MBB UND

[gtapp]

The apathy for this program has gotten so bad that you have to replace Fish if you want anyone to follow the team next year. If you don't the athletic donations and attendance will suffer. Doesn't matter if he deserves it or not. The only way to generate interest at this point is to replace Fish!

[imacat]

What hope is there for next year? I think we are the 2nd most experienced team in the conference this year, and I imagine we may move into the #1 spot next year, but so what.

I had decent expectations for this year because we had actually progressed year over year with Fish's first two seasons. I think that is why this season was such a tough pill to swallow, because I thought things might finally be different. But no, this year's February swoon made the Durham/Huse swoons look like gangbusters.

What is it about the men's team that they can play anywhere from above average to really good in the first half of conference, and then just turn into the worst team in the league the next? I just don't get it, but it happens year after year, coach after coach.

In the second half the the season the teams have seen each other and have the opportunity to make adjustments. IMO a second half swoon is because 1) the team’s coaches did not adjust as well (or at all); 2) the team won the first game because superior coaching (game plan) but talent is more likely to be decisive in the second meeting.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Colter_Nuanez]

Late surge propels North Dakota propels past ‘Cats to quarterfinals
https://skylinesportsmt.com/late-surge- ... terfinals/

WATCH: PRESS CONFERENCE: North Dakota 76, Montana State 74
https://skylinesportsmt.com/press-confe ... tate-74-2/

North Dakota head coach Brian Jones, sophomore guard Marlon Stewart and junior point guard Geno Crandall along with Montana State head coach Brian Fish and senior forwards Zach Green and Konner Frey address the media following the first-round game.

LISTEN: Press conference - https://skylinesportsmt.com/press-confe ... -state-74/

[WyomingGrizFan]

Classic



How can you not just laugh at this point

Haha, nobody ever said it was easy to be a bobcat fan...

You got that right.

[Colter_Nuanez]

Und shouldn't have had possession to even hit that half court shot. They called a shot clock violation after MSU shot and hit the rim. The refs always find a way, don't they??

Klines shot looked like an airball to me. Kinda poor picture though.

Jay Sanderson was adamant it hit the rim.

It 100 percent hit the rim.

[griz5700]

Just when you think it can't possibly get any worse....

Oh it can get way worse, 2002 is still causing nightmares.

That team won a NIT game....this is way way worse.

The collapse against the griz in the BSC tourney was way worse yes... Way worse they were the conference regular season champions with a 20 something lead on the griz and lost the game.

That Dan Trammel dunk....awesome.

[PHAT CAT]

Just when you think it can't possibly get any worse....

Oh it can get way worse, 2002 is still causing nightmares.

That team won a NIT game....this is way way worse.

The collapse against the griz in the BSC tourney was way worse yes... Way worse they were the conference regular season champions with a 20 something lead on the griz and lost the game.

That Dan Trammel dunk....awesome.

Don Holst and Jim Sampson are good friends of mine. With that in mind. Go F yourself prick lover.

[Bobcat4Ever]

Portland State almost did a Montana State against Sacramento State —15 point lead evaporated, but they were able to do just enough to hang on.

[BozoneCat]

Is it the player not playing with enough effort, or is it the coach not coaching well enough? Maybe a combination of both, but this is unacceptable.
https://twitter.com/kyle_sample6/status/971143995916038150

Not disagreeing with you MSU01, or the sentiment... but Kyle Sample is an asshat hack. I don't take anything he says with any relevance whatsoever. He's a griz homer, the only time he feels the need to pop in and comment on anything Bobcat related is when something like this happens. He should stick to playing kissy face with Hauck and his minions.

Hahahaha...... the dude is a suck ass, tool bag, griz lover. Damn glad he's back in Missoula with all the other doucher's.

Despite what you guys think of Kyle, he isn't wrong here. It was an issue all season.

I 100% agree with Vim on this.
Not disagreeing with you BozoneCat, but are you sure that it's Hauck's face that Sample is kissing?

Hee hee [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

As I said, I wasn’t necessarily disagreeing with Kyle’s post/sentiment in this instance, but it bothers me that he only feels the need to chime in when it’s something negative about MSU, never for anything positive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[catsrback76]

The apathy for this program has gotten so bad that you have to replace Fish if you want anyone to follow the team next year. If you don't the athletic donations and attendance will suffer. Doesn't matter if he deserves it or not. The only way to generate interest at this point is to replace Fish!

