HOOPS: Here's my theory for why this seems to happen so often to Majerus teams (guess what, it happens never for lack of "heart" or effort)
Posted By: Seattleute
Date: Saturday, 23 February 2002, at 4:28 p.m.
Let me say at the outset that there is little more offensive to me than a fan who doesn't have a clue about the rigors or complexities of competing on a high level accusing college kids who play for one of the toughest programs in the country--for virtually no pay--of having no heart. It's not as easy as it looks from the couch. Actually, as I'll explain, I think the Utes have tended to build big leads that they had trouble holding preciseley because they do have so much heart and are so well coached.
Truth be told, this year is not all that unique; even some of the best Majerus teams have had a hard time holding big leads after spectacular starts in big games. The most famous--or infamous, depending on your perspetive (more on that below)--was the loss to Kentucky in the 1998 title game. The Utes set a record for holding the biggest halftime lead of any team that ever lost a national championship game (10 points). (That loss hurt a lot, but dissapointment was not what I felt, given how extroadinary it was to even be there in that position.) Two nights before, the Utes made it to the title game by holding on for dear life after #1 ranked North Carolina made a furious comeback to cut a 16 point deficit to 2 in the final minutes. Other examples that come to mind are the Andre Miller mugging game in the Pit, and WAC tournament loss to Vegas that same year; and the Wyoming and two Fresno State losses when Van Horn was a junior (the Utes' only losses in their 15-3 WAC Championship season) in 1996.
So what gives? Why does this happen so often, even to the best of Majerus' teams? Here's my theory:
(1) Majerus' teams tend to start strong in big games (particularly when he has had a lot of days to perpare them) because of supererior preparation and maximum effort. Majerus invariably has a brilliant game plan, and it is not in his teams' makeup to pace themselves. Thus, the Utes rarely start poorly in a big game; their signature is to take a big lead early.
(2) Unfortuantely, well coached opponents adjust to the game plan, and in the latter stages of the game the Utes pay a heavy price for giving no quarter earlier in the game. This problem is compounded when the Utes are on the road and dealing with the rigors of travel including a foreign bed, in a tournament situation with little rest between games, or (as is usually the case) the oponent is quicker overall than the Utes. Also, with the difficulties of recruiting within and out of state inherant in Utah's unique situation, Majerus' teams have never been terribly deep. Late in the 1998 Kentucky game Doleac, Miller and company were utterly, completely exhausted; Billy Packer noted that they looked like they were ready to collapse, unable to pick up the pace despite their best efforts.
(3) No doubt, particularly this year, psychological factors set in. The dread that the lead will not hold up yet again becomes a self fulfilling prophesy. (I understand that this can happen to guys in a passtime that I actually prefer to watching college basketball. Personally I've never experienced it.) I think that this and the exhaustion explain the poor free throw shooting at the end of the game today.
So you see, this happens precisely because the Utes do have heart--they take the big lead in the first place becasue they are so thoroughly prepared (which takes a lot of work over many long days) and then work as hard as they possibly can throughout the game. I remember hearing a comment as I was milling around the concession stands during halftime in San Antonio that the Utes appeared as dominant in that Final Four as Pitino's Kentucky team with Antoin Walker had in '96. How ironic, given how the last four minutes unfolded.
What's the solution? Not play so hard out of the blocks? I don't think so. I'd rather take the big lead in the first place and take my chances (history has shown us they are about 90%) that the Utes will hold on. Majerus' formula has been successful enough to take the Utes to the pinnacle of college basketball. It is the only way the Utes, ensconced as they are in the middle of nowhere, in their strange community, could have pushed Kentucky to the brink in the Elite 8 in 1997, and the title game in 1998, and (also in 1998) led Vince Carter and Antawn Jameison's #1 ranked Tar Heels wire to wire. So I say you've got to take the bad with the good and think about the good times at times like this.
HOOPS: A couple of shocked (but not surprised) thoughts
Posted By: L.A.
Ute! <la_ute@hotmail.com>
Date: Saturday, 23 February 2002, at 3:11 p.m.
