Penn State 74, Illinois 52 POSTGAME

#26      

Deleted member 631370

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Deleted member 631370
PlayAZ said:
I would be okay with the following:

Frazier, DaMonte, Smith, Black, for sure stay.

The rest of the team is not B1G caliber players then or now, nor next year imo. I like the entire ILLINI team, as I am a fan, but dammit, get some players to justify us manical fans sticking with them year in and year out. 10+ years is complete BS for a P-5 team or even a damn Junior College team. We are the FORMER, not the latter, start acting like it and find some damn players ASAP...and I don't care if they come from Junior College at this point!
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I'm not going to publicly wish any specific kid to leave.

But yeah, I have a feeling we're going to see a lot of defections.

I really like kids like AJ and Finke. They're good kids that are limited athletically. It's not their fault this roster is a national embarrassment. I hope they stick around, and get to play as role players.

I also like the effort TJL brings.

We certainly don't want to see Ebo leave. He's improving, and our front court is an utter wreck. Can't afford to lose what little we have.


Honestly, i'd be surprised if both Williams and Smith return. Just a hunch. I WANT them to return, but something isn't right.
 
#27      

PostersLastStand

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Wayne County, IL
PostersLastStand
Not fun to watch, but I still think Coach Underwood is the right for the job. We are not big enough, talented enough or athletic enough. But in fairness, we have had glimpses into what could be and I liked it.
 
#29      

Deleted member 2438

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Deleted member 2438
Most pathetic team effort in memory. Not a player on the team tonight
 
#30      

Deleted member 631370

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Deleted member 631370
GortTheRobot said:
Is there any possibility that a couple of years from now we are saying, "I'm so glad we got things turned around, remember that terrible first year?" I certainly hope so, this is soul crushing.
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If Underwood goes out and brings in athletes with a chip on their shoulder, then I think he can do some really good things here.

It's clear that this roster and his style don't mix. If that's the case, then he needs to have some frank conversations and urge some folks to do some soul searching about whether they want to stay here.

Ayo is a good start. But man, we need a LOT more than him. I like Jacobs and his attitude. We could use a guy like Trice or Cunningham for a year. And we really, really, really need a strong 2019 class.

So yeah, it's possible we all look back on this and laugh. But I'm growing more and more concerned about the future of this program. I knew Underwood would have his work cut out for him, but this is an epic train wreck that I never expected.
 
#31      

PlayAZ

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PlayAZ
Ayo, Jacobs, Ramey, Taylor (Panola), and any other available athlete that can ball! Mass exodus might be coming.
 
#32      

doowink

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doowink
Alstork must have pushed BU magic button....think he played maybe 1 minute second half
 
#33      

GortTheRobot

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North Bethesda, Maryland
GortTheRobot
At one point, we were the best 0-8 team ever. We fought hard in every game. I think the team has just given up. It's sad to watch. I don't know if it's just that the W vs. L column has severely depressed them, or if they just do not believe is each other.

Whatever is the case, if next year is more of the same, I don't know where we go. We are becoming the old NW. People will start rooting for us because we are so traditionally bad.
 
#34      

illini80

illini80
Forgottonia
illini80
Never. Never in my wildest dreams did I think we would be this bad. That was men against boys. We have to be the slowest, most unathletic team in the B10. Frazier was man handled, and Black was overmatched. The rest of the team would not even see the floor on another B10 roster.
 
#39      

helppitch

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helppitch
The inability to shoot, along with the lack of a rim protector are serious problems. Tonight Penn State basically played five guys on Frazier. They switched on him wherever he went. They basically said let the other guys beat us.
I'm not as down on next year's team as most here are. I can see (hope) a couple young players taking gigantic leaps. We definitely need to come up with a rim protector.
As for recruiting it isn't over until the multitude f coaching changes take place in the spring.
As for tonight Black had a decent game as did Tejon. The rest terrible.
 
#40      

PostersLastStand

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Wayne County, IL
PostersLastStand
Coach Underwood in all post game interviews says you have shoot the ball. Also, you need to be ready to shoot. Too, many times players look clueless or scared. Then we really need a point guard to get the ball into Leron Black in the right position, not 2 minutes after he was in position to score. Says me, setting in my recliner sipping tea, eating popcorn. That my friends is what makes me a basketball coaching wizard!
 
#41      

GortTheRobot

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North Bethesda, Maryland
GortTheRobot
Hoppy2105 said:
As both a basic trainee and a basic training instructor, I know that in order to build up a trainee into a proper, functional, and effective member of our armed forces, you have to break them down. You must destroy dysfunctional personality traits, neutralize selfish behavior, and eliminate bad attitudes.

Only then can you build up the trainee to where you want them to be. Everybody gets torn down to their foundation and then built to what the military needs them to be.

I feel like that is what BU is doing/going to have to do. The trainee is Illinois basketball and the bad habits are a mixture of some players, some culture, and some skill.

I won't be surprised if the only 2 Groce recruits that are left on this team after next year are Frazier and Williams...but even if that's wrong, this rebuild is going to take awhile...from a systematic point, a recruiting point, and a culture/mentality point.
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Nicely put. At this point, if we had only five guys left to play, and one crossed BU again, we would have a "Hoosiers" situation and play with four on the floor.
 
#42      

illini80

illini80
Forgottonia
illini80
GortTheRobot said:
At one point, we were the best 0-8 team ever. We fought hard in every game. I think the team has just given up. It's sad to watch. I don't know if it's just that the W vs. L column has severely depressed them, or if they just do not believe is each other.

Whatever is the case, if next year is more of the same, I don't know where we go. We are becoming the old NW. People will start rooting for us because we are so traditionally bad.
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I think they don't believe. We are tentative on every pass. That's why we turn it over so much. We missed how many back door dunks tonight because we can't even make that pass?!
 
#46      

Deleted member 4333

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Deleted member 4333
I'd love to hear the dinnertime conversations between BU and his boy Tyler.
 
#47      

illini80

illini80
Forgottonia
illini80
Remember the off season when we were excited for the future? Not feeling it. If we had a full recruiting class of the guys we targeted, it would be easy to look forward to next year. The chances of getting 2 or 3 more of the types we missed on are slim. We will fill the roster, but likely not with difference makers. I'm not down on Underwood yet, but it looks like a long rebuild at this point. Bring in fighters and wait for them to develop.

Wake me in 2 years. If there's a reason....
 
#48      

Illiini

Illiini
In the land of the Nittany Lion
Illiini
Underwood: We don't play with any passion.
 
#49      

PostersLastStand

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Wayne County, IL
PostersLastStand
It is time to enjoy the good moments and to chalk up the bad to inexprience, not suited to this style of play or whatever you want. These young men have never had to play this hard in high school, at Illinois under the previous system. Its tough physically and mentally to play for a Coach like Brad Underwood. It takes some ajustment. I know its late in the season and yes some improvement should be there, but the Big Ten is very good from top to bottom. Great at the top and pretty good otherwise. The MOST disapointing thing to me is lack of support. No fans in the seats! Shame on us.