Give me your best excuse

[lefty]

I wish I had a bud like Blago that could get me a cushy job that pays a bunch for not working, and looks the other way when I don't pay my taxes...
but sadly.......millions of lives depend on me so I have to go out and really work...

anyway...how is the situation at IU not like issue at BU when someone states BU is relying heavily on freshmen and inexperienced kids.
it's the constant and neverending excuse we see and hear about Indiana all the time. You can't watch any one of their games that they don't harp on how incredibly good IU has done considering all the youth and inexperience, but if you bring up that line in reference to Bradley, you get hammered.

I never hear BU get hammered when they are on TV. You don't hardly ever hear announcers hammer any team on TV if they are putting forth the effort. That's for message boards.
But the situations are entirely different for these team T...you know that. JL is in 7th year here and Crean is taking over a screwed up mess.......I don't even see how they are similar other than they are both D-1 programs

[BradleyStuff]

Circling waaaayyy back to the original post about Butler, they seem to have a bit of "it" however you want to define it.

Is "it" a system that allows them to rotate through coaches every few years (all coming from within their own organization), and still turn out 20+ win seasons and make annual runs into post-season play?

I haven't been around their campus too much, but I don't think it is their facilities that give them a big advantage. Yeah, they've got the historical Hinkle Fieldhouse that they play in--right on campus (huh, who'd of thought that could work?!), but it takes more than that.

Do they have some special scouting approach, filling in the holes needed (see "system" above) to operate as a team on the court. Most of their players are from around Indiana. There's a lot of strong talent in Peoria (and central Illinois) too, though.

I think it would be interesting to study teams like Butler and Gonzaga and see what the keys to their success has been. (Speaking of Gonzaga, I remember yelling at them from among the Molinarmy when we hosted them for an NIT game about 15 years ago. BU and Gonzaga were at about the same point then...)

Them's my thoughts.

[Grassman]

Circling waaaayyy back to the original post about Butler, they seem to have a bit of "it" however you want to define it.

Is "it" a system that allows them to rotate through coaches every few years (all coming from within their own organization), and still turn out 20+ win seasons and make annual runs into post-season play?

I haven't been around their campus too much, but I don't think it is their facilities that give them a big advantage. Yeah, they've got the historical Hinkle Fieldhouse that they play in--right on campus (huh, who'd of thought that could work?!), but it takes more than that.

Do they have some special scouting approach, filling in the holes needed (see "system" above) to operate as a team on the court. Most of their players are from around Indiana. There's a lot of strong talent in Peoria (and central Illinois) too, though.

I think it would be interesting to study teams like Butler and Gonzaga and see what the keys to their success has been. (Speaking of Gonzaga, I remember yelling at them from among the Molinarmy when we hosted them for an NIT game about 15 years ago. BU and Gonzaga were at about the same point then...)

Them's my thoughts.

Butler recruits "shooters' we recruit "athletes".
Butler, while 4th from last in average experience is ranked.
They could be scary good in years to come. I would love a "mid major" to win it all.

[Bravesfan]

Jim Les never said this.

Here is what Jim Les said...

"Bradley coach Jim Les...touted this group as his most athletic"

http://www.pjstar.com/sports/x1069310319/Reynolds-Rebuilding-a-difficult-process

Maybe I'm misinterpreting what BUFAN is saying, but it sounds like he is saying that Bradley has done a good job with what they have had to deal with, and that Butler was lucky this year in that they had no injuries. Unlike some of the negative talk we have seen this year, BUFAN seems to be saying we will be much better next year and that injuries do make a difference.

Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong though.

[Bravesfan]

Circling waaaayyy back to the original post about Butler, they seem to have a bit of "it" however you want to define it.

Is "it" a system that allows them to rotate through coaches every few years (all coming from within their own organization), and still turn out 20+ win seasons and make annual runs into post-season play?

I haven't been around their campus too much, but I don't think it is their facilities that give them a big advantage. Yeah, they've got the historical Hinkle Fieldhouse that they play in--right on campus (huh, who'd of thought that could work?!), but it takes more than that.

Do they have some special scouting approach, filling in the holes needed (see "system" above) to operate as a team on the court. Most of their players are from around Indiana. There's a lot of strong talent in Peoria (and central Illinois) too, though.

