Big Monday v Houston 8:00
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Fran on the mic, cue your varsity apps up to get Hanni and Gurley's call on the action.
Self unbeaten at home on Big Monday, 40-0. Self never lost 2 home games in a row, in fact last it happened was in Roys first year. Houston hasn't lost 3 in a row for almost a decade now. So something's got to give, just like two weeks ago when Zona visited.
There's no logical reason why our team shouldn't win tonight even though Houston's super tough. We've been beating some of the giants of college basketball since 2026 started. Yet, after the biggest of them all against Zona we've been blown out at ISU and of course Saturday. So I really don't know what to expect.
My confidence level is low so I think we only win by 1 point! 71-70. It's really almost a must win because Saturday we'll be at Zona and I aint feeling good about that one at all.
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I think we peaked in early February and are on a downswing now. While I do expect us to play better today than we did on Saturday, I don't think we have what it takes to win today.
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This game is 50-50. Much like the Arizona game.
We will need the crowd to be a lot better than Saturday. Even so, unlike T Lloyd, K Sampson has a ton of experience in AFH. I expect Houston to prepare for this much like they did for the final four against Duke and Florida last year.
If there were more guys from last year on the team I'd have them watch the tape of the game last year to try to get a motivational edge. But only Flory was on the floor for that one. At the very least, they should be prepared to play hard every friggin' tenth-of-a-second of this game.
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Agree 50-50. If we play with non-stop effort (like AZ) we can win . . . not by a lot, but we can win. Without max effort, watch out. If could be the psychological blow that ruins the rest of our season. PS The other thing to watch is how the refs call what will be a Houston-initiated physical game.
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We have faced more of the top number of tough defenses and more of the best offenses than any other team in the NCAA. We were successful all but 7 times. In spite of that we struggle against full court pressing and aggressive on ball and especially trapping teams. We can be confused by trapping and am slow to respond until it's too late. When this leads to 10 or more turnovers in a half and several turnovers in consecutive possessions we get blitzed and run off the floor until it's a 25-10 run and extra timeouts expended. We are on purpose a low possession grind it out team team with a solid seven man rotation. Flory has to handle a lot of 7'+ big guys without fouling and sitting out especially if the refs are being inconsistent. Tiller had a habit of fouling and sitting and avoids it now by not being aggressive. He still gets blocks and boards because he is big, quick and agile but new-ish. It falls on our guards to score and defend. Houston's guards are among the best in the country who don't turn it over. Flemings, Sharp and Uzan are not great but above average outside shooters and Flemings can really get to the rim with the best of them. We need an all around star Darryn to score, defend and draw fouls. It will help to get at least four lobs. If we play as hard as I expect we will it won't take a lot of scoring but mid 70's would be great. Maybe we get a scoring Tre and some unexpected high amounts from others.
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Sure I’ll make a prediction. And I really hope my crappy track record stays consistent. I predict an almost identical performance and outcome as the Cinci game. Man, I hope I continue to be wrong and we win this. I really do. C’mon ‘Hawks!
