THIS TEAM KICKS A$$

that about sums it up

 

They are definitely kicking it at KU right now

 

We just took down the number 3 team in the country by 25 points—while on the road...!

 

I think I am ready to let unrestrained optimism loose, I have been holding back because Smart's teams in the past have teased us, but winning in Lawrence is another thing altogether. Awesome!

 

Great win, but I doubt we have another opponent go 3/25 from three the rest of the season. In fact that was probably a once in a decade shooting performance from Canzez.

 

KU’s shooting stunk up the joint. But remember, part of that is due to our exceptionally tight D.

 

We have disrupted every opponent's offense all year long. KU was not an anomaly in that regard, though I will admit to being quite pleased to see a few open Jayhawk 3 pointers clanking off the rim. The rest of the misses? Those were forced, or at the very least, influenced by our defense.

 

Yeah, it’s not just coincidence that opponents tend to have one of their worst shooting days of the year when they play us.

 

IMHO, Shaka is an exceptional defensive coach and recruiter. He’s good enough at coaching offense—good enough—to make for an overall very good team.

Great talent + great defense. That’s us. We’re also very physical and tough on the boards at both ends of the court. And we can hit three pointers.

 

Of course this team played great defense, that is their greatest strength. Especially on the inside. However, go back and watch the game. 12-14 of their 20 missed 3's there was no defender on the shooter. It was not only great defense but also a very off shooting day for Canzez.

It was also a very "ON" shooting day for Texas. .462 from 3 is a whole lot better than the .344 season average. Although it seems to be getting better as the season progresses. But it was still a day where everything fell into place, and was an off day for Canzez, but it was a combination of great defense and the other team just being off.

 

Under NO circumstance do we cut Sampson's hair!!

You all know I've been quite the pessimist about Shaka and we all know this is supposed to be the year it all comes together. Well, I'll admit it looks like Shaka finally went back to what he knows combined with a veteran team and it's working.

After that 25 point *** kicking of KU, I have no reason to believe this team can't do big things.

I'm in....I'm a believer, for this year...Shaka, just go get it done! And don't break my heart again...

 

That was impressive, wonder how many teams have beaten UNC, KU, and Kentucky in the same season? Can we schedule a UCLA game real quick to get all 4 in?

 

Add the Hoosiers to this list!

 

I am not a basketball guy too much, but I did watch the game. You are right that that result—the blowout—was due to KU being off and us being on from 3. Still, just in terms of us beating them in Kansas, that didn’t seem fluky at all. Seems like we would beat them 6/10 on the road and 7-8/10 at home. When have we ever thought that?

 

Our big guys are tough and mean on the boards--so far, more than anyone we've faced, including Nova and Kansas.

The hustle and desire is there and is deep down. Our guys have that burning fire inside them.

 

That was the worst home beat down of one of the top 3 basketball programs in the history of the NCAA. For sure nothing fluky about that.

 

6 game winning streak. Just took down WV on the road. Fun and exciting to watch.

 

Wow. I had a really bad feeling about this game and stopped watching when we up very early on, then saw us down later by 10 or so early in second half. These guys are something special.

 

WV was the first time we faced a big man (Culver) who was even tougher and meaner down low than our big men. And we still found a way to win. There aren't many Culvers out there. And, importantly, the few of them that are out there generally aren't paired up with 2 lights-out outside shooters.

When we face another Culver, I hope we: (a) get him into foul trouble, and (b) press and run him. Those larger, heavier big men get winded; our big men are fast and athletic. Moreover, we have the quality depth to support a pressing attack--including down low.

 

My favorite play of the game was Kai blocking Culver and then beating everyone down the court for the long pass and layup on the other end. Culver hadn't even got to half court when Kai scored.

 

I was watching the game while reviewing a report. So I didn't have the appropriate level of focusness. But it seemed to me that Sims handled Culver well. Since Sims fouled out in a total of about 15 seconds (slight exaggeration) the sample size was likely too small for my conclusion. I think we were dominating with Sims in the game.

 

Sims has dominated pretty much everyone he's faced this year, except Culver.

Culver 14 points, 16 rebounds
Sims 2 points, 3 rebounds

Culver has been the only player I've seen this year who could lean on our big men down low and (legally) push them out of position using his strong body/torso and legs. It was a factor of Culver being so big and strong--yet he got winded a number of times. Culver is a big muscle-bound power guy--a bruiser. Our big guys are athletic and well-conditioned.

And, from reading my posts prior to, and throughout the season, anyone can tell I've been the biggest pro-Shaka sunshine pumper for our team on these boards. Just telling it like it is--what I saw with Culver. We still won. And I think we'll beat them again the next time we play them. Culver is still a bada$$--but he can be worn down and tired out. Our guys are more athletic.

 

Great post Chop^^^ And I agree that the horns will beat wvu when they play in Austin. Why? Because we won despite 1) Culver pretty much having his way with Sims, and 2) we won despite having an unusually bad shooting day from beyond the arc.
Even with Culver's strong inside presence our guys doubled wvu's scoring in the paint. Our guards were slicing and dicing to get to the hoop and score or get fouled and get to the line. Ramey was awsome and Coleman was very good.

Our shooters will not go 0-12 from behind the arc again. Sims will not forget that Culver embarrassed him in the first meeting and he'll come into the rematch with a chip on his shoulder. Look for Sims to shine in that one. Also, Jones won't have to hit a last second bomb to win in Austin. I fully expect Andrew to toss in some some big shots every game from here on out.

Your pumping and the Horn's play has got me firmly on the bandwagon!! And I'm excited to be here.

 

Other than KU they are having down years, but beating Kansas, Indiana and North Carolina in the same year feels pretty damn good.