Kstate

bball_backer

bball_backer

Well-known member
We all know Kstate is a must win Wednesday if this team is serious about wanting to go to the tourney. Saturday night, I thought for sure NU would win Wednesday. Pullen saying he won't play in the NIT could have been taken as him trying to fire up his team, but after the lackluster performance against KU, I'd say it was more or less him giving up on the season. I thought for sure this team was going to go down there and pick up a road win. It's looking tougher now.

Diaz won't practice with the team before the game, as he is attending his aunt's funeral. This alone would have been cause for concern, but now it gets worse. With the weather, Diaz may not even make it back for the game. If the weather stays as bad as they say it will, getting a flight in could be pretty hard. Now throw in the fact that Almeida got hurt Saturday and may not be ready to play Wed. and NU has some real trouble. Doc said today that right now Almeida playing Wed. is 50/50 at best, but they will know more at the end of the day. This could mean it's all on Niemann, a guy that has not played in a B12 game. Yikes. Hopefully KSU really has given up, or the weather gets so bad that the game is postponed a day or two.

 
Wow bball, I hadn't even thought of the weather factor with Diaz. We really need him Wednesday night, given the info on Almeida you cited. I read earlier that Doc said Andre's ankle was very swollen after the injury...so he'd probably be less than 100% even if we needed to and could get some minutes out of him. K-State does seem to be a lethargic team these days, though. Let's just hope we get Diaz back before tip off.

 
This game is huge! I'm sure all of the K State players are starting to doubt each other since they were a preseason top 5 and now this..Also we all know how Frank acts on the court so im sure all of the players are getting sick of it, hence Wally leaving. Should be a good one but this game is even bigger than that awful loss to TT. GBR!

 
The team is basically just quiting on Martin. If they don't win on wednesday there season is basically done with the exception of the Kansas game in Manhatten. This game will be big for them but I do see this game being bigger for us. If we win we still got a good shot at NCAA tourney and it is a good road win against the number 3 preseason team in the country. WIth a loss it might look like we would be headed towards the NIT unless we can pull off some big upsets against Texas and Kansas. The team should come out motivated.

Also I believe if Diaz doesn't make it back for the game Almeida will play. Don't think he will start but we need a big inside presence against a team that lives and dies on counting on offensive rebounds. If Diaz is back though, I doubt Almeida playd, and I'm calling it right now, Diaz will get 10 rebounds. Yes, most of you probably think I am crazy but I think he will have a big performance. Losing Judge hurts the wildcats as well.

 
Redout you are LOCO, but I love it. Here's my thinking either this team has turned the corner from years past and wins on the raod or is a team of years past and lays another egg after a great W.

The lack of an inside presense without Diaz(even as much as I enjoy kicking the guy) will hurt this team severely. KSU will sit back in a zone and say ok NU and you sharpshooting 3 points shooters beat us, and this is a bad scenario. I think Almeida will give it a try and after 5 minutes of PT he will be done. An ankle injury on that frame will be no where near ready.

KSU is a classic example of a team NU should beat. They are a mess, in total disarray, and everyone is questioning their heart and effort. These are always the games that seems to trip NU up. KSU is a mess, in disarray, and probably have given up, but they are still quite talented. My whole thought process about this Husker squad probably hinges on this game, IF and that is a big IF, Diaz plays. A win without him, I'll probably dance down the street in this weather naked, a loss without him equals a pass on my part.

It is way to funny that this game depends so much on a kid I am the first to throw under the bus.

 
PaulCrewe said:
Redout you are LOCO, but I love it. Here's my thinking either this team has turned the corner from years past and wins on the raod or is a team of years past and lays another egg after a great W.

The lack of an inside presense without Diaz(even as much as I enjoy kicking the guy) will hurt this team severely. KSU will sit back in a zone and say ok NU and you sharpshooting 3 points shooters beat us, and this is a bad scenario. I think Almeida will give it a try and after 5 minutes of PT he will be done. An ankle injury on that frame will be no where near ready.

