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An Abrupt End vs. Illinois, But Coach Sampson is Back to Reload for Another Run
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Welcome to Episode #79 of the No Conference for Old Men Podcast.
Our Houston Cougars end their season at 30-7 after a 10 point loss to Illinois in the Sweet 16. We knew this matchup was going to be a tough one for this year's team, and Illinois made things extremely uncomfortable for the Coogs on the offensive end. But we turn the page to next season, as Coach Kelvin Sampson reaffirmed his commitment to return for another run at that National Championship. And now the roster reloading begins.
Please have a listen as the 3 Old Men summarize the Sweet 16 game & weigh in on what we believe needs to occur with the roster building during the upcoming Portal Season.
- No Conference for Old Men is available for free via Spotify / Apple Podcast / SoundCloud & the GoCoogs.com YouTube Page; we're also available via Dave Campbell's College Podcast Network as their only basketball-centric offering
- Intro / Exit music: Ground Zero provided by FreeBeats.io
- Please follow us on gocoogs.com/old-men/
Recommended
Transcript
Episode Introduction
00:00:07
@NoConfForOldMen
Welcome folks to episode number 79 of No Conference for Old Men podcast. The podcast where three old guys are talking in Houston Cougars basketball with a little bit of Big 12 coverage added in as well. Proud members of the GoCougars.com network, the undisputed number one Houston Cougars content
End of Season Reflections
00:00:20
@NoConfForOldMen
provider. And we're here today again with all three of the old men.
00:00:25
@NoConfForOldMen
Tom Blidiak, former coach, Bill Walker, former player, and myself, Steve Chang, the a analytics guy, excuse me, for this episode. And well, after another great year with 30 wins this season, March Madness came to a abrupt halt versus a huge Illinois team that we stated ahead of time was going to be a really tough matchup going in. And things could not have been any tougher for the Cougs with Underwood taking away all of our favorite actions, making it tough sledding all game long.
00:00:55
@NoConfForOldMen
Season ended with a 65-55 10-point loss in the Sweet 16 in a year. We were perhaps maybe a little bit too dependent on freshmen to deliver. Now comes a quick turnaround to portal season where the coaching staff doesn't have much time to reflect, learn from the season, and perhaps take a different approach in reloading for next season where Coach Sampson will return to take another crack at a national
Game Analysis and Coaching Perspectives
00:01:19
@NoConfForOldMen
championship.
00:01:19
@NoConfForOldMen
So for this episode of the pod, I think we're going to go and keep this one relatively short, summarizing what we saw from the loss, but then quickly pivot to projecting out what each of us actually believe needs to occur with the roster ahead of the portal opening up in a week.
00:01:36
@NoConfForOldMen
Then we'll be able to maybe compare notes in the following episode once our staff has made their decisions in filling out the roster for next season. So let's get into it guys. In dissecting our tough loss at the Illini after a stellar first two rounds, let's each just provide some key takeaways from the loss with a view towards where we actually need to go moving forward. And Tom, you can kick things off with your coach's perspective in the Illini game.
00:02:01
Tom Lidiak
Well, should i do my analysis in Serbian?
00:02:03
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. No kidding.
00:02:06
Tom Lidiak
Yeah, just just tough sledding. Brad Underwood's staff, he has a young guru guy. I think his name is Cam Tucker something like Anyway, they had a good game plan. It's kind of what Bill Self did the first game against Kansas was pretty much take away our guards and pretty much just left Sanak.
00:02:29
Tom Lidiak
McCarty, Mercy, take the shots. Underwood actually made the statement that every time one of those guys took a shot, it was a shot one of our guards wasn't taking.
00:02:39
Tom Lidiak
You know, and the sad thing about it is in the Kansas game, you know, then our staff could go back and, and you know, look at some stuff. And and in the second time we played Kansas, you know, Chris hit those same shots that he missed in the first game.
00:02:53
Tom Lidiak
It's just unfortunate that you know, he couldn't get it going. He had some mid range shots that he normally, you know, knocks down that just couldn't.
00:02:59
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, wide open.
00:03:00
Tom Lidiak
And I don't know if that's, you know, freshman jitters or, or, or, or what, but, and then it kind of snowballs, you know, it kind of snowballs from there. Kind of fortunate to only be down by two at a halftime when Kingston hit that three right before the half.
00:03:15
Tom Lidiak
I thought the second half we'd come out and it was kind of the, you know, the, the, the, the same, same thing. Uh, Illinois is a good team.
00:03:24
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:03:25
Tom Lidiak
You know, they're they're tall and they hit the boards and there their role players made their shots and ours didn't. But, you know, we still won 30 games.
00:03:36
Tom Lidiak
I think when we finished 30 and seven, I think we've i think we've won 30 games last last five years.
00:03:39
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:03:42
Tom Lidiak
So, yeah, it was it was a tough one to end on. But also, on the on the other hand, Illinois is good enough to you know to win it all. And that's that's about all I got for that game.
00:03:53
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:03:54
.0Bill Walker
Five years of 30 wins, and it would be more if it weren't for for COVID.
00:03:59
@NoConfForOldMen
COVID. Yeah.
00:03:59
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. Yeah. So for all the people who, you know, put their expectations on our team and, you know, some of the, lot of these expectations are, are unreal.
00:04:12
Tom Lidiak
It's, uh, you it, it, it, it's sad that we've come to the point where some people are disappointed when you win 30 games and make a sweet 16. What is it? Seven years in a row, he made a sweet 16, you know, uh,
00:04:22
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:04:22
.0Bill Walker
Yes.
00:04:23
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:04:25
Tom Lidiak
99.9% of the 360-something programs in Division I would take that every day and twice on Sunday. So I don't i don't get what you know what some people expect.
00:04:38
Tom Lidiak
yeah we We get great kids. They're they're great ambassadors you know for the university. they don't and but They don't do stuff that embarrass the university. The only thing they didn't do was meet other people's expectations.
00:04:50
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, I mean, Tom and and Bill, where we were just chatting before recording this
Team Success and Fan Expectations
00:04:56
@NoConfForOldMen
as well. I mean, And folks that are on social media have have seen the postings, right? Every year you start doing comparisons of all the programs and you know how many Final Fours and Sweet 16 teams have made. And we're always on the graphic of the handful of teams that perform consistently year over year. i mean, one just came out right after Duke lost or choked away yet another game yesterday.
