I want to wait to see how this year plays out, but I can't disagree with anyone. Lyke is in a tough position with Murphy and his expiring contract. On one hand, he's made us a talented, competitive team. On the other, we are maddeningly inconsistent and haven't been title contenders in any of his six years.

I've always been a fan of Murphy, and always will be. But it may be time for a new coach. He'd have a full cupboard for next season too, considering our recruits/sit outs and who we'd have coming back.

(01-31-2017 08:38 PM)EMUAARON Wrote:  Raven lost a little magic on his drives since conference play started.

That's because after he scores 24 poimts against BSU he sits against Miami...No rhyme or reason but let's not let any EMU player keep a rhythm.... Frustrating

(01-31-2017 10:03 PM)realistEagle Wrote:  

(01-31-2017 09:59 PM)Time2Fly Wrote:  They are bad. I'm starting to think they have gone backwards this year. And quite frankly, I put a lot of blame on Murphy. Immaturity, lack of development, poor fundamentals... these are coaching issues. His lack of strategic planning is disgusting.

That said, gotta make free throws. Gotta stop turning the ball over.

Thompson has a huge target on his back and he has to keep his emotions under control.

I said it last year, I said it preseason, I'll say it again. Time for Murphy to go. If you can't produce wins with this type of raw talent, you shouldn't be coaching. Period.

I think Murph is a good coach. I wish that he recruited more of character guys and not only dudes that are very talented. It shows in the tough games like this one tonight. Also it hurts me to say it but unless something changes it's time for Murph to move on to another school. As a school we need to make a decision, do we want to be a middle of the league type of team or shoot for the stars. I pick the second option.

Murphy will never get another D1 coaching job. This was his chance and he's average at best.

this team is playing like most of us expected - lots of talent but inconsistent because Murphy teams are inconsistent. this loss was pretty bad, but not shocking at all. we'll have some great highlights, some stretches of play that will make us think "what if?" and multiple duds.

as for Murphy, if he could coach offense we would be a perennial 4-5 seed in the tournament with a puncher's chance of winning it. given the talent he brings in, that seems so achievable. but, that hasn't happened and i don't think it will happen, which is a bummer.

the MAC isn't good this year, so i'm not going to throw dirt on the season. we have as good a chance as anyone besides Akron to win this thing. i'm looking forward to seeing which players on the team rise to the occasion in the tournament.

(01-31-2017 11:52 PM)EMUAARON Wrote:  this team is playing like most of us expected - lots of talent but inconsistent because Murphy teams are inconsistent. this loss was pretty bad, but not shocking at all. we'll have some great highlights, some stretches of play that will make us think "what if?" and multiple duds.

as for Murphy, if he could coach offense we would be a perennial 4-5 seed in the tournament with a puncher's chance of winning it. given the talent he brings in, that seems so achievable. but, that hasn't happened and i don't think it will happen, which is a bummer.

the MAC isn't good this year, so i'm not going to throw dirt on the season. we have as good a chance as anyone besides Akron to win this thing. i'm looking forward to seeing which players on the team rise to the occasion in the tournament.

I can tell you it won't be Ray Lee. When Ray has a good game, Murphy sits him the next game.

EMU has just as much talent as Akron. A good coach would have this team playing to our strength: 1) Playing M2M , 2) Running a structured offense that moves the ball with passing vs over dribbling and 3) running the fast break by controlling the tempo.


Even Chad Bush and Greg commented that EMU is probably the most athletic team in the conference; however, when you play zone defense, the other team can slow the pace by being patient on offense. Just like Dambrot said at post game interview when we played Akron " we could get any shot Anytime we wanted".

Just remember as well that this year(unlike in years past at this point) despite being 5-4, we are right now 3rd in the conference with 9 games to go. Not to mention too this team has shown an ability to win on the road that they haven't in years past. This team does need to grow up from a maturity standpoint and needs to become a bit more urgent about improving their game though.

