Perspective

[w00t]

I'm as sick to my stomach about this loss as anyone, but let's put some things in perspective...* Let's not blame the coach. It's not even a point for debate that we are fortunate to have him here and starting threads about his "legacy" when (I hope) he's not going anywhere is ludicrous. * Let's not blame the officials for the loss. Their biggest mistake was putting time back on the clock. You don't fix one mistake by making another one. The way they handled the situation was spineless, but it was not the reason for the loss.* Let's give Cedric a break, because it wasn't his fault either. Do you honestly think the poor kid will sleep tonight? Do you honestly think we'd have gotten this far without him? He will be back next year with a vengeance.* This was the best season UA basketball has ever had. If you think you're aching from this amazingly unlikely loss as a fan, imagine it from the perspective of a player... especially the two named Romeo and Dru.* Rowdies... it's great to have you around. We can only hope that you grow in numbers for next season. If what I've heard about the "AK-Oldies" group is true, then you can count this 27-year old graduate who's been going to games since he was 12 and had the words "sit down!" yelled at him on several occasions in.* I hate to pull the "just wait 'til next year" card, but the talent well is far from dry. Three starters will be back to provide solid senior leadership. Three fresh faces will arrive, all of which are considered to be immediate contributors. And you have to imagine that every player will be driven to erase the memory of losing a chance to dance because of an off-balance, banked-in three-pointer. If we play to our potential next year, we will know that we're NCAA Tournament bound before the conference tournament even tips off.* "AntonioGates" coming on here and trashing the Zips is laughable. He must not be able to process events more than 24 hours old if he's already forgotten that the hippie commune posing as a university that he attended has now lost four games in a row to UA. Beating Can't three times in one year is a heck of an accomplishment and is the only thing that remotely dulls the pain of tonight's loss for me personally.* Finally, this season is not over. There is no foreseeable reason that we would be passed over for an NIT bid. A home game is probably not in the cards for us, but it would probably mean a lot to the most talented team in Zips history if there was a good turnout to see them play wherever they end up.Thanks so much to all the Zips, especially Romeo and Dru!!!!!!!

[scottditzen]

Right on.

[exexec]

I DIFFER BUT... I LOVE THE ZIPS. I WILL NOT GET INTO ALL THE SECOND GUESSING AS HARD AS IT IS. I HAVE HAD TO FIGHT ALL NIGHT-FIGHT TO FIND ALL OF THE GOOD AND NOT DWELL ON THE 7 SECONDS. 26 WINS WOW!!!!!!!! GREAT COACH GREAT PLAYERS-WHY??? CAUSE THEY ARE JUST LIKE US-GRITTY DETERMINED AND WILL FIGHT THRU ALL ADVERSITY EVEN THIS-AS HARD AS IT IS TO SWALLOW RIGHT NOW. SWALLOW REALLY REALLY HARD-YEA SWALLOW HARD AND THANK EM-WE LOVE EM-THEY ARE US!!! THIS WILL MAKE US BETTER FANS AND CD A BETTER COACH AND THE PLAYERS BETTER PEOPLE. I KNOW FROM EXPERIENCE.CONTINUE TO BLEED BLUE AND GOLD!! THANKS R-O-M-E-O THANKS DRU-THANKS TO REST OF YOU GUYS-I WILL NOT FORGET YOU!!! THIS HAS BEEN A GREAT YEAR

[GoZips]

w00t, well said. I concure.I can only one observation worth noting.Remember all the wailing about shooting free throws?The coaches harped, cajoled, pleaded, taught, worked on, had the kids shoot many,many free throws. The lessons never sank in. It has now.This was a team loss. The new team leadership has all summer to make the Zips thebest free throw shooting team in the conference. If they succeed, they dance next year.

[Zip Watcher]

I think this was a great post, w00t .. my thoughts mirror yours quite closely.Great season .. tough loss .. learn & get stronger.More later.

