No...what we are saying is as much as we appreciate Siva the Guard that lead us for just about the entire season was Russ Smith.

We just laugh at those that have elevated Peyton to CP3 status...the person that was a much bigger loss was Deing...now his replacement is a Projected Lottery Pick but still a loss.

(10-29-2013 03:32 PM)Tigeer Wrote:  I am with ZachMan - losers blame refs.

Make that 3 of us.

(10-29-2013 04:14 PM)Maize Wrote:  No...what we are saying is as much as we appreciate Siva the Guard that lead us for just about the entire season was Russ Smith.

We just laugh at those that have elevated Peyton to CP3 status...the person that was a much bigger loss was Deing...now his replacement is a Projected Lottery Pick but still a loss.

You didn't win the national championship based on what the team did during the regular season. It was the postseason run that began in the Big East tournament that put the team on a different level. Siva was the guy who ran the team and who did it exceptionally well. Smith was the 2-guard. Regardless of how many points he scored - and he wasn't Pete Maravichh out there - a 2-guard simply doesn't have the same impact on a game as the PG, especially one who played the position as well as Siva did last year.

You can laugh all you want, but I saw CP3 when he was in college. He never did for Wake Forest what Siva did for Louisville. In fact, they almost lost to Manhattan in the 2nd round when he was running their offense. And he never commanded the game from the defensive end the way that Siva did last year.

I have no idea why a Louisville would object to an observer of the college game heaping accolades on one of your players. Why would you respond with "He wasn't really that good."

I don't dispute at all that Dieng is a huge lost and I've said so any time I've posted about Louisville. So, how do you crow about how good the prospects are for Louisville but at the same time say that Dieng was even a bigger loss than Siva? When a team is losing 2 players who were that important to the success of last year's team, aren't you a little nervous that the replacements might not be up to the task?

(10-29-2013 04:41 PM)TripleA Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 03:32 PM)Tigeer Wrote:  I am with ZachMan - losers blame refs.

Make that 3 of us.

I hate how it constantly gets brought up by either Memphis or Louisville fans ad naseum as though there's some sort of reward for possibly, maybe, by the slimmest of chances someone on the internet is going to change their ******* minds about it. No one is, you either thought the game was bull**** or you don't, there's nothing left to figure out. No one is changing their minds, all arguments of a contrary position are ignored. I mean, it's a ******* internet rule for crying out loud (#11 iirc)! Yet here we are a year later and dipshits are still trying to validate losing or winning the game to the internet. THE ******* INTERNET! Get over it assclowns, you are the only ones who still care and you aren't going to change anyone's opinion.

As for my three Tiger brethren, we are TigerLegion damnit, how dare you try to play nice with Louisville fans! HOW DARE YOU!!!!!!1!

I think Louisville likely will lose some surprising games like they do most years. By the end of the year I think they'll be a high seed, although I don't know about a 1. As for repeating, that is beyond tough and the odds are definitely against UofL. While Siva had limitations and those often showed in regular season play, he really did step up to the ultimate level when it mattered most, and it is somewhat foolhardy to assume a replacement will immediately do the same, even if he maybe is a better athlete and/or scorer.

I'm still enjoying the fact that I got to witness my team win a national title in person 6 months ago and looking forward to seeing what this coming season brings.

(10-29-2013 05:18 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  I think Louisville likely will lose some surprising games like they do most years. By the end of the year I think they'll be a high seed, although I don't know about a 1. As for repeating, that is beyond tough and the odds are definitely against UofL. While Siva had limitations and those often showed in regular season play, he really did step up to the ultimate level when it mattered most, and it is somewhat foolhardy to assume a replacement will immediately do the same, even if he maybe is a better athlete and/or scorer.

I'm still enjoying the fact that I got to witness my team win a national title in person 6 months ago and looking forward to seeing what this coming season brings.

Says it all...Myself enjoying the fact that for the 3rd Time in my lifetime I was able to watch my team win its 3rd Title.

My only issue is not Siva...very important member but the complete lack of acknowledgement that Russ Smith was the most important backcourt member and lead us to the Final Four...hence the fact he was Regional MVP.

