DDSCB23: The Greatest II

[Wayne23]

2/24: Back and forth early. We go on a run. Up only 3 after 10 as they come back. Late run. 48-38 at the break. 18, 10 for Irri but 3 fouls. 14 for Selt. We own the paint.

Up 13 with 10 left. We can’t seem to put them away. Then a late run and we do.

104-74. 27, 0, 3 for Selt, 22, 13 for Irri. +40 in the paint.

At SE Louisiana, 11-16, 7-9. We beat them by only 8 at our place. They’re good outside, and their outside game nearly did us in last time.

We’re now #13.

2/28: It’s close early. Up 10 after 10. 58-37 at halftime. 16 each for Irri and Hix, 12 for Selt. Strong inside play.

Big lead early. Up 26 with 10 to go.

109-82. 28, 6 for Irri, 20, 2, 4, 3 for Selt, 20, 6 for Hix. 15 assists for Smik. We owned the paint.

5 game lead with 1 to play. We’ll definitely try to move to a tougher conference.

Final regular season game is with 10-18, 7-10 Nicholls ST here. We won by 11 there. They’re good outside but not a very good team.

3/3: Quick lead. Up only 3 after 10. Then a run. 52-32 at the half. 12 for Hix, 11 for Selt.

“Great D!”

Smooth sailing early. Up 30 with 10 to play.

100-67. This was never a game. 27, 9 for Irri, 16, 8 for Hix, 16, 7 for Hinn, 13, 3, 4, 3 for Selt.

“Great way to end the regular season!”

“Billie Bob Cramer, WNOL, here with the post game show. Coach, it was a hell of a regular season.”

“Yes it was. We’re pretty happy about it.”

“Now to the post season. What can we expect?”

“Well, in the post season one bad night and you’re out. My guys haven’t ever faced that kind of pressure. We’ll do all we can to get them ready for it.”

3/5: We end the regular season at 28-1, 17-1, 5 up on 2 teams in the Southland. #13, NET #7.

We average 100.6, 1st in the nation and +17.5. 1st in field goal pct., 53.8%. +8.4 RBs, -5.0 turnovers.

Irri still leads in scoring with 23.7. Hinn leads in RBs with 7.5, and Smik leads in assists with 8.8, #1 in the nation, .9 better than 2nd place!

We play #9 seed Texas A & M-Comm, 15-15, 6-12, in the quarter finals. We won by 18 and 22 in the regular season. They have a very good Center.

[Wayne23]

3/6: “Billie Bob Cramer, WNOL, here with the pre-game show. Coach Cash, your guys must be pretty excited.”

“We’re trying to tamp that down some. It’s best if they come in with close to the same attitude as if it was a regular season game. It’s not gonna be exactly the same, but we want it as close as we can get.”

“If things don’t start well are you likely to call a time out quicker than you would in the regular season?”

“Great question! It very much depends on the situation and on what I see in their faces. I can’t predict, really.”

“Good luck, Coach.”

Fast start then they come back. Up 9 after 10. 58-44 at halftime. 15 for #3 guard Sama Syle. Selt had 3 fouls so Sama played a lot of minutes. Irri also had 3 fouls. Bench is +22.

“Look, it’s even more important now than it was in the regular season, you can’t help us sitting on the bench in foul trouble. Let’s do the usual and press about half the time. Play SMART! Oh, great bench play.”

Doing fine early. Up 15 with 10 to go. We wrap it up early.

103-77. 20, 3, 4 for Syle, 16, 7 for Hunt, 16, 3 for Hix. 14 assists for Smik.

“Bobbi Sue Barker, WNOU, here postgame. Coach, great way to start the post season.”

“Yes, it was a solid win, but I’m not happy that 4 of my starters ended up with 4 fouls each. Thankfully the bench was outstanding.”

“53 points to 15 for the other team. That’s pretty amazing. It can be hard to motivate non-starters. How do you manage to do it?”

