The NIL and transfer portal, I imagine really changes the dynamics of recuriting and coaching
I don't believe in this ceiling nonsense. It's a single game best of 1 elimination tournament. Obviously the better teams (1 seeds) tend to win, they are obviously of higher quality and they get easier draws... but when you boil it down, lots of random teams can go on deep runs, winning it all is rarer, but UConn was a 7 seed and won it a while back, they certainly weren't some great team all season. Then when you expand to teams that make the Championship Game, Final Four, Elite Eight..... yeah. Ceilings don't really exist in the way that you are describing.
You are 100% correct, Henson definitely had that label of not winning the big game, but he also had some really close calls (Kentucky in Rupp, the '89 Final Four game) that would have changed his narrative completely. But talk about raising a program up from the ashes - that's what Henson did for Illinois basketball - he grew it from the pitts (the Illini went 5-18 and 8-18 the two years before he arrived) to National prominence and a consistent winner -after his son died tragically in a car accident he was not the same coach.
illinois.rivals.com
Come on - Mayer with a cup of caffeine in his hand!
That NIL deal with Monster must not have shaped up.
Yep, exactly. Brand Underwood has had TWO opportunities to play in the NCAA Tournament at Illinois. He was robbed of a great opportunity in 2020, 2021 was a disappointment and 2022 went about as planned, given Houston was very underseeded, IMO, and we weren't fully healthy ... also, a 4/5 is a pick 'em. I don't buy this notion that certain coaches, much less programs, are inherently better in March ... it's about execution and luck, and the best way to get far in the NCAAs is to continue to get back there with the highest seed you can and give it another shot.
) our all!
www.cbssports.com
Agree 100%! Illinois has been very fortunate with the coaches we have had. How many other programs in the nation, including the Blue Bloods, can say things like this?? This seriously speaks to a self-sustaining program that has the built-in advantages to win and doesn't need to rely on one legendary coach ... this all excludes Bartow who was here for ONE season:You are 100% correct, Henson definitely had that label of not winning the big game, but he also had some really close calls (Kentucky in Rupp, the '89 Final Four game) that would have changed his narrative completely. But talk about raising a program up from the ashes - that's what Henson did for Illinois basketball - he grew it from the pitts (the Illini went 5-18 and 8-18 the two years before he arrived) to National prominence and a consistent winner -after his son died tragically in a car accident he was not the same coach.
What we have today as a basketball program was in large part to the foundation Henson built
OrangeandBlueNews - Illini legend Lou Henson was the right guy at the right time
Illinois coaching legend Lou Henson passed away at the age of 88. Henson built a winning tradition at Illinois.
You are 100% correct, Henson definitely had that label of not winning the big game, but he also had some really close calls (Kentucky in Rupp, the '89 Final Four game) that would have changed his narrative completely. But talk about raising a program up from the ashes - that's what Henson did for Illinois basketball - he grew it from the pitts (the Illini went 5-18 and 8-18 the two years before he arrived) to National prominence and a consistent winner -after his son died tragically in a car accident he was not the same coach.
What we have today as a basketball program was in large part to the foundation Henson built
OrangeandBlueNews - Illini legend Lou Henson was the right guy at the right time
Illinois coaching legend Lou Henson passed away at the age of 88. Henson built a winning tradition at Illinois.
I have the exact same philosophy on this.
I believe Shannon is one of the best athletes in college basketball. But watch the big 12 and SEC, guys with the length and athleticism of RJ, Mayer, Hawkins etc are everywhere. For example, Mayer did not stand out athletically when he was at Baylor. He has done so a couple times in league play here. RJ was equal to what Houston (neither conference I know, but similar roster makeups) put on the floor last year. My final question to ponder is, who stood out ATHLETICALLY vs Texas this year? They had us out-athleted at multiple positions, and that’s when RJ, TSJ, Mayer and Hawkins were still all starting together.
Lou made the S16 in his 6th year here - if BU does the same a lot of the chatter about him goes away.
Lou was a good coach, but no chance he goes ahead of Self and Kruger.
Self and Kruger top 2 IMO, in that order. Underwood/Henson next line.
I love that closing sentence.March Madness 2023: Ranking every NCAA Tournament first-round game from No. 1 to 32
Here is the 1-32 breakdown of which games should be best over Thursday and Friday
Thought this was a fun article. Has Illini/Arkansas as the second most interesting game of the first round. Here's the write-up if you don't want to scroll through the whole article:
2. (8) Arkansas vs. (9) Illinois
Thursday | 4:30 p.m. | TBS
Both teams are loaded with talent and fully capable of playing beyond the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Both are also maddeningly inconsistent and capable of falling behind by 15 in the first half. Illinois is 4-6 over its last 10 and Arkansas 1-4 over its last five. But somewhere on that Illinois team bus is the squad that beat UCLA and Texas. And somewhere on that Arkansas bus is a team that beat Kentucky by 15 on the road. This one is ripe for chaos.
Grade on the season based on exit
Not just Izzo, either. You could say that about just about every BIGTIME coach.Yep, exactly. Brand Underwood has had TWO opportunities to play in the NCAA Tournament at Illinois. He was robbed of a great opportunity in 2020, 2021 was a disappointment and 2022 went about as planned, given Houston was very underseeded, IMO, and we weren't fully healthy ... also, a 4/5 is a pick 'em. I don't buy this notion that certain coaches, much less programs, are inherently better in March ... it's about execution and luck, and the best way to get far in the NCAAs is to continue to get back there with the highest seed you can and give it another shot.
Even the legendary coach Tom Izzo has had way more than two disappointments in March Madness ... for all we know, Brad just got his out of the way.
Izzo's Less Remembered March Madness Trips
2017: Lost in the Second Round as a #3 seed
2016: Lost in the First Round as a #2 seed
2012: Lost in the Sweet Sixteen as a #1 seed
1995: Lost in the First Round as a #3 seed
Now, Tom Izzo is obviously a great postseason coach and my point was NOT to dispute that. In fact, I am trying to do just the opposite. If good coaches (which I believe Underwood ABSOLUTELY is, and we are SO lucky to have him!!) continue to get back to March Madness, they'll eventually break through.
In the meantime, we might have to hear rival fans joke about us not being back to the Sweet Sixteen since 2005, but that stat isn't the zinger they think it is ... they're effectively saying that Bruce Weber pretty much sucked post-Dee Brown (duh), John Groce failed here (duh), Underwood took a few years to build a program (duh!) and that we suffered an upset in 2021 in the Second Round that has happened to quite a few #1 seeds over the years - including Baylor last year, one season removed from being National Champs. I have every confidence that we are in amazing hands, and I do not think Underwood is any worse of a "postseason coach" than anyone else, and I think that will be proven over the next several years if we keep recruiting well. This year is theoretically a really tough draw to "prove" that as a #9 seed, and we STILL have it right in front of us with a legitimate chance to go on a run. Let's go beat Arkansas, and give Kansas (or Howard
It’s really about how often you get there. If you’re getting there every year, eventually you will have a team that gets hot and goes deep. Yes it’s more likely if you get a 1 seed than a 9 seed but we’ve seen it can happen to anyone who is playing strong and together.
