SDSU (1PM)

[kiyoat]

So I guess this is the "Interstate Rivalry" game, and no longer the "Showdown Series" game?  - Corporate Sponsorship naming things is awesome.....

Despite the disparity between these two teams in NET ranking, ... The Yotes have a decent opportunity here, as we saw with the St Thomas game yesterday.  On the men's side, its "any given Saturday".

Predictions:
Jacks win 77-73 (+4) Massey
Jacks win 76-71 (+5) Warren Nolan
(there are many other predictive sources for the men, especially day-of-the-game predictions, so feel free to add stuff to this thread)

[Yotes]

Jan 19, 2024 10:50:24 GMT -6 kiyoat said:

So I guess this is the "Interstate Rivalry" game, and no longer the "Showdown Series" game?  - Corporate Sponsorship naming things is awesome.....

I don't care what a sponsor wants it to be called. It has always been "the State-U game" for me. Not a unique or colorful name, but rolls off the tongue and people know what I'm talking about. I would definitely have to explain "Showdown" or "Interstate" to people who aren't well connected with one of the programs.

As for the game, who knows? This team is so up and down. Some nights we look ready to appear in the new Summit play-in round, other nights we have looked like a team that could win the whole thing. The St Thomas win is very encouraging, but so was the NDSU win. Stringing two good games together would be an excellent sign for the rest of the season.

[dbyote]

We got our good game out of our system on Thursday. Back to normal today. Disappointing. Not good on either end. State toyed with us in the first half.

[fightsd]

Jan 20, 2024 13:37:53 GMT -6 dbyote said:

We got our good game out of our system on Thursday. Back to normal today. Disappointing. Not good on either end. State toyed with us in the first half.

We haven't played well but not our worst showing by a long shot. Not that it makes it any better. State just has better basketball players.

[dbyote]

Jan 20, 2024 13:51:40 GMT -6 fightsd said:

Jan 20, 2024 13:37:53 GMT -6 dbyote said:

We got our good game out of our system on Thursday. Back to normal today. Disappointing. Not good on either end. State toyed with us in the first half.

We haven't played well but not our worst showing by a long shot. Not that it makes it any better. State just has better basketball players.

That much is painfully obvious.

[fightsd]

Jan 20, 2024 13:57:42 GMT -6 dbyote said:

Jan 20, 2024 13:51:40 GMT -6 fightsd said:

We haven't played well but not our worst showing by a long shot. Not that it makes it any better. State just has better basketball players.

That much is painfully obvious.

Getting more and more obvious as the game goes on, unfortunately.

[elcoyote]

I'm calling bullshit. Everything is negative, no positives ever, at all? Toyed with? Both teams played poorly in the first half; the last ten minutes were especially ugly for both squads. I thought we played well/hard for the first 15 minutes of the second half and it was a 2/3 possession game with five minutes left, but then three straight bad, almost unforced turnovers in three possessions resulting in three easy baskets for State and it was game, set, match. In my estimation that minute and change was the game right there. I will concede that Mayo was probably the best player on the floor. It was a hard fought, exceptionally physical game seeing that neither team was ever in the bonus and only eight free throws were attempted all game. State is better equipped for a game like that.

[dbyote]

Jan 20, 2024 16:26:05 GMT -6 elcoyote said:

I'm calling bullshit. Everything is negative, no positives ever, at all? Toyed with? Both teams played poorly in the first half; the last ten minutes were especially ugly for both squads. I thought we played well/hard for the first 15 minutes of the second half and it was a 2/3 possession game with five minutes left, but then three straight bad, almost unforced turnovers in three possessions resulting in three easy baskets for State and it was game, set, match. In my estimation that minute and change was the game right there. I will concede that Mayo was probably the best player on the floor. It was a hard fought, exceptionally physical game seeing that neither team was ever in the bonus and only eight free throws were attempted all game. State is better equipped for a game like that.

I couldn't watch the second half but I watched the score trend and it certainly seemed like we held our own for a good chunk of it. For the record, I will never be accepting of a 17 point loss at home to state. Anyone who thinks it's ok will never see eye to eye with me as a fan That is why I'm negative. If the jacks would have run and gun in the first half they would have led by 20 at half. We won't generally be able to compete with good offensive teams on most nights but I long for the the days when this was actually a rivalry and both teams would be amped up. I just didn't see it from our guys in the first half at all.

