Proceed With Cautious Optimism

[Drew's Crew]

I have experienced my fair share of highs and lows throughout the regular season since becoming a Xavier basketball fan. We have won games that maybe we shouldn't and lost games that we DEFINITELY shouldn't.

I think our team is legit this year (as the kids would say). We are deep, balanced, coachable and have elite talent at multiple positions. That being said, they are still 18-22 year old young men with a million different things in their life distracting them. The heaping of praise this year will only pile on to that.

The reason I bring this up is because the last two nights have presented a sobering reality to optimistic fans like myself...

Virginia Tech defeats #4 UVA
Marquette defeats #8 Providence (Ugh)
LSU beats the hell out of #19 Kentucky
Temple defeats #23 UCONN

Now I know that these rankings can be inflated and aren't necessarily accurate of the current level of play for the respective teams. BUT, I have seen a lot of people expecting us to run through the BE with a loss here or there (and I sorta think we will too), but keep in mind, it''s a LONG season and there will be ups and downs.

Our team is awesome. We will play games in which we aren't really awesome. As we tip off against a weak SJU team tonight, we need to keep this in perspective.

I think and hope we will win the BE regular season. But we may trip up in a game here or there. That doesn't mean we aren't still a great team, because we are.

Good luck to the boys tonight and I hope this next string of "winnable" games becomes just that. But if it doesn't, that's ok, because we will still be there in the end competing and playing hard when it's all said and done.

[Milhouse]

We're also a top 10 team. Nearly every arena we travel to in conference will have a decent size crowd for that alone.

[Masterofreality]

I hated to do it, but Drew's post is exactly why I picked us at 13-5 in the league. Crazy things happen in Conference.

I hope I'm wrong- on the good side.

[xuwin]

My only concern with the team now is how we would handle a team that applies a lot of on ball pressure with Sumner out of the lineup. I was surprised that Butler didn't pressure the ball more with our point guard missing from the lineup.

[RoseyMuskie]

Nice post, Drew.

When I review the KenPom rankings, St. John's is sandwiched by Delaware and Southern University. If X were playing the latter two, I wouldn't be concerned whatsoever. A road conference game is a different story, though.

Now do I think X will win by double digits? Yes. But we've all seen quirkier things happen in sports.

[GoMuskies]

I feel like we are about to unleash a reign of terror on this league (save for that Villanova debacle, of course) similar to what KU does to the Big XII year after year after year. It will be glorious.

[nuts4xu]

We are going to run roughshod through this piss ant conference and plant our flag in the butthole of our rivals by the end of this season.

I fully expect us to pummel the shit out of everyone we play by shooting over 75% from the field.

This is a team of destiny, and their fate is already determined. Team #94 will go down in history as one of our best and most accomplished teams ever. We will shatter the school record of 30 wins, blow the doors off the chumps we draw in the NCAA tourney, and everyone will know we are the NEW flagship program of the Big East. The teams we play will all have a chance to smell the GLOVE of Xavier Nation!

Perspective shmective.

Chant with me....
Xavier till I die,
I'm Xavier till I die,
I know I am,
I'm sure I am,
I'm Xavier till I die..

There is only one thing left to do....win the whole fu**ing thing!!

[paulxu]

I see Dana's opened early today.

[XUFan09]

My only concern with the team now is how we would handle a team that applies a lot of on ball pressure with Sumner out of the lineup. I was surprised that Butler didn't pressure the ball more with our point guard missing from the lineup.

They didn't have the personnel to do it. Tyler Lewis and Kellen Dunham are not good defenders. Even with Myles and Larry running the point, it would have painfully backfired for Butler.

[boozehound]

My only concern with the team now is how we would handle a team that applies a lot of on ball pressure with Sumner out of the lineup. I was surprised that Butler didn't pressure the ball more with our point guard missing from the lineup.

Agreed. This is what scares me until Ed gets back.

[nuts4xu]

My only concern with the team now is how we would handle a team that applies a lot of on ball pressure with Sumner out of the lineup. I was surprised that Butler didn't pressure the ball more with our point guard missing from the lineup.

I have zero concerns. Myles Davis and Larry Austin will provide the steady ball handling we need. I hope teams press us, we will run past them, dunk on their mothers, and posterize their unborn children!!

