Worst loss in Tubby's tenure (Rant)

[TubbytownUSA]

(Warning, angry rant...No I am not a troll or a Gopher hater, I just love our team too much to not be incredibly pissed off right now)

That was EMBARRASSING!!!

Are you kidding me?!?! I love Tubby but that was one of the most poorly coached games I have ever seen from him. Swing the ball around the perimeter for 30 seconds, then jack up a terrible 3 from NBA range. And how hard is it to make a free throw?

Portland is not a good team and we shouldn't say that just to make ourselves feel better. They were horrible. Hell, I could sit and make open 3s if you give them to me all day. I could also defend the Gophers if they're going to just swing it around the whole game.

Pros:

We can now significantly lower our expectations, and maybe be as good as last year to squeak into the NCAA tournament, but likely end up in the NIT.

Cons:

Free Throws - Laughable. I don't know if that's coaching or what, but that's unreal. It's utterly ridiculous. I'm way too pissed to check out a box score right now to see what percentage we shot, but I'm going to guess about 50.

Offense - We might have the worst half court offense in the Big 10, especially against the zone defense. First, we have NO go-to scorer. I was hoping that someone would step into that role, but we honestly have no one.

Coaching - Tubby was brutally outcoached by some scrub. What team wouldn't play zone against us now? Our offensive set against the zone is disgusting. I can draw up something better than that, come on tubby.

Intensity - We played with intensity for about 30 seconds and we actually tried to make it a game. Other than that, we looked like we didn't care and thought that we deserved to win this game. Well look what happens Gophers, when you don't come to play you lose to a horrible WCC team.

Defense - Someone please tell me why we are doubling down on their posts when our post defender has a significant height advantage? Really you think we would figure out that every time we helped down, they kicked it out and nailed a three. Even I figured that out after about 10 possessions. Sampson and Iverson didn't need the help, but sure enough we kept doing it and kept getting burned.

In bounds plays - I've never seen a team run worse in bounds plays. All we do is lob the ball up in the air way in the back court and hope we get it. Never set ourselves up to score, never anything creative, and not even that safe.

Plays out of timeouts - How come we can never draw up an awesome play out of a timeout? Execution maybe? I have no idea but we can never seem to come out of a timeout with a good plan, whereas other teams do a phenomenal job doing so.

My solution....

Each player will sit in the gym every day after practice until he makes 20 free throws in a row. I don't care if you have to stay there all night. If you make 20 free throws straight, you can go home.

We will watch game film of other teams who actually know how to play against the zone. Some ideas might be to actually get the ball to the guy at the free throw line every now and then, maybe even set up a high low sometimes.

Any player who jacks a fadeaway NBA three-pointer will ride pine until their ass is so splintered that they can't sit down anymore.

Any player who can't shoot 50 percent from the line will not see the court ever.

I don't even know what to say any more, I am so frustrated. I'm sure some of the people with the maroon glasses on will be angry at this post for calling out Tubby, but he's not above all criticism. It was a poorly coached and poorly played game. We deserve to drop out of the rankings, we need a wake up call big time.

The odds of us beating A&M tomorrow probably are pretty slim, they played 2 great teams tough, and we beat an overrated mid-major and lost to a terrible WCC team. I'm just as sad as everyone else, but right now I don't see this team being much more than last year, or maybe more like an NIT team.

 

[Swede]

(Warning, angry rant...No I am not a troll or a Gopher hater, I just love our team too much to not be incredibly pissed off right now)

That was EMBARRASSING!!!

Are you kidding me?!?! I love Tubby but that was one of the most poorly coached games I have ever seen from him. Swing the ball around the perimeter for 30 seconds, then jack up a terrible 3 from NBA range. And how hard is it to make a free throw?

Portland is not a good team and we shouldn't say that just to make ourselves feel better. They were horrible. Hell, I could sit and make open 3s if you give them to me all day. I could also defend the Gophers if they're going to just swing it around the whole game.

Pros:

We can now significantly lower our expectations, and maybe be as good as last year to squeak into the NCAA tournament, but likely end up in the NIT.

Cons:

Free Throws - Laughable. I don't know if that's coaching or what, but that's unreal. It's utterly ridiculous. I'm way too pissed to check out a box score right now to see what percentage we shot, but I'm going to guess about 50.