00:05:22
@NoConfForOldMen
where if you start looking at at how even they've performed, right, they're they're kind of the the national standard, right, aren't they, every year? And in the last decade since Coach Sampson has been here, you know, Duke, and that's with Shire as well as Krzyzewski in the last 10 years, they haven't made the the final championship game yet. And they've they've had, what, the top recruiting class?
00:05:45
@NoConfForOldMen
I'm willing to bet probably seven out of the 10 right?
00:05:47
Tom Lidiak
I think they've had 41 five-stars in the last 10 years.
00:05:48
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:05:52
Tom Lidiak
that's That's an average of – I'm no Pythagoras, but I know it's like 4.1 a year.
00:05:52
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:05:57
Tom Lidiak
So that's – yes.
00:05:57
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. And the spending that they have for basketball there.
00:06:00
Tom Lidiak
Yep. Yep.
00:06:02
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. It's so come on folks, you know, let's be better.
00:06:04
Tom Lidiak
Yep.
00:06:06
@NoConfForOldMen
Right. Yeah.
00:06:06
Tom Lidiak
Right. Yeah. Yeah.
00:06:08
@NoConfForOldMen
And Bill, how about your take right from, from the game versus Illinois?
00:06:13
.0Bill Walker
Yeah, the ball didn't go we we held We held them to 24 points at halftime.
00:06:15
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:06:20
.0Bill Walker
They're the second highest scoring team in the nation. We held them to 65 for the game. We held them to 43% shooting. shooting Yeah, for the game. You know, we shot 27% in the first half. We shot, unfortunately, we shot 34% for the game, 28%.
00:06:41
.0Bill Walker
twenty eight percent I think it was 28% from three.
00:06:45
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:06:45
.0Bill Walker
But, you know, it it it was basically, again and second half that, you know, Underwood made some adjustments and they were,
00:06:59
.0Bill Walker
and part of it's their, their height. They, they were good at, uh, uh, you know, the, uh, and I guess if I had one, know, maybe one thing that I wish wouldn't have happened, I wish we wouldn't have doubled, uh, uh, out front as much because they were able to get out of it.
00:07:17
.0Bill Walker
And, and, uh, uh, you know, they made the right passes. They hit the open players and the open players hit their shots.
00:07:21
@NoConfForOldMen
Open threes. Yeah.
00:07:23
.0Bill Walker
And, uh, so, you know, but, you know, Christ, it's been a, it's been a formula. It's been so good for us. I mean, here, here are Illinois losses this year, 90, 86 to Alabama, where, where Alabama, uh, hit 45%, 13 threes for the game. Uh, there, there are couple outliers, 74, 61. They lost at UConn, who's in the final four. And, and, uh, uh,
00:07:57
.0Bill Walker
Illinois shot 32% from the field in that game, similar to what we just shot, and 21% from three. So, you know, they lost because they had a horrible shooting game. Did people start crying to fire Brad Underwood? Of course not. And, and you know, look where they are. 83-80 to Nebraska. Nebraska shot 52% from the field, 46% from three. They lost 85-82. Are you getting the trend? These are high-scoring games to Michigan State.
00:08:29
.0Bill Walker
And in that game, Illinois shot 37% from the field and 28% from three. They to Wisconsin.
00:08:38
.0Bill Walker
Wisconsin hit 16 threes in that game. They lost 95-94 to UCLA, and UCLA shot 51% from the field, 39% from shot fifty one percent from the field thirty nine percent from three And in that game, Illinois, team. Illinois.
00:08:52
.0Bill Walker
despite scoring ninety four points shot forty one percent from the field and thirty one percent from three i mean ill illinois is a damn good team 84-70, they lost to Michigan, who's who I think is the best team in the nation.
00:09:08
.0Bill Walker
now theres i Michigan versus Arizona.
00:09:11
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
00:09:12
.0Bill Walker
and then they And then in the Big Ten tournament, 91-88 to Wisconsin. I mean, they're high-scoring games. You know, the outside shooters, that's, you know, Illinois – it is phenomenal inside, but, but the outside shots are are there and that's really what you need to beat them. And and it just didn't have, we just didn't,
00:09:37
.0Bill Walker
hit We just had a bad shooting game, and you know that's what happened. But i want to go i want to just address a few things. there There was one person on on social media that said, UH will never win a championship under Sampson.
00:09:53
.0Bill Walker
Fire him today. yeah He's done his part, but nothing else good will come under Samson. Are you kidding me? I mean, I wrote back and and commented on that.
00:10:04
@NoConfForOldMen
okay
00:10:06
.0Bill Walker
That that may be in my entire life, the most idiotic statement that I've ever, ever heard.
00:10:14
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:10:14
.0Bill Walker
i mean, this guy's.
00:10:16
Tom Lidiak
They've got be in their twenty s Because there's no way there's no way somebody who lived through
00:10:20
.0Bill Walker
Well,
00:10:23
Tom Lidiak
you know the the good days, starting with Elvin, Faisalama, Jammah, and then lived through the dark ages, the what, 25, 30 years?
00:10:33
@NoConfForOldMen
Mm-hmm.
00:10:34
Tom Lidiak
Yeah, there's nobody who lived through all that that's going to say that about Coach Sampson.
00:10:37
@NoConfForOldMen
say that right
00:10:39
Tom Lidiak
It's these, i don't know, maybe they just became a fan, you know, like five years ago. I don't i don't know.
00:10:46
.0Bill Walker
Well, i was when you said in their 20s, I thought you were referring to IQ, not age.
00:10:54
Tom Lidiak
Basketball IQ, yes. Yeah.
00:10:56
.0Bill Walker
No, just IQ, period.
00:10:56
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. fuck
00:10:59
.0Bill Walker
Here's another one. Coach Sampson is his own worst enemy. Back-to-back-to-back-to-back playoff bad decisions has proven this status.
00:11:12
.0Bill Walker
Why we can't seem to utilize the bench is really beyond comprehension. Harsh criticism in an unwelcoming form usually isn't accepted, but is stated to progress our team.
00:11:27
.0Bill Walker
yeah Oh, God. I mean, it you know, you can't even comment on it.
00:11:30
@NoConfForOldMen
Beautiful. Yeah.
00:11:35
.0Bill Walker
And then, and Steve, I know you don't want me to do this, but I'm bringing up the guy that's just reactionary, yeah I guess, emotional, emotional,
00:11:48
.0Bill Walker
comments without really any thought involved, but, uh,
00:11:53
.0Bill Walker
If, if we were still coached by Alvin Brooks, McCallum, Dickie or Clyde. And we're winning six to 10 games a year.
