NCAA Tournament Thread

[shnsajax]

Why are the espn NCAA experts so freaking boring? They all pick 3 #1 seeds to go to the Final Four and in the elite eight they all pretty much have 1 vs 2 matchups. Do none of them have any balls?

[Magnetic Curses]

 

Don't get me started on players not playing for the team they should be.

 

 

Edited: Oh wait, I already did above. Oops.

 

you, at least, can call it even. illinois is the big loser on every big-time prospect. there is never any good news for the illini, never.

[Exile on Waveland]

Ken Pomeroy has a good writeup on log5 odds to advance in the Midwest and West brackets today:

 

http://www.kenpom.com/blog/

 

Some things that jump out at me:

- Maybe ND and GT are better than I give them credit for.

- Maybe taking Illinois to the sweet 16 isn't as crazy an idea as I initially thought.

 

Both teams are. Notre Dame has some great offensive players and has added some much needed toughness inside. They'll be a tough out. Georgia Tech has an extremely talented, athletic team. I picked them in the sweet sixteen. And, as I've said on here before, Illinois got a good draw.

 

Also, I'm not sure the reason every expert has picked Gonzaga over Indiana. While this is by no means a great Indiana team, they match-up very well with Gonzaga. Unless they play awful, I expect it'll be the Hoosiers, not the Bulldogs, losing to UCLA. Pomeroy's numbers bear that out.

[Exile on Waveland]

 

Don't get me started on players not playing for the team they should be.

 

 

Edited: Oh wait, I already did above. Oops.

 

you, at least, can call it even. illinois is the big loser on every big-time prospect. there is never any good news for the illini, never.

 

True. Indiana will at least recoup some of the hurt from lost in-state players next year. Illinois doesn't have that reprive in sight.

 

However, if it's truly better to have loved and lost than never loved at all, then I'd offer that actually losing a recruiting battle over in-state players is better than losing a player because your previous coach didn't really make an attempt to recruit in-state.

[dalgreen]

I'm dying to see the Illinois - Kansas matchup in the sweet 16, though I doubt Illinois gets there.

 

While I think Illinois is not very good, I think it's very possible they win two games. They match-up pretty well with Va Tech (a very inconsistent team) as well they would So. Illinois.

 

Nothing from this year's Illini team makes me feel like they can win two games in a row against two solid teams. Heck, they've had trouble winning just one game in a row against a solid team.

 

I saw our game against VT, way back in November. They are obviously beatable, but Illinois' guards better guard Dowdell and their other guard, or else they're going to be in for a long night. The key for Illinois to winning that game will be for Pruitt to stay out of foul trouble. I do have Illinois winning that game (I'll admit, more of a heart pick than a head pick), but it's not going to be an easy game, by any stretch.

 

Trust me when I tell you my bias isn't for Illinois -- my allegiance is easily discernible by looking at my location. However, Va Tech is not a very good shooting or rebounding team. Nor are they terribly big. Illinois will almost certainly ugly this game up, giving them a chance to win. If they move on, they'll likely play another halfcourt, defensive team in SIU. Illinois will again have a size advantage. I'm not saying I expect to watch the Illini in the sweet sixteen, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me.

 

 

I agree with your assessment of Va Tech. However, we don't shoot the ball well, we turn the ball over too much, and if the game is close down the stretch we will be lucky to hit 50% from the line. Va Tech's guards are better than ours and unless we get the ball into the post all the time (something we still rarely do), our putrid shooting will doom us. If we could score 65 pts a game, we'd go deep into the tournament because of our defense. Too bad the only way to score is by putting the ball in the basket, and we can't do that.

[Exile on Waveland]

I'm dying to see the Illinois - Kansas matchup in the sweet 16, though I doubt Illinois gets there.

 

While I think Illinois is not very good, I think it's very possible they win two games. They match-up pretty well with Va Tech (a very inconsistent team) as well they would So. Illinois.

 

Nothing from this year's Illini team makes me feel like they can win two games in a row against two solid teams. Heck, they've had trouble winning just one game in a row against a solid team.

 

I saw our game against VT, way back in November. They are obviously beatable, but Illinois' guards better guard Dowdell and their other guard, or else they're going to be in for a long night. The key for Illinois to winning that game will be for Pruitt to stay out of foul trouble. I do have Illinois winning that game (I'll admit, more of a heart pick than a head pick), but it's not going to be an easy game, by any stretch.

