MVC opening night

[Cdizzle]

I believe attendance was around 4,000.
My guess is that you didn't really care about what The ACES drew, on a Sunday afternoon game and were just taking a jab at UE.

You have to admit that it is a pathetic crowd for the conference champion favorite.

Just sayin'.

To be fair, UE fans have seen this movie before.

39 minutes for Balentine again. In a 15 point game. Developing that bench for February.

[Khan4Cats]

Or maybe uni is a lot worse than anyone expected. CSU was picked 7th in the MWC and just cruised to a win in Cedar Falls. Hmmm.

Cruising to a victory is a bit of an overstatement. It was a 3 point game with 2 minutes to play. UNI didn't get enough stops/Colorado State made enough plays to keep a small amount of separation. I trust Jacobson to make adjustments and I don't see UNI scoring 78 in regulation and losing too many times in the future.

[Cdizzle]

Or maybe uni is a lot worse than anyone expected. CSU was picked 7th in the MWC and just cruised to a win in Cedar Falls. Hmmm.

Cruising to a victory is a bit of an overstatement. It was a 3 point game with 2 minutes to play. UNI didn't get enough stops/Colorado State made enough plays to keep a small amount of separation. I trust Jacobson to make adjustments and I don't see UNI scoring 78 in regulation and losing too many times in the future.

Agreed that it's not like this game was over. CSU did lead most of the game though, including the entire second half.

One could just as easily say "I don't see UNI giving up 84 in regulation and winning too many times in the future." Tough to tell after just 1 game. UNI's defense was porous, if we're being generous. Don't want to bury UNI after one game early, but the non-con schedule is brutal and this one at home probably needed to be a win to come out of it with a winning record.

[Khan4Cats]

I still go back to UNI being on 2 of 4 plan, which is pretty damn good! McDermott would have gotten them there one or two years if not four. Oliver or Olivier (whatever it is) is playing well at OSU. He would have probably pushed them over the bubble this year. That would have given them appearances in 5 or 6 of 8 years. Currently, they have 3 in the last 7. UNI is right there every year and will be for the foreseeable future. Even Creighton, who seemingly went every year, only went for two of Altman's last seven years. The Bluejays hit the McDermott sweepstakes, effectively stealing UNIs bids for four years.

WSU's recent run has not only made it much more difficult for Jacobson (or any Valley coach for that matter) to grab an at-large, it's also made Shocker fans forget how difficult it is in general. The Valley should be a three bid league every year. WSU is carrying the torch for the foreseeable future, but UNI is right there. Beyond the Panthers, the Sycamores and the Redbirds are just one difference maker away from being that elite level team. Good things are happening at several other schools as well, and with a little luck, the MVC will return to its status as the premier non-BCS.

Lots of woulda, coulda, shoulda.

Kind of the Valley rally cry these days.

Oh, I know. I just think Jacobson brings in enough consistent talent that if things break right, then he's in the conversation every year. Break wrong and it's two out four or five years. The "four year plan" is accurate in that he relies on seniors. It's not accurate to believe that he only grabs enough talent every three years to be at-large worthy.

I agree with this and let me add a little.

Jacobson runs a system that requires a lot of buy-in from the players to work effectively. Players have to be willing to give up on some individual stats and accolades for the good of the team. Tuttle was an amazing player but was also a symbol to this as his willingness to pass out of situations where others may have tried to force things allowed the game to come to him. He got his points, but they were rarely forced and he was willing to not score to let others take the open shots.

Marshall runs a system that also requires buy-in but he also has the resources to scout and recruit/attract different scholar-athletes. He plus and fills a lot with Juco and transfers that come in with developed bodies but need to be broken into the system. He also recruits 4-year players to be the core of the team while the juco/transfers get broken in. Baker, Van Vleet, Wessel, Cotton, Murry, Stutz, Williams, etc. were all 4-year players who were cornerpieces of the Shocker teams their Jr. Sr. years.

Jacobson doesn't typically tend to go after jucos and has only had a hadnful of transfers. When he does bring them in, they either fit very well (Farohkmanesh, Jesperson, Washpun) or they flame out (Reed, Culliver). Building a roster full of kids right out of high school requires depth to be ready.

That is my concern with this team. 5 seniors last year (4 that played significant minutes) did not build a lot of game-experience depth-especially from the bigs. With one of those bigs suspended for the first three games, that depth takes even more of a hit. The other big concern is that we are redshirting every one of our freshman which currently leaves no seniors for the 2018-19 season.

Our schedule doesn't exactly allow for much wiggle room, but it is what it is. After these first three, we have three much easier games to shake things out and prepare for the last half of our non-conference where there are still plenty of quality wins to get. Would have liked to get 2 out of these first three at home, may end up with none. Who knows, maybe we'll shock everyone and still get two wins.

[Khan4Cats]

Or maybe uni is a lot worse than anyone expected. CSU was picked 7th in the MWC and just cruised to a win in Cedar Falls. Hmmm.

Cruising to a victory is a bit of an overstatement. It was a 3 point game with 2 minutes to play. UNI didn't get enough stops/Colorado State made enough plays to keep a small amount of separation. I trust Jacobson to make adjustments and I don't see UNI scoring 78 in regulation and losing too many times in the future.

Agreed that it's not like this game was over. CSU did lead most of the game though, including the entire second half.

One could just as easily say "I don't see UNI giving up 84 in regulation and winning too many times in the future." Tough to tell after just 1 game. UNI's defense was porous, if we're being generous. Don't want to bury UNI after one game early, but the non-con schedule is brutal and this one at home probably needed to be a win to come out of it with a winning record.

Actually we tied Colorado State about 3 minutes into the second half but your point is valid, we never got over that hump.