I agree! The coach is the accountable party here, and it's time to look for another 3 years of "rebuilding" the program!

[Colter_Nuanez]

Is it the player not playing with enough effort, or is it the coach not coaching well enough? Maybe a combination of both, but this is unacceptable.
https://twitter.com/kyle_sample6/status/971143995916038150

Not disagreeing with you MSU01, or the sentiment... but Kyle Sample is an asshat hack. I don't take anything he says with any relevance whatsoever. He's a griz homer, the only time he feels the need to pop in and comment on anything Bobcat related is when something like this happens. He should stick to playing kissy face with Hauck and his minions.

Hahahaha...... the dude is a suck ass, tool bag, griz lover. Damn glad he's back in Missoula with all the other doucher's.

Despite what you guys think of Kyle, he isn't wrong here. It was an issue all season.

I 100% agree with Vim on this.
Not disagreeing with you BozoneCat, but are you sure that it's Hauck's face that Sample is kissing?

Hee hee [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

As I said, I wasn’t necessarily disagreeing with Kyle’s post/sentiment in this instance, but it bothers me that he only feels the need to chime in when it’s something negative about MSU, never for anything positive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Tyler Hall did not take a shot in the last 18 minutes of the game and only touched the ball twice in the final 5:05, the first touch leading to a contested 3-pointer after Geno Crandall tied the game at 74 with a 3-point play that missed and led to UND's eventual game-winning possession, the second a turnover after UND took the lead with seven seconds left. You can blame whoever you want - Fish, Hall, the refs, Kyle Sample - but if the preseason MVP doesn't shoot in the second half and doesn't touch the ball while the team is blowing a 19-point lead, that is unacceptable.

[77matcat]

So, good question to ask coach. I would like to hear his response.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[CelticCat]

Is it the player not playing with enough effort, or is it the coach not coaching well enough? Maybe a combination of both, but this is unacceptable.
https://twitter.com/kyle_sample6/status/971143995916038150

Not disagreeing with you MSU01, or the sentiment... but Kyle Sample is an asshat hack. I don't take anything he says with any relevance whatsoever. He's a griz homer, the only time he feels the need to pop in and comment on anything Bobcat related is when something like this happens. He should stick to playing kissy face with Hauck and his minions.

Hahahaha...... the dude is a suck ass, tool bag, griz lover. Damn glad he's back in Missoula with all the other doucher's.

Despite what you guys think of Kyle, he isn't wrong here. It was an issue all season.

I 100% agree with Vim on this.
Not disagreeing with you BozoneCat, but are you sure that it's Hauck's face that Sample is kissing?

Hee hee [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

As I said, I wasn’t necessarily disagreeing with Kyle’s post/sentiment in this instance, but it bothers me that he only feels the need to chime in when it’s something negative about MSU, never for anything positive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Tyler Hall did not take a shot in the last 18 minutes of the game and only touched the ball twice in the final 5:05, the first touch leading to a contested 3-pointer after Geno Crandall tied the game at 74 with a 3-point play that missed and led to UND's eventual game-winning possession, the second a turnover after UND took the lead with seven seconds left. You can blame whoever you want - Fish, Hall, the refs, Kyle Sample - but if the preseason MVP doesn't shoot in the second half and doesn't touch the ball while the team is blowing a 19-point lead, that is unacceptable.

Hall isn't that hard to take out of a game unfortunately. Teams are willing the roll the dice that the rest of the Cats won't burn them, and if they do they won't sustain it for the whole game. Primary focus on Hall, secondary on Fray, and you have a very good chance of beating the Cats.

I wasn't able to watch the second half, so why didn't Hall take any shots? If it is like some of the others games I've seen, the opponent simply has a guy stick to him like glue. Hall doesn't have great movement when he doesn't have the ball. He has a hard time getting himself open to even receive a pass half the time. Was that the case?

[Mr Lisle]

I seldom post on this board, but do know something about basketball. I'm not jumping on any bandwagon, in fact, I became more interested in basketball late in the season as things were heading downhill, watching the last few games on Pluto. This basketball team is hard to define, but it is, IMO, "broken" as best exemplified by Tyler Hall. Here is potentially one of the greatest offensive basketball players in Bobcat history and for the most part his role seems to be that of an "observer".

