Good luck Thursday, from an SU fan

[jekelish]

Looking forward to what I expect to be an epic rematch on Saturday. I hope you guys win Thursday and get through the game healthy, but I also hope you go 7 or 8 overtimes so K's boys will be exhausted when Saturday rolls around. Gotta take any advantage right?

Actually I think that's overblown, frankly. I played at a much lower level than these phenomenal athletes, and I remember AAU tourneys and camps where we would play multiple games every day, and it didn't really wear on us. These kids have been through a long season but I don't think playing multiple times over the span of a couple days really makes a giant impact unless there's a lot of travel involved.

Frankly based on the way SU has played recently coupled with the talent Duke has, I'm expecting a loss on Saturday (naturally hoping to be wrong, but still), but I definitely want you guys to knock off UNC Thursday. The idea of K, with this roster, losing two games in a row seems unfathomable and besides, I want all of the luster to be there when we square off. So fingers crossed we beat BC tonight, you guys beat UNC tomorrow, and we get another great game on Saturday.

Good luck! ...just not against us, I hope...

(Apologies for any typos, iPads are great for everything except spelling)

[OldPhiKap]

Looking forward to what I expect to be an epic rematch on Saturday. I hope you guys win Thursday and get through the game healthy, but I also hope you go 7 or 8 overtimes so K's boys will be exhausted when Saturday rolls around. Gotta take any advantage right?

Actually I think that's overblown, frankly. I played at a much lower level than these phenomenal athletes, and I remember AAU tourneys and camps where we would play multiple games every day, and it didn't really wear on us. These kids have been through a long season but I don't think playing multiple times over the span of a couple days really makes a giant impact unless there's a lot of travel involved.

Frankly based on the way SU has played recently coupled with the talent Duke has, I'm expecting a loss on Saturday (naturally hoping to be wrong, but still), but I definitely want you guys to knock off UNC Thursday. The idea of K, with this roster, losing two games in a row seems unfathomable and besides, I want all of the luster to be there when we square off. So fingers crossed we beat BC tonight, you guys beat UNC tomorrow, and we get another great game on Saturday.

Good luck! ...just not against us, I hope...

(Apologies for any typos, iPads are great for everything except spelling)

Thanks for posting, and hope you continue to do so in the future.

I must admit that I was ambivalent at best about Syracuse joining the ACC, but have gotten really stoked about it over the last year. Great program, great coach, should be a great series. Welcome to the conference!

And, of course, pulling against Carolina always puts you on the good side of the ledger!

-- OPK

[cto]

Greetings from another SU fan... and congratulations on having a well-run board with serious, intelligent discussions. I am a moderator at syracusefan.com, and I know it is sometimes difficult to keep things at a mature level. Most boards are nowhere as well run as this one.

I'll be flying down to Durham this weekend to attend the game at Cameron. I met a lot of your fans at the game at the Dome, and they were all good people. Looking forward to some southern hospitality this weekend.

[jekelish]

Oh boy, you guys don't realize it, but you've been visited by SU royalty with CTO. I'm not kidding, she is a Syracuse University legend. Like, "things named after her on campus" level legend.

Just so that you know her seal of approval for how well run this board is, is a damn fine thing to have!

[Indoor66]

Oh boy, you guys don't realize it, but you've been visited by SU royalty with CTO. I'm not kidding, she is a Syracuse University legend. Like, "things named after her on campus" level legend.

Just so that you know her seal of approval for how well run this board is, is a damn fine thing to have!

Know well that many on this board are Duke Royalty (me not included). Thanks for the nice words.

[Billy Dat]

Has the love affair with young Ennis reached "Fatal Attraction" levels of craziness? Will SU loyalists be looking to boil the rabbit of any NBA agents that come sniffing?

If you guys had MCW starting at the 1 instead of Ennis, do you think you are undefeated?

The kid has "it", that is for sure.

[jekelish]

Has the love affair with young Ennis reached "Fatal Attraction" levels of craziness? Will SU loyalists be looking to boil the rabbit of any NBA agents that come sniffing?

If you guys had MCW starting at the 1 instead of Ennis, do you think you are undefeated?

The kid has "it", that is for sure.
I really liked (and still like) MCW but I'm happier with Ennis right now, frankly, from a personal standpoint. Athletically and, arguably, from a talent standpoint, MCW is better. But Ennis is so much more reassuring out there. MCW would make 3-4 stupid plays every game. Ennis rarely makes a single dumb play. He's nowhere near as flashy but man, even the simple task of "don't turn it over" means 2-3 extra possessions per game and that can make all the difference in the world, and based on our games of late, it absolutely does.

