I’m disappointed but not surprised by K-State’s start to the Big 12 season.
News flash: our young CATS just happen to be playing in the best conference in basketball. There are no easy outs like you find in some conferences. Heck, TCU hung around with ku in Larryville this past weekend.
Why is the Big 12 so good? Simple, the Big 12 has a lot of senior laden basketball teams.
Given the fact that K-State is relying heavily on freshmen, no one should be surprised with a 1 & 4 start given K-State’s Big 12 schedule to date.
I’ve heard coaches say that when February arrives, freshmen are no longer freshmen. I hope that the K-State freshmen will mature and improve as the season moves forward. Though, I am concerned more & more about the team’s confidence with each loss.
How did we get here: after the circus that became last season due to the actions of Marcus Foster and his posse, K-State had to replace 5 players (when the normal recruiting period was basically over … six players if you count Bolden). Speaking of Bolden, he was gaining confidence and was starting to give K-State some good minutes before suffering a career ending injury. Had Bolden stayed healthy, he would be giving the CATS some good minutes this season.
Yes, you can argue that Coach Weber could have handled last season differently, but I’m not sure what he could have done differently. Foster & Harris were suspended, but were given opportunities to straighten out – never happened. I suppose there are some on this board that would suggest that Weber and Currie should have just turned their cheek and let Foster get by with failing tests (Shaky style).
As it is, K-State returned 3 players from last season, who played meaningful minutes: Iwundu, Edwards, & Hurt. Note: DJ did not play last season.
The Big Hurt only played 13.4 minutes per game last season.
Edwards averaged 6.3 points per game last season.
Iwundu averaged 5.8 points per game last season.
Hurt averaged 4.2 points per game last season.
In short, K-State only returned 26% of their scoring from last season.
We all hoped that K-State could protect home court, but the CATS loss in double overtime to the #6 ranked team in the nation, West Virginia. West Virginia has one freshmen that plays about 15 minutes per game.
OU had not forgotten about being swept by K-State last season. #1 ranked Sooners were ready for the CATS and got up big on K-State in the first half. K-State battled back within 8 points in the second half, but could not get any closer.
Heild, Cousins, Spangler, & Walker are all seniors (Woodard – Jr).
The CATS threw up a ton of bricks in the first half against Iowa State and could not recover. The senior laden Clones had their backs to the wall and played a good game in Manhattan. Losing to Texas in Austin before playing K-State, only fueled Iowa State’s fire.
Niang, McKay, Nader are seniors. Morris, Thomas, & Burton are juniors. ISU does not play a freshman.
Unless you’re talking about one & done type players (like Beasley), being a senior compared to a freshman is a HUGE deal. I would be willing to bet that Buddy Heild and Paige are a tad better than they were as freshmen...ha ha.
Perhaps K-State’s most disappointing loss was the 3 point loss against Texas on the road. Texas also knocked off Iowa State in Austin. Like K-State, Texas uses some freshmen, but Felix, Lammert, Holland, & Ibeh are all seniors (Ridley, a senior, was out against K-State).
I don’t know if Bruce Weber is going to get things turned around or not. But if you were expecting K-State to finish in the Top half of the Big 12 this season, you were being extremely optimistic and the purple Kool-Aid was flowing..ha.
I’m still holding out hope that K-State can win 7 or 8 games in the Big 12, but it’s not looking real good right now.
Who knows, maybe the CATS will shoot the ball well tomorrow and upset the Bears (or not).
Note for Weber Haters or Supporters: unless K-State wins 4 or less games in the Big 12 this season, there is little doubt that Weber will be back next season.
GO STATE !
News flash: our young CATS just happen to be playing in the best conference in basketball. There are no easy outs like you find in some conferences. Heck, TCU hung around with ku in Larryville this past weekend.
Why is the Big 12 so good? Simple, the Big 12 has a lot of senior laden basketball teams.
Given the fact that K-State is relying heavily on freshmen, no one should be surprised with a 1 & 4 start given K-State’s Big 12 schedule to date.
I’ve heard coaches say that when February arrives, freshmen are no longer freshmen. I hope that the K-State freshmen will mature and improve as the season moves forward. Though, I am concerned more & more about the team’s confidence with each loss.
How did we get here: after the circus that became last season due to the actions of Marcus Foster and his posse, K-State had to replace 5 players (when the normal recruiting period was basically over … six players if you count Bolden). Speaking of Bolden, he was gaining confidence and was starting to give K-State some good minutes before suffering a career ending injury. Had Bolden stayed healthy, he would be giving the CATS some good minutes this season.
Yes, you can argue that Coach Weber could have handled last season differently, but I’m not sure what he could have done differently. Foster & Harris were suspended, but were given opportunities to straighten out – never happened. I suppose there are some on this board that would suggest that Weber and Currie should have just turned their cheek and let Foster get by with failing tests (Shaky style).
As it is, K-State returned 3 players from last season, who played meaningful minutes: Iwundu, Edwards, & Hurt. Note: DJ did not play last season.
The Big Hurt only played 13.4 minutes per game last season.
Edwards averaged 6.3 points per game last season.
Iwundu averaged 5.8 points per game last season.
Hurt averaged 4.2 points per game last season.
In short, K-State only returned 26% of their scoring from last season.
We all hoped that K-State could protect home court, but the CATS loss in double overtime to the #6 ranked team in the nation, West Virginia. West Virginia has one freshmen that plays about 15 minutes per game.
OU had not forgotten about being swept by K-State last season. #1 ranked Sooners were ready for the CATS and got up big on K-State in the first half. K-State battled back within 8 points in the second half, but could not get any closer.
Heild, Cousins, Spangler, & Walker are all seniors (Woodard – Jr).
The CATS threw up a ton of bricks in the first half against Iowa State and could not recover. The senior laden Clones had their backs to the wall and played a good game in Manhattan. Losing to Texas in Austin before playing K-State, only fueled Iowa State’s fire.
Niang, McKay, Nader are seniors. Morris, Thomas, & Burton are juniors. ISU does not play a freshman.
Unless you’re talking about one & done type players (like Beasley), being a senior compared to a freshman is a HUGE deal. I would be willing to bet that Buddy Heild and Paige are a tad better than they were as freshmen...ha ha.
Perhaps K-State’s most disappointing loss was the 3 point loss against Texas on the road. Texas also knocked off Iowa State in Austin. Like K-State, Texas uses some freshmen, but Felix, Lammert, Holland, & Ibeh are all seniors (Ridley, a senior, was out against K-State).
I don’t know if Bruce Weber is going to get things turned around or not. But if you were expecting K-State to finish in the Top half of the Big 12 this season, you were being extremely optimistic and the purple Kool-Aid was flowing..ha.
I’m still holding out hope that K-State can win 7 or 8 games in the Big 12, but it’s not looking real good right now.
Who knows, maybe the CATS will shoot the ball well tomorrow and upset the Bears (or not).
Note for Weber Haters or Supporters: unless K-State wins 4 or less games in the Big 12 this season, there is little doubt that Weber will be back next season.
GO STATE !
