Possibly... But I like how well Anthony can shoot off the dribble, at age 19 or whatever. Stackhouse was more of a dunker/slasher. It's hard to compare Anthony to any player in the NBA, because of his size and versatility on offense. I think he reminds me somewhat of Caron Butler from last year.
Stack has evolved into a great athletic player. Physically, he is in te top 5 in the league. Magnificent athlete. If there were a one-on-one tourney in the league, Stack would do well. I agree with the Butler comparison; Mello is an inch taller, a little less muscular, but has a much more developed offensive game.
Stack has always been a phenomenal athlete. He has great body control when in the air, as well. Anthony is athletic for his size, but not THAT athletic all in all. He's definitely one of the tougher players to compare to.
I don't think there's anything wrong with the team. They just ran into a team that wouldn't miss. They beat or were within seconds of beating most of the top teams in the nation all year, home or road. They made it to the Final Four, and they get all their starters back. Hard to complain.
I hope I am wrong but I think UT missed there chance. The only #1 seed in a final 4--couldn't have been set up any better than that. You might think I am wrong but here is something to ponder--Do you think Keith Bogans, Jason Gardner, Luke Walton, Hollis Price, Ere, or Quannas White ever dreamed they would have ended their careers not taking home a NC--let alone not even making a final 4 their senior year? Given parity in college BB, you have to get a little lucky and be ready to take advantage of your oppertunnities. TJ's UT team may never have a more open path then they had this year and failed to seize. We will see.
It's hard to win a title without a go-to scorer. Mouton did his best to match Carmelo. Last year, the Terps had Dixon. In 2001, Duke had Battier, Boozer, and Williams. MSU had Morris Peterson. UConn had Hamilton. See what I mean? Next year we've got two transfers. One guy's Australian, who ended up not playing this year at Auburn. He's supposed to be Sydmill type outside shooting specialist. Don't know much about the other guy, Moreno. Also, Chris Wright should finally see the court, adding some more inside scoring. I'm expecting big things from Brad Buckman next year as well.
Definitely. It seems like a lot of UT fans at Hornfans.com think reaching the Final Four next year is a foregone conclusion... It's hard to go back to the Final 4 in successive years when you have teams gunning for you all season long.
Well, this isn't the NBA Scar. Great players only stay around for a couple of years in college. If you have a good program/coach, you can have potentially numerous chances. Even if Ford doesn't get any farther than he did this year, the potential is still there with Barnes along with the high school talent in Texas. Of the players you mentioned, maybe those specific guys didn't come out on top, but you know that Kentucky, Arizona, and probably OU will always be right there, just with a different cast.
You can analyze the game and the Horns all you want to, but there is one and only one reason they aren't playing Kansas - 13 for 22 from the FT stripe in the second half (59.1%). The Horns took the lead, Syracuse started to panic, Texas missed FT's and the pressure on Syracuse evaporated.
That and Brad Buckman fouled out, and Syracuse shot 57% and Carmelo Anthony was playing like a 30 year old NBA vet. Those are the reasons. I knew we were in trouble when Buckman fouled out, he knew exactly where to be to receive passes in the zone and he could hit that jumper from the free throw line, the one open spot in the zone.
I agree Freak, I am just pointing out weird and unpredictable things happen in college BB. I mean seriously, Bogans, Price, Walton, & Gardner were some darn fine senior leaders on some darn fine college BB teams--yet none will leave with a ring nor finish their careers in the Final Four. To think Texas can just roll the ball out on the court and be assured of a return to the final 4 is just unrealistic. Personally, I think Texas has the players, they just need a little better chemistry and growth. If TJ just gets that top of the key Bobby Hurely-esk consistent jumper in the offseason that would make a world of difference. Still, you have to have all the right peices, work hard, stay healthy (this hurt Price, Walton and Bogans), and get a little lucky to get a shot at the NC--that was my main point.
That Maryland team also had a low post threat in Baxter and a shot blocker in Wilcox. Byron Mouton is solid as well.
pgabriel - There is obviously no way I can prove it, but think about it... Syracuse won by 11 but it should have really only been no more than 9 - the last 2 were just "piling on" points. Had the Horns shot 83% of their second half FTA's like Syracuse did, they would have had an additional 5 of that 9 back...and that doesn't even factor in the front ends of several 1 pluses which they missed. Anthony is good no doubt, but a lot of his confidence and swagger (as well as productivity) took a severe hit when UT was close or ahead. IMHO, making the FT's wins the game regardless of Anthony or Buckman. I'm sure that in part I'm being a "hata" because UT lost, but I can't imagine Anthony will get the same numbers vs Kansas. And one reason will be that KU will not get behind big early in the game.
