On November 1st..21-6...Would you Take It..?

[Coachdags]

If I told all you Panther Faithful on November 1st, That by Valentine's Day the Panthers would be 21-6.. With Quaility Wins over Iowa, LSU, Sweep of Wichita State, Possible Sweep of Southern Illinois....Have a Chance to Play in the NCAA Tournament for a UNI Record Setting 3 Years in a row...?

What would you have Said.....?

Quit Whinning and Like Coach Mac asked Get out there on Saturday for That Big Game Against Bucknell...The Team..Coaches and Boys need you now more than ever.... Go PANTHERS!!!

[Newsbreaker]

Not the issue...HOW you get to a record is as important as what the record is. Like D1A football, early losses are 'easier' to forget and move on from then late ones.

[Coachdags]

Not the issue...HOW you get to a record is as important as what the record is. Like D1A football, early losses are 'easier' to forget and move on from then late ones.

Hogwash...? That may be true about early losses...But You guys are now worried about what seed you will be...Years back we were worried about winning seasons....or even getting invited...?

[Newsbreaker]

You're right in a certain sense, however when you win, the stakes get higher, as does the baseline of relatively happiness.

We were just happy to get in, in the past. This year, that should be the baseline of what we'd expect...expectations are higher becasue potential is higher.

When we played into our first National Championship football game, and we wondered how to win it, should we have just been saying "ah well, we should just be happy to be here, who cares if we win?" Surely no!

This team is capable of being one of the 16 best in the country, or better. Talking about HOW to get there, and being dismayed if it seems the road will be harder then we thought is not a bad thing.

[ejacobson]

I know I am excited for what the team has accomplished and can still accomplish. This season is far from over and only time will tell. Lets all get ready to get behind the Panthers big time this weekend.

GO PANTHERS!!!

[AmesPanther]

You're right in a certain sense, however when you win, the stakes get higher, as does the baseline of relatively happiness.

We were just happy to get in, in the past. This year, that should be the baseline of what we'd expect...expectations are higher becasue potential is higher.

When we played into our first National Championship football game, and we wondered how to win it, should we have just been saying "ah well, we should just be happy to be here, who cares if we win?" Surely no!

This team is capable of being one of the 16 best in the country, or better. Talking about HOW to get there, and being dismayed if it seems the road will be harder then we thought is not a bad thing.

Right on. At the same a loss now doesn't mean big things can't happen it just means it's getting more and more difficult because our seeding will fall.

[Coachdags]

You're right in a certain sense, however when you win, the stakes get higher, as does the baseline of relatively happiness.

We were just happy to get in, in the past. This year, that should be the baseline of what we'd expect...expectations are higher becasue potential is higher.

When we played into our first National Championship football game, and we wondered how to win it, should we have just been saying "ah well, we should just be happy to be here, who cares if we win?" Surely no!

This team is capable of being one of the 16 best in the country, or better. Talking about HOW to get there, and being dismayed if it seems the road will be harder then we thought is not a bad thing.

I disagree that this Team is one of the Best 16 or better in the Country....

They are the Best Overacheiving Team in the Country.....

Would need more Breaks, Some Depth, and Alot of Luck to be in the Top 16?

They work there asses off which is fun to watch..and yes the program is headed in the right direction...So Dare to DREAM.....it could happen someday.

[Panthers#1]

If I told all you Panther Faithful on November 1st, That by Valentine's Day the Panthers would be 21-6.. With Quaility Wins over Iowa, LSU, Sweep of Wichita State, Possible Sweep of Southern Illinois....Have a Chance to Play in the NCAA Tournament for a UNI Record Setting 3 Years in a row...?

What would you have Said.....?

Quit Whinning and Like Coach Mac asked Get out there on Saturday for That Big Game Against Bucknell...The Team..Coaches and Boys need you now more than ever.... Go PANTHERS!!!

