i think mcd lost us this game. No gilstrap for the last 4 minutes... i dont get it
Going from 14:45 to 2:45 with only 1 field goal I believe is what lost the game for us.
I love GMAC, and think we are on the right track to being consistently good. The only thing that bugs me (in addition to free throws be he doesn't shoot them) is that he always seems to react to other teams in terms of matchups. You always hear things like "they are hard to prepare for in one day", or "when they put 4 on the perimeter they took away the 3 point shot". I wish we were the ones dictating things. You don't see the great teams changing what they do all the time based on the opponent. They say this is what we do, try to stop us. It's almost like we agree to play the other teams style, then use the best line-up we have to play that style.
I could be wrong, that is just what it sounds like on the radio. And we need to make free throws. If you count front end of 1 and 1's as 2 misses, our stats our even worse. CB makes those two when we were up 9 in the second half and the game might have been over. Remember when we played Mich St in the elite 8? We had a 7-8 point lead late, and missed a free throw, leading to a fast break where they either hit a 3 or got a dunk to get back in the game. Still very optimistic for the season.
Unfortunately, Northwestern is now the bar. We have a lot of improving to do. As a fan, my confidence is really low right now. We have 24 games left to play and all but North Dakota and North Dakota State look to be extremely tough. We will lose Brackins, Gilstrap, and Vanderbeken at the end of the year; therefore realistically next year does not look good. Our fan base and program is in desperate need of a Top 5 Big XII finish and an NCAA Tournament Bid this year. As fans I think we have the opportunity to make a real difference if we show up and cheer our loudest. Sunday break games against Houston and Bradley have me really concerned. We need to show-up make a difference but break games usually equate to dead crowds. They are running a special for season ticket holders. Season ticket holders get two free tickets to any one of the break games. Make sure if you are a season ticket holder you utilize this opportunity. Get two friends or family members to come to the game and cheer. It could be the difference. Go Cyclones!