[zippyrifle32]

I'm as sick to my stomach about this loss as anyone, but let's put some things in perspective...* Let's not blame the coach. It's not even a point for debate that we are fortunate to have him here and starting threads about his "legacy" when (I hope) he's not going anywhere is ludicrous. * Let's not blame the officials for the loss. Their biggest mistake was putting time back on the clock. You don't fix one mistake by making another one. The way they handled the situation was spineless, but it was not the reason for the loss.* Let's give Cedric a break, because it wasn't his fault either. Do you honestly think the poor kid will sleep tonight? Do you honestly think we'd have gotten this far without him? He will be back next year with a vengeance.* This was the best season UA basketball has ever had. If you think you're aching from this amazingly unlikely loss as a fan, imagine it from the perspective of a player... especially the two named Romeo and Dru.* Rowdies... it's great to have you around. We can only hope that you grow in numbers for next season. If what I've heard about the "AK-Oldies" group is true, then you can count this 27-year old graduate who's been going to games since he was 12 and had the words "sit down!" yelled at him on several occasions in.* I hate to pull the "just wait 'til next year" card, but the talent well is far from dry. Three starters will be back to provide solid senior leadership. Three fresh faces will arrive, all of which are considered to be immediate contributors. And you have to imagine that every player will be driven to erase the memory of losing a chance to dance because of an off-balance, banked-in three-pointer. If we play to our potential next year, we will know that we're NCAA Tournament bound before the conference tournament even tips off.* "AntonioGates" coming on here and trashing the Zips is laughable. He must not be able to process events more than 24 hours old if he's already forgotten that the hippie commune posing as a university that he attended has now lost four games in a row to UA. Beating Can't three times in one year is a heck of an accomplishment and is the only thing that remotely dulls the pain of tonight's loss for me personally.* Finally, this season is not over. There is no foreseeable reason that we would be passed over for an NIT bid. A home game is probably not in the cards for us, but it would probably mean a lot to the most talented team in Zips history if there was a good turnout to see them play wherever they end up.Thanks so much to all the Zips, especially Romeo and Dru!!!!!!!

i agree minus blaming the refs. i know they're human, but once you make a mistake like that you can't correct it, but it's still not right. i'm not going to argue saying that we lost because of the refs, but i am going to say that no one won in my book. too bad the people that matter don't see it the same way i do...fuck

[skip-zip]

I'm sick this morning too, but let me offer some encouragement from an older Zips fan.I was a Senior at Akron the last time we went to the NCAA Tournament in 1986, so believe me, I've endured some very lean years. I've even been to games where it seemed like only a few hundred people were in the stands. But, I feel like a string of good years is coming our way. We'll be good next year, and I know that a year seems like a long time. But if we keep moving in the right direction under KD, opportunities like we had last night will continue to happen. And we won't win them all. The most important thing right now is to break this string of apathy, and continue to get more fans on board, including continuing to increase student involvement. Did you see all of those Miami fans in the lower sections? Most of them were alums who travel to support their team. So, we need those of who are graduating to keep coming back again and again as adult fans, like so many of us have done. Because, we'll need all of you again very soon. Let's keep our heads up, and enjoy the ride. Plenty more opportunities are coming our way in the coming years. Go Zips !!

[Captain Kangaroo]

The most important thing right now is to break this string of apathy, and continue to get more fans on board, including continuing to increase student involvement.

The best way to do that is to win a championship and we blew it last year...and we blew it again this year. Both seasons there were HUGE opportunities to generate a bandwagon of biblical proportions...and we had big leads late....and we were the better team...and we blew it.At the beginning of this season the crowds at the JAR were low. The crappy schedule contributed...but so did the Toledo loss from 2006. Not the physical loss, but the loss of not participating in the Finals vs. K.e.n.t. To win last night would have been HUGE for the program. People would have been beating down the door for 2007-8 season tickets. Now the city of Akron's focus shift to Greg Oden and the Buckeye's tourney run. The Zips will be relegated to page D11 for however long our NIT run lasts.I wish I had a nickel for every time I've typed the phrase "A huge opportunity lost" in a basketball-related post. The Miami game last night was the biggest loss of them all.

