Consolation Comment Count

Brian

Well, that sucked, all of it. My favorite part was the foul on a box out. My second favorite part was the color guy saying Griffin had a "quiet" 32 and 15 or whatever when the announcing team couldn't go 15 seconds without suggesting Griffin be elected president of Awesomeonia. My third favorite part was death in the CCHA tournament.

But at least the other results in college hockey tonight fell in such a way that the most likely bracket facing Michigan tomorrow is:

1. Michigan
4. Air Force

2. Yale
3. Vermont

So there's that.

Comments

MaizeAndBlueWahoo

March 21st, 2009 at 10:48 PM ^

LOL at "quiet 32/15." Glad I wasn't the only one who thought that was hilarious. I think the broadcast went something like this:

"Blake Griffin Blake Griffin Blake Griffin Blake Griffin Taylor Griffin Blake Griffin michigan Blake Griffin Blake Griffin Blake Griffin's parents Blake Griffin Blake Griffin Blake Griffin's parents again Blake Griffin Blake Griffin."

lhglrkwg

March 21st, 2009 at 10:54 PM ^

i hate commentators. They were all over the whole griffin family and the guys doing the ccha game were all over notre dames nuts. all over. just constant blabbering about notre dames heart and desire and championship caliber. didn't hear much of that when we were up 2-0

Jill

March 21st, 2009 at 10:55 PM ^

Griffin = Steroids

Don't they test in the NCAA? I don't mean to sound like a sore loser, but the calls were horrific as well as the announcing. And Griffin? Test the urine. The guy bruises and bleeds like he's juiced. IMO.

downst

March 21st, 2009 at 11:09 PM ^

I'm happy to see someone call it like it is.

Had we been called for all the fouls we had on that guy we would have been into the bench about 5 minutes into the half.

We had absolutely no way to defend Griffin except to go out and push the limits as to how physical the refs would let the game get. They let it go pretty far in my opinion.

We need to get bigger and I'm sure we will in the future. Until then, thanks to the team for exceeding my expectations.

60blue

March 21st, 2009 at 11:15 PM ^

I thought the bloodied player had to come out of the game until the bleeding stopped. The refs stopped the game and waited for Griffin to find an arm sleeve the first time (which he bled through) and get gauze for his nose 2 other times. Not to mention he had blood on his shorts too. Did they change this rule without my knowledge?

Jill

March 21st, 2009 at 11:44 PM ^

Funny, I'm reading your post thinking "yeah, everything stopped for him to get that sleeve", "yeah, the nose bleeds", "yeah, HE BLED THROUGH THE SLEEVE", but I never thought anyone else saw the blood on the shorts!!! I'm yelling at my husband "WHY IS HE ON THE COURT WITH BLOOD??"

Anyhow, he came out 2nd half with bloodless clothing. But hey, everybody thinks with the little head when it comes to GRIFFIN.

You must be in the medical field . . .

PelinkaFan

March 21st, 2009 at 11:08 PM ^

Yeah, it was disappointing, but we didn't lose because of the refs. Yeah, there were maybe some questionable calls here and there (like the box out), but the fact is we got beat by a better team, and even with better refs we probably still lose that game. As for the Griffin love, the guy's the national player of the year, you have to expect some slobbering. And given that he went for 33 and 17 on us, he probably deserved it. Great season though, I'm proud of this team. Can't wait for next year.

PelinkaFan

March 22nd, 2009 at 11:01 AM ^

whoa relax. When the very first thing you mention about the game is a bad call by the ref, and not the fact that we missed 14 shots in a row or whatever, had no answer for Griffin, etc, the implication is that you're at least placing a large share of the blame on the refs. Maybe that's not what you meant, and it's possible I was projecting a lot of the other ref whining I'd been reading onto your post. If so, I apologize. No need to turn this into the rivals/scout board though by calling me an asshole.

AnthonyC

March 22nd, 2009 at 11:45 AM ^

...but last time I checked Brian can do whatever the hell he wants with his website.

And while I am being frank, that was the basketball equivalent of the Alamo Bowl. Michigan went cold for 5 minutes but so did Oklahoma at times. Everyone makes runs. Michigan played good enough to win, nevermind the fact that Manny played 21 minutes because of cheap fouls and Sims had to miss significant time after getting raked in the face.

Rewatch the game and count how many times Griffin is in the lane 6 seconds, let alone 3.

People have the right to feel ripped off in this one.

PelinkaFan

March 22nd, 2009 at 12:38 PM ^

You're right, it's Brian's site and he can do whatever the hell he wants, and as long as he continues to open up the comments section, I'll feel free to comment on what he writes.

Look, I'm not trying to start some flame war here or anything, but I think reasonable people can disagree. I watched the game and I just don't think that the refs had a ton to do with us losing. Yes Manny was in foul trouble, but both of those initial calls that put him on the bench for all of the first half were legit, imo. Blake Griffin is the player of the year, and we had no answer for him. That's why we lost. I'm not saying there weren't bad calls--there were, but that's part of the game, just like the runs you mentioned. The fact is we weren't good enough inside, and for that reason I think if we played Oklahoma 10 times, we'd lose 9. That's just my take, which is what I was trying to express. If you disagree, that's fine. I love the site, I think Brian's great, it was nothing personal.