“We make it crystal clear that everybody on the team is vital to our success. We try to give those guys opportunities to shine and when they do shine we praise them. Every kid wants more playing time and that can be hard to manage, but I talk to everybody regularly and make them all feel important.”

“Do you think you’ll lose anyone to the transfer portal?”

“I know two guys who seem like they’re frustrated with their lack of playing time, but no one has said anything yet. We’ll have to wait ‘til the end of May to see what happens.”

#4 seed McNeese ST, 18-12, 11-7, and the only team to beat us, is the opponent in the semifinals. They’re very good outside and at C. Good D is essential.

3/7: “Okay guys. You know what you need to do.”

Back and forth early. Up 1 after 10. 55-53 after a really tough 1st half; 18 lead changes, 5 ties, close all the way. 16 for Irri, 13 for Hix.

“We’re going to press but be ready for me to call it off ikf they break it. I need more from my guards.”

Still close early on. Up 2 with 10 to play. It’s a war!

98-87. We finished very strong. 29, 9 for Irri, 18, 5 for Hix, 16, 4 for Hunt. 13 assists for Smik. +19 for the bench.

“Billie Bob Cramer, WNOL, with the postgame show. Coach Cash, you kicked some butt.”

“Thanks to Vic Irri and the bench mostly. This team plays us tough and for 35 or 36 minutes it was anybody’s game. Then we took control at the end.”

“Talk about conditioning.”

“It’s vital. I don’t want my guys tired at the end of the game. Yes, we sub to give them breaks but the important thing is to stress conditioning right from the first practice, and we do that. Just one more aspect of what it takes to be a successful coach.

“Title game against Houston Cretin, 24-7, 12-6. You beat them by 19 and then by 20. Can they beat you?”

“Sure they can. We can have an off night, or they can shoot the lights out, or we can be in foul trouble, or a key player can go down with an injury.”

“But you don’t plan to let them beat you.”

“We’ll do everything we can to bring home the tournament title.”

3/8: We’re sluggish early. Then we wake up. Up 18 after 10. Looking good late. 70-51 at the half. Most points we’ve scored in a half all year. 20, 3, 4, 4 for Selt, 17, 3 for Hix, 12 for Irri. Smik has 3
fouls. We’re dominating inside.

“20 minutes away guys. Don’t let up. And watch the fouls!”

They’re narrowing the gap early. Up 15 with 10 to play.

128-113 and the title. Most points we’ve scored, and most points we’ve given up all season. 22, 6, 4, 4, 4 for Selt. 23, 6 for Irri, 22, 3 for Hix.

“Dan Dee, ENPS Sports here after the game with winning coach Ally Cash. Coach, you got it done.”

“We did, but I have to give a shout out to the other team. They had no quit.”

“But they couldn’t keep up with your #1 in the country offense. How do you guys put up all those points?”

“We look for the open man, we move without the ball, we play as up tempo as we can.”

“It sure works. Your starting Power Forward Mike Hinn hurt his calf. Any idea what the status of that is?”

“It’s not super serious but he’ll play limited time in at least our next game.”

“Speaking of which, how far can you go?”

“Well, we should get a pretty good seed. If we play like we’ve played all season I think we can make some noise!”

“Good luck, Coach.”

[Wayne23]

3/12: #2 South! We play #15 New Mexico ST, 16-16. Their starting C is out with an arm fracture. They can play, especially outside but they’re 0-5 vs. ranked teams.

3/17: “Billie Bob Cramer, WNOL, here with the pre-game show. Coach Cash, your team has never won an NCAA tournament game. They’ve only ever played in 3 of them.”

“It’s a new era, Billie Bob.”

“So are you predicting a win?”

“I am NOT! But we’re gonna do everything we possibly can to win this game, and I think we have the players to do it, so I’m confident- no predictions though.”

“Coach, you’ve been incredibly successful in your first season here, 31-1, 17-1. That’s unbelievable given the recent history of this team. How’d you do it?”

“Nothing new to say on that one, Billie Bob. We put team above self, we play hard every minute, we keep it simple, and we believe in ourselves.”