Ray has been frustrating to watch the last two games. Frustrating from a standpoint of we know how great of a scorer he can be and how much he should be able to put this team on his shoulders. This actually might be the most frustrating basketball team I have watched... EVER. They can go and play great games on the road but as soon as we host a garbage team like Buffalo, Western, and Kent State they play down to their level. When you go 1-2 against teams you should beat in conference play at home its frustrating. Some of this is the players. I put a lot of blame on Murphy. If you cannot coach this type of talent and create an offense for them to be able to score in, then why in the heck are you coaching a D1 team.

Unless something happens over the next 3 games, this season may as well be over.

I was also at the game last night and have no idea why JT4 got a tech in the first half or why Steele got his at the end of the game. Steele's just looked like a hard foul. Last night I think the refs got a little too quick with the whistle and that every MAC ref has placed a target on JT4s back so that everytime he opens his mouth its a T. Unfair

(02-01-2017 08:27 AM)HailEMU Wrote:  I was also at the game last night and have no idea why JT4 got a tech in the first half or why Steele got his at the end of the game. Steele's just looked like a hard foul. Last night I think the refs got a little too quick with the whistle and that every MAC ref has placed a target on JT4s back so that everytime he opens his mouth its a T. Unfair

I agree.

I remember the good ole days when to get a T Bobby Knight needed to toss a chair on the court or a player need to threaten an opponent with a closed fist.

Too many big men are fouling out and getting Ts for playing hard under the basket.

(02-01-2017 08:37 AM)emu steve Wrote:  

(02-01-2017 08:27 AM)HailEMU Wrote:  I was also at the game last night and have no idea why JT4 got a tech in the first half or why Steele got his at the end of the game. Steele's just looked like a hard foul. Last night I think the refs got a little too quick with the whistle and that every MAC ref has placed a target on JT4s back so that everytime he opens his mouth its a T. Unfair

I agree.

I remember the good ole days when to get a T Bobby Knight needed to toss a chair on the court or a player need to threaten an opponent with a closed fist.

Too many big men are fouling out and getting Ts for playing hard under the basket.

If you cannot adjust to the way the game is being called that just shows that you are not a very smart basketball player.

(01-31-2017 10:57 PM)Luckeyone Wrote:  

(01-31-2017 08:38 PM)EMUAARON Wrote:  Raven lost a little magic on his drives since conference play started.

That's because after he scores 24 poimts against BSU he sits against Miami...No rhyme or reason but let's not let any EMU player keep a rhythm.... Frustrating

Couldn't agree more. I have not seen a mismanaged talent like Ray Lee in all my time watching basketball. He sits him in games he plays well. Sits him after big games. He has destroyed the swagger that Ray used to have.
Like him or not, he is a scoring machine. We have all seen it. Murphy has stripped him of his confidence. We can see it happening with Baylee too. Murphy can't manage players.

(02-01-2017 08:27 AM)HailEMU Wrote:  I was also at the game last night and have no idea why JT4 got a tech in the first half or why Steele got his at the end of the game. Steele's just looked like a hard foul. Last night I think the refs got a little too quick with the whistle and that every MAC ref has placed a target on JT4s back so that everytime he opens his mouth its a T. Unfair

Have seen JT4 multiple times and he plays an old-school game inside with a lot of chippiness ... in the past refs would let this go if both players were doing the same ... but this day and age it's all about the 'stretch 4' which is code for finess... which is code for 'don't touch me ...

After almost two years JT4 should have figured this out by now ... certainly the staff ... and it is particularly pronounced now that he is playing the 4 instead of the 5 ...

it's how the NCAA wants the game played and the officials to call it right now ...

JT4 brings attention to himself by not adjusting ... and it hurts the team ... witness Steele's last foul ... don't know if it was or wasn't flagrant ... but by that point in an over 50-whistle game ... it was 'flagrant' in the sense the refs were fed up.

Gotta learn the game.

Crazy again how no one talks after wins, but everyone comes out after losses. Still waiting on Wickersham's post.

In any event, let's hope this is the nadir of our season, and we bounce back nicely against NIU. I expect an ugly one, since they always are against that team.

