vs UIC (1-11) - Wednesday, 2/7/2024 - 7 pm - ESPN+/Marquee Network

[Dmills]

The shot we needed last night and never got off... oh for the brighter days of *checks notes* ... 2019

 

[Phantom]

The shot we needed last night and never got off... oh for the brighter days of *checks notes* ... 2019

One thing about this video that I noticed...why were we shooting at the south basket in the 2nd half? We always shot at that hoop in the 1st...

 

[gobirds85]

Today's college (loosely termed) basketball landscape has changed dramatically, and probably for the worse. There is no more building a team for the future. Teams need to win NOW. When you are a mvc team, you basically have become the triple AAA for the bigger schools with boatloads of cash. Look at the lil ten right now...Iowa, Neb, Ill, Purduche all have major contributors who were valley players last year. If anyone blows up at a valley school now, chances are they won't be there the next year, because someone with deep NIL pockets will grab them.

Next year is NOW! Unless we aren't very good and no one wants to pilfer anyone from the current roster. It all boils down to the $$$$$ and if you don't have it, you're toast.

 

[ScoreboardDotRace]

One thing about this video that I noticed...why were we shooting at the south basket in the 2nd half? We always shot at that hoop in the 1st...

They changed ends their bench was on, thus the change in direction as well. I’m not sure when the change happened though. Maybe after the remodel?

 

[DBird]

Today's college (loosely termed) basketball landscape has changed dramatically, and probably for the worse. There is no more building a team for the future. Teams need to win NOW. When you are a mvc team, you basically have become the triple AAA for the bigger schools with boatloads of cash. Look at the lil ten right now...Iowa, Neb, Ill, Purduche all have major contributors who were valley players last year. If anyone blows up at a valley school now, chances are they won't be there the next year, because someone with deep NIL pockets will grab them.

Next year is NOW! Unless we aren't very good and no one wants to pilfer anyone from the current roster. It all boils down to the $$$$$ and if you don't have it, you're toast.

Sad but true!!

 

[Scipio]

I’m done. Done! I didn’t even watch the game last night. I have no clue what the problem is with ISU athletics; and specifically men’s basketball. All I know is that they have failed to be competitive and continue to fail miserably. Is it worth the cost of a season ticket. No. No more. It has gotten to the point where it’s plain embarrassing. It’s simply not worth the personal humiliation to watch them play. I have no idea what the problem is, but I’m done supporting this mess. Anyone associated with this program should be embarrassed and humiliated. I understand these are academic bureaucrats; but still? A once proud program brought to this? Redbird basketball (at least on the Men’s side) has been allowed to go to s@#t; and nobody seems to care. Nobody seems to be concerned about it and nobody has any interest in fixing it.

 

[Reggie Redbird]

I think the difference for me with Pence is that from what I've seen of his game, he'd be more comfortable slashing and working inside the 3pt, but our offense just largely strands him out there and has him spend 80% of his time shooting 3s. Which I think in turn makes it rough for him to get going. My opinion its poor offensive design.

Sadly, that makes me wonder if he will stick around unless the offensive system changes. Was he told one system and were running another? Was he ok with whatever you call the offense we have out there? (Same could be said for any incoming player) If his game doesn’t fit, does he want to stay?

Whether it’s finding another freshman or, more likely, hitting the JUCO ranks or the portal, our staff needs to be extremely busy in upgrading our talent.

I am not sure how we determine retaining scholarships or people putting in for extra years of eligibility, but it will be interesting to see how that is sorted out. We realistically cannot replace 12 spots or even 8-10. We don’t need to replace that many. But even if we have people grow significantly in the off-season, we sorely need impact contributors.

 

[DougSutton]

Deep down I think some of my frustration with Pedon has to do with how/why he was hired. He passed the smell test on paper, but it has always seemed like he was targeted because of a quid pro quo relationship. Brennan gets “mentored” by Gene Smith and returns the favor by hiring his guy. I have some doubt as to how deep the search actually went. And now Brennan is gone and we are stuck with what he left us. I get that we want to empower administrators to do their jobs. But unfortunately we often care about ISU more than they do as ISU is just another stepping stone in their careers.