“Good luck, Coach!”

We fall behind early. Then we come back. Up 1 after 10 in a close game. Late run! 55-36 at halftime. 13, 5 for Irri, 12, 5 for both Hix and Hunt. Solid inside play.

“Okay, you started slow but then you really came alive. Keep the energy up!”

They get a little closer early. We press. Up only 7 with 10 to go. Close late.

101-94. They got it to 5 twice. 27, 9 for Irri, 17, 5, 3 for Hix, 13, 6, 2, 7 steals for Selt, 12, 9 for Hunt, 13, 3 for Hinn.

“Joe Hoop, SBC here with coach Ally Cash. Coach, you got a run for your money in the second half.”

“Yes we did, Joe. That team showed us they can play. I’m proud of my guys for hanging tough.”

“Coach, your team hasn’t been in a nail biter all season, the closest game was 6 points, and this was the second closest. What happens if you get in a one possession game?”

“We’ll find out what we’re made of. I feel pretty good about how they’ll react.”

“What would you do without Vic Irri?”

“He’s a very special player but tonight Cal Selt was just as special. 7 steals, 5 in the last 10 minutes. That was crucial. We love Vic, and he’s fantastic, but we’ve got a whole team full of guys that contribute.”

“Thanks Coach.”

#7 seed Oklahoma ST, 20-11, in Round 2. Looks like their backcourt vs. our front court. They’ve played a much tougher schedule, 5-5 vs. ranked teams. This should be a challenge!

3/19: They take an early lead. We come back. Down 5 after 10. 45-41 at the half. Balanced scoring.Big edge inside, being outplayed outside.

“The press helped. We’ll continue to use it about half the time until I say otherwise. Good bench play.”

3 fouls for Selt but Syle is doing well replacing him.

“Keep your focus!”

Close early. Up 4 with 10 to play. It’s a battle! Mini-run late.

76-67 and we’re in the Sweet Sixteen! 20, 7 for Irri, 13, 5 for Hix, 11, 7 for Hinn. +8 for the bench. +36 in the paint.

“Joe Hoop, SBC. Coach Cash, they gave you a battle.”

“They did.”

“This was totally unlike the way you guys usually play, a low scoring, defense oriented game, especially the second half.”

“Well, they have exceptional guards and they didn’t let us do a lot of the things we like to do so we had to adapt. I told my guys at the 15 minute mark or whenever that TV timeout came that they had to do more passing than usual to get good looks at the basket. They did a great job of adjusting.”

“As always Vic Irri was the man.”

“He’s one of a kind. But don’t forget all the help he got. We absolutely owned the paint, and the bench really stepped up.”

“Sweet Sixteen in your first season with a program that hadn’t won in a very long time. What’s that like?”

“It’s terrific! When you get guys to play together and to believe in themselves great things can happen.”

“Thanks Coach.”

#3 seed, #13 ranked Villanova, 27-8. Their #3 guard is out with a leg fracture. This is another team that plays very well outside. If we’re going to win our guards will need to contain theirs, and our big guys will need to really play well.

[Wayne23]

3/24: We have the lead early. Up 8 after 10. We’re playing well! 43-30 at the break. 12 each for Hinn and Selt. 3 fouls for Irri, which is NOT good. He only played 4 minutes.

“Okay, you’re doin’ great. We’re not gonna press tonight unless we absolutely have to. We’re beating them without it.”

We get it to 20 early. Up 21 with 10 left. The subs are in early!

97-73! 18, 9, 4 blocks for Hinn, 18, 8, 3 for Hix, 20, 4, 3 for Selt, 16, 7, 3 blocks for Irri, 12 assists for Smik. +8 for the bench.

“Joe Hoop, SBC. Coach Cash, you guys are the talk of the basketball nation. It’s unbelievable to most people that you’re doing what you’re doing. You just destroyed a very good team. Tell us about it.”

“My guys have no idea how hard it is to do what they’re doing and I hope nobody tells them! (Laughs)”

“It was a real team effort tonight. Their big scorer had 32 and their SF had 18, but you shut down everyone else.”

