Can only hope Pikiell does what King Rice did at Monmouth. Yeah, it's easier in their conference, whatever it is.
http://www.app.com/story/sports/col...n-monmouth-siena-anguish-foundation/98782426/
Edelson: Amid anguish, Monmouth program still in good place
ALBANY, N.Y. – This wasn’t how it was supposed to go down. Not with seven seniors and 55 wins over the past two years. Not with a program-record 16-game winning streak heading into Sunday's semifinals of the MAAC Championship.
They’re still going to the NIT, hollow as that sounds right now. And if they’re as good as a lot of people, including myself, still think they are, hoisting a trophy at Madison Square Garden would certainly change the narrative regarding this particular team.
In the immediate aftermath of Sunday night’s stunning loss, however, it was hard to think in those terms. Not in an era where the only prize that seems to matter is the one that involves having your name called on Selection Sunday, a right that was cruelly stripped away a year ago.
Because you can dissect this game a million different ways. But the fact remains that as much as the loss hurts, Monmouth basketball is in a pretty good place.
Certainly better than it was when it lost 20-plus games three straight years when Rice took over.
And I know no one wants to hear this right now, but getting to Madison Square Garden a few weeks from now would clear to everyone around the country just how far this program has come.