I usually try to make the 6 hour trek to see a game or two every winter. This year neither team excites me enough to make the effort. I haven't been as discouraged as a fan in a long time. I tend to pay attention to trend lines more than one game or season as an indication of where a program is. Right now men are sideways at best and women are down. I just can't get excited about either. Recruiting is the only way to get the trend headed in the right direction. Hopefully it gets better because our fan base will sour and it's hard to get it back absent a transcendent coach.

[captaincoyote]

Jan 20, 2024 16:46:31 GMT -6 dbyote said:

Jan 20, 2024 16:26:05 GMT -6 elcoyote said:

I'm calling bullshit. Everything is negative, no positives ever, at all? Toyed with? Both teams played poorly in the first half; the last ten minutes were especially ugly for both squads. I thought we played well/hard for the first 15 minutes of the second half and it was a 2/3 possession game with five minutes left, but then three straight bad, almost unforced turnovers in three possessions resulting in three easy baskets for State and it was game, set, match. In my estimation that minute and change was the game right there. I will concede that Mayo was probably the best player on the floor. It was a hard fought, exceptionally physical game seeing that neither team was ever in the bonus and only eight free throws were attempted all game. State is better equipped for a game like that.

I couldn't watch the second half but I watched the score trend and it certainly seemed like we held our own for a good chunk of it. For the record, I will never be accepting of a 17 point loss at home to state. Anyone who thinks it's ok will never see eye to eye with me as a fan That is why I'm negative. If the jacks would have run and gun in the first half they would have led by 20 at half. We won't generally be able to compete with good offensive teams on most nights but I long for the the days when this was actually a rivalry and both teams would be amped up. I just didn't see it from our guys in the first half at all.

I usually try to make the 6 hour trek to see a game or two every winter. This year neither team excites me enough to make the effort. I haven't been as discouraged as a fan in a long time. I tend to pay attention to trend lines more than one game or season as an indication of where a program is. Right now men are sideways at best and women are down. I just can't get excited about either. Recruiting is the only way to get the trend headed in the right direction. Hopefully it gets better because our fan base will sour and it's hard to get it back absent a transcendent coach.

I mostly agree, and share your sentiment, but to try to cast some positivity (because I’m an optimist to a fault), I think we have some good young talent and coach Peterson has shown the willingness to fill needs out of the transfer portal. We just need some time to gel and a few guys to get a hotter fire in their belly.

[dbyote]

Jan 20, 2024 17:16:15 GMT -6 captaincoyote said:

Jan 20, 2024 16:46:31 GMT -6 dbyote said:

I couldn't watch the second half but I watched the score trend and it certainly seemed like we held our own for a good chunk of it. For the record, I will never be accepting of a 17 point loss at home to state. Anyone who thinks it's ok will never see eye to eye with me as a fan That is why I'm negative. If the jacks would have run and gun in the first half they would have led by 20 at half. We won't generally be able to compete with good offensive teams on most nights but I long for the the days when this was actually a rivalry and both teams would be amped up. I just didn't see it from our guys in the first half at all.

I usually try to make the 6 hour trek to see a game or two every winter. This year neither team excites me enough to make the effort. I haven't been as discouraged as a fan in a long time. I tend to pay attention to trend lines more than one game or season as an indication of where a program is. Right now men are sideways at best and women are down. I just can't get excited about either. Recruiting is the only way to get the trend headed in the right direction. Hopefully it gets better because our fan base will sour and it's hard to get it back absent a transcendent coach.

I mostly agree, and share your sentiment, but to try to cast some positivity (because I’m an optimist to a fault), I think we have some good young talent and coach Peterson has shown the willingness to fill needs out of the transfer portal. We just need some time to gel and a few guys to get a hotter fire in their belly.

Things can indeed turn quickly. I 100 percent agree with the fire in the belly comment. We are missing that terribly. We have seen it occasionally but it's like a 25 percent proposition at this point. Certainly not mandatory.

[lynn]

I’m just glad we’ve decide to play Hill some minutes. No idea what took so long but he is getting more and more comfortable it appears. I assumed maybe he wasn’t playing defense in practice but watching the games that doesn’t appear to matter 😂. I am still hopeful for this team figuring it out. Hate to see 3 guys come in with holt, thuine, and Stewart and their talent level for this league but get the results we are getting. If it doesn’t change you may have been better bringing in young guys and building. Good news is nobody is going to be sniffing around our coach anytime soon😂. Anyway let’s hope they figure it out and make a March run.