Offense - We might have the worst half court offense in the Big 10, especially against the zone defense. First, we have NO go-to scorer. I was hoping that someone would step into that role, but we honestly have no one.

Coaching - Tubby was brutally outcoached by some scrub. What team wouldn't play zone against us now? Our offensive set against the zone is disgusting. I can draw up something better than that, come on tubby.

Intensity - We played with intensity for about 30 seconds and we actually tried to make it a game. Other than that, we looked like we didn't care and thought that we deserved to win this game. Well look what happens Gophers, when you don't come to play you lose to a horrible WCC team.

Defense - Someone please tell me why we are doubling down on their posts when our post defender has a significant height advantage? Really you think we would figure out that every time we helped down, they kicked it out and nailed a three. Even I figured that out after about 10 possessions. Sampson and Iverson didn't need the help, but sure enough we kept doing it and kept getting burned.

In bounds plays - I've never seen a team run worse in bounds plays. All we do is lob the ball up in the air way in the back court and hope we get it. Never set ourselves up to score, never anything creative, and not even that safe.

Plays out of timeouts - How come we can never draw up an awesome play out of a timeout? Execution maybe? I have no idea but we can never seem to come out of a timeout with a good plan, whereas other teams do a phenomenal job doing so.

My solution....

Each player will sit in the gym every day after practice until he makes 20 free throws in a row. I don't care if you have to stay there all night. If you make 20 free throws straight, you can go home.

We will watch game film of other teams who actually know how to play against the zone. Some ideas might be to actually get the ball to the guy at the free throw line every now and then, maybe even set up a high low sometimes.

Any player who jacks a fadeaway NBA three-pointer will ride pine until their ass is so splintered that they can't sit down anymore.

Any player who can't shoot 50 percent from the line will not see the court ever.

I don't even know what to say any more, I am so frustrated. I'm sure some of the people with the maroon glasses on will be angry at this post for calling out Tubby, but he's not above all criticism. It was a poorly coached and poorly played game. We deserve to drop out of the rankings, we need a wake up call big time.

The odds of us beating A&M tomorrow probably are pretty slim, they played 2 great teams tough, and we beat an overrated mid-major and lost to a terrible WCC team. I'm just as sad as everyone else, but right now I don't see this team being much more than last year, or maybe more like an NIT team.

I don't agree with the direness of your post but otherwise agree with the frustrations.

 

[TubbytownUSA]

I don't agree with the direness of your post but otherwise agree with the frustrations.

Obviously it was a little bit pessimistic due to the proximity of my post to the loss as you can expect from a fan who loves the team that much, but I do believe my frustrations are legit and I don't think Tubby is above criticism. Phenomenal coach, awful performance.

 

[gophermanic]

This is not a ranked team. Butler is very overrated and played poorly against us. They will lose to Texas A&M on Sunday and then to Miami(FL) on Wednesday. Hopefully a 9-9 B10 record will help them squeak into the tourney as an 8-10 seed.

 

[TubbytownUSA]

This is not a ranked team. Butler is very overrated and played poorly against us. They will lose to Texas A&M on Sunday and then to Miami(FL) on Wednesday. Hopefully a 9-9 B10 record will help them squeak into the tourney as an 8-10 seed.

I think that's being optimistic. I agree that we have 2 losses in our next 2 games. I don't see 9-9 in the B10, I'm thinking 7-11 is about what we are looking at right now, about 14 losses on the season.

 

[Plinnius]

Defense - Someone please tell me why we are doubling down on their posts when our post defender has a significant height advantage? Really you think we would figure out that every time we helped down, they kicked it out and nailed a three. Even I figured that out after about 10 possessions. Sampson and Iverson didn't need the help, but sure enough we kept doing it and kept getting burned.

This frustrates me more than anything. I can't fathom why we keep doing this. It's the reason that an undersized Michigan squad that lives and dies by the three beat us in the Barn last season.

 

[EG#9]

This is way too negative for one bad game this early in the season. The swing it around the perimeter and jack up a bad 3 was NOT a regular occurance in this game, it happened a few times in the last 8 minutes or so of the game. The Gophers missed a ton of shots from inside the arc and, perhaps more importantly, believed that offensive rebounding was not allowed in this particular game.