[zipsbandman]

We talk about fan support but I'm sorry to say that we're going to see the same apathy because no matter how well we do next year during the season we'll always get, "Well they'll lose in the tournament". It's going to take a championship and a lot more wins to get interest back.

[skip-zip]

zipsbandman....I really agree with you. And I've made plenty of controversial posts on here about fan apathy. But I want to keep wishing and hoping that we've had enough success to get past that now. But, unfortunately, I'm probably wrong.

[74ZIP]

i love being a ZIPS fan...have for almost 40 years now...when i moved from the area in the '80s i annoyed people in texas because i followed the teams...yes i am a FAN...but as i have said in this forum being a fan doesn't mean you can't or should not be critical...the COACHES and Players let a huge opportunity slip away last night...for MAC teams that opprtunity might not come again for years...as we know...i hope everyone involved builds on the frustration and uses it as a positive for next year...i hope KD realizes that blaming refs in the Nevada game doesn't do anything positive...see today's ABJ...i hope he realizes that sometimes during games he needs to think outside his 'box' so games don't slip away...i hope the guys coming back next year don't carry the frustration to the point that it weighs them down...and here is hoping that they get a break in the NIT...

[Valpo Zip]

We talk about fan support but I'm sorry to say that we're going to see the same apathy because no matter how well we do next year during the season we'll always get, "Well they'll lose in the tournament". It's going to take a championship and a lot more wins to get interest back.

That is so true. Fans will not show up for regular season games next year and we are restarting from the get go.If you think about it, being in the MAC, why do we play regular season ? If one team goes 5-25 in the regular season and gets the 12th seed but win in Cleveland they will dance and if another team wins out in the regular season but have an injury or a bad night in Cleveland, they will go home.The stupid regular season doesn't even earn you any advantage, no home court no nothing.

[zippyrifle32]

it earns you a higher seed and a bye, but as we already know... with the mac everything is up for grabs. i agree though, makes the season pointless

[Buckzip]

Great initial post. That was the most frustrating loss I have had as a Zip fan in any sport.We had the game. They needed an off balance desperation bank shot 3 to win it, when we had the opportunity to put it away. Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.That is just sickening. I don't blame the refs. I blame the clock person. The refs needed to fix someone elses mistake. I doubt there is an actual rule int he rule book when that exact thing happens.Being a NE Ohio sports fan, we all get kind of used to this type of dissapointment.But it still hurts everytime it happens.Hopefully we can at least win a couple games in the NIT.Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.Free Throws, Free Throws.

[GP1]

To win last night would have been HUGE for the program. People would have been beating down the door for 2007-8 season tickets.

I really have to respectfully disagee. One championship is not going to break the culture of freeloading Akron tickets embedded in the people of Summit and Stark Counties and reinforced by decades of giving away free tickets by UofA. It will take years of championships and work on the part of the Athletic Department to break the culture.I guess if there was going to be any positive taken from the game last night, and I'm grasping for straws here, it would be the basketball team taking another step forward. It was their first appearance in the finals. My concern is that they did not win the championship in a year when the MAC is absolutely horrible. For all the talk about the great players is KD is bringing here, with the exception of Ced, there is an alarming lack of athletic talent coming off of the bench. At some point, a coach can't win without talent. It's like trying to coach a dwarf to win the Olympic high jump.Here is a good question for everyone. Is Miami a better team than Akron? The facts would spell out that they are. They won two of three against UofA. All of the games were close but they managed to win. They made plays when they needed to and UofA did not. The fun thing about sports is that you get a chance to play a game to see who is better than the other team. Miami proved they are better than us in head to head competition. They EARNED their trip to the big dance.

[Balki Bartokomous]

I think we might be missing the most important point here.it is 12:52 ...AND Can't STATE STILL SUCKS

[Quickzips]

To win last night would have been HUGE for the program. People would have been beating down the door for 2007-8 season tickets.

