The first preseason MVC preview

[Da Coach]

Here is the first site to post a 2010-2011 season preview for the MVC.
This guy predicts another 1-bid season for the Valley.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/419928-down-in-the-valley-another-one-bid-year-the-mvc

He also gives Jim Les a compliment- saying, "Bradley continues to overachieve (somebody please look at Jim Les)" .

[tornado]

so....
"Cuonzo Martin has done well to get Missouri State back to the top"

top of what??.....did I miss something the past couple seasons that Cuonzo was there??

Missouri State finished 8-10 in the Valley, in 7th place in the Valley and only one game out of 8th, 2 games out of 9th!
They also went 10-11 over the final 21 games of the regular season and MVC Tourney..losing to every single team whose RPI was less than 70.
The year before that they were last place..so they're 11-25 over the two year span in the MVC.
If Missouri State was at "the top" of the league, then I guess we can say Bradley was above the top of the league!

[Da Coach]

Maybe he's talking about RPI- Missouri State had one of the top RPIs all last season, and finished 4th in RPI in the MVC, just barely behind ISU in 4th place.-

http://warrennolan.com/basketball/2010/conference/Missouri%20Valley

[houstontxbrave]

Here is the first site to post a 2010-2011 season preview for the MVC.
This guy predicts another 1-bid season for the Valley.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/419928-down-in-the-valley-another-one-bid-year-the-mvc

He also gives Jim Les a compliment- saying, "Bradley continues to overachieve (somebody please look at Jim Les)" .

Sorry but I dont find the quote "Bradley continues to overachieve" as being very complimentary. This program with how long Les has been head coach and with the athletic talent that has been through his program in his tenure, the phrase overachieve is a slap not a compliment.

You should not "overachieve" after that long you should be being talked about as a the class of a conference. To me overacheive means expectations are low to begin with.

CIT, CBI 4th/5th place finishes, one MVC conference tourney final is not even overachieving its being very average.

[Da Coach]

You're entitled to your opinion, of course. But IMO it's clear the writer meant the statement as a compliment. The statement in parentheses (somebody please look at Jim Les) is also meant as a compliment, suggesting Jim Les has done a good job, while few have noticed. But then I suspect someone will find some way to twist that into a slam, too, along with another list of the finishes over the past few years.

[Buesch N Chips]

Sorry but I dont find the quote "Bradley continues to overachieve" as being very complimentary. This program with how long Les has been head coach and with the athletic talent that has been through his program in his tenure, the phrase overachieve is a slap not a compliment.

You should not "overachieve" after that long you should be being talked about as a the class of a conference. To me overacheive means expectations are low to begin with.

Wow. I would hate to have such a negative outlook on things.

[houstontxbrave]

You're entitled to your opinion, of course. But IMO it's clear the writer meant the statement as a compliment. The statement in parentheses (somebody please look at Jim Les) is also meant as a compliment, suggesting Jim Les has done a good job, while few have noticed. But then I suspect someone will find some way to twist that into a slam, too, along with another list of the finishes over the past few years.

I am sure it was ment as a compliment by the writer.

Les's overall record, finishes within the conference and success in the Valley tourney speaks for its self.

I suspect even if he has overachieved as this writer wrote and as some here believe, that Les has done as the writer wrote, and overachieved, if he does as he has done in the past couple of years in regard to the seasons outcome, he will no longer be the head coach at Bradley. It appears quite clear he is on the BU hotseat.

[houstontxbrave]

Wow. I would hate to have such a negative outlook on things.

If negative is expecting more from a head coach after 8 years on the job then sure I guess I am being negative. But I believe the Bradley program should be the class of the conference not described as "overachieving".

[TNMSUFAN]

so....
"Cuonzo Martin has done well to get Missouri State back to the top"

top of what??.....did I miss something the past couple seasons that Cuonzo was there??

Missouri State finished 8-10 in the Valley, in 7th place in the Valley and only one game out of 8th, 2 games out of 9th!

If you are going to say "2 games out of 9th" maybe you should add 2 games out of 4th. 7 of our 10 Valley losses were by 5pts or less and we bring everyone back. Zo inherited a play-in team roster and this is just the start of his 3rd season...make no mistake we will be very good this year.

[BradleyBrave]

Here is the first site to post a 2010-2011 season preview for the MVC.
This guy predicts another 1-bid season for the Valley.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/419928-down-in-the-valley-another-one-bid-year-the-mvc

He also gives Jim Les a compliment- saying, "Bradley continues to overachieve (somebody please look at Jim Les)" .

Then he must really think our players stink.

[TheAsianSensation]

He also gives Jim Les a compliment- saying, "Bradley continues to overachieve (somebody please look at Jim Les)" .

I take that statement as an insult to the program - it's basically implying that Bradley shouldn't expect to compete for league titles. Of course, the perception will change if we go to the top of the conference, but it's not a perception to be proud of, that's for sure.

It IS a compliment to Les, though.

[shaunguth]

You're entitled to your opinion, of course. But IMO it's clear the writer meant the statement as a compliment. The statement in parentheses (somebody please look at Jim Les) is also meant as a compliment, suggesting Jim Les has done a good job, while few have noticed. But then I suspect someone will find some way to twist that into a slam, too, along with another list of the finishes over the past few years.

The writer is probably directing that comment towards someone in the administration.....as if to say "why is this guy still the head coach". He is on the "hot-seat" afterall.

[Bradleyguy10]

I take that statement as an insult to the program - it's basically implying that Bradley shouldn't expect to compete for league titles. Of course, the perception will change if we go to the top of the conference, but it's not a perception to be proud of, that's for sure.

It IS a compliment to Les, though.

After the reading the article...it does kind of seem to have a negative connotation to it from a positive comment...if you know what I mean. After all, it is mentioned in the section where they are talking about mediocre teams...and he says we have overachieved to reach mediocrity. I agree with you TAS..it IS a compliment...but kind of a back-handed one.

But then again maybe he's taking our recent injury plagued seasons into account, aside from last year (I'm not sure how much DD could've brought us up), we could have had some very good seasons w/out key injuries such as JC, D.ruff, etc.

[chitown fanatic]

I'm still trying to figure out how Mo st would be picked ahead of us in any publication? they will be better but so will we. barring injuries to starters , Bradley will finish no worse than 3rd for the first time in eons. Sam, Brown, Warren, and Dodie will ensure this. we will challenge for the title if and only if Prosser is as advertised and we get meaningful minutes from Egolf, and not the disappearing act we saw at times last year.

[Buesch N Chips]

I'm not going to get involved with the haters again, but I wish I could remember this tradition of sustained greatness that people seem to heap upon Bradley when they don't like the coach.