I don't see why, based on this one poor performance, you would make sweeping negative predictions about the outcome of the entire season. The Gophers played an awful game, yet barely lost to a team that destroyed UCLA and beat Oregon this season.

I see gophermanic has posted in this thread, how fitting. I thought (maybe just hoped?) he was just a football board poster.

 

[howeda7]

Good lord, this is really the manic-depressives anonymous club isn't it? You all need to step back and chill out. We were ranked 16th for a reaon. Butler was ranked 10th for a reason. We played very well and beat them. Tonight we played poorly and lost to a good, not great, mid-major. This is not the end of the world. But now we're going to lose 11 conference games and end up in NIT? Give me a break. Seriously guys, don't turn the basketball board into the same cess-pool as the football board after every loss.

 

[Rick Mons]

They will lose to Texas A&M on Sunday and then to Miami(FL) on Wednesday.

And if they win both games, chances are pretty good that you'll not come back here. We'll see you after the next loss for sure, though.

 

[gophermanic]

And if they win both games, chances are pretty good that you'll not come back here. We'll see you after the next loss for sure, though.

Sorry but, if they cant beat the Portland Pilots, they are not going to beat a quality A&M team and Miami on the road. Nice try though.

 

[underground629]

Do you overreact to everything? 7-11? I can't tell if you're being serious with that ridiculous of a statement.

I think that's being optimistic. I agree that we have 2 losses in our next 2 games. I don't see 9-9 in the B10, I'm thinking 7-11 is about what we are looking at right now, about 14 losses on the season.

 

[TubbytownUSA]

I hate agreeing with gophermanic's pessimism right now, but it's hard not to. A&M has been more than solid. Butler isn't a top 25 team, and we barely beat them. Then we lost to....the Portland Pilots?!?!? Will someone tell me who they are?!?! EXCUSE ME?? Didn't they win less than 10 games a year or two ago?

We lost to an average WCC team, and it's not acceptable no matter how you try to spin it. You can't tell me this team is tourney bound after watching that game can you honestly? With no maroon glasses on

 

[underground629]

This does piss me off sometimes, but we actually did a good job defending the 3 for the most part for how good of a 3 point shooting team that is. We held them to 32% when they have shot almost 60% coming into this game.

This frustrates me more than anything. I can't fathom why we keep doing this. It's the reason that an undersized Michigan squad that lives and dies by the three beat us in the Barn last season.

 

[PeanutButterGopherTime]

Tubbytown you are a dumbass. If you paid any attention to any games you would see a lot of programs taking losses, MSU included.

 

[Plinnius]

This does piss me off sometimes, but we actually did a good job defending the 3 for the most part for how good of a 3 point shooting team that is. We held them to 32% when they have shot almost 60% coming into this game.

How many solid looks did they have?

 

[TubbytownUSA]

Do you overreact to everything? 7-11? I can't tell if you're being serious with that ridiculous of a statement.

Did you watch the game? Tell me what Big 10 teams we beat playing like that. I'm being serious. I love our team and cheer for them always, but I'm just done having huge expectations when they get crushed.

 

[Rick Mons]

Tubby was brutally outcoached by some scrub ... Portland is not a good team

While I think we should have beaten Portland, they're not a bunch of cupcakes nor is their coach "some scrub." Portland's coach was WCC Coach of the Year last year and has turned around a program that was floundering. Portland also returned all 5 of its starters after a 19-13 season and 3rd place in the WCC.

Very few teams go through a season without a bad game or two. I think this was one of ours ... but I doubt we'll be plagued by them throughout the season.

 

[underground629]

There were a couple of blown plays, but it wasn't that bad. Most were contested pretty well. Almost cutting a team's usual 3 pt percentage in half is pretty good I'd say.

How many solid looks did they have?

 

[TubbytownUSA]

Tubbytown you are a dumbass. If you paid any attention to any games you would see a lot of programs taking losses, MSU included.

They lost to a tough Florida team on the road, not a crappy WCC team. And it's not just the loss, it's the way we played. Thanks for the personal attack though, and maybe you should be paying attention to the games a little more closely.

