In the latest episode of Half-Court Press, Wilson Moore and Jon Walker discuss which was more unlikely: Creighton’s win over No. 1 UConn or Nebraska’s road win over Indiana.
The duo opens with the Jays’ historic win over the top-ranked Huskies and how Creighton didn’t really do anything different to defeat UConn.
They then turn Nebraska’s road win over Indiana, including Keisei Tominaga’s performance and what the victory does for the Huskers’ NCAA resume.
The two take a quick look at where both teams will possibly see themselves seeded in the NCAA tournament.
They take a look at Creighton coach Greg McDermott’s comments on the rumors of him taking the Ohio State or Louisville jobs.
The duo closes out with a discussion on what teams do after upsetting a No. 1 team and other big wins.
Hello and welcome back to another episode of the half court press podcast um I’m Wilson Moore joined as always by John Walker yo and uh John pretty eventful couple days of college basketball in the State uh kraton beat the number one team in the country and Nebraska did something I mean based on
The trajectory of the Season maybe more unlikely than that and won a big 10 game on the road so lots to talk about today lots to get through from the uh last week of college basketball here yeah it’s gonna be you know I think back to
Where we were a month ago and we were just saying man we got to get we got to get through January we’ve got to get through the end of January and uh and here we are and things have picked up quite a bit we expected them to and and
They they certainly have yeah that’s that’s a good one nebras yeah probably more unlikely than knocking off the number one number one team in the country but no for sure how are you Wilson I’m doing well yeah um you know I uh I didn’t make the trip
To Indiana unfortunately so I was just a what the return trip the return trip yes um yeah yesterday was exactly one year to the day that I moved out of Indiana so it would have been some nice poetry if I had gone back that day but
Didn’t make the trip it would have been about 10 hours that’s a that’s a long way to go for 40 minutes of basketball yeah so wrote from the couch um had a nice uh had a nice view on the TV of uh of Nebraska’s first win um on
The road this season in conference play wi over Indiana how are you John man yeah I’m good I’m a little sleepy I don’t think I’ve fully recovered from Tuesday um and kraton’s upset of number one Yukon uh late night earlier morning kind of whatever but either way didn’t watch
The back of my eyelids pretty much um but I’m I’m G to do that here soon before I I head to New York this week New York uh for the St John’s matchup kind of uh so you know long ways to go for 40 minutes of basketball I like that
I’m going to steal it for sure long ways to go for 40 minutes of basketball but I’m good Wilson yeah yeah well uh you want just dive into it I think yeah we yeah man we we can start we can start on Tuesday night uh CR kraton welcomes uh
The number one team in the country the Yukon Huskies into Chi uh uh chi Health Center and I don’t know what you were expecting John I was expecting at least a competitive game I thought you know I thought kraton was GNA hang with them I thought Yukon was really talented and
Yukon was gonna pull away in kind of the final minut that’s what that was my prediction going in and that is not what happened no no it’s certainly not I’m trying to pull up a text that I sent to my girlfriend on Tuesday you’ll get a
Kick out of it um but no I mean it it was just Katon was due for a heater like that I think they kind of had one in that Butler loss where they put up 98 and still lost um but they they really they were due for a
Heater I wasn’t sure if it was Tuesday if it was going to be Tuesday or if it was going to be sometime as they continue tournament biggie tournament prep it happened Tuesday um 50 55% from the field more importantly in that 14 threes uh shot 50% from deep and just blitzed
Yukon um I saw somebody do a film breakdown and they were like this is how kraton slowed down the number one team in the country and it it wasn’t anything that kraton has not done all year and that’s what stood out to me is they didn’t completely deviate from who they
Were um they they knew that they defended well enough in the first meeting in stores but they couldn’t not score well they got the scoring the defense kind of came along with it again um they yeah I I just that is candidly speaking that’s not what I
Expected I saw a path to them winning I saw a path to Yukon winning I did not expect kraton to win by 20 against the number one team in the country but you figured something had to give right like Katon had never beat number one um Yukon
Hadn’t won won on the road against the ranked opponent since 2014 that that is a crazy statistic I saw that two national championships in that time national championships no ranked Road win and they’ve never won in Omaha and so it just felt like something had to give and and it fell in craton’s
Favor for a historic night in Omaha um I found it I found it so I woke up um my sister had I REM my sister called me I got off the phone with her I was about to go grab food and I looked at the weather app and it was like 58 or
Something and I looked out my window there were no clouds in sight whatsoever and so I texted my girlfriend I said I’m telling you right now at 12:26 pm. that it’s two nice of a day in Omaha kraton is beating Yukon tonight wow it just it
Just it just felt like too perfect of of a day it really did um then I guess by the end of the night it was so yeah yeah I I like your point about that gron didn’t do anything special because you know and no I I did watch that game and