As for the 84 points, that was only the 12th time in Jake's 10 seasons a team has scored 80 or more on us and 4 of those were overtime games. I think it's a safer bet to say it how I said it.

[Cdizzle]

Cruising to a victory is a bit of an overstatement. It was a 3 point game with 2 minutes to play. UNI didn't get enough stops/Colorado State made enough plays to keep a small amount of separation. I trust Jacobson to make adjustments and I don't see UNI scoring 78 in regulation and losing too many times in the future.

Agreed that it's not like this game was over. CSU did lead most of the game though, including the entire second half.

One could just as easily say "I don't see UNI giving up 84 in regulation and winning too many times in the future." Tough to tell after just 1 game. UNI's defense was porous, if we're being generous. Don't want to bury UNI after one game early, but the non-con schedule is brutal and this one at home probably needed to be a win to come out of it with a winning record.

Actually we tied Colorado State about 3 minutes into the second half but your point is valid, we never got over that hump.

As for the 84 points, that was only the 12th time in Jake's 10 seasons a team has scored 80 or more on us and 4 of those were overtime games. I think it's a safer bet to say it how I said it.

Assuming your numbers are correct (I have no reason not to, and didn't want to double-check 10 years), 9 of those times happened in 2014, which wasn't so very long ago. It also happened to coincide with the last time the NCAA was "serious" about calling fouls for everything. Things that make you go "hmmmm." So while it may be 12 in 10 seasons, it's also 11 in 2.03 seasons, and UNI is 3-8 in those games.

[Wufan]

The above is true. Jacobson's schemes are not known for driving the lane and are known for flopping. Washpun can get to hole as can Morgan, which is more athleticism than normal so we will see.

[Khan4Cats]

Sorry, miscounted, 15 times prior to Saturday and I should have added that yes, 9 of those happened in the 2013-14 season when Jake admitted that he tried to do something out of character for him and that was to have the team play 'fast'. He went back to the defense-first philosophy last year with only the VCU 2OT game cracking 80. It remains to be seen what will happen this year, especially with how the new emphases may or may not be called. The game Saturday was actually allowed to be played more freely without a ton of whistles, unlike the WSU game Friday night.

By year:
0: 2006-7, 2007-8, 2008-9, 2010-11
1: 2011-12 (Wichita St), 2014-15 (VCU 2OT)
2: 2009-10 (Indiana St 2OT, Siena), 2012-13 (Toledo OT, Iowa)
9: 2013-14 (LMU, Maryland, Milwaukee, Iowa State OT, Missouri St, Loyola OT, Evansville, Indiana St, Wichita St

[rlh04d]

I still go back to UNI being on 2 of 4 plan, which is pretty damn good! McDermott would have gotten them there one or two years if not four. Oliver or Olivier (whatever it is) is playing well at OSU. He would have probably pushed them over the bubble this year. That would have given them appearances in 5 or 6 of 8 years. Currently, they have 3 in the last 7. UNI is right there every year and will be for the foreseeable future. Even Creighton, who seemingly went every year, only went for two of Altman's last seven years. The Bluejays hit the McDermott sweepstakes, effectively stealing UNIs bids for four years.

WSU's recent run has not only made it much more difficult for Jacobson (or any Valley coach for that matter) to grab an at-large, it's also made Shocker fans forget how difficult it is in general. The Valley should be a three bid league every year. WSU is carrying the torch for the foreseeable future, but UNI is right there. Beyond the Panthers, the Sycamores and the Redbirds are just one difference maker away from being that elite level team. Good things are happening at several other schools as well, and with a little luck, the MVC will return to its status as the premier non-BCS.

As I said before, the only single problem I have had with Jacobson is his class imbalances. No MVC team but WSU recruits at a high enough level to overcome class imbalance in off-peak seasons.

Jacobson is, beyond any doubt, the second best coach in the MVC, and a coach able to produce a winner at UNI every season. I just feel that he created an imbalanced team last year that artificially inflated that team's success to the detriment of surrounding seasons.

[Wufan]

I still go back to UNI being on 2 of 4 plan, which is pretty damn good! McDermott would have gotten them there one or two years if not four. Oliver or Olivier (whatever it is) is playing well at OSU. He would have probably pushed them over the bubble this year. That would have given them appearances in 5 or 6 of 8 years. Currently, they have 3 in the last 7. UNI is right there every year and will be for the foreseeable future. Even Creighton, who seemingly went every year, only went for two of Altman's last seven years. The Bluejays hit the McDermott sweepstakes, effectively stealing UNIs bids for four years.

WSU's recent run has not only made it much more difficult for Jacobson (or any Valley coach for that matter) to grab an at-large, it's also made Shocker fans forget how difficult it is in general. The Valley should be a three bid league every year. WSU is carrying the torch for the foreseeable future, but UNI is right there. Beyond the Panthers, the Sycamores and the Redbirds are just one difference maker away from being that elite level team. Good things are happening at several other schools as well, and with a little luck, the MVC will return to its status as the premier non-BCS.

As I said before, the only single problem I have had with Jacobson is his class imbalances. No MVC team but WSU recruits at a high enough level to overcome class imbalance in off-peak seasons.

Jacobson is, beyond any doubt, the second best coach in the MVC, and a coach able to produce a winner at UNI every season. I just feel that he created an imbalanced team last year that artificially inflated that team's success to the detriment of surrounding seasons.

He's going to do it again in 2018-19. All the freshman redshirted, and he will likely only get one or two transfers to fill that void. Similarly, next year WSU won't have a single scholarship senior on the roster (barring a 5th year transfer onto an already filled roster).

As a counter to your argument, they could lose their first game in the dance every year like Creighton, rather than stacking a senior laden class for one true push.