"I was wrong about Mick Cronin..."

[anbuc88]

Originally Posted by JasonS

I agree. No way Yancy goes pro after this year unless he averages 20 and 10 in the Tourney and leads this team to a National Championship. Even then, I think he would come back.

As for SK, I think BA1 posed the question about him being content or would he continue to improve. I can tell you from everything I have read, he is a gym rat. You can already see his defense improve from the beginning of the year until now. I expect SK to be our leading scorer next year unless Yancy has a Kenyon Martin senior year which is not out of the question.

First, isn't it great to talk about next season, and still be excited about what is left during the rest of this season.

I think the Cats will be better next year than this yaer. The 5 core players previously mentioned along with Parker and Gaines is a great foundation. Cronin has set us up to continue the winning ways year after year. The following year Dixon and Gates leave, but Cash, Killa, Parker and JJ remain. Add in maturity of the of next years freshman, a JC big man who will then be a senior, and that team will be a bear. What has been sorely missing in the past is now in place. A returning core of players each year who can pass on the 'Bearcat way' and what it takes to be successful in the BE. We lost this when the program was torn down, and this is now firmly in place.

As an aside, I called into the WLW coaches show last week and asked Cronin if the toughest part of rebuilding was not having players who had been through the BE grind to pass on mental toughness required to be successful. He said that this cannot be understated and that it will be interesting to see what happens at SJU next year, as 10 seniors leave. I think having a core of players who can pass on how hard you have to work in the offseason to improve their game will allow us to become a mainstay in the upper echelon of the BE for years to come.

[bearcat jeff]

Don't underestimate the defensive aspect. Rarely are freshmen sold out to play defense and team concepts on the defensive end don't always come fast.

[david aka the TYZ]

Originally Posted by bearcat jeff

Don't underestimate the defensive aspect. Rarely are freshmen sold out to play defense and team concepts on the defensive end don't always come fast.

I agree, that's why I think Jackson and Kilpatrick's improvement will be more important than anything, especially on the defensive end. If they come out and can play solid team defense we should be alright. And maybe Parker (if he stays) can be our Larry Davis off the bench.

[ohioubearcat]

Two thoughts:

1.) I think we will be an improved team offensively next year but will really feel Bishop's departure. He is such a weapon on the defensive end....that will be hard to replace.

2.) I really hope Yancy stays and puts together a complete season for scouts to drool over. Unfortunately I'm not sure this will happen...it's been said that his struggles this season have been mostly because of things off the bball court. Sometimes these kids are pressured to support their entire family and do not always make the choice best suited for themselves. With that said...it seems like Mick and Yancy's father have been a great influence on him and hopefully that will continue onto next season!

GO CATS

[ready2go]

If you can show results, it solves everything

Up until this season, all of the doubters or disgruntled fans including myself were basing our frustration off of facts. The end of each season was abysmal; losing streaks, scoreless droubts, and flat out bad losses.

I was tired of hearing the excuses from Mick and other fans. Especially when those same teams had shown they can compete. In 08-09 they beat GTown twice, ND and WV. Only to crumble at the end. Last year they started out the season in Maui and left ranked. Only to crumble at the end vs poor to mediocre teams at best.

Up until this year I also saw very little player developement. I mean very little...But this year I feel Dixon is much improved, Cash is coming on strong and Biggie Freaking McClain has been used sparingly but I honselty feel he is one of the most improved

Now Mick has it figured out and these guys are playing basketball. Keep it going in the Tourny so I can watch them during work

[psax889906]

Originally Posted by ready2go

If you can show results, it solves everything

Up until this season, all of the doubters or disgruntled fans including myself were basing our frustration off of facts. The end of each season was abysmal; losing streaks, scoreless droubts, and flat out bad losses.

I was tired of hearing the excuses from Mick and other fans. Especially when those same teams had shown they can compete. In 08-09 they beat GTown twice, ND and WV. Only to crumble at the end. Last year they started out the season in Maui and left ranked. Only to crumble at the end vs poor to mediocre teams at best.

Up until this year I also saw very little player developement. I mean very little...But this year I feel Dixon is much improved, Cash is coming on strong and Biggie Freaking McClain has been used sparingly but I honselty feel he is one of the most improved

Now Mick has it figured out and these guys are playing basketball. Keep it going in the Tourny so I can watch them during work

You act as though Mick Cronin suddenly learned how to coach this season. Now that's not to say that he hasn't improved in his time here. I think most of us agree he has grown as a coach while in Clifton.

However, I have two issues with your argument:

1) You say the teams of the past had shown they could compete.

Ya Don't say? I just watched a 20+ loss South Florida team beat Villanova. Any team in this league can win one or two big games a year- and most of the time each team does.

Did you ever stop to consider the reason the teams of the past weren't able to finish down the stretch is because they'd never been there before?