Yeah I agreed with you I mean that Bron has chucked up a lot of three-pointers all season and they were just on a heater the other night Stephen Ashworth like that was oh goodness you know I’ve I’ve gotten used I’ve I’ve seen that performance you know several times this
Season out of casay tomaga that type of just like when he crosses half court he’s in range and he is feeling it and um and he he was huge that game and just the past couple it feels like he’s kind of found his stride he seems a lot more
Comfortable with what kraton expects him to do where he’s at the offense yeah I think he’s averaging like 19 points over the last seven which that’s the player they recruited when when they went in the portal and they got stepen Ashworth and they saw this kid from Utah State they saw a
Volume score who could hit from anywhere on the floor and so it took him a little bit of time to to kind of nestle into this role because with Baylor shyan Trey Alexander Ryan CA brener like nobody’s really a volume score on this team not not on a
Nightly basis um you know Trey Trey Alexander’s gonna get his Baylor’s gonna get his you know they’re gonna they’re going to run the offense through like inside out they’re going to try and get it to Ryan caul brener let him kick it so those guys are going to get their
Touches and you knew they were going to and and Stephen Ashworth exactly as you said he kind of found his like perfect role in all of that um I ironically enough I really I really think it started that first Yukon matchup he didn’t play particularly well offensively that
Night except for the final few minutes which yeah Yukon was already up by 20 you know let’s not forget that um so you know at the time we took it with a grain of salt but what he did in those final few minutes getting to the rim defending
Better it it seemed like it seemed like something clicked for him and that’s been the case ever since really um but yeah that was tomaga s I think um 13 straight points for the Jays I mean that that that was stuff that you’d expect to hear on a Wednesday
Night when Nebraska beats Indiana on the road nice transition um yeah um yeah I think you used this word uh just a few minutes ago but Nebraska blitzed Indiana last night um Tom managi you knew he was was feeling it a few minutes in um in when he got
The ball on the fast break and instead of going to the basket when Ali Faro Manesh on everyone and pull back to the corner for for a three then he had a step back on the on the next possession and Indiana was doing everything it could like we’ve seen teams do all year
To try to deny him the ball Trey Galloway did a pretty good job in the second half I think Toman igel hit two in the second half after he scor 18 in the first but it also used a lot of energy um you saw in the LA last minutes
Nebras got some cuts to the basket um just because that Galloway had spent the entire half chasing toan AA around and staying up on on him but yeah that was the uh performance uh Nebraska needed on the road at least in the first half um
That yeah they went up up 20 in the first half uh scored the first two points in the second half too um and then uh I think the Run was 20 to3 for uh uh Indiana got got the deficit down to three points and the best comparison
I could come up with last night was like if Nebraska men’s basketball was a TV show The viewers would be watching that and being like okay like find a different plot line like you you keep recycling this one this this road game collapse thing like find some different
Story lines to work into the to the main plot that’s what it felt like last night yeah it was like season M Midway through season 14 of G anatomy and you’re just like man we can only watch so many surgeries you know yeah yeah the the
Writers were just out of ideas at that point like what if we had him blow a lead on the road again uh would people forget about the last time they but yeah um unlike previous times and the subtle Brilliance of the uh of the writing on this television show they uh reversed it
At the end and Nebraska didn’t lose its composure um settled back in uh Bryce Williams played like a dude pissed off in the second half yeah and yeah Jamarcus Lawrence too was the was the standout he was huge in that g in that game it’s you know it’s been a real of
Rocky season for Lawrence uh he was the starting point guard for the first 20 or so games um he now comes off the bench and he’s just there’s been such a noticeable difference in his demeanor and the way he plays and he just he looks more confident more comfortable
More AG aggressive he’s just he’s he looks like he’s found his spot uh coming off the coming off the bench he had 19 um uh had some like six boards five assists one of them just like rocket of a pass like around someone into Jawan Gary for an easy layup when Nebraska
Really needed it that was his best performance of the year and it was what Nebraska needed I I always find that interesting when you you kind of have a starter who is I don’t want to say talent wise but role the fourth or fifth guy and you you just know it
But when it’s somebody like a point guard you can you can put them with the second unit and say this is yours like this is your unit and that’s kind of what it seemed like they’ve done at times with him with Lawrence tomaga needs a breather you know whenever that happens um tomaga
Needs a breather boom you have a different option you know that you get to Minneapolis and Wisconsin is looking to get their their get back and they’re going to double casay tominaga with the game on the line okay well you have another ball handler you can rely on you
