All year long...

[tornado]

we've gotten reamed by the refs checking the replay and by the flagrant fouls calls...

TODAY - we get the win as a direct result of that rule!

THANK YOU Gerry, Randy & John!! I take back everything I have ever uttered and will never say another bad thing about you guys!!!

[Go_Braves]

we've gotten reamed by the refs checking the replay and by the flagrant fouls calls...

TODAY - we get the win as a direct result of that rule!

THANK YOU Gerry, Randy & John!! I take back everything I have ever uttered and will never say another bad thing about you guys!!!

A-men - I am right there with you Tornado

[Dub]

A-men - I am right there with you Tornado

You guys nailed it... we always come out on the short end of those reviews. But not today!
i was irritated that they didn’t call something in the first half when van Bree got elbowed during a loose ball scrum and worked over by Dahl like he was in a cage fight. Nothing but a jump ball?

[tornado]

that scramble when Luuk got smacked in the face TWICE on the same scramble by Dahl -- Luuk just got up and played on...
what a tough guy and had the restraint to NOT go after Dahl or retaliate...could have cost us the game.
Luuk helped a ton with his defense and they all stayed out of foul trouble

[pauly616]

So every year I think this, but I definitely noticed it more this year. All year long during MVC play the refs call tons of fouls, but during the tournament hardly called any. Do the same refs work the tournament and work the season? I was at the game on saturday and was amazed when at the end of the game Bradley had 3 fouls to give before Loyola would be in the bonus.

[tornado]

So every year I think this, but I definitely noticed it more this year. All year long during MVC play the refs call tons of fouls, but during the tournament hardly called any. Do the same refs work the tournament and work the season? I was at the game on saturday and was amazed when at the end of the game Bradley had 3 fouls to give before Loyola would be in the bonus.

Everyone knows the refs DO alter the way the call the games in the post-season
..the announcers commented on it, Dave Snell saw it and commented on it and even the coaches openly admit that the refs "let them play" a bit more this time of the year and there aren't as many whistles.


SO HERE'S MY QUESTION...
if the refs have THE ABILITY and THE FREEDOM to suddenly change the way they are calling the games...
then are they really doing an OBJECTIVE & FAIR job the entire rest of the season?
AND why the heck can't they call it the same way all year long? We have always been hurt by the ticky-tack stuff so this time we benefited when they suddenly stop calling it!!

[Go_Braves]

that scramble when Luuk got smacked in the face TWICE on the same scramble by Dahl -- Luuk just got up and played on...
what a tough guy and had the restraint to NOT go after Dahl or retaliate...could have cost us the game.
Luuk helped a ton with his defense and they all stayed out of foul trouble

That is a "huge" sign of maturity by Luuk. The opposing team does everything they can to get into Bradley players heads. Wardle realizes this - he told Childs to just brush it off and get past it - that technical Childs had at the beginning of the Mo State game. Another great example of "NOT" taking any retaliation is when DLO did "NOT" retaliate wheb UNI player Luke McDonnel committed that FLAGRANT FOUL on DLO with 1:58 remaining. Changed the complexion of the game for the remainder of the game. McDonnel gets to think about that play all off season long.

[egib52]

I was at the game, and sitting on the opposite side of the court. What did the UNI kid do to received the Flagrant?

[tornado]

shoved DLO with both hands - not aggressively - just to push him away from the play but did so with BOTH hands up under his chin

if you want to see it

go here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdVz7GZRNcE
and fast forward to 1:03:15

just watch carefully the hands of Luke McDonnell - Northern Iowa's big guy (in purple) #34


WHAT's INTERESTING - is that initially NONE of the 3 refs were inclined to review the play - they were just setting up to give DLO his free throws...
Then someone on the Bradley coaching staff DEMANDED they look at that play (maybe just knowing it would give a free time out!) but - their pleas were heard and the refs then blow the whistle just they're handing the ball to DLO at the FT line and they go to the scorer's table to review the video - after some time and discussion, all three refs appear to come to the unanimous conclusion that the right call was not just a foul on AJ Green, but then after the play, the shove by McDonnell constitutes a 2nd foul which is FLAGRANT (F-1). So we make all four FTs then score on the resulting inbounds for a 6-point-play.

