2012-2013 NCAA Basketball thread

[farmteam]

 

LOL, I like how Crean tried to pretend like he was laughing and joking after he realized the camera got close

Yeah...I don't think Crean was very happy. What I haven't been able to tell is whether something precipitated this -- either Meyer or someone else saying something -- or Crean just went up to him. I would think it's the latter, but I've never seen him go up to someone like that. Odd.

 

Granted, I am even more biased than usual on this one, since I too am not a fan of Jeff Meyer.

[farmteam]

Yeah...I don't think Crean was very happy. What I haven't been able to tell is whether something precipitated this -- either Meyer or someone else saying something -- or Crean just went up to him. I would think it's the latter, but I've never seen him go up to someone like that. Odd.

 

Granted, I am even more biased than usual on this one, since I too am not a fan of Jeff Meyer.

Just a quick follow up...

 

Crean called Meyer to apologize. There are also rumors that Meyer told Crean to go f*** himself during the handshake line, but those are of course just that -- rumors.

[illinilaw08]

Agreed that it wasn't an intentional foul. It just gets tricky because he's behind the ball and had zero chance of getting the ball. Most hard fouls for contested layups/dunks at least have a chance at getting the ball as well as man. Still, you can't call it an intentional foul. If that's an intentional foul than IU committed four in the last minute.

 

Wouldn't have had a problem with that call going either way. Yeah, he made a play on the ball, but there aren't many plays more dangerous than shoving a guy in the back from directly behind on a breakaway. I would love to see college basketball adopt the Clear Path rule from the NBA for situations like this one.

 

Congratulations need to go out to Indiana, however. They had a couple very, very tough wins on the road (Michigan State and Michigan in particular) where they easily could have folded down the stretch. They earned the B1G title this year.

[RockRaines]

Just a quick follow up...

 

Crean called Meyer to apologize. There are also rumors that Meyer told Crean to go f*** himself during the handshake line, but those are of course just that -- rumors.

Rumors probably started on an IU board. If you win the outright conference title you don't do what he did.

 

He's lucky they pulled that out yesterday otherwise it would have been a pretty large fail of a season. All that talent returning and that "unreal" recruiting class got him exactly one more win.

[Boogua]

Rumors probably started on an IU board. If you win the outright conference title you don't do what he did.

 

He's lucky they pulled that out yesterday otherwise it would have been a pretty large fail of a season. All that talent returning and that "unreal" recruiting class got him exactly one more win.

That "unreal" recruiting class was overrated for a while. Yogi is really good and Hollowell is decent. The people that thought Perea would be a difference maker right away and that Jurkin could contribute right away were just way off. I remember how people were saying how much they were going to gain when Perea and Jurkin would come back from suspension. It was stupid. Perea has always been really raw and his rating had dropped from 5 star status (I believe) to barely sneaking into the top 50. Jurkin was a 3 star project at Center. They're probably going to be good down the line though.

 

 

[RockRaines]

@NicoleAuerbach: John Beilein on the Crean/Meyer incident: "Michigan is always going to win with class and lose with class. ... Jeff showed great poise."

[IlliniKrush]

Rumors probably started on an IU board. If you win the outright conference title you don't do what he did.

 

He's lucky they pulled that out yesterday otherwise it would have been a pretty large fail of a season. All that talent returning and that "unreal" recruiting class got him exactly one more win.

Way to stay classy, Crean.

 

It's still a fail of a season if they don't reach the FF, one could argue it's a fail if they won't win the title if they wanted to as well.

[Rex Hudler]

I don't think you can ever call a season a failure if a team doesn't win the title. The Final Four is just too competitive. That said, I would be very disappointed if IU doesn't make the Final Four, but I have enjoyed this team a lot this year, even with the few disappointments.

