This team is built to win close games

[TheRazorbackGuy]

CMA said he welcomes the criticism because fans in Arkansas care about basketball and that's why he came here. Get over the style points. This isn't football. Winning sloppy is still winning and learning to win close games Will be benefiting come tournament time.

[Piglet Dispersion Syndrome]

That's a funny funny title. Yes, Ky Madden is money at the end of games!!

[TheRazorbackGuy]

That's a funny funny title. Yes, Ky Madden is money at the end of games!!

Ky also is the reason games are close

[Piglet Dispersion Syndrome]

Ky also is the reason games are close

You just made my point. They shouldn't be close!

[BadHog]

I'd rather have the blow out wins!

[3of5-2]

If the plan is to have Madden in at the end of halves so he can shoot free throws, then let him take the foul, but good grief, don't let him continue to jack up wild out of control shots.

[TheRazorbackGuy]

I'd rather have the blow out wins!

Since 1996 against Power 5 opponents when did this happen... Often...

[3of5-2]

Since all of threads are being locked, I will try and get this in. This is not a great team, but they are a good team and a better team. Yes, they struggle at times with decision making and player combinations, but they have a full month of conference games to fix those before we play in the NCAAT. I would love to be blowing teams out, but we are still winning close games that in the past, we would have lost.

[HSVhogfan2]

This team can still be a sweet 16 team. They can also miss the tourny all together. I do like the personnel decisions better. Close games are good for this bunch. Belief in one another is a very potent, performance enhancing drug.

[TheRazorbackGuy]

This team can still be a sweet 16 team. They can also miss the tourny all together. I do like the personnel decisions better. Close games are good for this bunch. Belief in one another is a very potent, performance enhancing drug.

Yes I agree... I think we keep this up we can be a SWeet sixteen team

[TeufelHog]

Good team, yes!  Poorly coached team, yes.  You have to admit, UT coach flat-out "out coached" MA tonight.  For that matter so did Bama's and Mizzou's coaches.  We were just fortunate the "iron was kind" and the "balls bounced our way" the last 3 games. 

Our luck will run out soon.  Our fundamentals, therefore our coaching, MUST IMPROVE!  Just not seeing the incremental progress/improvements building on each game.  Hogs are tenacious though.  They just refuse to quit!

[HSVhogfan2]

Good team, yes!  Poorly coached team, yes.  You have to admit, UT coach flat-out "out coached" MA tonight.  For that matter so did Bama's and Mizzou's coaches.  We were just fortunate the "iron was kind" and the "balls bounced our way" the last 3 games. 

Our luck will run out soon.  Our fundamentals, therefore our coaching, MUST IMPROVE!  Just not seeing the incremental progress/improvements building on each game.  Hogs are tenacious though.  They just refuse to quit!

So what would be a couple of examples of AR getting "out coached"?

[FBREW000]

So what would be a couple of examples of AR getting "out coached"?

Both games against Tenner, Ole Miss Game... and that took seconds...

[FATHAWG08]

I like this team with the right combiation. We seem to settle down when Portis & Moses were in the game together. We protected the front of the rim better. The one question I have why was Beard on the bench for most of the 2nd half? That guy is a Richardson type player (Bowers, Sheppard) come to mind from the past.

[forrest city joe]

Good team, yes!  Poorly coached team, yes.  You have to admit, UT coach flat-out "out coached" MA tonight.  For that matter so did Bama's and Mizzou's coaches.  We were just fortunate the "iron was kind" and the "balls bounced our way" the last 3 games. 

Our luck will run out soon.  Our fundamentals, therefore our coaching, MUST IMPROVE!  Just not seeing the incremental progress/improvements building on each game.  Hogs are tenacious though.  They just refuse to quit!

Just what we need, another attack on our coach. do you folks ever stop?

[HSVhogfan2]

Both games against Tenner, Ole Miss Game... and that took seconds...

Those are examples? LOL

[Hog Pharm]

Those are examples? LOL

No haha.  The supposed "coaches" on the board can't give you an example. What a shock.