[Yotes]

I had a blast taking my toddler son to his first ever sporting event, thankfully a Coyote game. He sees the USD branding at home all the time and he was incredibly excited to point out all the Coyote logos at the SCSC. I have been so many times that I have lost sight of just how beautiful our arena is and how well the brand is plastered throughout the facility. The 5-foot standup SD paw inside the main entrance was a big hit. I was trying to wipe off my glasses from the long cold walk and he would not stop trying to bolt away from me and cut through the crowd to that 5-foot USD paw. Had to just hold him and wait for my glasses to de-fog. Running the concourse (with those tiny legs) was exhilarating for him as he pointed out all the branding while still having a great view of the court. The starting lineup and hype video with light show had him going crazy. He loved the band and the crowd making big noise when the Coyotes had a good play. We unfortunately did have to leave in the 2nd half when I wouldn't let him go onto the court and he threw a fit because he couldn't touch the biggest USD logo of them all. He was way past nap time anyways. He will be 2 in May. He will never remember this day but I will never forget it.

I share this because some of you should lighten up. No one is happy about the result. The team has shown great potential and we are working with a rookie head coach. It's his second season as a head coach, but I'm calling him a rookie still. Anyone remember last year when he could have died and missed a bunch of games? Losing sucks. I think we are headed for better things. Try to be positive along the way.

[captaincoyote]

Jan 20, 2024 18:41:30 GMT -6 Yotes said:

I had a blast taking my toddler son to his first ever sporting event, thankfully a Coyote game. He sees the USD branding at home all the time and he was incredibly excited to point out all the Coyote logos at the SCSC. I have been so many times that I have lost sight of just how beautiful our arena is and how well the brand is plastered throughout the facility. The 5-foot standup SD paw inside the main entrance was a big hit. I was trying to wipe off my glasses from the long cold walk and he would not stop trying to bolt away from me and cut through the crowd to that 5-foot USD paw. Had to just hold him and wait for my glasses to de-fog. Running the concourse (with those tiny legs) was exhilarating for him as he pointed out all the branding while still having a great view of the court. The starting lineup and hype video with light show had him going crazy. He loved the band and the crowd making big noise when the Coyotes had a good play. We unfortunately did have to leave in the 2nd half when I wouldn't let him go onto the court and he threw a fit because he couldn't touch the biggest USD logo of them all. He was way past nap time anyways. He will be 2 in May. He will never remember this day but I will never forget it.

I share this because some of you should lighten up. No one is happy about the result. The team has shown great potential and we are working with a rookie head coach. It's his second season as a head coach, but I'm calling him a rookie still. Anyone remember last year when he could have died and missed a bunch of games? Losing sucks. I think we are headed for better things. Try to be positive along the way.

How old is your boy? I think I want to start bringing my daughter to VB games next fall. She turns 4 soon.

[90yote]

I thought it just came down to not making shots. I thought they pretty much got what they wanted in the first half. They took care of the ball and got open looks. But they are not good enough to withstand that shooting performance. And a couple guys (frankly) killed them.

Jacks are better, but compared to previous years aren't great. That was a very winnable game. Stewart looked like he was coming off an illness, and he didn't even start the second half. That told you how he was feeling.

I will again say this is a byproduct of the Lee era, never trying to build something over years. Look at the Jacks...Mayo is in his 3rd year (and is a star), Mims is in his 5th year there, Appel is in his 4th year in Brookings (and 6th year in college). Kyle (who I heard Lee wasn't terribly interested in) is a difference-maker in his sophomore season. Yotes have any of those guys? It makes a difference.

[fightsd]

Jan 20, 2024 18:54:27 GMT -6 90yote said:

I thought it just came down to not making shots. I thought they pretty much got what they wanted in the first half. They took care of the ball and got open looks. But they are not good enough to withstand that shooting performance. And a couple guys (frankly) killed them.

Jacks are better, but compared to previous years aren't great. That was a very winnable game. Stewart looked like he was coming off an illness, and he didn't even start the second half. That told you how he was feeling.

I will again say this is a byproduct of the Lee era, never trying to build something over years. Look at the Jacks...Mayo is in his 3rd year (and is a star), Mims is in his 5th year there, Appel is in his 4th year in Brookings (and 6th year in college). Kyle (who I heard Lee wasn't terribly interested in) is a difference-maker in his sophomore season. Yotes have any of those guys? It makes a difference.

We haven't had the success in recent years to win recruiting battles against state. USD hasn't done anything notable in MBB since most of these kids were in grade school. Lee didn't recruit well, but let's not pretend that we have a real shot at the best local kids. Until we have some sustained success, we'll need to hit a home run every year in the transfer portal and maybe get lucky on a recruit or two that decides to stick around when they start to stand out.