“The plan was to do just that. We knew those two guys were gonna score and as long as we were ahead we were not gonna worry too much about it. We figured if we could stop everyone else we’d be
fine. It worked out.”

“Yes it did. Coach, the press is a big part of your D but you barely pressed at all tonight. Why?”

“We pressed maybe half a dozen times and yes, that was intentional. Their guards are exceptional passers and we thought they’d break the press. So we concentrated on playing solid D, filling the passing lanes, and that kind of thing rather than pressing.”

#1 seed, #2 ranked, #1 NET UConn, 36-2. Is this where it ends?”

“We’ll see. We plan to do what we always do, play good hard D and look for the open man on O. They’re yet another team that’s exceptionally good outside, so we’ll need to find ways to deal with that. This is the best team we’ve played all year, by a lot.”

“Hey, they lost to Villanova, who you just crushed.”

“We’ll have to see if that means anything.”

3/26: They take the lead early. Down 16 after 10. We’re in way over our heads. 39-55 at halftime. Balanced scoring. Hix has 3 fouls, as does Sims. -10 from the line but they’re quicker and most of the calls were on target, not that I’m not getting on the refs.

“Okay. Play hard. We’ll press more often than not. Keep your focus and do your best. We might still surprise them! Believe!”

We’re not gaining ground early. Down 20 with 10 to go. It’s not gonna happen tonight.

90-119. 21, 4 for Irri. Good bench play. But their bigs were good and their guards were outstanding.

“I couldn’t be prouder of what you guys did this season. As for tonight, you lost to a better team. There’s no shame in that. And never forget that you were one of the last 8 teams playing basketball. That’s fantastic!”

Cal Selt is our only senior.

[Wayne23]

4/3: We lost to the national champs, UConn.

4/4: Awards: Vic Irri is Southland POY and first team. Cal Selt is Def. POY and 1st team. Rick Hix is Frosh OY and 2nd team. Mike Hinn also makes the 2nd team. I am Conf. COY.

4/9: I’m not going anywhere. We jump way up to a TP of 32!

4/23: I ask for a facilities upgrade.

Yes! C- to C+.

34-2, Southland champs, Elite Eight. Terrific first season!

[Wayne23]

5/1: Recruit class #70. Not bad.

We move to the Mountain West, a MUCH better conference. We’ll be challenged. We also plan to play a much tougher pre-conf. schedule.

We are unable to meet our expected to spend amount.

5/29: We lose 3 players, all big guys- Ari Hunt would have been our first big off the bench. Jim Adra would have been 2nd. Kin Sims would not have played much.

6/2: Offer to an SF and 2 Cs. 0-3.

6/5: I offer to 3 PFs. 3-3. We should be solid and deep up front now.

6/25: Going to the Indy Camp.

6/26: 6 scholarships to fill. That’s a lot. We’re hoping to get 3 and 3.

7/17: We offer to 2 PGs, an SG, 2 PFs, and a C. Be happy to get half of them.

7/31: Summertime. Still doing a lot of recruiting. Getting to know our new players, 2 of whom look really good, and partying down on the waterfront.

They have ships that go out on the river for 3-4 hours and the parties are pretty wild. That’s my jam!

8/7: I thought Vic Irri might make the Norton list but he didn’t.

8/21: Still working the recruits, their families, their school connections… August is a long month though. We can’t visit recruits until mid-September and that’s the crucial move. But if a recruit commits to somebody else before the visit there’s nothing that can be done about that.

9/11: We lose 2 recruits. We offer to 2 more.

9/18: We get one, lose one. We get a PF, #82.

Much tougher schedule this season. We’re going to the Hawaiian Shootout.

9/25: We get 3, lose 2. An SG, #91, a PF, #131, a PG, #132.

10/2: We lose one.

First day of practice. We’re better than last year and deeper.

10/9: We get a PF, #124. Still chasing a PG.

11/14: Here’s the lineup:

Senior Val Smik is back at PG. He led the nation in assists last season.