Also...laugh at the fact that some refuse to acknowledge that the Defending Champions lost less impact players than just about any Tournament Teams and not only brings in a Top Notch Recruiting Class but the 2012-2013 Co Captain and 2013 NCAA MOP in Luke Hancock.

It is what it is...Louisville is Ranked Top 3 and the only school that can go to a 3rd Straight Final Four and Defend the Title.

(10-29-2013 05:59 PM)Maize Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 05:18 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  I think Louisville likely will lose some surprising games like they do most years. By the end of the year I think they'll be a high seed, although I don't know about a 1. As for repeating, that is beyond tough and the odds are definitely against UofL. While Siva had limitations and those often showed in regular season play, he really did step up to the ultimate level when it mattered most, and it is somewhat foolhardy to assume a replacement will immediately do the same, even if he maybe is a better athlete and/or scorer.

I'm still enjoying the fact that I got to witness my team win a national title in person 6 months ago and looking forward to seeing what this coming season brings.

Says it all...Myself enjoying the fact that for the 3rd Time in my lifetime I was able to watch my team win its 3rd Title.

My only issue is not Siva...very important member but the complete lack of acknowledgement that Russ Smith was the most important backcourt member and lead us to the Final Four...hence the fact he was Regional MVP

I have news for you. The national championship was not won in the regionals. It was won in the game against Michigan, a game in which your most important backcourt member completely choked. When your job is to score points and you go 3-16 in the championship game, you are not your team's most important anything.

(10-29-2013 06:39 PM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 05:59 PM)Maize Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 05:18 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  I think Louisville likely will lose some surprising games like they do most years. By the end of the year I think they'll be a high seed, although I don't know about a 1. As for repeating, that is beyond tough and the odds are definitely against UofL. While Siva had limitations and those often showed in regular season play, he really did step up to the ultimate level when it mattered most, and it is somewhat foolhardy to assume a replacement will immediately do the same, even if he maybe is a better athlete and/or scorer.

I'm still enjoying the fact that I got to witness my team win a national title in person 6 months ago and looking forward to seeing what this coming season brings.

Says it all...Myself enjoying the fact that for the 3rd Time in my lifetime I was able to watch my team win its 3rd Title.

My only issue is not Siva...very important member but the complete lack of acknowledgement that Russ Smith was the most important backcourt member and lead us to the Final Four...hence the fact he was Regional MVP

I have news for you. The national championship was not won in the regionals. It was won in the game against Michigan, a game in which your most important backcourt member completely choked. When your job is to score points and you go 3-16 in the championship game, you are not your team's most important anything.

1. Don't get there without the play of Russ Smith
2. The most important player in that game was Luke Hancock...he plays last I check a lot of 2G and just happened to be the MVP...down low it was the play of Chane Behanan who is coming back sooner rather than later.
3. Back to the OP...ESPN said it best...Russ Smith on the College Level is impossible to guard and is the toughest match up in the nation...don't like that take email ESPN...

(10-29-2013 06:51 PM)Maize Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 06:39 PM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 05:59 PM)Maize Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 05:18 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  I think Louisville likely will lose some surprising games like they do most years. By the end of the year I think they'll be a high seed, although I don't know about a 1. As for repeating, that is beyond tough and the odds are definitely against UofL. While Siva had limitations and those often showed in regular season play, he really did step up to the ultimate level when it mattered most, and it is somewhat foolhardy to assume a replacement will immediately do the same, even if he maybe is a better athlete and/or scorer.

I'm still enjoying the fact that I got to witness my team win a national title in person 6 months ago and looking forward to seeing what this coming season brings.

Says it all...Myself enjoying the fact that for the 3rd Time in my lifetime I was able to watch my team win its 3rd Title.

My only issue is not Siva...very important member but the complete lack of acknowledgement that Russ Smith was the most important backcourt member and lead us to the Final Four...hence the fact he was Regional MVP

I have news for you. The national championship was not won in the regionals. It was won in the game against Michigan, a game in which your most important backcourt member completely choked. When your job is to score points and you go 3-16 in the championship game, you are not your team's most important anything.