 

[rcpratt]

They lost to a tough Florida team on the road, not a crappy WCC team. And it's not just the loss, it's the way we played. Thanks for the personal attack though, and maybe you should be paying attention to the games a little more closely.

Was a neutral court game in Atlantic City, NJ, but yeah, Florida looks pretty solid this year.

 

[TubbytownUSA]

While I think we should have beaten Portland, they're not a bunch of cupcakes nor is their coach "some scrub." Portland's coach was WCC Coach of the Year last year and has turned around a program that was floundering. Portland also returned all 5 of its starters after a 19-13 season and 3rd place in the WCC.

Very few teams go through a season without a bad game or two. I think this was one of ours ... but I doubt we'll be plagued by them throughout the season.

19-13 and 3rd place in a terrible conference is not a good team, no matter who you return. I will agree that calling their coach a scrub may have been a little harsh and I apologize for that statement, but I don't think it's harsh to say he whipped Tubby in that department today. It's not just the fact that we lost to a terrible team, it's the way we lost. Every single weakness we had was exposed today.

 

[EG#9]

They lost to a tough Florida team on the road, not a crappy WCC team. And it's not just the loss, it's the way we played. Thanks for the personal attack though, and maybe you should be paying attention to the games a little more closely.

Last post in this thread, then I am done with it. Portland put the worst @ss kicking on UCLA since like 2003, we didn't play Arkansas Pine Bluff tonight. I agree with many of your statements about this one game, but don't understand why you take it to mean doom for the rest of the season. If the Gophers actually make a few free throws and eek out an ugly victory, do you post the same thing? One poor performance (in NOVEMBER) should not cloud your judgment. I would not expect the final four if we beat Kansas tonight in a similar way to how Portland beat us tonight, would you?

 

[TubbytownUSA]

Last post in this thread, then I am done with it. Portland put the worst @ss kicking on UCLA since like 2003, we didn't play Arkansas Pine Bluff tonight. I agree with many of your statements about this one game, but don't understand why you take it to mean doom for the rest of the season. If the Gophers actually make a few free throws and eek out an ugly victory, do you post the same thing? One poor performance (in NOVEMBER) should not cloud your judgment. I would not expect the final four if we beat Kansas tonight in a similar way to how Portland beat us tonight, would you?

Worst since 2003? This is the worst UCLA team since like 1800. We didnt play APB, but we didn't play a ranked team, or a team that would be anywhere near the top half of the Big 10.

It doesn't necessarily mean huge doom for the season, but it also makes it silly for people to be predicting a decent B10 finish and a NCAA tourney then too. If we eek out an ugly victory, I still make a post about how disgusting it was and all of our glaring weakness. Although i wouldn't predict as much doom and gloom had we won, the main thing is, WE DIDNT. Good teams find a way to beat these teams, no matter how poorly they shoot from the line or what kind of mistakes they made.

Had we beat Kansas in a similar way to how Portland beat us tonight, I would surely not have predicted Final 4, but I would've felt damn good about us being a Sweet 16 team, as a win against the best team in the country surely makes you relevant on the national scene.

While it may be a bit extreme, this loss totally kills any gains we made from beating Butler, plus some.

 

[howeda7]

One poor performance (in NOVEMBER) should not cloud your judgment. I would not expect the final four if we beat Kansas tonight in a similar way to how Portland beat us tonight, would you?

I get the feeling Tubbytown and Gophermanic would indeed be talking final 4 if we'd beaten Kansas tonight which is why they're screaming bloody murder that we lost to Portland. Grow up. Don't get to high when you win, or too low when you lose and stop acting like a petulent 10 year old.

Portland would beat several teams in the Big 10 on a neutral court. This might not even be the worst loss we have this year. Just because they're from the WCC, this is a 'terrible' loss in your eyes. If you actually paid attention you'd know that's not true. Would you be screaming as louldy if we'd have lost to UCLA by 5? Probably not. But in reality that would be a much, much worse loss.

 

[TubbytownUSA]

I get the feeling Tubbytown and Gophermanic would indeed be talking final 4 if we'd beaten Kansas tonight which is why they're screaming bloody murder that we lost to Portland. Grow up. Don't get to high when you win, or too low when you lose and stop acting like a petulent 10 year old.