KSU is a classic example of a team NU should beat. They are a mess, in total disarray, and everyone is questioning their heart and effort. These are always the games that seems to trip NU up. KSU is a mess, in disarray, and probably have given up, but they are still quite talented. My whole thought process about this Husker squad probably hinges on this game, IF and that is a big IF, Diaz plays. A win without him, I'll probably dance down the street in this weather naked, a loss without him equals a pass on my part.

It is way to funny that this game depends so much on a kid I am the first to throw under the bus.
Click to expand...
You are correct, it's a VERY bad scenario. I believe NU is right around 320th in the nation in 3 pt percentage. I'll give you a minute to reread that number and think about what that means. Yeah, that bad.

Without Diaz, I believe there are two ways Nebraska can still win:

1 Transition. Jeter, Richardson and Walker are going to have to run the court like madmen. FORTUNATELY (and IMO this really is huge) NU's big men suck at rebounding, so not having a big man in the game should not affect the ability to transition. Most of the transition points have come from a steal or a guard grabbing a board, so the transition game should not suffer much w/o Diaz or Almeida playing.

2 Drake and Bear (and probably McCray): it's time to show you're legit. If any of these guys can catch fire, they just may be able to hit 4 or 5 3's and be the difference in the game.

The great thing about these two scenarios is if NU can get up early, these both get much easier. There's no doubt that even if KSU hasn't quit yet, if they get down early at least a few of their guys will start let up. Suddenly transition points are more likely because of a lack of hustle from KSU in transition D as well as sloppy turnovers. Similarly, if NU is up and one of our guys is hot, he'll continue to find shots because there's no way Frank will find 5 guys to put on the floor committed to going all out to shut anyone down.

I can tell I'm nervous about this game because I'm getting long-winded and apparently trying to talk myself into believing this can be done. All the torture of the past tells me not to get excited, but something about this team just seems different. Still I just can't quite let myself fully believe they'll get it done.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
bball_backer said:
PaulCrewe said:
Redout you are LOCO, but I love it. Here's my thinking either this team has turned the corner from years past and wins on the raod or is a team of years past and lays another egg after a great W.

The lack of an inside presense without Diaz(even as much as I enjoy kicking the guy) will hurt this team severely. KSU will sit back in a zone and say ok NU and you sharpshooting 3 points shooters beat us, and this is a bad scenario. I think Almeida will give it a try and after 5 minutes of PT he will be done. An ankle injury on that frame will be no where near ready.

KSU is a classic example of a team NU should beat. They are a mess, in total disarray, and everyone is questioning their heart and effort. These are always the games that seems to trip NU up. KSU is a mess, in disarray, and probably have given up, but they are still quite talented. My whole thought process about this Husker squad probably hinges on this game, IF and that is a big IF, Diaz plays. A win without him, I'll probably dance down the street in this weather naked, a loss without him equals a pass on my part.

It is way to funny that this game depends so much on a kid I am the first to throw under the bus.
Click to expand...
You are correct, it's a VERY bad scenario. I believe NU is right around 320th in the nation in 3 pt percentage. I'll give you a minute to reread that number and think about what that means. Yeah, that bad.

Without Diaz, I believe there are two ways Nebraska can still win:

1 Transition. Jeter, Richardson and Walker are going to have to run the court like madmen. FORTUNATELY (and IMO this really is huge) NU's big men suck at rebounding, so not having a big man in the game should not affect the ability to transition. Most of the transition points have come from a steal or a guard grabbing a board, so the transition game should not suffer much w/o Diaz or Almeida playing.

2 Drake and Bear (and probably McCray): it's time to show you're legit. If any of these guys can catch fire, they just may be able to hit 4 or 5 3's and be the difference in the game.