Frosh Del Caes is at SG. He’s looked really good in practice.

#3 guard is soph Sama Syle. His D still needs work. Next is senior Ben Wyte, who has never really gotten his chance. Finally, there’s senior Lamo Bro who doesn’t play enough D to play much.

Soph Rick Hix is back at SF where he did a really good job last season.

Soph Leon Nate, a transfer from Oklahoma, where he started, is at PF. He’s our best defender and does other things well.

Senior Vic Irri is back at C and we expect him to be our best player again this season.

Senior Coy Prin, a transfer from Iowa ST, where he started, will get lots of time at the forward spots. He can play! Frosh Marq Harp also looks really good. We need to find a way to get him minutes.

Senior Mike Hinn dropped way down after a lousy practice period. He’s not playing D. The sub big guys will get minutes as we sort out the lineup.

We start tomorrow with Wake Forest here.

“Billie Bob Cramer, WNOL, here with Coach Ally Cash. Coach, you had a fantastic season last year. What can the fans expect this season?”

“I think we’re better this year than we were last, but we’re playing much tougher teams so we’ll probably lose more games. But we still expect to win most of them.”

“A couple of changes in the lineup. Yes, Leon Nate and Coy Prin both transferred here and they look really good. Del Caes will start at SG as a frosh and Marq Harp, another terrific frosh could wind up starting later in the season.”

[Wayne23]

11/15: We fall behind early so we press. Down 6 after 10. 39-40 at halftime. We were down 13 at one point. 13, 3 for Irri. 3 fouls for Caes but they have 3 starters with 3 fouls each.

“I need more from my guards.”

Back and forth early. Then we go on a run. Up only 3 with 10 to go as they come back. Close late!

88-91. Syle missed an open three at the end. 26, 12 for Irri but he fouled out, 16, 6 for Hinn, 15, 6 for Hix, 10, 6 for Prin. 13 assists for Smik.

“Bobbi Sue Barker, WNOU, with the postgame show. Tough way to start, Coach.”

“It’s never good to lose at home but I need to ask the fans to be patient with us. We’re playing much tougher teams and it’s going to take some time for our lineup to jell. We’ll get there though.”

“You did your usual good job inside, Coach, but the guards were outplayed.”

“Well, first, their SG is a monster, 33 points, and second, again, we need time to learn to play well together,”

“This is the first one possession game the team has been involved in since you got here-”

“And I am NOT happy that we lost it! You have to win the close ones.”

“Were you disappointed in transfer Leon Nate?”

“Not at all. He’s still getting used to the system and the other players. Before long he’s going to be one of our best.”

“Thanks Coach.”

Headed for the Hawaiian Shootout. We’re the #5 seed and we play #4 South Alabama, 1-0. They were very good outside in their opener.

11/18: We score the first 11. Big early lead. Up 22 after 10. 54-36 at the half. 13, 6 for Nate, 10 each for Harp and Caes. Irri has 3 fouls, only played 6 minutes, but the bench stepped up. We’re killing them inside and beating them outside.

Up 29 with 10 to play. Subs will be in early.

114-68. 19, 10 for frosh sub Marq Harp, 19, 4, 3 for sub Coy Prin, 17, 11 for sub Mike Hinn, all 3 are big guys. 13, 6 for Nate. Worst game ever for Vic Irri, played 9 minutes before fouling out. 78 in the paint.

Sub guard Ben Wyte hurt his calf. He won’t play much, if at all for a few days.

#1 seed, #18 ranked Virginia, 2-0, in the semifinals. They have an All American at PF and they hit the boards HARD.

11/19: Close early. They’re tough. Up 3 after 10. 54-53 at the break. Irri has 20 and 6. 15, 2, 3 for Caes. We held their PF to 10. We’re outplaying them inside.

“These guys can play. Let’s show ‘em how much we want it! We’ll press some”

We take the lead early. A run puts us up 21 with 10 left.

