First time poster, long time follower. Never went to MU but attended my first game at 5 years old. No sports passion runs deeper for me than Warrior bball. Thanks to all of you for adding to the entertainment value of following our team, as you make the time between games a little shorter.
I don’t want to come off as a Pollyanna as it is obvious this team has deficiencies, but I wonder if this loss helps crystallize what needs to be done for the rest of the season: win the BE tournament. That is it, that is all. No worries about beating St. John’s, winning one or two tournament games, then hoping we are snatched from the churn of the bubble by the selection committee. We now know there is only one path. I don’t know if this makes the situation clearer for the players, for Buzz in communicating the immediacy of the situation, or just for us as fans, but I think it has a positive effect. Can we accomplish this? Likely not, but it will be fun watching knowing nothing short of a championship is good enough.
Also, I can’t remember the last time I was happy for the other team after an MU loss. Part of it was it being their senior night, you could tell there was real emotion in the building as everyone knew a win did a lot to solidify their place in the NCAA tournament for the first time in a decade. A bigger part, though, was selfish. The Big East needed a signature thriller this season that rose to the top of the national sports day, as other than the Nova/Creighton blowouts, we haven’t had any other games ESPN has had to pay attention to. We got it last night, and maybe this can counteract a bit of the subtle subterfuge found within many articles about the BE by the network. Also, the Big East is not what it was, and we need as many competitive teams as possible for the conference to sustain its place as a power. Providence, St. John’s, Xavier, and Georgetown getting into the tournament would be great news for our conference in a year of righting the ship. They won’t all make it, but the more invitations, the bigger the party.
So here is what I am rooting for up to and through the Garden: (1) we lose to the Johnnies, DeWil regains a bit of confidence after yesterday’s debacle and Dawson gets increased minutes (and they each get at least equal time in the tourney, and I know this is hoping against hope), (2) Xavier, Gtown, Providence get regular season finale wins, (3) Providence, St. John’s, Xavier, and Georgetown win as many tournament games as possible except when playing us (knowing we’ll probably/certainly play one of them first game), and (3) for us to raise the trophy. BE conference championship #1 would be a pretty great capper to this conflicted season.
