1 of 1- DucksReign
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Men and Women in NIT
Well I guess something is better than nothing. The men are even a #1 seed.
But given this is the first time in Altman's tenure at Oregon the Ducks have consecutive years of going to the NIT and the women have not been to the WNIT since 2016...
It is hard not to define their seasons as "below expectations."
Both head coaches seem to be struggling to get their messages through to their teams.
- Phil
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Re: Men and Women in NIT
After missing the men's first game I plan on watching tonight's.
Unlike past years it seems difficult to root on Pac teams with UCLA being the remaining school now. It's hard not to think of them as a B1G school now.
One think that is interesting is to see a lot of the Big 12 teams win with lower recruits and see powerhouses like Kansas and Duke have early exits.
- DucksReign
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Re: Men and Women in NIT
Very interesting how sometimes you play better without the star players. I think it is mostly because of Richardson not playing...he is very ball centric and bogs everything down.
Certainly getting all these home games and not having to travel is a big help.
Otherwise I don't have anti-UCLA / USC venom...the coaches and players didn't decide to join the Little Ten...so as long as they are officially still in the Pac-12 then I will be hoping they win in cases like the NCAA Basketball Tournament.
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Thread Starter- Phil
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Re: Men and Women in NIT
Whatever the reason it's good to see the effort.
The defensive effort was consistent for the entire game.
Ball movement seemed to be better overall as they would swing the ball out to avoid double teams.
The players showed they didn't throw in the towel for the rest of the season and it bodes well for next season.
@DR I'm not rooting against the LA schools it's just hard for me the really root them on.
- Duckball
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Re: Men and Women in NIT
Once again, the perennially overrated Big10 fails miserably in the Big Dance. Out of 8 teams only ONE advances to the sweet 16. I do believe the conference even had a more dismal display last year. When will the "experts" ever learn? They get the most teams in every year and just stink the place up when they get there. Big10 hasn't won a title in over 20 years! So impressive.
As far as the Ducks, where has this team been all year? They are actually fun to watch and seem motivated! Bittle seems to have found his game, Ware is taking advantage of the extra minutes and boy oh boy is it nice not to see Will Richardson on the floor! The blood pressure goes down immediately lol.
Would be nice to get Dante and Couisinard back on Tuesday. Fingers crossed.
- DucksReign
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Re: Men and Women in NIT
What I find puzzling is Bittle said after the win yesterday he is more comfortable playing the center position than power forward which he does when Dante is in the game...so puzzling in why wouldn't Altman put him there and have the more athletic / physical Dante play(try) the power forward spot?
Regardless we are getting a preview of sorts for next season when Bittle will be in the center position.
Yesterday I was listening to Charles Barkley talk about how nobody can run faster than / keep up with the ball! So for basketball and anyone who has ever played organized basketball knows this...the way you create movement on the court is PASS.
I thought to myself, "Yes...this is exactly why Oregon is playing better without Richardson because he is a dribble addict and the majority of the time he stands in one place dribbling."
The defense and offense have been so much more active and energized these last 2 games and maybe the best all season collectively. It really is like watching a much different team.
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Thread Starter- Duckball
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Re: Men and Women in NIT
Bittle has been the man at the center position during the NIT. However, should Dante come back, he'll be back at the 4.
Dante can;t play the 4 because #1 he can't stretch the floor with his inability to shoot from farther out than 5 feet or so and #2 he's not a great passer and doesn't have the greatest footwork other than when he has his back to the basket (which he's gotten pretty damn good at this year)
I LOVE Dante and I hope he comes back to work on his intermediate game to improve his stock at the next level. But with his injury history I think he might try and jump this year.
Funny you bring up the PASS. It's a good point and Oregon was burned repeatedly by Wisconsins ball movement tonight. If not for our amazing job at blocking shots, and their cold shooting first half, this game could've gotten away from us in a hurry.
But overall, what a great performance by Oregon and I'm very proud of their effort and toughness in the NIT. Now, free-throw shooting? That's another story.
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