Oh well

[MinerMan2010]

Wonder if the season is over?

What a shame. These Miners aren't very good, just like I said all along.

[Realm]

I gave an early assessment of the Miner basketball team and haven't had the urge to follow them since.

I'm at work but got half time score from a friend. What would have surprised me is if we could hang close to USM. Their record indicates they are a talented team... while the Miner record indicates we are NOT.

What surprises me is that what is so obvious to me is not so obvious to others.

Realm...

[BleedingOrange]

I truly believe we were a 20-win team, though. I distinctly remember five or six games, including the heartbreaking 2-point loss to Memphis recently, that could have gone our way if we'd have made one more free throw or gotten one more rebound. I know that sounds like an excuse, and a team is usually just what its record would indicate it is, but I have to disagree with the statement that we aren't a good team. Are we as good as Memphis or Southern Miss? No... but I think we're good enough to be in the NIT, even if our record keeps us out.

Losing Julian Washburn for the last ten minutes of the first half killed us today, too. I watched the replay when I got home, and still can't figure out what the hell he did to get the technical foul called on him, which gave him 2 fouls in the first 6 minutes of the game (and he got his 3rd with just under ten minutes to go in the half and had to sit). Coach Johnson told Teisch in the post game interview that the Southern Miss player said such vulgar things to Julian, and to the Miner bench, that he couldn't even hint at what was said; he also said the guy was talking shit from the moment the game started. He defended Julian by saying he didn't blame him for retaliating, and questioned why the refs allowed the Southern Miss guy to jaw at us but teed us up for answering. Furthermore, Julian indicated to the ref that the guy threw an elbow at him just before the technical was called, and when I watched closely on the replay, it did appear that the guy hit him in the chest just before the camera angle left them. The guy was obviously pissed that Julian was shutting him down, so he went for the personal attacks and they unfortunately succeeded in getting a reaction.

I'm not saying we would have won this game if that hadn't happened, but that sure reduced our chances significantly.

My biggest concern now is whether or not Floyd has already cut a deal to go to USC. I said before that I didn't trust him to be back next year until I saw him on the sidelines come November... the agonizing wait begins.