cuse_man

I have not been around here lately, and I was looking for a post about this but didn't see one. I just feel the need to post...and I know many of you Xavier fans are going to have a hissy fit, but for anyone that actually watched this game I think it was one of the worst officiated games I have ever seen. From tip off I was skeptical, and towards the buzzer it was a joke. I really think SJU got screwed in this game BIG TIME, and feel very bad for this team. Much more deserving of a NCAA bid than Xavier. Glad I could get this off my chest, this really was a sad game....

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flyerfanatic

The officiating has been a topic in the other thread. You are not the first to mention that SJU got the raw end.

Mac539

You know, you sort of make your own bed. Jalloh fouled out on a questionable call. But why is he pushing wolf with 4? And he picked up his 4th fouling a three point shooter. How dumb is that. The crowd was the factor, not the refs. And Lee did not have a path to the basket. Jalloh could have made one. It all comes back to smarts.

cuse_man

There were many questionable calls, that just topped it off. And the only way the crowd would be a factor is if the refs got caught up in it, SJU handled the "crowd" very well. SJU played better, had a better team, and controlled most of the game. Now the A10 looks silly in the big dance.

JoDete93

Hard to convince me that SJU controlled "most" of the game. They were down big early, still down 8 at the under 8 media timeout. Did not hold a lead until the 10:30 mark of the 2nd. Only held that lead for a better part of 7 minutes. Ultimately they lost that lead and the game. If that is controlling most of the game then let the record reflect that I hope my Rams do not control a single game next season!

And let the record also reflect that none of what I said was meant to disrespect St. Joseph's who I think made a valiant effort and just happened to fall short in a very tough environment.

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a10nick

Ironically, it has been St. Joe's fans who have been most sensible about this ref-bashing situation. Some have avoided it and others have downright disdained it. Even XU fans (mostly over at Musketeer Madness) have bashed the officiating for the title game pointing out the fact that Xavier was whistled for more fouls and St. Joe's took 27 free throws to X's 12. Sure, the refs can and do affect the flow and nature of games, but they seldom affect the outcome.

I was disgusted with the officiating in the XU-Illinois game this season and the XU-Duke NCAA game in 2004, but the Muskies lost both games because they gave up leads, not because guys in stripes took it away from them. The same thing happened to St. Joe's on Saturday.

Let's revel in the A-10 getting 2 teams to the show instead of just GW. With that I say "GO GW, BEAT UNC-W! THEN, PUT A WHOOPIN' ON THE DICK (VITAL) BLUE DEVILS!"

And, of course, I wouldn't mind in the least if my Muskies upset Gonzaga on the way to meeting the Colonials in the semi-finals.

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I just want the team I support to be in a stronger conference. I'd prefer it to be a stronger A-10! To me that would mean every member would have at least 2 trips to the NCAA Tourney and 5 winning seasons during each 10-year cycle. It would also be great for every program to seriously challenge for a league title (either regular season or Tourney) at least once during that same period of time.

cuse_man

Big time screwage

RealDeal

He told you guys. Mess with the bull, you get the horns.

Blue Dog

The fact that you couldn't locate the post entitled 'A10 Championship' here on the first page with over 1000 views and 50 replies makes me wonder how well you were able to observe the game as well.

REF

You da man 'cuse! Welcome to the forum too.

Props to SJU. X should surrender the bid to SJU forthwith.

(Does anyone else find it hard to believe that a Syracuse fan joined in January and has spent this much time on an A10 board?)

JoDete93

I hear that some prison systems now have internet access, so no, seeing a Syracuse fan on here is not that odd. He has to kill the time somehow.

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6thman

Hawks did not lose because of the refs, though the refs did suck, as usual. Lee was fouled on the drive at the end. If he made that play during any other part of the game, there's definitely a foul called - but not with a second left in Cincinnati against Xavier. But there were calls that went in favor of the Hawks that shouldn't have. I specifically remember Dave Mallon killing someone in the lane with no call. I turned to my buddy and said, "Holy crap, we got away with one there." I was sitting fairly close to the Hawk bench but I don't know what Phil said to get the T. But I don't have a big problem with it since the Hawks went on a run right after that. So I can't even blame DeMayo for that. Hawks went to the cup a lot, which is why they shot more fouls.

As for whether or not the Hawks controlled the game for "most" of it or not, I guess they kind of did. They went from down 13 to up 10, so with that 23 point swing I guess they pretty much controlled it between those times. But they played poorly at the beginning and the end of the game, which are the most important times. Jalloh was the goat if you have to pick one. He was terrible in the first half, but thankfully Calathes was great. In the second half, just when he was starting to get into the flow by drawing a couple of fouls and getting some points from the line, he continued his foul trouble. When your leading scorer plays 12 minutes because of foul trouble, it's kind of hard to pull out a game that is essentially a home game for X. I still think the Hawks were the better team. If the game was played in a true neutral environment, Hawks win no problem. It was an X home game. Hawks would have put up a better fight in the dance than I expect X to. But that's one man's opinion. I guess we'll never know.

Mac539

I think we will know. Let's see if X throws a punch at the Zags.