OFFICIAL GAME 20: SMU vs. Memphis (Pastner's Farewell Tour)

[LA_Mustang]

Rumor has it that Shaq Goodwin is spending his evening hitting up SMU girls on Instagram

Smart man.

[leopold]

He's run a clean program.

Are we sure about that?

Yeah, pretty sure. Unless you can point to any major scandals under his tenure, which, to my knowledge, haven't occurred.

Seems to me he is stealing $2,000,000 a year and $8,000,000 more if you boot him after this season

Stealing nothin'. Not his fault Bowen offered him a golden ticket for a contract knowing full well his issues as a bench coach. He has worked his tail off, even if he absolutely has failed to produce.

[leopold]

Rumor has it that Shaq Goodwin is spending his evening hitting up SMU girls on Instagram

Aaaaand this is why his coach is fighting for his job.

[hjone89]

feel sad,when Pastner was gone

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

GAMEDAY!

Go Mustangs!!!

[TidePony]

Here comes the foot stomping, yelling, hollering, grimacing, sign holding little jumping jack.... Moody will give you a very special welcome tonight Joshie, #PonyUp!!!

[redpony]

.. Moody will give you a very special welcome tonight Joshie, #PonyUp!!!

aka a solid butt-stomping.

[PonyFan32]

Stick your nose out of business you have no idea about.

Says the guy posting on another team's board who frequently makes uninformed comments about SMU things he knows nothing about.

[leopold]

Pastner's farewell tour isn't going to be this year, it's going to be next year. The Memphis AD, Tom Bown, gave him an insane contract that would cost Memphis ten million just to fire him. Memphis doesn't have it, especially at a time when they are showing signs of life in football and are doing the best they can to help out the recent success.
I say he's back next year.

Two boosters pay Pastners contract. He isn't going to be here next year and that is a fact. Stick your nose out of business you have no idea about.

Well, dear friend, I attended the school, donate to it, and actually want it represented by someone who doesnt behave as though they were Cousin Eddie at a local Hooters. So I'll keep my Memphis-bred nose right where I please, but bless-your-heart for caring so.

[smusic 00]

Haha!

[TidePony]

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1454196392.680022.jpg (252.48 KiB) Viewed 1729 times

Let's set him off tonight!

[ready4abowl]

Line out to SMU -10 now. My guess is we stomp them tonight, and cover by a mile.

[Balatro Diabolus Ex]

He might be gone. Ten million is alot and there's still time to get to the NCAA tourney.
'
I'll say this for Pastner - he's done everything but win the big one.

He's run a clean program and graduated players.
He's a genuinely decent person and has represented himself and his employer well.
He's recruited extremely well.
He's won conference championships and gone to the Tourney.
He got stuck following arguably the most successful coach in Memphis history.

For chrissakes, I'd be proud to have my kid play for him. He's a great guy. He just hasn't achieved to where some people think Memphis could.

I first met Josh almost 20 years ago, he was playing at Arizona and coaching his sisters AAU team in the summer. Very nice guy, with alot of knowledge about basketball. He's been an assistant coach under some impressive people (Lute Olson, Kevin O'Neill, John Calipari) all of whom had nothing but good things to say about him. He seems like a genuinely good person and hard worker. But as much as I like the guy, he wasnt ready to be a head coach when Memphis promoted him. He was too immature then, and in 7 years he hasnt gotten much better. Sad, but true, that's just the way it is. He wont have any trouble finding a new job as an assistant, somewhere, if he wants one. His buyout will set him up financially, but I think he will still want to pursue coaching, and try to get a second shot at being the head guy.

[smupony94]

@PatrickEngel_ 5m5 minutes ago

#SMU PG Nic Moore warming up in shootaround with the team. Injured his shoulder in loss at Temple. Courtland Sutton also warming up

[Balatro Diabolus Ex]

I've seen 5 of Memphis's games this year, including last weeks loss to ECU. I will say that it terms of athleticism, length, and raw talent, this is the only team in the conference that surpasses SMU. This is the only team that will throw more backdoor lobs than the Mustangs. Their biggest problem seems to be at the defensive end, where they frequently dont seem to know their assignments and really dont seem to care, much. They block alot of shots and make alot of steals with their raw speed and athleticism, but when they gamble for steals and miss, they usually give someone an open layup. They are out of position so often it's hard to tell what anyone's actual assignment is, and they seem completely unconcerned when their opponents get wide open shots.
Roster turnover also has been a major problem for Memphis, thats why this team has 7 freshmen, 5 seniors, and almost no one in between. Only one of the seniors has been at Memphis for 4 years, the rest are transfers. So, this group has had very little time playing together, and often seems completely disorganized.

Junior Sam Craft, a running back from the football team, joins the basketball team in January each year, and he may be their best defender. That says a fair bit when your best defender is a guy that plays another sport and only practices with you for half the season. Craft doesnt start, but he spent most of the 2nd half of the ECU game face guarding their leading scorer, and he hit a couple of key shots as Memphis rallied from a double digit deficit. He's small (6'0), but tough and hardnosed, if he was on the team fulltime, I could see him becoming their on-court leader.

Dedric Lawson is a freshman from Memphis who will probably be taken in the first round of this years MBA draft. He's 6'9", and can play almost any position on the court, very quick and athletic. He plays mostly in the paint, but will launch a couple of shots from outside the arc every game. There is real star potential in this kid, but this will probably be his only year in college.

Most SMU fans will remember Shaq Goodwin, he's the teams only 4 year player. He's a solid and athletic center, about the same height as Lawson but stronger, and he does all his work around the basket. Right now he's the teams leading scorer, but only by a fraction of a point. He and Lawson put up similar numbers, roughly 15 points and 9 boards a game.

Junior guard Avery Woodard is their 3 point bomber, hitting better than 40% from long range. He only averages 9 points a game, but in the past 2 weeks he has had his 2 career best games with 18 against CInci and 19 against UCF. Memphis gets most of their points from their frontcourt, but Woodard is the one who could hurt us from outside.

Ricky Tarrant is at his 3rd school, coming to Memphis from Alabama, but fans may remember his freshman year at Tulane, where he was C-USA FOY. Now the 6'2" guard averages 13 points per game, and leads the team in assists and steals.

Nick Marshall is a 6'11" freshman who backs up Goodwin and Lawson, inside. He's pretty mobile for a kid his size, and although his stats are that big right now, he looks like he has lots of potential.

Thats all, time to go to the game.