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Aggies=The Big Dance?

Will The Aggies Make it To The NCAA Tourney?
 
The Dream Team E-mail
Written by Scott Ficklin   
Sunday, 03 January 2010 01:14

Last year was a "fairytale season" for the Aggies. 30 wins and only 5 losses.

That fairytale has turned into a slow, unathletic version of "The Wizard of Oz" where the Aggies become the Tin Man, limping through the schedule in search of some heart at the end of some LSD induced metaphor for the gold standard. Meanwhile, they throw enough bricks up at the basket to build a road from here to wherever they think they're going (and if that isn't the NIT, they're dreaming). Playing with heart was sooooo last year.

Stats tell the story of games. I don't care. I'm not going to go into the statistics from tonight's loss to the other Aggies. They don't tell the story about this team. Where is the effort? There are flashes of grit. Wesley wills the Aggies along at points. Newbold goes through slumps that even Shaq's free throws have never seen, but he always tries his hardest anyway. The rest of the team? I've got nothing. No, they've got nothing.

Earlier in the season, I wrote an article about why USU students are so loyal and passionate about our basketball team. We care about the individual players, about Stew, and about the Spectrum. I wish I could say that the players cared that much. How hard can it be for Jardine to not get hit in the chest with a pass that he knew was coming to him? Just pay attention. Put some mental effort into the play, I don't care how strong you are. Why can't Modou just catch the ball? You are a member of a division 1 basketball team. You go to school for free to catch the ball when it is thrown to you. And why can't Jaxon remember what color team he is supposed to be passing the ball to?

These aren't isolated events. These are habits that come out in every game for these players. It isn't that they aren't skilled; they are all just lazy. Don't get me wrong, either. I really like all three of them. I think they all deserve to be on the team, and each one shows flashes of what they can be. They just need to pull it together. Last year, the will and drive of Gary Wilkinson was enough to push his team through each game. He seemed to see each game as a smaller piece of the whole, and by focusing every minute of every game, he orchestrated arguably the best season in Utah State history. He made up for other players who lacked in heart because he did not wait to be given pride or results. Instead, he went out and proved why he deserved it. I think Bendall is a better basketball player than Gary, but Bendall doesn't care like Gary did. I don't think Quayle cares like Jaycee Carroll did.

It comes down to this. The Aggies expect to win. I'm ok with that. The problem is they expect to win without putting forth a winning effort. If they want to beat a team on the road, they have to play 10 points better than the other team that night. If they want to make it to the NCAA tournament, they better bring every lucky rabit's foot they can find to Reno, because that is the only way they are getting in.

Basketball is just a game, so go out there and play it. Don't be afraid to lose. Don't expect to win without the necessary effort.

Mostly, find some pride and play the game in a way that is deserving of that Utah State jersey. Right now, this team is nothing.



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Comments (1)Add Comment
I think that was a little harsh
written by seldomseensmith, January 03, 2010
Maybe written after an emotional, disappointing loss. There's been an ongoing discussion on the Scout Aggie board about the lack of "athleticism" on this Aggie team. It's been proven over, and over again this year. Bendall and Wesley are very good. Fundamentally sound, skilled, but they can't do it by themselves. Our perimeter players are constantly beat off the dribble, and aren't quick enough to do that to the opposition. The facts speak for themselves. We need to get quicker at the guardline with guys who can create their own shots, and keep people from penetrating and creating their own. This team does lack a leader, and it lacks perimeter players who are a consistent threat offensively. Other teams know how to beat us now and it's going to be a long year. Time for Stew to step up recruiting because he can't win with slow guys no matter how good his system is.

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