Pitino presser: I didn't think we could find a more heartbreaking way to lose...

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...what we've done.

Here are my notes from Pitino and Fran. I'm transcribing and will have a few players quotes up shortly:

Richard Pitino:
• I didn't think we could find a more heartbreaking way to lose than what we've done….proud of the guys, they fought back, showed great heart.
• Didn't really know how much time they'd get on the last play (refs came in during the timeout and told them)
• They were just worrying too much, feeling like we're better than 0-5. There are guys in that locker room that were balling and crying. We showed really good heart.
• We're small, and they have really good length. We played looser in the 2nd half, we were really tight in the 1sthalf. I was worried about that because we've been so close. I know our guys believe we're better than this.
• Mathieu did have time to get off a lay-up…I didn't think he had it. I was pretty locked in on it.
• Mason is a really really good player, and he does things that good player. I wanted to play him more.
• I wanted to play Joey a little less, maybe Joey was fresher down the stretch. That 4 spot, we need to keep developing, we need to keep developing Charles Buggs.
• I thought at halftime we regrouped, and said "relax, guys." We need to lock it in, narrow our focus, and keep working hard.
• I thought Mo was giving us more (starting him the 2nd half).
• On new starters - I'm trying to kind of light a fire under them defensively. I want to get him in at the end of the game. He's (Morris) a warrior, he wants to win so badly, There are no moral victories, but we believe we're going to break through.
• The Michigan game was weird, and I was probably rude to you guys, so I apologize. We couldn't figure that out, we were doing wacky things in that game. This was the toughest loss. They're working hard, and giving great effort.
• Andre is the only guy that's really consistently played for 3 years. I think they're working hard and are really good kids.
• On Andre - Seniors are tough, in my opinion, they stress too much about next year, they all do it. Maybe that's what it is. I do think that everyone is expecting too much out of him. I think he's doing a lot of really good things. He gives us great effort every day, so I can't fault him. Looking back, a few of his shots weren't a great selection. He's competing and defending.
• On the Iowa last shot - we're in a bit of a bind, because he's probably our best perimeter defender, and he did what he could, I think he made a tough shot. (Andre)
• At halftime, I talked a lot, I was really positive. At the 1st timeout of the 2nd half, I said I'm not talking, you guys talk. They've got the weight of the world on their shoulders.


Fran McCaffery:
• I'm a graduate of the Wharton school of business, and I can add, there wasn't 6.1 seconds left.
• Those kids kept coming. They were sharing the ball with different guys. We got enough stops to win, but not a lot.
• We softened a little defensively, we just softened enough. To their credit, they effectively attacked the different defenses we had. They moved the ball and didn't get impatient, it's a credit to those guys.
• We're big, and they're small and quick. When you erase a 17 point lead and go up by 4, you think you're in a good position.
• On the last play if he thought Mathieu made it in time - when it happened, I didn't notice. I was upset by how we guarded the play. I wasn't thinking if he got it in in time. They called it no good, and reviewed it and it was no good. You've got to give that kid credit, we put 2 guys on him, that's how difficult he is to get under control
• I thought we were softer than we needed to be, there was some fatigue there. I was trying to figure out if we were better in man or zone and it didn't come clear to me, neither one was working during that stretch (coming back from 17 down).
• On if he was surprised by the starting lineup? No. He basically announced it, didn't he? I read it in the paper. You didn't know who it was going to be, but he said he was going to shake it up, and he did.
• I will tell you this, I really like Richard's team, I told him that before the game. They could have easily been 3-1 coming into this game. The schedule wasn't kind to them. These young guys are coming around. They could be 5-5 a few weeks from now. That's what this league is.
 

Here are notes from Mo and DeAndre:

Mo Walker:
I thought it counted, I thought we had 6 seconds, and all of the sudden we had three and a half, just little things that didn't go our way changed the game.
When did Pitino know how much time they had for the last play? The ref came into the huddle midway through, that they had taken some time off the clock. We didn't adjust or change anything, we got a great look, just a tenth of a second too short.
(Pitino said he wanted you all to talk during timeouts, who took the lead?) We all stepped and we're talking a lot more in the timeouts, stating the obvious, stops on D, keep pushing it.
When did Pitino tell you that you weren't starting, and was it a motivator? He told me a few days ago in practice. If things aren't working, you've got to change something. I took it with a grain of salt. He's the coach, coach coaches, I just play the game.

