UCF April 3 at 7:00 PM on FS1

[leeraymond]

As long as Miller is the coach it doesn't matter who the players are. Nothing will change. He can't coach.

I am in agreement. Miller had a chance to show the basketball world, on a somewhat big stage, that he can coach. Instead, UC gave up 88 points (50 in the 2nd half) and was upset in the second round by UCF without one of their best players. Another season with double digit losses. Dismal finish to the season at 19-16. When is the last time UC had 16 losses in a single season? This is the most losses that Miller has had in four years at UC. Here are the losses for Miller while at UC: 15 (2021-22); 13 (2022-23); 15 (2023-24); and 16 (2024-25). Are these the numbers of a winning coach?

I am not advocating for Miller to get fired, but maybe, just maybe, for the benefit of the program, it is time for Miller to move on.

Things are not getting better with Miller. That tells the whole story.

[sedz]

We scored 1.08 points per possession, but we wouldn't keep UCF away from the rim, where they went 15 for 22.

Mitchell was the game's best player with 7.1 net points, scoring 17 from the field on 14 shots with 12 rebounds, 6 assists, and no turnovers. Day Day was second best with 3.6 net points, scoring an efficient 19 from the field on 14 shots. And Skillings had 2.6 net points thanks to 3 assists, 3 steals, and 3 rebounds in 21 minutes. Rayvon was our second best player in his time on the floor, putting up a 13.0 BPM that came up just short of Day Day's 14.6. Ray had 8 points and 3 rebounds in only 10 minutes.

Jizzle was our worst player with negative 8.5 net points, more than the final scoring margin. He needed 14 shots to score just 8 points from the field and had zero assists, zero steals, and only one rebound. Reed was second worst with negative 6.7 net points - 6 points on 8 shots with 2 turnovers and 5 fouls in only 19 minutes. Dzellat and Betsey also had negative impact while Aziz and Simas were close to neutral.

[sedz]

I saw the same thing with Abaev. He seemed over-matched, not quick enough, and not confident enough to play with that level of talent. Those guys were running right by Abaev. Not sure what UC is getting in Abaev.

Shooting. We need that.

[leeraymond]

Shooting. We need that.

What about defense and an ability to stop somebody?

[Bearcat9796]

Oh, come on. You can take NOTHING from that McD game. Are we now trashing guys who aren’t even here yet?

observation, not trashing,I know what the game was

[bearcatbret]

James and Aziz did nothing in this game. I do not think that you can blame Miller for this game unless you can say that he could not control the players. These players did not play team ball today, they did not run the offense, the did not play defense. They all ruined their stock when it comes to the portal with the exception of maybe Thomas. UC had their full roster, UCF was minus their best scorer and rebounder. The best player on the court today was from UCF and is already in the portal - that kid raised his stock in the portal the last two games. Again, this game is on the players not the coach.

[sedz]

What about defense and an ability to stop somebody?

That's not what we're bringing Abaev in for.

[sedz]

James and Aziz did nothing in this game. I do not think that you can blame Miller for this game unless you can say that he could not control the players. These players did not play team ball today, they did not run the offense, the did not play defense. They all ruined their stock when it comes to the portal with the exception of maybe Thomas. UC had their full roster, UCF was minus their best scorer and rebounder. The best player on the court today was from UCF and is already in the portal - that kid raised his stock in the portal the last two games. Again, this game is on the players not the coach.

Nah, Keyshawn Hall is UCF's 5th best player. He just shoots a lot and logged more minutes than Thiam so he leads the traditional stat categories. Losing Hall is addition by subtraction for UCF. It would be as if Jizzle didn't play for us. Darius Johnson has been UCF's best player all season and now he's getting more opportunities to show it without Hall's dead weight.

[leeraymond]

That's not what we're bringing Abaev in for.

UC should not bring in any player that cannot or will not play defense. A team cannot win championships without playing defense.

[leeraymond]

James and Aziz did nothing in this game. I do not think that you can blame Miller for this game unless you can say that he could not control the players. These players did not play team ball today, they did not run the offense, the did not play defense. They all ruined their stock when it comes to the portal with the exception of maybe Thomas. UC had their full roster, UCF was minus their best scorer and rebounder. The best player on the court today was from UCF and is already in the portal - that kid raised his stock in the portal the last two games. Again, this game is on the players not the coach.

It is funny that you mentioned this. I just read a quote that someone wrote on another thread from Kelvin Sampson. Sampson says that "knuckleheads don't win on the road" (or something like that). I have a theory about outcomes resulting from competition. In a tight battle where the game is in the final stages, the weaker team will always FIND a way to LOSE. That is what happened to UC today and has often happened to this current group of UC players over the last two seasons.

I wonder what players on this UC team want to come back. We will see shortly.

[Bearcat93]

Reading through these comments you could change the date of this thread to January and that’s a problem. Giving up 50 in the 2nd half. Dude cannot coach at this level. Stepping away from this mess 6 weeks ago was the right move for me.

[John P]

As long as Miller is the coach it doesn't matter who the players are. Nothing will change. He can't coach.

I have a different take...it doesn't matter who the coach is, these kids can't play and have no heart.
I've heard 2 season ticket holders comment this past week that they are debating if they will buy tickets again next year.

[Gmann]

I have a different take...it doesn't matter who the coach is, these kids can't play and have no heart.
I've heard 2 season ticket holders comment this past week that they are debating if they will buy tickets again next year.

Yes there are deficiencies but these are Miller's guys. He brought them in. So either he can't judge character and talent or can't coach it. My belief is he can't develop and coach it. He will go back and work the portal and remake the roster and I contend we will see the same undisciplined, undeveloped slop that we've seen every year under him. Fortunately it will be his last year at UC.

However given all that I'm not confident the administration is capable of picking the right guy to replace him.

[loshow22]

Oh, come on. You can take NOTHING from that McD game. Are we now trashing guys who aren’t even here yet?

I agree. No sense in trashing him as the McD game is essentially a charity game with minimal effort. However, I do not think he will be the savior some of the fans believe him to be. That said, I think he can be a really good Bearcat!

[leo from jersey]

You have to understand --UCF is in only their second year in the BIG 12 and are missing their two best players.. -- Was Dawkins "pissed" and did UCF play with urgency? I am tired of these excuses continually and as I said from the first game last season -- JJ can't play the game needed to win. Did he play in the Crown so his HOF daddy could get more face time on national tv or for love of the game and the Cats. I am disgusted with the team (coaches/players), the administration and for many in the UC community that will tolerate these shenanigans for one more day. Perhaps they just like to hear (not a coach) WM say he doesn't understand why they give little effort and he guarantees they will the next game. ENOUNGH-- THIS USED TO BE BEARCAT BASKETBALL ---- Speak up Oscar.