Pregame: Illinois vs Wisconsin, Tuesday, January 31st, 8:00pm CT, BTN

Bear8287 · Jan 30, 2017

Dan said:
Groce: ... Live didn't want to get behind like we did. Watching film, wasn't as bad as I thought.

Groce: ... We were better in the 2nd half. Defended a little better...

Groce: In terms of Wisconsin, they're a great challenge... Played a lot of games together.

Groce: I am proud of the way our guys competed and battled in the 2nd half. More focused about making less mistakes overall.

https://twitter.com/DPiperScout

Man, I can't wait for this guy to be gone...

Watching film, wasn't as bad as I thought... Seriously? The first half was so bad (down by 20 at the half), that most Illini fans would consider it pure torture to have to watch that half again. wasn't as bad as I thought, yeah it was a freaking lot worse than that.

Defended a little better? The Illini's second half defense is what got the team back into the game. He couldn't even tell the difference between a little better and a lot better? Sure would explain a lot about why the Illini play defense like they do then.

Played a lot of games together. The latest Groce excuse, sure we've got a lot of experienced guys, but they haven't played a lot of games together. It most baffle the $#!+ out of him how 3 freshmen could start at Maryland and total school his team (they probably played a lot of high school games together, yeah that must be it).

More focused about making less mistakes overall... Yeah, I like to have our guys focused on not doing the negative things. Every time I hear a coach say something like that, I wonder why the AD doesn't just hand him his walking papers right then and there. [With Weber it was his "playing not to lose" comment.]

So long Coach Groce. Be sure to apologize to Malcolm Hill on your way out though...

Bear8287 · Jan 30, 2017

Sorry, I don't remember who originally posted this, but I thought that Groce's comments warranted posting this again...

Gotta love "the ladder". If it's not "the lasagna" it's "the ladder". Lose to Wisconsin and that B1G hole is gonna need something a lot longer than that ladder to crawl out of it.

Old Number 51 · Jan 30, 2017

Illinifan533 said:
Hey now, they had to go to overtime to beat a terrible Rutgers team today.

ChiefIllini said:
Groce has beaten Izzo before... and in East Lansing... twice.

Sooooo..... You're calling for the Groce to beat Izzo this time?

RedRocksIllini · Jan 30, 2017

Bear8287 said:
Sorry, I don't remember who originally posted this, but I thought that Groce's comments warranted posting this again...

Gotta love "the ladder". If it's not "the lasagna" it's "the ladder". Lose to Wisconsin and that B1G hole is gonna need something a lot longer than that ladder to crawl out of it.

That is hilarious. Best part is that he missed the gimme.

RedRocksIllini · Jan 30, 2017

LurkLongandProsper said:
Team basketball, assuming we share the same vision of that, would require a major scheme change on offense that takes a load off of the PG and puts it into ball movement, and that does not seem likely. I do not envision our defense all of a sudden being salvageable.

Generally onboard with everything you said. Having any sort of offensive scheme at all would necessarily imply a major scheme change.

Hope4better · Jan 30, 2017

One of JG's favorite words is unacceptable, and the state of Illinois basketball IS unacceptable!

Illini B-Ball Fan · Jan 30, 2017

Hope4better said:
One of JG's favorite words is unacceptable, and the state of Illinois basketball IS unacceptable!

Obviously, unacceptable. Hang in there, better days are coming, just not right now.

LurkLongandProsper · Jan 30, 2017

Pretty surprised the line is +6, feels like it should be +9.5, will be interesting to follow the movement on it.

alaskaillini · Jan 31, 2017

Bear8287 said:
Man, I can't wait for this guy to be gone...

Watching film, wasn't as bad as I thought... Seriously? The first half was so bad (down by 20 at the half), that most Illini fans would consider it pure torture to have to watch that half again. wasn't as bad as I thought, yeah it was a freaking lot worse than that.

Defended a little better? The Illini's second half defense is what got the team back into the game. He couldn't even tell the difference between a little better and a lot better? Sure would explain a lot about why the Illini play defense like they do then.

Played a lot of games together. The latest Groce excuse, sure we've got a lot of experienced guys, but they haven't played a lot of games together. It most baffle the $#!+ out of him how 3 freshmen could start at Maryland and total school his team (they probably played a lot of high school games together, yeah that must be it).

