Friday, February 23, 2007
IU 58 Michigan State 66
Well, I guess there's really no point to even say anything about last night's game. So, I'm just posting some poll questions and hoping they find a way to win at Northwestern. By the way, Tom's visionary capabilities are for crap.
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I've got a lot to say about tonight's game, but I just can't stomach it right now.
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For the first time this year, the voters on the IU Hoops Blog are predicting the Hoosiers to lose (8 out of 12 votes). And rightfully so, all of the evidence points to yet another struggle on the road. Michigan State has been red hot as of late. Not only did they beat #1 Wisconsin, but they also beat Iowa 81-49 and Michigan 59-44. Add in the fact that the Hoosiers have been atrocious on the road and really have not played well in their last 5 games. Even the home wins against Illinois and Minnesota were "iffy" at best. And don't forget that IU's senior point guard has been injured and questionable for the game. And finally, Andy is 95% certain of an IU loss and Ben has already called Andy out on his voodoo.
However, even with all that said, there is some reason for hope and here are a few reasons why:
(1) IU's recent struggles have come after they knocked off Wisconsin. Let's hope MSU suffers the same fate after their big win over Wisconsin.
(2) Many teams have been streaky this year, but MSU takes the cake. In the Big Ten, they lost their first 2, won their next 4, lost their next 4, and have currently won their last 3. After IU, they finish at Michigan and at Wisconsin, so maybe we can start their 3 game losing streak to finish the season. If you have ever done those sequence problems on a standardized test, then losing 3 is the next logical step.
(3) IU's most complete game of the year was their 73-51 win over MSU. Yes, it was at Assembly Hall and this game is at the Breslin Center, but I think we matchup well with them and have their number.
(4) I believe in the power of positive thinking.
(5) I believe in Tom's visionary power. Tom told me today that he had a very vivid vision of this game. It was almost as if he was listening to the radio call. He said they kept referring to IU's tall white guy as "Haston", but Tom could only assume they meant Stemler. Anyway, this "Haston" as they called him ended up hitting a 3 at the buzzer to propel IU to a 59-58 victory. So, I think Stemler's little jumper at the end of the Minnesota game has busted him out of his slump and I look for him to hit the buzzer-beating game-winner.
Now for my prediction....no surprise here....I'm picking the Hoosiers to win 59-58!!!!!
As for the results of the other poll questions, 4 voters think the key to IU pulling off the upset is 3-point shooting, 3 voters say stop Neitzel and you have a chance, 3 voters believe rebounding will be the key, and 2 voters think IU needs a great game out of D.J.
Predicting Neitzel's points -- 6 votes for 16-20, 3 votes for 9-15, and 3 votes for 21-25.
Predicting D.J.'s points -- 6 votes for 16-20, 3 votes for 9-15, and 2 votes for 21-25.
It's a Saturday night game, so grab a cold one and enjoy. You're going to remember this one for the rest of your life!
Go Hoosiers!
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8 comments:
I am going on record as well as saying IU will win this game. If Calloway play, wins. If he does not, IU wins. As you ca see, it is a win-win situation. 12 hours until game time.
It is impossible to argue against Tom's (aka The Philospher) logic. I must admit that I picked MSU to win in the poll, but after reading Tom's coherent deductions and sound syllogism in his posting, I've changed my mind. I am definitely looking forward with confidence to watching the IU victory tonight during a potential blizzard here. Andy, if you want to place a bet against Tom's prediction - let me know.
I needed to clean up the typos. What I meant to say was :
I am going on record as well as saying IU will win this game. If Calloway plays, IU wins. If he does not, IU wins. As you can see, it is a win-win situation. Now 5 hours until game time.
Another good sign -- If Tom posts two comments, IU wins.
That last one really was not a comment. It was more of a correction. Let's make it official with comment number two:
I really like the trend that has been set in the Big Ten today. All three road teams won. Let's make it four for four with an IU victory tonight.
Now that Tom fixed his typos, I'm starting to have some doubts but am still leaning towards an IU win.
Have you ever seen a dumber play than Allen' interference? Stemler is worthless. Wilmont might as well sit the rest of the game b/c he's either great or kills us. We have to hit FT's if we're going to win on the road! Thank God for Bassett!
I thought sleeping on last night's loss would make it better. It is actually worse. I cannot watch SportsCenter this morning or anything to do with sports. I kept dreaming last night that IU could get those last 10 minutes of the game back. Part of me is ready to give up on this season and start thinking about next year.
That was such just a devastating loss. They definitely played not to lose in the second half. IU simply cannot put teams away. When MSU came out and turned the ball over twice to start the second half, IU should have stepped on their throat. They had built the lead to 13! After that, the rest of the half I had to listen to Vitale say that MSU was about to make a run. I finally had to put it on mute. The whole second half was a disaster.
There are certain games that you lose and certain games that the other teams wins. That was definitely a game that IU lost. They completely gave it away. As Vitale kept saying, this becomes a mental thing for IU when they have leads in the second half. It's that, "Here we go again" attitude. I have experienced that a lot with being a Cubs fan and seeing them blow late leads. Trust me. It is not a fun. Vitale also said that IU has led in the second half in all eight (now nine) of their losses. Maybe IU is not mentally tough enough.
With all of that said, win the last two games of the year and they still have a decent shot at getting the #3 spot. Either way, they'll have to knock off either Wisconsin or OSU to make some noise in the BT touney.
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