Or maybe it was because they didn't have the depth necessary to sustain throughout the season?

Using big wins early in Mick's tenure as evidence as to why he wasn't getting the job done is suspect at best, imo.

2) Very little player development.

Lets see- he had to recruit a lot of JUCO's early on (and play Conner Barwin). Therefore, clearly there wasn't going to be time needed to invest in these players' games and watch them blossom. Mick was scraping the bottom of the barrel as it was.

This is year five. Until the 'Cats are bounced from this year's tournament Mick has still only seen ONE four year player start and finish his career at Cincinnati (Deonta Vaughn). Progress takes time.


Patience is a wonderful virtue and it's paying off for ALL of us as we speak.

Consider where this team might be this year if MANY had gotten their wish and Mick was canned at the end of last year...

[Bearcat_NTS]

Originally Posted by psax889906

You act as though Mick Cronin suddenly learned how to coach this season. Now that's not to say that he hasn't improved in his time here. I think most of us agree he has grown as a coach while in Clifton.

However, I have two issues with your argument:

1) You say the teams of the past had shown they could compete.

Ya Don't say? I just watched a 20+ loss South Florida team beat Villanova. Any team in this league can win one or two big games a year- and most of the time each team does.

Did you ever stop to consider the reason the teams of the past weren't able to finish down the stretch is because they'd never been there before?

Or maybe it was because they didn't have the depth necessary to sustain throughout the season?

Using big wins early in Mick's tenure as evidence as to why he wasn't getting the job done is suspect at best, imo.

2) Very little player development.

Lets see- he had to recruit a lot of JUCO's early on (and play Conner Barwin). Therefore, clearly there wasn't going to be time needed to invest in these players' games and watch them blossom. Mick was scraping the bottom of the barrel as it was.

This is year five. Until the 'Cats are bounced from this year's tournament Mick has still only seen ONE four year player start and finish his career at Cincinnati (Deonta Vaughn). Progress takes time.


Patience is a wonderful virtue and it's paying off for ALL of us as we speak.

Consider where this team might be this year if MANY had gotten their wish and Mick was canned at the end of last year...

Villanova's late season swoons the last two years would make even Mick Cronin blush

[Not Guilty]

Originally Posted by psax889906

Consider where this team might be this year if MANY had gotten their wish and Mick was canned at the end of last year...

Utter disaster when looking at the big picture.

[BearcatAlum1]

Originally Posted by ready2go

If you can show results, it solves everything

Up until this season, all of the doubters or disgruntled fans including myself were basing our frustration off of facts. The end of each season was abysmal; losing streaks, scoreless droubts, and flat out bad losses.

I was tired of hearing the excuses from Mick and other fans. Especially when those same teams had shown they can compete. In 08-09 they beat GTown twice, ND and WV. Only to crumble at the end. Last year they started out the season in Maui and left ranked. Only to crumble at the end vs poor to mediocre teams at best.

Up until this year I also saw very little player developement. I mean very little...But this year I feel Dixon is much improved, Cash is coming on strong and Biggie Freaking McClain has been used sparingly but I honselty feel he is one of the most improved

Now Mick has it figured out and these guys are playing basketball. Keep it going in the Tourny so I can watch them during work

Not a good post for many reasons. I'm tired tonight, but we were the underdogs according to Vegas regarding many of those "bad losses" and "late season collapes." Just saying..

[bearcat jeff]

Originally Posted by BearcatAlum1

Not a good post for many reasons. I'm tired tonight, but we were the underdogs according to Vegas regarding many of those "bad losses" and "late season collapes." Just saying..

There had been a pattern of late season collapses. A team that isn't accustomed to success has to learn to win. Eleven times last season they lost a game by 8 or less points. Many of those game by 5 or less.

The one thing many overlook is the fact that every tie to winning had been cut when Mick arrived. There wasn't any four year program guys here to show the underclassmen the way to win. There was no team identity left. These players knew nothing of 16 straight NCAA appearances except maybe a newspaper article. A winning culture had to be built and it had to be built under extreme circumstances.

This group of kids deserve so much credit. Even now they are shown no respect. They've scratch, fought and clawed their way to end the season ranked. This team has overcome so many obstacles, including a fan base that wouldn't support them.

It is entirely possible that UC could lose tonight and in the first round of the NCAA. If that happened I would be majorly disappointed as a fan but it wouldn't take away from how far they have come and the role they've played in Bearcat Basketball history. They've reconnected the present with the past and made tradition new again. These seniors have both made and left a mark. Justin Jackson, Cashmere Wright, Dion Dixon, Sean Kilpatrick and the rest of the returning Bearcats have a model to follow and all have played major roles in putting it together. That my friends bodes well for the future of UC Basketball.