More focused about making less mistakes overall... Yeah, I like to have our guys focused on not doing the negative things. Every time I hear a coach say something like that, I wonder why the AD doesn't just hand him his walking papers right then and there. [With Weber it was his "playing not to lose" comment.]

So long Coach Groce. Be sure to apologize to Malcolm Hill on your way out though...

Would it make you happy if he had just thrown the players under the bus like his predecessor.

Bear8287 · Jan 31, 2017

alaskaillini said:
Would it make you happy if he had just thrown the players under the bus like his predecessor.

And why would Coach Groce doing one more stupid thing make me happy?

Would keeping him around for yet another season to ruin another batch of recruits make you happy?

Second and Chalmers · Jan 31, 2017

LurkLongandProsper said:
Pretty surprised the line is +6, feels like it should be +9.5, will be interesting to follow the movement on it.

Wisconsin just won a game they had no business winning, they've snuck into the top 10, feeling great about themselves, heading on the road against a bad team who is (in theory) desperate, this is trap city for the Badgers.

Old Number 51 · Jan 31, 2017

Second and Chalmers said:
Wisconsin just won a game they had no business winning, they've snuck into the top 10, feeling great about themselves, heading on the road against a bad team who is (in theory) desperate, this is trap city for the Badgers.

Don't think so

The trap game for Wisky was the one they just pulled out at Rutgers...

They will come out focused and beat us soundly like a well coached, veteran team should......

Hmmmmm, I wonder which part of that equation the Illini are missing?

Na na na na, na na na na, Coach Groce gooodbye!!

Adnarel · Jan 31, 2017

Nah, it's a pretty clear trap game for Wisconsin. They're fat and content with that top 10 ranking, and they're walking into a house of turmoil. I promise you, they expect to win by 25 points and they expect Happ to have a 20/20 game.

If Illinois plays like they often have at home this season, it's going to be a close game.

TCTORNADO · Jan 31, 2017

Adnarel said:
Nah, it's a pretty clear trap game for Wisconsin. They're fat and content with that top 10 ranking, and they're walking into a house of turmoil. I promise you, they expect to win by 25 points and they expect Happ to have a 20/20 game.

If Illinois plays like they often have at home this season, it's going to be a close game.

And it's our Super Bowl.
UI 68 WI 59

Illini4life04 · Jan 31, 2017

Another 20 point loss incoming

Calvin · Jan 31, 2017

LurkLongandProsper said:
Pretty surprised the line is +6, feels like it should be +9.5, will be interesting to follow the movement on it.

We're doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde at home, so I think the line is reflecting a bigger home court advantage than you'd expect from most teams, or at least reflects some chance we'll play inspired ball.

If it were on the road, I think you'd see a pretty damning point spread.

KRSAS · Jan 31, 2017

I'm predicting that we will come out and win the first half only to lose by 15+ in the 2nd half. Like I said, I'm not sure what we talk about during halftime but keeping the foot on the gas doesn't seem to be in their minds unlike the other team that makes the necessary adjustments to win.

ChiefIllini · Jan 31, 2017

ChiefIllini said:
No way we beat the Spartan's...... Izzo vs Groce..... Really??

Click to expand...

Groce has beaten Izzo before... and in East Lansing... twice.

Old Number 51 said:
Sooooo..... You're calling for the Groce to beat Izzo this time?

Maybe. My point was making light of the fact that the Izzo v. Groce battle is actually close compared to other top flight B1G teams. This is the weakest MSU team in years. it's more winnable than Wisc, especially given Groce's success against theam. If anything I'd give the advantage to Groce, just becuase MSU has had much more talent that past 4 years and we've went into East Lansing and won twice.

ChiefIllini · Jan 31, 2017

Adnarel said:
Nah, it's a pretty clear trap game for Wisconsin. They're fat and content with that top 10 ranking, and they're walking into a house of PAIGN. I promise you, they expect to win by 25 points and they expect Happ to have a 20/20 game.

If Illinois plays like they often have at home this season, it's going to be a close game.

FTFY

mattcoldagelli · Jan 31, 2017

Bear8287 said:
Man, I can't wait for this guy to be gone...

Watching film, wasn't as bad as I thought... Seriously? The first half was so bad (down by 20 at the half), that most Illini fans would consider it pure torture to have to watch that half again. wasn't as bad as I thought, yeah it was a freaking lot worse than that.