1. I hope Rick can come up with something to solve the problem of the disappearing offense. Right now, the sad truth is that no lead is safe, and that every team who plays us knows that they can come back against us, even against a huge lead.
2. BYU beat us, plain and simple. No excuses. We blew every opportunity we had to win, with Spivey putting the cap on the game with TWO missed free throws and then getting stuffed cleanly when there was plenty of time for a final shot. But it was not Spivey's fault, this was a team loss. And a BYU win. They did what had to be done. Hats off to them.
3. It is too bad that we now have given BYU fans a game that will be part of their storied history forever-- the 21-point comeback against Utah to save their home court winning streak. I hate to say it, but teams who do have Majerus's "eye of the tiger," or what most of us call the killer instinct, don't allow that to happen to them.
This year's team is a bunch of good kids and usually fun to watch (except during their disappearing periods, when I decide to go get something out of the refrigerator). But I have to say they do lack that ability to put opponents away. That's OK, it's just this team's personality. I remember that Pimm's team with Chambers and Vranes was like that when those two were juniors; the next year they had a great season and seemed suddenly to have the character to win. That could happen to this bunch too.
So I'll finish on that hopeful thought. Now I am off to my LDS congregation's stake conference meetings, where I will be reminded of this game time and time again. Wish me luck!
HOOPS: Time to vent
Posted By: DC
Ute <dc_ute93@yahoo.com>
Date: Saturday, 23 February 2002, at 3:15 p.m.
I've been a board participant for a long time and I generally try to avoid posting right after losses, but I can't stop myself today.
For me, this was the most disturbing Ute loss I've ever experienced next to the 1998 championship game.
How can you commmit 7 turnovers in the fist four minutes of the second half? I think these guys thought they had it won at halftime and decided they were going to coast for the last 20 minutes.
We knew that poor free throw shooting was going to catch up with this team eventually. Today was the day.
I actually didn't expect the Utes to win this game. But to lose it like this . . . I can't come up with words to express my disapointment.
I have no idea how these guys are going to respond to this fiasco. They will either regroup and finish the year strong, or let it demoralize them right into the NIT.
What a complete bummer.
HOOPS: Free Throws and Turnovers
Posted By: BigUte
<rprupp@juno.com>
Date: Saturday, 23 February 2002, at 3:23 p.m.
By my count, Utah shot 6-13 in the second half from the line. Of course, Utah is the worst FT shooting team in the conference and BYU the best so BYU clearly has the edge in a close game where FT are so critical. It is no surprise to me that we lost the game at the line after the game became close.
Turnovers let BYU back in the game. Some were forced by BYU's aggresiveness in the second half.
18 second half points! Ever since the first BYU game, Utah has been a pitiful second half team in pretty much every game. Why is it that Utah is chronically so bad in the second half? Is it fatigue? Is Majerus unwilling or unable to make adjustments? Whatever it is, it is not a fluke because it has happened so much.
Congrats to BYU and most of their fans. One thing I have to say is that they won after being down 21 in the second half. I don't think Utah could have done the same thing.
HOOPS: Balding's Thoughts
Posted By: BaldingUte
<beanerthepacker@hotmail.com>
Date: Saturday, 23 February 2002, at 3:35 p.m.
As has been said by many, Utah's disappaering offense in the second half is why this team cannot get too big of a lead. I wanted that lead in the first half above 20 because I knew that byu would be able to cut well into that lead. Anyway, some of my thoughts:
1. We had 10 turnovers in the second half. I think I counted 6 of 7 or 7 of 8 possesions after we took a 48-30 lead in which each Utah possesion ended in a turnover. This, IMO, was the key to the entire game. They cut it to 48-43 before we scored again. After that it was a dog fight and it can be tough to win those on the road.
2. byu had a good game plan in the second half. They gave it to Hansen and told him to go to the hoop. They did the same thing at the Huntsman and almost won that one. It wasn't just Hansen, they all went right to the hoop and got easy shots or were fouled.
3. The second half woes seem to stem from the fact that they get the double digit lead and then play not to lose. They stop playing aggressive on the offensive side of the ball and become extremely easy to guard. Utah had 13 points in the last 17 minutes, not many games are going to be won doing that. They don't have enough athleticism and depth to pack it in and expect to win.
