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Not me... especially after the App State game... I didn't see a NIT bid coming before the season started either.

I for one did not make any postseason predictions for this team. Always said it was possible if Rack developed inside defensively and shooting got hot. Rack did not emerge and shooting never got going except BHop in stretches. Same story for next year frankly too.

This team could have and should have been an NIT team- I don't think they had the juice to get to the big dance, but they obviously had the talent and ability to beat good teams. If the wheels hadn't come off like they did, this team had some ability and should have had some post season play. Not quite NCAA ability, but ability to do far better than they did, which is why I think everyone got so frustrated. I don't like losing to better teams, but I despise getting beat by teams with less talent and ability, and we had a number of those losses this season.

Hopefully that will change, and hopefully we won't see another Mustang team just phone it in again.

I don't think we will see anymore late season collapses like previous years thank goodness!! The losses to the lesser talented teams is indeed very frustrating. As for the "good teams" - Purdue sucks for the most part and Tech only plays as well as Andre Emmett.

Andre usually played pretty well. Nevada looked pretty good to me.

Tubbs' hiring has brought a nice dose of hope and optimism which we haven't seen around here for a while. It's been a little depressing around here what with the football team's performance last year, the dumping of track and field, and the basketball team's giving up on their coach.

Getting B-Hop was nice. I cannot comprehend getting three or four of him in one recruiting class! Heck, even if we only get one Hopkins a year, we'll be a damn strong team.

I didn't pick us to go to the NCAA or NIT tournament, but I did think we
would be competitive in the WAC.

Of the NCAA teams we played the following:

Beat Nevada in Moody.
Beat Texas Tech in Moody.
Almost had Wake Forest in Moody
Had a real shot at UTEP in Moody
Lost big to Okla State in Ok City.

I believe Purdue was an NIT team, and we beat them on their own floor.

I don't know whether Coach Tubbs can reach either tourney next year,
but I think he has a real shot at the NIT and I think he will do well in the WAC. (We aren't in CUSA until Nov/Dec 2005 are we?)

I felt we would repeat the same 17-13 in 2003-4 that we accomplished the year before, so yes, I was very disappointed with this season. I've felt all along that by the time Bhop was a JR and Castro, Simpson & Isham were seniors, we would make the post season and I still think this group has the ability to win 19-20 games and play in the NIT next year, depending on the non-conference schedule. One thing that concerns me is the cost of buying quality home games. This is where we have to see "The Commitment" at work.

I expect more contributions from our bench next year, with Rack and Reay getting more minutes. Pearson and Bennett seeing more time is a given, unless the Frosh guards come right in ready to play. A more up tempo game will require a 10-11 man rotation, depending on foul trouble. I'm just looking forward to a change.

C.P.,
Just curious -- do you really live in Charleston?

I think that getting quality games goes part and parcel with football as well. I think for example it was no coincidence that our football series with Wake mysteriously appeared about the same time as the basketball series. They needed a home and home non-conference for football, we needed one for basketball. If you go down the tournament pairing sheet, there are plenty of mid-majors on the list who would probably agree to a home and home. Ill.-Chicago, Pacific, Valpo, Manhattan, Richmond, Murray St., ETSU, Princeton, VCU, Xavier, Sou. Ill., W. Mich., ULL, Dayton, Vermont. If you scheduled a bunch of games against any of those teams how could you be accused of ducking good teams? I think you could get an annual game with Baylor, maybe OU, and maybe a BE team for a football date deal. Rutgers, UConn, Louisville and Cincinnati come to mind. Also bottom fishing in the big conferences could be good. Virginia Tech, Miami, Colorado, Arkansas, might like to schedule us in basketball because we get their occasional upset win to our credit if we beat them.

Didn't think they had much of a chance this year until they beat Tech, and then gave Wake Forest all they wanted. When they beat Purdue, I thought, yeah they have a good chance.

I guess Dement burn't them out early, or something, because when Rice beat us by 40, I knew they were sick n tired of b-ball.

50's: yes, I do. Well, actually I live in Mt Pleasant, S.C. At least for now. My office is being closed here and looks like I will soon join the unemployed and be moving on (again). Ah, the life of a mid-level manager.

Did they outsource your job to India or some other third world country?