Louisville Game at the Pete & Other Dribbles ...

[UPitt '89]

I'd proffer that during the timeout..maybe, just maybe...Luther asked for a break? Is it possible considering the wind he was sucking by that point?

In his post game comments, Luther said he felt great. He blamed himself for the Louisville three prior to the timeout that made it 48-43 and hinted that it was why he was taken out. He said his man made the three.

Again.... at that point in the game, with the game Young was having, I would've rather seen Maia come in for Luther than Young. Young's head was (and is) a mess right now.

 

[JS School]

** I’m very disappointed, of course, but not nearly as discouraged as I’ve been.

** Tonight, the Panthers most often played like a team who wanted to win, which hasn’t always been the case in some of our losses this year, not to mention in even some of our wins.

** For most of the game, there was enough effort, enough toughness, enough execution and enough defense. For most of the game.

** Well, for the first 32 minutes anyway.

** But the last 8 minutes was a different story. And those last 8 minutes ended up telling the whole story.

** So I’ll focus on that first 32 minutes for now. In the middle of that view was Ryan Luther, on both ends of the court.

** Allow me to quote the Zoo. "RYAN LUTHER! CLAP, CLAP, CLAP, CLAP, CLAP!"

** What remains to be seen is what happens with Ryan going forward. Did Dixon find something in Ryan, was this just the right matchup, or was he just playing out of his mind?

** I’m going to hope it’s the first of those options, because if we can make use of Ryan, maybe that will help Mike get back on track.

** Plain and simply, Mike needs to be better than he was tonight.

** At least he was better defensively than he’s been, but he wasn’t what his team needed offensively in this big game.

** Maybe the bigger problem than Mike was Sheldon Jeter, who is now completely off of his game on both ends of the court.

** Regardless, the Panthers were able to go trip for trip, punch for punch with the Cards for almost all of the game, and even made a big steal to go on the fast break in when the previously superhuman Ryan let what was probably a layup slip through his hands. A killer.

** Then back down on the defensive end, the Panthers overplayed Onuaku in the middle leaving a wide open three and that was your ballgame.

** I’ll leave it at that for the night. This team has three more chances to prove it belongs in the NCAA Tournament.

** I’ve seen enough to believe that we might be able to do it. But I’ve also seen enough to worry that they can’t.

One of the shorter dribbles, but even then stopping after the first sentence would have been sufficient for me. Much more disappointed than discouraged.

 

[DT_PITT]

I agree with DT. IF you can't substitute Young for Luther and expect things to be ok you are off your rocker. Looked to me Luther needed a break, his effort was way more than most playing, he was making every hustle play he could. Missed the pass, why, tired. He makes that play undoubtedly most of the time. YOUNG did not step up period. The effort is not there. I am of the belief his head is bigger than his game. He has not learned to deal with the double and triple teams and is out to get his. Having said that you have to think he can help you or at least hold par, if not, you sub again for him with a well rested Luther for the stretch run. It backfired for many reasons.

The defense allowing a team to shoot over 50 percent will not ever help you win. Shooting poorly from three and the turnovers are terrible. (I sound like Dixon). This game was not Jamie's fault on game day and I usually am his worst critic. We need a better roster. That is his fault. Period.

Hail to Pitt...I think we beat Duke. I will be there supporting our coach and team. Hope others do as well.

I'll be there of course. Sure hope all of the players heads are too!

Did your granddaughter join you?

 

[TiredRam97]

And if Luther says, "Coach, I need a break"...you tell him no? I'm not saying that happened, but if Luther said he needed a rest, I don't see how you kill Jamie for giving him one. My first thought, when Young came back in the game, was that..."Wow, Luther has just crushed Young today. Maybe Mike will respond given that another player, at the same position, is just flat out better"...but alas. I forgot it was Mike Young i was talking about.

My blame scale between Young and Jamie is 100-0 if Luther said he needed a break, and 70-30 if he didn't. I still blame Young most.

Do you really think Luther, who was hopped up on adrenaline and had the freakin' crowd chanting his name, would ask the coach for a blow at that point? Really? I would have been so amped up you would have had to physically drag me off the court for a sub, or in this case, strap me down to a chair during the timeout.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

On Young's foul shooting, I commented after he missed the first one that he put way more arc on the shot than he normally does. He did the same thing on the second and third shots. The fourth seemed more normal, although obviously he still missed it. But putting too much arc on a foul shot isn't a sign of fatigue, it's a sign that his technique was off.