[tophawg19]

Just what we need, another attack on our coach. do you folks ever stop?

not when it's the truth. this team is poorly coached on defense . and the offense lacks consistency .

[Slater]

What some folks do not like about Mike he can not change, so move along guys. Great coach building a consistent NCAA team and restoring pride to a proud program. Three wins in 144 hours, thank you very much.

[FreshHog]

What some folks do not like about Mike he can not change, so move along guys. Great coach building a consistent NCAA team and restoring pride to a proud program. Three wins in 144 hours, thank you very much.

3 wins in 144 hours while half the roster has or has had the flu.*

Impressive feat in my opinion.

[TheRazorbackGuy]

What some folks do not like about Mike he can not change, so move along guys. Great coach building a consistent NCAA team and restoring pride to a proud program. Three wins in 144 hours, thank you very much.

Mike has made adjustments and went to half court man to man and other zone defenses.

[PonderinHog]

122 hours

[Mark Martin Fan]

Are we playing to the level of our competition?  If so, whose fault is that?
Should we be playing close games against mediocre teams from a weak basketball conference...at home? 
With the talent we have...is this the best we can play?  If so, what happens when Portis is gone next year?
I'm hoping the Hogs get it turned around and start playing closer to the full potential...not sure they are there yet.

[TheRazorbackGuy]

Are we playing to the level of our competition?  If so, whose fault is that?
Should we be playing close games against mediocre teams from a weak basketball conference...at home? 
With the talent we have...is this the best we can play?  If so, what happens when Portis is gone next year?
I'm hoping the Hogs get it turned around and start playing closer to the full potential...not sure they are there yet.

Get over it. Winning close games will pay off in the tournament

[Thepigdoctor]

Are we playing to the level of our competition?  If so, whose fault is that?
Should we be playing close games against mediocre teams from a weak basketball conference...at home? 
With the talent we have...is this the best we can play?  If so, what happens when Portis is gone next year?
I'm hoping the Hogs get it turned around and start playing closer to the full potential...not sure they are there yet.

More of this weak conference, mediocre team garbage. Get out of the past and over the bias. While there are flaws, the computer rankings tell a much different story then you paint. Tennessee, rpi, 55. Yes, out of 350 division 1 programs, that certainly screams mediocre. Yawn.

[SquidBilly]

Are we playing to the level of our competition?  If so, whose fault is that?
Should we be playing close games against mediocre teams from a weak basketball conference...at home? 
With the talent we have...is this the best we can play?  If so, what happens when Portis is gone next year?
I'm hoping the Hogs get it turned around and start playing closer to the full potential...not sure they are there yet.

I wonder if we expect that the other teams are just going to lay down for us because we have talent.  Well news flash, that ain't gonna happen.  In fact just the opposite.  We'd all love to see Richardson era type blowouts but basketball has changed from twenty years ago.  Enjoy the fact that we are winning again.

[Rawland Watson]

  not when it's the truth. this team is poorly coached on defense . and the offense lacks consistency .

Tennessee scored 14 points over the last 15 minutes is that good defense? Arkansas average is around 80 points at home which is the best in college basketball is that consistently good offense?

[Dirty]

Still waiting on those examples.....

[rude1]

So what would be a couple of examples of AR getting "out coached"?

Pretty simple analogy if you have been following along with this crew. Lose a game, you got out coached. Win a game by less than 10, the other guy out coached you and you got lucky. The only way to win the coaching dual is wins by 10 or more depending on the opponent of course because mid-majors should be buried by 20+ or you got out coached again. Hope this clears it up for you.

[Kevin]

They are doing what they have to do  win games and separate themselves from the pack. Don't care what computers say the human perception is this league has a lot of average team beating each other   That is why i think they need 12 or more conference wins.

Nice job hogs, just keep getting wins no matter how ugly they are

[lefty08]

They are doing what they have to do  win games and separate themselves from the pack. Don't care what computers say the human perception is this league has a lot of average team beating each other   That is why i think they need 12 or more conference wins.

