the mvc tourney games added to the number, and then finally a new one that said 35-1. I always wondered if there were pre-made 40-0 ones that never made it to market :)

[SHOCKvalue]

I remember last year seeing shirts for sale that marked the undefeated regular season, then soon after one with the mvc tourney games added to the number, and then finally a new one that said 35-1. I always wondered if there were pre-made 40-0 ones that never made it to market :)

Rest assured there are some refugee children over in Africa wearing WSU 2013 National Champion shirts at this very moment.

[molly jabali]

Worse than that, my wife went out and bought us Elite 8 shirts on that Friday between the Los Angeles games. I kinda scolded her on that, saying that if WSU won the next night, that shirt instantly would become obsolete. Sure enough...

I kind of regret the PERFECT SEASON shirt I bought last year...because it ALWAYS triggers a Kentucky comment...

[KC Shox]

I had high hopes for the UNI game. I've now become concerned about our ability to advance past the first weekend in the NCAA's. Our top 50 (RPI) wins are against "power houses" Tulsa and Seton Hall. Seton is decent but they're no longer the same with Whitehead out of their lineup.

We all know where the deficiencies are in the line-up, but projecting on how well we will improve from here to March Madness doesn't bode well. DC is probably going to be dealing with his back for the remainder of the season, which seriously hurts. It's too much to ask and expect for RK and SM, in a month's time prior to March Madness, suddenly 'see the light' and their game exponentially improves.

While we have a great coach and some great players, there's simply not enough 'horses' to make a deep run in the NCAA's. If UNI and their unremarkable players can take advantage of our weaknesses and hamper our strengths, what do you think a team in the Top 20 can do to us?

But here's the great news, RB and FVV will be back next year and all the playing time and experience our younger players are gaining this season are going to pay huge dividends. This train will continue on the top 25 tracks while UNI will graduate it's seniors and have to spend another 3 to 4 years developing its players to the point where they can make some noise again.

[Cdizzle]

If UNI and their unremarkable players can take advantage of our weaknesses and hamper our strengths, what do you think a team in the Top 20 can do to us?

Can't tell...if...serious?

[WstateU]

If UNI and their unremarkable players can take advantage of our weaknesses and hamper our strengths, what do you think a team in the Top 20 can do to us?

Can't tell...if...serious?

KC must be spending too much time in the Phog...

[Shock Therapy]

I had high hopes for the UNI game. I've now become concerned about our ability to advance past the first weekend in the NCAA's. Our top 50 (RPI) wins are against "power houses" Tulsa and Seton Hall. Seton is decent but they're no longer the same with Whitehead out of their lineup.

Whitehead came back last weekend.

[ShockerPrez]

WSU may very well not make the sweet 16.

But, if we don't, it is considered a down year or rebuilding year.

Some teams would consider that a high water mark.

[WstateU]

Whitehead came back last weekend.

I watched him play last night.

[Shoxfan11]

I've given up on predicting how far our teams can go in the NCAA Tournament.

Remember how dominant our team was in 2011-2012? That team was loaded with talent, could score like crazy, and could play some solid defense. 16-2 in the Valley, and one of those was a double OT loss against a team that shot the lights out. One of those wins was at the #2 team in the league by 20 something points. All of that, only to lose in the first round.

Remember the next year? We were completely demolished at home by Indiana State (an NIT team), lost at UNI, and lost at SIU, who was pretty awful that year. All in 3 consecutive games. At that point in the season, I don't remember anyone predicting a Final Four (at least, not until WuDrWu did right before the tournament, why is that thread not in the hall of fame yet?). A lot of the board wanted Fred to get Malcolm's minutes, thought that the team chemistry was destroyed and that the team was possibly NIT bound. That team also got swept by Evansville. And of course, we know how that season ended.

Crazy things happen in the NCAA Tournament. Sometimes they impact your team in a positive way, like when your team gets hot from three late in the game to knock off the #1 ranked team in the country to move on to the Sweet Sixteen, and sometimes they occur and harm your team, like when a talented but underachieving Kentucky team plays the game of their lives to knock your team out of the tournament.

Honestly, I'm fine with just getting there and seeing what happens. It's fun to make predictions from one game in the regular season.. but history shows us that it just doesn't work that way.

[SHOCKvalue]

If UNI and their unremarkable players can take advantage of our weaknesses and hamper our strengths, what do you think a team in the Top 20 can do to us?

I'm not sure what it tells us about a game against a top 20 opponent, but I'm pretty sure it gave us a pretty good idea what happens in a game against a top 15 opponent with bad match-ups.

[ShockerFever]

UNI fans.

Please show your awesomeness by selling out the rest of your home games and show some respect for your own top 25 program. Don't take 5th place in the Valley next year after Tuttle leaves, and win a game this year in the NCAA.

Then we can talk about the torch that is sitting like Excaliber in the stone at Hillside and 21st

Perfect.

Something tells me you're asking a bit too much.

[WuDrWu]

A couple of things, Cat fan.

1.) Do you have selective memory? Last year was ONE year in a decade of success for WSU. Case in point, last year UNI was a nobody stuck in the middle of a mediocre conference. Same thing the year prior and the year prior to that. In those same 10 years, WSU also has 3 conference titles, a Sweet 16, a Final Four, an undefeated season, a No.1 seed, a #2 National Ranking, countless weeks in the Top 25, a streak of 30 STRAIGHT Valley wins, etc. And that's just going back 10 years. Are you ******* serious? It's not even comparable.

2.) This is a WSU board. Know your place. The players acted like it was a Super Bowl. Your fanbase acted like it was your Super Bowl. Hell, even members of your own local "media" acted like it was your Super Bowl by actively cheering for the Panthers while "working".

3.) Why are you still here? (This goes back to point 2 about it being your Super Bowl and you still being connected to a WSU board during a game with Indiana State you just completed)

I have a ton of respect for Jacobson and what he's done and the loyalty he's shown to a fan base and school that couldn't care less. Dude is a good guy and a better coach. Clearly the 2nd best coach in the league, maybe the 2nd best coach in the last 20 years in the league.

I'm kind of struggling with a lot of things right now not basketball related, so forgive me if A)I'm wrong or B) it's been corrected already, but can somebody remind me what 3 seasons UNI won the Valley? I know the 3 post season titles, but I'm going to have to question 3 regular season titles. There are several 10-8 and 9-9 type seasons. Those generally don't count as titles.

9 cocky Panther fans in striped overalls (way to steal that one from Creighton by the way lol) does not a torch carrying program make.

[WuShock16]

UNI split the title with Creighton in 2009 (and did have 1 seed at Arch Madness) and won outright in 2010. I'm going to have to think on the third one. That very well could be incorrect.