I think it would be interesting to study teams like Butler and Gonzaga and see what the keys to their success has been. (Speaking of Gonzaga, I remember yelling at them from among the Molinarmy when we hosted them for an NIT game about 15 years ago. BU and Gonzaga were at about the same point then...)

Them's my thoughts.

I think you mean we hosted Butler in the NIT about 15 years ago. I don't think we ever played Gonzaga. We did play Pepperdine though a couple of straight years at the beginning of this decade.

[Bradleyguy10]

Well since we are going back to the original thread...I'm just going to say I'm not sure why injuries are being talked about in this thread. This being the reason: the point of why everyone was/is upset is because they play just as young as a team as we do and they are succeeding. Had we have not gotten those injuries to WE and AW while playing Butler then people wouldn't be talking about this whole "young" thing. What I'm saying is that injuries are irrelevant to the comparison of Bradley to Butler. If Bradley hadn't had the injuries we'd be considered older...since we did have the injuries we are considered young (like butler) and therefore the comparisons started of why can't we STILL be good even with these injuries since Butler plays young ones. Whether or not Butler has had injuries is completely irrelevant...it's that they are playing young guys as are we...that's the comparison...so the argument that we've had injuries holds absolutely no water...w/out the injuries we wouldn't even be comparing the two teams age-wise...stop talking about injuries in this thread...it's completely irrelevant. Butler's younguns are better than ours...that's the bottom line.

[Chico]

IMO, the young players at Butler were brought in to play right away. Our young players weren't expected to play as much as they are, but because of, yes, injuries they are getting a lot of playing time which bodes good for the future. This team needs to make no excuses because they aren't giving up and they are giving it their best shot game in and game out. I wish them well the rest of the season, in the MVC tournament, and in the future. Thanks for another fun season.

[BradleyStuff]

I think you mean we hosted Butler in the NIT about 15 years ago. I don't think we ever played Gonzaga. We did play Pepperdine though a couple of straight years at the beginning of this decade.

Ugh...this is gonna bug me. I swear I can remember yelling at Gonzaga at some point. Sorry to distract from the thread, but can anyone confirm if Bradley hosted Gonzaga--probabably sometime in the mid-90s? I've been digging around the Internet, but it is failing me (or, my memory is failing me...hope its the Internet).

[Bravesfan]

Ugh...this is gonna bug me. I swear I can remember yelling at Gonzaga at some point. Sorry to distract from the thread, but can anyone confirm if Bradley hosted Gonzaga--probabably sometime in the mid-90s? I've been digging around the Internet, but it is failing me (or, my memory is failing me...hope its the Internet).

Well I know we did not play them when I went there in the early 90's up to 1994. Maybe I missed Gonzaga sometime during the remainder of the Coach Mo era. Of course this was before they became the power they are today so I would not have remembered had we played them.

Pepperdine I remember since we played them more recently and well after Gonzaga became a WCC power.

[Chico]

Bradley played Butler in the NIT at the end of the 1998-99 season. Don't ever remember the Braves playing Gonzaga, but not saying they haven't. I do know Caterpillar played Gonzaga.

[leebiddlecome]

....can the coach maybe step up and take a little responsibility?

I have no problem with coaches stepping up and taking responsibility when things don't go as planned. No one likes to hear excuses about youth, injuries, inexperience, etc.

Whether its a 1-17 team or a team that never competes for league titles or a team from the BCS that never makes the NCAA Tournament. It's refreshing if/when a coach admits he isn't getting the job done that is/was expected of him.

[ER3]

I'll grant a bad yeat or two to IU for the same reasons BU had a bad year or two when JL took over...player losses, new system,
and inability to get your own players in place....
but I am awed with the frequency we hear the excuses.......and the fact that he's actually doing a great job given the inexperience..
Literally, I have heard some say he should be given consideration for COY!

Here is one real, live site (although of questionable credibility) saying this...

"I think Buzz Williams at Marquette and Leonard Hamilton at Florida State should also get a mention for the season
that their respective teams are having, as well as Tom Crean..." (For National Coach of the Year)
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1...ists-announced

Anyone that is trying to prop Tom Crean up as a Coach of the Year candidate for this season should be locked up.
That's simply crazy talk. Indiana was predicted to be horrible this year...they are horrible...so why would anyone try to twist Crean's job this year into something 'masterful'? Silliness.