[xu82]

There will be some clunkers, but a "bad game" is a relative thing. "Bad" for this team is still pretty good, but there will be some head scratching. I fully expect to lose some of the games we expect to be tough, and one or even two not as easily foreseen. A little adversity isn't necessarily all bad, though.

[xubrew]

I am quitting my job, moving to Vegas, and betting everything I have that Xavier will win out and win the national championship!! If you're a real fan then you'll do the same!!

SCREW CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM!!! BE A REAL FAN!!

[paulxu]

Way to remove all the opportunities to become indignant. Nice job.

[Masterofreality]

We are going to run roughshod through this piss ant conference and plant our flag in the butthole of our rivals by the end of this season.

I fully expect us to pummel the shit out of everyone we play by shooting over 75% from the field.

This is a team of destiny, and their fate is already determined. Team #94 will go down in history as one of our best and most accomplished teams ever. We will shatter the school record of 30 wins, blow the doors off the chumps we draw in the NCAA tourney, and everyone will know we are the NEW flagship program of the Big East. The teams we play will all have a chance to smell the GLOVE of Xavier Nation!

Perspective shmective.

Chant with me....
Xavier till I die,
I'm Xavier till I die,
I know I am,
I'm sure I am,
I'm Xavier till I die..

There is only one thing left to do....win the whole fu**ing thing!!

No one like Nuts to give me a solid crack in the skull to bring me back to my senses!! F all of these poseurs and prevaricators! We are the Flagship, and even Flagships take a cannonball now and then.

Run through these jerks like they're made of Charmin Bathroom Tissue!!!

[Jehoya]

We are going to run roughshod through this piss ant conference and plant our flag in the butthole of our rivals by the end of this season.

I fully expect us to pummel the shit out of everyone we play by shooting over 75% from the field.

This is a team of destiny, and their fate is already determined. Team #94 will go down in history as one of our best and most accomplished teams ever. We will shatter the school record of 30 wins, blow the doors off the chumps we draw in the NCAA tourney, and everyone will know we are the NEW flagship program of the Big East. The teams we play will all have a chance to smell the GLOVE of Xavier Nation!

Perspective shmective.

Chant with me....
Xavier till I die,
I'm Xavier till I die,
I know I am,
I'm sure I am,
I'm Xavier till I die..

There is only one thing left to do....win the whole fu**ing thing!!



Thank you for that lol

[drudy23]

We can go down against any team on the road in conference play...yes, even Depaul and St Johns. Have to be ready to play every night.

[X-Fan]

We are going to run roughshod through this piss ant conference and plant our flag in the butthole of our rivals by the end of this season.

There is only one thing left to do....win the whole fu**ing thing!!


I have zero concerns. Myles Davis and Larry Austin will provide the steady ball handling we need. I hope teams press us, we will run past them, dunk on their mothers, and posterize their unborn children!!

nuts4theWin!!!!

Public Reps!!!!

EPIC stuff right there!!!!

I think we'll be fine if pressed as well. Opponents have been pressing X since the start of the year to slow down the offense. The TOs have not been due to being pressed.

[94GRAD]

I see Dana's opened early today.

11am Mon-Fri

[Masterofreality]

11am Mon-Fri

Never miss a marketing opportunity. :biggrin:

[GIMMFD]

I am quitting my job, moving to Vegas, and betting everything I have that Xavier will win out and win the national championship!! If you're a real fan then you'll do the same!!

SCREW CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM!!! BE A REAL FAN!!

Can I move in with you? It could be fun for gamedays!!

[Always Learning]

A really good post Drew and a sane one.
For eons I have tried to explain just how difficult it is to win 'em all. Some posters find it impossible to understand those guys over there are on scholarship too. And some nights the reach the potential someone saw in them when they recruited them. And we have had some of those kind too.
Its kinda when the stars are aligned and the moon is it its place that unexplained things happen.
Now we have a target on our backs and we will become the Super Bowl for others in the BE.
Guarantee we will lose a few maybe just a couple, but they could be against anyone in this conference. This isn't the the first conference we were in, this is the elite. I know the others in the BE are very good because we tried to recruit some of them.
So, enjoy the ride, and be thankful.