The great thing about these two scenarios is if NU can get up early, these both get much easier. There's no doubt that even if KSU hasn't quit yet, if they get down early at least a few of their guys will start let up. Suddenly transition points are more likely because of a lack of hustle from KSU in transition D as well as sloppy turnovers. Similarly, if NU is up and one of our guys is hot, he'll continue to find shots because there's no way Frank will find 5 guys to put on the floor committed to going all out to shut anyone down.

I can tell I'm nervous about this game because I'm getting long-winded and apparently trying to talk myself into believing this can be done. All the torture of the past tells me not to get excited, but something about this team just seems different. Still I just can't quite let myself fully believe they'll get it done.
Click to expand...
True, NU's transition game is not hurt at all without the big guys. However, I think a track meet may play more into KState's liking. Pullen, is a stud whether he wants to play in the NIT or not. This will be a great matchup vs. Jeter. But KState's other four guys that will see a lot of the minutes are guys that will get out and go every opportunity they get. Their bigs, Kelly and Samuels thrived in the open court and secondary breaks last year. And when it comes to putting up numbers scoring, no matter how much a team has quit, that is the "me" stat. Where guys can go "I got mine, the other guys didn't", and that is crap struggling teams pull. The other guards McGruder and Spradling also will push the ball and are good behind the arc in transition offenses.

I think NU needs to make it a dog fight almost and make KSU play defense. This is where this team struggles. Like I said, the presence of a Diaz/Almeida would make this philosophy so much easier.

WHo knows how Doc will attack this wounded animal that's trapped in the corner. I am skeptical, but hoping for the best.

BTW Tejas is looking unreal tonight.

Also Doc just tweeted 9pm that Diaz will be at the game

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Great to hear Diaz will be there. Really hope he plays hard.

First off let me say something. The aTm game was awesome. At the end, when NU won i looked at Jorge. Thinking he would just put his head down and run to the locker room. Instead he looked into the rafters, screamed at the top of his lungs and did a HUGE fist pump. I was amazed to see him show emotion. JBD rarely shows emotion.

I happened to be next to Marshall Parker(redshirt center/walk on) I asked him about JBD not dunking. He said that JBD has bad feet, and it hurts for him to come down on them. We didnt get too indepth.

He also said Andre tries to dunk on guys in practice all day, and really wishes AA would throw it down on some of these guys more because he can do it.

We need to play great defense and we will be ok.

 
PaulCrewe said:
bball_backer said:
PaulCrewe said:
Redout you are LOCO, but I love it. Here's my thinking either this team has turned the corner from years past and wins on the raod or is a team of years past and lays another egg after a great W.

The lack of an inside presense without Diaz(even as much as I enjoy kicking the guy) will hurt this team severely. KSU will sit back in a zone and say ok NU and you sharpshooting 3 points shooters beat us, and this is a bad scenario. I think Almeida will give it a try and after 5 minutes of PT he will be done. An ankle injury on that frame will be no where near ready.

KSU is a classic example of a team NU should beat. They are a mess, in total disarray, and everyone is questioning their heart and effort. These are always the games that seems to trip NU up. KSU is a mess, in disarray, and probably have given up, but they are still quite talented. My whole thought process about this Husker squad probably hinges on this game, IF and that is a big IF, Diaz plays. A win without him, I'll probably dance down the street in this weather naked, a loss without him equals a pass on my part.

It is way to funny that this game depends so much on a kid I am the first to throw under the bus.
Click to expand...
You are correct, it's a VERY bad scenario. I believe NU is right around 320th in the nation in 3 pt percentage. I'll give you a minute to reread that number and think about what that means. Yeah, that bad.

Without Diaz, I believe there are two ways Nebraska can still win:

1 Transition. Jeter, Richardson and Walker are going to have to run the court like madmen. FORTUNATELY (and IMO this really is huge) NU's big men suck at rebounding, so not having a big man in the game should not affect the ability to transition. Most of the transition points have come from a steal or a guard grabbing a board, so the transition game should not suffer much w/o Diaz or Almeida playing.

