Keep playing like the last two-three games and we will be on the outside looking in again. 30 years with no NCAA tourney is embarrassing
Will the NCAA drought continue?
- Thread starter newell138
- Start date
Let’s be honest the idea that we haven’t had an NCAA tourney team for x-years isn’t true, last years team was plenty good enough to do it. So let’s not be Facebook/NJ com click bait artists and try to say how much Rutgers sucks because of a stat that really doesn’t mean anything anymore
We did not get announced to the NCAA so we did not break the drought.
We all know that we would have been selected, but the fact remains that we weren't. Teams will use that against us in recruiting, especially if we don't make it this year.
We certainly will not make the tournament playing like we have the last 2 games.
We certainly will not make the tournament playing like we have the last 2 games.
What was our official seed and where and who did we play? I must have been sleeping. and missed the game.
People need to stop the narrative that we made the tournament in 2020. There was no tournament . It sucks , but that’s the facts . That’s why we didn’t raise a banner in the rac . If we are going to claim we made the nonexistent tournament, we might as well claim we made the Final Four .
when they talk about droughts, yes they will say Rutgers has not made it since 1991, they will mention that RU WOULD have made it last year but the fact remains, we have not been to a NCAA tourney since 1991
You’re right. If we make the tournament this year or next year they will say we would have made it in 2020 . It’s still relevant as many current RU players were on that team . But a couple years from now most people outside of diehard rutgers fans will not know or care . It won’t be mentioned that we probably would have made the tournament in 2020 . The narrative will be last tourney game in 1991.
The solution is to put the drought to bed now!
Even if RU gets in with a record of 13-10 they still made the tournament albeit a bad record in normal years would be considered bad.
Rest assured TV crews will be filming the RU team this selection Sunday because of the drought story.
Actually agree with the some posts here. We could not make a tournament that wasn't held. Were we good enough to be in the tournament? Yes. But there was no tournament so the drought continues. To answer the OP's question, No.
We will make the tournament but not with the seed that we hoped we would be despite what some of the trolls here say.
We will make the tournament but not with the seed that we hoped we would be despite what some of the trolls here say.
We have 13 games left, 6 against ranked teams. Four games against teams receiving votes. That is a tough schedule. We need to win 7 games to get to 10 wins, my guess for how many we need to make the dance. We will have to significantly improve our play very quickly to reach that goal. Based on this, I don't think we make the tournament.
I would have thought that the loss of Yeboah and Carter would have been more than offset by Cliff and an additional year of experience and hunger from Harper, Baker, Mulcahy, Johnson, McConnell, and Young...especially since they were denied a deserved trip to the tournament. I was wrong as Johnson has clearly regressed as his Baker (perhaps his is due to injury), and McConnell is only getting back now. Young and Harper (until recently) have clearly taken a step up.
However, I see three huge problems.
1. Lack of rebounding is glaring. It’s one thing to lose Yeboah and Carter but add to it Cliff’s injury and the fact that Johnson has regressed and is more foul-prone than ever and it’s an
absolute killer.
2. We have to be the most predictable team in the league and probably the easiest to scout. We run the same so called offense over and over and no adjustments are ever made. We aren’t sneaking up on anyone this year and it’s obvious we’ve been scouted to death. Izzo took away everything we wanted to do and we foolishly kept doing it anyway.
3. We seem to have lost our edge and we have no leader on the court. This is a BIG disappointment in Geo would should take this role even when he’s not 100%. It seems likeHarper doesn’t want it. There is no reason we can’t play with the heart we showed in the last 7 minutes yesterday throughout the game. The sulking and terrible shots obviously aren’t being corrected by Pike so someone needs to step up and do it.
However, I see three huge problems.
1. Lack of rebounding is glaring. It’s one thing to lose Yeboah and Carter but add to it Cliff’s injury and the fact that Johnson has regressed and is more foul-prone than ever and it’s an
absolute killer.
2. We have to be the most predictable team in the league and probably the easiest to scout. We run the same so called offense over and over and no adjustments are ever made. We aren’t sneaking up on anyone this year and it’s obvious we’ve been scouted to death. Izzo took away everything we wanted to do and we foolishly kept doing it anyway.
3. We seem to have lost our edge and we have no leader on the court. This is a BIG disappointment in Geo would should take this role even when he’s not 100%. It seems likeHarper doesn’t want it. There is no reason we can’t play with the heart we showed in the last 7 minutes yesterday throughout the game. The sulking and terrible shots obviously aren’t being corrected by Pike so someone needs to step up and do it.
#1. Hopefully Cliff returns and we get better on the boards as a result.