00:12:04
.0Bill Walker
i mean, how you can not appreciate Calvin and how you could be so negative is just utterly beyond me. i mean, you know, Jeez, adjust our game plan. you know Cry and whine after every loss, but but never never anything positive or complimentary after, again, seven straight Sweet 16s, which no team has
Coach Sampson's Leadership
00:12:33
.0Bill Walker
accomplished.
00:12:35
.0Bill Walker
As we mentioned, the five straight 30-win seasons, more if not for COVID, I mean, I mean, it's almost incomprehensible to me.
00:13:16
.0Bill Walker
And it's, And some of the people may say, well, I'm not saying championship or bust, but that's exactly what you're saying. That's absolutely what you're saying. Win it all or you're a failure.
00:13:29
Tom Lidiak
ye and
00:13:29
.0Bill Walker
And it's just beyond me.
00:13:30
Tom Lidiak
And I'll add this.
00:13:31
.0Bill Walker
It's absolutely beyond me.
00:13:33
Tom Lidiak
I'll add this. Coming from a coach themselves that's not very accomplished, which I'm talking about myself, is that you understand how great of a coach some of these guys like Kelvin is. And I would never bash a coach that has the resume that Kelvin and others – others do.
00:13:57
Tom Lidiak
It's because it'd be like somebody coming into a business and they've never accomplished anything in that field and then looking at a master at his craft and then criticizing them or going to a concert, you know I don't know, Liberace or whatever it is.
00:14:12
Tom Lidiak
And they can't, I don't know, somebody who can't even carry a tune or or play something and then going in and up there and just criticizing the guy.
00:14:13
.0Bill Walker
Liberace. Liberace.
00:14:20
Tom Lidiak
It's like, dude, what?
00:14:21
@NoConfForOldMen
Mmm.
00:14:21
.0Bill Walker
flipra
00:14:23
Tom Lidiak
Why do you get your, know, why you get your fingers on the piano like that? You know, anyway, it's, and when I, and when I look at some of that stuff, it just realizes it's almost sad because it's like, come on, you know, just stop it. You've never coached before yet. You don't know, know, what, what's going on. And, and, you know, Kelvin's the only one that's there every day with his team and the staff, you know, they, they know what they got. And anyway,
00:14:53
Tom Lidiak
It's just sad.
00:14:54
.0Bill Walker
Liberace, Liberace is from, Liberace, I shouldn't say this, I shouldn't say this, but Liberace is from Milwaukee, by the way.
00:14:55
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. Well, I don't know. An artist. is this system
00:15:04
Tom Lidiak
Is he? Okay. But you get you get my drift. It's like, itd be it it would be like coming into somebody who's a master of their craft and you're just a person in the same field and you've never accomplished anything and all sudden, you know, being being critical of them. It it just...
00:15:21
Tom Lidiak
I don't just doesn't make any sense. i just I just don't like the negativity you know after some of these games. Yeah. i mean
00:15:29
.0Bill Walker
Well, here's my suggestion. Rather than going on message boards and making these comments, fire Calvin, Calvin's his own worst enemy, Calvin can't adjust to this and that.
00:15:45
.0Bill Walker
than Rather than whining on the message boards, why not go on Calvin's show and bring this up to him directly and ask him about it?
00:15:58
.0Bill Walker
Ask him why, your opinion, why? he doesn't make the correct adjustments or, or in, you know, according to you, adjustments at all suggest to him that he should step down, suggest to him that, that he's his own worst enemy and, and the team can't get it done with him at the helm.
00:16:21
.0Bill Walker
I mean, you know, go right to the source. Who knows? Maybe he'll say, you know what? I agree with you. I quit. I retire. yeah, but
00:16:31
Tom Lidiak
Last thing I'll say about that is he must be doing something right to win 30 games, you know, for five straight years.
00:16:32
.0Bill Walker
yeah Yeah, step up.
00:16:38
Tom Lidiak
So, anyway.
00:16:39
.0Bill Walker
Well, i think I think logical, intelligent people would wholeheartedly agree with that.
00:16:40
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:16:48
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah well i mean i i think everyone's uh running hot after the loss. It's always a tough loss to end the season. i mean, if you look at it from an analytics perspective, it actually ends up being pretty simple.
00:17:04
@NoConfForOldMen
Great plan by Brad Underwood to exploit kind of our known weaknesses all season around defending the three defensive rebounding and not having a low post score on the roster. and And those are things you try to work around, but you can't, when you don't have it, you don't have it, right? It doesn't magically appear on the roster. And while Illinois' primary weakness this season was around defense,
00:17:30
@NoConfForOldMen
you know They picked the right moment to really stay focused all game long in preventing Kingston from driving into the paint. they had two guys on him every single time he touched it.
00:17:41
@NoConfForOldMen
And they stayed on him for the time he had the ball in his hands. No drop coverage like they usually played all season long because they knew... that we we eat them up. If they were going to try that they're willing to let Sennac shoot some baseline twos in order to keep Kingston out of the paint and it paid off for them. They were going to live with that and, and it worked.
00:18:02
@NoConfForOldMen
And with their height at all positions, they were also willing to pack it in, give up some shots from the arc. But unfortunately our senior guards weren't able to hit on this day and i Illinois just swallowed up every rebound with their size.
00:18:18
@NoConfForOldMen
I'm not gonna spend any time on the the actual detailed analytics, but here's all you need to know. We shot a lowly 41% effective field goal percentage, 28% from three, as Bill had mentioned, while Illinois went 39% from three-point range. And we struggled with offensive rebounding and forcing turnovers in the second half, which just killed us in the end.
00:18:40
@NoConfForOldMen
But some good news in the aftermath was Coach Kelvin Sampson reaffirmed that he is indeed coming back next season.
00:18:48
.0Bill Walker
Thank God.
00:18:48
@NoConfForOldMen
now Thank God. i mean i mean, truthfully, not many of us thought he'd be willing to go out on that loss, right?
00:18:52
Tom Lidiak
Right.
00:18:56
@NoConfForOldMen
And kind of leave a roster rebuilding to his son. And so as Coach Kelvin Sampson stated in an interview after the loss, we're very close.
00:19:07
@NoConfForOldMen
And the staff has learned a bit from the season and they will be making some tweaks for next season to make another run. And so now we've got the opportunity to discuss what each of us actually believe needs to be targeted in the portal with roster makeup going into
Roster Changes and Recruitment
00:19:21
@NoConfForOldMen
next season. And Bill, I'm going to let you go first.