107-83. 32, 12, 4 blocks for Irri; great game! 27, 4, 4 for Ces. +32 inside, +16 RBs. We held their star to 13 and 4.

“Bobbi Sue Barker, WNOU, here with the postgame show. Coach, this was an impressive win against a ranked team. I guess your guys are coming together.”

“You know, Bobbie Sue, the staff and I felt that in our last game, and even more tonight. It happened quicker than I expected it to. There’ll be some bumps in the road with our tough schedule but we definitely look like a team out there.”

“Nice to see Vic Irri come back fro a rare poor game.”

“I wasn’t worried about Vic. He’s the real deal.”

It’s #7 seed Illinois ST, 3-0, in the title game. We feel like we should beat this team but they’ve been winning.

11/20: Close early. Up 6 after 10. We start to press late in the half and they can’t handle it. 62-45 at halftime. Balanced scoring led by Leon Nate’s 11 and 6. Total dominance inside.

Up 26 with 10 to go. Subs in early.

105-81 and the Hawaiian Shootout title. 21, 6, 3 blocks for Irri, 20, 5 for Hinn, 17, 9 for Nate, 14, 5 for Prin. 82 in the paint.

On the long plane ride the staff and I talk about the lineup and discuss changes, if any. We decide to keep things as they are for now. We’re getting great play from 6 big men so finding PT for everybody is a problem.

At 1-1 Hofstra next. Their C can play.

11/22: Close early. Up 2 after 10. We go to the press. 41-45. Balanced scoring.

“I need a lot more from my guards.”

Still trailing early. Down 7 with 10 left.

85-81. Syle hit a three with .7 left and was fouled; he completed the 4 point play for the win!

17, 11 for Hinn, 10, 8 for Irri.

“Bobbi Sue Barker, WNOU. Coach that was one heck of a finish.”

“It sure was. We trailed for the entire second half, finally tied it very late and then Syle hit the winner. Wow!”

“You can’t be happy with the way your team played.”

“I’m happy with the fact that they never quit and that they gutted out a win in a really tough game, but no, we weren’t at our best tonight. But sometimes that happens and when you can win in spite of it, that’s pretty good!”

4-1 after 5 games. NET #84. #1 in PPG and in RBs.

Irri leads us in points and RBs. Smik gets 10.6 assists per game, #1 in the nation.

At 3-1 Nebraska next. They’re good outside.

[Wayne23]

11/25: We’re sluggish early. Up 2 after 10. 49-37 at the half. We woke up late. 11, 7 for Nate, 10, 3 for Prin, 9, 4 for Irri. Big edge inside.

Looking good early. Up 12 with 10 to play. Strong finish!

101-80. 18, 6 for Irri, 16 each for Nate, Harp, and Prin.

Marq Harp came up to me after the game and said he should be starting. I said he was playing really well and I’d bring it up with the staff.

I did, and he will start at SF.

We’re home vs. #12 UAB, 5-1. They’re very good, especially outside.

11/29: We make the top 25, listed at #25!

It’s a battle early, then we take the lead. Up 9 after 10. 60-47 at halftime. 13, 5 for Irri, 11, 3, 3, 4 for Harp in his first start, 12 for Prin. +32 down low.

Up 19 with 10 to go. Putting them away easily late.

113-100, but that was as close as they got. 26, 10, 4 blocks for Irri, 25, 4, 3, 4 for Harp, 17, 5 for Prin, 16, 3 for Nate. An amazing 86 in the paint.

“Billie Bob Cramer, WNOL here after the game with Coach Cash. Coach, you do nearly all the damage inside.”

“We’re very strong inside. I’d like Caes and Syle to score more, and we try to make that happen, but our big guys are so good at going to the hoop that it’s hard to move away from that.”

“What happens when the other team stops your inside game?”

“Well, except for UConn in the Elite Eight last season that hasn’t really happened. If it does we’ll go to our guards. They know how to score.”

“What made you decide to put Marq Harp in the starting lineup?”

“He was ready. As a freshman we wanted to give him some time. He kept getting better and better and it reached the point where we couldn’t NOT start him.”