I really have to respectfully disagee. One championship is not going to break the culture of freeloading Akron tickets embedded in the people of Summit and Stark Counties and reinforced by decades of giving away free tickets by UofA. It will take years of championships and work on the part of the Athletic Department to break the culture.I guess if there was going to be any positive taken from the game last night, and I'm grasping for straws here, it would be the basketball team taking another step forward. It was their first appearance in the finals. My concern is that they did not win the championship in a year when the MAC is absolutely horrible. For all the talk about the great players is KD is bringing here, with the exception of Ced, there is an alarming lack of athletic talent coming off of the bench. At some point, a coach can't win without talent. It's like trying to coach a dwarf to win the Olympic high jump.Here is a good question for everyone. Is Miami a better team than Akron? The facts would spell out that they are. They won two of three against UofA. All of the games were close but they managed to win. They made plays when they needed to and UofA did not. The fun thing about sports is that you get a chance to play a game to see who is better than the other team. Miami proved they are better than us in head to head competition. They EARNED their trip to the big dance.

I have to totally disagree with you on pretty much every point.First of all I think you completely underestimate what winning a championship would have done for attendance. Look at the Ball State game earlier this year where we nearly sold out. Bad opponent, bad weather, but fans still showed up because there was a growing opinion that the Zips were a good basketball team that was going to do some big things this year. Winning last night (and maybe a couple tournament games as well) would have reinforced that idea and it would have lead to more positive results down the road. As far as the recruiting thing goes and getting "great athletes" show me how many "great athletes" Miami had on the floor last night. In my honest opinion the idea that great athletes make great players (in any sport) is the biggest myth in all of sports. You can be blazing fast, leap tall buildings in a single bound, throw the ball a mile with a flick of the wrist and cut on a dime but if you don't understand the game you are playing you aren't going to translate that to success on the court (or field, or diamond, whatever). Give me a team of great players over a team of great athletes any day. As far as Miami being better than us. I just don't know. The records would say that yes, they are. I don't think the records show the whole picture though. The records don't show the absolute screw job that the clock operator and refs made last night. The records don't show that ridiculous overtime loss a couple weeks back. I will say this however. Miami is a lot better (than us and the rest of the conference) at making you play their game. You will never see them get trapped into playing a fast paced, up and down the court, high scoring game with anyone. They are always going to make you slow down and play a low scoring, close, defensive minded basketball game. If there is one thing that they are better at than us, this is it.

[GP1]

To win last night would have been HUGE for the program. People would have been beating down the door for 2007-8 season tickets.

I really have to respectfully disagee. One championship is not going to break the culture of freeloading Akron tickets embedded in the people of Summit and Stark Counties and reinforced by decades of giving away free tickets by UofA. It will take years of championships and work on the part of the Athletic Department to break the culture.I guess if there was going to be any positive taken from the game last night, and I'm grasping for straws here, it would be the basketball team taking another step forward. It was their first appearance in the finals. My concern is that they did not win the championship in a year when the MAC is absolutely horrible. For all the talk about the great players is KD is bringing here, with the exception of Ced, there is an alarming lack of athletic talent coming off of the bench. At some point, a coach can't win without talent. It's like trying to coach a dwarf to win the Olympic high jump.Here is a good question for everyone. Is Miami a better team than Akron? The facts would spell out that they are. They won two of three against UofA. All of the games were close but they managed to win. They made plays when they needed to and UofA did not. The fun thing about sports is that you get a chance to play a game to see who is better than the other team. Miami proved they are better than us in head to head competition. They EARNED their trip to the big dance.

