@ UNO

[gopheryote]

Coyotes head to UNO (do they still go by that name?) tonight for a winnable road game.


Yotes: RPI 153; BPI 195; Won 5 of last 7 games; sole possession of 2nd place in SL, 1-2 on the road in SL (3-6 overall & 4-8 if you include neutral site, so there may be a trend...)


Mavericks: RPI 165; BPI 202; Favored by our friends in Vegas by 2.0, on a two game losing streak, 5-3 playing at home

[Coyote Fan]

Welcome to the gauntlet

So what is the general opinion of this road trip. Do we take a 1-2 trip if someone could give us a guarantee that would be the record or do we risk an 0-3 for the chance to be 2-1 or 3-0. I take the 1-2 guarantee and move on if given the choice.

The Omaha game is the most winnable game on the trip one would think. The Coyotes played IMO their best and most complete game of the season at home against these guys. They won't play as well as last time out but will the performance be good enough to pull out a win. No lead will be safe and no deficit will be impossible to overcome within reason. I don't see this as a game that goes back and forth with no team being ahead by double digits. I can see one team or the other get a 12 point lead or more and watch the other come back. It will be a game of streaks and momemtum but in the end I think it comes down to a tight finish. This is one of those games where the free throw line could make or break us. The Coyotes haven't played great and they haven't play bad either lately but they played good enough to basically hold serve at home. If the Coyotes play like they have been they will not fair well on this 3 game trip because they can't afford to just play pretty good basketball because they will need to play very good to great to be able to win any of these games.

Since I don't really have a good feeling one way or another I will stay close to the spread line and pick Omaha 84-80. I don't feel confident in the pick regardless of which team I would choose. As Craig Smith referred to it's time to play a Serena Williams and break Omaha's serve on their home court.

[Yotes]

First of three straight road games, the most difficult stretch on our SL schedule this year. It's gut check time for the Yotes. We ran these guys over in Vermillion but this could be a very different game on the road. Gotta win this one before having to go to Fargo and Fort Wayne.

[Yotes]

Can we get a Summit League TV portal going like the Big Sky has yet? Would very much like to watch the game tonight but refuse to pay $9 for it.

[Coyote Fan]

I agree I won't pay money either. There is a little good news. IUPUI leads NDSU in Indiana 42-35 at half. If IUPUI can hold on and the Coyotes win tonight than Saturday's game in Fargo would be another matchup for first place. If the Coyotes would pull off that kind of a feat I believe they would hold the #1 spot due to tie breaker. If the Coyotes don't beat NDSU their dream of winning the conference is pretty much over.

At this point a realistic goal is to get the #3 seed or higher which would be a nice position to be in.

[Coyote Fan]

Tonight is take back our rightful place night. If the Coyotes would win tonight then they are almost certain to finish ahead of Omaha in the standings as they would be up 3 in the loss column plus the tie breaker.

[yotebewithyou]

Feb 1, 2017 18:47:52 GMT -6 Yotes said:

Can we get a Summit League TV portal going like the Big Sky has yet? Would very much like to watch the game tonight but refuse to pay $9 for it.

Would love to see this happen. I'm pretty sure every team in the conference has at least a very basic stream but USD is the only one that doesn't charge. I believe this is USD's 2nd year of free streaming and the quality is great. Someone with connections with the department should make that suggestion

[Coyote Fan]

Omaha leads 27-23 with less then 8:00 to go in the half. Media time out.

[Coyote Fan]

Omaha 49-43 at half. A few too many points given up and more missed free throws this game. It seemed like Omaha got quite a few easy shots and layups. Time to tighten up the D if the Yotes are to come back and win.

[Yotes]

IUPUI has beaten NDSU in OT. This means that if USD can pull this game against UNO out we will have an opportunity to slide into 1st place on Saturday (would hold tiebreaker over NDSU due to record vs. Denver).

That being said, this game is not looking good. Sounds like we can't grab a rebound to save our lives and ugly free throw shooting is of course an issue. Find a way to win this though and we have a huge opportunity on Saturday.

[Coyote Fan]

IUPUI beat NDSU 86-81 in OT. The Bison did their part in losing now it's time for a second half come back to setup a first place showdown. The Coyotes could potentially be playing one men's and one women's game on Saturday both for first place in the Summit. The hard part is probably having the Yotes beat Omaha because it will take better play in the second half for that to happen.

[Yotes]

16 minutes left and you might as well call this one. How did we ever beat a capable team like Denver on the road? We have been crap in every other road game in conference play.

[Coyote Fan]

59-45 Omaha. Not good as it appears the Coyotes just don't really have it tonight.

[coyotecrazie5]

Audio:

www.goyotes.com/watch/?Live=291

[coyotecrazie5]

58-66 Omaha, 9:43 left. There is still time to come back.