00:19:25
@NoConfForOldMen
What do you expect or would you like to see us go after heading into the portal season?
00:19:31
.0Bill Walker
Well, first of all, yeah and and I've, you know, we've all got people that we hear from. I've got some sources. One, and this would be this would be the biggest one of all, is that we may see Senac back on the roster next year.
00:19:49
@NoConfForOldMen
Really?
00:19:50
.0Bill Walker
it Yeah, and this has actually been posted online.
00:19:53
@NoConfForOldMen
It has.
00:19:53
.0Bill Walker
it And any
00:19:54
@NoConfForOldMen
but you you actually believe it? You think that's a...
00:19:57
.0Bill Walker
I think... Here's the thing. it's gonna, it's gonna boil down to where the NBA people tell him he's going to get drafted.
00:20:07
@NoConfForOldMen
Withdraft him.
00:20:09
.0Bill Walker
If he's, if he's, from what I understand, if he's going to go in the top, maybe 18, right around that, that's the number that I'm looking at. Uh, uh, 18, if he's in the top 18, uh,
00:20:26
@NoConfForOldMen
It'll stay in the draft.
00:20:28
.0Bill Walker
he'd stay in the draft, but you know, baby maybe, maybe 18 to 16 to 20 in that range, he's going to stay in the draft.
00:20:29
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:20:36
.0Bill Walker
Uh, if not, there's an excellent chance that he's back. And if that's the case, then that limits the, the wish list for, for players up front, uh, Tuggler's coming back.
00:20:47
@NoConfForOldMen
Sure.
00:20:51
.0Bill Walker
Uh, know, Harwell, I, I think is likely gone. You know, i
00:21:00
.0Bill Walker
here's here's what I'm looking at in terms of the roster. You know, right now at point guard, we've only got Jefferson back. And I mentioned it to you, but but the source told me that that that that.
00:21:16
.0Bill Walker
it's likely that we've got a very good point guard coming in. But this has been mentioned online. There's another guard, it and he's he's more of a point guard, but he plays a kind he's kind of a combo guard. And he's coming from a program that's in that was just a disarray this season after their coach retired right before the season started, and that's Tahad Pettiford.
00:21:41
.0Bill Walker
And I think you see him in a U of H uniform next year.
00:21:45
@NoConfForOldMen
Do do you view him so you view him as a combo guard, not a true point guard?
00:21:51
.0Bill Walker
Well, he he he's more of a point because he's he's yeah he's six one But but but i think he can
00:21:51
@NoConfForOldMen
is that Is that how you're viewing
00:22:01
.0Bill Walker
i think he could certainly play with with another let's say six foot to six two in that range point guard.
00:22:09
@NoConfForOldMen
Sure.
00:22:10
.0Bill Walker
I think the two could play together kind of like, you know, you had Shedd, you had Sasser, you know, you had LJ playing the two last year.
00:22:17
@NoConfForOldMen
Sasser, right?
00:22:25
.0Bill Walker
So, yeah, I think you could have him come in. know, we're going to have Bryce Jackson play playing next year to play with with Mercy. And then, of course, we have, oh, God.
00:22:36
@NoConfForOldMen
Like McCarty, right? He still has McCarty.
00:22:38
.0Bill Walker
No, no, no.
00:22:39
@NoConfForOldMen
What are you thinking?
00:22:40
.0Bill Walker
i'm No, McCarty is more of a three. God, the freshman.
00:22:44
Tom Lidiak
Elosi.
00:22:44
.0Bill Walker
Losey.
00:22:45
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, Lousy. Yeah.
00:22:46
.0Bill Walker
Losey. So, you know, that that if it was Losey, Pettiford, another point guard, Mercy and Bryce Jackson. There's five guards.
00:23:01
.0Bill Walker
Yeah, you've got Chase. yeah I would like to see it maybe another small forward, perhaps a strong perimeter shooting small forward, but obviously that that's athletic and defend as well.
00:23:15
.0Bill Walker
Yeah, and and then the four and the five, everything's everything. Dawes is the guy that we talk about. Yeah, yeah you'd love to see him come in.
00:23:26
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:23:26
.0Bill Walker
But it'll be interesting. I mean, if Senac does get informed by the NBA that he's going to go in the 20s and he comes back, then you've got Senac, you've got Tuggler, and of course you've got Diane, the seven-footer.
00:23:41
.0Bill Walker
So you've got three guys, including one that's going to be
00:23:46
Tom Lidiak
Thank you.
00:23:46
.0Bill Walker
basically a bigger version of Juwan Roberts. and And actually, Diane can can shoot the ball facing the basket as well, but but certainly posting up. and And then, you know, who knows what happens in terms of McFarland. But, yeah, i with with what I think is going to be coming in,
00:24:13
.0Bill Walker
I think maybe it maybe another three. and i and I love the makeup of the team going into next year.
00:24:21
@NoConfForOldMen
So how many, two questions for you. where do you put the chances of SYNAC in your mind, right?
00:24:25
.0Bill Walker
Sure. 50-50.
00:24:29
@NoConfForOldMen
Based on 50, 50, and then how many portal kids do you think we bring in this cycle?
00:24:30
.0Bill Walker
for
00:24:38
.0Bill Walker
two for sure
00:24:40
@NoConfForOldMen
Hmm.
00:24:41
.0Bill Walker
And based on Senac, if he's gone, I would say a third.
00:24:47
@NoConfForOldMen
Okay. Okay. Cool. Yeah. I mean, based on what you've described, that would be heck of a roster. Uh, and I think it addresses all a lot of the maybe weak spots that, that we had this year.
00:24:57
.0Bill Walker
Yeah, I agree.
00:25:03
@NoConfForOldMen
So interesting. Tom, how about what what's your take from a portal perspective?
00:25:08
Tom Lidiak
Uh, yeah, very interesting stuff there, Bill. Thanks for sharing.
00:25:12
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:25:12
Tom Lidiak
Uh, I'll go with our bigs first. Uh, you know if Sennac does come back, uh, our five bigs, we've carried five bigs, you know, four and fives, uh, our five would be, Jojo. It'd be, uh, Sennac. It'd be Deanna and then said in McFarlane, they, if they decide to come back, uh, those would be our five bigs.
00:25:36
Tom Lidiak
but yeah, the whole thing, whole thing is, is incumbent upon what, uh, Sennac does.
00:25:42
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, true.
