Attitude Adjustment?

[Ivy]

I was at the Minn game and I noticed a couple of players need an attitude adjustment. *Complaining about calls to the ref and not hustling to get up and get back on D after being knocked down. *

This team just didn't show me the same effort as last year's team. *Do a few of our guys feel like playing "me" basketball instead of making it a team effort? *Is the chemistry off with the new guys? *What's up?

Anyone else see this?

[mikelsch]

A few thoughts...

The expectations are much higher this year, and the Bison won't sneak up on anyone
This team knows they can be competitive against good teams, but need to prove it and not just expect it
It is early in the season and they are trying to work out the kinks (player rotation, offensive/defensive sets, etc)

The MSU-M and Idaho games went so well and the Gopher game went so poorly. The true test of character and maturity will happen on Friday at Texas Tech. They will be dealing with another athletic team that will try to suffocate them like last night. Let's see how this group deals with their first dose of adversity.

[westriverbison]

I agree with Greenie, and

If elgible, if they play their best, they would not win March Madness. To qualify at some point in the future would be a MAJOR accomplishment.

Texas Tech and K-State will be MAJOR challenges. I expect they will play better than against UM but they should get beat pretty handily. Anything less than 20 is a major step forward. IMO

[MRBISON]

I saw some of the same things Ivy....arguing with the calls and so forth...

IMO they looked a little tired and flat. Might have soemthing to do with their travel. I also agree that they are up for another big challenge against Texas Tech.

The one thing that I was most disappointed with was the Bison shooting percent, expecially in the first half. The Gophers also shot very poor which frustrates me as a fan ....because I think the Bison missed a chance to get out to a big lead early in the game... but just couldn't convert any shots.

Not a basketball expert so maybe someone can tell me this.....when the Bison would pass it down low and like 4 gophers would converge on the ball...why didn't the Bison just kick the ball out to one of the 4 open players standing around on the perimeter?

[99Bison]

I saw some of the same things Ivy....arguing with the calls and so forth...

IMO they looked a little tired and flat. Might have soemthing to do with their travel. I also agree that they are up for another big challenge against Texas Tech.

The one thing that I was most disappointed with was the Bison shooting percent, expecially in the first half. The Gophers also shot very poor which frustrates me as a fan ....because I think the Bison missed a chance to get out to a big lead early in the game... but just couldn't convert any shots.

Not a basketball expert so maybe someone can tell me this.....when the Bison would pass it down low and like 4 gophers would converge on the ball...why didn't the Bison just kick the ball out to one of the 4 open players standing around on the perimeter?

Good question... Head down mostly downlow this game... looks like it was the game plan.

[TheDoctor]

I'll tell you this....I sat five feet from the court and the officiating was very inconsistent. *> It did not favor one team or the other, just very inconsistent. *One second a hand check was called and the next second Nelly was hoisted off the court (by the back of his jersey) and into a tunnel and nothing was called. *The players were more confused (as was I) as to what a foul really was to these guys. *Between team timeouts, tv timeouts, fouls, and traveling calls every 30 seconds, it never allowed either team to get any flow. *P.S.- I am not one complain about officiating as my father has refereed for 25 years and when he reads this he'll be mad at me for blaming the officials for NDSU's own problems. So, * P.S.S.- Sorry Dad! *;D *;D *;D *;D *;D *;D *;D *

[MRBISON]

Yeah ...I also kinda thought it might have been their gameplan going into the game......just curious why they really didn't change their plan at halftime when they saw it wasn't working?

[MRBISON]

All great points B1SON...I thought the calls were inconsistent as well..both ways.....way to many travelling calls!

Also..watching the game at home I to noticed that the commercials seemed to be way to often. No real flow to the game.

Not saying this is why NDSU lost...because the Gophers played with the same inconsistent calls and same game flow.....just saying I noticed the same things that other people noticed

[Ivy]

I'll tell you this....I sat five feet from the court and the officiating was very inconsistent. *> It did not favor one team or the other, just very inconsistent. *One second a hand check was called and the next second Nelly was hoisted off the court (by the back of his jersey) and into a tunnel and nothing was called. *The players were more confused (as was I) as to what a foul really was to these guys. *Between team timeouts, tv timeouts, fouls, and traveling calls every 30 seconds, it never allowed either team to get any flow. *P.S.- I am not one complain about officiating as my father has refereed for 25 years and when he reads this he'll be mad at me for blaming the officials for NDSU's own problems. So, * P.S.S.- Sorry Dad! *;D *;D *;D *;D *;D *;D *;D *

The officiating was not good, but players can't complain about it. They surely won't reverse a call due to player complaint and will probably get your number for later on. If something NEEDS to be said, let Miles say it...he isn't shy about getting on the refs if needed.

Also, get up off the floor and hustle down the court! One time Andre got pushed down (no foul called) and the Gophers had an easy score with 5 on 4. Get up and get down there....don't be a lazy baby!

[TaTonka_31]

Miles mentioned in his post game comments how he thought his team became tight for this game due to expectations. *It was one thing that the U of M got beat by a D2 team but then some of the media and all the NDSU fans were booking a victory for the Bison in advance. *Real Bad Combination going into a Big 10 arena.

Each year this team will have higher expectations and they will learn how to deal with it. *Miles talked about just concentration on executing vs planning ahead for victory. The same thing happened to the Badgers in Madison last year when the Badgers shot 19 for 76. * Were they a bad team? *Obviously not. *

Having said that, this game was up for grabs with just about any decent run for the Bison until about mid-way through the second half. *The score was 6 to 5 Bison with 7 minutes left in the first half. *Three or four baskets during this stretch could have put some pressure on this young Gopher team and changed the whole complexion of the game. *

Those of you that may have played a lot of basketball know that for some reason team shooting can sometimes be contagious. Minnesota had two very short hot streaks and that was the difference. *The Bison just could not get that run. *These two short Gopher runs as well as a few other baskets were triggered by missed long shots on the Bison end. *If we make some of these shots the game is totally different because the Gopher players (Especially McKenzie) were living off these transition opportunities. *

What's funny is that if the Bison Box Score read 27 for 65 instead of 19 for 65 there would be dancing in the streets of Fargo tonight. *Does anyone think that wasn't possible last night? *Chaulk this up as a learning opportunitiy and move on. *Go Bison!