I have to totally disagree with you on pretty much every point.First of all I think you completely underestimate what winning a championship would have done for attendance. Look at the Ball State game earlier this year where we nearly sold out. Bad opponent, bad weather, but fans still showed up because there was a growing opinion that the Zips were a good basketball team that was going to do some big things this year. Winning last night (and maybe a couple tournament games as well) would have reinforced that idea and it would have lead to more positive results down the road. As far as the recruiting thing goes and getting "great athletes" show me how many "great athletes" Miami had on the floor last night. In my honest opinion the idea that great athletes make great players (in any sport) is the biggest myth in all of sports. You can be blazing fast, leap tall buildings in a single bound, throw the ball a mile with a flick of the wrist and cut on a dime but if you don't understand the game you are playing you aren't going to translate that to success on the court (or field, or diamond, whatever). Give me a team of great players over a team of great athletes any day. As far as Miami being better than us. I just don't know. The records would say that yes, they are. I don't think the records show the whole picture though. The records don't show the absolute screw job that the clock operator and refs made last night. The records don't show that ridiculous overtime loss a couple weeks back. I will say this however. Miami is a lot better (than us and the rest of the conference) at making you play their game. You will never see them get trapped into playing a fast paced, up and down the court, high scoring game with anyone. They are always going to make you slow down and play a low scoring, close, defensive minded basketball game. If there is one thing that they are better at than us, this is it.

Good points.We won a football championship and then basically gave away trips to Detroit for a Bowl game and we still had the same crappy crowds last year as in the past 20 years. More season tickets were sold, but my guess is that they were sold to community minded businesses. One championship is never going to do it because most people can't remember what they did yesterday, let alone what happened months before. It is going to take years.The point about having good players and not great athletes is good and I agree to some degree. For example, Milum (sp?) is a great athlete, but he can't play basketball at the level needed to be considered even good in the MAC. However, I don't think we have one single great player on the team and we need to get one. The great player would have great athletic ability and great basketball ability. Lots of good players, but not a great one. I wouldn't even throw Linhart or Rybak into the good category at this point. They are just too slow to even compete at a high level in the MAC and KD gave them scholarships. In the old days of college athletics, guys like those two would be run off the team. My ideal guy would be someone who you could get the ball to at the top of the key with 12 seconds left on the shot clock and have him make something happen. UofA does not have a single guy who can do that.The reason Miami is probably better than us in 1:1 play is because they beat us 2:1 this season. The games are played to see who is better.

[Guzijeff]

To win last night would have been HUGE for the program. People would have been beating down the door for 2007-8 season tickets.

I really have to respectfully disagee. One championship is not going to break the culture of freeloading Akron tickets embedded in the people of Summit and Stark Counties and reinforced by decades of giving away free tickets by UofA. It will take years of championships and work on the part of the Athletic Department to break the culture.I guess if there was going to be any positive taken from the game last night, and I'm grasping for straws here, it would be the basketball team taking another step forward. It was their first appearance in the finals. My concern is that they did not win the championship in a year when the MAC is absolutely horrible. For all the talk about the great players is KD is bringing here, with the exception of Ced, there is an alarming lack of athletic talent coming off of the bench. At some point, a coach can't win without talent. It's like trying to coach a dwarf to win the Olympic high jump.Here is a good question for everyone. Is Miami a better team than Akron? The facts would spell out that they are. They won two of three against UofA. All of the games were close but they managed to win. They made plays when they needed to and UofA did not. The fun thing about sports is that you get a chance to play a game to see who is better than the other team. Miami proved they are better than us in head to head competition. They EARNED their trip to the big dance.

I have to totally disagree with you on pretty much every point.First of all I think you completely underestimate what winning a championship would have done for attendance. Look at the Ball State game earlier this year where we nearly sold out. Bad opponent, bad weather, but fans still showed up because there was a growing opinion that the Zips were a good basketball team that was going to do some big things this year. Winning last night (and maybe a couple tournament games as well) would have reinforced that idea and it would have lead to more positive results down the road. As far as the recruiting thing goes and getting "great athletes" show me how many "great athletes" Miami had on the floor last night. In my honest opinion the idea that great athletes make great players (in any sport) is the biggest myth in all of sports. You can be blazing fast, leap tall buildings in a single bound, throw the ball a mile with a flick of the wrist and cut on a dime but if you don't understand the game you are playing you aren't going to translate that to success on the court (or field, or diamond, whatever). Give me a team of great players over a team of great athletes any day. As far as Miami being better than us. I just don't know. The records would say that yes, they are. I don't think the records show the whole picture though. The records don't show the absolute screw job that the clock operator and refs made last night. The records don't show that ridiculous overtime loss a couple weeks back. I will say this however. Miami is a lot better (than us and the rest of the conference) at making you play their game. You will never see them get trapped into playing a fast paced, up and down the court, high scoring game with anyone. They are always going to make you slow down and play a low scoring, close, defensive minded basketball game. If there is one thing that they are better at than us, this is it.

