It’s Never Easy. But It’s Fun. December 29, 2012
OK, fine, blame it on the honeymoon. Blame it on the the fact that Bruce Weber is wearing purple now. Blame it on the fact that I just sat through John Groce’s press conference and wanted to fist bump him as he walked past and scream something awkward like “let’s DO THIS”.
But this is fun.
Yes, today was a flashing warning light. If we rebound like that – if we play defense like we did in the first half – we’re in trouble in the Big Ten. A friend of mine sent me this text during the game:
The guys I’m with think Michigan State might get 75% of their misses back against us.
…and they’re right. If we don’t figure some things out rebounding-wise and defensive-rotation-wise, we’re in trouble in the deepest Big Ten in 20 years.
But I’m kind of not even close to worried about it. Yes, we might go 9-9 or so in the Big Ten. But that doesn’t bother me this afternoon. I wanted 10-4 in the non-conference, and I got 13-1. We’re playing with house money at this point and the pit boss might comp us a room.
I know it’s weird to say all of this after we only beat Auburn – lost at home to Winthrop and also lost to DEPAUL Auburn – by two. But I have complete and total confidence in John Groce to figure something out.
Remember the “ridiculously impressive” post I put together back in June after I interviewed him? That hasn’t changed. In fact, he’s exceeded those expectations. He took a team that lost 12 of 15 to end last season (and lost a lottery pick) and went 13-1 in the non conference. The media picked us to finish ninth in the Big Ten before the season, and now we’re ranked #12/#15 in the polls.
But it’s more than that. He commanded this press conference. No excuses. No players under the bus. He simply stated how we didn’t play defense in the first half which didn’t give any cushion after a fantastic offensive first half. And how there’s tons of work to be done on rebounding and defensive rotations.
But he also complimented the team on the focus they’ve had since the Missouri game. And he beamed when talking about how they wanted Tracy to push the ball and how he pushed the ball. And when asked about Tracy’s 27 points, he pointed to the 5 assists, 4 steals, and only one turnover “against a team that is top-50 in forcing turnovers”.
When he said that, I sat back and smiled. I’m completely confident in my fully-prepared coach. I haven’t said that in football since (don’t make me answer that) and I haven’t said that in basketball since 2005 (or maybe 2006). Rebounding problems? Defensive issues? Mental lapses? Egwu struggling to catch the ball? We’ve cooled off from three? Yeah, I kind of don’t care right now. I’m confident that this coach will push this team with flaws to their maximum amount of wins.
That’s it. The end. That’s where I’m at. This team that was picked to finish 9th in the B1G is now 12th/15th in the polls. There are obvious flaws – we’ve talked about them since before the season – but this coaching staff is maxing out their talent. And when John Groce opens his mouth, I have complete confidence in everything he says. He’s put hours and hours of thought behind his opinions. So in 4 years, when he has a team he fully recruited and developed, I have complete confidence that we’ll find ourselves in the upper echelon of the Big Ten.
Will we struggle in the Big Ten, maybe as soon as the game at Purdue? Yes. Play like we played today, and we’re starting 0-4 in conference play. It might be a struggle to get to 9-9. And right now, I’m… OK with that. This program is pointed in the right direction right now. This coaching staff is fully aware of the flaws and is putting in overtime to correct them.
Max out the talent on each team. Be playing your best basketball at the end of the season. Get in the tournament (every year) and then see what happens. That’s what I want from Illini Basketball. And under John Groce, I’m confident that that’s what we’ll get.
Yes, after a 2 point win over Auburn.
Well said!
I agree with everything that both you and JG said, however…let’s not make this closer than it was–that was perhaps the most lopsided 2-pt victory ever. They were draining 3′s and we were missing FTs long after the game was decided. We were up by 9 with 90 seconds to go, no? If we had been on the other side of this, we would not be proudly pumping our chest about how “close it was”. It was never really in doubt after the under 4, was it?
.
