Cards Find Themselves In ESPN's "Bottom Ten"
by Mike Rutherford on Jan 17, 2012 3:06 PM EST
in Basketball
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PrintI suppose this was a matter of when and not if.
8. Louisville
Offense: Sudden defensive leniency
Bottom 10 judgment: "Rusty Cage." Louisville has not been a particularly pretty offensive team this season; the Cardinals have thrived on defense and rebounding and their press and tough-nosed play. In the past week, those qualities have vanished. On Tuesday night, Louisville was blown out 90-59 at Providence, putting up an anemic offensive performance while allowing the upstart Friars to score 1.34 points per possession. Then, on Monday, the Cardinals suffered a dramatic collapse on the road. With 14 minutes left in the first half, Rick Pitino's team led 18-2 at Marquette. The final score: Marquette 74, Louisville 63. If my math is correct, that means Louisville was outscored 72-45 over the final 34 minutes of the game. What happened to this team's defense? If the relevant metaphor is a cage, well, you better believe that thing is rusty.
"But I'm gonna break / I'm gonna break my / Gonna break my rusty cage and run."
I've read cooler things.
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ESPN has been waiting so long to do this.
by James Sutherland on Jan 17, 2012 3:13 PM EST reply actions
Actually, I thought they and the pollsters have been very generous to us so far. I suppose this will be the reason that Willis picks UK over us on Friday
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 3:15 PM EST up reply actions
Am I the only guy not that impressed with Willis?
RUSS SMITH's #1 fan.
by aaron Peck on Jan 17, 2012 3:31 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
agreed
Saw him in state semi-finals last year. There was another kid on Bullit East that dominated the game. He was the tallest kid on the court and a non-factor.
by Scott_Howard42 on Jan 17, 2012 3:36 PM EST up reply actions
IU, UK, and Purdue all want him. He's the #1 player in the State, and if he miraculously picks us on Friday it would be a big get
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 3:41 PM EST up reply actions
It was Troutman
Willis looks to me like the second coming of Chad Millard…I just don’t think we need a big that isn’t physical. Let Willis and Wiltjer hang out with Jon Hood and be tall, skinny, and super white.
by Scott_Howard42 on Jan 17, 2012 4:38 PM EST up reply actions
Hello
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 3:28 PM EST up reply actions
so, you think we should have won more games?
I think Pitino has a spot on the staff for you. It probably never occured to him.
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 3:30 PM EST up reply actions
If you don’t want stories written like that, don’t lose to Providence by 31 and don’t get outscored by 27 point in 34 minutes against Marquette. Losing is one thing, embarrassing losses are another.
I'll take the heat for this.
That’s my bad, guys. My bad.
by Justin Gingey Smith on Jan 17, 2012 4:35 PM EST up reply actions
I see your point, I just think its ridiculous (no offense)
They tried to win the games. No one wanted to lose any of those games, regardless of what stories would be written.
It’s like telling the kid who tripped and fell of the stage, “dude, if you didn’t want people to laugh at you, you shouldn’t have fallen off the stage.”
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 4:39 PM EST up reply actions
I wish I would have jumped on the pitino-sucks-and-siva-should-lose-his-scholarship bandwagon earlier
Then at least I’d get some satisfaction out of being right.
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 3:35 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Dude, you also are in need of a hug.
I’m not saying either one of those things. Just agreeing that this has been coming for awhile and that it’s not unjustified.
I’ve never said Pitino sucks or that Siva should lose his scholarship. I’m reserving my judgments of individual performances until the season ends.
No one wants to see our team in this position just so they can be right, well,… maybe Scorpio but that’s it.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 3:39 PM EST up reply actions
Nothing like UL losing to make me want to call everyone an asshole.
Hey- if you didn’t want me to act like this, UL shouldn’t have lost.
Wacker’s with me, right wacker?
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 4:42 PM EST up reply actions
Easy. I’m not saying we get to act like jerks because the team is playing poorly. The inference was ESPN had been waiting all season to write something negative about the team. My point was if the team doesn’t want something bad written about it, don’t give ESPN the ammunition.
If ESPN hates us we wouldn't be on TV as much as we are
And please don’t anyone say they are putting us on this much to show how we suck.
You love this picture,.. it should be the game image for Saturday
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 3:47 PM EST up reply actions
I say Russ comes out with his face painted like this on Saturday
by LouisvilleSklardinalFAN02 on Jan 17, 2012 4:24 PM EST up reply actions
If that happens I will offically put him in my top3 favorite players ever
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 5:11 PM EST up reply actions
I'd get to work on a statue immediately.
by Justin Gingey Smith on Jan 17, 2012 5:37 PM EST up reply actions
I will learn how to make a statue myself if Russ is wearing face paint on Saturday
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 6:33 PM EST up reply actions
Hey look on the bright side
We’ve got 100% record when scoring 70 or more and holding the opposition to 69 or less. Nobody can take that away from us.