Know so so yeah that’s that’s kind of like I always view that interesting different teams different coaches view it different obviously um but yeah why not give a guy like that who was good enough to command your offense for 20 games why not give him those same you
Know that that same kind of leeway if you will in in maybe a better position to do so coming off the bench so that’s that’s big man depth is depth is everything when you get in the March if you can hit shots defend just a little
Bit and and you have enough depth to to kind of play that many games over over so few days you’re probably going to be in a good position and and so being able to ring Lawrence Off the Bench is obviously huge in that yeah and I think we really saw Nebraska’s depth last
Night rink Mast was basically a non-factor on the offensive end and he’s been probably Nebraska’s most consistent reliable guy all season and that they were able to go on the road and win a game with him not at his best you know you see there guys who can step up Jaan
Gary for a solid game obviously we talked about casay and Bryce Williams just a lot of a lot of different contributions um leading to a win that Nebraska really really needed um I know I I wrote about this last week nobody has gone to the tournament in the 68
Team era without winning a game in uh on the road in continent play so Nebraska now has a path that would not be unprecedented over the past 13 14 years no yeah and and this is probably a good way to to just bring up the tournament because now they sit it the morning
After they sit at 43rd and the net we had talked a couple of weeks ago maybe last week that you know I covered I covered the bubble somewhat extensively last year Oklahoma state was on the bubble for what felt like an eternity and and it it feels like those
Early 40s like 42 43 that is the cut off for the net rankings anyways now your resume you know that’ll all fact you know I’m not the selection committee but when you look at net teams usually it’s that 42 to 4 three is the cut off the problem you run into if
You continue to straddle that line is if you get a bid stealer yeah in a in a league that you know if if I don’t know if if St John’s defends the garden and wins the Big East tournament they could steal Nebraska’s bid um so that’s that’s kind of the line
You Teeter all of that to say you have to keep putting together Road WIS and especially defending the Vault oh over over the next two and a half weeks of the regular season the last two and a half weeks of the regular season but they’re they’re in a position to be in a
Position I think which is which is what you want this time of year is to just give yourself a chance and the Huskers certainly have one absolutely yeah um yeah that’s as long as we’re on the topic what what does beating Yukon do for kraton Outlook I think uh where they
Were did lenardi had have them up to the three line the other day yeah he he had them at um he had him at 11th so that would have been what the the second to last three seed yeah um I don’t know what it is after last night’s games I don’t think
Lenard’s put one out yeah I I don’t think he’s put one out today but yeah he had him like right there like low end three seed um but I think you know we do our tournament projection kind of Bracketology and and I put in my take yesterday that I think
They’ve solidified themselves at the top four seed Katon has I mean barring an epic collapse um which I think would in the selection committee’s eyes still be fine given the quality of opponents they play the rest of the way um but Bing a a a just collapse we have
Not seen from this team they’re going to be a top four seed easily um now the win over a number one Yukon gives you a little bit more Merit um because we all know how Topsy turby college basketball has been this year that number one spot is not easy to
Hang on to and Yukon did it for six weeks uh five weeks six weeks whatever it was and and so Yukon is is damn good to say um I think anybody who you know has sniffed college basketball this year probably knows that so beating that team the reigning defending national champs in that
Fashion you you could in theory with a little bit of help make a push for a two seed it would take a lot I’m not saying kraton’s a two seed automatic you know just given to them it would take a lot they have to win out maybe or for sure
Beat Marquette at least um to get another one of those like Speed Line jumping wins but but they like Nebraska in an entirely different end of the spectrum are in a position to be in a position yeah so that’s in a in a in a Jay’s fan perfect
World they they went out they sneak in as the eight overall seed um they get to pick where they’re going you know that that’d be the perfect world for kraton I think they’ll probably end up right on that three seed line um but who knows college basketball yeah man yeah I
People people uh I’d be remissed if I did not bring this up on this week’s episode I don’t think we talked about it last week when yeah when when kind of everything swirled so Greg MC we’ll just Greg mcder has addressed the Ohio State rumors um you know people people can
Make of them what you will um you know whether you think it’s bogus whether you think it’s not you know whatever um but but Greg mcder addressed them he was on um I want to get this right he’s on the Zach gel podcast um with CVS Sports I believe
And he just point blank period as asked mcdermit is you know you’ve been linked to Ohio state is creating your last job essentially and McDermot said you know um let’s see I want to get the exact quote he said you know never say never it was a tough choice to turn