DeAndre Mathieu:
I got a little confidence back because the Michigan game was one of the worst games I played in my life. Today I came out, bounced back a little and got some good looks, some easy looks, it helped my confidence out a bit because I was starting to feel down on myself about not playing well.
On not starting - I just took it as - come in and do whatever my team need me to do. I took it as Coach challenging me to see how I react and how I respond to adversity. It wasn't really a motivation, it was just a come in, help your team, do whatever you've got to do.
How did it feel that he had the confidence in you to take that last shot? It feels really good to know that he has the confidence in me, even though I didn’t start today. He gave me the opportunity, even after doing what I did in the Ohio State game, throwing the ball away, it just really showed me that coach has confidence in me, that he trusts me.
Can you walk me through that last play, did you think you got it off? I thought I got it off, when the ball was leaving my hands, I heard the buzzer after the ball was out of my hands, I thought it was good. Who knows? It just really hurts.
Is this the toughest loss of your Gopher career? This may be the toughest loss of my whole life. I've never been that close. Tougher than Northwestern last year because the ball actually went in the rim and I actually thought we were going to overtime, to waive it off just hurts.
 

• I didn't think we could find a more heartbreaking way to lose than what we've done…
This was the toughest loss.
They've got the weight of the world on their shoulders.

These quotes sum it up for me. They played tight, and borderline bad for stretches, but still cobbled together a game they should have won.
Young Richard has never experienced anything like this before. This job will test anyone. I like this... "The Michigan game was weird, and I was probably rude to you guys, so I apologize."
I have recalibrated expectations and am interested to see how our team and coach proceed. I'm cautiously optimistic and ready for a bumpy ride.
 

1. Don't have kids when you are in college trying to play D1 b-ball.

2. Andre Hollins is NOT our best perimeter defender. He might be our worst.
 

Need to go out and get better players. Really too bad Josh Martin was so immature. Man we could use a big body in there with a mission to just rebound and play some D. That's the biggest reason this season has gone sour- Joey King hits some nice threes but he is at 9 boards in 5 Big Ten games and he got schooled on the defensive end. Develop Gaston and Konate, go get a Juco power forward and a 6-7 SF.
 


Need to go out and get better players. Really too bad Josh Martin was so immature. Man we could use a big body in there with a mission to just rebound and play some D. That's the biggest reason this season has gone sour- Joey King hits some nice threes but he is at 9 boards in 5 Big Ten games and he got schooled on the defensive end. Develop Gaston and Konate, go get a Juco power forward and a 6-7 SF.

Yeah I don't think Martin was mature enough to be that type of guy. Pitino even said in an interview in the preseason that they wanted Josh to be like Birdman (from the Miami Heat) this year and come in and make some energy plays for this team. It's on Pitino though that the roster isn't better than it is this year: he missed on Martin, missed on Lofton, and used two scholarships on project bigs that weren't ready to play. For a team that had designs on not just making the tournament, but making some noise when they got there (basically a Pitino quote) he needed to add a ready to play PF to the roster for this year.
 

• I didn't think we could find a more heartbreaking way to lose than what we've done…
This was the toughest loss.
They've got the weight of the world on their shoulders.

These quotes sum it up for me. They played tight, and borderline bad for stretches, but still cobbled together a game they should have won.
Young Richard has never experienced anything like this before. This job will test anyone. I like this... "The Michigan game was weird, and I was probably rude to you guys, so I apologize."
I have recalibrated expectations and am interested to see how our team and coach proceed. I'm cautiously optimistic and ready for a bumpy ride.

I don't recalibrate expectations downward. I still expect to see improvement over last year's team, 9 B1G wins or I'll consider this a bad season for Pitino.
 

I was heartbroken when I saw Hollins was in at the end of the game instead of Morris.
 




The lineup changes were underwhelming to say the least. Why no Bk or GD? It's not like we would be giving up any offense by giving BK some of Eliason's minutes, for example
 

Yeah I don't think Martin was mature enough to be that type of guy. Pitino even said in an interview in the preseason that they wanted Josh to be like Birdman (from the Miami Heat) this year and come in and make some energy plays for this team. It's on Pitino though that the roster isn't better than it is this year: he missed on Martin, missed on Lofton, and used two scholarships on project bigs that weren't ready to play. For a team that had designs on not just making the tournament, but making some noise when they got there (basically a Pitino quote) he needed to add a ready to play PF to the roster for this year.

