Big 12 Tournament Day 2: Texas v. Iowa State

Felix? Are you kidding? He was on the bench during the 3 minute meltdown while Taylor went brain dead.

Felix taking the wide open shot with 7 seconds to go did not lose us this game. It's squarely on Taylor with assists to Lammert and Barnes.

 

Turner was not playing well either. I can't imagine he'll stick around based on potential alone, but I don't expect him to be on any NBA team 12-man roster for long stretches of the 2016 season. A year in NBDL playing against Damion James would do him well.

 

f**k and fire Barnes NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

That was 35 minutes of excruciatingly good basketball followed by 5 minutes of excruciatingly bad basketball.

Also, Jevon Felix, you are a selfish basketball player.

 

If there had only been seven seconds left when Felix took the shot it wouldn't have been so bad. Instead there was over nine seconds when he took that bad shot and even after the rebound there was over six seconds to go after the ISU timeout.

I think Barnes should have called a timeout after the offensive rebound and set up some kind of play that made sure we got the last shot of the game.

The stall game though hard to watch was still working till Taylor did try to force that shot going one on two after we get a rebound with 3:30 to go. Texas had a ten point lead and could have taken the clock under three minutes and maybe even increased the lead, instead we foul and the lead gets cut to eight with over three minutes to play.

This team still makes way too many mental mistakes that cost them games even when they play well. Barnes really needs to step up at times when he can to prevent those mistakes, like calling a timeout to make sure you get the last shot and hopefully one closer to the basket. Taylor had been going to the hoop all night, but the most important shot of the game is a jacked up three way to soon that gave ISU a chance to win and they did.

 

The last three minutes was this whole season in a nutshell. So much potential and so many mind numbingly stupid braindead decisions and plays.

 

SOB!

 

Trying to put this on Felix is ignoring Taylor choking a 10 point lead. And let's not forget, it was Taylor who jacked up the shot after Barnes called the timeout with 20+ seconds to go instead of running down the clock. Texas rebounded the ball which set up the final shot. This one is on Taylor - the point guard - the leader on the court. His brain dead play slowing down at mid court and getting the 10 second call was terrible.

We have 2 highly recruited guards coming in next season. I am hoping Taylor pulls a Cory Joseph and leaves early.

 

And Taylor is ???

 

Look there should have been a timeout called and a play set up that gives you the last shot, there is no excuse for not getting the last shot in that game.

A play that gives you a chance to get fouled and a final put back attempt. Letting ISU get the last shot and a chance to win is terrible basketball no matter what happened before that.

 

Barnes After the Game:

"But I really thought there were four crucial plays that hurt us, the two times out in the open court where we should have pulled the ball out and one time we didn't, it came off our chest. The other time we fouled and they went down and scored. And then not getting in, the 10-second violation, those four plays.

I can understand, you like to hold the ball there for that last shot if you could, but I could understand Javan shooting it with the rhythm he was into. Give them credit, one possession, I think they ran down three balls.

We just didn't finish it. Again, I'm proud of my guys. I think that if you're talking about looking at our team from an eyeball test in this atmosphere today, which obviously was like a home game for Iowa State, and the poise our guys played with and the way we did some things, I'm really proud of my team."

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach?

Q. Seemed like the last seven, eight minutes the offense really slowed down and that seemed to be intentional, where you weren't trying to push it to the last few seconds of the shot clock. Can you explain that?

COACH BARNES: "A lot of it was Isaiah, he played his heart out and he was out there the whole time. We were putting a lot on him and I really had confidence in him because I felt like he really had good command of where he was and what he was doing.

So the fact is, you know, they play such a packed defense in there, and we could run, could have kept running motion and those-type things, but I didn't want to just make him run unnecessary motion right there. But you go back to the chances where we did run, those two decisions in the open court, those were not two good decisions right there.

Again, they're an outstanding team and we're an outstanding team and I just hate it for our guys, because, again, it got down to where, again, we made some mental mistakes. Again, the two plays at the end where Connor turned it over throwing it in and Isaiah's 10-second call and I should have called time-out but I thought he was going to bring it across."