 

[thebadby2]

Do you really think Luther, who was hopped up on adrenaline and had the freakin' crowd chanting his name, would ask the coach for a blow at that point? Really? I would have been so amped up you would have had to physically drag me off the court for a sub, or in this case, strap me down to a chair during the timeout.

I don't buy that either. Players rarely ask coaches to come out. That's how you get in the doghouse. Coaches don't think very highly of players that do that. There's an old basketball term coaches use for that kind of player. It starts with a P. That said, I think this whole debate about the Luther substitution issue is mental masturbation. There are lot of things to point the finger at, most of which occurred on our offensive possessions in the last 2-3 minutes.

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

I don't buy that either. Players rarely ask coaches to come out. That's how you get in the doghouse. Coaches don't think very highly of players that do that. There's an old basketball term coaches use for that kind of player. It starts with a P. That said, I think this whole debate about the Luther substitution issue is mental masturbation. There are lot of things to point the finger at, most of which occurred on our offensive possessions in the last 2-3 minutes.

Just tossing an idea out there...not saying there was any validity to it.


And likewise agree, the 3 possessions wasn't the end of the game.

 

[bobfree]

The term "mental masturbation" was used almost simultaneously in two different threads by two different posters.

That is the first time I have ever typed it.

 

[CaPAPITT76]

** I’m very disappointed, of course, but not nearly as discouraged as I’ve been.

** Tonight, the Panthers most often played like a team who wanted to win, which hasn’t always been the case in some of our losses this year, not to mention in even some of our wins.

** For most of the game, there was enough effort, enough toughness, enough execution and enough defense. For most of the game.

** Well, for the first 32 minutes anyway.

** But the last 8 minutes was a different story. And those last 8 minutes ended up telling the whole story.

** So I’ll focus on that first 32 minutes for now. In the middle of that view was Ryan Luther, on both ends of the court.

** Allow me to quote the Zoo. "RYAN LUTHER! CLAP, CLAP, CLAP, CLAP, CLAP!"

** What remains to be seen is what happens with Ryan going forward. Did Dixon find something in Ryan, was this just the right matchup, or was he just playing out of his mind?

** I’m going to hope it’s the first of those options, because if we can make use of Ryan, maybe that will help Mike get back on track.

** Plain and simply, Mike needs to be better than he was tonight.

** At least he was better defensively than he’s been, but he wasn’t what his team needed offensively in this big game.

** Maybe the bigger problem than Mike was Sheldon Jeter, who is now completely off of his game on both ends of the court.

** Regardless, the Panthers were able to go trip for trip, punch for punch with the Cards for almost all of the game, and even made a big steal to go on the fast break in when the previously superhuman Ryan let what was probably a layup slip through his hands. A killer.

** Then back down on the defensive end, the Panthers overplayed Onuaku in the middle leaving a wide open three and that was your ballgame.

** I’ll leave it at that for the night. This team has three more chances to prove it belongs in the NCAA Tournament.

** I’ve seen enough to believe that we might be able to do it. But I’ve also seen enough to worry that they can’t.

I think we found our player that came is as an unheralded recruit, in fact I think earlier this year there were some that said he didn't even deserve a scholarship, and now is looking like maybe in the next 2 years will be taking the "great leap forward" Wisconsin had a player that graduated and was drafted but wasn't highly thought of coming out of high school. I think Luther may be a player like this. I don't know if he will ever get drafted but he looks as though he will only get better and better and stronger. I think by the time he is a senior he will be very very very good

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

The term "mental masturbation" was used almost simultaneously in two different threads by two different posters.

That is the first time I have ever typed it.

It's one of my favorite phrases...
I'm going to take credit for introducing the term to this forum.

 

[UPitt '89]

It's one of my favorite phrases...
I'm going to take credit for introducing the term to this forum.

And this post is an example of it!

haha

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

I don't buy that either. Players rarely ask coaches to come out. That's how you get in the doghouse. Coaches don't think very highly of players that do that. There's an old basketball term coaches use for that kind of player. It starts with a P. That said, I think this whole debate about the Luther substitution issue is mental masturbation. There are lot of things to point the finger at, most of which occurred on our offensive possessions in the last 2-3 minutes.

The funny part about this post is that it has been less than a week since Jamie Dixon praised Mike Young for telling the coaches he needed a blow during the game rather than staying on the court when he was worn out because it showed that Mike Young was maturing as a basketball player.