[CelticCat]

I seldom post on this board, but do know something about basketball. I'm not jumping on any bandwagon, in fact, I became more interested in basketball late in the season as things were heading downhill, watching the last few games on Pluto. This basketball team is hard to define, but it is, IMO, "broken" as best exemplified by Tyler Hall. Here is potentially one of the greatest offensive basketball players in Bobcat history and for the most part his role seems to be that of an "observer".

I think Hall has either lost his confidence, his love of the game, or simply doesn't respond well when things go south. The whole team folded up like a lawn chair several times this year, especially late in the season. So who knows, it may be systematic.

[BozoneCat]

Is it the player not playing with enough effort, or is it the coach not coaching well enough? Maybe a combination of both, but this is unacceptable.
https://twitter.com/kyle_sample6/status/971143995916038150

Not disagreeing with you MSU01, or the sentiment... but Kyle Sample is an asshat hack. I don't take anything he says with any relevance whatsoever. He's a griz homer, the only time he feels the need to pop in and comment on anything Bobcat related is when something like this happens. He should stick to playing kissy face with Hauck and his minions.

Hahahaha...... the dude is a suck ass, tool bag, griz lover. Damn glad he's back in Missoula with all the other doucher's.

Despite what you guys think of Kyle, he isn't wrong here. It was an issue all season.

I 100% agree with Vim on this.
Not disagreeing with you BozoneCat, but are you sure that it's Hauck's face that Sample is kissing?

Hee hee [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

As I said, I wasn’t necessarily disagreeing with Kyle’s post/sentiment in this instance, but it bothers me that he only feels the need to chime in when it’s something negative about MSU, never for anything positive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Tyler Hall did not take a shot in the last 18 minutes of the game and only touched the ball twice in the final 5:05, the first touch leading to a contested 3-pointer after Geno Crandall tied the game at 74 with a 3-point play that missed and led to UND's eventual game-winning possession, the second a turnover after UND took the lead with seven seconds left. You can blame whoever you want - Fish, Hall, the refs, Kyle Sample - but if the preseason MVP doesn't shoot in the second half and doesn't touch the ball while the team is blowing a 19-point lead, that is unacceptable.

I understand what you're saying, and for the record, I'm not blaming the refs or Kyle for the utter disaster that Bobcat basketball has devolved into.

I agree that the few touches that Hall got (and that's not the first time it has happened this year) is unacceptable. Personally, I put the blame for that equally between Coach Fish and Tyler. I don't think Coach does a great job of drawing up plays to free up the one guy that can shoot us into a win. That said, I think Tyler tends to get lazy and may do an even worse job of fighting to get himself open. They should just lock him up and have him watch tape of Steph Curry for a month straight. That guy works like crazy to free himself up, it's beautiful to watch.

You almost have to TRY to lose a 19-point lead that late in the game, so blame has to go across all levels of the program. Coaching was terrible, lots of players missed easy shots and free throws, and Hall was nonexistent. There will be repercussions.

[grizzh8r]

This inspiring quote from Coach Fish pretty much sums up the best way to blow a 19 point lead in 12 minutes - forget continuing to try and run your offense that has built the lead, just try to run out the clock!

"When you build a 19-point lead you just have to get stops," said Montana State coach Brian Fish. "You don't even have to score again if you can get stops, but credit North Dakota. They got on a roll and we couldn't get them stopped."

Yeah sorry this is such a trash quote from a coach. YOU WERE UP BY 19! Sure you didn't get some stops but the offensive flow just completely stopped and it looked like MSU was trying to run out the clock. Nearly the same situation happened last year against Southern Utah. You play to win. You don't play not to lose.

To me, this hasn't been talked about enough. If this truly is his coaching philosophy - which his recent body of work and that quote suggests it is - then the chronically poor performance in the second halves of games makes complete sense. I wholeheartedly agree with Vim that this is TRASH coaching. Coaching not to lose instead of coaching to win... Where have we seen this before? Rob Ash, that's where. Consistently took his foot off the throttle in games, which ended up costing him in the long run.

Sure, there were plenty of times this season MSU was not the better team and lost because of it (both Cat/griz games, for example). I'm fine with that. We all know this team had critical/glaring talent/personnel weaknesses. I'm not fine with the half dozen or more times this season where MSU had a clear lead with 8-12 minutes left and ended up losing.