[Mike Corey]

Know well that many on this board are Duke Royalty (me not included).

http://media.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/photo/ap080708020070jpg-1bc8d029b0f6916f_large.jpg
Jay Bilas. Really.

http://rushthecourt.net/mag/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/chris-collins-nw.jpg
Kedsy. Not really. But wouldn't surprise me.

[Kedsy]

Kedsy. Not really. But wouldn't surprise me.

Totally not. Though I did have dinner with him and his dad once.

[jekelish]

Totally not. Though I did have dinner with him and his dad once.

And hey, our own SU superfan CTO could confirm, as a friend of the Collins family. And now I'm just trying to sort out if the Bilas comment was serious or not.

[grad_devil]

And hey, our own SU superfan CTO could confirm, as a friend of the Collins family. And now I'm just trying to sort out of the Bilas comment was serious or not.

The Bilas comment was definitely serious.

He's not a regular poster, but he's posted several times over the past few years.

[OldPhiKap]

Greetings from another SU fan... and congratulations on having a well-run board with serious, intelligent discussions. I am a moderator at syracusefan.com, and I know it is sometimes difficult to keep things at a mature level. Most boards are nowhere as well run as this one.

I'll be flying down to Durham this weekend to attend the game at Cameron. I met a lot of your fans at the game at the Dome, and they were all good people. Looking forward to some southern hospitality this weekend.

Welcome, and have a great time in Cameron! It is an experience (as is the Carrier Dome I am sure, would love to see a game there). I agree that this board is moderated very well, random dings to me notwithstanding (and usually deserved).


Oh boy, you guys don't realize it, but you've been visited by SU royalty with CTO. I'm not kidding, she is a Syracuse University legend. Like, "things named after her on campus" level legend.

Just so that you know her seal of approval for how well run this board is, is a damn fine thing to have!

You might not know this, but I'm a pretty big deal.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

Welcome, and have a great time in Cameron! It is an experience (as is the Carrier Dome I am sure, would love to see a game there). I agree that this board is moderated very well, random dings to me notwithstanding (and usually deserved).



You might not know this, but I'm a pretty big deal.

Careful! Don't blow our cover!

[davekay1971]

Thanks for the kind posts, Cuse fans! I'm a Duke fan first, a State fan second, but I find myself cheering for the Orange whenever they aren't playing either of those two teams.

I am with you in hoping that both of our teams meet in Cameron without a defeat this week and without any injuries.

Jekelish, I'll return the "good luck except for Saturday" sentiments. I saw a big 'Cuse fan today, and told him basically the same thing: "hope your team wins tonight and has a terrible day on Saturday."

As for the southern hospitality, check the BBQ threads on the board for some great Raleigh-Durham area suggestions while you're in town!

[cto]

And hey, our own SU superfan CTO could confirm, as a friend of the Collins family. And now I'm just trying to sort out if the Bilas comment was serious or not.

As friendly as I am with Chris Collins, I'm equally as friendly with Coach K and his family. Heck I climbed the Great Wall of China with Chris and about nine members of the K clan. If I knew how to post a picture here, I could show you how Chris "saved my life" on that damned toboggan run you have to take to get off the wall!

[Dev11]

http://media.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/photo/ap080708020070jpg-1bc8d029b0f6916f_large.jpg
Jay Bilas. Really.



Oooh, look at all that hair.

Count Shane Battier and Jason Williams's mother on our royalty list.

Welcome, Cuse fans, to the DBR. Have a seat, stay a while.

[MCFinARL]

Oooh, look at all that hair.

Count Shane Battier and Jason Williams's mother on our royalty list.

Welcome, Cuse fans, to the DBR. Have a seat, stay a while.

Plus, of course, many of us (myself included) are legends in our own minds.

[g-money]

Glad to have you 'Cuse fans visiting, but this thread is a bit of a distraction right now (no offense). The team we're playing tomorrow ain't exactly chopped liver!

[Indoor66]

Careful! Don't blow our cover!

Cover is by Devildeac and he does it with beer.

[fuse]

Cover is by Devildeac and he does it with beer.

Even though I have no idea what this means, I was going to spork you for it. Denied by the system.
In any event, your post made me smile.

[gam7]

As friendly as I am with Chris Collins, I'm equally as friendly with Coach K and his family. Heck I climbed the Great Wall of China with Chris and about nine members of the K clan. If I knew how to post a picture here, I could show you how Chris "saved my life" on that damned toboggan run you have to take to get off the wall!