 

Trust me when I tell you my bias isn't for Illinois -- my allegiance is easily discernible by looking at my location. However, Va Tech is not a very good shooting or rebounding team. Nor are they terribly big. Illinois will almost certainly ugly this game up, giving them a chance to win. If they move on, they'll likely play another halfcourt, defensive team in SIU. Illinois will again have a size advantage. I'm not saying I expect to watch the Illini in the sweet sixteen, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me.

 

 

I agree with your assessment of Va Tech. However, we don't shoot the ball well, we turn the ball over too much, and if the game is close down the stretch we will be lucky to hit 50% from the line. Va Tech's guards are better than ours and unless we get the ball into the post all the time (something we still rarely do), our putrid shooting will doom us. If we could score 65 pts a game, we'd go deep into the tournament because of our defense. Too bad the only way to score is by putting the ball in the basket, and we can't do that.

 

I've seen three Indiana-Illinois games this year (one in person), so I know all about the Illini's inability to score -- and their great defense. If they lose, it will certainly be due to the offense, but the defense will keep games against less-than-great teams (Va Tech, SIU) close. I really don't disagree with anything you said, especially Va Tech's guards being superior, they're very good.

[dalgreen]

I'm dying to see the Illinois - Kansas matchup in the sweet 16, though I doubt Illinois gets there.

 

While I think Illinois is not very good, I think it's very possible they win two games. They match-up pretty well with Va Tech (a very inconsistent team) as well they would So. Illinois.

 

Nothing from this year's Illini team makes me feel like they can win two games in a row against two solid teams. Heck, they've had trouble winning just one game in a row against a solid team.

 

I saw our game against VT, way back in November. They are obviously beatable, but Illinois' guards better guard Dowdell and their other guard, or else they're going to be in for a long night. The key for Illinois to winning that game will be for Pruitt to stay out of foul trouble. I do have Illinois winning that game (I'll admit, more of a heart pick than a head pick), but it's not going to be an easy game, by any stretch.

 

Trust me when I tell you my bias isn't for Illinois -- my allegiance is easily discernible by looking at my location. However, Va Tech is not a very good shooting or rebounding team. Nor are they terribly big. Illinois will almost certainly ugly this game up, giving them a chance to win. If they move on, they'll likely play another halfcourt, defensive team in SIU. Illinois will again have a size advantage. I'm not saying I expect to watch the Illini in the sweet sixteen, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me.

 

 

I agree with your assessment of Va Tech. However, we don't shoot the ball well, we turn the ball over too much, and if the game is close down the stretch we will be lucky to hit 50% from the line. Va Tech's guards are better than ours and unless we get the ball into the post all the time (something we still rarely do), our putrid shooting will doom us. If we could score 65 pts a game, we'd go deep into the tournament because of our defense. Too bad the only way to score is by putting the ball in the basket, and we can't do that.

 

I've seen three Indiana-Illinois games this year (one in person), so I know all about the Illini's inability to score -- and their great defense. If they lose, it will certainly be due to the offense, but the defense will keep games against less-than-great teams (Va Tech, SIU) close. I really don't disagree with anything you said, especially Va Tech's guards being superior, they're very good.

 

I'm really bitter with this team now. I wouldn't have minded getting an NIT bid because we would've had every game at home until NYC -- at least then we could say we were a final four team!

 

Back to the game against Va Tech, the problem is I can give you a long list of games we lost against less-than-great teams because we just aren't that good. Of course, that all changes if Richard McBride and Brian Randle play to their capabilities.

[Exile on Waveland]

I'm dying to see the Illinois - Kansas matchup in the sweet 16, though I doubt Illinois gets there.

 

While I think Illinois is not very good, I think it's very possible they win two games. They match-up pretty well with Va Tech (a very inconsistent team) as well they would So. Illinois.

 

Nothing from this year's Illini team makes me feel like they can win two games in a row against two solid teams. Heck, they've had trouble winning just one game in a row against a solid team.

