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Post by zvillehaze on Oct 14, 2006 10:20:19 GMT -6
There's nothing wrong with being optimistic and supporting your team, but I have to agree with many of Big D's points. Tucker, Tigert, Davis, Hill, McCoy and Ford were all great players who worked together for years to become a great team ... IMO, saying that a bunch of freshman and transfers can be just as good as those guys (ie. go 12-4 in conference) is somewhat disrespectful of what those guys accomplished.
I watched Butler rebuild after their Sweet 16 season and it was challenging, even with 4 or 5 experienced players returning. UWM may have talented players that work hard and want to win, but so does every other team in the HL. And as Big D pointed out, most teams in the league are returning several of their key players, so the league should be better top to bottom than it has been for a while.
If Jeter can get this team to .500 or better in the league, he'll get my vote for COY (at least he would if I had one). In any case, it should be an interesting HL race this year. Good luck.
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ArtVandelay
Freshman
I am Art Vandelay, I am an Importer/Exporter
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Post by ArtVandelay on Oct 14, 2006 12:14:29 GMT -6
Great post zvillehaze. I liken this year's UWM squad to Butler's team from 04-05. I think we will have tons of talent on the team, but we will lack the experience and savvy of veteran leadership. We won't be a pushover, but I don't see us having what it takes to win the close games.
I'd be extremely happy if we come close to the .500 mark in conference where we will be playing veteran filled teams like Loyola, Wright State, Detroit, and UWGB. Its not as if we have no shot at beating the best teams in the league, but its going to take a great coaching job by Rob, and also hard work by the players.
I'm happy many people are enthusiastic and optimistic about the team, but just don't let that enthusiasm be tempered during the season if we don't meet those incredibly high expectations. I'm just hoping to see progressive improvement during the year as players adapt to the swing offense, and perfect their man to man defense. Win or lose I'll still be in the front row cheering our players on.
Its great to see so much support for the team on the message board.
Art Vandelay
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2006 12:20:41 GMT -6
I'm not knocking your recruits or coaches or whatever. That's not the point. The point is you have ZERO experience. Some of you tend to think that talent means everything, and I'm telling you that talent can only take you so far. To make statments like "these players have the same skills as anyone in the league" without them playing a single game just shows ignorance. There is nobody on UWM right now better than Jeffers...I guarantee it. He is going to be dominating the league this year... And so what if you play a solid non-conference schedule. It doesn't mean that once you get to the HL, you're going to stomp the competition. Every HL team (minus UWGB of course) plays good teams in the non-confererence portion. UIC played and beat Georgia Tech at GT last year, we beat Ole Miss, we almost beat Syracuse on the road last year. Does that mean we should be competing for the HL title? Not necessarily. Conference season is much different. Your new recruits may turn out to be great players. I just am having a hard time understanding the belief that you can possibly go 12-4 this year and take the HL championship. What was your record last year? Was it 12-4? And you're going to do just as good this year in an improved league with everybody gone? I respect a good number of people on this board....those that are realistic and humble. Others are living in la-la land, and really don't know anything about mid-major basketball. Those of you that believe it's UWM's league to win or lose are in for a bit of a surprise this year. If I'm living in supposed la la land for my own humble views then I can accept that. People make projections all the time. Some are right and some are wrong. I personally feel that 10-6 is where we will be in conference play at the end of the season and if you read my post I said "if the ball bounces our way a few times maybe 12-4. Our Panthers may finish 6-10 in conference play for all I know, I don't have a crystal ball, but I do feel that the coaching that our guys are going to receive is second too none is this league. That is good for at least 2-4 extra wins every year that you might not achieve having a lesser coach. |
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Post by uwmfutbol on Oct 15, 2006 12:57:15 GMT -6
The fact that Big D is knocking our soccer program is laughable. UIC is having a great year thanks to their senior leadership. Once their seniors are gone it's back to the drawing board. They love to gush at the fact that they have 2 MLS players as assistant coaches--who gives a s**t? Anyone who knows anything about soccer knows that it's very different to be able to play soccer and be able to coach soccer.
UWM has had 6 straight NCAA tourney appearances with 4 straight second round appearances. This is a down year for them, yet they're still 4th place in the HL, and are en route to get back to .500. After they beat UWGB on wednesday they'll be 7-8-2 with a 3-2-1 record in conference. Not too shabby for a down year.
Next year, we'll see how UWM does against UIC with its 9 seniors including best midfield/defensive combo in the conference.
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Post by uwmfutbol on Oct 15, 2006 12:59:14 GMT -6
Now basketball on the other hand, I think anyone who believes UWM is a championship calibur team needs to come back down to mid-major land.
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Post by milwsport on Oct 15, 2006 20:15:14 GMT -6
Three words, Wisconsin Badger Football.
Before the season everyone wrote them off. They were predicted to finish anywhere from 6 to 9th (depending on who was doing the predicting).
And why? A new coach, the loss of all their wr's and their lead rusher.