00:25:42
.0Bill Walker
Correct.
00:25:42
Tom Lidiak
And, and, you know Kelvin's, Kelvin's got to know pretty pretty soon, uh, because he can't get stuck, uh, you know, with snack going, going pro and then, and and then he be will be shit out of luck if, uh, you know, if that that happens, because he's got to have a con contingency plan, uh, you know, in case, in case Sennac does go pro.
00:25:44
.0Bill Walker
Yeah.
00:25:51
@NoConfForOldMen
thats true
00:26:04
Tom Lidiak
Very interesting point guard situation. I think, you know, looking at the message boards, it's hundred percent.
00:26:13
Tom Lidiak
air Everybody's hundred percent sure, you know, we, we need a point guard. Some people are even hanging onto that mercy as a point guard thing, but you know, come on, no, no.
00:26:17
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:26:21
@NoConfForOldMen
I don't think so. I mean.
00:26:22
Tom Lidiak
So, and the thing about, and the thing about pedophores, you know, he's only six one, you're looking at the defense end
00:26:23
.0Bill Walker
I think will be good.
00:26:29
Tom Lidiak
the kid is quicker than covering up shit. I mean, he's quick, you know, and he could be a guy that could put some ball pressure at the point of attack.
00:26:33
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:26:37
Tom Lidiak
We didn't really have that this year with our with our with our guards.
00:26:41
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:26:41
Tom Lidiak
If you remember Shed and Marcus, the way they played, you know on the ball defense, Corey, Galen, you know, they could get get in somebody's grill, make life miserable for them.
00:26:44
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:26:52
@NoConfForOldMen
Agreed.
00:26:52
Tom Lidiak
But I do like what Bill's talking about as as far as our, you know, our guard situation. and i could
00:26:59
.0Bill Walker
and And I'm not saying i'm not saying that Pettiford's a lock, but but for from what you know a lot on the on the a lot on the internet and and and you know from what a turned
00:27:04
Tom Lidiak
Oh, oh no, no. I understand that.
00:27:06
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:27:07
Tom Lidiak
Yeah.
00:27:08
@NoConfForOldMen
Agreed.
00:27:09
Tom Lidiak
yeah
00:27:11
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, we're just projecting here, right?
00:27:12
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. Yeah.
00:27:18
.0Bill Walker
kind of a mess the auburn program turned into
00:27:21
Tom Lidiak
Oh yeah. That was a, that was a cluster, but now getting back to the the portals, uh, Here's also my take on this. And and I think I'm going right on this. I think any portal a player that we pick up is probably going to have two years to play.
00:27:41
Tom Lidiak
I don't think we're going to pick up portals that only have one year.
00:27:44
@NoConfForOldMen
Really?
00:27:45
Tom Lidiak
i cause, cause, well, I'm, I'm, I'm afraid that then we'd be left in the same situation as next year.
00:27:46
@NoConfForOldMen
I'll take that bet. Yeah,
00:27:53
Tom Lidiak
And, and I,
00:27:54
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah, yeah.
00:27:54
Tom Lidiak
I just don't, I just don't think Kelvin wants to hand over a program where Kellen doesn't have enough, uh, culture guys in there, you know, that, that have been in there for so some years.
00:27:58
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:28:04
Tom Lidiak
So if you, but if you look at some of the portal guys that, that Bill's talked to, you know, with us, but also, you know, he can't, you know, he can't share with right now, but it does look like they're multi multi-year players.
00:28:04
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, I agree with that that statement.
00:28:18
Tom Lidiak
Uh, Now getting back to the fives, JoJo comes back, you know, he's only got a year left. So you'd have to replace him after next season. De'Ane, in my opinion, he's going to be a multi multi-year player.
00:28:29
@NoConfForOldMen
Deanna, yeah.
00:28:31
.0Bill Walker
You'll be.
00:28:34
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:28:35
.0Bill Walker
Oh, you think so?
00:28:37
Tom Lidiak
i i think he I think he's going to be at least two years.
00:28:37
@NoConfForOldMen
I think so.
00:28:40
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah,
00:28:40
Tom Lidiak
he I think he's he's not going to be a refined big guy like, a you know,
00:28:41
@NoConfForOldMen
I think so too.
00:28:47
Tom Lidiak
I think he's going he's going to need some some work, you know.
00:28:50
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, I agree with that.
00:28:51
Tom Lidiak
But i think I think, you know, but the way it sounds is like, you know, two years.
00:28:52
.0Bill Walker
Okay.
00:28:56
Tom Lidiak
He's a two-year guy.
00:28:57
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:28:58
Tom Lidiak
Well, kind of like Senac. I mean, its it turned out that Senac might be a two-year guy too. But it would be great if Chris comes back, you know, you'd have that three-headed monster.
00:29:06
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Huge.
00:29:08
Tom Lidiak
You'd have that three-headed monster like we had with Francis Roberts and – who was the other big guy we had, we had three of them. We had Roberts, Francis, uh, uh, Tuggler.
00:29:17
@NoConfForOldMen
Javier, right? And Tuggler, right?
00:29:21
Tom Lidiak
Yes. Yeah. How can I forget Jojo?
00:29:21
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:29:22
Tom Lidiak
But we'd have that three headed monster there, you know, at the, you know, at the four and five, lot to, a lot to be excited about.
00:29:28
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:29:30
Tom Lidiak
Uh, it was really exciting here. Kellen talk about, you know, next year about, you know, tweaking some modifications or whatever. So, uh, you know,
00:29:40
Tom Lidiak
Kelvin's a Hall of Famer and he's a Hall of Famer. You know, there's a reason he's a Hall of Famer. you know, he knows what we need. You know, the game, the game changes. The game changes, whether it's in how the game is played, you know, officiating wise or whatever.
00:29:55
Tom Lidiak
But the analytics have gone 180, you know.
00:29:58
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:29:59
Tom Lidiak
Just a couple of years ago, if you went, if your offense had a lot of high low in it, these young coaches laughed their ass off at you. They called you they They called you, the game has passed you by.
00:30:11
Tom Lidiak
And now look, you know, Florida, high, low action, two you know, bigs, they had four quality bigs.
00:30:15
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:30:17
Tom Lidiak
Look at Michigan. They're playing three, they're playing three guys that are like, you know, you know, with Johnson, Landeborg and
00:30:19
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
Future Strategies and Player Departures
00:30:26
Tom Lidiak
Mara.