I would have said yeah thats great. But we are focused on now. If you told me on Nov. 1 that our last two losses were MSU at home and last place ISU on the road, I would say what the f**k? There is plenty of season left to play and I believe that UNI can win but we have to stop thinking that we can win and know we can win. Come on Panthers!!!!

[panther2317]

News, you have a point about when you win, but we have a chance to erase this bad taste in our mouths. Let's use Iowa basketball as a measuring stick. They lost a game similar to the UNI loss last night on the road about a week ago. Iowa lost at Northwestern...the Big Ten equivalent to losing at Indiana State for UNI. Iowa fans were ready to jump ship and since then, they have beaten Indiana on the road and Michigan State at home (a team that previously beat the Hawkeyes by 30 in East Lansing). After that loss and looking at the next two games, I saw Hawkeye fans giving up on their team and look what they've done since. Now, Iowa is 20-6 and Hawk fans are about as exicted about Iowa basketball as I've seen in a long time, UNI is 21-6 and people seem to be diving off the bandwagon.

So, we've lost a couple of games, but we have a game with a nationally ranked opponent...in our house Saturday morning. Sound familiar? The Panthers have a chance to right their ship this Saturday and fans can either come along for the ride...or complain about what happened last night. I, for one, can't wait for Saturday and hope many Panther fans are on the same page as myself and many other passionate Panthers on this site. If you are, let's put last night's tough loss behind us and get behind this team and cheer them on to victory Saturday morning. They need our support and we need to make the Dome LOUD AND PROUD this week. GO PANTHERS!!! I hope to see you all there in three days.

[Newsbreaker]

We absolutely have a chance to define our own destiny the rest of the way. We have TONS of good will stored up, and if we rattle off 3 wins this next 10 days, these two losses will just be viewed as a 'slump.' Lose those 3, and we'll be viewed quite differently.

We get to decide on the court.

[UNI MadCat]

To answer the original question... no, I wouldn't have taken it. Because I would of looked at those wins and wondered, "who the heck did we lose to then?"

At this point, we have the same amount of wins in the MVC as last year. I think it is likely that we will improve on that total by one game.

The fact is, I expected VAST improvement over last year but didn't really take into account that the league is vastly improved too.

So that's my fault... I underestimated the league vs. us this year but by no means am I disappointed in this team, I just wouldn't have been happy with 21-6.

But in real time, watching how great this league is, our record makes sense.

[BCPanther]

Oh, my god!! Those of you unhappy with 21-6 must be bandwagon jumpers and not remember the mid-90's. I can think of about 300 teams in the country that would take 21-6.

This is still going to be the best season in the history of UNI basketball. And also this ISU loss is not to a last place team, how good would there record be if Moss had stayed healthy?!

[panther2317]

Maybe my view of starting out leary, so when something good happens I'm pleasantly surprised is why I'm still so fired up about 21-6, but you had to know the rest of the league was going to get better right along with us. The Valley has been steadily getting stronger top to bottom over the past decade. I thought Creighton and UNI would fight it out for the Championship and I actually felt there would be about a three way tie for 3rd between WSU, MSU and SIU. Then, Funk got hurt and I thought UNI could really challenge for the title...and they are. They're one game out with two to play. We don't control our own destiny any longer, but we can win out and hope for a WSU loss. Since we win a head-2-head tie breaker with them...that's what I'm hoping and praying for! Go PANTHERS!!!

[Panthers to the Bone]

With Moss AND Gray...this is a totally different team. They are 11-4 with Moss...They won at SIU, beat Indiana, lost only at Wichita, at UNI, and vs. Missouri State, and Wichita again.

[panther2317]

With Moss AND Gray...this is a totally different team. They are 11-4 with Moss...They won at SIU, beat Indiana, lost only at Wichita, at UNI, and vs. Missouri State, and Wichita again.

That stat can't get repeated enough as far as I'm concerned. Someone send this to the Selection Committee It may feel like 'spin' to many, but it's so true. The Sycamores are a good basketball team when Moss and Gray play.