 

As far as Crean, I don't much care what others think from the outside looking in. I like him and hope he continues to be IU's Head Coach. As far as yesterday, who knows what has been said between Crean and Meyer. The bottom line is, Michigan can say they win with class, but they did hire a guy that was central to all of the BS that happened at Indiana under Sampson. That doesn't mean he shouldn't be hired anywhere, but it should be no surprise if he is one of the last guys Crean wants to be social with. I'm sure there was a lot of emotion yesterday, with the game ending the way it did, clinching the title outright and the journey that it has taken to get to that point. Yes, he should have controlled his emotions, but it happened. So what. Time to move on and win some more games.

[RockRaines]

I don't think you can ever call a season a failure if a team doesn't win the title. The Final Four is just too competitive. That said, I would be very disappointed if IU doesn't make the Final Four, but I have enjoyed this team a lot this year, even with the few disappointments.

 

As far as Crean, I don't much care what others think from the outside looking in. I like him and hope he continues to be IU's Head Coach. As far as yesterday, who knows what has been said between Crean and Meyer. The bottom line is, Michigan can say they win with class, but they did hire a guy that was central to all of the BS that happened at Indiana under Sampson. That doesn't mean he shouldn't be hired anywhere, but it should be no surprise if he is one of the last guys Crean wants to be social with. I'm sure there was a lot of emotion yesterday, with the game ending the way it did, clinching the title outright and the journey that it has taken to get to that point. Yes, he should have controlled his emotions, but it happened. So what. Time to move on and win some more games.

So You are ok with his actions yesterday? As far as Meyer being "central" or "at fault", IU hired Kelvin Sampson, whoever hired him ruined the program.

[Balta1701]

So You are ok with his actions yesterday? As far as Meyer being "central" or "at fault", IU hired Kelvin Sampson, whoever hired him ruined the program.

I'll grant you shouldn't do that on the cameras, but I think even a Michigan fan would guess that there was something else that precipitated that reaction other than what happened 4 years ago, so we're probably only getting 1/2 the story.

 

But Hell, I also really don't mind anyone on that staff being called out, screamed at, or anything else. That includes the people who hired that blankety-blank and then failed to monitor him. So yeah, it looks bad on TV, but I'm not going to be mad for him getting called out.

 

If nothing else...anyone who wants to hire that guy as their head coach in the next couple years might surreptitiously put in a call to Crean and see what it was about.

[farmteam]

I don't think you can ever call a season a failure if a team doesn't win the title. The Final Four is just too competitive. That said, I would be very disappointed if IU doesn't make the Final Four, but I have enjoyed this team a lot this year, even with the few disappointments.

 

As far as Crean, I don't much care what others think from the outside looking in. I like him and hope he continues to be IU's Head Coach. As far as yesterday, who knows what has been said between Crean and Meyer. The bottom line is, Michigan can say they win with class, but they did hire a guy that was central to all of the BS that happened at Indiana under Sampson. That doesn't mean he shouldn't be hired anywhere, but it should be no surprise if he is one of the last guys Crean wants to be social with. I'm sure there was a lot of emotion yesterday, with the game ending the way it did, clinching the title outright and the journey that it has taken to get to that point. Yes, he should have controlled his emotions, but it happened. So what. Time to move on and win some more games.

I like him as a coach because he's brought us back pretty quickly, and by all appearances without doing anything shady. But as a person, he annoys the hell out of me. Very cocky, and frankly way too preachy (including his never ending bible thumping). But frankly, although I want the coaches of the teams I'm a fan of to be likable, I'd rather I like them as coaches first. That's what they're there for.

 

Like I said about this Meyer/Crean tiff, it is hard for me to be impartial about it because I'm not exactly Jeff Meyer's biggest fan, or anywhere close. I thought Dana O'Neill had a good piece on it (as she usually does). Doesn't matter if Meyer really did tell Crean to go f*** himself; Crean can't react like that. That negatively affects him as a coach and a leader.

[Soxbadger]

(This was in response to Balta and others, Farmteam's post wasnt up, I alluded to the alleged comment made by Meyer)

 

Really?

 

In what world is it Crean's place to say anything? Unless Meyer made a specific remark to Crean (which is possible), Crean should have just kept his mouth shut. Indiana won the game, you dont need to go and find a guy to try and publicly embarrass him. Last I checked, Crean wasnt even at Indiana when that happened, he should be thanking Sampson because if it wasnt for that cluster, Crean wouldnt coaching Indiana.

