AF
- Thread starter WarthogRebel
- Start date
makes our game that much more important. If we can hold serve. we stay in the top five and get a little bit of cushion in the standings
UNM doing what it did last year as well... also he's a terrible in conference coach, he fell apart each season at Minnesota during conference play as well...
You could say this about every UNLV basketball coach since Lon!
In conference, we never won with him either. I think we had a 2nd place finish in one, maybe two of his 6/7 years, but it was usually around 4th. He did win a couple MWCT’s and had strong enough OOC in several years. But I wouldn’t say conference play was a strength of his while at UNLV, in fact; anywhere significant but a tie at Illinois and tie at Florida in a couple of seasons over his very long career. I certainly wouldn’t term him as a “conference coach”. He was better in OOC and post season than conference and that’s what your post was about.
Only Bayno won the MWC and that was as a co-champion.
I think there is a difference between Lon’s conference record and the coaches since who have been brutal for different reasons in conference play. To the original posters point I think there a reasons some coaches don’t do well in conference play consistently. Coaches that are predictable and can’t change within a season struggle. Others reasons can be OOC opponent quality (Marvin), coaching style wears their own team down. The one thing I have liked about Kevin this season is the in season adjustments that he has made compared to past years both with personnel and tactics. Although I wonder if he we see the Whaley switch if Webster doesn’t hurt his ankle, I feel like it was coming anyway but who knows.
The reasons may be different but the performance was similar. His first year they were picked to finish first and they floundered badly. Granted, that’s a first year and you couldn’t just replace players like you can now, but they had talent.
And then there were inexplicable conference losses, just like with the subsequent coaches, against terrible TCU and Wyoming teams, UNM in their down years, couldn’t beat a budding and eventual very good SDSU squad aside from that fluke win down 10 with 30 seconds left …. The reasons may have been different but there are some short memories, perhaps because we won a couple NCAAT games and won a couple MWCTs … but fans were very frustrated with conference play. Even when we finished 2nd that one time, it wasn’t like it came down to the last week of the season. We’ve never been embroiled in a regular season conference championship - not since Bayno year 1 of MWC play.
I think the MWC was MUCH better back then with BYU and SDSU at their heights … but apparently, somehow (I don’t see it) the conference is “better” or comparable this year and last year. I really don’t see it but that’s what the metrics say.
Interesting discussion and good recollection Joe. I too had the impression that Lon was better in conference until I read your points. I agree that the NCAAT wins color our long-term impression of those years (rightfully so in many respects - after all that is the goal of each season). But in reality most fans were getting frustrated with Lon’s inability to win consistently in conf and his lackluster recruiting, and weren’t sorry to see him bolt to OU. In hindsight compared to the years that have followed losing Lon was a loss for the program. Or perhaps more accurately stated, not making a post-Lon hire that was an improvement (and repeating that a few times over) was THE loss for the program over the last decade. Which gets us back to the CKK discussion and the main point that you keep him unless you have someone who will improve the program ready to replace him.
If the team didn't sleepwalk through those 3 quad 4 losses we wouldn't be having these discussions. But they did and here we are.
Amen to that. UNLV could easily be in first place in the MWC but for a few refs and a few plays. Of course that could probably said for most teams but it speaks to the team’s ability when they apply themselves for 40. I’m looking forward to the MWCT this season more than any I can remember in quite a while. If healthy UNLV has as good a chance at the title as any team. I’m not expecting us to win it, but I like our chances.
Honestly, I don't see it. I don't see how we will have the legs to win 3 games in 3 days with a bench that fails to produce anything. The tournament will not favor us in anyway and will try to protect the 6 teams that are within the predicted field. We've seen it now for multiple years. I get that we're competitive against all top 6 teams but we will likely need vintage Webster and something from Ice/Jones to even make it to the Final...
I’d rather shoot for 3 in 3 than 4 in 5 with one of those four being super easy. That’s why I think seeding is much more important … they’re in position.