 

A timeout was called. It was Taylor who quickly jacked up the shot. Did we have a timeout left when he missed the shot?

 

Yes, we did and it should have been called to set up the last shot after the offensive rebound.

There was over 13 seconds left and we used all of four seconds of it to take the shot.

 

Q. Rick, after Connor grabbed that last rebound of Isaiah's shot, did you have a time-out to call there? And if you didn't, did you think about just having them wait for one shot?


COACH BARNES: We were hoping to go with one shot right there. I actually told the referee, if we score, we want a time-out. We got the long rebound and they were denying Isaiah the ball and, again, Javan -- obviously you want last shot there, but if it goes in, you're like -- and that's why I said about poise and our guys' mind-set. There was no hesitation from that end, it's just that we made a few careless plays at the wrong time. We could, like I said -- yeah, we had a time-out left. We were going to use it if we made it to set our defense.

But, again, the last shot is one thing, it's what happened up to that. It goes back to the two open court plays, the 10-second call, Connor's turnover and that's not just his fault, it's everybody moving to get it. You got to give them credit, they ran down a couple of rebounds and made some shots.

 

Everyone, I have to take partial responsibility for this loss. I was watching the first half at home and giving updates. I talked to some friends and we decided to meet up at an Austin sports bar to watch the second half. I obviously stopped the updates. My change of location and lack of updates upset the basketball gods/fate and we did not play like we did in the first half. I take responsibility and apologize to the fans, players and coaches.

That being said......

^ THIS THIS THIS THIS

The meltdown was bad, but we should have still won the game or at least gone to overtime. We had the ball on the last possession.

65% of this loss is on Barnes. 35% is on Felix.

Felix made a terrible decision. I do not know what he was thinking (he was not), but that decision was a major factor in the loss.

However, at least 65% of this is on Barnes for the reason quoted above. I know watching this team all year they do not have a high basketball IQ. It has cost games again and again. RICK BARNES SHOULD KNOW THIS BY NOW. He should have IMMEDIATELY called a time out after the Lammert rebound. Barnes had ample opportunity to do so. In the postgame Barnes said "Well, I really hate it for our guys. ... I could've helped them a little bit more." Yes he certainly SHOULD HAVE. My immediate reaction was "our players will not run out the clock without being reminded to, call the time out." I have a sports ball full of witnesses of me yelling "TIME OUT! TIME OUT! TIME OUT!!!!!!!!" after the rebound. If I knew to do that, Rick Barnes CERTAINLY should have known. This loss mostly falls on Barnes. Felix missed up, but Barnes had the opportunity to prevent it.

All of this being said, this loss put us in the NCAA tournament. I'll go ahead and put myself out there and call it. All the people saying "NIT" are unlikely to be correct. They are not looking at the rest of the bubble. Miami barely beat a terrible virginia tech and is getting blown out by Notre Dame. Illinois got blown out by a terrible Michigan team. Cal got blown out by Arizona. Texas A&M was easily defeated by 14-19 Auburn. Ole Miss is losing to south carolina right now.

We easily beat Tech and lost at the buzzer against Big XII #2 top 15 Iowa State. We are in (probably a play in game) unless a bunch of teams that are currently out win their conference tournaments.

 

I'm sorry but that's silly. This loss is on Taylor.

Felix is always the easy punching bag, but it was Taylor's one on one street ball mentality that cost us this game.

And you are right on about the low basketball iq of this team.

 

fWhat a horrible horrible game - blown 18 point lead, Turner on the bench most of the 2nd half. Like Lucy, Barnes got some 'splainin' to do plus damn HTown77 jinxed us with his interruption and mojo changing intervention of friends.

 

Joe Lunardi just said we remain in the tournament as of now (pending any conference tournament upsets). Have to hope the bubble teams continue to lose..... so this team and coach can make boneheaded decisions once more and rip our hearts out again.

 

Actually I do not disagree. I completely expected Taylor to shoot the ball with way too much time left. Taylor passing it to Felix so he could shoot with way to much time left was a surprise (the felix being the guy part at least).