Costello should be having a very frank discussion with Fish about this single point of his coaching style ("stall-ball"). If he won't agree to changing his approach, tell him to pack his bags now. If he says he will and still doesn't next season, can him mid season and move on.

I'd be OK with Costello moving on now, without a discussion.

[cerk]

Is it the player not playing with enough effort, or is it the coach not coaching well enough? Maybe a combination of both, but this is unacceptable.
https://twitter.com/kyle_sample6/status/971143995916038150

Not disagreeing with you MSU01, or the sentiment... but Kyle Sample is an asshat hack. I don't take anything he says with any relevance whatsoever. He's a griz homer, the only time he feels the need to pop in and comment on anything Bobcat related is when something like this happens. He should stick to playing kissy face with Hauck and his minions.

Hahahaha...... the dude is a suck ass, tool bag, griz lover. Damn glad he's back in Missoula with all the other doucher's.

Despite what you guys think of Kyle, he isn't wrong here. It was an issue all season.

I 100% agree with Vim on this.
Not disagreeing with you BozoneCat, but are you sure that it's Hauck's face that Sample is kissing?

Hee hee [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

As I said, I wasn’t necessarily disagreeing with Kyle’s post/sentiment in this instance, but it bothers me that he only feels the need to chime in when it’s something negative about MSU, never for anything positive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Tyler Hall did not take a shot in the last 18 minutes of the game and only touched the ball twice in the final 5:05, the first touch leading to a contested 3-pointer after Geno Crandall tied the game at 74 with a 3-point play that missed and led to UND's eventual game-winning possession, the second a turnover after UND took the lead with seven seconds left. You can blame whoever you want - Fish, Hall, the refs, Kyle Sample - but if the preseason MVP doesn't shoot in the second half and doesn't touch the ball while the team is blowing a 19-point lead, that is unacceptable.

I understand what you're saying, and for the record, I'm not blaming the refs or Kyle for the utter disaster that Bobcat basketball has devolved into. [emoji38]

I agree that the few touches that Hall got (and that's not the first time it has happened this year) is unacceptable. Personally, I put the blame for that equally between Coach Fish and Tyler. I don't think Coach does a great job of drawing up plays to free up the one guy that can shoot us into a win. That said, I think Tyler tends to get lazy and may do an even worse job of fighting to get himself open. They should just lock him up and have him watch tape of Steph Curry for a month straight. That guy works like crazy to free himself up, it's beautiful to watch.

You almost have to TRY to lose a 19-point lead that late in the game, so blame has to go across all levels of the program. Coaching was terrible, lots of players missed easy shots and free throws, and Hall was nonexistent. There will be repercussions.

This is an excellent synopsis of the problems with the Cats this year. The offense just doesn't work. A lot of this has to do with Hall and his lack of working to get himself open and "hungry" for the ball. But this also falls directly on Fish for the mentality and tone he sets for his players and the offense he designs for the team. Hall essentially "walks" through his sets and then camps on the weak side if he isn't involved in the play. This type of movement and lack of involvement leads to him not getting the ball, much less getting good shots. This is a mentality and failure on Hall's part and one that should not have been acceptable to Fish early in the season. Why Fish found this behavior acceptable is a mystery? Perhaps he didn't want to ruffle Hall's feathers fearing he might lose him next year? Perhaps Hall just would not work to this degree? Perhaps Fish simply didn't recognize how to deal with changing the offense to get Tyler more touches? Whatever the reason, the end result was a stagnant offense that could not deliver performance and wins and one that did not capitalize on its two best players. And this failure and responsibility must fall directly on Fish. He sets the tone. He designs the strategy based on the team he has been dealt. And he is responsible for getting the best out of each individual player on the team. And in each of these goals, he failed this year.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

[John K]

And after starting conference at 4-0, in the rematch we were 1-3, correct.
We were in town grabbing a few things and I was keeping up with the score. Actually felt confident. I know, feeling confident when the CATS have a lead is not good. Got home and checked the final. UNBELIEVABLE!!!I

And included in that 1-3 record in the rematches versus the teams that we started out 4-0 against, was a loss AT HOME no less, to an NAU team that went 2-16 in conference. That was their first conference win, after they started out 0-7. We obviously weren't very good this year, but we should never lose at home, to the worst team in the conference. Although by the end of the season, it's possible that we were actually the worst team.