4. Free throws were the huge. Spivey has a chance to make it very difficult for byu and he misses 4 of his last 5, including those final two. Give Montague credit for recognizing Spivey with the ball and fouling him. Spivey's free throw shot is pretty bad sometimes. If he makes those two we are 63 and assuming byu ends with the 63 they had, then it is tied and we go into overtime.
5. How fitting is it that Easy E (I will always love that nickname)beats us. He has been a Ute killer over the years and the Pasty Gangster did it to us again.
6. I thought byu did a good job in the second half and never quit. If this was New Mexico we would have won by 40. If byu could play like that on the road they would be ranked.
Right now I feel like crap but we still got two games. I expected us to lose this game, now they need to beat a scrappy CSU team and set up the showdown in Laramie in a week.
Go Utes!!!
HOOPS: Whole bunch of rambling thoughts.....
Posted By: ColoUte
<everutes@hotmail.com>
Date: Monday, 25 February 2002, at 9:08 a.m.
1. Indiana has no heart. Neither does Wake Forest. Yeah, they're both top 20 teams, but they gave up big leads in losses yesterday. Oh, and #1 Kansas nearly had no heart.
2. While I'm on this subject, one thing the Kansas/Nebraska game taught me yesterday is that if a team's 3 point shooters are on, any team can beat any other. If the Utes can get 3 of their 6 3-point shooters hot in a given game, we're an extremely dangerous team, and do pose a threat in the tourney.
3. OK, back to the heart conversation. I've seen tons of posts in the last two days talking about our lack of heart. We've lost 6 games this season because our players have no heart. I'd like to contend with that notion. Frankly, I think we've lost 6 games because we have no depth. I think we've lost 6 games because we're very limited in talent. If you think about it, we only have one exceptionally talented player, one or two moderately talented players, and a whole lot of role players. Frankly, I'll argue the notion that the reason we've won 19 games is because heart is all we have.
4. So, for those of you who will do anything to keep from having to give the Cougs an ounce of credit, let's just say they won because they cheated. They have a bouncy floor. They pumped ether into our locker-room at half-time. They have a rim that retracts by remote control. There's got to be a reason why they've won 35 at home. (BTW, Zoobs, that was a joke. Please don't rush over to post this on your board.)
5. Even with this loss, we're #18 in the RPI, and still getting votes in the media poll. CBS still lists us as in - and not even as a "bubble team." Other than the fact that it was a loss to our rival, this loss really wasn't that devistating. Admit it, who actually thought we'd win that game going into it? Heck no one was even talking about it on Friday. If we'd have played them toe to toe for 40 minutes rather than losing a big lead, would that be better? Yeah, it sucks to lose to BYU, but the fact remains, we have bigger fish to fry.
6. You know, really the worst thing about this loss is that it forces us mathmatically to beat Wyoming in Laramie to get the #1 seed for the conference tourney. There's no way around it now. Also, Wyoming can clinch the #1 seed by winning tonight and against the Zoobs on Thursday - or by us losing in Ft. Collins. Basically, their magic number is 2.
7. The #2 seed is actually kind of a tough draw. It looks like that draw would be Air Force/UNLV. It could be Air Force/BYU, but BYU's got a tougher last two, and obviously they're not the same team on the road. Either way, it doesn't look real promising for a team with limited depth. Then again, with the parity that exists in the conference, the #1 seed is far from a cake-walk.
8. I don't think I can understate the importance of this CSU game now. A win in this game basically ensures that there's no way our RPI dips below 25, and ensures at least a .500 record in our last 10. A win on Thursday should be enough to lock us. A loss could make things a little hairy. We've had a lot of "must-win" games this season. This game is as big as any of them. Frankly, if we can't win a single road game against the worst team in the conference, we probably don't deserve a tourney bid.
9. It'd still be nice to just win out and win the tourney. Let's get on a roll and make the selection committee just decide what our seed will be. GO UTES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
10. Just to be safe, though, Go Butler, Go Western Kentucky.
Last modified .