I just saw this reply for the first time last night, so now I can reply.
I'm the one who doesn't know what he's talking about? In a conversation with you, YOU, really? The guy who said without a doubt Mr. Painter will make a Final Four, no doubt. The guy who just this fall listed Purdue's football schedule, talked about how weak it was and that Purdue had "a chance to be in every game" and could win 8 game this year. And you say I don't know what I'm talking about. But let's go on to just this reply. . . .
Your quote is "you thought we should've gone to the Final Four as a 10 seed." You are strongly implying that it's impossible to get to the FF as a 10 seed. Is it really? Wasn't Syracuse a 10-seed just last year. Also, three 11-seeds have made the FF: LSU, George Mason and VCU. Does anyone remember what Big Ten team coached by what coach that 11-seed VCU EMBARRASSED on its way to the Final Four? Can you remember ,TC43, that time a less than 10 seed VCU made it to the FF?
Now back to Purdue losing to Kansas, as I remember it (I might be wrong, but confident here). Purdue up three with under two minutes to go. Does Painter keep trying to score? NO! Let's pull it out and try to piss away the shot clock with two guys trying to trap up top. We don't advance the ball past the free throw line extended, therefore putting no pressure on the D to defend the basket. Let's just keep letting Lewis Jackson keep dribbling the ball 1 against 2. What happens? They steal it and go down and dunk because (as opposed to getting a defensive rebound) when you steal it out top, there is no defense back.
So Painter does the same thing again. They steal it again and score another layup. We're now down one. We don't score. End of season.
If we had won that game, we would (as a 10 seed) been playing North Carolina State the 11-seed. I really, really would have liked our chances in that game. If we beat NC State, we would have played North Caroline to get to the Final Four, a NC team that Kansas beat by 13, 13 points! Now, we can't assume we would have beaten North Carolina, 1-seed, but I would have liked to take our chances there. I would say that our chances in that game were, at worst, 1 in 3.
Painter's inability to understand that you have to threaten to score against pressure defense cost us a coulda, woulda, shoulda chance at a Final Four that year. That Painter didn't get, and STILL DOESN'T GET that you MUST attack pressure defense is his biggest failing as a coach. It has killed us time and time again. Why can't he learn this? I am not exaggerating here: I believe 50% of the high school coaches in Indiana could coach how to handle pressure defense better than Painter.
Yes, I know a little something, a little more than you, about basketball.
