The "We have no guards" excuse...

[kingcy]

I dont think many teams are good when 3 out of the 4 guards they play had never played a second of DI basketball before the season started. Can we stop with the Morgan compairsons at some point. He got fired get over it.

[isuno1fan]

Newsflash....

This team has no guards and avg. play in the post.

Next years team will have avg. guards and no post play.

Translation: About the same record...different set of problems.

[tim_redd]

all new post players easy. If you got a guard that can get them the ball in good position new posts will score.

I agree with you, but what about defending the other teams' post players?

Guards can't do everything.

[bellzisu]

Hate to break it to ya, but the Stinson and Blaylock teams could have beaten this team.

I will agree with you on this one. Poorly coached or not they would beat this team. Reason why??? NO GUARD PLAY TO COMBAT STINSON AND BLAYLOCK.

[kingcy]

Hate to break it to ya, but the Stinson and Blaylock teams could have beaten this team.

That all depends on what team of there's showed up to play on that given night. The team that could beat a top 10 team or the team that got blew out by a bottom of the pac Big 12 team.

[kingcy]

Newsflash....

This team has no guards and avg. play in the post.

Next years team will have avg. guards and no post play.

Translation: About the same record...different set of problems.

Brackens will be better next year.

[Cy Hard]

I agree with you, but what about defending the other teams' post players?

Guards can't do everything.

It's not a solution to everything, but it does make this team that much better. I think how we handled Maric shows this team could survive with its post player D.

[cyclonez7]

Newsflash....

This team has no guards and avg. play in the post.

Next years team will have avg. guards and no post play.

Translation: About the same record...different set of problems.

What if we have a freshman surprise in Buckley, Eikmeier, Mann or Hamilton? Nobody thought Curtis Stinson was that good (I think he was 3 stars on Rivals). Brackins will be better and more consistent next year. We will be better next year.

[Clones85']

Hate to break it to ya, but the Stinson and Blaylock teams could have beaten this team.

Well yeah! But those teams also underachieved their last 2 years. We started 8-8 their sophomore year before winning 7 straight to sneak into the tourney. Remember we were a bubble team that year. Stinson and Blalock on this team and we are a top 4 team in the Big 12

[MNclone]

You have to have solid guard play to win in the NCAA. PLain and simple. Winning teams have good guards. They don't have to score a lot of points, or even have a ton of points. But you have to have guards that can control the pace of the game and get the ball to the hot hands.
We simply do not have that right now. You can make up for defeciencies in the post, but in college, you live and die by the guard play.

[cyclonez7]

I think that Diante Garrett has a load of potential. If he can add some muscle and weight during the off season, I think he can become Stinson-like. Let's face it, we our a young team that needs time to develop and gel. I think we did fairly well this season for a team with a lot of youth. Give it time and we will be at the top of the Big 12.

[candg4ever]

Am I off base here???

In a word,yes.

Almost every great, even good, team, starts with the backcourt. Good teams need guards with various skills, not necessarily all in one player, but with the abilities to compliment each other as well as their frontcourt. Our most successful season of all time had those traits. Guards who could penetrate, (and finish the play), guards who could shoot the j or get themselves an open shot, guards who could defend one-on-one and rebound, so as not to pull frontcourt players off their man to help, and most importantly in my mind, a point guard who knows where his teammates need the ball in offensive sets. A good point guard delivering the ball to a player in the proper area can make that player look a whole lot better. There aren't very many Fizers and Durants and Beasleys who can score at will from almost anywhere.

A case in point. I'm a Suns fan, (yes I know it's the NBA and a lot different than college ball, but bear with me). Last week they made a ridiculous trade to bring Shaq in for maybe the most versatile player in the game, (besides Kobe Bryant). The only thing they really needed, in my opinion, was an adequate back-up for Steve Nash. With his chronic back problems, he needs to rest often during games, and when he does, the offense stagnates dramatically. They still have great offensive weapons on the court, but no one to deliver the ball to them. So far, getting Shaq has actually made them worse, clogging up the middle with a one-dimensional player. Put a decent point guard in there when Nash rests, and those problems probably solve themselves.

Monster jams are great and rebounds are key, but turnovers and poor shot selection can kill even the best teams. Put two really good guards with average players, and that team will most likely succeed. The same can't be said for two really good frontcourt players without a way to get them the ball, (guards).

[Copley305]

it is ESSENTIAL to have solid guard play to win on the college level. case in point: after watching the 100 years of Cyclone Basketball DVD, it is obvious that practically every great team we had were led by guards (Gary Thompson, Hornacek, Hoiberg, Willoughby, Tinsley, Stinson). i'm not putting any blame on our present guards at all, however, since I believe that two of our three most solid players the last few weeks have been Peterson and Haluska along with Hubalek. i just think to reach that "next level," guards are the most important position. i know many of you have to hear it, but our biggest setback is our inherent immaturity on the court (and that doesn't go away in the course of one year)