This is true for me too. Which is to say, I don't know either one of them at all.

[FerryFor50]

Don't forget Jim Sumner! I'd call him Duke royalty...

[NSDukeFan]

Welcome, and have a great time in Cameron! It is an experience (as is the Carrier Dome I am sure, would love to see a game there). I agree that this board is moderated very well, random dings to me notwithstanding (and usually deserved).



You might not know this, but I'm a pretty big deal.

Should we let you off at the top?

[Indoor66]

Don't forget Jim Sumner! I'd call him Duke royalty...

And one of the most Royal, Bill Brill, so sadly left us much too soon.

[UrinalCake]

Question for the 'Cuse fans: what do you think of the notion that it's better to go into the tournament with a loss on your record, so you don't have the distraction and/or pressure of being undefeated? I've heard that line across other sports - well really just college basketball and the NFL I suppose - and never really agreed with it. The other argument I've heard is that when you're undefeated there's a tendency to think you're invincible and thus to not work as hard at improving. Again, I don't really agree with this notion but I'm curious what others think.

[OldPhiKap]

Careful! Don't blow our cover!

You can't hide a candle under a bushel basket, DiBD. Wear your tiara proudly. (It looks good with the blue dress, naturally).

[OldPhiKap]

Question for the 'Cuse fans: what do you think of the notion that it's better to go into the tournament with a loss on your record, so you don't have the distraction and/or pressure of being undefeated? I've heard that line across other sports - well really just college basketball and the NFL I suppose - and never really agreed with it. The other argument I've heard is that when you're undefeated there's a tendency to think you're invincible and thus to not work as hard at improving. Again, I don't really agree with this notion but I'm curious what others think.

To steal two points I have heard K say over thirty years, perhaps with some contradiction in the context of an undefeated team late in the season:

1. You would always prefer to win than lose.
2. Always play to win, not to "not lose."

As you run a win streak out, I think the second takes over -- you are more playing not to lose than to win. Think Vegas, '91 when it got tight.

Ultimately, I think the loss for Syracuse helps them in the long run. But a lot will depend on how they respond in Durham. I think many Syracuse fans would agree that a result like this has been kind of building for a few weeks (would love to hear from our new poster brethren/sisteren on that). But if they regroup as I expect a Boeheim team to do, they are still looking at a 1 or 2 seed come NCAA tourney time. Which is the goal of any top program. They certainly can come to Durham and win, perhaps they were already looking forward to some degree.

Again, I hope to hear the Syracuse view on the above.

Bottom line is that they have opened the door for the ACC seed battle, and you know Mike is already plotting an assault plan. Go Duke!

[NYBri]

This IS a well run board. I only have 4 infractions in 4 years. Not bad and I deserved every one. :)

[OldPhiKap]

Greetings from another SU fan... and congratulations on having a well-run board with serious, intelligent discussions. I am a moderator at syracusefan.com, and I know it is sometimes difficult to keep things at a mature level. Most boards are nowhere as well run as this one.

I'll be flying down to Durham this weekend to attend the game at Cameron. I met a lot of your fans at the game at the Dome, and they were all good people. Looking forward to some southern hospitality this weekend.

cto, I went to your board but could not see how to join to post. Would love to return the kindness that you and Orange have shown here and post. We're neighbors now, after all. If you can PM me some guidance or post same that would be great.

Thanks, and again I really hope you have a great time in Cameron -- win or lose -- and that you keep posting here when you can. We are relatively civil (and yes, our reaction to UNC is muted in relation to many, as hard as that may be to believe). Go ACC, and welcome to the party!

[Mike Corey]

Greetings from another SU fan... and congratulations on having a well-run board with serious, intelligent discussions. I am a moderator at syracusefan.com, and I know it is sometimes difficult to keep things at a mature level. Most boards are nowhere as well run as this one.

I'll be flying down to Durham this weekend to attend the game at Cameron. I met a lot of your fans at the game at the Dome, and they were all good people. Looking forward to some southern hospitality this weekend.

Welcome to DBR, Ms. Hergenhan. Your compliments are as mighty as the program you support.

Enjoy the trip to Durham, and the hush puppies from Bullock's, and thanks for the kind words for our board. I am no moderator, but admire what they've built here. You'll find that this place--sad though it may be to those that don't understand what community can come out of common sporting allegiances--inculcates generational relationships in a way once reserved for neighborhood teams. We just build them online, cross country.