 

I saw our game against VT, way back in November. They are obviously beatable, but Illinois' guards better guard Dowdell and their other guard, or else they're going to be in for a long night. The key for Illinois to winning that game will be for Pruitt to stay out of foul trouble. I do have Illinois winning that game (I'll admit, more of a heart pick than a head pick), but it's not going to be an easy game, by any stretch.

 

Trust me when I tell you my bias isn't for Illinois -- my allegiance is easily discernible by looking at my location. However, Va Tech is not a very good shooting or rebounding team. Nor are they terribly big. Illinois will almost certainly ugly this game up, giving them a chance to win. If they move on, they'll likely play another halfcourt, defensive team in SIU. Illinois will again have a size advantage. I'm not saying I expect to watch the Illini in the sweet sixteen, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me.

 

 

I agree with your assessment of Va Tech. However, we don't shoot the ball well, we turn the ball over too much, and if the game is close down the stretch we will be lucky to hit 50% from the line. Va Tech's guards are better than ours and unless we get the ball into the post all the time (something we still rarely do), our putrid shooting will doom us. If we could score 65 pts a game, we'd go deep into the tournament because of our defense. Too bad the only way to score is by putting the ball in the basket, and we can't do that.

 

I've seen three Indiana-Illinois games this year (one in person), so I know all about the Illini's inability to score -- and their great defense. If they lose, it will certainly be due to the offense, but the defense will keep games against less-than-great teams (Va Tech, SIU) close. I really don't disagree with anything you said, especially Va Tech's guards being superior, they're very good.

 

I'm really bitter with this team now. I wouldn't have minded getting an NIT bid because we would've had every game at home until NYC -- at least then we could say we were a final four team!

 

Back to the game against Va Tech, the problem is I can give you a long list of games we lost against less-than-great teams because we just aren't that good. Of course, that all changes if Richard McBride and Brian Randle play to their capabilities.

 

Oh, certainly. Illinois is very capable of losing to a less-than-great team. All I'm saying is I think they'll have a chance to win their first two games. Nothing more.

 

On Randle, have his injuries bothered him that much? He seemed like such a promising player, but hasn't improved much the past couple years. Just an outsider's take.

[BleedCubbieBlue81]

Not sure if it's been posted yet, if it has, ignore this, but Marquette's Jerel McNeal is injured, and will miss the NCAA tournament. This may cause me to make a change in my bracket.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Not sure if it's been posted yet, if it has, ignore this, but Marquette's Jerel McNeal is injured, and will miss the NCAA tournament. This may cause me to make a change in my bracket.

 

Hooray

[Derwood]

HA HA HA HA!!! Today's paper had quotes from FAMU's coach bitching about having to be in the play-in game. Guess who's going home?

[Exile on Waveland]

HA HA HA HA!!! Today's paper had quotes from FAMU's coach bitching about having to be in the play-in game. Guess who's going home?

 

FAMU was complaining? Niagara was the team that had the gripe.

[Derwood]

HA HA HA HA!!! Today's paper had quotes from FAMU's coach bitching about having to be in the play-in game. Guess who's going home?

 

FAMU was complaining? Niagara was the team that had the gripe.

 

i thought it was FAMU. Maybe I was wrong

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Congrats to Niagara on beating Kansas.

[Exile on Waveland]

HA HA HA HA!!! Today's paper had quotes from FAMU's coach bitching about having to be in the play-in game. Guess who's going home?

 

FAMU was complaining? Niagara was the team that had the gripe.

 

i thought it was FAMU. Maybe I was wrong

 

Oh, I didn't read any quotes. I didn't mean you were wrong, I meant that if one team had a right to complain, it was definitely Niagara.

[SouthSideRyan]

Biagra.

[Exile on Waveland]

Congrats to Niagara on beating Kansas.

 

Is Calvin Murphy suiting up?

[dalgreen]

 

 

On Randle, have his injuries bothered him that much? He seemed like such a promising player, but hasn't improved much the past couple years. Just an outsider's take.

 

Yeah, Randle hasn't been the same since he broke his hand after hitting it against a wall during practice because he was mad two years ago. Then this year he would've made a perfect WebMD example if FOX had college basketball. Just about every night, he's the most athletic person on the floor, but he gets into foul trouble too much to be on the floor and he's not improved his outside shooting at all over the years. I don't know why he doesn't drive to the hole more in an attempt to get to the line.