Portland would beat several teams in the Big 10 on a neutral court. This might not even be the worst loss we have this year. Just because they're from the WCC, this is a 'terrible' loss in your eyes. If you actually paid attention you'd know that's not true. Would you be screaming as louldy if we'd have lost to UCLA by 5? Probably not. But in reality that would in reality be a much, much worse loss.

False, look at my posts after wins. I am not someone like him who only posts when we lose, I like to keep things in perspective and I did warn you that my post was a rant, meaning that it shouldn't be taken with full seriousness in regards to how doom and gloom it was. When we beat Butler on Thursday I was the first to say that it was a nice win, but they were horribly overrated and not a true top 25 team in my mind.

I would definitely be screaming just as loudly had we lost to UCLA, as I understand how terrible they are. I disagree with you that Portland would beat several B10 teams on a neutral court, you're just trying to justify the loss.

If this isn't the worst loss of our season, we have SERIOUS issues.

 

[dbuton]

(Warning, angry rant...No I am not a troll or a Gopher hater, I just love our team too much to not be incredibly pissed off right now)

That was EMBARRASSING!!!

Are you kidding me?!?! I love Tubby but that was one of the most poorly coached games I have ever seen from him. Swing the ball around the perimeter for 30 seconds, then jack up a terrible 3 from NBA range. And how hard is it to make a free throw?

Portland is not a good team and we shouldn't say that just to make ourselves feel better. They were horrible. Hell, I could sit and make open 3s if you give them to me all day. I could also defend the Gophers if they're going to just swing it around the whole game.

Pros:

We can now significantly lower our expectations, and maybe be as good as last year to squeak into the NCAA tournament, but likely end up in the NIT.

Cons:

Free Throws - Laughable. I don't know if that's coaching or what, but that's unreal. It's utterly ridiculous. I'm way too pissed to check out a box score right now to see what percentage we shot, but I'm going to guess about 50.

Offense - We might have the worst half court offense in the Big 10, especially against the zone defense. First, we have NO go-to scorer. I was hoping that someone would step into that role, but we honestly have no one.

Coaching - Tubby was brutally outcoached by some scrub. What team wouldn't play zone against us now? Our offensive set against the zone is disgusting. I can draw up something better than that, come on tubby.

Intensity - We played with intensity for about 30 seconds and we actually tried to make it a game. Other than that, we looked like we didn't care and thought that we deserved to win this game. Well look what happens Gophers, when you don't come to play you lose to a horrible WCC team.

Defense - Someone please tell me why we are doubling down on their posts when our post defender has a significant height advantage? Really you think we would figure out that every time we helped down, they kicked it out and nailed a three. Even I figured that out after about 10 possessions. Sampson and Iverson didn't need the help, but sure enough we kept doing it and kept getting burned.

In bounds plays - I've never seen a team run worse in bounds plays. All we do is lob the ball up in the air way in the back court and hope we get it. Never set ourselves up to score, never anything creative, and not even that safe.

Plays out of timeouts - How come we can never draw up an awesome play out of a timeout? Execution maybe? I have no idea but we can never seem to come out of a timeout with a good plan, whereas other teams do a phenomenal job doing so.

My solution....

Each player will sit in the gym every day after practice until he makes 20 free throws in a row. I don't care if you have to stay there all night. If you make 20 free throws straight, you can go home.

We will watch game film of other teams who actually know how to play against the zone. Some ideas might be to actually get the ball to the guy at the free throw line every now and then, maybe even set up a high low sometimes.

Any player who jacks a fadeaway NBA three-pointer will ride pine until their ass is so splintered that they can't sit down anymore.

Any player who can't shoot 50 percent from the line will not see the court ever.

I don't even know what to say any more, I am so frustrated. I'm sure some of the people with the maroon glasses on will be angry at this post for calling out Tubby, but he's not above all criticism. It was a poorly coached and poorly played game. We deserve to drop out of the rankings, we need a wake up call big time.

The odds of us beating A&M tomorrow probably are pretty slim, they played 2 great teams tough, and we beat an overrated mid-major and lost to a terrible WCC team. I'm just as sad as everyone else, but right now I don't see this team being much more than last year, or maybe more like an NIT team.