My father was a longtime reader of this board; I followed his lead, but began posting, as well. When he passed away--nine years ago this month, I'm very sorry to say--this place was kind enough to allow me to share a brief and raw encomium to him, and our shared love of Duke basketball. What's more: Such could be the case for so many at DBR. This place, and the game and the University we love, are part of our identity.

Knowing that Syracuse has roots that run similarly, I'm glad that the Orange are now our "neighbors"...even if you're more than 8 miles up the road.

Welcome again, and I hope you find Cameron as hospitable (and fun) as can be.

[OldPhiKap]

cto, I went to your board but could not see how to join to post. Would love to return the kindness that you and Orange have shown here and post. We're neighbors now, after all. If you can PM me some guidance or post same that would be great.

Thanks, and again I really hope you have a great time in Cameron -- win or lose -- and that you keep posting here when you can. We are relatively civil (and yes, our reaction to UNC is muted in relation to many, as hard as that may be to believe). Go ACC, and welcome to the party!

I'll add that I am a proud product of Fairfield County, if that helps as a reference.

[MCFinARL]

Welcome to DBR, Ms. Hergenhan. Your compliments are as mighty as the program you support.

Enjoy the trip to Durham, and the hush puppies from Bullock's, and thanks for the kind words for our board. I am no moderator, but admire what they've built here. You'll find that this place--sad though it may be to those that don't understand what community can come out of common sporting allegiances--inculcates generational relationships in a way once reserved for neighborhood teams. We just build them online, cross country.

My father was a longtime reader of this board; I followed his lead, but began posting, as well. When he passed away--nine years ago this month, I'm very sorry to say--this place was kind enough to allow me to share a brief and raw encomium to him, and our shared love of Duke basketball. What's more: Such could be the case for so many at DBR. This place, and the game and the University we love, are part of our identity.

Knowing that Syracuse has roots that run similarly, I'm glad that the Orange are now our "neighbors"...even if you're more than 8 miles up the road.

Welcome again, and I hope you find Cameron as hospitable (and fun) as can be.

Nice post--and yet another post that reminds me why I love DBR--because people can use phrases like "inculcates generational relationships" and fully expect that other posters will probably know what they mean--and if they don't, they will head to the dictionary instead of firing off a snarky reply. (And I agree with you.)

Off topic, sorry, but just sayin'.

[captmojo]

Isn't it great to know that there are those out there, that have the good taste to recognize excellence in others when it's obvious, rather than deny it from a viewpoint of jealousy? :D

Go to Hell Carolina!

[rsvman]

Isn't it great to know that there are those out there, that have the good taste to recognize excellence in others when it's obvious, rather than deny it from a viewpoint of jealousy? :D

Go to Hell Carolina!

Totally agree with your last sentence.:)




(with all of it, really, but couldn't resist)

[Arctic Orange]

cto, I went to your board but could not see how to join to post. Would love to return the kindness that you and Orange have shown here and post. We're neighbors now, after all. If you can PM me some guidance or post same that would be great.

Thanks, and again I really hope you have a great time in Cameron -- win or lose -- and that you keep posting here when you can. We are relatively civil (and yes, our reaction to UNC is muted in relation to many, as hard as that may be to believe). Go ACC, and welcome to the party!

On the very top right corner there should be a little box that says "log in/sign up"

If you have further issues, let me know and I'll send someone a message.

[hurleyfor3]

Question for the 'Cuse fans: what do you think of the notion that it's better to go into the tournament with a loss on your record, so you don't have the distraction and/or pressure of being undefeated? I've heard that line across other sports - well really just college basketball and the NFL I suppose - and never really agreed with it. The other argument I've heard is that when you're undefeated there's a tendency to think you're invincible and thus to not work as hard at improving. Again, I don't really agree with this notion but I'm curious what others think.

I don't agree with it, either.

Every few years a women's basketball team pulls it off, and it's a regular occurrence in college football, not to mention nonrev sports. So empirically it's not impossible.

Otherwise, if you're looking at "revenue" sports other than college football, the sample size isn't that big. In my lifetime there have been what, six or seven teams? We have the 2007 Patriots, '72 Dolphins, '91 Unlv, '79 Indiana State, '76 Indiana and a few Ucla hoops teams. Some of them won their championship, some didn't. For a few of those teams, some of the regular season games could have easily gone the other way -- at least two games in the case of the '07 Pats. The '72 Dolphins beat the Steelers, 21-17, in Pittsburgh to get to the Super Bowl. So there's some effect of random chance (call it "luck" if you want) catching up to them.