2. Dead on and very troubling. I think this is our biggest issue.
3. I don’t know how anyone not at the game can assess on court leadership. Is that a guy who says “just give me the damn ball?” We already have too much one on one play.
People also need to stop acting like it's embarrassing that we haven't made it in 30 years when last year we absolutely would have made it if not for the cancellation of the tourney.
It is embarrassing if we don’t make it this year . This is a veteran team that returns from last year . They have this great opportunity to play in the ncaa tournament this year . Then this debate that we are having about the drought becomes moot .
It’s up to the team and how they want to be remembered
I get being frustrated about this current stretch.
But let's wait to see where this team ends up before we start describing it as embarrassing.
I agree . This team has the opportunity in front of them and it’s still there for the taking . It is up to them to decide if they will be celebrated in rutgers lore or just another losing team that didn’t get it done . We all hope for the former .
I look at it more as the guy, like a team captain, who settles the team down during a tough stretch, often vocally. Gets the team together on the court and provides encouragement, etc. it also might be a person who gets on a player when they throw some ridiculous circus shot (there were at least 4 of them yesterday ... two from Mathis and one each from Mulcahy and Young). He also gets on and encourages a player away from sulking. Of course that person needs to have a lot of respect from his teammates. Yes, it’s harder to notice when you are not physically at the game but I didn’t see it last year when I was and I still see don’t see it now.
The impact of the NCAA drought obviously impacted recruiting .Competing in the Atlantic 10,Big East and the Big Ten saw players and coaches come and go and the results remained the same.Pikiell has built the basketball program largely through player development and the team has shown improvement each year.The unknown going forward is sustaining improvement without market improvement in recruiting.The B1G is a monster conference where there are no easy games even at home with no fans in the arena.
we were a 2 seed about a week or so ago in this bracket projection . Good news is there are always opportunities in this conference so a win against Wiscy would probably bump us back up to a 5 or so
Anyone who thinks we weren't an NCAA team last year can suck it. COVID wasn't our fault - we were absolutely in, no matter what. Stupid thread.
No one said they weren’t a team that gets a tournament bid last year . It just didn’t happen because there was no tournament . We can take credit for that.
It’s like when it’s a rain storm at 45 degrees . If it’s colder, it would be snow . But it’s not snow; it’s rain . You’re a pretty smart guy and I am sure you don’t count it as a snow storm.
And what’s the big deal anyway? Most of the team is back . Up to them to get it done this year and end drought
I think this is a pretty weird position to be honest. There was no tournament and no tournament selection. You can't make a non-existent tournament. We could have been the #1 team and this would be the same.
That said, obviously when evaluating Pikiell's performance you have to give him credit for having a tournament-quality team last year. You can do that while still acknowledging the reality that the team was not selected for the tournament.
Tell you what guys ...this season is very much reminding me of our last NCAA appearance ...when we started 5-0, got injuries and academic issues , fell to 7-6....looking like a disaster.... only to get healthy, get our groove and momentum going, win 12 out of 14 to get to the NCAA.
Get me everyone healthy. I’ll take my chances with our first 8.
Anyone Who thinks that our recent slide isn’t a lot to do with the health of our ream isn’t watching carefully. Go rewatch the games (I have ) and see the guys who are hurt...and you can see they are there giving what they can under not normal conditions
Most teams who had 22 missed games of their top 8 players in the first 11 games (and several more where players weren’t near close to 100%)...would not be a fringe ranked team...they would be in the bottom of their confrence saying “this isn’t our year”....0
Go recharge guys ..catch your breath ...get healthy and let’s get these next 2 over the next two weeks ...and then carry the momentum toward a major run in February and March
It’s gonna happen ....
Get me everyone healthy. I’ll take my chances with our first 8.
Anyone Who thinks that our recent slide isn’t a lot to do with the health of our ream isn’t watching carefully. Go rewatch the games (I have ) and see the guys who are hurt...and you can see they are there giving what they can under not normal conditions
Most teams who had 22 missed games of their top 8 players in the first 11 games (and several more where players weren’t near close to 100%)...would not be a fringe ranked team...they would be in the bottom of their confrence saying “this isn’t our year”....0
Go recharge guys ..catch your breath ...get healthy and let’s get these next 2 over the next two weeks ...and then carry the momentum toward a major run in February and March
It’s gonna happen ....
It’s pretty simple. Assuming Penn St gets rescheduled and we play all 20 leagues games, the team needs to go 8-4 to finish the regular season to be a total lock for the tourney. 7-5 with an opening round B1G tourney win also works. If we only win 7 more games total, we will sweat it out on selection day.
We are 3-4 in the league? That means 13 games left . We need to go 7-6 and that puts us and 10-10 and the drought ends.
At 9-11 we need a run in the big ten tournament