“Should you have used that approach with Del Caes?”

“Maybe. He’s playing well though and he’s such a good defender that even when he doesn’t score many points he gives us so much.”

“Thanks Coach.”

At 5-2 DePaul next. We feel like they’re good but we should own the paint.

12/2: Small lead early. Up 11 after 10. Late run. 57-33 at the half. 19, 4 for Nate, 12, 6 for Harp. Huge edge inside.

Up 34 with 10 to play. This is a walk in the park.

105-73. 26, 14 for Irri, 27, 8 for Nate, 20, 9 for Harp. 15 assists for Smik. 82 in the lane.

3-3 Belmont is here. They have talent but they have had a disappointing season so far.

12/6: We score the first 9. Up 15 after 10. 65-35 at the break. It’s a walkover. 14, 4 for Harp, 10, 5 for Irri, 11, 1, 3 foe Caes. We own the paint.

Up 32 with 10 left. We get it to 40.

116-78. 22, 12 for Irri, 18, 6 for Harp. 14 assists for Smik. 46 for the bench. 90 in the paint!

8-1, #22, NET #4, which is way too high.

Still #1 in PPG and RBs, #2 in assists, #3 in shooting pct.

Irri still leads us in scoring and RBs. 12.1 assists for Smik, still #1 in the country.

At 4-2 Houston. They’re very good outside.

[Wayne23]

12/9: We take a quick lead. Up 13 after 10. 64-41 at the break. 19, 8 for Nate. Total control inside.

Up 23 with 10 left. Another walkover.

123-89. 31, 6 for Irri, 23, 8 for Nate, 22, 6 for Harp, 19, 7 for Prin. 90 in the paint.

“Dan Dee, ENPS, here with the postgame. Coach Ally Cash, do you have the best front court in the country?”

“I don’t know about that but we have a pretty excellent front court.”

“Your big guys scored 110 tonight. That’s all but unbelievable.”

“They can get it going.”

“It seems like you started a little slow this season then you kind of exploded into a very, very good team.”

“It took us awhile to get the right lineup in there. Starting Marq Harp really made a difference.”

“You lost your opener and haven’t lost since, 9-1. Can you run the table on the regular season?”

“I doubt it. We’re playing some really good teams this season and we’re in a pretty good conference.”

“At #9 Seton Hall pretty soon, and we’ll have that game right here on ENPS. Thanks Coach.”

At 6-1 Central Florida. All 5 starters average in double digits.

12/13: It’s close early. Up 7 after 10. They come back, we press. 39-49 at the half. 3 fouls for Harp. They’ve hit 8 threes and that’s the difference.

Not closing the gap early. Down 11 with 10 to play. We’re getting closer.

92-93. We missed an open 16 footer at the end. 21, 6 for Harp, 15, 11 for Irri, 16, 9 for Prin, 15, 7 for Nate. The difference was they hit 8 threes and were +8 at the line. They definitely beat us outside.

“Bobbi Sue Barker, WNOU. Coach, 2 losses, by 3 points and 1 point.”

“We need to win the close ones, we’re 1-2 in those.”

“Are you too inside focused?”

“Probably. We work at practice every day on getting more production outside but it doesn’t seem to translate into happening during games. It’s an issue.”

“Still, 9-2 isn’t bad.”

“No, not bad, considering our tough schedule, but no coach likes to lose. We’ll learn from it and get better.”

“Thanks Coach.”

At #8 Seton Hall, 11-1. They’re very good, especially outside.

12/20: Close early. A run puts us up 10 after 10. 50-36 at halftime. 21, 3 for Irri, 13, 6 for Nate. Caes has 3 fouls. Huge edge inside and we’re containing their outside game.

We get it to 20. Up 19 with 10 to go.

101-75. BIG win! 33, 10 for Irri, 23, 9, 3 for Nate, 11, 7 for Harp. +12 for the bench. 80 in the paint.

