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2022-23 Game 26: 2/16 #3 Purdue 6:30PM BTN


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#181 Mike in STL

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Posted 17 February 2023 - 02:50 PM

My very uninformed feeling with Turgeon was that he lost some fire / intensity himself after COVID pulled the plug on the year they were sorta starting to ramp up expectations again a little. Like he came back out of that a lot less driven / more apathetic than before, and never really flipped the switch back.

I think the apathy set in long before that season. But the 2020 team could have been special. We just don't know.

 

I mean, so many top recruits, so little return. Melo was supposed to be a one and done talent. Stayed three years. Always a preseason First team all Big Ten player, never at the end of the season. Wisconsin fans furious that MD wins the recruiting battle for Diamond Stone, I can't remember one thing he did. I think a 30 point game against Penn State, once, IIRC. Otherwise very forgettable. MD started a season ranked what, #2, #3, maybe they touched #1 at some point, I don't really remember, finished it unranked, or fringe #25. They were a 6 seed once in the tournament and a vegas underdog to an 11 seed, and of course, lost. The lone sweet 16 came from beating So.Dak.St and Hawaii in the process. Not exactly a challenge there. I can't even remember what the record against ranked teams was, but know it was really bad. I was actually shocked that besides the Duke game 10 years ago they had another top-5 win back in 2016 I think they said on the broadcast last night? Cause I don't remember it. Even with some double byes, never even made it to Saturday, much less Sunday in the BTT.

 

Under Turge there was zero home court advantage. They were hardly ever going to be a threat against the #3 team in the country and the fans knew it. Would not have been any energy in the building. The students would do their thing, but that's about it, and even they seemed subdued in few years before COVID. 

 

Anyway. Onward and upwards. That's the last I'll dwell on the past. Raw number of wins aside, Willard has already eclipsed Turgeon in impact made on the program by scheduling tougher opponents, winning ranked games, defending the home court, all with a team put together pretty much from the portal and not much recruiting. I can't wait to see what's to come.


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#182 BSLRoseKatz

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Posted 17 February 2023 - 06:28 PM

I thought the win was pretty encouraging but "wildly exceeding preseason expectations including a court storm over a top five team while going perfect at home in B1G play" is literally what Mark Turgeon did in 2014-15. Obviously you can say it's progress Willard's year 1 might match Turgeon's year 4 and if Willard gets them to S16 then it's a bigger success than 14/15 but idk I feel like we're falling victim to revisionist history here at least a little bit. 


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#183 Mackus

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Posted 17 February 2023 - 06:34 PM


Under Turge there was zero home court advantage. They were hardly ever going to be a threat against the #3 team in the country and the fans knew it. Would not have been any energy in the building. The students would do their thing, but that's about it, and even they seemed subdued in few years before COVID.

Not enough big games and not consistent sellouts for even the non-big ones are fair criticisms.

But there absolutely were numerous amazing games with rocking crowds under Turgeon. Melo was involved in most of them, but there were a few others.

#184 BSLMikeLowe

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Posted 17 February 2023 - 06:51 PM

I thought the win was pretty encouraging but "wildly exceeding preseason expectations including a court storm over a top five team while going perfect at home in B1G play" is literally what Mark Turgeon did in 2014-15. Obviously you can say it's progress Willard's year 1 might match Turgeon's year 4 and if Willard gets them to S16 then it's a bigger success than 14/15 but idk I feel like we're falling victim to revisionist history here at least a little bit. 

 

That '14-'15 team was arguably more talented (they were ranked #14 when they knocked off Wisconsin). And with Trimble joining Wells and Layman, plus playing their 1st season in the Big Ten, which at the time was considered a step down from ACC competition, I seem to recall expectations were that it was now or never for Turgeon at that point as far as making the NCAA's.

 

But I agree overall that to say there were never nights like last night under Turgeon is fallacy.



#185 BSLRoseKatz

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Posted 17 February 2023 - 06:53 PM

Yeah I think some if it is also the B1G generally isn't gonna be that top heavy of a conference where it's a guarantee you'll get a Kansas/Kentucky/whatever at home (Kentucky is currently bad but you get the point)

 

Maryland has had 9 home games against top 10 schools, including last night, at Xfinity since 14/15, in the same time span OkSt has had 20, Virginia Tech has had 16 and Florida has had 15 just to name 3 other conferences. 


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#186 BSLRoseKatz

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Posted 17 February 2023 - 06:55 PM

Yeah I think some if it is also the B1G generally isn't gonna be that top heavy of a conference where it's a guarantee you'll get a Kansas/Kentucky/whatever at home (Kentucky is currently bad but you get the point)

 

Maryland has had 9 home games against top 10 schools, including last night, at Xfinity since 14/15, in the same time span OkSt has had 20, Virginia Tech has had 16 and Florida has had 15 just to name 3 other conferences. 

41 schools have had more home games against the top 10 than Maryland and that number could probably increase by the end of the year. I suppose you could relitigate the ACC vs B1G argument but there's only so much you can do if it's a year where the B1G has 1 top 10 ten team then 4 teams between #16 and #25 who are solid teams but not court stormers

 

https://www.sports-r...gt&order_by=pts


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