MBB Final: Louisiana 73, GSU 84

[IberiaCajun]

I just feel bad for UL basketball. I really do. There is no money to buy the big fish out and the program suffers year after year as long as Bobby is at the helm. It truly is a sad situation.
It’s like he is holding the program hostage.
Geaux Cajuns.

Long suffering Cajun basketball fans commiserate!

[ZoomZoom]

Hopefully he doesn't get a next year.

Word I've heard is replacing Bob is not even a topic.

Know it sucks, I'm more concerned about softball. Something is not right with our best performing program over the decades.

[Cajunsmike]

You and I tend to agree most the time, which is the case here. When we tied it up, especially that quick, knew we were gassed.

And the rule about officiating is simple...never put yourself for an offical to determine the outcome. A call here or there wasn't 11 points. The phantom foul late in the game was horrible, we had the ball trapped deep in the corner, Ga St would of burned a TO. But it did not cost us the game.

I do like some of the chemistry seen the last two days going into next year. Props to Cedric, dude was worn down the last few weeks.

Could Bob have the guys prepared better? Yes. But championships are not won out coaching and playing a team only a half.

Georgia State big men hitting all the mid range shots was something we could not adjust to in first half. We did a better job containing that in second half but yes champions can adjust during the game regardless of how difficult it is. Check your PM.

[Cajunsmike]

Mike, I thought Harper was a point guard. Who did Marlin recruit for a point guard last year, and the year before, and ... He has had 10 years to recruit point guards. So, you are saying the reason we lost is because Au was injured?

No, we needed to recruit a better point guard than AU to have more success. Not bringing one ready to play during recruiting last year was a mistake. We did bring in Thomas but he is a long way off from making a meaningful contribution. Perhaps he can by the time he is a junior. AU was playing out of position at point. He was an off guy with a strong perimeter shot in JUCO. Still, he was better than anyone we had at that position so he went with him. Harper may develop into a point guard but he is a pure freshman who only joined the team in December. He seemed to hit the freshman wall late in the year. I still think of him as a combo guy however. His development in off season will be important to the success of the team going forward.

[Cajunsmike]

Mike, I thought Harper was a point guard. Who did Marlin recruit for a point guard last year, and the year before, and ... He has had 10 years to recruit point guards. So, you are saying the reason we lost is because Au was injured?

By the way, we have had Elfrid Payton, Jay Wright, and Marcus Stroman at point the last few years. All were strong contributors. We have been without one of that caliber the last two years. Hopefully that is not the case next season.

[ZoomZoom]

Georgia State big men hitting all the mid range shots was something we could not adjust to in first half. We did a better job containing that in second half but yes champions can adjust during the game regardless of how difficult it is. Check your PM.

8:40

[axg8750]

Agree Georgia STate was quicker team. That was a factor in fouls. However when a guy grabs Russell by the waist and no foul was called you shake your head. Overall, though officials were not the reason the CAjuns lost. Panthers are also more skilled inside as evidenced by their guys hitting mid range shots to give them lead. Game was lost in first half when Cajuns struggled on both sides of court. I was not surprised Cajuns made a run to get back into it as they were not going to go down easily. Also, not surprised they faltered late as too much energy was expended to tie game. Obviously legs were tired at end. That happens commonly in basketball. Momentum was lost when Malik missed 2 free throws with chance to take lead. Still, Wilson was our best overall player in tournament in my view. Obvious a true point guard is needed for team to improve as lack of one is why half court offense struggled at times this year. That will be a focus in spring recruiting.

So...are you looking forward to yet another Cajun basketball season with Coach Marlin?

[cajuns80]

No, we needed to recruit a better point guard than AU to have more success. Not bringing one ready to play during recruiting last year was a mistake. We did bring in Thomas but he is a long way off from making a meaningful contribution. Perhaps he can by the time he is a junior. AU was playing out of position at point. He was an off guy with a strong perimeter shot in JUCO. Still, he was better than anyone we had at that position so he went with him. Harper may develop into a point guard but he is a pure freshman who only joined the team in December. He seemed to hit the freshman wall late in the year. I still think of him as a combo guy however. His development in off season will be important to the success of the team going forward.

I doubt Michael thomas or Wesley are on the team next year.

[Duggie35]

No, we needed to recruit a better point guard than AU to have more success. Not bringing one ready to play during recruiting last year was a mistake. We did bring in Thomas but he is a long way off from making a meaningful contribution. Perhaps he can by the time he is a junior. AU was playing out of position at point. He was an off guy with a strong perimeter shot in JUCO. Still, he was better than anyone we had at that position so he went with him. Harper may develop into a point guard but he is a pure freshman who only joined the team in December. He seemed to hit the freshman wall late in the year. I still think of him as a combo guy however. His development in off season will be important to the success of the team going forward.

Can we just pull Eric Mouton out of the broadcast booth and get him back onto the court again instead?

[NewsCopy]

The Louisiana men's basketball team fell short to Georgia State in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament semifinals after mounting a huge second-half comeback.

The rest of the story
ESPN 1420

[Cajunsmike]

So...are you looking forward to yet another Cajun basketball season with Coach Marlin?

I look forward to every season regardless who is coach. At my age, don’t know how long I will be able to keep my health strong enough to do so. I enjoy analyzing what happened whether good or bad. I no longer let losses ruin my day or let a victory be the key part of the day. Family time is always priority now. Losing a sibling 10 years younger than I brought that priority into clearer focus.

[Cajunsmike]

I doubt Michael thomas or Wesley are on the team next year.

You are probably right on that but as season just ended I didn’t want to speculate on future of different guys. However now that we have begun that discussion, I will say Spenkuch may not be here either. Trajan may not be on team but if so it may be because he realizes his feet will never allow him to play again.