00:30:27
Tom Lidiak
So Arizona, Arizona, i Illinois, Illinois.
00:30:28
@NoConfForOldMen
in Arizona, right? They hardly hardly take any threes. Yeah.
00:30:32
.0Bill Walker
Look at Illinois.
00:30:32
Tom Lidiak
So,
00:30:33
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:30:33
.0Bill Walker
Yeah.
00:30:33
Tom Lidiak
Yes. So, so, you know, you gotta, you gotta keep up with the trends, you know, the way the game is played. And it's like I said, you know, Kelvin Sampson, you know, he's a smart guy.
00:30:45
Tom Lidiak
So look for him to construct a roster, you know, that's going to keep us, you know, as one of the top eight teams in the country.
00:30:46
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:30:54
Tom Lidiak
So it's going to be exciting next, what is it about three weeks, four weeks of the portal.
00:31:00
@NoConfForOldMen
It'll be quicker.
00:31:00
Tom Lidiak
think So you'll be quicker this time.
00:31:01
@NoConfForOldMen
We'll know. Yeah, what I mean, one more week and the portal opens right after the national championship game and it moves, moves quick.
00:31:05
Tom Lidiak
And then, and then how long is it?
00:31:07
@NoConfForOldMen
I mean,
00:31:08
Tom Lidiak
This year is what, two weeks. It's a two week period or what is it?
00:31:11
@NoConfForOldMen
it is shorter. I don't recall. I think you may be right.
00:31:13
Tom Lidiak
Okay.
00:31:14
@NoConfForOldMen
It's like two weeks, but it'll be a mad rush.
00:31:15
Tom Lidiak
he
00:31:17
@NoConfForOldMen
And we'll, you know, knowing our program, we'll have things tied up in that very first week, probably the first few days in terms of our primary targets.
00:31:24
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. Yeah.
00:31:27
@NoConfForOldMen
So we'll know quick.
00:31:27
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. Yeah, and I agree with Bill. I think Isaiah Harwell, I think he's going to you know seek somewhere else to play. Good and and you know good luck to him if he if he if he does sleep.
00:31:36
@NoConfForOldMen
That's a bummer, but yeah.
00:31:38
Tom Lidiak
Yeah, it's you know sometimes things don't work out the way they're you know the way you expect them to or the way you wish them, but we'll see.
00:31:48
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:31:48
Tom Lidiak
We'll see in the next next couple of weeks.
00:31:51
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. i mean, from my perspective, mean, we know what coach emphasizes for our program with offensive rebounding, defense toughness and protecting the ball. And I'm 110% riding with it to the end with this coaching staff's, you know, emphasis and what they represent.
00:32:07
@NoConfForOldMen
And just to remind all of our fans, we were less than a minute away from a national championship last season with kind of how we run things and our team principles. So, you know, what I take from Kellen Sampson's comments, kind of after the loss, I believe what he meant by,
00:32:27
@NoConfForOldMen
you know, learnings and tweaks is more around roster makeup. I think the plan is sound.
00:32:33
Tom Lidiak
oh deaf Oh, definitely.
00:32:34
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, we're not, we're not changing any of that stuff.
00:32:34
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. no no No philosophy changes.
00:32:37
@NoConfForOldMen
It's no philosophy change.
00:32:38
Tom Lidiak
No, no.
00:32:39
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. And so that's my belief as well. And so with the likely departures and at this point, I'm still thinking, you know, Fleming's and Senac both leave as well as obviously our senior guards and Sharpen who's on, we've got a ton of production and leadership to replace.
00:32:56
@NoConfForOldMen
And I think actually because of our defensive heavy schemes and emphasis on toughness, it's always going to be better for us to be older and more mature to ensure success. The three teams that we've had during the Samson era where we've been young, I mean, this past team,
00:33:12
@NoConfForOldMen
you know, the team with Jairus on it. And then when we had Sasser and Mills as freshmen playing major minutes, the defensive intensity and connectedness was always just a tiny bit missing. Still great by any metric, right? We were still top 20, but not...
00:33:30
@NoConfForOldMen
elite like when we've got you know a lot of seniors and maybe less touted kids on it. And I think that's what we need to win the title. I know that you guys both hate UConn, Coach Hurley. I do too.
00:33:42
@NoConfForOldMen
But if you guys have listened to some of the interviews that he's given in the last few years, and he's always been known as a defense first coach too, but the shift he made prior to winning that first championship was to start recruiting more offensively talented players that were athletically good enough and had the desire to learn and play tough D. Rationale there was that there was a limit to how good you could get a defensive specialist to become a good offensive player.
00:34:12
@NoConfForOldMen
And I think we've already begun to see that change and shift in how we've been recruiting as of late as well. With this year's three freshmen, even Miller and McCarty as well. And even these next two freshmen in Deanna and Olozi, while both are tough and hard does, both also possess the ability to score. And I expect that point of emphasis to continue in the portal.
00:34:36
@NoConfForOldMen
And obviously, as you guys had stated, rumors have been rampant. And my expectation is that we're actually going to go for three and possibly even four in the portal, three of which need to be starters or at least be in the top six in minutes played next season. And I think specifically we need a point guard, we need a scoring four, and a longer shooter at the three. And you guys have already mentioned some of the names. I mean, the things that we've seen listed out there,
00:35:05
@NoConfForOldMen
you know Tied with our school, we've got Tahad Pettiford, which you both mentioned from Auburn, PJ Haggerty at KSU, Jaylen Lowe at Kentucky, Isaiah Johnson at Colorado. At the forward position, we've heard about Keanu Dawes at Utah, as well as David Punch at TCU. and you know Granted, I know some of these kids are not in the portal yet. and At the wing, we've heard rumblings of potentially Miles Byrd from San Diego State.
00:35:32
@NoConfForOldMen
All kids that are either from Houston or Texas potentially wanting to return home or kids that we've seen in person because we've played them before, which is consistent with Coach Sampson's MO for going after portal kids.
00:35:47
@NoConfForOldMen
Now, the rumors are strongest with Pettiford and Haggerty at point guard and Dawes at the four. To be honest, I'm not a big fan of Hagerty. Yes, he can score, but four schools in four years, we'd be his fifth.
00:36:00
Tom Lidiak
Five.
00:36:01
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, yeah, we'd be his fifth if he moves.
00:36:01
Tom Lidiak
Yep. Yep.
00:36:04
@NoConfForOldMen
Doesn't play lick of D and has an almost one-to-one assist to turnover ratio.