“Dan Dee, ENPS, here after the game with Coach Cash. Coach, you lost to one of the weakest teams on your schedule then you wiped the floor with the #8 team in the country. How do you explain that?”

“Some nights you just don’t click. We almost pulled that game out on a night when not much was working for us, but we didn’t quite get there. Tonight everything was working.”

“You get very little from your backcourt. Any thought of going to a one guard set?”

“The staff has discussed it but we’re winning most of our games. Also, those guards dish the ball really well and they both play good D. It’s about a lot more than scoring.”

“Thanks Coach.”

At 5-4 Georgia in our last pre-conf. game. They have a very good PG.

12/27: Close early. Up by 6 after 10. 39-35 at the half. 16, 4 for Nate. Caes has 3 fouls.

“Go to the press some.”

Up 7 with 10 to play.

88-76. They were pesky. 23, 7 for Nate, 14, 5 for Harp. 10 assists for Smik. Big edge inside.

We end pre-conference play at 11-2, #19, NET #1.

#1 in PPG, 102.9, +20.7. #1 in RBs, +15.5, #1 in assists, #1 in shooting pct. -2.3 TOs but a terrific 9.6.

Irri leads us with 21.8 points and 8.8 RBs. 16.1, 6.2 for Nate, 14.5, 5.8 for Harp, 13.1, 5.5 for Prin, 10.2, 5.9 for Hinn. Smik gets 11.6 assists, still #1 in the country.

We start MWC play with 5-6 Fresno ST here. I don’t think they can handle our inside game.

[Wayne23]

1/2/2024: They take a quick lead. Down 6 after 10. We go to the press and catch up. 55-41 at halftime. Balanced scoring.

“I love the way you hung tough and came back. Down 10 then turned it around and now you’re up 14.”

We get it to 20 early. Up 15 with 10 to go.

120-87. 24, 8, 3, 3 for Harp, 23, 6 for Irri, 17, 8 for Nate, 16, 3 for Caes, 14 for Prin. 92 in the paint!

At 11-2, 1-0 Utah ST. They have excellent guards and a good C.

1/4: Early lead. Up 10 after 10. 58-42 at the half. 16, 7 for Irri, 12, 6, 4 for Prin, 10, 7 for Harp. We own the paint.

Up 23 with 10 to play.

117-87. 24, 14 for Prin, 28, 9 for Harp, 20, 8 for Irri, 12, 6 for Hinn, 11, 8 for Nate. 90 in the paint.

#16 New Mexico, 13-2, 2-0, is here. They’re very good inside.

We’re #21.

1/9: Early lead. Up 11 after 10. 55-38 at the break. 14, 5 for Prin, 12, 4 for Harp, 10, 4 for Irri. We’re beating up on their big guys.

Up 28 with 10 left.

107-70. Great win over a good team. 26, 10 for Harp, 20, 9 for Prin, 20, 5, 5 blocks for Irri, 16, 12 for Nate.

“Billie Bob Cramer, WNOL. Coach, you showed again tonight that you have one of the best front courts in the country. New Mexico’s front court came in with a great reputation and your big guys just buried them.”

“Our big guys can play, that’s for sure.”

“You stepped way up in moving to the MWC. Can you win it?”

“We’ve got a home and home with San Diego ST that will probably decide that.”

“Thanks Coach.”

F/C Coy Prin came up to me after the game and wanted more playing time. I talked it over with the staff and we’re going to give him some time at SG. He handles the ball pretty well. Caes will still start but when Prin isn’t backing up the big guys he’ll play SG.

At 4-11, 1-2 Air Force.

1/11: Close early. Up 8 after 10. 58-31 at halftime. 15, 3 for Prin, 12, 4 for Harp.

Up 35 with 10 to go.

99-67. 25, 6 for Prin, 20, 12 for Harp, 18, 3 for Caes, 12 each for Irri and Nate.

15-2, 4-0, alone in 1st in the MWC.

Next up is our main rival, #7 San Diego ST, 12-3, 3-1, here. On paper they’re a lot better than us. We’ll see!