Next Five
by hoosierdaddynow on Jan 28, 2011 9:17 AM EST
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PrintFantastic game last night. I was excellent to see them get over the top against a quality opponent. The fact that it was Illinois, and that the cries (pun intended) about Weber are starting to swell in Champaign, make it even that much more sweet.
There will likely be some talk about how this victory will be the turning point. Which is probably hogwash. This is still a young, thin team. They are almost certainly going to remain inconsistent and crap the bed from time to time.
However, this should be a turning point for us as fans. For the last three seasons, we have had to satisfy ourselves with moral victories. In two of the last three games, our beloved Hoosiers have gone out and have held an opponent to under 20 points in a half. Not coincidentally, they have won those games. They also laid an egg at Iowa. We can and should hold the team to the standard set by the Michigan and Illinois games. It's time for us to start measuring this team by the ultimate objective standard: wins and losses.
That is not to say that we should expect them to win every game or expect them to finish with a winning record. They might; that'd be great. But we should expect them to win the games that they should win, and also the games which they can win. Looking at the next five games, here's what I expect from them:
- At Michigan State. L. Sparty is reeling, but I think that last night's loss to Michigan probably serves as a wake up call, and we pay the price.
- Minnesota. W. IU played them strong in Minny. I do not expect IU to be favored. This is not a game they should win. It is a game that they can win, and I expect them to do so.
- Iowa. W. This is a game we should win. The players should be so fired up over what happened last Sunday that they had better come out on fire. I do not expect a mental lapse here.
- At Purdue. L. That's a good team. I don't think we have an answer for Johnson.
- At Michigan. W. I do not expect Michigan to shoot as poorly as they did in Bloomington. This is a team we can beat. We need to be able to do this on the road. We won't be favored, but this is a game I now expect us to win.
What do the rest of you think? Is it too soon to start expecting our team to win? Are my expectations of these games unrealistic?
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I'd love to win 3 out of the next 5
but I think that’s pretty optimistic. You’ve got us winning all three games that we have a chance in. I feel like 2 is more realistic. Minnesota and then Iowa I could see happening. Winning at home against mediocre to weak opponents is all I’m expecting right now. I very much doubt we win at Michigan.
"It's an easy game, man. Easy game."
~Edgerrin James
by 87 Rides A Surfboard on Jan 28, 2011 10:15 AM EST reply actions
It is optimistic
I’ll acknowledge that. And I don’t think that this is some sort of Kool-aid-fueled myopia on my part. I’m not even breaking down the matchups to a detailed level. I am saying, from a fan’s perspective, that I expect them to go out and not just keep that game close or to play good defense. I now expect them go out and win it. I will not be surprised if they lose. I will be disappointed.
And maybe that’s what I was inartfully trying to say with this post: for the past three years, I have expected to lose. I had become numb to it. I saw nothing from the last two teams that made me believe that they could win without a perfect storm of events, or this team until the last two weeks to make me believe that they could actually get over the hump. Now I think that this team can win. Would I wager on them? No. Without last night, I could write off the Michigan game as an anomoly. Two games out of three is far from a trend, but it’s at least something to use as a baseline. I now believe we can win.
That’s great, because I am no longer numb to it. Which will suck at times, because the losses will be even that more devastating when they inevitably happen.
In conclusion: dammit, I expect them to win at Michigan.
by hoosierdaddynow on Jan 28, 2011 10:42 AM EST up reply actions
I would be thrilled with that. We absolutely can’t do worse than 2-3. If we can win the three games you list, then we will remain in the NIT hunt.
The Crimson Quarry, SB Nation's Indiana Hoosiers blog
by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Jan 28, 2011 10:29 AM EST reply actions
That's the first thing I did after the win last night.
Looked at the rest of our schedule and exclaimed, “The NIT is now a possibility!!”
"It's an easy game, man. Easy game."
~Edgerrin James
by 87 Rides A Surfboard on Jan 28, 2011 10:50 AM EST up reply actions
did not get to watch the game
but one area of concern is the 2nd half slump that has been going on these past two months. didnt see anything in the write ups this morning, but was there another one last night?
It was a mutual slump
The first few minutes of the second half included a lot of physical defense. What I have been encouraged by thus far this season is a better flow to the offense. It still has moments when it stalls. And there are times when the shots don’t fall. But many times over the last couple of years (and, Hell, over the last ten years), there have been moments where the offense consists of seemingly endless weave-and-pass around the perimeter, capped by some ill-advised shot with less than 5 seconds on the shot clock. There was a better flow to it last night, but the shots were contested or just missed.
Clarification: there was a better flow with Hulls handling the ball. I like it that he is getting to the lane and the rim more often now.
by hoosierdaddynow on Jan 28, 2011 3:37 PM EST up reply actions
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