Turned down Ohio State in 20177 um you know that whole Saga Chronicle episode whatever you want to call it I think that’s probably pretty well documented um yeah let’s say Never Say Never that it was tough to turn it down but here’s the exact quote I’ve always
Said that if I had my choice it would be to end my career at kraton wouldn’t it be his choice I would I would imagine and if it’s not his choice I don’t know what we’re doing here like yeah yeah if it you you cannot
If he wants to stay you cannot let grey mcder leave yeah now there’s behind the scenes stuff there’s whatever you know there’s stuff that we all don’t see and that’s that’s good and dandy you know you cannot look Greg mcder Le I think um rarely rarely rarely rarely we I mean we
See it every offseason rarely do you get a guy who is as committed to a program as he has been to Katon yeah now you know I understand he entertained the Ohio state job like to the point where he had to turn it down or or however that played out in what 2017
Um but he’s he’s assuredly had offers since then teams have reached out to him I’m sure every offseason and he’s still here he’s still in Omaha he seemingly wants to be in Omaha um and and I don’t see a reason that he shouldn’t be unless he doesn’t
You know unless he CH change a bar whatever but like if Greg McDermot wants to be in Omaha they need to keep Greg mcder in Omaha yeah I think yeah absolutely so um but if I I’ll say it on February 22nd if I had to take a
Crack if this is a massive if in my mind because of everything I just said but if they were going to I mean obviously Ohio State’s in a conversation right um and I read an ESPN thing earlier that they didn’t say like oh yes like he’s a candidate here but
They just spun the tires on Louisville um just with the nil that Louisville has they looked they they need and they will be looking for a program Rebuilder um because they are in a bad place Louisville basketball is in a bad place right now um Place bad bad place
And I mean MC dermit obviously did what he did they kind of caught lightning in a bottle and had a trove of success when he first got here when they were going from the valley and then the Big East and really ever since and yeah so I I
Just you know that’d be interesting too um but again you just if he wants to be here you have to find the way uh is it I don’t know is it a contract extension is it a call or is it I don’t I don’t know I think I think
I’ve heard that he has you know he can golf anywhere in Omaha can he go you know would you make it that he can golf anywhere in Lincoln too I don’t know but you’ve got to do something man you can’t look great MC D leave yeah absolutely
Agree yeah um yeah man what what’s what’s ahead uh kon’s got St John’s going up is that right yep yep got St John’s on Sunday in the garden um so that’ll be fun I don’t think they know I don’t know if anybody knows what version of St John’s they’ll
Get think St John’s and Indiana are in like a dead heat for worst Vibes the college basketball season yes Detroit Mercy at least cares you know that was one of my favorite moments of the entire season Detroit Mercy won its first game and one guy stormed the court that was
Incredible it was the only guy in attendance yeah but yeah I mean I I don’t know I have no clue I do know that it will Katon will not get the version of St John’s that they got in January the St John’s that came into Omaha and hit mid-range after mid-range and scrapped
And clawed and had a chance at the buzzer but didn’t capitalize on it I don’t think they get that team but I also have no clue um did you see Rick patino’s comments over the weekend oh of course yeah yeah yeah so so yeah they I
Can’t they lost um last weekend I don’t even remember to who or or what it was because that was that that quickly engulfed anything that had happened right before then and he just kind of said he I mean he unloaded but in there was you know man we had to recruit these
Guys last second like um he’s too slow he’s too slow you know he’s physically weak he’s too slow and it was like oh my goodness and but then they they beat Georgetown oh so barely 90 to 85 on Wednesday and he’s like yeah you know I’m I apologize to my players and
The players are like yeah we’re all good we know he cares about us and so I just have no clue what the state of St John’s is right now mindset wise um but I think I don’t know I think for Katon it’s just about not I mean you you
Saw this it’s it’s about not getting up after beating the number one team yeah like the as hungry as you were to beat number one you have to go do that at St John’s you have to be as hungry to beat St John’s if you were to beat Yukon um yeah
Otherwise you know we would sit here and say on next week’s episode that in hindsight the Yukon wind feels a bit tarnished now it won’t be you know I mean all things considered how could it be but you know I I you can’t go lay an egg right
After yeah um what what do you obviously experienc that with Nebraska this year what what did that do for them being so up after beating Purdue and then dropping the next one what what did that look like from your perspective um it it was interesting because it’s hard to tell if that game
Was that was Iowa um a we weird game Nebraska’s down 17-2 at one point takes the lead in the second half and then gets just run out of the gym in the last 10 minutes but um uh it was interesting because I it’s hard to tell if that game was you know