InterM

March 22nd, 2009 at 1:52 PM ^

Nothing in the original post invited any debate about whether the refs did or didn't cost us the game. Yet, if you even mention calls -- or, apparently, if you even mention a SINGLE call, in a sentence spanning all of ten words -- you can be sure that someone will accuse you of making excuses for losing. This straw man gets tiresome, to say the least, and I assume Brian sees more of it than you or I do. Of course, it's "nothing personal" -- I'll just title my post, "C'mon Brian" and attribute something to him that he didn't write -- because, of course, he doesn't know how to write well enough to say what he REALLY means. And then, I can always explain later, hey, that's just how I read it, and that's because of all the other whining excuse-makers who post on this site. Thanks for the clarification -- now how 'bout you STFU?

PelinkaFan

March 22nd, 2009 at 11:07 AM ^

Not even close. At least everything they said focused on his abilities as a basketball player. In fact, I would say the Griffin love didn't even come close to what you hear about Hansbrough on any given UNC broadcast. The Tebow crap is beyond belief, because it goes beyond football and makes him sound like Jesus Christ himself. They say stuff like "spending 5 minutes with this young man will make you a better person.." "He's had experiences that no other 22 year old in the world could have had..." etc.

Yeah, the Griffin stuff is annoying, but this sounds like sour grapes to some extent--the guy is the national player of the year and just went for 33 and 17 on us. I'd say he deserves a lot of it.

MichiganExile

March 22nd, 2009 at 5:32 PM ^

The Griffin love was annoying in the fact that he wasn't wearing maize and blue. He is by all accounts a monster bball player and the praise for him was pretty much just about his basketball skills and I don't mind it a whole lot. Every time someone makes the comment that Tim Tebow cures cancer with his tears and is God's gift to humanity because he circumcises indigent children in other countries I want to choke a pregnant woman just out of spite.

BigBum

March 21st, 2009 at 11:36 PM ^

Couldn't have been a worse weekend.

The outcome of the game was controlled by two things. The inside presence of OK and what the refs wanted to call. Manny drove and got hacked...nothing. You breathe on Griffin and your sitting with 2 fouls 5 minutes into the game. Look at the stats...Michigan had FOUR players with three fouls and the only foul trouble OK had was Griffin with 3. I can't recall the last time Manny fouled out let alone CJ too. How about the tech on us when the entire world was expecting it on the "other" Griffin?

Our two best players sitting on the bench for long periods of time but...we all KNOW that Beilein said hack? No. Tebow...I mean Griffin was untouchable because they let him be.

Now, nowhere did I say we lost because of the refs. I say we had no chance because of how they protected him. We lost because we didn't shoot well and didn't rebound well.

SpartanDan

March 22nd, 2009 at 12:28 AM ^

No idea what happened to trigger it, but it was pretty obvious that Taylor Griffin was about to get a T ... and suddenly Michigan got one for reasons that were never explained at all, much less to any degree of satisfaction.

mfan_in_ohio

March 21st, 2009 at 11:45 PM ^

Ok, this is unrelated to the basketball game, but...

No way do we get Air Force in the first round. The committee is not going to make BU, by far the top seed, play a CCHA team just to avoid an intraconference matchup. More likely, they will flip Miami and Princeton to make it:
1. Michigan
4. Princeton

2. Yale
3. Miami

If nothing else, that's better than what it was going into the day, which was playing Minnesota in Minneapolis in round 1.

InterM

March 22nd, 2009 at 2:05 PM ^

Brian's prediction: Michigan/Air Force, Yale/Vermont

You: "No way" does this happen, and the committee won't make BU play a CCHA team.

BU's opponent: Ohio State

Next time try to be more definitive.

harmon98

March 21st, 2009 at 11:47 PM ^

Blake Griffin was bleeding 10W-30 pennzoil. he's a machine. good luck to anyone else stopping that beast.

could've used relford, wade, traylor down low to have a chance. we were overmatched and there's no shame in it.

the foul on the clinic box out was ridic. as were several others but I rather suspect our fate was sealed w/ cyborg griffin all night long.

how about tony wright though! beilien's gonna get some 'cruits and we'll be solid. helluva night.

SilentObserver

March 22nd, 2009 at 12:02 AM ^

I feel really good about our depth next year. Even though today may have just been an anomaly for him, Wright looks to be a legit scoring bench player who will be able to back up Peedi at the 4 spot.