2 Drake and Bear (and probably McCray): it's time to show you're legit. If any of these guys can catch fire, they just may be able to hit 4 or 5 3's and be the difference in the game.

The great thing about these two scenarios is if NU can get up early, these both get much easier. There's no doubt that even if KSU hasn't quit yet, if they get down early at least a few of their guys will start let up. Suddenly transition points are more likely because of a lack of hustle from KSU in transition D as well as sloppy turnovers. Similarly, if NU is up and one of our guys is hot, he'll continue to find shots because there's no way Frank will find 5 guys to put on the floor committed to going all out to shut anyone down.

I can tell I'm nervous about this game because I'm getting long-winded and apparently trying to talk myself into believing this can be done. All the torture of the past tells me not to get excited, but something about this team just seems different. Still I just can't quite let myself fully believe they'll get it done.
Click to expand...
True, NU's transition game is not hurt at all without the big guys. However, I think a track meet may play more into KState's liking. Pullen, is a stud whether he wants to play in the NIT or not. This will be a great matchup vs. Jeter. But KState's other four guys that will see a lot of the minutes are guys that will get out and go every opportunity they get. Their bigs, Kelly and Samuels thrived in the open court and secondary breaks last year. And when it comes to putting up numbers scoring, no matter how much a team has quit, that is the "me" stat. Where guys can go "I got mine, the other guys didn't", and that is crap struggling teams pull. The other guards McGruder and Spradling also will push the ball and are good behind the arc in transition offenses.

I think NU needs to make it a dog fight almost and make KSU play defense. This is where this team struggles. Like I said, the presence of a Diaz/Almeida would make this philosophy so much easier.

WHo knows how Doc will attack this wounded animal that's trapped in the corner. I am skeptical, but hoping for the best.

BTW Tejas is looking unreal tonight.

Also Doc just tweeted 9pm that Diaz will be at the game
Click to expand...
Completley agree with you. I was a little overzealous with my post. I don't think they'll need 20 transition points, but 10-12 would be great. Also, the team has been pretty good about busting a$$ back on defense after pushing the ball, so as not to give up anything.

Texas looked amazing. Matt Hill is a little b*tch. Yes he's probably enjoying playing for a successful team, but if the kid had stayed at NU he would be a Nebraska hero. Now he's someone that no one in Nebraska will remember, and no one in Texas will remember. They know him now, but by next year no one will remember him. If he came to NU, he would have been starting, woulda been the local kid who helped bring the team up to a new level, and would have lived in Husker history.

 
Minnesota_husker said:
Great to hear Diaz will be there. Really hope he plays hard.

First off let me say something. The aTm game was awesome. At the end, when NU won i looked at Jorge. Thinking he would just put his head down and run to the locker room. Instead he looked into the rafters, screamed at the top of his lungs and did a HUGE fist pump. I was amazed to see him show emotion. JBD rarely shows emotion.

I happened to be next to Marshall Parker(redshirt center/walk on) I asked him about JBD not dunking. He said that JBD has bad feet, and it hurts for him to come down on them. We didnt get too indepth.

He also said Andre tries to dunk on guys in practice all day, and really wishes AA would throw it down on some of these guys more because he can do it.

We need to play great defense and we will be ok.
Click to expand...
A couple former players (from back in the day, not any guys that have ever played with him) have said he really loves the game and is his own hardest critic, he just doesn't show emotion and that coupled with his slow-looking movement is very misleading to onlookers. Hopefully something is starting to spark inside of him and he will begin showing some fire.

Judging from the calls that have gone against him so far this year, I'd be willing to bet that if Almeida started turning and dunking on people, 3/4 of the time he'd get called for an offensive foul! It's unbelievable the calls that go against him just because other guys bounce of him when they hit him.

 
bball_backer said:
PaulCrewe said:
bball_backer said:
PaulCrewe said:
Redout you are LOCO, but I love it. Here's my thinking either this team has turned the corner from years past and wins on the raod or is a team of years past and lays another egg after a great W.

