Five years since the triumphant return of Larry Shyatt to the Cowboy fold, Cowboy basketball is 10 games under .500 in conference play, and have had only one season over .500 in conference play.
Also in that time, he’s been awarded three extensions. All I can say is….well played.
Shyatt was correct in telling the Casper Star Tribune a few weeks back that this year’s non-conference schedule was too tough and that had it been easier, we might have been better mentally for playing in our brutal 12th-ranked conference. You can also understand his ire at the conference's trial balloon to whittle teams down to eight for future conference tournaments: We’d be a perennial bubble team, or at least nervous every March. 2012—6th seed. 2013—8th seed (won pigtail game vs. Nevada). 2014—5th seed. 2015—4th seed. 2016—8th seed.
I’m happy that good defense (or Larry Nance Jr.’s knee holding up, whichever) got us a NCAA bid in 2015, Maybe that cancels out the conference record. But if an impartial observer looks at things, it's sort of obvious that the MWC tournament win was also part good fortune. Is it a coincidence the “rise” of the Cowboy basketball program coincided with the decline of the Mountain West Conference nationally? I like to say we took advantage...
If I were Shyatt, I would shake down our AD for another extension…
Some things to be optimistic about going forward:
(1) We've improved over Schroyer.
(2) We’re not CSU.
(3) Next year’s team offers a solid foundation-- for bench players. The problem is we need
3-4 viable starters that actually scare opponents.
(4) We're taking a much more innovative and original and long-term approach to building a consistent winner--unlike South Dakota State who seems to want too much too soon. But conference rpi-wise, they play in a better league than us. But in three years...look out. Is CBI realistic next year? Isn't it always?
(5) The way our returning players that played occasionally (or not even at all at times) will develop and improve at a far faster rate in eight months than other schools' returning players that played far more minutes.
As coach Shyatt says, we gotta trust the process...
Also in that time, he’s been awarded three extensions. All I can say is….well played.
Shyatt was correct in telling the Casper Star Tribune a few weeks back that this year’s non-conference schedule was too tough and that had it been easier, we might have been better mentally for playing in our brutal 12th-ranked conference. You can also understand his ire at the conference's trial balloon to whittle teams down to eight for future conference tournaments: We’d be a perennial bubble team, or at least nervous every March. 2012—6th seed. 2013—8th seed (won pigtail game vs. Nevada). 2014—5th seed. 2015—4th seed. 2016—8th seed.
I’m happy that good defense (or Larry Nance Jr.’s knee holding up, whichever) got us a NCAA bid in 2015, Maybe that cancels out the conference record. But if an impartial observer looks at things, it's sort of obvious that the MWC tournament win was also part good fortune. Is it a coincidence the “rise” of the Cowboy basketball program coincided with the decline of the Mountain West Conference nationally? I like to say we took advantage...
If I were Shyatt, I would shake down our AD for another extension…
Some things to be optimistic about going forward:
(1) We've improved over Schroyer.
(2) We’re not CSU.
(3) Next year’s team offers a solid foundation-- for bench players. The problem is we need
3-4 viable starters that actually scare opponents.
(4) We're taking a much more innovative and original and long-term approach to building a consistent winner--unlike South Dakota State who seems to want too much too soon. But conference rpi-wise, they play in a better league than us. But in three years...look out. Is CBI realistic next year? Isn't it always?
(5) The way our returning players that played occasionally (or not even at all at times) will develop and improve at a far faster rate in eight months than other schools' returning players that played far more minutes.
As coach Shyatt says, we gotta trust the process...
