Do we BYU men’s basketball team still in the dance? I find it hard to believe some sports writer would say four teams from WCC getting in to the dance. I’d like to see that happen but no way it will. Gonzaga SMC and San Francisco will go to the dance and BYU in the NIT. I hope I am wrong.
A lot has to do with what other bubble teams do. I would think that if Santa Clara beats Saint Mary’s they may be the 4th team in. But, once again, with this committee, early year quad 1 teams matter to them. More than how a team finishes. The WCC is a much better league this year. So, it should be an interesting Selection Show.
If we could have just shot 3’s and free throws better. We played a decent game.
BYU has been NIT bound since the end of January
BYU lost by 12, how is that decent?
There are separate parts to a game. With an objective and big picture, you can see the good parts. Turnovers was limited to reasonable numbers. Defense was reasonable. Where we fell significantly was 3 point shots (15%) and FTs (62%). If we shot 35% for 3’s and 75% for FTs we win. We aren’t fouling going down the stretch giving them free points.
Why did we shoot so poorly from 3’s? We went back to playing too much of the weave. Back-to-back games we are running around getting more fatigued which led to a poor second half shooting from 3’s.
So, subtract 8-10 points from free throws for SF and add 12-14 more points from 3’s for BYU and we win by double digits. Show me where I’m wrong?
There is no right or wrong about what you are saying and there are way more than two parts to a game. The thing is you can say this about EVERY game… if this then that, woulda - coulda - shoulda. There is really no point to it. The game outcome is the game outcome. San Francisco is a very good team. Shabazz and Bouyea are really good players, they are seniors and they have a lot of experience. You say the defense was good but it wasn’t good enough on those two players. Unfortunately, even if it had been, they would have done things to find other players on their team to fill in the gaps and probably have won anyway. BYU only had Barcello as experienced and Traore as a very good freshman with little experience but who played well… again. I was glad to see Johnson playing well, 2 games in a row, so hopefully that helps his confidence.
The season kind of got lost during that 4 game losing streak where they let teams stay close and couldn’t finish off close ones with wins.
I don’t know if I want BYU in the NCAA tourney this season. I guess I do but I don’t want them to get embarrassed. I think they could make a deep run in the NIT and that would allow them to play more games.
Without having to foul at the end of the game, making 4 more 3’s, we hold SF with their great players under 65. We played good D.
Their guards are great. That didn’t beat us. 15% from 3’s and 62% FT did it. Most likely because of fatigue. Hitting the side of the backboard and 2 feet short on 3’s.
I’d always choose NCAA over the NIT. But, good post anyway 
You do?
I don’t. We’re not a very good team this year, and coaches watch film and game prep for us. We have key weaknesses they can exploit.
I’m trying to look for a silver lining or a glimmer of hope or something that can salvage the season. Of course teams will watch film and game prep but so will BYU, and other teams in the NIT will also have key weaknesses that can be exploited.
Relatively speaking BYU has not had a great year but I wouldn’t say they “are not a very good team”. I believe most coaches, analysts and players in the ncaa would disagree with that.
But anyhow, NIT teams are not the cream of the crop but many of them are better than teams that do make the ncaa tourney. BYU has had success in the NIT even when they may not have been a very good team so I feel like they could do it again given the right circumstances and if they got hot or “peaked” as the Hopper would say.
22-10 with the schedule we played says we are a good team. Facts say we are. Things have to happen for us to make the NCAAs. But, could happen.
Meanwhile, the girls aren’t doing well against Portland. That would be a shame if they don’t win the WCC tournament.
Losing our big men early in the season hurt badly. To compensate for that, we would need to shoot really well, make a high percentage of foul shots, play really good defense, not turn the ball over, and stay out of foul trouble (and double bonus — sometimes, we get homered on this one, even when we do things right).
I think our biggest problem is psychological. The stretch of four straight bad losses has made this team not the same team it was before that stretch. So, while we’re 22-10, it’s the way the momentum arrow (and psyche) is going. I think we would get rolled in the NIT, too.
Actually, we were doing fine for most of the year without the two centers. Fousse developed and quite frankly, he’s as good as either one of them now. Atiki was just too raw in basketball. But, he came alive and filled in well. There was mainly that stretch you said that is so puzzling. What happened to lose against easy opponents? Without those two loses, we would still be firmly in the NCAAs. We would be playing tonight instead of SM.
We were not as good from the 3 point line this year as everyone thought we would. Lohner didn’t improve as much as expected on offense. Lucas had some good games but like last night shot 3’s two feet short. Knell hits the side of the backboard. That’s really just flinging the elbow out for no reason. Barcello was off as well. 3-20 (15%) from the 3 point line. Just 4 more makes and we may have won.
If not for “woulda” we would have won.
If not for “coulda” we could have won.
If not for “shoulda” we should have won.
Wonder how many scores of millions of times the old; “woulda, coulda, shoulda” funeral dirge has been sung by athletic teams on the outside looking in?
Both Lucas and Barcelo got it foul Trouble. Neither guard could play aggressive and second half
Byu is an Nit bound. Hope they make it to Madison Square, Gardens
Lucas fouls were the type committed when fatigued. And shooting 2 feet short on a 3 pointer settles that. Barcello was gassed and his shots were way off too. Knell hitting the side of the board is ridiculous. Why they organize these games like this for college is wrong. There’s still a chance to go. The teams in the same boat can lose and drop below BYU.m with more quad 1 wins and games.
Totally agree. I have talked about this on numerous occasions.
Disagree.
The toughest thing about seeing St. Mary’s and Gonzaga playing in the wcc tournament final is that St. Mary’s is the only team to beat Gonzaga in the title game in the last 14 years. BYU has made the final 4 times in those years but they get a beat down from Gonzaga every time, regardless of how good BYU is… there are a variety of reasons for this, as I have presented over the years, but the bottom line is that BYU has not won a conference tournament title in over 20 years, WCC or any conference.
Mostly it is on them, occasionally there are external forces that prevent it. That is life in the present day world we live in. We should be used to it by now.
Everything is about to change! Have faith 
BYU has now dropped to “the second four out” which is pretty cool because they are still being mentioned when there is talk about the ncaa tournament.
Outside of that I will say again that there is NO chance they make it.
The wcc teams in are Gonzaga, St. Mary’s and San Francisco. I said this after BYU lost to USF but dreamers like SG didn’t believe me.
NIT bound BYU.
There’s another big named guy that has us a 12 seed. That guy uses what the committee used last year and says what they will use this year. That is, the whole season and the Quad 1 wins and number of games played. So, there is still a chance.