UC Basketball

[NorrisHopper30]

Mick is coming back and he was always coming back.

[Boston Red]

They can't afford to fire him. Next year has to be do or die for him, though.

[Hoosier Red]

Well the team certainly responded well to the news Mick was coming back.

[Reds4Life]

They might not even make the NIT at this rate. Bringing Cronin back for another year is totally pointless. Just get rid of him and get it over with.

[LoganBuck]

Originally Posted by Reds4Life

They might make the NIT at this rate.

Fixed it for you.

[NorrisHopper30]

I'm not a big fan of Cronin, but when we hired him I said he deserves 5 years to fix the mess. He gets one more year, the only reason it's disappointing is he's recruited enough talent here that we should've been in the tournament this year.

[Reds4Life]

Was nice to see the senior leader, Deonta Vaughn, step up with another amazing 2 point performance today.

Thankfully we only have to watch him stand around and do nothing for a few more games. If anybody ever asks who is the most overrated Bearcat of all time, look no further than Mr. Vaughn.

[Sea Ray]

Originally Posted by Reds4Life

Was nice to see the senior leader, Deonta Vaughn, step up with another amazing 2 point performance today.

Thankfully we only have to watch him stand around and do nothing for a few more games. If anybody ever asks who is the most overrated Bearcat of all time, look no further than Mr. Vaughn.

Damon Flint should be considered for the award

[Sea Ray]

Let's look at two teams the Bearcats played to a stalemate earlier in the year, Gonzaga and Xavier. Both of those teams are now well on their way to decent seeds in the NCAA while UC will have to sweat out an NIT bid.

Why?

What's happened since December? Why did those teams improve over the past 2-3 months and UC has digressed? I think those are questions to ask if we are to pin point where UC's problems lie. It seems to me the answer has to come back to Mick. It's something he's not doing right. Is it something he can correct or is it a weakness in him that's innate?

If UC is going to insist on keeping him around it would behoove them to answer this issue and ask for Mick to change what he's doing.

[Reds4Life]

Originally Posted by Sea Ray

Let's look at two teams the Bearcats played to a stalemate earlier in the year, Gonzaga and Xavier. Both of those teams are now well on their way to decent seeds in the NCAA while UC will have to sweat out an NIT bid.

Why?

What's happened since December? Why did those teams improve over the past 2-3 months and UC has digressed? I think those are questions to ask if we are to pin point where UC's problems lie. It seems to me the answer has to come back to Mick. It's something he's not doing right. Is it something he can correct or is it a weakness in him that's innate?

If UC is going to insist on keeping him around it would behoove them to answer this issue and ask for Mick to change what he's doing.

This is from Lance's blog. UC's record down the stretch under Cronin has been horrid. He hasn't won a single game in March his entire time at UC, not one.

UC down the stretch under Mick
'06-07: 1-11 in last 12
'07-08: 0-7 in last 7...including CBI loss
'08-09: 1-6 in last 7...including losing final four games
'09-10: have lost 6 of last 7 and 7 of the last 9
Mick is 0-12 in March at UC
2006-07: 0-1
2007-08: 0-5
2008-09: 0-4
2009-10: 0-2

[joshnky]

Originally Posted by Reds4Life

This is from Lance's blog. UC's record down the stretch under Cronin has been horrid. He hasn't won a single game in March his entire time at UC, not one.

So, its safe to say that Louisville will be playing Rutgers, not UC, in the second round of the BET? I fully expect Louisville to come up extremely flat so I was excited to see them paired with the Rutgers-UC winner.

[texasdave]

Bearcats sneak by Rutgers on a Lance Stephenson free throw with less than two seconds remaining. Mick gets the March Monkey off his back. Louisville awaits tomorrow. It certainly wouldn't be the biggest upset in the world if UC knocked off the Cardinals. On a very related note: Bishop didn't make the trip to New York. The ever-popular 'violation of team rules' once again rears its ugly head.