(btw- the ref hired by the CBS broadcasting crew to be their officiating commentator also agrees with the Flagrant call as do ALL of the on-air broadcasters)

KUDOs to our coaching staff (don't know whose brilliant idea that was - maybe Wardle but maybe Drew Adams!)
..and kudos to DLO for swishing all four FTs

[tornado]

ONE MORE THING- scroll in that video to 1:06:10 and watch carefully what UNI's Luke McDonnell says after he's informed of the call...
it is obvious to anyone with eyes that he says "that's BULLSH*T" - he is lucky the refs were walking away or he deserved a TECHNICAL FOUL as well!


on top of that - the immediate basket by Elijah Childs to make it a 6-point play was a direct result of McDonnell being totally petrified to play any defense because of what had just happened. Jacobson should have gotten him out of there and Eli made him pay!


and don't forget - with 20.8 seconds left DLO was CLOBBERED on that rebound and the refs reviewed and gave the ball to UNI and called nothing!!! That was a HUGE GIFT to them that never got acknowledged!


last question- with just 3 seconds left UNI's Trae Berhow grabs the rebound then throws it away - but they had a time out
so they could have gotten one more inbound with 2.8 seconds under their own basket - had he called the time out before losing it out of bounds.
So Northern Iowa had several guys that made critical errors at the end - Green who committed the foul of DLO, McDonnell who got the F-1, Berhow who blew that rebound, Lohaus/Haldeman/Pickford- all had a terrible shooting day, & Jacobson who should have gotten McDonnell out of the game before he gave up that easy layup to Eli... UNI fans should not put too much blame on any one guy.

[egib52]

Thanks T. The UNI fans I was sitting near were all complaining that he didn't do anything. Then one of them got a text or something that said Childs pushed the kid into DLO. I think it is clear his hands come out like a push. I couldn't believe that the travel didn't get call on the subsequent UNI possession. I called it live, and after the replay on the scoreboard the UNI fans agreed.

Although as they were leaving, they all complained that they got screwed by the officials.

[tornado]

...........I couldn't believe that the travel didn't get call on the subsequent UNI possession....

I had not seen that until you mentioned it - but anyone who didn't see that before - go to 1:08:25 on that video and watch...
as McDonnell gets the ball right under the basket and scores, he clearly shuffles his feet and takes maybe
4 or 5 little "happy-feet" steps and gets away with it!!! Thankfully he MISSES the FT - another reason maybe leaving him in the game helped us.

[Da Coach]

McDonnell had 4 fouls on him after that technical, so that was the main reason he did not defend Childs very aggressively on the following Bradley possession, and not because of some other aftermath of getting the "T" called on him. Elijah was smart enough to know he had 4 fouls, so you'll notice Eli goes right at McDonnell.

And Jacobson really had no choice but to leave McDonnell in the game at that point, despite the 4 fouls. There was less than 2 minutes left in the game, so there was no purpose in "saving him", and the only other reserve big man on the team Justin Dahl, who is nowhere near as good a player offensively or defensively, also had 4 fouls.

And one other thing I wanted to say.... I had encounters this past weekend with a number of UNI fans, and I have made many trips to Cedar Falls over the years for Bradley games at UNI. And, compared with fans from other MVC schools and other schools around the country, the UNI fans are possibly the nicest, most polite (even to opponents' fans), most knowledgeable and supportive fans I have encountered anywhere. The Drake fans are right up there as well (must be something about Iowans?).
Now that Creighton and Wichita State are out of the MVC, and the obnoxious Donewald-era fans are pretty much phased out at ISU, I would say that every team in the league now has tremendous and respectful fans.
And as any of the BU fans at the game will attest, the UNI players and all the UNI fans were very gracious in defeat. Yes, they were disappointed by losing that huge lead, losing the game, and losing the MVC title, but I did not see any UNI players or fans who acted inappropriately.

[tornado]

but that's my point - getting that "T" put him into the position of not being able to defend
..and I disagree that he's the logical choice to stay in there - and the facts prove me right - with 4 fouls and the refs keeping a close eye - he played matador defense and Eli scored easily on a layup

[Da Coach]

Surely you're not suggesting Jacobson would have been better putting a smaller guard on Eli? They have no other big man options other than Dahl, who is a worse defender and also had 4 fouls.
And Childs made a terrific reverse layup move to score on that next possession. It was not because McDonnell didn't guard him. That move by Childs was something that nobody was going to stop. And remember that on UNI's next possession, McDonnell is the guy who got the basket and was fouled and had a 3-point play opportunity to close the score to a 1 possession game. Then with the score 55-54 and under 1 minute left, McDonnell defended Childs' jumper well, causing him to miss and give UNI the chance on their next possession with the score 55-54 to win the game, but their shot missed. So I think he made the right decision to leave his best players on the floor.