ORU-TU postgame notes...

[Guest EagleBackr]

...in chronological order:

? Are those GOLD shorts sticking out from under Mickey's warm-up top? Why, I think they are! Cool! Though honestly, they look better on TV and in the newspaper this morning than they do in person. And I thought it was funny that TU's uniform also sport that same "Old Gold" color now - no more canary yellow! All the blue hairs in the Golden Hurricane Club are going to have to scrap their school bus yellow windbreakers and matching v-neck sweaters! Now, if only Valpo would wake up and join the 21st century...

? Moment of uneasiness when Price of TU is seen HUGGING the referee at midcourt during warm-ups. What gives? Now the refs are over at the TU bench making all nice! Who are these guys? And while we're at it, how many assistant coach's does TU have? I count NINE guys in suits or sport coats on their bench. Does the student assistant in charge of clean towels and sharpened pencils really need to sit on the bench in a suit?

? Here comes the prayer....WOW!! Was that not the most incredible pre-game prayer EVER?!? Let's here if Chris Plank thinks THAT was tacky (not holding my breath waiting for Plank's opinion - my guess is he will talk 99% of the time on Monday about TU's football team and will dismiss the basketball game as a bump in the road). Anyway, props to whoever did the prayer - didn't recognize the voice, but he was great.

? National anthem singer had great voice, but in the words of the king to Mozart in "Amadeus": "Too many notes." AND WHAT'S THIS - OUR ENTIRE BENCH HAS THEIR HANDS OVER THEIR HEARTS WHILE TU'S BENCH DOES NOT!! HAIL TO THE POWER OF THE ORUSPORTS.COM MESSAGE BOARD!! Looked great, was the right thing to do, very proud our guys stepped up. And contrary to urban legend, Adam Liberty stood up!!

? I believe I posted earlier that nerves would prevail early on in the game, and they did for ORU - FOR ONE POSSESSION!! After Mickey fumbled that first pass at the free throw line, TU ran down and promptly got into that bizarre offense of their's where they line up across the floor, free throw line extended, while their guards take turns coming out to the point and handing the ball back and forth to each other. Very strange. After JB got what was I think was the easiest 5-second "closely-guarded" call EVER, I knew it was a good sign when Reese and James of TU ran back down the floor yelling and shoving at each other.

? Big Mickey sets the tone early - aggresive offensively, with results. I can't help but think about the TU fan I got into with on the TU message board who said Mickey was "the least of their worries" and "a liability". BEING RIGHT ALL THE TIME IS FUN!!

? Ten minutes in, and it's obvious Price couldn't cover a shower drain with a manhole cover. Caleb just took a pass in the post, dribbled back out, then turned and drove past THREE defenders for a lay-up - WOW!!

? The TU "picket fence" offense still is not working - our guys seem to be better prepared to defend it than TU is to run it. I keep waiting for JB or Ken to say to one of their guys, "No, wait - I think you're supposed to be over here."

? Ramsdell and Crow are NONEXISTENT - great defense by Caleb and Larry. Is there ANYTHING Caleb hasn't done yet this half? I start wondering if he's going to sell nachos at halftime, too...

? 41-17 at the half - why am I still nervous? Will Oakland haunt me forever?

...more after church...

[Guest Rob Marshall]

Dr. EB, you go to church? Really? Just teasin' ya 'cause I love ya, but seriously several quality bullets from you once again. At the TU/OU game last Wednesday, I made a similar observation regarding the number of "suits" on and around the TU bench, but I must say the TU redshirts looked like they were part of the team in their official adidas wind suits rather than sporting their random street clothing of choice like the ORU guys.

[ttowncount]

... but I must say the TU redshirts looked like they were part of the team in their official adidas wind suits rather than sporting their random street clothing of choice like the ORU guys.

But I did notice that a couple of our red shirts had on red shirts. That was nice, I thought. Easy to pick them out.

[Guest Rob Marshall]

Yes, I thought that was funny too "count." I agree there can be too many "suits" on and around the bench area but I have to say TU's bench even with too many suits looked more structured and "together" than ORU's. They looked like a team, prepared to do business. Of course, dressing the part doesn't make up for 27 turnovers for the game and a horrid 17 points in the first half.

[Guest EagleBackr]

? As we return from halftime, what is this? TU has scrapped the pitiful offense they started out with, and are now running a more traditional motion set with lots of backdoor cuts. They seem MUCH more comfortable running this offense, and suddenly the 23-point lead is down to 16. Closest thing to a pivotal moment in the game: Coach Sutton puts Chris Riouse in and he hits a couple of threes to restore order. Mark this down, people: Scott Sutton and his staff OUTCOACHED their staff. Period - game, set, match...

? Where are the TU cheerleaders? Seems they have vacated their spot along the baseline and are now sitting behind us somewhere. Boolah-boolah!!

? The TU bench seems like it's getting more and more irritated with all the activity on court during timeouts. The "YMCA" timeout has a half dozen guys in suits and clipboards forming a security perimeter around their team on the floor. Memo to Coach Wo: just because you need to get away from annoying crowds at OTHER arenas doesn't mean you need to set up shop EVERYWHERE during a timeout out at the free throw line. At the Mabee Center, the people seated right behind the visiting bench are YOUR fans! You've got plenty of room between you and the crowd - IF YOU FIND THE TIMEOUT ACTIVITIES ANNOYING, STAY OFF THE FRICKIN' FLOOR!

? Marchello Vealy plays first significant minutes of the game, leading to the best Maniac line of the night: after one of his patented baseline, face-up 15-footers, they chant: "HE'S A FRESHMAN!" A potent reminder: despite TU Fan's deepest wishes, the cupboard isn't going bare anytime soon on South Lewis...