Hangover from beating Purdue a few days earlier or if it was was just the road demons that we saw all year long up until up until last night um I know Nebraska has said and you know you don’t know how much of this is just kind of in
Retrospect um right has said that they wish they had handle they had handled things a little better after beating um yeah um uh after beating Purdue I remember there was a game a couple days later I forget which uh exactly it was but Fred hyberg postgame said and you know after
The game that no more it’s we’re not dumping water on anyone there’s you know none of that like with the rest of the season you know it’s it’s business we expect to win so I think um you know again you can make of that what you will
I think you can definitely read it as it kind of hardened them a little bit they uh you know they felt good after beating Purdue and got you know kind of Knocked back down to earth and that kind of set the tone for uh how uh how Nebraska
Collectively you know kind of wants to handle itself um after wins we’ll see it again in a couple days you know I’m sure they’re feeling pretty good as they should um winning a game on the road uh after losing the first seven you know the Big 10 Road wins don’t grow on trees
Regardless of of who you’re playing and you know to get the first one that was a major stepping stone um for an NCAA tournament bid that I’m sure they felt good last night coming home but you know that’ll be the next uh you know I think we’re uh we’ll see that again and
Nebraska is going to um have that what they got this weekend again they got Minnesota this weekend um the Revenge the Revenge yeah it’s Nebraska has four games left all four opponents the Huskers held a double digit lead on at one point when they played they’re they
Were two and two in those games okay okay okay yes and that’s the two the two games they have left at home are Minnesota and Ruckers and um they were up double digits on both of them on the road couldn’t H couldn’t hang on to it
Um so we’ll see round two I think this the Minnesota game coming up on Sunday that like Minnesota’s a pretty solid team and you know W wi that game and Nebraska’s damn near in the tournament with three games left I think yeah let’s look at the let’s you hear my
Cat in the back he said I think this is the second straight week we’ve had a uh an Obie guest appearance on the half cour press pod see exactly okay um Minnesota okay that’s the that’s the tough thing because it wouldn’t even be quad one because Minnesota’s 73rd in the
Net that’s so tough that’s so tough what’s what’s interesting is uh Minnesota and Ohio State Nebraska’s next two opponents are both like on the edge of uh it’s going to be on borderline quad one quad two when Nebraska goes to Columbus it’ll be borderline quad two quad three when Minnesota comes to
Nebraska thing is Minnesota and Ohio State play each other tonight I think I think yeah tonight so that could I think there’s a good chance that determines you know the tears of the next two games Nebraska I still I still think you know even even metric metrically aside I still
Think these two games are Oho important for them just because to see how far they have come they were good enough to have double digit leads over both of these team over over all of these teams and to not be able to clo like imagine imagine how differently we’re talking about Nebraska right
Now if they are 21- six you know like that they win both of those they hang on for double digit or they hang on for for wins on the road after leading by double digits and they’re 21- six and the tournament isn’t really a question of if it’s where
Yeah so but still I I think you know again morally it’d be really good for them to just have a double digit lead again and and be able to keep to this time d double digit leads are generally encouraged when you’re playing basketball that’s uh yeah the numbers guys the analytics
People say those are those are good to have when you’re playing in a basketball game yeah I I uh we’ll have to go to the writers room and workshop that one midseason finale for the Huskers um this is like we this is like we’ve dropped we’ve dropped Eight
Episodes of your favorite of the of the final season of your favorite series on on Netflix and we’ve said you got to wait a month for the last four episodes sorry about it yeah had a week between its second to last game and its last game which is weird really yeah I
Think uh I think Katon does too um yeah they get Marquette next Saturday and then they don’t they have a week off and then they go to Villanova uh to end the regular season so yeah I don’t yeah is that I don’t know if that’s common or or what or if
That’s just kind of luck of the draw on both of their ends but that’s a good time to get some rest that I do know yeah gear up it’ll be uh Conference tournament time uh you know John I think you know I can’t say for certain but one
Week no I was about to say one week from today it will be March but it it won’t be because it was gonna be a whole thing about how if we do this on Thursday again which we often do our next episode will be in March but it it won’t be it
Will most likely still be February the next time we record episode so forget everything I was about to say how many year how you know how many times do you get to record a podcast on February 29 my God I I think we have no choice now
You know it just it just feels like for for whatever reason the opportunity only comes up once every four years and it’s a shame um it’s a shame but March is on the horizon I’m ready for it I’m I’m ready to get to the nitty-gritty ever so
Closer well that that was the half court press podcast we’ll see you next time when it when it is still February thank you for L