I've said before that I wanted us to hire Roger Powell Jr and was upset when I first heard the news about coach Pedon. After watching his press conference and connecting with EJ Liddell's parents (who are friends of mine and former ISU student athletes who said amazing things about him), I felt much more at peace and became enthusiastic and excited that he became our coach. I am also aware that Doug Collins participated in the interview process and am confident he gave his full endorsement of this decision prior to the hire.

If I remember correctly, there was near complete consensus from all fans on this board that coach Pedon's hire was a home run, including from those of us (including myself) that wanted someone else.

No question, the jury is still out on whether this was a great hire or not and the current trend isn't looking good. I've been a part of overseeing hundreds of hires over the years and there's no question that sometimes, the people that interview the best end up not performing and those that interview poorly are the best hires.

While they are different, one common trait that I see with Ryan Pedon and Porter Moser is that they both were fantastic at communicating with an infectious clarity, belief and enthusiasm.

I still fully support coach Pedon but do believe, based on results, that some things much change. One challenge with hiring a first time head coach is that you never fully know what you're going to get because there are many factors that determine success or failure when building a program. I think of Mike Tyson's quote that "Everyone has a plan until you get punched in the face". I've been in the ring multiple times (Thai Boxing) and know first hand how true this is and you must find a way to gather yourself and find a path forward. This is something you can't prepare for until you're in the mix.

Metaphorically, as a first time head coach, Pedon is getting punched pretty hard right now. Regardless of what the outcome ends up being, I believe we'll look back at this time as a pivotal moment in his tenure as our head coach. He'll either turn this momentum around and right the ship, or he won't.

I used to get all worked up and upset when my team wasn't winning. Maybe it's age, the fact that I don't live in B/N anymore, or apathy but while I still care and want ISU to succeed, the outcome doesn't matter that much to me anymore. I'm going to continue cheering coach Pedon and the team on and hope they succeed. I've since begun to adopt San Diego State as my team since I live here (and they're good and fun to watch).

 

[jnolan52]

Need to recruit more players from the junior college ranks that are proven scorers.

 

[Redbird82]

I think pulling the plug on Pedon at this juncture would be premature. However, I’m baffled at some of what I see. The offense reminds me so much of the offense Porter Moser ran while he was here and that’s not a good comparison to have. Also, who is the defensive coordinator to use football terminology? The switching that has Kinzinger continually down low guarding a taller post player leaves me scratching my head.

I would expect next year under the Pedon reign should bring improvement. Not saying challenging for first place though that would be nice. The expectation from my perspective would be improvement with the arrow pointing up for future seasons. Other than that then folks we are lost in the woods.

I would agree. I haven’t lost faith but am losing it…I think if they can’t get to 12-8 and be competitive in the conference next year with today’s environment, there is no reason to believe Pedon will ever get us there. I enjoy watching the women, I wish the men could find a Gillespie…but so far all of Brennans hires have been awful.

 

[Birgs]

This. A critical hire for the program entire department and it gets decided by a guy who hardly lasted a year after it was made. Rough.

Relationship Hire GLT

This article reminded me of some of what made my "Spidey Sense" tingle about "community cliches" ..but in fairness , I also get maybe it's a 5-year thing. Maybe JK and Chase those leaders you build on he talks about. But this is getting REALLY tough. I'm trying to be realistic.

I think I'm pretty on the record of where I stand regarding pessimism with Coach, so this is not Pedon apologist drivel, don't be mistaken.

 

[BirdGrad2011]

I don’t think anyone has said it, but isn’t Dakich out offensive coordinator so to speak? He wasn’t originally brought here to be an assistant coach. Pedon elevated him quick. Is it time to move on and bring in someone better?

 

[Dmills]

I don’t think anyone has said it, but isn’t Dakich out offensive coordinator so to speak? He wasn’t originally brought here to be an assistant coach. Pedon elevated him quick. Is it time to move on and bring in someone better?