Coaches think that players who are honest with them are just fine. Coaches don't like players who bull shit them. Basketball players (and football players too) ask for a blow all the time. The notion that coaches hate players who do that is silly.

 

[drgags]

I'll be there of course. Sure hope all of the players heads are too!

Did your granddaughter join you?

yes...picked up one off a scalper, paid under face, but really expected a better crowd, or only would have offered 5 bucks.

 

[drgags]

[QUOTE="

For what it's worth, to me he looks more frustrated than lazy or selfish. He is selfish, but it I think its more from trying to force things than having a disregard for the team.[/QUOTE]

I kind of agree with this, I don't question him really as a teammate but thinking he can and has to do it all by himself. I think someone may have convinced him he is better than what he plays like. That if he doesn't do it, who else can or will..... Luther had something to say about that....... and only superstars can beat 2-3 defenders and they are few and far between.

 

[88Pitt88]

Also, I don't think those are great examples. This Duke team is pretty ordinary this year, precisely because of their lack of depth. Syracuse has sanctions and again, they aren't that good. When Pitt wears down Syracuse, twice this season, maybe its actually due to our depth??

I don't know, I hated taking Luther out at the time, I really did. But the more I think about it, the more I think your "best" player has to respond, and he just blew it.

Luther was your best player last night. He presented the Ville with a huge matchup problem all evening, and just so happened to be our best defender as well. After thinking about this a little more, unless he was dying Jamie should have rode him like a racehorse till he fellover!

 

[Black_Man_Panther]

You guys are a little harsh. In your "meltdown" last 8 mins... Adel schooled Jeter, Young and Luther. They also made some great shots. You can tell Robinson was completely gassed at the end - shots were short and he struggled to play any defense as he couldn't keep anyone in front of him. Young was the only one making layups - everyone else was content taking jump shots and that never ends well.

I really struggle w/ the officiating. Reaching-in seems to be OK but put a body on someone and that's a foul? The rules really benefit a team like Louisville as they were reaching and grasping for the ball at every chance and guys like Young/Artis get picked sooo easily.

They are who they are. NIT.

 

[thebadby2]

It's one of my favorite phrases...
I'm going to take credit for introducing the term to this forum.

I'll dispute that contention. I've been using it myself for about 25 years and it has found it has way into many of my posts over the years, mostly on the football side where it's even more often called for (e.g. "maybe, just maybe player X will be moved from WR to long snapper since he's not getting many reps at WR and we need a third string long snapper, whaddya think guys?").

Mods, please review the archives for a ruling on this important dispute.

Nothing conveys the message quite like that phrase.

 

[thebadby2]

The funny part about this post is that it has been less than a week since Jamie Dixon praised Mike Young for telling the coaches he needed a blow during the game rather than staying on the court when he was worn out because it showed that Mike Young was maturing as a basketball player.

Coaches think that players who are honest with them are just fine. Coaches don't like players who bull shit them. Basketball players (and football players too) ask for a blow all the time. The notion that coaches hate players who do that is silly.

Coaches know when a guy needs a blow, and coaches know when they can't give the guy a blow because of the game situation at the moment. Football is different, the coaches can't readily tell when a guy is too gassed or dinged to go. I'll bet you whatever amount of money you'd like to lay on it that Luther did not ask JD to come out of the game at that moment or any other. I'll bet he has never asked any coach for that, ever.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

I'll bet you whatever amount of money you'd like to lay on it that Luther did not ask JD to come out of the game at that moment or any other.

I didn't say he did. But I did point out the fact that his head coach just a few days ago publicly praised his teammate for doing just that. And unprompted at that. Which tells you how he actually feels on the subject. The notion that a coach, or at least a good coach, thinks a player is a pu$$y for needing a blow during a game is absurd.

However I can believe that some really, really crappy coaches think that way.

 

[Black_Man_Panther]

In his post game comments, Luther said he felt great. He blamed himself for the Louisville three prior to the timeout that made it 48-43 and hinted that it was why he was taken out. He said his man made the three.

Again.... at that point in the game, with the game Young was having, I would've rather seen Maia come in for Luther than Young. Young's head was (and is) a mess right now.

You need to let your Young hatred go. He actually took it to the hoop rather than Robinson & Co. who are more than satisfied in taking 20 ft shots... errr... bricking 20 ft shots.

And please tell me who exactly on this team plays any defense? Young is just as guilty as Artis, Robinson, Jeter, etc.