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My heart goes out to Murray State. And I think they deserve some discussion, for a number of reasons. 1) They are in our old conference, which is a very weak conference, but they have made a very big name for themselves. 2) They do not have the benefit of 1-A football. 3) How does the #12 team in the country get a 6th Seed ?? The selection committee is truly biased. I thought it was a total ripoff. 4) With a better seed, they would have NEVER had to face a team of the caliber of Marquette in the 2nd round.

EVen with everything that's been said, lets face it. OU got a great matchup for OU. Michigan isn't strong enough to be a threat to be able to dominate them in the paint. So, it became a battle between perimeter players, which had to be exactly what OU could have wished for, and their players were a little bit quicker and better tonight. Interestingly enough, it's similar to what we got with Notre Dame last year. We just didn't take advantage of it. Usually, the biggest difference between the big schools and the smaller schools is high quality bigs. When the big schools don't have them, it really evens the playing field.

Maybe we do go after many of the same players. So, I think there could be some long term benefit for ALL of us if MAC teams are performing well in the Big Dance. I think it COULD raise the recruiting power of the entire conference as a whole. But short term, OU is now the "IT" team of the MAC, and I really thought a few years ago that WE were well on our way to being the next MAC team to wear that crown after Ken+. I'm sure there will be more discussion about this to follow. But, looking at the makeup of OUs two teams that won in the tournament might at least make some of us ask ourselves some questions.

This has me sooo confused about how to feel. Great for the MAC and great for Mid-Majors. That's the way I like to root. I'm just a little ill knowing that OU has twice tasted NCAA victory in the last couple of years. And at least in the short term, I think it helps THEIR recruiting more than "MAC" recruiting as a whole. Plus, I think it puts a serious damper on our ability to become the successor to Can't as the next great recognizable MAC basketball program.

Are you referring to the MAC Tourney titles? If so, the 2009 title was won before Zeke arrived. So, he's 1 for 3 in helping us win titles. But, you can't credit individual players with the titles you won anyway. Kyle Peterson is the most decorated player in Zips history, if you want to go there.

Ken+ went to the Final 8 in 2002. And several MAC teams have won NCAA tournament games. And remember, basketball is much different than football. There are several very good D-1 schools in Ohio, and they all have their own significant following.

That's ok. I figured you might have been looking at recent history, but you traced Butler all the way back to 1997, but only showed Akron's history back to 2009. Just wanted to make sure you were aware of a couple of other postseason appearances, in case you didn't know.

You forgot quite a bit, some being very recent: NCAA 1st Round in 1986 NIT 2nd Round in 2006 NIT 2nd Round in 2008 But, if we do happen to follow Butler's pattern, the next NCAA appearance will be our 4th one

The reason I am commenting about this post is because so many people on here have always been naive about this subject. I've probably read hundreds of posts along the lines of, "we're winning games, so they don't care if they aren't getting as much playing time....they buy into KDs system, and understand that coming in.....blah blah blah". If what you are saying is true, it doesn't surprise me at all. It happens everywhere. Please folks, don't be naive.

I appreciate the way you've raised your kid I have friends with children who are diehard Zips fans. They all had the "A" on thier faces last weekend and everything. Unfortunately, I probably know more people who dress their kids in OSWho gear. And sadly, some of them are AKRON GRADUATES.

That same play has probably happened 100 times in practices, intra-squad scrimmages, or just messing around. And it just so happened that they had a opening to try it in a game.

For Next Year: My first hope is that someone from ZipsNation does not come on here in the middle of the summer saying that they have seen us practice, and that we are one of the top 10 to 20 teams in the nation. First of all, many of our current players are not good practice players anyway. Secondly, it makes me get upset about every early loss. And I don't want to do that again. As for the questions about calling late timeouts when down 3 points: That would have been the best idea. Only because it's much easier to get a 3-point look off of an inbounds play rather than running up the court, when the opponent is trying to foul you to prevent a 3-point shot. Some coaches simply like to run the ball up, hoping that the defense is not organized. I prefer the timeout and a set play.

Exactly. Someone please tell me how reliable it's been for us to try to get Zeke to gather a pass while double teamed, or shoot and score while double teamed.

Let me repeat. We did not decide to "go for the win", according to the radio postgame comments. We had drawn up a play, and it wasn't there.

Nope. KD said in the postgame that we had drawn up a 2-point play, but it just wasn't there.

I'll repeat what I said in another thread. Which team is really excited about playing in the NIT? Is that us? Do we play another game like we played in the CBI against Wisc. GB? Or, do we play a game like we did at Temple or Florida State, when our opponent was obviously the team that didn't care enough ? Please....make it the latter. Zips 61 NW 56

Good post. And yes....by saying NOW.....I guess I meant TONIGHT !!!!

I only have a short comment here. I think it's fair to say that most people on here predicted 3 years ago that Zeke would dominate the MAC. And I'd guess that the majority of the people who felt that way were also guessing it would happen long before he had played in 90+ games. He's now almost down to the last couple dozen or so games in his career. So, I hope he realizes that if he is ever going to resemble anything close to the type of dominant player that most people predicted we would see, RIGHT NOW would be a good time to turn up the desire to be a great player.

The Clevelander was WAY too small. Period. If we were going to have a new place this year, could we have at least gone for something equal or an upgrade? Very disappointing. Some of the comments I am reading are amazing. My group ended up going to other places on Saturday. But until I read these posts, I didn't realize that so many other people were doing the same thing.

F-OU

I'm hearing big things about this guy from the inside. I hope what I am hearing is true. And as you all know, I never get too excited about expectations for players who have never stepped on a college court. But, this one could truly be a major player for us right out of the gate.

Guys, these NIT games are ALL ABOUT who is excited to be playing. We knocked off Temple several years ago in a game where a few hundred people showed up to see them on their home court. I'm sure Florida State players and fans were thrilled to be playing in the NIT a few years ago against a relatively unknown school like Akron too. This tournament is a GREAT opportunity for mid-majors to prove themselves, with the added advantage of having games against top seeds in the first round who may be very, very upset that they were not selected to play in the Big Dance, feel like they've already proven themselves, and don't really care. Wichita State's run last year is a prime example. Something similar would be HUGE for our program. But...again.....we have to be THAT TEAM that is EXCITED about playing. If we aren't, a repeat of the Wisconsin GB debacle is a very good possibility. I hope the CBI and the NIT is perceived as a WORLD of difference to our guys.

A great example of the pompous nature of OSWho supporters. They all HOPE and ASSUME that we all want Michigan to lose. Sorry. On top of that, basketball is a whole different situation. There are about a dozen D-1 basektball schools in Ohio, and many of them are really good, and have their own significant fan bases who don't even pay attention to whether OSWho is playing Michigan.

I'm guessing your referring to the fact that he looked like he wasn't wanting to fight his way to the basket against OU. But, what was more troubling to me was that he made so many mistakes just trying to simply return the ball to the perimeter. Although, I'll cut him a little slack since he was getting hacked more often than what was being called. OU shouldn't be an intimidating team in the paint. But they sure appeared like one on Saturday.