As for coaching up, I haven't seen it. Had we even competed (not even won) against the top teams we've played, had we won all the games we were "supposed to win" had we grabbed any of the "coin flip" games or had we pulled off some upsets - then I'd agree to some degree. But we haven't seen any of that.
I think you’re being awfully tough, Joe. Given that Menzies couldn’t even begin to recruit a team until late April, I think it’s unreasonable to be able to expect them to have the kind of talent, or cohesion to be able to compete at the Duke, Kansas or Oregon level. And even the ASU level, yet. These teams have a system and a coach who has had years to develop his charges. There is just no shortcut to success. Maybe Calipari can pull it off with a dozen All-Americans on his bench every year, but no one else can. Certainly not a thrown-together collection of freshmen, Juco and D-2 players.
When I say, MM can “coach ‘em up” I’m drawing from personal experience. In many games this season, we have seen leads get narrowed, or disappear, as the opponent made the customary surge. College hoops are often games of runs by each team, so this is not unexpected. But in the Riverside, Fullerton, W. Kentucky, So Ill & Wyoming games, when things got dicey, Menzies called a time-out, or switched a defense (ok,
not the USU game) and the Rebels pulled away. I can remember, all-too-well the knot in my stomach when these things happened to Dave Rice teams, and we (and he) watched helplessly as the game slipped away. Sure, I’m aware that this isn’t a “Murderer’s Row” of opponents, but many of those MW foes weren’t either. We’ve won games this season that I could easily envision losing in the past 4 years.
The USU game, which you seem to harbor a particular distaste for, wasn’t that bad. It’s hard to plan for a team getting that hot from beyond the arc. Of course, the defense bore a good deal of the blame, but again, we’re a work-in-progress. There are going to be missteps along the way. That was a bad week for the Rebels, as it came on the heels of the Boise St game, which was really the only game in which I was truly disappointed. Not in the outcome, so much as the (lack of) effort. Other than that, I’ve seen these kids trying their hardest, to learn the game.
You say that the New Mexico game is giving you hope. Me too, but I think the Wyoming win was a good one, as well. They were pretty hot coming in, with a good OOC record. As I recall, we were the underdogs in that match-up. So, there have been a few bright spots in this difficult season.
Had we known how far we were going to fall, we probably would have waited on match-ups with Final Four-caliber teams. But as bitter as some of these pills may be to swallow, they should have some positive effects. If for nothing else but to see where we have to get to, to re-claim our place on the national stage.That is the Promised Land. For me, at this moment, Marvin Menzies is Moses..
Go Rebels!