I predicted at the beginning of the season we would have difficulties
scoring and with team chemistry. I knew injuries were going to be a problem and if you check, you’ll see I also predicted Marra and Van Treese’s injuries. I liked Russ since he was in the fifth grade and could tell then that he would be a force in his Sophomore year.
I predicted assholes would make comments like this as soon as we started losing.
Looks like Nostradamus has some competition. Bitches.
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 4:40 PM EST up reply actions
Really? please see below JJJ
For God’s sakes, I said FIFTH GRADE!!!
I thought the sarcasm would be self-evident…
whoops. Dude- my bad. Seriously, Apologies. I'm in the read the first sentence and call everyone an asshole zone.
I need to do something else. This isn’t good for anyone.
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 4:46 PM EST up reply actions
S'cool
I’m as sick as you are with all these people crawling out of the woodwork and touting their prescience. As if anyone could have predicted any of this!
I can't believe I missed that- I should have at least looked at who made the comment before I called you an asshole.
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 4:50 PM EST up reply actions
This season is turning everyone into an asshole, apparently
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 5:07 PM EST up reply actions
Yes, yes it has... but at this point anything good that happens is bonus
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 5:12 PM EST up reply actions
I'm pretty sure this is a no "fucking cookie zone." Not 100%,... but pretty sure
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 4:13 PM EST up reply actions
How about just "a cookie." That sounds more appropiate
Somehow “F” bombs look worse written down when you can’t express the sarcasm
Losing SVT was way, way more a loss than Marra
Because UL lost its only reliable breaks for Dieng. Rak/Price simply cannot do it.
I disagree,
Marra was clearly emerging as a leader on the floor. He could tell Price where to be on the floor as well as help with the development of the other younger guys. Marra got dealt a shitty hand thanks to CRP throwing that “best shooter ever” shit out there and giving him unfair expectations of the fans. Watch some film, that kid was a streaky shooter yeah, but he made all kinds of plays with and without the ball. I guess I’m a Marra fan.
They were both huge losses, and it really pisses me off that so many people were so hard on Marra.
SVT was just tough, and definitely gave you a, more than serviceable, backup to Gorgui.
But Marra,…. well, Marra was a guy who really understood how to play the game. He just got it in terms of where people are supposed to be on defense (See Pitt game last year) and how to play offense.
Before he got hurt you were really starting to see him show his value on the offensive end. He was pretty much the only guy on the team who could get the ball on the perimeter, having already read the defense, and make a great pass to get someone a high% shot.
I predicted Marra having a great Jr year just like Kyle last year and while that may not have happened he was going to be a valuable contributor to this team, at worst.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 4:11 PM EST up reply actions
once again it relates to Pitino's big mouth
Calling Marra “the best high school shooter I have ever seen” virtually guaranteed his play to be considered a failure. Any 3 point % less than 45% was going to frowned on. It was an unfair comment by CRP just as many of his comments have been.
Yes.
Maybe it wasn’t so clear how important Marra is to the team until he was sidelined. He is arguably our most intelligent player on the court; he plays a very smart game and executes very well. I still think the team we have has all of the talent it needs to compete for the Big East title, but execution along with what I would call “stupid” mistakes are our Achilles heel. We are simply not playing smart basketball.
by Get_In_My_BELLY_ on Jan 17, 2012 4:12 PM EST up reply actions
^This
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 4:15 PM EST up reply actions
Saying either player is a big loss, or a loss of any kind, speaks volumes about the state of recruiting.
They weren't necessarily the best players on the team
But they were definitely players that we could REALLY use right now. SVT always played hard, and he almost always sparked the defense (and thus the transition offense) as soon as he got on the court.
Marra may not have been as good a 3 point shoot as advertised, but he got very good at reading the defense and then helping distribute the ball to people in position to beat that defense.
While neither player makes or breaks this team, the loss of them, on top of the other losses, shows what is missing from this team.
by regis villebin on Jan 17, 2012 4:38 PM EST up reply actions
Not a Marra hate post
I said the SVT loss hurt UL more. Meaning I think our bigger hole is at the 5, not the 3/4.
And not that all our other Fs are as smart as Marra, just games become at high risk when Gorgui’s in foul trouble. Not nearly so much with our forwards.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that if Marra was playing and we still lost
it would have been all marra’s fault.
