Talk about a loose cannon

That would be Pat Knight — Bobby’s son — who was slightly perturbed by his team’s effort in Wednesday’s 62-52 loss to Stephen A. Austin.

"We've got the worst group of seniors right now that I've ever been associated with," he said minutes after the loss. "Their mentality is awful. Their attitude is awful. It's been their (custom) for the last three years. To come out in a game like this, with no emotion and flat, it's terrible."

That may sound harsh, but Knight, in his first year at Lamar after being fired from Texas Tech, was just getting started.

He also said:

* "These [seniors] are stealing money by being on scholarship with their approach to things."

* He inherited an “infestation” of players that are difficult to coach.

* "We've had problems with these guys off the court, on the court, classroom, drugs ..., If you act this way in the real world, you're going to be homeless, without a job."

Maybe his players would have a better shot at a good job if they had a famous dad. It’s hard to see how Pat Knight would have gotten the gig at Texas Tech — even a short-loved one — without his father arranging that his son would succeed him.

Pat Knight might be right about his players, but its’ hard to see how such a public and spontaneous trashing of them will do him or them much good. It would seem to speak of a coach’s frustration, and his inability to contain it. It smacks of a coach sending the following message: These players aren't mine, so I'm not responsible.

Lamar’s three remaining regular-season games and the Southland Conference tournament should be quite interesting.