With Tubby - he was never able to put a point guard on the floor. So far with Pitino, the power forward spot is killing him. Power forward is a place where the team can draw toughness, a get out of my way I've got the rebound attitude. This is the softest team I can remember. It has more talent than some soft Monson squads, but even less toughness. Mason and Morris are as tough as we have and Morris hasn't learned defense yet.
 

We have no one who can step in for EE or Mo. Neither BK or GD are ready for the speed of the B1G, let alone the banging that takes place. Honestly, when the season started, did we think for a minute that we would need someone to cover for those two? Where we saw the problem was in the power forward position. Joey is a tweener, between the 3 and 4 spot. Buggs is long, but too lean for muscling up. It's a pretty glaring hole right now. Our guards have to learn how to value possessions, but last night they were simply undersized. Iowa did a very good job of isolating Mathieu and posting him up. With our lack of length in those positions we have to try more matchup zones or other zone defenses to hide lil Dre and keep him from being posted up.

This season now has all the earmarks of a very good season for our coaching staff to mature into a staff that can teach through adversity. I'm sure no one on the staff envisioned an 0-5 start to the B1G. Now we'll see if they can regroup as a coaching staff.
 

This is now a rebuilding season. The pressure of the ncaa is off and we can sit back and play spoiler in a few games. Time to play the young guys so next year is not such of a shocker. Pitino is growing his personal acumen and will be a better coach because of this experience.as fans we are disappointed of course. However, as fans, let's sit back and try to enjoy the journey as crazy as it sounds, as is the only choice we have.
 



If Mason is an indication as to the type of players Pitino is going to bring in, then we have good things to look forward to...the kid is an absolute stud of a player. Next season the roster will be young, but other than Buggs and King it will be entirely Pitino's recruits (and mostly freshmen and sophomores). This season has been quite disappointing so far, but to be "glass-half-full" the future will be bright. Just need a strong rebounder.
 

If Mason is an indication as to the type of players Pitino is going to bring in, then we have good things to look forward to...the kid is an absolute stud of a player. Next season the roster will be young, but other than Buggs and King it will be entirely Pitino's recruits (and mostly freshmen and sophomores). This season has been quite disappointing so far, but to be "glass-half-full" the future will be bright. Just need a strong rebounder.

King was brought in by Pitino.
 





1. Don't have kids when you are in college trying to play D1 b-ball.

2. Andre Hollins is NOT our best perimeter defender. He might be our worst.
Thanks for the insight, coach
 

Thanks for the insight, coach

Do you disagree? These two things are having a profound impact on our success this year, in my opinion. Games have been very tight. We could be 4-1 right now.

The former (with nothing to back me up, mind you) has Dre playing worse (ever had an infant kid?).

The latter is a comment on Pitino insisting on thinking Andre is our best perimeter defender (see presser notes) and playing him as such. For instance - last night in the last 2 minutes of the game and the entire first half against Ohio St. I don't know what's going on, be Hollins cannot guard a pylon right now. In my opinion, I would have had Andre Hollins on the bench for the last 2 minutes of the game last night. It was his man that scored the game-winner.
 

Do you disagree? These two things are having a profound impact on our success this year, in my opinion. Games have been very tight. We could be 4-1 right now.

The former (with nothing to back me up, mind you) has Dre playing worse (ever had an infant kid?).

The latter is a comment on Pitino insisting on thinking this (see presser notes) and playing him as such. For instance - last night in the last 2 minutes of the game and the entire first half against Ohio St. I don't know what's going on, be Hollins cannot guard a pylon right now. In my opinion, I would have had Andre Hollins on the bench for the last 2 minutes of the game last night. It was his man that scored the game-winner.
Just think it's hard to disagree with the guy who spends hours everyday watching these guys play. Hollins did a great job on Russell the 2nd half of OSU and he typically is a good at denying passes. Like Pitino said, people just set their expectations extremely high for Hollins. His shooting can obviously improve, but he's not playing that bad right now.
 

Do you disagree? These two things are having a profound impact on our success this year, in my opinion. Games have been very tight. We could be 4-1 right now.

