Cougars continue to stumble to the finish line

It's odd being so close to the end. The SIUE men's basketball team ends the season Thursday with Division III Hanninal LaGrange and tonight we take on Tennessee Tech in what is our final real game of the season. It is a big test, because SIUE is 1-12 against OVC teams, and has never won one at the Vadalabene Center.

Tonight, we find out if the Cougars have a pulse. They need to come out wanting a victory, and it is possible because SIUE has shown they can play if they really want to. They did not against SEMO last week and didn't show up against South Dakota Sunday. I fully expected that happening on the road.

It is very likely the Cougars end the week and the season with a record of 8-21. It has been a frustrating year, with guys like Abel Tillman and Gerald Jones failing to do their jobs, the injury to Mark Yelovich and all of the other constant negatives. We can't forget it, but have to look at tonight for what it is, and it is a chance to win an OVC game and get a little positivity closing out the year.

TTU is 16-11 and fresh off a win in its bracketbuster against Gardner-Webb. The OVC has been puzzling this season, and TTU still has a shot in Nashville, so they are going to play with a purpose. The new tournament format makes it a little harder on them, but TTU is going to be desperate to try and gain some momentum come March.

SIUE needs a statement win for next season. They need to show the OVC they can win games. After all, next year the Cougars play a full conference schedule.

I am not going to bore anyone with stats and analysis or treat this game for anything more than it is worth. It's more mental than skills for this team right now. The women's game beforehand probably has more meaning, because that team continues playing through March with an independent tournament and  a guarantee game at Arkansas. They have won six straight at home, including a win over then 17-6 IPFW. They have a pulse. The men do not.

Let's hope for the best and not get down on the team too much for their struggles. Losing in the early stages of Division I is better than a Division II tournament appearance. That's just my feelings.

So go Cougars. Live chat right here beginning when I get to the VC, probably in the middle of the first half of the women's game.

Time for some shop-talk. Here at eCougarzone.com, I am planning on doing some pretty in-depth work in the offseason. Keep a look out for recruiting news, scheduling news, ect. We should have decent knowledge of next season's non-conference slate Thursday night. Lennox was very willing to disclose some of this stuff after last season's finale. We knew about the Vegas Classic, Iowa and a few others way back then.

In a few weeks, I will be covering the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. I know it's off-topic, but it's a conference with so many ties to SIUE. I will blog about Carbondale some more and in person. Marty Simmons will be around, and if I can figure out a decent question to ask him relating to SIUE that isn't too off-topic from the tournament I will. It is our soccer conference too. I am excited to see some of these teams. There will be live game chats throughout if you just can't get enough hoops. We probably won't be there for the semifinals because it is Mardi Gras. (Yeah.)

Also in the off-season, I will try and do some live chats for home baseball and softball games with sporadic posts. There will be soccer spring games to blog about and we will post on a weekly basis. The day of the week will be announced via Twitter once I figure it out. Probably Mondays or Wednesdays. Also, there will be monthly basketball off-season chats to try and get everyone together. The pre-season chat worked out really well, with Aamir McCleary, Adam Young and all of our regulars stopping in. I hope to get something like that going regularly.

The radio show is sporadic too, because schedules have been pretty hectic. I would like to get it going at full-speed, but no guarantees.

Above all, I will try to improve this site and keep it going after graduation. I will either be out of SIUE in August or December. If I am in St. Louis post-graduation, I will get credentialed at SIUE and keep it going. If not, I will pass the torch. Cougar nation needs us. 

We have plenty of time to digest what has happened between November and now in the next week. Where is SIUE going in Division I? What can we take from this season? Is Lennox Forrester the coach for the future (I think he is.) There are lots of questions and lots time to think about it. It's been a fun season. Let's get a win tonight.

Posted in: Archives,housekeeping,Men's basketball