I don't know if we have the budget to make a big splash with an assistant but I am starting to question the staff Pedon assembled. I don't think we can expect much better results running it back with Dak, Slay, and Jud. Pedon was supposed to be the offensive coordinator at Ohio State. We should certainly have a better offense. Muller was best when he had talented assistants. I was frustrated when he brought back Brian Jones for the final year, especially because we were horrible during his entire tenure. I am starting to get the same feeling with the current assistants. Love Dak but not sure he is the man for the job.

 

[DWRedbird]

Sadly, that makes me wonder if he will stick around unless the offensive system changes. Was he told one system and were running another? Was he ok with whatever you call the offense we have out there? (Same could be said for any incoming player) If his game doesn’t fit, does he want to stay?

Whether it’s finding another freshman or, more likely, hitting the JUCO ranks or the portal, our staff needs to be extremely busy in upgrading our talent.

I am not sure how we determine retaining scholarships or people putting in for extra years of eligibility, but it will be interesting to see how that is sorted out. We realistically cannot replace 12 spots or even 8-10. We don’t need to replace that many. But even if we have people grow significantly in the off-season, we sorely need impact contributors.

My opinion is that his reasons for being here are beyond the style of play or even the guy with the clipboard. I have a feeling he will stay.

That said, while I'm not opposed to upgrading the talent on the roster, unless we change our style of play I'm not sure it will matter much.

 

[Redbirdfan06]

I don't know if we have the budget to make a big splash with an assistant but I am starting to question the staff Pedon assembled. I don't think we can expect much better results running it back with Dak, Slay, and Jud. Pedon was supposed to be the offensive coordinator at Ohio State. We should certainly have a better offense. Muller was best when he had talented assistants. I was frustrated when he brought back Brian Jones for the final year, especially because we were horrible during his entire tenure. I am starting to get the same feeling with the current assistants. Love Dak but not sure he is the man for the job.

Not only assistant coaches, but should we be running it back with all these seniors that can return for an extra year? We talk about the freshmen being some building blocks. But is Kinziger going to develop if Banks is still there next year playing 30 minutes a night? Walker and Foster seem like very similar players, with Foster being more polished. Pence has a gluten of wings in front of him, but do we really think those wings will be better next year?

I worry that if Pedon brings a lot of these seniors back, he will still play them heavy minutes.

 

[Birdfriend72]

Sadly, that makes me wonder if he will stick around unless the offensive system changes. Was he told one system and were running another? Was he ok with whatever you call the offense we have out there? (Same could be said for any incoming player) If his game doesn’t fit, does he want to stay?

Whether it’s finding another freshman or, more likely, hitting the JUCO ranks or the portal, our staff needs to be extremely busy in upgrading our talent.

I am not sure how we determine retaining scholarships or people putting in for extra years of eligibility, but it will be interesting to see how that is sorted out. We realistically cannot replace 12 spots or even 8-10. We don’t need to replace that many. But even if we have people grow significantly in the off-season, we sorely need impact contributors.

He is the one missing wide open 3’s half the time. I don’t know that any system Pedon throws out there will make the ball fall in the basket. Pedon can’t shoot the ball for him.

 

[Adunk33]

I apologize for my earlier post about us being in the hunt for 4th. NyQuil, lack of sleep and numerous concussions can have that effect on people from time to time.

I'll remember this the next time you try to claim you beat my team at RBA all those years ago...

 

[isuquinndog]

They changed ends their bench was on, thus the change in direction as well. I’m not sure when the change happened though. Maybe after the remodel?

They (or maybe the MVC) didn't like the two teams crossing each other to go to their tunnels at half and after games. So they changed the benches and by rule you shoot at the opposite basket so they had to flip who shoots where to start the game.

 

[Phantom]

They changed ends their bench was on, thus the change in direction as well. I’m not sure when the change happened though. Maybe after the remodel?

The benches definitely changed, but I thought that was post-remodel. I don't remember shooting at the south end in the 2nd half before that. But I guess it happened.

 

[SlackBooDom]

Commentary on the staff and offense are both things I have been pointing to since last season, so it’s nice to see the consensus. From what I’ve heard about the end of the search from those in the know Kyle Brennan and Mark Muhlhauser went completely rogue on the hire and shocked everyone, including search firms and agents and it’s partly why they’re both out of the industry now. Could be wrong, just some intel on what people are referencing here.