The former (with nothing to back me up, mind you) has Dre playing worse (ever had an infant kid?).

The latter is a comment on Pitino insisting on thinking Andre is our best perimeter defender (see presser notes) and playing him as such. For instance - last night in the last 2 minutes of the game and the entire first half against Ohio St. I don't know what's going on, be Hollins cannot guard a pylon right now. In my opinion, I would have had Andre Hollins on the bench for the last 2 minutes of the game last night. It was his man that scored the game-winner.

Uthoff is 6'9'' and Hollins is 6'2''. What did you expect from him on that play? Just a classic case of fans expecting way too much from the kid. He has been solid on defense this year and is much more reliable than Morris and Mason.
 

Hollins did a great job on Russell the 2nd half of OSU

No, he did not. He didn't guard him in the 2nd half. Mathieu and Mason did. Pitino switched his assignment.

Uthoff is 6'9'' and Hollins is 6'2''. What did you expect from him on that play? Just a classic case of fans expecting way too much from the kid. He has been solid on defense this year and is much more reliable than Morris and Mason.

You make some good points. And maybe Andre was the "only" choice to guard Uthoff. That said, I would question a coaching decision - on the surface - to have a 6'2" man guarding a 6'9" man.
 

No, he did not. He didn't guard him in the 2nd half. Mathieu and Mason did. Pitino switched his assignment.



You make some good points. And maybe Andre was the "only" choice to guard Uthoff. That said, I would question a coaching decision - on the surface - to have a 6'2" man guarding a 6'9" man.
Pretty sure I saw Hollins guarding him multiple times. They rotated between all the guards.
 

Pretty sure I saw Hollins guarding him multiple times. They rotated between all the guards.

Hollins didn't guard him much, if at all, in the 2nd half of that Ohio State game. Even if so, this makes my point.

Yesterday was the same story. Hollins chasing and not able to break through screens or keep up. Look, I love Andre. He is a great kid. I am not questioning his effort. I am questioning the coaching decision to keep him in his assignment. I know that you know that's - in part - what this board is about. For the record, this is the first time I have vocalized a disagreement with Pitino. It's not like I come on here after every loss and bitch about how he should be fired.
 

Hollins didn't guard him much, if at all, in the 2nd half of that Ohio State game. Yesterday was the same story. Hollins chasing and not able to break through screens or keep up. Look, I love Andre. He is a great kid. I am not questioning his effort. I am questioning the coaching decision to keep him in his assignment. I know that you know that's - in part - what this board is about. For the record, this is the first time I have vocalized a disagreement with Pitino. It's not like I come on here after every loss and bitch about how he should be fired.
Thank God you don't, we've got plenty of those guys! Fair enough though, I still think he's a pretty good defender from watching him. He doesn't get steals much but he'll tip passes and deny players the ball.
 

• I didn't think we could find a more heartbreaking way to lose than what we've done…
This was the toughest loss.
They've got the weight of the world on their shoulders.

These quotes sum it up for me. They played tight, and borderline bad for stretches, but still cobbled together a game they should have won.
Young Richard has never experienced anything like this before. This job will test anyone. I like this... "The Michigan game was weird, and I was probably rude to you guys, so I apologize."
I have recalibrated expectations and am interested to see how our team and coach proceed. I'm cautiously optimistic and ready for a bumpy ride.

Agreed. One big test of a coach is how he pulls the car out of the ditch. Especially at Minnesota, where it's going to go in the ditch sometimes. 2006 was in some ways Dan Monson's most impressive season here. I hope Richard can pull off something similar.
 

Agreed. One big test of a coach is how he pulls the car out of the ditch. Especially at Minnesota, where it's going to go in the ditch sometimes. 2006 was in some ways Dan Monson's most impressive season here. I hope Richard can pull off something similar.

Vincent
Grier

That was a large part of Monson's magic in 2006. But I guess he recruited and coached him, so he does deserve some of the credit. Grier saved his job, if you ask me.
 

King was brought in by Pitino.

Technically yes but I guess the debate is we had a glaring hole at the 4 and Joey wanted yo come home. For what's its worth he's not a bad player. King is like the Nick Pun to of the team. Fans rag on him because he's role player who has to play beyond his ability every game because there's no one else. Making him an easy target
 




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