[X-Fan]

I have experienced my fair share of highs and lows throughout the regular season since becoming a Xavier basketball fan. We have won games that maybe we shouldn't and lost games that we DEFINITELY shouldn't.

I think our team is legit this year (as the kids would say). We are deep, balanced, coachable and have elite talent at multiple positions. That being said, they are still 18-22 year old young men with a million different things in their life distracting them. The heaping of praise this year will only pile on to that.

The reason I bring this up is because the last two nights have presented a sobering reality to optimistic fans like myself...

Virginia Tech defeats #4 UVA
Marquette defeats #8 Providence (Ugh)
LSU beats the hell out of #19 Kentucky
Temple defeats #23 UCONN

Now I know that these rankings can be inflated and aren't necessarily accurate of the current level of play for the respective teams. BUT, I have seen a lot of people expecting us to run through the BE with a loss here or there (and I sorta think we will too), but keep in mind, it''s a LONG season and there will be ups and downs.

Our team is awesome. We will play games in which we aren't really awesome. As we tip off against a weak SJU team tonight, we need to keep this in perspective.

I think and hope we will win the BE regular season. But we may trip up in a game here or there. That doesn't mean we aren't still a great team, because we are.

Good luck to the boys tonight and I hope this next string of "winnable" games becomes just that. But if it doesn't, that's ok, because we will still be there in the end competing and playing hard when it's all said and done.

I think the guys read Drew's post and wanted to illustrate what he was talking about. ;-)

I thought Coach stated it well that Elite teams take care of business and don't play down to bad teams. They represent who they are every time they step out on the court, no matter how poor/sloppy the other team is playing.

Quick someone start a thread about proceeding with a killer instinct. Ha!

[UCGRAD4X]

I think the guys read Drew's post and wanted to illustrate what he was talking about. ;-)

I thought Coach stated it well that Elite teams take care of business and don't play down to bad teams. They represent who they are every time they step out on the court, no matter how poor/sloppy the other team is playing.

Quick someone start a thread about proceeding with a killer instinct. Ha!

Is that function not available on your device?

[X-Fan]

Is that function not available on your device?

Ha! Too early for me to come up with something. Also, last nights performance left me less than inspired. ;-)

[XUGRAD80]

in all of the years that X has been the big dog in various conferences, they have gone through the conference regular regular season undefeated only once that I can remember.......and they promptly lost in the conference tourney. This is not a phenomenon that is isolated to basketball either. Look through the history of all the different team and individual sports and you will see very few undefeated national champs. Many if not most of the time, the loses the eventual national champ suffers are to teams or individuals that would not be picked to be serious threats either. So many things can through a team or individual off their game for a night or two....school, family, travel, sickness, mental or physical fatigue, a crazy bounce of a ball, a lucky shot, etc. The depth of this team will be one of its greatest assets during the BE season and beyond. Being able to go consistently 10 deep means it will be able to overcome an off night from a player or two, and still remain competitive against most of the other teams. I've said it before and I will say it again....the season is a Marathon. The post season is like final exams. Enjoy the journey.

[blueblob06]

We are halfway through the 30-game regular season and we're 14-1, RPI of 1, SOS of 3, and we're 6-1 on the road/neutral. I'm more than happy with that. Unbelievable how good those numbers look! I mean 6-1 on the road??? That just doesn't happen!

[Drew's Crew]

they absolutely are awesome. I don't disagree.

I am glad Mack laid into the guys last night. We played like shit. Fortunately, St. John's is terrible. As a coach, I understand the desire for players to play consistently throughout the season. But it just isn't reasonable to expect it. We are talented and deep, but without Ed we are prone to days like last night.

As a former (mediocre) athlete though, you know when you played like shit. It's a hit to your pride. The guys know more than anyone that they played down to SJU and I am sure are a little embarrassed by the effort.

DePaul is gonna get their ass beat.

[Cheesehead]

they absolutely are awesome. I don't disagree.

I am glad Mack laid into the guys last night. We played like shit. Fortunately, St. John's is terrible. As a coach, I understand the desire for players to play consistently throughout the season. But it just isn't reasonable to expect it. We are talented and deep, but without Ed we are prone to days like last night.