 

The people who should be screamed at, the people who should suffer, are all the Indiana fans who loved Sampson, who were quite happy with everything Sampson was doing, until they got caught.

 

Those very same people are defending Tom Crean, no matter what.

 

Irony.

Edited March 11, 2013 by Soxbadger

[farmteam]

I'll grant you shouldn't do that on the cameras, but I think even a Michigan fan would guess that there was something else that precipitated that reaction other than what happened 4 years ago, so we're probably only getting 1/2 the story.

 

But Hell, I also really don't mind anyone on that staff being called out, screamed at, or anything else. That includes the people who hired that blankety-blank and then failed to monitor him. So yeah, it looks bad on TV, but I'm not going to be mad for him getting called out.

 

If nothing else...anyone who wants to hire that guy as their head coach in the next couple years might surreptitiously put in a call to Crean and see what it was about.

I don't mind any of those people getting called out either, but it doesn't look good and more importantly, it takes away from his players.

[farmteam]

Really?

 

In what world is it Crean's place to say anything? Unless Meyer made a specific remark to Crean (which is possible), Crean should have just kept his mouth shut. Indiana won the game, you dont need to go and find a guy to try and publicly embarrass him. Last I checked, Crean wasnt even at Indiana when that happened, he should be thanking Sampson because if it wasnt for that cluster, Crean wouldnt coaching Indiana.

 

The people who should be screamed at, the people who should suffer, are all the Indiana fans who loved Sampson, who were quite happy with everything Sampson was doing, until they got caught.

 

Those very same people are defending Tom Crean, no matter what.

 

Irony.

The bolded may be true for some unfortunate Indiana fans, but you're sorely mistaken if you think it's a significant portion of the fanbase's intelligent members.

[Jenksismyhero]

Do people really think Crean is a good coach? He seems to get outcoached quite a bit and his substitution patterns always seem to screw momentum up in bad ways. I think he finally got some talent and inherited a great home court.

 

I'm interested to see where he takes the program from here. No Zeller, Oladipo, Watford or Hulls. Even with a couple of good recruiting classes, I think this is their year to take a shot at the title before dropping back to the middle of the pack in the Big Ten.

[Soxbadger]

The bolded may be true for some unfortunate Indiana fans, but you're sorely mistaken if you think it's a significant portion of the fanbase's intelligent members.

 

I can only speak about the Indiana fans I know.

 

I generally dont even speak about the school anymore because its just not worth dealing with the fans.

 

You are reasonable, which is why I edited my post.

 

[Soxbadger]

Jenks,

 

Crean isnt a great X/O coach. The scary part is that if Indiana ever got rid of Crean they could possibly get a guy who would be devastating (Brad Stevens).

 

Im just hoping they hold onto Crean long enough that Stevens already has a big time job.

Edited March 11, 2013 by Soxbadger

[Jenksismyhero]

Jenks,

 

Crean isnt a great X/O coach. The scary part is that if Indiana ever got rid of Crean they could possibly get a guy who would be devastating (Brad Stevens).

 

Im just hoping they hold onto Crean long enough that Stevens already has a big time job.

 

Has Stevens ever mentioned Indiana? Is Indiana really one of those top 5 programs? He just took two teams from Butler to the championship game, so it's not like you need to be one of "those" programs to win consistently. I dunno, I think he's Duke bound or he's staying where he is - making a ton of money with half the hassle of a big time program.

[Jenksismyhero]

I can only speak about the Indiana fans I know.

 

I generally dont even speak about the school anymore because its just not worth dealing with the fans.

 

You are reasonable, which is why I edited my post.

 

My two friends that are die hard Indiana fans have taken many positions - Sampson was the savior after Mike Davis. When he got caught cheating it wasn't a big deal and was blown out of proportion. When the sanctions came down it became a big deal because Indiana wasn't a program like "that." When they hired Crean it was "well, he was OK at Marquette" and they hoped he would bring them back to mediocrity to get another big time coach. And of course now Crean is the answer and they're "back" with no signs of ever giving up the reigns of being a big ten/national contender annually.