[Exile on Waveland]

 

 

On Randle, have his injuries bothered him that much? He seemed like such a promising player, but hasn't improved much the past couple years. Just an outsider's take.

 

Yeah, Randle hasn't been the same since he broke his hand after hitting it against a wall during practice because he was mad two years ago. Then this year he would've made a perfect WebMD example if FOX had college basketball. Just about every night, he's the most athletic person on the floor, but he gets into foul trouble too much to be on the floor and he's not improved his outside shooting at all over the years. I don't know why he doesn't drive to the hole more in an attempt to get to the line.

 

Yeah, he fouls a LOT. Too bad about all the injuries.

[CubColtPacer]

HA HA HA HA!!! Today's paper had quotes from FAMU's coach bitching about having to be in the play-in game. Guess who's going home?

 

FAMU was complaining? Niagara was the team that had the gripe.

 

i thought it was FAMU. Maybe I was wrong

 

Oh, I didn't read any quotes. I didn't mean you were wrong, I meant that if one team had a right to complain, it was definitely Niagara.

 

In my paper, Niagra was definitely complaining-I do agree, there were definitely a few teams that were worse than them during the season-I'm not sure why there were relegated to the play-in game.

[SouthSideRyan]

I had both Niagra and Florida A&M as 15 seeds.

[Exile on Waveland]

HA HA HA HA!!! Today's paper had quotes from FAMU's coach bitching about having to be in the play-in game. Guess who's going home?

 

FAMU was complaining? Niagara was the team that had the gripe.

 

i thought it was FAMU. Maybe I was wrong

 

Oh, I didn't read any quotes. I didn't mean you were wrong, I meant that if one team had a right to complain, it was definitely Niagara.

 

In my paper, Niagra was definitely complaining-I do agree, there were definitely a few teams that were worse than them during the season-I'm not sure why there were relegated to the play-in game.

 

Well, evidently the NCAA selection committee has been quoted as saying they don't want a SWAC-MEAC match-up in the play in game for political reasons. I haven't heard or read the quote, but it's been reported. If so, then Niagara was the unfortunate victim. Still, even if that's true, it still shouldn't have been Niagara -- they probably were a 15-seed.

[SouthSideRyan]

HA HA HA HA!!! Today's paper had quotes from FAMU's coach bitching about having to be in the play-in game. Guess who's going home?

 

FAMU was complaining? Niagara was the team that had the gripe.

 

i thought it was FAMU. Maybe I was wrong

 

Oh, I didn't read any quotes. I didn't mean you were wrong, I meant that if one team had a right to complain, it was definitely Niagara.

 

In my paper, Niagra was definitely complaining-I do agree, there were definitely a few teams that were worse than them during the season-I'm not sure why there were relegated to the play-in game.

 

Well, evidently the NCAA selection committee has been quoted as saying they don't want a SWAC-MEAC match-up in the play in game for political reasons. I haven't heard or read the quote, but it's been reported. If so, then Niagara was the unfortunate victim. Still, even if that's true, it still shouldn't have been Niagara -- they probably were a 15-seed.

 

That was my original thought as well that it looked disrespectful to put the 2 historically black schools in the play in game. I had Jackson St. as the worst team in the tourney though.

[Andy]

Oregon and Wazzou are the only two teams in the entire NCAA tournament who get to play near home in the first two rounds while everyone else in their pod has to travel all the way across the country to play. No point to that, but I thought it was interesting.

 

Miami (OH) had no business a 14 seed. I've seen them play and they should have been in the play-in game. The MAC was a joke this year and the RedHawks weren't even one of the best teams.

[Flames24Rulz]

Oregon and Wazzou are the only two teams in the entire NCAA tournament who get to play near home in the first two rounds while everyone else in their pod has to travel all the way across the country to play. No point to that, but I thought it was interesting.

 

Miami (OH) had no business a 14 seed. I've seen them play and they should have been in the play-in game. The MAC was a joke this year and the RedHawks weren't even one of the best teams.

 

UNC? They're in Winston-Salem.

 

And I agree with you about Miami Ohio. I've seen plenty of MAC basketball this year and it was pretty pathetic, to say the last. What's real funny is how some people are saying Miami is actually going to upset Oregon. This must not be the Miami team that nearly lost to NIU at home earlier this year.