Defended a little better? The Illini's second half defense is what got the team back into the game. He couldn't even tell the difference between a little better and a lot better? Sure would explain a lot about why the Illini play defense like they do then.

Played a lot of games together. The latest Groce excuse, sure we've got a lot of experienced guys, but they haven't played a lot of games together. It most baffle the $#!+ out of him how 3 freshmen could start at Maryland and total school his team (they probably played a lot of high school games together, yeah that must be it).

More focused about making less mistakes overall... Yeah, I like to have our guys focused on not doing the negative things. Every time I hear a coach say something like that, I wonder why the AD doesn't just hand him his walking papers right then and there. [With Weber it was his "playing not to lose" comment.]

So long Coach Groce. Be sure to apologize to Malcolm Hill on your way out though...

I don't know how anybody gets worked up about this stuff. What do you want him to say at these? That's a direct question - what would you suggest he say instead?

I can't believe we've already forgotten how much worse it is when a coach decides to stop being polite and start getting real.

Adnarel · Jan 31, 2017

mattcoldagelli said:
I can't believe we've already forgotten how much worse it is when a coach decides to stop being polite and start getting real.

Most definitely. My least favorite part about Weber's last season was when he started throwing these young men who were obviously crushed under the bus to crush them further. It was gruesome, and created a negative feedback loop that accelerated the collapse. I'll take an idiotic ladder gimmick over that any day.

OrangeKrus28 · Jan 31, 2017

mattcoldagelli said:
I don't know how anybody gets worked up about this stuff. What do you want him to say at these? That's a direct question - what would you suggest he say instead?

I can't believe we've already forgotten how much worse it is when a coach decides to stop being polite and start getting real.

Groce basically made a 180 reversal of his post-game press conference, where he didn't even care to discuss the 2nd half comeback. Instead, he seemed more alarmed and agitated about the poor defense they played in the 1st half. But after reviewing the film, he felt differently? That doesn't make any sense. They were allowing PSU to get open 3's, driving inside unimpeded, and turning the ball over frequently with no flow to the offense. How can a fan or fanbase not get upset with a coach who makes things seem not as bad as they actually are?

Also, his new mantra this year is "we can only control what we can control." They can control how they play defense and have not put a full 40 mins. of quality defense together other than potentially Iowa and Maryland at home. I've grown quite tired of that phrase because there's a lot they can control and it's not working out. It has become "coach-speak" and that's all that it is.

JoseyWales83 · Jan 31, 2017

I say we wear the orange jerseys if Wisconsin is wearing red it worked in 2003.

OrangeKrus28 · Jan 31, 2017

Adnarel said:
Most definitely. My least favorite part about Weber's last season was when he started throwing these young men who were obviously crushed under the bus to crush them further. It was gruesome, and created a negative feedback loop that accelerated the collapse. I'll take an idiotic ladder gimmick over that any day.

Don't get me wrong, Weber took it too far when he started throwing his players under the bus, but he also began to throw himself under the bus. He indicated that he had failed in coddling the players and worrying about the outside and what the outside was thinking rather than putting his own foot down and doing things he felt like had to be done. He did hold himself accountable just as much as the kids.

I don't see that with coach Groce right now. I don't think I have once heard him hold himself or his coaching staff accountable. I don't think I've heard him saying a negative word about himself or his coaching staff. Maybe he wants to save face but without naming names, he was holding his players accountable for their failures in non-conference season, so let's not forget about that.

mattcoldagelli · Jan 31, 2017

OrangeKrus28 said:
Groce basically made a 180 reversal of his post-game press conference, where he didn't even care to discuss the 2nd half comeback. Instead, he seemed more alarmed and agitated about the poor defense they played in the 1st half. But after reviewing the film, he felt differently? That doesn't make any sense. They were allowing PSU to get open 3's, driving inside unimpeded, and turning the ball over frequently with no flow to the offense. How can a fan or fanbase not get upset with a coach who makes things seem not as bad as they actually are?

Also, his new mantra this year is "we can only control what we can control." They can control how they play defense and have not put a full 40 mins. of quality defense together other than potentially Iowa and Maryland at home. I've grown quite tired of that phrase because there's a lot they can control and it's not working out. It has become "coach-speak" and that's all that it is.

Yes. And frankly, that's all it should ever be. So why do you care?