I agree with almost everything you said. I do believe Portland is no a terrible wcc team, but still we should have beat them. I just can not believe how we were out rebounded, it was pathetic to say the least. IF we had a PF we do win this game however.
This is an average Big ten team, not even based on tonights performance. They did not play well against a bad Butler squad, and it is hard to imigine how they beat A&M. (not sure Miami, have not seen them play this year)
Did you say in another thread you would put your house up thinking the gophers would win?? HOPE NOT!!

 

[howeda7]

Tubbytown, I'll give you this much..losing to Portland sort of 'kills' the gains we made by beating Butler. So if we beat A&M (and we'll be favored despite your gloom and doom) I'd wager we'll basically hold steady in the rankings next week. So for all your writing off the season we'll STILL be ranked in the top 25. Oh how horrible we must be, right?

 

[howeda7]

False, look at my posts after wins. I am not someone like him who only posts when we lose, I like to keep things in perspective and I did warn you that my post was a rant, meaning that it shouldn't be taken with full seriousness in regards to how doom and gloom it was. When we beat Butler on Thursday I was the first to say that it was a nice win, but they were horribly overrated and not a true top 25 team in my mind.

I would definitely be screaming just as loudly had we lost to UCLA, as I understand how terrible they are. I disagree with you that Portland would beat several B10 teams on a neutral court, you're just trying to justify the loss.

If this isn't the worst loss of our season, we have SERIOUS issues.

In fairness, you did put a 'disclaimer' but I'm sorry if I don't buy those as a general rule. If you know what you're writing is being done completely in anger and you're irrational, then don't waste the space.

You made some valid points about this particular game, but took it to a ridiculous level by writing off the season in one broad stroke.

I also love how everyone is now calling Butler a 'bad' team and completely discounting how we 'barely' beat them. Were they over-rated at #10? Probably so. Are they still a top 25 team? Probably so. I've seen numerous stories about whether they're a legit final 4 contender, but because we beat them (and we're below average Big 10 slop appearantly) well then Butler must suck.

 

[TubbytownUSA]

Tubbytown, I'll give you this much..losing to Portland sort of 'kills' the gains we made by beating Butler. So if we beat A&M (and we'll be favored despite your gloom and doom) I'd wager we'll basically hold steady in the rankings next week. So for all your writing off the season we'll STILL be ranked in the top 25. Oh how horrible we must be, right?

I think that it kills the gains, plus some. Beating an overrated team ranked slightly ahead of you then getting embarrassed by an unranked average team in a below average conference? I doubt we hold steady, too many teams to jump us. You can't lose a game to a horrible team this early and remain ranked (I could very well be wrong, so I'll eat crow once I am, but still a believer that rankings mean little)

I agree with almost everything you said. I do believe Portland is no a terrible wcc team, but still we should have beat them. I just can not believe how we were out rebounded, it was pathetic to say the least. IF we had a PF we do win this game however.
This is an average Big ten team, not even based on tonights performance. They did not play well against a bad Butler squad, and it is hard to imigine how they beat A&M. (not sure Miami, have not seen them play this year)
Did you say in another thread you would put your house up thinking the gophers would win?? HOPE NOT!!

The rebounding was bad. I blame a lot of that on our guards inability to box out as well. We never get long rebounds. An average Big 10 team is being pretty generous but I'll give you that I suppose. .500 at the best.

I find it really hard to imagine that we beat A&M, they're actually playing legit teams tough, while we are getting beat by horrid ones.

I did say that in another thread, I'm homless now someone take me in?
But honestly, I did lose a lot of money on the Big 10 tonight, MSU, Ill, Minnesota...

 

[XMan]

Tubbytown, you sound like a middle school kid who posts to the extreme either way.

Unfortunately, I think many of your points on the con list were spot on. I am not sure about the double down, which helped open up a lot of three's for them. However, the defense was also very solid at times.

Offensively, that was one of the worst shooting nights I have seen from the Gophers and the free throw shooting was even worse.

I felt there were times when Nolen would beat his guy off the dribble and drive, shoot or dish that our offense looked more efficient. They did a nice job bouncing between zone and man to man. They played good defense on us, but if we even shoot average from the floor or the line, we win this game easily.