If there's a perceived benefit to getting a loss out of your system, I'm not seeing it in the OTTOMH examples of single-loss teams. Illinois '05, Stanford and St. Joes '04, Duke '99, Temple '88, Unlv '87... none of them won. In the NFL there have been the '04 Steelers and a few others. The single-loss teams I recall that won are NCSU '74 and one of the 49ers teams in the 80s.

(Edit: The five 15-1 NFL teams are the '84 49ers (won), the '85 bears (duh, won), the '98 Vikings (lost), the '04 Steelers (lost) and the '11 Packers (lost). Still not very convincing.)

[andyw715]

Question for the 'Cuse fans: what do you think of the notion that it's better to go into the tournament with a loss on your record, so you don't have the distraction and/or pressure of being undefeated? I've heard that line across other sports - well really just college basketball and the NFL I suppose - and never really agreed with it. The other argument I've heard is that when you're undefeated there's a tendency to think you're invincible and thus to not work as hard at improving. Again, I don't really agree with this notion but I'm curious what others think.

I don't think so either.

The goal is to win the next game. Whether you've won all the previous ones or lost them all, the goal is still to win the next one.
Come tournament time I think it would be an advantage to be undefeated. That's just one more thing that gets into an opponents head. Winning in the regular season pays off come tournament time, you get "home" geographic advantage, better seed, and a winning reputation.
Reputation is what drove Syracuse to the final four last year - they did have a decent seed (4) but flew to Cal and their rep was shot (lost a bunch in feb, poor shooting, owned by Louisville in the BE final, even picked by the media to lose against Montana). But, after that first game, the D kicked in and teams scrambled around with broom sticks trying to figure it out.


As far as first loss to BC vs first loss via the next 5 games?

Each game provides a todo list of thing that can be improved on. I don't believe in a "wake up call" loss, if it were such a thing, the coaching staff isn't doing their job.

There isn't anything that comes out of our loss to BC that shouldn't have been taken care of (or is being worked on) already. In every press conference (Duke game onward, and maybe even a few games prior) Boeheim has mentioned games that could easily gone the other way. And recently he mentioned that the luck has to run out sometime.

As far as number are concerned for "good" loss vs "bad" loss, etc. to me that is just noise. Something that can be left to sports talk radio/ESPN.

[superdave]

http://media.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/photo/ap080708020070jpg-1bc8d029b0f6916f_large.jpg
Jay Bilas. Really.

http://rushthecourt.net/mag/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/chris-collins-nw.jpg
Kedsy. Not really. But wouldn't surprise me.


Totally not. Though I did have dinner with him and his dad once.

Kedsy would not be able to post as much as he does if he were running the Northwestern hoops program.

[Indoor66]

Kedsy would not be able to post as much as he does if he were running the Northwestern hoops program.

As much as Kedsy posts, it is hard to believe he works at all! :cool:

[jekelish]

Question for the 'Cuse fans: what do you think of the notion that it's better to go into the tournament with a loss on your record, so you don't have the distraction and/or pressure of being undefeated? I've heard that line across other sports - well really just college basketball and the NFL I suppose - and never really agreed with it. The other argument I've heard is that when you're undefeated there's a tendency to think you're invincible and thus to not work as hard at improving. Again, I don't really agree with this notion but I'm curious what others think.

I personally would have loved going unbeaten, but the way we've been playing the last couple weeks, the Duke game notwithstanding, we were bound to lose eventually so I'd prefer to get it out of the way now, obviously. It's a lot harder to win 30 in a row than it is to win 6 in a row, obviously, and I'll take a loss now and then as long as we can put together a 6 game streak at the right time of the year, especially since I live in North Texas so I'd actually be able to attend the championship game to cap off that run!

That said, coaches always seem to think it's kind of a ridiculous notion, and they know more than I do. I mean, I honestly think SU taking a loss could actually help take the pressure off, as well as take the target off since we were getting everyone's best shot as the undefeated, #1 team, but it doesn't change the fact that you still want to win every time you take the floor.

Our guys are getting super worn down from playing so many minutes, and it's been clear at least from the outside looking in that the wear and tear has been taking a toll, and I think so too has the burden of carrying that undefeated mark into every game. At the end of the day we just haven't been playing very well, and I'd rather have us get this kick in the I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this. now to hopefully help right the ship for the home stretch.

[Dev11]

especially since I live in North Texas so I'd actually be able to attend the championship game to cap off that run!

A Final Four and a bowl game in the same year in your backyard, not bad at all

[ricks68]

Plus, of course, many of us (myself included) are legends in our own minds.

Hondo never posted on this board,------------unless it was his spirit.:)

ricks