Should Kansas State move on from Bruce Weber after another early Tournament exit?
Kansas State has exited the NCAA Tournament early again, so is it time to move on from coach Bruce Weber.
After a surprising run to the Elite Eight last year as a No. 9 seed, Kansas State won a share of the Big 12 regular season title this year and earned the No. 4 seed in the South Region. But for the fourth time in five NCAA Tournament bids under coach Bruce Weber, the Wildcats are going home with a first round loss as the Anteaters from UC-Irvine took a 70-64 victory on Friday.
Going back to his time at Illinois, Weber has led a team past the first round of the NCAA Tournament twice in eight NCAA Tournament berths over the last 13 seasons. Last year’s run was aided by being in the South Region, with a second round matchup against No. 16 seed UMBC after their upset of No. 1 seed Virginia. The Wildcats won that game 50-43, then edged a Kentucky team that did not have an elite NBA prospect 61-58 to get to the Elite Eight.
In the context of what can reasonably be expected from Kansas State basketball, three straight 20-plus win seasons, five such seasons in seven at the helm and two conference titles might make Weber worthy of a statue. A second straight postseason without star forward Dean Wade, after he missed most of last year’s tournament run, also offers a bit of a mulligan.
Kansas State’s leading scorer, Barry Brown, picked up two fouls early in the first half on Friday. It’s a matter of principle or rigid coaching strategy, but Brown didn’t see the floor for the rest of the half. A 26-16 lead for the Wildcats with over seven minutes remaining evaporated into a 30-30 tie when Max Hazzard of UC-Irvine hit a three at the buzzer.
I'm not a fan of a coach automatically sitting a player with two fouls for the rest of a half. Barry Brown tried to sub himself back in but Bruce Weber said no.
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) March 22, 2019
Here’s Weber’s justification for keeping Brown out as a 10-point lead went away, and the senior guard attempted to enter the game.
https://twitter.com/jlkurtz/status/1109208636834762752.
In a one-and-done scenario, with Kansas State’s momentum gone before (and symbolized by) Hazzard’s buzzer beater, the idea of “if anything Barry’d be fresh for the second half” strains Weber’s credibility. Adding some sort of concern over the minutes Brown has played this season, and during his career, only makes it worse. Sometimes players have to be trusted to play with fouls, and when it comes down to it Weber didn’t trust his best available player.
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It’s not convenient for fans who want him gone as soon as the team plane touches down in Manhattan, but the brass at Kansas State has to meet the concept of firing Weber with some idea of who they want to replace him, and if that person would entertain a move. If that answer is not clear he’ll probably be back for an eighth season, but with the heat turned up on his seat.