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 4:43 PM EST up reply actions
Absolutely, cause lord knows...... never mind
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 5:09 PM EST up reply actions
If it weren't for all of the ridiculous injuries, we'd be right where we thought we'd be coming into the season.
This was not supposed to be a bridge to nowhere, although things are looking pretty bleak right now. No one is to blame. I’m sure some will disagree and label this as an “unacceptable excuse”, but the injuries are the only thing keeping us from being a top 5 team.
I hate to dwell on what we don’t have, but it’s hard not to when it’s blatantly obvious what’s plaguing this team. My plan for the rest of the season is to sit back, root for the Cards, and hope for a couple of marquee wins against Syracuse and UConn to boost our NCAA tourney resume.
by Get_In_My_BELLY_ on Jan 17, 2012 4:07 PM EST reply actions
cheers to you.
the time to lower expectations has long since passed. Even when we were 12-0 it was no secret there was a lot of work to be done. We’ve been dealth a shitty hand with injury after injury after injury. Hopefully we can get everybody back by March, make a solid run to get into the tourney, and that’s that.
by Justin Gingey Smith on Jan 17, 2012 4:12 PM EST up reply actions
Exactly
One of our biggest strengths this year was going to be depth. Having the ability to press non stop and always be fresh would wear down teams that may be better than us. It would hide our offensive flaws and make games sloppy, but ones that we could win. Now we have almost zero bench and are really starting feel the effects of these injuries.
by indianacardfan on Jan 17, 2012 5:05 PM EST up reply actions
yeah
Milford High School is winning with depth and running. Maybe we should hire Gil Thorpe.
I hate that I have nothing to say about this, really
Symptom of my mentally checking out on the season. I hate feeling like a fair weather fan, but it’s the accumulated letdowns of several seasons in a row now. If I could force it, I would. I can’t. I find myself wishing it was August already.
Oh be careful
I was dubbed a “fair weather fan” the other day because of saying I needed a break from the frustration.
That’s the other thing that’s irking me lately-never in the 20 years I’ve been a card fan have I been accused by a fellow card fan of being a fair weather fan. Came here first.
by twistedwedge on Jan 17, 2012 5:38 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
To everyone I've called an asshole in the last 24 hours- I apologize.
I just can’t deal with UL losing…
by johnnyjoejohnson on Jan 17, 2012 4:49 PM EST reply actions
Oh, his niche is boogers and drawing penises.
JJJ’s name has been made, and he spells it out with boogers and penises.
ALL HAIL
by Cardinal_Pride on Jan 19, 2012 3:19 AM EST up reply actions
At least the Johnny Cash line is cool. (Soundgarden Cover)
I say this song should be the anthem for the turn around of our season. We break through our rusty cage and make a run in the tournament.
My bottom 10:
1. Buzz Williams (You make 7 figures, find a fucking tailor.)
2. Whatever punk did that throat cutting thing yesterday.
3. West Virginia
4. John Calipari
5. Sweet n Low
6. Losing.
7. Lukewarm showers
8. Digger Phelps
9. ESPN’s endless stream of UofL hate
10. UK
You’re not even important enough to be number 10, ESPN.
I leave you with monkeys doing people things to warm the soul.
by James Sutherland on Jan 17, 2012 4:53 PM EST reply actions 2 recs
Sweet n Low with lemon in iced tea is amazing,... just say'n
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 5:10 PM EST up reply actions
Not Sweet n Low. Equal. Equal damnit! Or Splenda! Not Sweet n Low! What the hell is wrong with you!
Uh, sorry. Guess we’re all a little stressed, huh?
by Carolina Cardinal on Jan 17, 2012 5:19 PM EST up reply actions
Splenda is where it's at.
by James Sutherland on Jan 17, 2012 5:23 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Splenda in my coffee? Yes,.. but my Memaw raised me on tea with lemon and Sweet n Low dagnabit. Don't hate on the pink package bro
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 17, 2012 6:32 PM EST up reply actions
This is a tad bit absurd. THE BOTTOM 10? C'Mon.
We definitely aren’t a top 25 team. We have top 25 potential (I’m not going to say talent), but we’re not there, and probably won’t be this season unless the guys can somehow completely change their mindset. At the same time, we’re not deserving of a spot in the Bottom 10. That’s completely ridiculous. The bottom 10 is for the NJIT’s of the world. I’m not one of those people that say the whole world is against us while turning a blind eye to our lack of performance but it literally seems like ESPN was just waiting for us to slip up.
"Free throws don't win and lose games." -John Calipari
Eh... I actually read the entire thing. I guess they don't do it the same way they do football... I guess I can see why we're in it now.
"Free throws don't win and lose games." -John Calipari
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