[ilovethecats]

Is it the player not playing with enough effort, or is it the coach not coaching well enough? Maybe a combination of both, but this is unacceptable.
https://twitter.com/kyle_sample6/status/971143995916038150

Not disagreeing with you MSU01, or the sentiment... but Kyle Sample is an asshat hack. I don't take anything he says with any relevance whatsoever. He's a griz homer, the only time he feels the need to pop in and comment on anything Bobcat related is when something like this happens. He should stick to playing kissy face with Hauck and his minions.

Hahahaha...... the dude is a suck ass, tool bag, griz lover. Damn glad he's back in Missoula with all the other doucher's.

Despite what you guys think of Kyle, he isn't wrong here. It was an issue all season.

I 100% agree with Vim on this.
Not disagreeing with you BozoneCat, but are you sure that it's Hauck's face that Sample is kissing?

Hee hee [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

As I said, I wasn’t necessarily disagreeing with Kyle’s post/sentiment in this instance, but it bothers me that he only feels the need to chime in when it’s something negative about MSU, never for anything positive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Tyler Hall did not take a shot in the last 18 minutes of the game and only touched the ball twice in the final 5:05, the first touch leading to a contested 3-pointer after Geno Crandall tied the game at 74 with a 3-point play that missed and led to UND's eventual game-winning possession, the second a turnover after UND took the lead with seven seconds left. You can blame whoever you want - Fish, Hall, the refs, Kyle Sample - but if the preseason MVP doesn't shoot in the second half and doesn't touch the ball while the team is blowing a 19-point lead, that is unacceptable.

I understand what you're saying, and for the record, I'm not blaming the refs or Kyle for the utter disaster that Bobcat basketball has devolved into. [emoji38]

I agree that the few touches that Hall got (and that's not the first time it has happened this year) is unacceptable. Personally, I put the blame for that equally between Coach Fish and Tyler. I don't think Coach does a great job of drawing up plays to free up the one guy that can shoot us into a win. That said, I think Tyler tends to get lazy and may do an even worse job of fighting to get himself open. They should just lock him up and have him watch tape of Steph Curry for a month straight. That guy works like crazy to free himself up, it's beautiful to watch.

You almost have to TRY to lose a 19-point lead that late in the game, so blame has to go across all levels of the program. Coaching was terrible, lots of players missed easy shots and free throws, and Hall was nonexistent. There will be repercussions.

This is an excellent synopsis of the problems with the Cats this year. The offense just doesn't work. A lot of this has to do with Hall and his lack of working to get himself open and "hungry" for the ball. But this also falls directly on Fish for the mentality and tone he sets for his players and the offense he designs for the team. Hall essentially "walks" through his sets and then camps on the weak side if he isn't involved in the play. This type of movement and lack of involvement leads to him not getting the ball, much less getting good shots. This is a mentality and failure on Hall's part and one that should not have been acceptable to Fish early in the season. Why Fish found this behavior acceptable is a mystery? Perhaps he didn't want to ruffle Hall's feathers fearing he might lose him next year? Perhaps Hall just would not work to this degree? Perhaps Fish simply didn't recognize how to deal with changing the offense to get Tyler more touches? Whatever the reason, the end result was a stagnant offense that could not deliver performance and wins and one that did not capitalize on its two best players. And this failure and responsibility must fall directly on Fish. He sets the tone. He designs the strategy based on the team he has been dealt. And he is responsible for getting the best out of each individual player on the team. And in each of these goals, he failed this year.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

this is an excellent post.

I've been trying very hard not to get specific and bash players personally. that was hard to do this year. let's just say I was pretty disappointed all season with the effort and attitudes from several of our players; including our best players.

some of those who had backed fish always pointed out that he recruited back to back frosh of the year. and i'll concede that is cool. however, I don't care if you recruit tre young and marvin bagley if you don't know how to use them! did hall being a freshman of the year help us this year? did it help us that he was PRESEASON player of the year? what has the fact that he's the most talented player we've landed in years done for us this season?

this isn't meant to bash hall. but he sure didn't play like a player of the year. or even a freshman of the year. if it's a forgone conclusion that if we get rid of fish we lose hall too...let me be the first to say thank you tyler for your contributions as a bobcat, and best of luck to you in the future. at some point, especially your junior and possibly your senior seasons, you need to let your play speak for you and not preseason accolades.

I have many reasons I think fish needs to move on. his lack of ability in using a talent like hall is right up at the top of the list. can you imagine hall on the griz?!