Last 3 years
Overall record: 48-36(.571)
Conference record: 18-23(.439)
Winning seasons: 3 (100%).
The only SCU seasons since 1950 with an SOS 2.3 or better (source: basketball reference) and a winning percentage at .600 or better are 1987-88, 1988-89, 1995-96, 1999-2000, 2000-2001.
And that doesn’t account for the unprecedented hardships of this past season the likes of which no conference opponent faced. Or the extraordinary injury challenges. The number of games where SCU has had its full roster available, and gotten a normal amount of practice time must be among the lowest in the nation.
But this doesn’t count any of that. On numbers alone, the last 3 years outperform the program norm of the last 20.
The program has 7 winning seasons in the last 20 years. The current coach has 4 of them. Back-to-back .600+ seasons for the first time in the last 20 years. Back-to- back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in the last 20 years.
Some here have said they don’t see any change. That’s because they don’t want to see any. In black and white (and maroon), the change is obvious on numbers alone, even before you take into account any of the circumstances.
Conference winning % is basically the same as last 20 years… winning seasons and overall record are just padded stats. Herb’s super soft schedule is responsible for both of those #'s. Better to look at last 20 years of season ending RPI. Herb’s generally around 175 (which stinks) and I would bet is very similar to the last 20 years.
He’s an expensive KK… nothing more.
No one talk about RPI in a kid’s living room or on a zoom call with a transfer. Heck, no one talks about RPI at all anymore because of how flawed it was.
LOL he talks about conference record (which is still better) like no one knows Gonzaga hasn’t lost more than 1 conference game in the last 5 years and BYU joined the league.
Sorry the facts disagree with your opinion. The program is getting objectively better.
OK Why are we revisiting this HZ? You have made your point before. BB has made his. Personally I am a big supporter of coach Sendek but I am no longer entertained by the bickering that a post like this will cause. Go Broncos!
Nah, I’m just going to drop truth and others people can deny it or not.
The strength of schedule this year per basketball reference was higher than all but two seasons since 2006 (two bad seasons, maybe they should have scheduled a little smarter).
The only SCU seasons since 1950 with an SOS 2.3 or better and a winning percentage at .600 or better are 1987-88, 1988-89, 1995-96, 1999-2000, 2000-2001. (I actually added that to my original post, that’s really a heckuva statement)
And 2020-21, the year the team had to spend 2 months in a hotel in Santa Cruz sharing practice time with at least 3 other programs, which without looking it up I’m pretty confident those others didn’t.
There needn’t be any bickering. I can’t stop how people respond to the clear truth that the last 3 years have been an improvement, and that this past season was a success compared to the last 20 years of the program despite a strong SOS relative to program history, and despite all of the obstacles placed in front of the team by local government and just plain bad luck (losing Justice just when he was most needed, not getting a proper rehab offseason for Caruso).
People could just choose to be happy about it and proud of the program and the character everyone in it showed.
The last three years have been better than any three year period of the KK era. The big old caveat is that they haven’t been good by an objective measure. Santa Clara has been ok. 132nd in the country is fine. 136th in the country (2020) is fine. 190th in the country is below average. Herb Sendek is a better coach than KK (an exceedingly low bar). If we throw out this year, then its reasonable for HS to keep his job for additional 2 years with steady improvement.
Here’s a chart of our statistical ranking over the past 12 years compared to St. Mary’s. Yes there has been growth over the past 3 years but we aren’t closing the gap. HS has done a passable job but its an incomplete not an A+.
Well, I told you all with certainty that the second year was going to be bad. Honestly, I expected worse. The conference performance was well better than the non conference. There were so many bad scholarships. You’d probably rather have empty scholarships if you’re a coach bc then at least you can sell a wide open opportunity for playing time and the roster supports it rather than conflicting. KK really left a mess.
Then came the injury-riddled third year, which would certainly have been better with even 1 of the 2 experienced guards. There were significant injury losses last year too but the roster was better so they could at least be absorbed more. But any injury to a starter in basketball is significant, bc you only have 5.
And of course, this season was hampered by, well, we all know. I think if not for that we would have been at or near parity with St. Mary’s (in a down year for them but apparently not down as much in the eyes of kenpom and the nit as in the eyes of the people that watched them this year). They’ll probably be better but I dont see any jordan Ford or fitts or etc on the roster.
I don’t think being as good as smc in 5 years was a realistic expectation if that was one (obviously, it was not for the people who count).
If all the luck had been on Scu’s side, this would probably look better. But it has been anything but as any reasonable person would acknowledge. And as you said, even the results as they were have been more consistently competitive.