Actually what we need is a Chris Creighton type coach for our basketball team. I get the impression that the inmates run the prison under Murphy and staff. The team misses a leader like Talley who was like another coach on the floor. This team is immature, selfish and more interested in making highlight reels than the plays. Frankly LWH and Madray overall have been less than advertised, Steele has potential, don't see a lot of growth in Thompson's game which I commented on after watching him last summer. Bond has improved and so has Nobles. We need guards next year in the worst way that can score and pass and be a leader. Honestly we'll stay with Murphy because its budget friendly. I've kinda lost hope he'll ever take us to the NIT or NCAA. He got screwed the one year out of the NIT. Really needs to look in the mirror and his staff and see things as they are. A glass half full or half empty year after year. Time for some changes coach.

Talley was never better than 10-8 in the MAC. I think "leadership" on the court is incredibly overrated at the college level. Hard to be a leader when there is virtually no offensive system to speak of. I agree with you that, if we continue on this path of mediocrity, it is time for a change at head coach. It will be a much more attractive job opening now than it was 6 years ago, and that's a credit to Murphy. But sometimes things grow stale and predictable, and Murphy has shown no signs of really adapting.

I hope we finish strong in the MAC, like we usually do. But it seems like the "same ol, same ol", and we are wasting a very talented roster.

(02-01-2017 08:42 AM)Time2Fly Wrote:  

(01-31-2017 10:57 PM)Luckeyone Wrote:  

(01-31-2017 08:38 PM)EMUAARON Wrote:  Raven lost a little magic on his drives since conference play started.

That's because after he scores 24 poimts against BSU he sits against Miami...No rhyme or reason but let's not let any EMU player keep a rhythm.... Frustrating

Couldn't agree more. I have not seen a mismanaged talent like Ray Lee in all my time watching basketball. He sits him in games he plays well. Sits him after big games. He has destroyed the swagger that Ray used to have.
Like him or not, he is a scoring machine. We have all seen it. Murphy has stripped him of his confidence. We can see it happening with Baylee too. Murphy can't manage players.

Well said!!! As a former Highschool athlete, we all know how important Confidence is to be your best.

Sam, I have given Murphy compliments after victories.

Never mentioned anyone specific. It's just a shame that we only have discussion about the hoops team when we lose.

(02-01-2017 10:44 AM)EagleSam Wrote:  Never mentioned anyone specific. It's just a shame that we only have discussion about the hoops team when we lose.

Not sure why you are complaining so much. I see one trend in everyone's responses. We are decent, we have been decent and if Muprh stays we will still be decent. Now how do we get to the next level and be good or great? I think what most think is that Murphy is not going to cut it. I don't think anyone is saying that these guys are terrible. They are just... ok.

(02-01-2017 10:51 AM)realistEagle Wrote:  

(02-01-2017 10:44 AM)EagleSam Wrote:  Never mentioned anyone specific. It's just a shame that we only have discussion about the hoops team when we lose.

Not sure why you are complaining so much. I see one trend in everyone's responses. We are decent, we have been decent and if Muprh stays we will still be decent. Now how do we get to the next level and be good or great? I think what most think is that Murphy is not going to cut it. I don't think anyone is saying that these guys are terrible. They are just... ok.

I've said exactly that multiple times in this thread. You must've missed it. Again, for the third time, it's a shame that we don't get as much (or any...look at the Miami thread in a game we dominated) discussion after a win as we do after a loss. If people can harp on Murphy and the team after we lose, then surely they can talk about how strong we looked in a win, yeah? Complaining is just easier than complimenting, unfortunately.

(02-01-2017 10:27 AM)EagleSam Wrote:  Talley was never better than 10-8 in the MAC. I think "leadership" on the court is incredibly overrated at the college level. Hard to be a leader when there is virtually no offensive system to speak of. I agree with you that, if we continue on this path of mediocrity, it is time for a change at head coach. It will be a much more attractive job opening now than it was 6 years ago, and that's a credit to Murphy. But sometimes things grow stale and predictable, and Murphy has shown no signs of really adapting.

I hope we finish strong in the MAC, like we usually do. But it seems like the "same ol, same ol", and we are wasting a very talented roster.

Sam, I agree with most of your posts but respectfully disagree on the value of leadership. Brian Tolbert, Earl Boykins, Lorenzo Neely were great leaders.

I don't believe this team has a great leader - maybe Bond?