The problems are obvious and–like you–I’m glad to hear how JG addresses them. The final score will make for a great motivational opportunity for a good coach, and it won’t help our national standing, but it’s of little concern to me.
And Goah..without an obvious homer job inside the last 5 minutes, Auburn probably wins that game. Auburn out-rebounded Illinois 35-30, and outscored them from 3 pt range 33-12. Auburn’s own turnovers (20) were the difference (and losing 42-14 on ft attempts). Reffing usually evens out during the year and Illinois will be on the receiving end of it in West Lafayette.
Joe John, how do you feel about Groce? Honest question…You’re never posting your opinion even though that’s what comments are for.
.
Your nuts JJ. The officiating at the end was awful. That was an easy 8 point Illini victory if Auburn doesn’t hack away at the end with zero consequences.
.
And BTW, you’re easily the worst “fan” I’ve ever encountered. After all the crap we’ve had to put up with through last year’s hoops freefall and then football, only you could still pooh pooh EVERYTHING good that comes our way. We’re 13-1…and I’m really sorry you take zero joy in that. I’m enjoying it. And not apologizing for any of it.
@Grog: Don’t feed the beast. (However much Robert may want you to.) @Nellie: JJ has already weighed in on Groce. He was the little-loser-last-choice-unproven-coach-in-way-over-his-head-who-could-never-recruit but then in about a dozen games evolved into a way-too-good-for-us-coach-who-will-likely-leave-for-a-real-coaching-job-by-March.
.
Really a bit of whiplash on that one.
.
You’re entertaining, JJ, and I am 84% certain that Robert didn’t just make you up. (Because if he didn’t, he should have…once he monetizes this place he should send you a slice.) But until you proffer the occasional (even begrudging/backhanded) compliment or word of approval, no one is going to be able to take any of it seriously.
Nellie – my honest opinion is that Groce will be gone after 3 years. I think this year the team goes 7-11 or 6-12 in conference and misses the tourney. Next year the team will be worse. Then 2015-16 will be his last season because I dont see any top recruits jumping on this train. Its a tough situation and it takes a special coach to get Illinois over the hump. Dont think Groce is the guy, and nothing I’ve seen in the preseason has led me to believe any different. One of the biggest proponents for John Groce’s system was that taking quicker shots would lead to more possessions per game..and thus lead to Illinois getting easy wins vs inferior competition (something that was a big negative in Weber’s tenure). So far, the easy wins havent come despite an increase in scoring.
I dont care how great he is in a press conference. That doesnt really win games at all. It just allows fans to make themselves feel good. Tim Beckman is a complete moron in press conferences but i guarantee if his product on the field was better nobody would care.
Thought Groce was a bad hire by Mike Thomas at the beginning, and nothing really has changed. But here’s the thing…i’ll change my mind if the results are there. Doesnt sound like the author of this blog will change his mind. He’s going to like even if Illinois starts off 0-4 or struggles to 9-9 – hence the i like this guy so much right now i’m going to give him 4yrs no matter what.
ahhh, well played, my good man! well. played. didn’t see it coming. shuck’n'jive’nkeep’n us on our toes! bravo!
“Charlie Brown, you’re the only person I know who can take a wonderful season like Christmas and turn it into a negative. Lucy is right. Of all the Charlie Browns in the world, you’re the Charlie Browniest.” –Linus
.
I’ve said it before with jj … in every situation, the glass is half empty – of urine. You are a trip dude. You should try enjoying a victory once in a while. Yeah, may not be the coach you would have hired if you were the all-knowing A.D., but at some point a true fan gets behind the team instead of nitpicking every last thing you want to crow (cry?) about. Go Illini. My state, my school, my team.
How could ANYONE pick at Groce’s hire when the team is 13-1 and the team overall playing well in spite of flaws. OMG, it is so refreshing to NOT have a negative H. C. throwing players under the bus, never accepting responsibilities for his possible shortcomings, and in public wishing he had players from other teams playing for him after losses. The current picture with JG is soooo refreshing by comparison. This team is not going to cave in the Big 10 and the talent is there to play at least .500 ball. We will be in the NCAA this spring.