As a former (mediocre) athlete though, you know when you played like shit. It's a hit to your pride. The guys know more than anyone that they played down to SJU and I am sure are a little embarrassed by the effort.

DePaul is gonna get their ass beat.

This

[blueblob06]

As a former (mediocre) athlete though, you know when you played like shit. It's a hit to your pride. The guys know more than anyone that they played down to SJU and I am sure are a little embarrassed by the effort.

DePaul is gonna get their ass beat.

I already feel bad for DePaul. We need to stomp them after going 1-1 against them last year.

[muskiefan82]

Ha! Too early for me to come up with something. Also, last nights performance left me less than inspired. ;-)

That's what she said. Come on, somebody had to say it.

[UCGRAD4X]

in all of the years that X has been the big dog in various conferences, they have gone through the conference regular regular season undefeated only once that I can remember.......and they promptly lost in the conference tourney. This is not a phenomenon that is isolated to basketball either. Look through the history of all the different team and individual sports and you will see very few undefeated national champs. Many if not most of the time, the loses the eventual national champ suffers are to teams or individuals that would not be picked to be serious threats either. So many things can through a team or individual off their game for a night or two....school, family, travel, sickness, mental or physical fatigue, a crazy bounce of a ball, a lucky shot, etc. The depth of this team will be one of its greatest assets during the BE season and beyond. Being able to go consistently 10 deep means it will be able to overcome an off night from a player or two, and still remain competitive against most of the other teams. I've said it before and I will say it again....the season is a Marathon. The post season is like final exams. Enjoy the journey.

True enough.

However, one thing Chris Mack said last night that I appreciate is that the team played entitled. Not the first time I have heard him warn against such a notion. What was really interesting was his next comment. "Champions don't play that way!" (or something to that effect).

This team is good....really good. I think everybody would agree. And even really good teams get beat. The Champions, however, make that happen as infrequently as possible. Once we get to the tourney, it can't happen - even once. The sooner we get to that point, the better.

[LA Muskie]

It was a road win so I'll take it. And yes conference road wins can be tough. But not all conference road games are the same. That was far from a hostile crowd. It almost certainly will be the friendliest road crowd we confront for the rest of the season.


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[X-band '01]

True enough.

However, one thing Chris Mack said last night that I appreciate is that the team played entitled. Not the first time I have heard him warn against such a notion. What was really interesting was his next comment. "Champions don't play that way!" (or something to that effect).

This team is good....really good. I think everybody would agree. And even really good teams get beat. The Champions, however, make that happen as infrequently as possible. Once we get to the tourney, it can't happen - even once. The sooner we get to that point, the better.

Yeah, the team hadn't coasted like that since the Northern Kentucky game. The first 4 minutes of the game were almost too easy for Xavier last night; they got an early 10-point lead and went into cruise control mode.

It's too early to really create a one-and-done sense of urgency, but it's valid to note that last night's effort would be a losing one against all the other teams in the conference.

[GoMuskies]

It almost certainly will be the friendliest road crowd we confront for the rest of the season.


I think DePaul will be as friendly or friendlier. Particularly since there will be a lot of Xavier fans there.

[D-West & PO-Z]

I think DePaul will be as friendly or friendlier. Particularly since there will be a lot of Xavier fans there.

Yeah I was going to say that as well.

[LA Muskie]

I think DePaul will be as friendly or friendlier. Particularly since there will be a lot of Xavier fans there.

I can't fathom a more ho-hum conference crowd than last night's, and DePaul's a better team. But I can't even remember what DePaul's typical home their turnout is like. You may be right.


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[bleedXblue]

I can't fathom a more ho-hum conference crowd than last night's, and DePaul's a better team. But I can't even remember what DePaul's typical home their turnout is like. You may be right.


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I was in Chicago last year for the game. Maybe 3-4K in attendance. X had maybe 400-500 or so scattered about in attendance.

Not a hostile environment at all.

[UCGRAD4X]

I was in Chicago last year for the game. Maybe 3-4K in attendance. X had maybe 400-500 or so scattered about in attendance.

Not a hostile environment at all.

So, will Xavier's ranking this time around affect attendance one way or another - create excitement and boost attendance - or scare them off!:swordfight: