DeaconSig
Well-known member
I'm not positive the 1995 team could have beaten UCLA, but I would have loved to watch the game. Hands down that was our best chance at a championship in my lifetime.
The '96 team with a healthy T-Rut and not being paired with the loaded Kentucky squad in the Midwest Regional had just as much Final Four potential as the '95 team.
I'm not positive the 1995 team could have beaten UCLA, but I would have loved to watch the game. Hands down that was our best chance at a championship in my lifetime.
The '96 team with a healthy T-Rut and not being paired with the loaded Kentucky squad in the Midwest Regional had just as much Final Four potential as the '95 team.
OSU loss was much much worse. That team had one of the best big men to ever suit it up in ACC BB history along with a PG who was coming off the best ACC tourney ever and could not be stopped with a #1 seed and ACC champs. Everything was rolling with alot of nice complementing pieces with Scooter Banks and Peral down low and then a trio of guards with future NBAer and 3 point bomber Rusty Larue along with a very talented frosh Rutland who had the looks of future All ACCer and then Braswell and Goolsby off the bench. Biggest reason it was so painful is that team was clearly better in virtually every facet. Randy Rutherfordton has the game of his life and then worse Jason Skaer BANKS in a shot from middle of the court for only his 2nd basket of the game and then you had Rutland's 3 you just knew was going in but instead does the toilet bowl rim out to effectively end the game.
'05 team was fun to watch but horrible defensively with Skips insistence to play 3 guard lineup way too much. You just knew things were unlikely to go well with early ACC tourney exit and team just seemed off. I will say it was a different painful as felt we lost due to coaching in that game. Up a nice margin @ half with Vytas having a strong 1st half and then no Vytas 2nd half and all 3 guard and we just absolutely turned into a sieve. You have to play some amount of D in March and it was nonexistent with that team. It hurt a lot, but saw it coming as Skip did virtually the same thing all year and it cost us especially in postseason when everyone tightens up and you need good D to move on.
People arguing this point should have to disclose whether they were fans at the time of both events. Your perspective may well differ depending on whether you lived through them.
OSU loss was much much worse. That team had one of the best big men to ever suit it up in ACC BB history along with a PG who was coming off the best ACC tourney ever and could not be stopped with a #1 seed and ACC champs. Everything was rolling with alot of nice complementing pieces with Scooter Banks and Peral down low and then a trio of guards with future NBAer and 3 point bomber Rusty Larue along with a very talented frosh Rutland who had the looks of future All ACCer and then Braswell and Goolsby off the bench. Biggest reason it was so painful is that team was clearly better in virtually every facet. Randy Rutherfordton has the game of his life and then worse Jason Skaer BANKS in a shot from middle of the court for only his 2nd basket of the game and then you had Rutland's 3 you just knew was going in but instead does the toilet bowl rim out to effectively end the game.
'05 team was fun to watch but horrible defensively with Skips insistence to play 3 guard lineup way too much. You just knew things were unlikely to go well with early ACC tourney exit and team just seemed off. I will say it was a different painful as felt we lost due to coaching in that game. Up a nice margin @ half with Vytas having a strong 1st half and then no Vytas 2nd half and all 3 guard and we just absolutely turned into a sieve. You have to play some amount of D in March and it was nonexistent with that team. It hurt a lot, but saw it coming as Skip did virtually the same thing all year and it cost us especially in postseason when everyone tightens up and you need good D to move on.
I was a fan for both. My view of the WVU game is likely colored by having one of their fans in the next office over. Was the earlier Wake team better? Probably. Was the Big Country OK State team much better than the Pittsnogle 'Eers? I'd say definitely.
As much as I loved Skip, I felt like we always underperformed in the post season under him.
As much as I loved Skip, I felt like we always underperformed in the post season under him.
Yes, i watched both games. When people want to reference heartbreak, it's always WV. Just like Butler stands in for unpreparedness, Cleveland State for dumpster fire, and Stetson for utter incompetence. And maybe air force for bad omens.
Most who plead out will be hit with a show cause ban for several years. The NCAA won't take the bad publicity going along with letting coaches who pled to federal crimes coach within another few years.
What world do you live in? The NCAA is the epitome of bad publicity, it doesn't matter. UNC is still playing sports. Miami is caught up in this, as they have with virtually every other scandal yet are still playing. Baylor still rolls along. Penn State is a top-5 team. Urban "Cell Block C Warden" Meyer spouts off about doing things the right way. Louisville is Louisville, again. The NCAA (like the NFL) prints money, they don't give two shits about bad publicity as long as their product justifies their TV contracts. Banning a large number of coaches hurts them a hell of a lot more than any temporary bad publicity that goes along with letting them coach.