 

As an Illinois fan stuck in a near 10 year fall from the best 10 years in the program's history, I can appreciate the excitement. But the over-hype is going to cause a pretty brutal fall when Indiana inevitably disappoints in the tournament. Final Four is an absolute minimum expectation. I feel bad for these guys if Indiana plays a team that watched Wisconsin game tape.

[Balta1701]

In what world is it Crean's place to say anything? Unless Meyer made a specific remark to Crean (which is possible), Crean should have just kept his mouth shut. Indiana won the game, you dont need to go and find a guy to try and publicly embarrass him. Last I checked, Crean wasnt even at Indiana when that happened, he should be thanking Sampson because if it wasnt for that cluster, Crean wouldnt coaching Indiana.

Like I said, I can't imagine this happened without something precipitating it, and whatever that was, we'll never know about it.

[Balta1701]

Has Stevens ever mentioned Indiana? Is Indiana really one of those top 5 programs? He just took two teams from Butler to the championship game, so it's not like you need to be one of "those" programs to win consistently. I dunno, I think he's Duke bound or he's staying where he is - making a ton of money with half the hassle of a big time program.

His dad played football at IU and I believe his mom is on the faculty there.

[RockRaines]

I'll grant you shouldn't do that on the cameras, but I think even a Michigan fan would guess that there was something else that precipitated that reaction other than what happened 4 years ago, so we're probably only getting 1/2 the story.

 

But Hell, I also really don't mind anyone on that staff being called out, screamed at, or anything else. That includes the people who hired that blankety-blank and then failed to monitor him. So yeah, it looks bad on TV, but I'm not going to be mad for him getting called out.

 

If nothing else...anyone who wants to hire that guy as their head coach in the next couple years might surreptitiously put in a call to Crean and see what it was about.

To me I think it was classless and wrong and unbecoming of a head coach. If in 4 years Urban runs up to Bollman, Beckman or Hazell and yells they ruined the program I would hope nobody would have his back.

 

Even outside of how classless it was, what a whiny b****. Focus on your team that pulled out a win in the last 40 seconds. Crean's blow by Matta earlier in the week then this? Ridiculous.

[He_Gawn]

Has Stevens ever mentioned Indiana? Is Indiana really one of those top 5 programs? He just took two teams from Butler to the championship game, so it's not like you need to be one of "those" programs to win consistently. I dunno, I think he's Duke bound or he's staying where he is - making a ton of money with half the hassle of a big time program.

 

Stevens grew up a huge IU fan. His father played football at IU and his mother went there too.

 

Won't matter, Crean is a recruiting machine and one of the best "developers" of talent in the country at this time. He isn't going anywhere anytime soon. They'll be consistently in the top 20 for however long he is there. Next year will be a "down" year, but a down year now includes an NCAA birth, top 5 B1G finish, and a chance to make some noise in the tournament.

[RockRaines]

Jenks,

 

Crean isnt a great X/O coach. The scary part is that if Indiana ever got rid of Crean they could possibly get a guy who would be devastating (Brad Stevens).

 

Im just hoping they hold onto Crean long enough that Stevens already has a big time job.

Crean is clearly holding them back if you take into account the talent level of this team and the results this season. I think you'd find quite a few IU fans that feel the same.

[cabiness42]

Stevens grew up a huge IU fan. His father played football at IU and his mother went there too.

 

Won't matter, Crean is a recruiting machine and one of the best "developers" of talent in the country at this time. He isn't going anywhere anytime soon. They'll be consistently in the top 20 for however long he is there. Next year will be a "down" year, but a down year now includes an NCAA birth, top 5 B1G finish, and a chance to make some noise in the tournament.

 

Also, Butler is moving to a conference that includes Georgetown, Marquette and Villanova, so Stevens is going to have a real chance to turn Butler into a perennial Top 25 team.