You know why there was such a foul discrepancy, JJ? It’s because we were aggressive and drove to the basket numerous times, while Auburn settled for jump shots. You drive to the basket, you tend to get free throw opportunities. You settle for jump shots, you DON’T tend to get free throw opportunities. This is something that should have been made painfully clear to Illini fans the last 2-3 years when, far more often than not, our team played the role of today’s Auburn team. The fact that we seem to be much more willing to do that this year than under the last few years of Weber alone should be enough of a reason to believe that Groce has this thing going in the right direction.
There was no officiating injustice today, and to insist otherwise would be ludicrous. Then again, ludicrous statements seem to be the norm for JJ, so why should anyone be upset when he makes another one? We should all be used to this by now, right?
All,
.
My emotions almost just got the better of me. But then I had a thought. Why waste the time? In fact, why should any of us waste the time? The behavior will NEVER change. All our teams stink. Our coaches stink. Our AD stinks. Our accounting department stinks. Our engineering department stinks. All our professors stink. Frankly, life sucks. And if any of you take one little bit of joy from a 13-1 start, well, you’re just all fools.
.
There really is only one simple solution……..ignore.
I think it’s good to hear both sides of the story and Joe John might be the best equipped to serve as the negative side of the story for Illini sports, but the negativity does seem a bit over-the-top at times.
I think this team has trouble putting away the weaker teams because they can’t rebound. Late in the first half it didn’t seem like they had a single defensive rebound, and in checking the play by play they went from 13:58 to 3:01 between defensive rebounds. The only way they could get a stop was on turnovers. They also get careless when the get a cushion. For those old enough to remember watching the Flying Illini, they couldn’t stop anyone either because their front line was so small.
The best thing about this team is that they know how to win. Beating Butler on a neutral court and Gonzaga on the road is something Indiana, Kansas State and Baylor couldn’t do.
Groce is a keeper. He has this team going in the right direction, he knows what he wants to do, he recruits to that, he adjusts in game, he rides the officials as hard as he can without drawing a technical, he drips passion for his team and the game. he is pretty much exactly what we needed.
.
unfortunately we (and Groce) are about to walk into a B1G buzzsaw. we are going to have to start shooting the 3 ball a helluva lot better – unfortunately that stat is really trending down at this point. we have no inside presence on either end of the court. our bigs aren’t very fundamentally sound – i will always remember Sam McLaurin for IMMEDIATELY PUTTING THE BALL ON THE GODDAMN FLOOR in the post for as a long as i live. but we play hard and are fun to watch.
.
we’ll need to hold on tight – the B1G is going to be a bumpy ride.
also, i typically just ignore JJ’s posts since last year. he has had some reasonable posts lately reference fball and i was thinking maybe i could have reasonable conversation with him on here. but his comments that Groce will be fired after three years earlier in this thread just go to show he’s a troll that’s just trying to make all of us angry because he gets off on it in some weird way.
I am going to remember the comment/prediction about Groce being fired after three years and remind everyone of it when Groce is not fired.
For those who say Groce is going to be fired in 3 years and not make the tournament this season, here us the latest from ESPN: “Illinois. It is impossible to say enough about what Illinois coach John Groce has done in his first half-season in Champaign. In the matter of a few months, he transformed senior guard Brandon Paul from an inefficient gunner to an All-American, totally revamped not only Illinois’ style but its overall approach, made a team of little-used role players into one of the scariest offensive squads in the country, won the Maui Invitational and beat Gonzaga at Gonzaga, and almost single-handedly revived one of the nation’s best fan bases out of its previously depressed stupor. Will the Illini — who live and die by the 3, in every sense of the cliché — be able to sustain this pace? Maybe not, but I won’t bet against them.”