? The final five minutes are a testament in sportsmanship as Scott takes out four of the five starters, making the final score at least 10 points closer than it could have been. Appreciative Mabee Center crowd shows the starters plenty of love as they check out of the game.

? Painful realization after returning home that the TU football team has stolen the spotlight on the 10:00 TV broadcasts. Oh, well - they won a championship; they deserve it. We can get the same treatment in March if we take care of business in the Mid-Con tournament.

? Fantastic coverage in the Tulsa World this morning. Three different writers reach the same conclusion: the game was never a contest, the score could have been worse, and Caleb is a horse.

? Most telling quotes from Coach Wo: "I've been hearing about Caleb Green since the first day I got here." And we're not in their heads over there?!? Plus, acknowledged that Price probably fell victim to trying to "show up" Caleb while the rest of the team suffered for it. He knows he's got a bunch of dogs that can't/won't hunt. Expect mass transfers to other schools after this season from that bunch...

? A TU fan on their message board felt encouraged that their team "won the second halves against OU and ORU". Unfortunately, every college game also includes a first half, which TU has "lost" by 20+ the past two times out! Another of their fans suggested that, for a promotion, TU cheerleaders could throw apple or cherry turnovers into the stands every time they throw the ball away, but feared it might bankrupt the sponsor!

? Alll in all, a thoroughly satisfying night at the Mabee Center, but oh so much more to do! Next up: Barry and the Bears. More on that later...

[Guest Rob Marshall]

Being the "Hoosier" hoops geek that I am, I always pay attention to things like what a team does coming out of a timeout because that truly is a reflection of good coaching (i.e., draw up a nice out bounds play or half court set to create a good scoring opportunity, things like that). Coming out of the second media timeout of the first half, ORU runs a set for Tutt coming off a double screen for an open three (which he nailed). That bucket was big in pushing ORU's already nice lead into the more commanding place the Golden Eagles were in at the half up 24.

Nice call Scott (or appropriate assistant coach)! Again, I don't think the ORU kids can play more focused and intently than they did in the first half last night. That type of concentration and effort is fun to watch!

[Guest EagleBackr]

...I like the fact that we were able to hold back stuff we had worked on in case the TU game was close. The 3/4-court trapping press we worked on so extensively against St. Gregory's could come in handy against Mizzou State, and it's nowhere to be seen on the TU tape if Barry uses that for scouting. Plus, we never had to go zone, either. We should have a few nice defensive wrinkles to throw at the Bears Wednesday...

[orumom]

Even when I don't totally agree with you I usually keep it to myself because I haven't walked a mile in your shoes.

Then when you said Tu's coaches looked sharper than ours I couldn't keep myself from laughing outloud.

Coach W had on a sports jacket which told me he didn't think the game was important enough to get all dressed up. Our coaches were all dressed better. As for our red shirts, Moses usually looks like he just stepped out of GQ and why make people wonder when the rest of your bench is going to take off their warmups & play, because maybe TU will need them so badly they decide to scrap red shirting them.

When was the last time a TU coach made a best dressed list?

[Guest Rob Marshall]

Mom, I think ORU's staff (including the student assistant coach) are VERY well dressed, and if we're scoring on suit/shirt/tie combinations, the ORU coaching staff scores very well every game. I'm talking about our redshirts being in random outfits vs. TU's being in team windsuits.

Everyone on TU's bench looked "uniform," "on the same page," and "together" from the last eligible player to the last redshirt. While ORU's guys were more casual looking, with a try to look nice but "do/wear whatever you want" kind of mentality for the redshirts. Personally, I think Moses dresses very well (GQ if you will), but the other kids are not dressing on that level and I just think it should be a consistent expectation for each redshirt to look "uniform" whatever that

takes. The NFL and the NBA have dress codes for non-active players (they have to wear team gear, ie, windsuits or team sweats) if they are going to be on the sidelines/bench.

Again, this is a message board and this is my opinion. My opinion may be skewed by my personal "dress for success" mentality, but I'll even tell Scott the next time I talk to him I think he should have the redshirts either all dress up or all wear ORU basketball windsuits (and I'm not talking about game warm-ups). I just think it would send a more disciplined message. Again, just my opinion, from someone who believes there really is something to the "dress for success" thing.

[ORUIsbig]

Like i said before, the best reporting in tulsa, right here on ORUSports.com! Nice job EB.

[orumom]

RM,

After thinking it over, I do agreewith you on the red shirts. I would even go a step farther.

we used to go to St Louis to watch the Cardinals for a series each year. One thing that impressed us was that when the Dodgers played, all of their players arrived in suits. I realize they all get paid well and college players don't get paid at all, but it represents the team well when everyone looks professional.

[tmh8286]

I just think it would send a more disciplined message. Again, just my opinion, from someone who believes there really is something to the "dress for success" thing.

I tend to agree, Rob and mom, with both the idea and the logic, although maybe to a lesser degree. I'm okay with redshirts just dressing nicely, and I thought that they all looked good Sat. night. But I'm entirely in line with you about the look of discipline, and for that reason would go along whole-heartedly with a policy of either matching outfits or something.

The discipline issue is why I appreciated SO MUCH the team participation in the National Anthem. To me it not only made the team look more disciplined, it made them look classy. Sometimes small things make a BIG difference.

[EaglEyes]

Moses usually looks like he just stepped out of GQ

I totally agree... Moses looks great, I love coming to the games to see what he'll be wearing. In my opinion, if all the redshirts dressed like Moses, we would definitely have the sharpest dressed team EVER!!