The lack of an inside presense without Diaz(even as much as I enjoy kicking the guy) will hurt this team severely. KSU will sit back in a zone and say ok NU and you sharpshooting 3 points shooters beat us, and this is a bad scenario. I think Almeida will give it a try and after 5 minutes of PT he will be done. An ankle injury on that frame will be no where near ready.

KSU is a classic example of a team NU should beat. They are a mess, in total disarray, and everyone is questioning their heart and effort. These are always the games that seems to trip NU up. KSU is a mess, in disarray, and probably have given up, but they are still quite talented. My whole thought process about this Husker squad probably hinges on this game, IF and that is a big IF, Diaz plays. A win without him, I'll probably dance down the street in this weather naked, a loss without him equals a pass on my part.

It is way to funny that this game depends so much on a kid I am the first to throw under the bus.
Click to expand...
You are correct, it's a VERY bad scenario. I believe NU is right around 320th in the nation in 3 pt percentage. I'll give you a minute to reread that number and think about what that means. Yeah, that bad.

Without Diaz, I believe there are two ways Nebraska can still win:

1 Transition. Jeter, Richardson and Walker are going to have to run the court like madmen. FORTUNATELY (and IMO this really is huge) NU's big men suck at rebounding, so not having a big man in the game should not affect the ability to transition. Most of the transition points have come from a steal or a guard grabbing a board, so the transition game should not suffer much w/o Diaz or Almeida playing.

2 Drake and Bear (and probably McCray): it's time to show you're legit. If any of these guys can catch fire, they just may be able to hit 4 or 5 3's and be the difference in the game.

The great thing about these two scenarios is if NU can get up early, these both get much easier. There's no doubt that even if KSU hasn't quit yet, if they get down early at least a few of their guys will start let up. Suddenly transition points are more likely because of a lack of hustle from KSU in transition D as well as sloppy turnovers. Similarly, if NU is up and one of our guys is hot, he'll continue to find shots because there's no way Frank will find 5 guys to put on the floor committed to going all out to shut anyone down.

I can tell I'm nervous about this game because I'm getting long-winded and apparently trying to talk myself into believing this can be done. All the torture of the past tells me not to get excited, but something about this team just seems different. Still I just can't quite let myself fully believe they'll get it done.
Click to expand...
True, NU's transition game is not hurt at all without the big guys. However, I think a track meet may play more into KState's liking. Pullen, is a stud whether he wants to play in the NIT or not. This will be a great matchup vs. Jeter. But KState's other four guys that will see a lot of the minutes are guys that will get out and go every opportunity they get. Their bigs, Kelly and Samuels thrived in the open court and secondary breaks last year. And when it comes to putting up numbers scoring, no matter how much a team has quit, that is the "me" stat. Where guys can go "I got mine, the other guys didn't", and that is crap struggling teams pull. The other guards McGruder and Spradling also will push the ball and are good behind the arc in transition offenses.

I think NU needs to make it a dog fight almost and make KSU play defense. This is where this team struggles. Like I said, the presence of a Diaz/Almeida would make this philosophy so much easier.

WHo knows how Doc will attack this wounded animal that's trapped in the corner. I am skeptical, but hoping for the best.

BTW Tejas is looking unreal tonight.

Also Doc just tweeted 9pm that Diaz will be at the game
Click to expand...
Completley agree with you. I was a little overzealous with my post. I don't think they'll need 20 transition points, but 10-12 would be great. Also, the team has been pretty good about busting a$$ back on defense after pushing the ball, so as not to give up anything.

Texas looked amazing. Matt Hill is a little b*tch. Yes he's probably enjoying playing for a successful team, but if the kid had stayed at NU he would be a Nebraska hero. Now he's someone that no one in Nebraska will remember, and no one in Texas will remember. They know him now, but by next year no one will remember him. If he came to NU, he would have been starting, woulda been the local kid who helped bring the team up to a new level, and would have lived in Husker history.
Click to expand...
Couldn't agree more.

 
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