[SeeinRed]

Originally Posted by texasdave

Bearcats sneak by Rutgers on a Lance Stephenson free throw with less than two seconds remaining. Mick gets the March Monkey off his back. Louisville awaits tomorrow. It certainly wouldn't be the biggest upset in the world if UC knocked off the Cardinals. On a very related note: Bishop didn't make the trip to New York. The ever-popular 'violation of team rules' once again rears its ugly head.

Losing Bishop could really hurt. One has to wonder how bad it was if Mick decided to keep him at home when a lot is riding on this tournament.

I hate to nit pick wins, but UC really needs a lot more movement on the offensive end. It just boggles the mind that Mick hasn't fixed that problem yet. Cashmere was a liability on the defensive end as well last night. Also, what I can only assume to be Bucksfan's favorite lineup was put out there again. Why does Mick continue to put players like Davis, Wright, and Toyloy on the floor at the same time? I understand you have to play for 5 straight days, but rotate players instead of putting a whole new lineup on the floor.

Was it just me, or was Wilks having a whale of a game in the first half? It also seemed as if he barely saw the floor in the second half. Maybe I just didn't see him. How does he not play more in the second half last night?

All in all, I'm pleased that UC got away with a win. However, playing like that will not get you many more wins in the tournament. Maybe they just needed this game to break through mentally that they can win in March.

[bucksfan2]

Originally Posted by SeeinRed

Losing Bishop could really hurt. One has to wonder how bad it was if Mick decided to keep him at home when a lot is riding on this tournament.

It really depends on what Bishop shows up. If its Bishop the 3 point gunner then its a good thing he is gone. If it is Bishop the defender and slasher then its a tough loss. I sure don't miss Bishop's 2-3 air balled 3 pointers per game.

I hate to nit pick wins, but UC really needs a lot more movement on the offensive end. It just boggles the mind that Mick hasn't fixed that problem yet. Cashmere was a liability on the defensive end as well last night. Also, what I can only assume to be Bucksfan's favorite lineup was put out there again. Why does Mick continue to put players like Davis, Wright, and Toyloy on the floor at the same time? I understand you have to play for 5 straight days, but rotate players instead of putting a whole new lineup on the floor.

You nailed it. I just watched the 1st half and I don't know why Mick continues to use that lineup. Someone needs to tell him to stop. When you are playing against a less talented team, a la Rutgers, it may work, but it won't work against UL.

Was it just me, or was Wilks having a whale of a game in the first half? It also seemed as if he barely saw the floor in the second half. Maybe I just didn't see him. How does he not play more in the second half last night?

Wilks was having a good scoring half but to me it was luck. One follow up dunk, one layup off a great pass by Stephenson, and one bad 3 that went in. His 9 first half points were a bonus, but if you keep going to that well you will get burnt.

All in all, I'm pleased that UC got away with a win. However, playing like that will not get you many more wins in the tournament. Maybe they just needed this game to break through mentally that they can win in March.

I just watched the 1st half but some things that should have been ironed out by now weren't. Wright taking a 3 from damn near half court. Wright throwing up a contested layup with no shot clock but 10 seconds left on the game clock. Wright not playing good defense. You saw glimpses of why Stephenson is so good. He runs the court, is dynamic in the open court, has size, strength, speed, etc. Why he isn't on the court for 35+ minutes a game is besides me. He should be as dominant as Jordan Crawford but Mick doesn't play him. Mick, play him, let him make his mistakes, let him be dynamic, let him play. UC is much better with Lance on the court making mistakes than they are without him on the court.

[SeeinRed]

Originally Posted by bucksfan2

Wilks was having a good scoring half but to me it was luck. One follow up dunk, one layup off a great pass by Stephenson, and one bad 3 that went in. His 9 first half points were a bonus, but if you keep going to that well you will get burnt.

I will agree that Wilks is not the best player, but he does bring a lot of energy to the floor. I'd much rather see him on the floor than Larry Davis or even Wright at times. Granted, I don't think you go with Wilks over any of the starting five, but I would still put him in for 5 or 6 minutes in the second half until he shows that he is ineffective. There may have been luck involved in the first half, but he is always around the play. He seems to be everywhere on the floor. Good things can happen when you play the way he does.

I don't think he deserves to play for the whole half or even start the second half, I just think he should've been put back in before Larry Davis.