But guess what? That coach is pretty good. And so are the replacements they recruited. Instead of languishing in 6, 7, 8, or 9th, they're 3 and 1 in the conference, 6-1 overall and ranked 21st in the nation. They lost to Michigan but they've crushed eveyone else and they've gotten better every week.
Do we have the talent to be a championship team? Absolutely. Whether we win it all again will depend on factors that can't be known right now, how well the newbies adapt to the swing, injuries on our team and on others, chemistry, and other intangibles.
In other words, don't write off the Panthers.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 16, 2006 6:34:29 GMT -6
Three words, Wisconsin Badger Football. Before the season everyone wrote them off. They were predicted to finish anywhere from 6 to 9th (depending on who was doing the predicting). And why? A new coach, the loss of all their wr's and their lead rusher. But guess what? That coach is pretty good. And so are the replacements they recruited. Instead of languishing in 6, 7, 8, or 9th, they're 3 and 1 in the conference, 6-1 overall and ranked 21st in the nation. They lost to Michigan but they've crushed eveyone else and they've gotten better every week. Do we have the talent to be a championship team? Absolutely. Whether we win it all again will depend on factors that can't be known right now, how well the newbies adapt to the swing, injuries on our team and on others, chemistry, and other intangibles. In other words, don't write off the Panthers. I agree Milwsport. Many teams are written off by sportswriters who don't even have a clue. It's amazing, just look at the JS cast of writers. The only one worth a damn is Portykus. The rest are laughable for their true lack of knowledge for the game and teams they cover. That's why I have never bought much stock in the words of sporstwriters. |
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Post by TBone on Oct 16, 2006 8:18:48 GMT -6
It's one thing to say we've got the talent to contend and another thing to say we're going to contend. Experience and chemistry are going to be big parts of the equation for UWM to contend. I hope I'm surprised, but I'm more of a realist. This team is going to be a lot better with time on the court and experience, of which they have very little right now.
T
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Post by Pantherholic on Oct 16, 2006 8:26:58 GMT -6
GB was projected 7th last year in the HL poll and was also the 5th youngest team in the country. they finished tied for 3rd in the HL and got a first round bye. i'm not saying we'll match this but if anyone thinks we've got no chance to be better than 7th, they'll find out in a few months.
he's just a typical Chicago fan - when the team is good, they can walk on water. when the team's bad, they're the most embarrassing and despicable team in the world and should be completely rebuilt. look at the Bears last year: at the beginning all you heard was how bad they are and random whining and crying and come playoff time, jesus couldn't score on their defense.
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Post by Kroener3535 on Oct 16, 2006 10:08:44 GMT -6
Sorry but we wont contend for conference...not realistic...its nice to set goals but might want to set some that are attainable
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Post by Rambler63 on Oct 16, 2006 13:50:20 GMT -6
The fact that Big D is knocking our soccer program is laughable. UIC is having a great year thanks to their senior leadership. Once their seniors are gone it's back to the drawing board. Doesn't your comment prove Big D's point about the value of experience? Where I think he's wrong is about Jeffers. Over on the UIC board they're claiming that he's going to win Player of the Year (as a junior). Talk about crazy expectations.... |
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Post by uwmfutbol on Oct 16, 2006 13:56:51 GMT -6
I don't believe UWM will win the HL in basketball this year.
UIC's soccer program is doing quite well this year because their seniors are carrying the workload. However, senior leadership does not define success. It is merely ONE factor in deciding success.
Florida won the national championship with a team dominated by sophomores. Marquette's best player last season was a freshman (yes, I believe DJ is better than Novak). In soccer, SMU is ranked 1 in the country with a team dominated by underclassmen.
Senior leadership is important, but not mandatory for success.
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Post by coldwind on Oct 16, 2006 14:38:20 GMT -6
DJ was NOT better than Novak.
Novak was the only reason he could get to the rim.Without that,Marquette will have terrible times against any team with size.Which the Big East has in spades
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Post by formerseasonticketholder on Oct 16, 2006 14:43:50 GMT -6
GB was projected 7th last year in the HL poll and was also the 5th youngest team in the country. they finished tied for 3rd in the HL and got a first round bye. i'm not saying we'll match this but if anyone thinks we've got no chance to be better than 7th, they'll find out in a few months. 'Holic, I agree with what you're saying here, these predictions aren't worth too much, we could surprise some people this season, and the only way to find out is to watch the season unfold. What really surprises me here is that given your affection for pmck that you're willing to further advance his spin on last season. It's true that UWGB finished tied for third and got a first round bye in the HL tourney, but let's not forget it's also true they finished tied for eighth and got a first round bye.  While this should be a fun season of Panther basketball, this is UWGB's year to run away with the league. If they don't win either the regular season or the conference tournament and end up in either the NIT or NCAA tourney, then I think the blame goes squarely on the shoulders of pmck. |
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Post by uwmfutbol on Oct 16, 2006 14:45:29 GMT -6
DJ has more natural talent than Novak. While Novak's 3 pointers were very important, without DJ leading the ball down the court Novak probably woudn't have even gotten the ball half the time.
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