1. Don't get there without the play of Russ Smith
2. The most important player in that game was Luke Hancock...he plays last I check a lot of 2G and just happened to be the MVP...down low it was the play of Chane Behanan who is coming back sooner rather than later.
3. Back to the OP...ESPN said it best...Russ Smith on the College Level is impossible to guard and is the toughest match up in the nation...don't like that take email ESPN...

Michigan didn't have much trouble guarding him, 3-16, 1-6 on 3's.

The fact that they wouldn't have gotten there without him is irrelevant. It's a team game; you can say that about a lot of guys. Fact is that Louisville wouldn't have won it if they had to depend on him.

Hancock was only important to the extent that he was unconscious from 3, but he didn't give the team anything else. If you think that his 6 shots determined the outcome of the game, then you weren't watching the same game I was.

The beauty of Siva was that he didn't have to score to control the outcome of a game. Look at his line in that game alone - 18 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals. AND he controlled the pace of the game. Without Siva, Hancock doesn't even get put in position to make those shots. Look at Hancock's line - 22 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 2 steals. AND he was a complementary player who was on the receiving end of the pass, not the one initiating the action.

1. With the new rules against hand checking good luck guarding him
2...Hell...without Luke Hancock and his 20 points in the Semi Finals against Wichita State we have along with his key defensive play we don't make it to the Finals...YouTube has both games and it refutes your dumb argument....that darn video tape but I digress...

(10-29-2013 01:40 PM)Lord2FLI Wrote:  I must have stuttered, allow me to repeat myself. Not a ******* person here will ever change their mind about how that game was officiated. Not any Louisville fans, not any Memphis fans, not any casual observers, why anyone continues to pretend they are debating it is beyond me.

You didn't stutter, but if you are going to make such a remark, start with the person who brought it up, not the one who responded to it.

(10-29-2013 02:50 PM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 10:16 AM)Maize Wrote:  Was surprised they had him over Marcus Smart....that why kind of laugh at some that say that our team was made by Peyton Siva...now make no mistake about it Peyton was very important but the Guard that carried us last year was Russ...the 1st Team All BIG EAST Player....the Midwest Region MVP and current Preseason All American...

Did you actually watch the Big East tournament? Did you see him break the tournament record for steals? There's a reason he was voted the tournament MVP . . . for the second year in a row!

No we didn't. We also didn't miss the rest of the year. Didn't miss how right after that, Russ set an NCAA record for steals. Or how he set a Louisville record for scoring in the NCAA tournament by scoring 20+ points in the first five games, while also scoring 20+ in two of the three Big East games, or how Russ had all of seven less steals on the season, and caused more opposing turnovers than any player in the country. We also did not miss how he was actually the more "Correct" MOP of the BE tourney until Siva set the steal record, nor how Siva had to be benched several times vs. Syracuse. We also did not miss how Russ was the Kenpom Player of the year for many of these reasons. We also saw how other players at different times, be it Russ, Chane Behannan, Luke Hancock, or Montrezl Harrell took over games. We also saw the other returning starter who has not even been mentioned yet, the other top returning guard who has not been mentioned, the other returning backup center who has not been mentioned, the current starting point guard not mentioned, two more highly touted guards yet to be mentioned, and another good looking freshmen.

We all so saw this because we saw EVERY game. You keep harping back to 2 or 3, and use the same talking points, which indicate your true exposure to the team was far less than those you are responding too, as well as your knowledge of the team, and it' personnel.

Russ Smith...will become the All Time Steals Leader in Louisville History very early this year...another thing is he was the 2nd Leading Scorer in the BIG EAST in the 2012-2013 Season...

(10-29-2013 06:39 PM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  I have news for you. The national championship was not won in the regionals. It was won in the game against Michigan, a game in which your most important backcourt member completely choked. When your job is to score points and you go 3-16 in the championship game, you are not your team's most important anything.