Also, after a full year of battling guys 3-4 inches taller than himself, Novak is going to be a b*tch to guard for opposing players at the 3-position. He'll be able to use his physicality in the post in addition to his outside shooting ability.

sonofsaxon

March 22nd, 2009 at 12:05 AM ^

This always happens in basketball. Whenever you play against a star you not only play against one of the best players in the country, you play the refs too. If that's not bad enough, you have to listen to the announcers gargle their balls. Lebron, Kobe, Celtics as a unit, I havn't watched Hansborough alot but I can almost guarentee it's the same thing. Griffin, while very good, got every call against him and for him.

MaizeAndBlueWahoo

March 22nd, 2009 at 12:18 AM ^

Ask a non-Carolina ACC fan and they'll tell you Hansbrough never actually dribbles, because he is exempt from the rule that requires mortal men to do that. Ask the Carolina fan and he'll basically agree, and add that it's about time someone other than Duke was allowed to moonwalk across the floor.

MichFan1997

March 22nd, 2009 at 12:09 AM ^

but if it's any consolation (see what i did there?) to any of you who didn't read the board, Steve Luke, the Michigan 174 pound wrestler, was crowned national champion tonight!!

tricks574

March 22nd, 2009 at 12:18 AM ^

Steve Luke won a National title today, breaking a whopping 4 year drought without a National title for Michigan.

Plus, if I could have guaranteed at this time last year that Michigan would lose by 10 in the 2nd round of the NCAA tournament, you would have said it would have been a very, very good season. I know its impossible to be happy after a loss, but they exceeded all expectations anyone had before the season. It was a great season, and next year will be even better.

Michigan basketball underwent a huge change this year, and now only are they fun to watch and actually successful, but, perhaps even more importantly, is actually composed of like-able players. How can you help but love the 2 former walk-ons outplaying anyones expectations for them, or gritty freshman, in over their head, knocking down gritty 3's in crunch time against Duke? Even the 2 stars of the team were incredible team players, playing out of position most of the time, guarding more physical players, and consistently playing unselfish basketball. Michigan basketball is back, and its here to stay

In Beilein we trust.

MGoMarc

March 22nd, 2009 at 1:09 AM ^

Sportscenter showing all Blake Griffin highlights, no Michigan highlights and making it look like it was a blowout. Although, not a surprise.

bronxblue

March 22nd, 2009 at 8:47 AM ^

Sportscenter does that all the time - they have a storyline already written, so they just splice the tape to make the narrative work. I actually saw this pretty egregiously during the "highlights" of an exhibition game with the Baltimore Orioles and some other team. The only highlights were two Oriole home runs and the other team striking out, yet the final score showed the Orioles losing by 3. Made absolutely no sense to me. So the fact they made this close, hard-fought game look like a blow-out doesn't surprise me.

FrankMurphy

March 22nd, 2009 at 1:30 AM ^

We played above and beyond our talent level all year. Beilein maximized the potential of this team and left absolutely nothing on the table.

It was an excellent season. The future is bright. GO BLUE.

lunchboxthegoat

March 22nd, 2009 at 3:11 AM ^

okay, I was at work and all but I completely lost a day of CCHA coverage. I honestly thought I just heard about M beating Alaska tonight. Apparently that was yesterday. Boy do afternoons suck.

SilentObserver

March 22nd, 2009 at 8:56 AM ^

Sometimes I wonder what it would sound like if the announcers could actually say what's on their mind. I don't understand when a game is clearly not being called evenly how they can continue to praise Griffin and the Sooners. I mean after Manny's last charging foul they praised the OU player for "shuffling" over and drawing the foul. I mean c'mon they know basketball well enough to know what an oxymoron that is. The best example I can remember of announcers was the the Alamo Bowl debacle, when the announcers (can't remember who called that game) were ripping the refs a new one (and rightfully so).

MC Hammer

March 22nd, 2009 at 12:03 PM ^

Sean McDonough always says what's on his mind, so I don't understand what you mean when you say if they "could actually say." He goes after the refs all the time.

As for the Crocker "shuffling" over and drawing the charge, that is not an oxymoron at all.

There's a difference between stepping in and taking a charge which is what gets people talking about putting the NBA circle in (when the offensive player beats his man off the dribble and the help defender is there to take the charge). Stepping in means to get in front of the guy before he takes off and not moving and basically letting yourself get knocked over.

The charge that Crocker took that fouled Harris out of the game was one of "beating his man to the spot." This kind of charge requires "shuffling over." As long as Crocker stayed in front of Harris (which he did IIRC), Harris can't bowl him over like he did. The reason it didn't look like a charge is because Crocker didn't try to act like he had just been shot. It was just a sound defensive play, and a frustration move by Harris.

Yinka Double Dare

March 22nd, 2009 at 6:18 PM ^

Your feet don't have to be set to draw a charge. On first look I thought it was a bad call but on the replay it was pretty clearly a reasonable call. The guy stayed in front of Manny the whole way and Manny just ran him over.

Now, some of the earlier calls on Manny I did not so much agree with, but the last one I think was just Manny trying to do too much, which at that point of the game in that situation is pretty understandable -- he wanted to make a play for his team and was going to the basket no matter what. The guy just beat him to his path by staying in front of him.