Tarred & Feathered

PYB offers another belated thanks to Seth Svoboda for filling in to cover NU's bottle blasting, as he offers a post-mortem which asks the direction of the Conrhusker program as we sit two thirds of the way through the season.

We say, at this point, one has to take a big-picture view when gauging success. With the current roster, NU will be outmanned athletically in almost every game. But the opportunity to win 19 games is still there, so one should forget the idea of style points while looking at the final record. If Doc's group could somehow make the NCAA tournament, it's the best season in Lincoln in more than 10 years. If they make the NIT, sure it sucks, but it's progress over last season.

So thanks again to Seth, and we promise to get these posted in a more timely fashion and feel confident we can deliver that promise since there are no more Phoenix Open weekends in 2011:

State of the Program: Nebraska Basketball
By Seth Svoboda

What exactly are the expectations of a Husker basketball fan? Where are we heading, and how long will it take to get there? I bring this up because something occurred to me with about 10 minutes left in the second half, as I sat squeezed in my seat about three quarters of the way up in the Devaney Center yesterday: we are never going to be elite with our current style and mindset...never.

I love Doc Sadler because he has brought hope back to Husker basketball fans. He took a program that was flatlining and jolted new life into the lifeless corpse known as Nebrasketball (editor's note: a gay term that needs to be 86'd if the program wants to be taken seriously).

Around here we love comeback stories, underdogs and getting your hands dirty. We live in actual "communities" where we know our neighbors, we farm, we fight hard for what is right and are full of heart, we extend a helping hand, and damnit we're proud of that. That's why we love guys like Ryan Anderson and Lance Jeter, Zac Taylor and Barrett Ruud (Editor's note #2: well PYB hates him but Nebraskans love him). They bust their ass to prove the unheralded recruit can play with the big boys.

Nebraska is in many ways the essence of the unheralded recruit--as a Nebraskan you can't help but feel like you're deserving, but that nobody else thinks you are, so we eat that underdog shit up.

Sadler brings those kind of guys in and we have worked hard to move in the right direction. When push came to shove we didn't have a chance yesterday. KU made just about everything they shot (55% from the field and 54% from behind the arc) and we were no match for the mighty Jaycocks. But we have a chance against most Big 12 teams. I want more than a chance, I want expectations. Unfortunately, the very style of kid--the gritty, disrespected, overlooked guys we love so much can only get us so far. Every once in a great while that team shocks everyone and wins a game...maybe two in the NCAA tournament. That's not enough for me, if I wanted that I'd be a Creighton fan.

We are built like a solid UTEP (Sadler's former school) team. If this collection of players was with Sadler at UTEP, they would dominate their conference (Editor's note #3: NU dominating any conference might be a stretch), go to the NCAAs every year and win a game there every 10 years or so. That just isn't going to get it done in the Big 12 now or the B1G TEN in years to come.

The reason is simple. Nebraska kids have the mindset that they aren't as good as most of the teams they play in conference but that they have to win with defense, playing harder, and catching a few breaks. That mentality never breaks .500 in conference play. (Editor's note #4: Nebraska high schools haven't produced a Division I impact player since Erick Strickland and Andre Woolridge in 1992.)

I'm not calling for Sadler's job...yet...I'm just saying that he better start selling the shit out of the new arena that Lincoln residents just approved, in order to start getting players that don't trying to win by being scrappy but because they're better than their opponent. If he isn't able to do that, we need to thank him for shifting us in the right direction, and then a throw a big payday at somebody who can bring the type of talent it takes to fill a new 14,000 seat arena. (Editor's note #5: who would come to NU? PYB can't think of anyone.)

By the way Husker fans, I want you at the games, just do everyone a favor and educate yourself about basketball before laying into officials and opposing teams. While the behavior itself is only mildly embarrasing, the real problem is lack of knowledge that spews from your mouths and makes us all look bad. It's always the guy there with his wife and two kids that is yelling about the refs throwing the game. Cheer at the game and have a conversation about it sure, just don't embarrass me anymore please. (Editor's note #6: A-FUCKING-MEN)

That goes for Husker football and baseball fan too. If the Husker football, basketball, or baseball games are the only games you watch, you probably think you know your shit, but you don't...and you are also that same dad needs to quit coaching his son's youth sports team. You are actually making your kid and his friends more obnoxious and less knowledgable.

I'm really in more of a big picture mode right now, but I'll give you some quick hits from the game yesterday. Jeter played another great game, he had a double-double (10 points, 10 assists), Brandon Richardson has been playing much more assertively--he scored another 16, and Brandon Ubel put in a solid performance with seven points and five rebounds. Caleb Walker also has been making strides offensively as he finished in double figures with 10.

Ubel's performance was better than his line. Jorge Brian Diaz and Andre Almeida were thoroughly dominated all game underneath the basket, and Ubel really stood out as the guy in the low post trio with the most potential. He's more athletic and physical than Diaz and Almeida combined, but he does need to be more selective on his fouling. He commits too many fouls that are unnecessary, instead of saving those fouls for trying to block shots or send a message in the lane .

Diaz is more polished offensively at this point but doesn't offer much in terms of rebounding and defense. Almeida travels about every time he touches the ball and he fouls like crazy because he is slow and doesn't have good body control. We need to transplant about 40 pounds from Almeida to Diaz if either of them are ever going to be better than just serviceable.

Devaney was really loud yesterday...especially with about 5 minutes left and all the Husker fans were leaving and the KU fans (probably 20-25% of those in attendence) cheered their asses off as our fans piled out early as usual.