00:36:11
.0Bill Walker
I was just about to interrupt you, Steve, and say he's he is an absolute turnover machine.
00:36:11
@NoConfForOldMen
Right? I mean, that's... He is, right?
00:36:17
Tom Lidiak
Okay.
00:36:17
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:36:17
Tom Lidiak
Hey, I just got a text from somebody I trust and they they say they think Isaiah is leaving.
00:36:21
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:36:24
@NoConfForOldMen
oh really okay yeah okay i mean not surprising and i wish wish the kid well yeah yeah yeah well
00:36:25
Tom Lidiak
Harwell's leaving. Yeah. which Which, no, you know, let that's spec especially after, you know, he became our Ryan Elvin.
00:36:38
.0Bill Walker
Yeah, well, he's... he's Yeah, I'd mentioned that to you guys before.
00:36:42
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:36:43
.0Bill Walker
But yeah, when he's when he's battling to gain more minutes than than said at the end of games, it's not boding well.
00:36:53
@NoConfForOldMen
I know. Not a good sign. I know.
00:36:56
Tom Lidiak
Yeah, and these these these these things are done, you know, a lot of them are done like a month ago to you know, after Christmas. You know, a lot of them are done. The players kind of see where they are in the pecking order, you know, and they're either happy or unhappy with with things, and then they start telling their agent and agent starts shopping them.
00:37:17
Tom Lidiak
So it's, it's yeah, it's no big
00:37:18
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. I mean... Yeah, I mean, of those point guards that are listed, I think I'm with you, Bill Pettiford. It's probably the one that I like the most. I think, Tom, view you would agree as well.
00:37:30
@NoConfForOldMen
He's got at least a you know a little bit of dog in him, so to speak.
00:37:35
.0Bill Walker
Oh yeah.
00:37:36
@NoConfForOldMen
you know He's quick.
00:37:36
Tom Lidiak
Right. And Isaac Johnson of Colorado, you know, i don't know how tough the kid is. I mean, he's a talented player.
00:37:43
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:37:43
Tom Lidiak
I don't know what kind of defensive player he is or what kind of passer he is. But we we do know Pettiford, like you said, he's got that he's got that asshole in him that you need.
00:37:47
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:37:54
@NoConfForOldMen
He does.
00:37:54
Tom Lidiak
You know, that the shed, you know, he's got that –
00:37:54
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Yep.
00:38:00
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. I mean, you got, it's better to tame an asshole than the resurrect somebody from the grave, you know?
00:38:04
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. yeah Yeah. Yeah. No, I agree. And I think that the kid's got a motor on him. He works hard. So I think he'd be a great fit for the program. So hopefully that one works out.
00:38:15
@NoConfForOldMen
You know, the the kid, I think I mentioned to you guys before that I really liked that point guard within the Big 12 was Barrington Harper. It's also from Colorado, but he's already announced he's re-signing with Colorado.
00:38:25
@NoConfForOldMen
So that's that's that's not even an option.
00:38:26
Tom Lidiak
okay. Yeah. think email Yeah.
00:38:28
@NoConfForOldMen
He's the first one, yeah, that that they've re-signed.
00:38:29
Tom Lidiak
And the thing good thing about Pettiford, he's got two years left.
00:38:33
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
00:38:34
Tom Lidiak
You know, he's got two years left.
00:38:36
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, now...
00:38:37
Tom Lidiak
And I think that, I think Hargris only has one, I think.
00:38:37
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:38:40
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:38:40
Tom Lidiak
He came from UC Irvine and another school, I think.
00:38:43
@NoConfForOldMen
Yes, he only has one. Yeah, one left.
00:38:44
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. Yeah.
00:38:45
@NoConfForOldMen
Now, I mean, for the four, I definitely do think we need a four, someone that can score inside. i And I do love Dawes and believe he'd be a great fit for our program alongside Tuggler.
00:38:55
@NoConfForOldMen
He's an able scorer, better rebounder than Senac for the season, guys, which is pretty good. And he was actually even better than Roberts during his senior year from a rebounding and scoring perspective.
00:39:06
@NoConfForOldMen
And his shooting percentage at 55% would be better than any four that we've had other than Roberts' junior season. So that's pretty good stuff, right?
00:39:15
Tom Lidiak
And fans, if you want to see this audition tape, just watch the first 10 minutes of our game.
00:39:19
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, I know. Yeah. He, he killed us. So, then, you know, when you start talking about maybe a longer wing, I I'd really like for us to get a longer three and miles bird.
00:39:29
.0Bill Walker
Yeah, that's what I said.
00:39:30
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. I mean, miles bird would be great. i mean, it's not the best shooter, but he's super athletic. He's more, you know defender than offensive talent, but boy, he would fit in so well, you know, for what we do, especially defensively.
00:39:48
Tom Lidiak
Yeah, he was their player of the conference defense player of the year.
00:39:51
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, yeah. No, he's fantastic. I mean, I'd love to get another fourth player that's just an elite shooter because we just need more shooters when things, you know, start bogging down. But those are tough to find. and And I guess we'll see. But I think getting older, more mature with kids that have a bit of an edge to them is actually going to fit our style and culture better for next season. And I think that's what they're going to do.
00:40:15
@NoConfForOldMen
that That's what they meant by adjustments.
00:40:16
Tom Lidiak
there's a gap Steve, there's a guy for – don't think he has the size you probably want from Liberty. I think he's six two
00:40:23
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:40:23
Tom Lidiak
He went into portal today. He's 47% career three-point shooter.
00:40:29
@NoConfForOldMen
That'd be great.
00:40:29
Tom Lidiak
but but but But he's not the size.
00:40:31
@NoConfForOldMen
wish.
00:40:31
Tom Lidiak
you know he He would be that same size of if we got Pettit Ford and you know some of the others.
00:40:33
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:40:36
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:40:37
Tom Lidiak
so not the you're You're probably looking at like a 6'5", 6'6", wing that can shoot.
00:40:38
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:40:41
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Yeah. that That would be my desire, but we'll see. at the coach The coaches obviously know what they want and and what they're going to go after, but
00:40:50
Tom Lidiak
And they probably have known what they wanted for a while now, you know?
00:40:53
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah Yeah, probably just like any other great coaching staff.
00:40:55
Tom Lidiak
Yep.
00:40:56
@NoConfForOldMen
So, so the last few minutes, I know we, you know, we're into the final four at this point, obviously we've all lost a tremendous amount of interest, but it's Illinois, UConn, Michigan, and Arizona.
