How is that even possible? This team has completely lost the little desire to win they began the season with, it was never much, but now it’s completely gone. I have NEVER seen a basketball game where free throws were allowed that didn’t result in at least one free throw.
I’d love to hear what our POS coach has to say about that. He seems to have an excuse every time something doesn’t go his way. I wonder what it will be this time. How in the hell do you not force the refs to give you a trip to the free throw line at least once. ONE TIME!
Since I haven’t watched a bball game in forever, and only read articles that come up on my feed, do you think that the team has quit on LK? Based upon what you wrote, it sounds like it. Even UCLA only attempted 4 free throws, that could mean reffing was bad.
Yeah, Montgomery commented early in, on an obvious foul, that it looked like the refs were “going to let them play.” This game was just painful to watch. Watching Allen, he looked like he just didn’t want to be there.
I don’t think the team has quit. They were right with UCLA through the first half. They had one of their awful slumps to start the second half, and then they made a bit of a mini-run late in the half. I think they are (1) not a great team and (2) a team that has lost a lot. It’s hard to keep going 100% when you lose all the time.
One of the refs must have had a date or something because the game, which started at 6 was over at 735 (insert “it was over as soon as it tipped off! ahahahahahaha” joke here).
There were a number of times that both teams were very clearly hacked badly and the refs swallowed the whistles. If you want to go on a tirade and blame Larry…sure, go ahead. At this point, it is what it is.
Im also not a fan of the “team has quit” narrative. I think my eye sometimes sees a couple of guys trying to get theirs when things spiral like they did in the second half last night, but there are a lot of guys out there fighting hard (Carlson and Martinez went all out last night as an example).
Quit is probably too strong of a word. But this our “McBride Moment” for basketball. The question is do we change and get an Urban Meyer, stay happy with what we have, or get worse?
That is, looking back on it, a frustrating contract. But, it could do some good longer term by spinning it to coaches and say, “Look, you do well, we treat you right and we are long-suffering here.”
I agree to a point, but there has to come a point when it is evident that we are not going to get what we want for the money he is receiving. His fault, players’ fault… doesn’t matter. The U has paid him elite money for years and received at best mediocre results.
Yes, some teams are too quick to pull the plug on letting coaches implement their systems. My fear, however, is that we are so far beyond that now that not only are we suffering through a sub-par season this year (and for the past several years), but I believe that the damage he is doing to our program by being allowed to stay will leave us in bad shape for years to come. I hope that I’m wrong, but my gut says otherwise.
That series where Carlson broke to the basket and Allen tossed it toUCLA then got beat to the basket and committed a foul. Just brutal…during that series he looked like he was done with it. Came back with some effort plays later though.
It’s felt like a McBride eon, vs McBride moment, but I understand your point. I think @paqogomez may be correct, in that it’s not financially viable to nix LK right now. We’ve seen the blow back at other schools that laid off employees, then fired a coach and hired a new one. The optics would be horrible, even if the decision is the correct one. Perhaps that’s what’s holding Harlan back.
To me, there are two questions. First, what is the program’s trajectory? Second, is there any reason to believe that will change? Well, the program’s trajectory has been mediocre at best, with very little success of the kind we are used to at Utah and which is part of our tradition. And…there is absolutely no reason to believe things are going to get better. That’s the way it was with McBride as well. It’s time to move on.