Barnes knows the basketball IQ. He should have called a time out. He could have drawn up a play like the one he used to beat connecticut which was AFTER A TIMEOUT.

 

Taylor and Felix played great for most of the game. Without their play, we aren't close at the end. I think Barnes mindless slow down of the offense in the second half did us in. And then Barnes watching the last minute unfold, being a spectator, without calling timeout is a brain fart of mammoth proportions. I've been mostly a Barnes supporter, but its really hard to say he deserves to come back after such a disappointing end to the season. Even if we get into the NCAA, we won't do anything; a one and done should not be enough to automatically say he's back.

 

^ I am not confident we'll do anything (we might win the play in game though because we have beaten the low quality opponents and it will not be big 12 competition) BUT I will wait and see on the tournament. Again, not expecting any wins beyond the play in game, but not going to call that and look foolish on the off chance we win. I am pro waiting for the season to actually end, even if it probably not going to end well.

 

Watching a bubble game between Xavier and Butler. It is a tie game. Xavier has the ball with 17 seconds left. The Xavier coach called a timeout.

Well Xavier had no play whatsoever... so I guess the Xavier coach at least got the time out part right. Did not really follow through on the rest. (xavier did end up winning in overtime)

 

Barnes had them playing not to lose rather than win for most of the game after they got a lead. They remained reasonably aggressive until about halfway through the 2nd half, and then it got ridiculous. Iowa was ready to come with pressure defense when we had run the clock down to 10-15 seconds and it put too much pressure on our offense and we couldn't get any decent shots and got totally out of rhythm. That is Barnes in a nutshell, playing not to lose and thus increasing the chance to lose. I found it interesting as we got less aggressive and more passive, Iowa St got more aggressive and that is the difference in coaching.

 

The loss in on Barnes, not Felix or Taylor. Why would the coach call for the isolation offense with Isaiah driving inside every play in the second half, after the team play and passing were so successful in the first half? I assume he called it. If it was just Isaiah going back to old ways, Barnes should have stopped it. We need a high motion, passing offense, which we have never had under all these years of Barnes.

 

Two bad shots taken as if they thought the shot or game clock was under 2. While the overall offensive failure trend is trademark Barnes, the lack of a sense of timing really isn't - if you are an experienced D1 baller you shouldn't need a coach still actively telling you how the shot and game clocks work.

 

What you say is true, but it was clear from the way that Barnes called the basketball game he didn't trust his players. So, he got what he expected. I've always felt that Barnes style is to brow beat players for every mistake and make quick actions on sitting players and putting them into the doghouse. He creates an atmosphere that tends to make players tight and self conscious. Playing not to lose is what destroyed the big lead and put them into a position where one mistake could cost them the game. So, yes that was horrible individual play at the end, but Barnes set it up by the way he called the game for most of the 2nd half.

The thing is the players had been playing much better the last few games, with rapid movement of the ball and a more aggressive offensive style continuously trying to put pressure on the opposing defense. The players were feeling looser and shots had started to fall. When they went away from this is when the offense went stagnant (there just isn't enough time to probe a defense when you start your offense with 10 seconds left on shot clock). The players got tight and they made mistakes.

 

I really meant for just taking the ball and jacking up that shot at the end of the game with as much time left as there was.

 

The loss is on me, folks. When I get excited about this team and watch, they lose. My bad.

 

That shot should have never been taken with 9 seconds or so left. We left them 6 seconds after the rebound and timeout. Which NEVER should happen. You have to assume a deep shot AND...rebound plus put-back OR rebound plus timeout take approx. 3 seconds for either to happen. Unless you see a wide open player for a sure score underneath...the rule is you take the best shot you can find within a 1-6 seconds window, but nothing with more time. You may even take it down to the buzzer, but NEVER shoot a missable shot with more than 7 seconds. Every fool knows any defensive rebound gives the other team time to set up a play and get a solid look.

There are many reasons we were in that position in the first place, but Felix lost that game. That shot should never have been taking so early. Even if you nail it they have 6 seconds to tie you. The point of last possession is to either the win game or extend it. PERIOD.