00:40:56
Tom Lidiak
Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
00:41:11
@NoConfForOldMen
I'll give you guys each a shot in terms of who you're picking to win it all.
00:41:16
@NoConfForOldMen
and Who do you think, Tom? I'll let you go first.
00:41:19
Tom Lidiak
Well, I'm stick with my original pick of Arizona beating Michigan.
Final Four Predictions and Episode Conclusion
00:41:24
Tom Lidiak
And then Illinois, UConn. i'm I'm rooting for Illinois. I just hope they win. Yeah, should be should be a good game. So I'll stick with i'll stick with Illinois. Illinois.
00:41:37
Tom Lidiak
so illinois
00:41:37
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, Illinois to win it all?
00:41:39
Tom Lidiak
To beat UConn and then Illinois, Arizona.
00:41:40
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, okay.
00:41:43
Tom Lidiak
I'll stick with my real original pick and go with Arizona. I'll be i'll be written for them.
00:41:45
@NoConfForOldMen
Okay. Yeah, Big 12.
00:41:48
Tom Lidiak
i don't i don't know if if there's any truth to the rumor about Tommy Lloyd sitting down with North Carolina. Anybody hear about that or not?
00:41:54
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, I've heard a bit on it from my my son, who's a North Carolina guy.
00:41:56
Tom Lidiak
Boy, yeah i'd I'd say to Arizona.
00:41:58
@NoConfForOldMen
So, yeah, I would too.
00:42:00
Tom Lidiak
i I would.
00:42:03
@NoConfForOldMen
But yeah, we'll see.
00:42:04
Tom Lidiak
Yeah. Yeah.
00:42:07
@NoConfForOldMen
Okay. Yeah.
00:42:13
.0Bill Walker
will wade Will Wade told NC State's athletic director that he was staying, and then the next day, the next the next yeah, the next day they get an email from the agent saying adios.
00:42:14
Tom Lidiak
I
00:42:20
Tom Lidiak
had my fingers crossed behind my back when said it, though. the
00:42:24
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:42:27
.0Bill Walker
So you never know.
00:42:28
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Yeah. You never know. How about you, Bill? Who are you picking to win it all?
00:42:34
.0Bill Walker
Well, whoever I pick is is based on my bracket this year. You know, I was referring to the the some of the idiotic idiotic comments before.
00:42:44
@NoConfForOldMen
You pick Michigan, right?
00:42:47
.0Bill Walker
I think when it comes to brackets, I don't know that there's anyone that's that's more of an idiot than I've been this year.
00:42:47
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:42:53
.0Bill Walker
but And pretty much overall, with the exception of Tom last year, of course.
00:42:59
Tom Lidiak
Yeah, that was so that was a fiasco.
00:42:59
.0Bill Walker
But... but Yeah, I mean, I really thought that that Florida was going to make the championship.
00:43:09
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:43:09
.0Bill Walker
Obviously not.
00:43:11
@NoConfForOldMen
Hmm.
00:43:11
.0Bill Walker
At this point, I mean, my God, based on based on the way that game ended yesterday, i mean, that's that if UConn were to win it all, that that the end of that game may may go down as more...
00:43:30
.0Bill Walker
more more historic, I guess, than, than the Leitner shot against Kentucky. I mean, Connecticut would have to, to, uh, win it all, but unbelievable.
00:43:42
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Yeah.
00:43:44
.0Bill Walker
geez, I don't know who wins that game.
00:43:46
.0Bill Walker
I guess I would, i would lean toward Connecticut probably. and, uh, did, didn't, uh,
00:43:56
.0Bill Walker
I forgot. Let me take a look again. Yeah, Illinois played Connecticut earlier this year and and lost 74-61.
00:44:04
Tom Lidiak
Mm-hmm.
00:44:05
.0Bill Walker
Now, now I don't see that being the same score in the you know in the semis in the Final Four. Yeah.
00:44:15
.0Bill Walker
and Underwood will certainly make adjustments. And, and again, in that game, Illinois shot 32% from the field.
00:44:18
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:44:24
.0Bill Walker
That's worse than we shot against them at 21% from three.
00:44:26
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:44:28
.0Bill Walker
I mean, that's, that's just all time awful.
00:44:34
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:44:35
.0Bill Walker
So they'll shoot better, but, And as much as i do not care for him, although he did make some, he has made some funny comments.
00:44:45
.0Bill Walker
He e asked an official about LASIK and, and during a game.
00:44:46
@NoConfForOldMen
Yes.
00:44:50
.0Bill Walker
so So I've got to give Danny Hurley some, some credit for, for yeah, for, for being humorous.
00:44:53
@NoConfForOldMen
David Price- credit. yeah
00:44:59
@NoConfForOldMen
David
00:45:00
.0Bill Walker
I think UConn may, I think UConn wins that game. yeah, I'm going to stick with with my pick. I still think Michigan's the best overall team in the country, and so I think it's Michigan over UConn.
00:45:11
@NoConfForOldMen
Price- Okay.
00:45:15
@NoConfForOldMen
Okay. I mean, obviously you guys knew I picked Houston to win it all. Obviously that's not going to happen. I did get the other three final four picks, right?
00:45:25
@NoConfForOldMen
But I'm thinking it's going to be Arizona over Michigan, Yukon over Illinois, and then Arizona keeping the national championship or bringing it back to the big 12. So hopefully that's the case.
00:45:38
@NoConfForOldMen
We will see
00:45:38
.0Bill Walker
I hope you're right.
00:45:40
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:45:40
.0Bill Walker
definitely hope you're right.
00:45:42
@NoConfForOldMen
Anyway, so that's it for our 79th episode of the No Conference for Old Men podcast. Hope you all enjoyed it. And again, we'd really appreciate it if folks would follow, subscribe, or collect our podcast on whatever your platform of choice is.
00:45:54
@NoConfForOldMen
We're also available via Dave Campbell's College Podcast Network as our only basketball-centric podcast. We're at the Goku.com YouTube page for those that want to see our old faces. And we appreciate the continued support from all. Also, please give us a follow on our Twitter account, No Conference for Old Men.
00:46:09
@NoConfForOldMen
Thank you all again for listening. And we are now into our off-season cadence of, I'd say, at least one monthly episode. But please be on the lookout for our Portal episode in the next, I'd say, probably couple of weeks to download and listen as our staff rounds out the roster.
00:46:28
@NoConfForOldMen
Take care, everyone. Thanks. Go Cougs.