Nice job hogs, just keep getting wins no matter how ugly they are

Actually the human perception of this league is changing. Joe Lunardi said yesterday the SEC could get 6 teams in the tournament. The league has improved

[azhog10]

Good team, yes!  Poorly coached team, yes.  You have to admit, UT coach flat-out "out coached" MA tonight.  For that matter so did Bama's and Mizzou's coaches.  We were just fortunate the "iron was kind" and the "balls bounced our way" the last 3 games. 

Our luck will run out soon.  Our fundamentals, therefore our coaching, MUST IMPROVE!  Just not seeing the incremental progress/improvements building on each game.  Hogs are tenacious though.  They just refuse to quit!

If getting out coached means you win, then I hope we get outcoached every single game. CMA didn't tell Madden to throw the ball into the 5th row, or to dribble into a crowd and pick it up. He didn't tell Bell to jack up stupid shots, or for Harris to hesitate on wide open 15 foot shots. CMA did a great job of dialing up and down the pressure last night and there was a stretch where the team could have folded, but every time Richardson hit a shot, Ark came right back and matched it.

[azhog10]

Both games against Tenner, Ole Miss Game... and that took seconds...

Great "EXAMPLES" of us getting outcoached. Of course you would have to actually understand the game of basketball to give examples. Unfortunately CMA can't change the fact that he isn't white for some of you, and his past affiliations with Nolan drive some insane.

[Hoggish1]

This team can still be a sweet 16 team. They can also miss the tourny all together. I do like the personnel decisions better. Close games are good for this bunch. Belief in one another is a very potent, performance enhancing drug.

This is true and why I watch the games with reservation and detachment.  Helps with the ticker, you know...?  So far, so good.

[hawgsalot]

Great "EXAMPLES" of us getting outcoached. Of course you would have to actually understand the game of basketball to give examples. Unfortunately CMA can't change the fact that he isn't white for some of you, and his past affiliations with Nolan drive some insane.

This is exactly right, not one single example of anything but whining about winning.

[hogsanity]

Great "EXAMPLES" of us getting outcoached. Of course you would have to actually understand the game of basketball to give examples. Unfortunately CMA can't change the fact that he isn't white for some of you, and his past affiliations with Nolan drive some insane.

An example of being out coached is when the opponent finds a set that is working, maybe forcing switches, maybe getting mismatches on the backside, and then going to it over and over, meanwhile the other coach does nothing to stop it. That is getting out coached. Or a coach going to a defense they do not usually play, and the other coach not changing up his offense to account for that, that is getting out coached.  Those things happened to the Hogs at TN, at home against old misses, and at Clemson. 

[TheRazorbackGuy]

Great "EXAMPLES" of us getting outcoached. Of course you would have to actually understand the game of basketball to give examples. Unfortunately CMA can't change the fact that he isn't white for some of you, and his past affiliations with Nolan drive some insane.

I think fans need to calm down. This team is 16-4 and winning close games. Let me state this to you all: Its not suppose to be easy in the SEC

[hogsanity]

I think fans need to calm down. This team is 16-4 and winning close games. Let me state this to you all: Its not suppose to be easy in the SEC

The main concern I still have is the defense. TN and Mizzu are horrible offensively, both are n the mid 250's in ppg, yet they both pretty much hit their averages against the Hogs. The Hogs did not shut them down in any way.   Also, the Hogs seem to be easily forced to play the other teams pace.

But, they are winning games they most likely would have lost the last two years, and that is improvement.

[cypress rock]

Scrap the press!---it is not working.

[TheRazorbackGuy]

The main concern I still have is the defense. TN and Mizzu are horrible offensively, both are n the mid 250's in ppg, yet they both pretty much hit their averages against the Hogs. The Hogs did not shut them down in any way.   Also, the Hogs seem to be easily forced to play the other teams pace.

But, they are winning games they most likely would have lost the last two years, and that is improvement.