If that is your argument, on one game where a player went 3-16, then saying the loss of the player who went 6-15 doesn't exactly help your argument. Especially when the player who went 5-5 from three, a player who went 6-12 while collecting a double-double both return, as do 69% of the points from said game, and more than 50% of the rebounding, sort of a running theme for the season (70% of most stats return). But whatever, you will continue to make off the aspersions 3-4 games you saw, despite talking to people who watched all 40 games, the exhibitions, the public scrimmages, and have seen them for this season.

(10-30-2013 09:51 AM)adcorbett Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 06:39 PM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  I have news for you. The national championship was not won in the regionals. It was won in the game against Michigan, a game in which your most important backcourt member completely choked. When your job is to score points and you go 3-16 in the championship game, you are not your team's most important anything.

If that is your argument, on one game where a player went 3-16, then saying the loss of the player who went 6-15 doesn't exactly help your argument. Especially when the player who went 5-5 from three, a player who went 6-12 while collecting a double-double both return, as do 69% of the points from said game, and more than 50% of the rebounding, sort of a running theme for the season (70% of most stats return). But whatever, you will continue to make off the aspersions 3-4 games you saw, despite talking to people who watched all 40 games, the exhibitions, the public scrimmages, and have seen them for this season.

With the new rules I can't see how anyone will slow him down...if those rules were in place 3 years ago when Kemba Walker was @ UConn he would have been IMO twice the impact then he already was for them.

You now literally cannot put your hands on the ball handler..that was crazy last night.

Russ already made more free throws than any Cards player since Wes Unseld. I can only imagine what it will be like now.

But BTW, did you notice how opened up the game was in the second half? I guess it did work.

(10-29-2013 03:53 PM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 03:44 PM)HRFlossY Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 02:50 PM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  

(10-29-2013 10:16 AM)Maize Wrote:  Was surprised they had him over Marcus Smart....that why kind of laugh at some that say that our team was made by Peyton Siva...now make no mistake about it Peyton was very important but the Guard that carried us last year was Russ...the 1st Team All BIG EAST Player....the Midwest Region MVP and current Preseason All American...

Did you actually watch the Big East tournament? Did you see him break the tournament record for steals? There's a reason he was voted the tournament MVP . . . for the second year in a row! The only other player to win back-to-back tournament MVP's in Big East history was Patrick Ewing. That's pretty elite company.

You do understand that the most important player on the floor in a college basketball game is the point guard, right? Peyton Siva continued right through the NCAA tournament to do what he started in the Big East tournament. He ran the team. He was the one who made it go. If you didn't see that, I don't know why you're wasting your time watching college basketball. You're missing what's going on in the game.

I'm just amazed at how many fans are dissing Siva now that he's gone, trying to minimize what he meant to that team, even after he led it to back-to-back Big East championships, back-to-back Final Fours, and eventually a national championship. I've never seen a fan base run away for a great player so quickly. Just astounding.

Russ Smith will have his shot this year to carve out his own legacy. There's no need to detract from what Siva did to boost Smith. What he does on the court this year will speak for itself. All of the preseason hype is meaningless drivel.

No Louisville fan will ever say that Siva wasn't a Valuable cog in our wheel. We ALL LOVE SIVA!

But last year wasn't the Siva show with every one else as the background dancers. We had/have multiple weapons at multiple positions. Period.
FLossY out...

Did anyone ever say that? You're setting up a straw man and then knocking him down.

Siva a valuable cog??? Please. He was the key player on a championship team. You'll find out just how valuable he was as you watch the players who attempt to replace him.

Just saw them last night, we are in more than capable hands. You can ease your fears.

(10-30-2013 10:07 AM)adcorbett Wrote:  Russ already made more free throws than any Cards player since Wes Unseld. I can only imagine what it will be like now.

But BTW, did you notice how opened up the game was in the second half? I guess it did work.

Yes...you have no choice....the players are going to have to adjust or they will foul out.

Many feel it will hurt our defense...no, our guards have more then enough quickness/foot speed to be ok on defense....God help others trying to slow down Russ Smith, Chris Jones and Terry Rozier...love Rozier game...

Key stat from last night:

Russ Smith 0 fouls
Terry Rozier 0 fouls
Chris Jones 3 fouls - but only one was the handcheck/touch variety