Good points.We won a football championship and then basically gave away trips to Detroit for a Bowl game and we still had the same crappy crowds last year as in the past 20 years. More season tickets were sold, but my guess is that they were sold to community minded businesses. One championship is never going to do it because most people can't remember what they did yesterday, let alone what happened months before. It is going to take years.The point about having good players and not great athletes is good and I agree to some degree. For example, Milum (sp?) is a great athlete, but he can't play basketball at the level needed to be considered even good in the MAC. However, I don't think we have one single great player on the team and we need to get one. The great player would have great athletic ability and great basketball ability. Lots of good players, but not a great one. I wouldn't even throw Linhart or Rybak into the good category at this point. They are just too slow to even compete at a high level in the MAC and KD gave them scholarships. In the old days of college athletics, guys like those two would be run off the team. My ideal guy would be someone who you could get the ball to at the top of the key with 12 seconds left on the shot clock and have him make something happen. UofA does not have a single guy who can do that.The reason Miami is probably better than us in 1:1 play is because they beat us 2:1 this season. The games are played to see who is better.

The one great player going into next year would be Jeremiah Wood. He got better everygame and was pretty much un stoppable the last few weeks. Also, he is the only one who's foul shooting got better. Akron wins last night, he's tournament MVP hands down.Let's see what the draws pull tonight. Should be NIT bound. Anything could happen in that tournament.I just can't believe every MAC team makes the tournament. Gee, everyone makes the playoffs, what sense. They need to bring the top 8 teams. First round Wednesday, semi's on Thursday, then do the final on Saturday. Give the kids a day off. Several other conferences have a day break before the final. For instance, the Horizon. Semi's were Saturday and the final was Tuesday.....

[RACER]

i have to agree with most of the posters. the regualr season is almost meaningless.they need to change the mac tourney formatt to at least the top eight.i would like to see four teams .the two division champs and the best two records overall. that will never happen.there never be any changes.the mac makes money on all these tourney games,

[Zipsrifle]

Please elaborate more on the rumor about the "AK-Oldies". If someone is putting something together, I'm in!

[skip-zip]

GP1...I've been around our sports programs for a long time, and I reluctantly have to agree with you that a championship isn't going to suddenly start bringing huge crowds to Rhodes Arena. Although, I really wish that would be the case. I think the past has shown us that when we are winning, our crowds get a little bit bigger, but it's not significant.I remember someone on here posting the attendance growth numbers from the Bob Huggins era, and the numbers only climbed a couple hundred p/game after we won the OVC title and went to the NCAA tournament.Would it be any different now? If I had to make an educated guess, I'd say no.

[zip81]

Please elaborate more on the rumor about the "AK-Oldies". If someone is putting something together, I'm in!

ME TOO!!!!

[Captain Kangaroo]

GP1...I've been around our sports programs for a long time, and I reluctantly have to agree with you that a championship isn't going to suddenly start bringing huge crowds to Rhodes Arena.

I disagree. But, I will say one thing we can agree on - If we continue to lose these games, the JAR will never, ever fill up.

[zipsbandman]

GP1...I've been around our sports programs for a long time, and I reluctantly have to agree with you that a championship isn't going to suddenly start bringing huge crowds to Rhodes Arena.

I disagree. But, I will say one thing we can agree on - If we continue to lose these games, the JAR will never, ever fill up.

We can't really rip on attendance because our hearts have been broken for the second straight year. We have been upset two years in a row in the tournament. Even the hardiest of fans start to get weary. I could have stomached a loss to Can't in the finals last year because that team was clearly the best in the MAC, but this should have been our year.