I've complained a lot this season but when Richardson hit shots our boys answered back. I see fight in this team and while the defense needs improvement we are winning games we would have lost the last 3 years

[ifghog]

Our team is much improved but no one can argue that we are undisciplined....if you don't agree you aren't watching the games....We have the most talent we have had in years. Point guard lacks but everywhere else is stellar. CMA has done a good job recruiting.

[DeltaBoy]

Just keep battling and winning.

[GuvHog]

Great "EXAMPLES" of us getting outcoached. Of course you would have to actually understand the game of basketball to give examples. Unfortunately CMA can't change the fact that he isn't white for some of you, and his past affiliations with Nolan drive some insane.

I agree Mike Anderson wasn't outcoached last night but the racial reference was unnecessary.

[GuvHog]

I've complained a lot this season but when Richardson hit shots our boys answered back. I see fight in this team and while the defense needs improvement we are winning games we would have lost the last 3 years

Well said. The first half the Hogs stayed within 2 points of Tennessee for the most part, which is something they didn't do in Knoxville. In the second half the Hogs started quickly taking the lead and for the most part, made a pretty good Tennessee team play from behind. the Hog defense improved when Mike put Kingsley in the game with Portis and Tennessee was held to just 64 points. The Hog offense needs to seriously improve the way they play against zone defenses though. Good win.

[hogsanity]

and Tennessee was held to just 64 points.

This statement is misleading. Tn was not held to anything other than right on their season ppg average. they rank in the 250's in ppg. The Hogs, on the other hand, were held 12 points below their season ppg average.

[WMHawgfan]

It is really a weird season when you look at it. All we hear is how we want to push the pace and turn it into an up tempo game, but if you look at decent teams we played where we did that, we got run out of the gym ie Ole Miss and ISU. Yet the grind it out style of play that is supposed to be our Achilles, we have found ways to win, even if it can attributed to getting lucky or dodging bullets.

I am not going to even try to rationalize it, I am just glad we are winning and hope it continues.

[Hawg Red]

I agree Mike Anderson wasn't outcoached last night but the racial reference was unnecessary.

Way unnecessary.

[The_Iceman]

Way unnecessary.

Listening to talk radio, I don't completely dismiss the undertones tho. You hear things like "Mike is dumb", "Mike doesn't know how to coach", "this is just streetball", "TJ Cleveland would be washing cars if he didn't know Mike", etc. and its not hard to believe there is that in peoples minds.

[twistitup]

We're built like a bamboo shiitehouse

Let's get polished up before tourney time.

[k.c.hawg]

I will always entertain the idea that a coach should have made in game adjustments after a loss. I will never question that, after a win. We won by 5, we think we should have won by 15, so we should have adjusted what we were doing and that would have resulted in a 15 point win? What if the coach played it exactly right and if he had gone away from what he considers to be our strength, it resulted in a loss. What if he makes changes and his players are less capable of executing the new defense or it creates another mismatch that makes for worse results.

It was a 5 point win against a Tenner team that is playing as hard as any team I've seen play all year. I had a bad feeling throughout the game but we made plays when we had to down the stretch. Madden's pull up 3 and Bell's baseline pop were huge shots by guys that weren't having very good games. Sometimes coaching is about having the right guys on the court at the right time. CMA said last night that he thought the game changed while having Portis and Kingsley on the court together, which is something he has been criticized for not doing.

It is hard to watch the full court press constantly give up open shots, especially when there is no way to quantify if the cumulative effect of the pressure is ever going to have a positive result. Does the Hubbs 3 go in from the corner at the 3 second mark if they hadn't had to beat pressure throughout the game? We don't know. We pay a guy to coach, that will eventually keep his job or lose his job based on whether he wins or loses. That to me is enough parameters to put on a coach when added to the APR, no recruiting scandals, no bad citizens, fund raising, etc. To hire him, say win to keep your job and oh by the way, don't do it your way, we want you to play straight up man defense, go to a zone if that's not working, only half court traps, no full court press.....because the fans know the game better than you, know your personnel better than you. I'll take 16-4 at this point and let him coach it his way. His career is the one that is on the line.