Re: College Basketball 2008-2009

[SouthSideRyan]

Watching CBS Halftime, I was not aware all Big East teams are making their tourney now. Davis mentioned that the top 4 seeds get 2 byes and would only have to win 3 games to win the tourney. So am I correct that this is the breakdown?

 

 

1-8: BYE

9-16

10-15

11-14

12-13

 

1-4: BYE

5-(12-13)

6-(11-14)

7-(10-15)

8-(9-16)

 

1-(8-9-16)

2-(7-10-15)

3-(6-11-14)

4-(5-12-13)

 

Pretty interesting set up. I actually liked the setup with 13-16 not making the tourney, if you can't finish in the top 12 too bad, but this is a really nice alternative that I hadn't considered.

[ISUCubsFan]

Watching CBS Halftime, I was not aware all Big East teams are making their tourney now. Davis mentioned that the top 4 seeds get 2 byes and would only have to win 3 games to win the tourney. So am I correct that this is the breakdown?

 

 

1-8: BYE

9-16

10-15

11-14

12-13

 

1-4: BYE

5-(12-13)

6-(11-14)

7-(10-15)

8-(9-16)

 

1-(8-9-16)

2-(7-10-15)

3-(6-11-14)

4-(5-12-13)

 

Pretty interesting set up. I actually liked the setup with 13-16 not making the tourney, if you can't finish in the top 12 too bad, but this is a really nice alternative that I hadn't considered.

 

Correct. A few other conferences already use an eight or nine team version of this where the top two get byes. The Horizon, WCC, and maybe someone else.

[Guest]

Watching CBS Halftime, I was not aware all Big East teams are making their tourney now. Davis mentioned that the top 4 seeds get 2 byes and would only have to win 3 games to win the tourney. So am I correct that this is the breakdown?

 

 

1-8: BYE

9-16

10-15

11-14

12-13

 

1-4: BYE

5-(12-13)

6-(11-14)

7-(10-15)

8-(9-16)

 

1-(8-9-16)

2-(7-10-15)

3-(6-11-14)

4-(5-12-13)

 

Pretty interesting set up. I actually liked the setup with 13-16 not making the tourney, if you can't finish in the top 12 too bad, but this is a really nice alternative that I hadn't considered.

 

Correct. A few other conferences already use an eight or nine team version of this where the top two get byes. The Horizon, WCC, and maybe someone else.

 

The Big West does it. No. 1 and 2 get two byes, No. 3 and 4 get one bye and No. 9 stays home.

 

First round: 5 v 8, 6 v 7

Quarters: 3 v worst team left, 4 v best team left

Semis: 1 v worst team left, 2 v best team left

Finals: semifinal winners

[SouthSideRyan]

Thad Matta might murder half his team after this game

[Magnetic Curses]

Thad Matta might murder half his team after this game

 

what channel? the ever-exciting sport of freestayle wrestling is on btn.

[bukie]

Thad Matta might murder half his team after this game

And that leaves Illinois as the only Big Ten team without a home conference loss.

[loukycub]

no spin, i think that the university of louisville fighting cardinals are the best team in the nation right now, but aren't going to move up much in the polls. i think that we may get a few votes for number 1 in both polls, but might only be #5 tops. 4-0 on the road in the toughest conference in the country this year (yeah, two were against south florida and rutgers) is nothing to sneeze at. until i see dook play a top team on the road, my opinion is not going to change on that.

 

your big east champion is either pitt, uconn or uofl, and the winner is going to have at least 3 conference losses. georgetown and syracuse played themselves out of contention. neither can afford another loss in-conference and both are probably going to get them from somewhere along the way.

[CubInOK]

Wait, Oregon State beat Stanford on the road by 15? Am I reading that right?

 

The Beavers swept the Bay area schools. In the Bay.

 

Crazy.

 

Obama's brother in law getting the job done!

 

OSU winning puts DePaul dangerously close to the "worst team in a Major conference." Indiana could give us a run for our money this year, but at least they have something to look forward to.

Take a look at Colorado.

[Vanilla Ice]

no spin, i think that the university of louisville fighting cardinals are the best team in the nation right now, but aren't going to move up much in the polls. i think that we may get a few votes for number 1 in both polls, but might only be #5 tops. 4-0 on the road in the toughest conference in the country this year (yeah, two were against south florida and rutgers) is nothing to sneeze at. until i see dook play a top team on the road, my opinion is not going to change on that.

 

your big east champion is either pitt, uconn or uofl, and the winner is going to have at least 3 conference losses. georgetown and syracuse played themselves out of contention. neither can afford another loss in-conference and both are probably going to get them from somewhere along the way.

 

Ok, so Louisville has one good win on the road (Villanova, #25 in Pomeroy) and Duke has one good win on the road (Purdue #16 in Pomeroy).

 

They both have pretty good wins at home or neutral. I'll make my cutoff the top 40 teams in Pomeroy's ratings. The cutoff is just random.

 

Louisville has beaten Pitt (#3)

Kentucky (#20)

UAB (#40)

 

Duke has beaten Georgetown (#9)

Xavier (#15)

Davidson (#36)

 

Duke has 6 other wins in the top 100.

Louisville has 2 other wins in the top 100.

 

Louisville lost to Minnesota on a neutral court. Duke lost to Michigan in Ann Arbor.

 

Through all of that, it is pretty close. But, you would be hard pressed to say Louisville has a better resume. THEN, we add in Louisville's horrible loss to a terrible Western Kentucky team and to UNLV at home.

[Andy]

Billy Taylor is executing a remarkable turnaround at Ball State. After recording two straight program-worst seasons the last two years, and after losing their best player, Anthony Newell, for the year with a broken leg in game one of the MAC season, Ball State is 4-1 in the league - 9-8 overall - and tied atop the West Division with Western Michigan (who they beat). The Cards beat Toledo today.

 

The turnaround's probably been accelerated by the sheer horribleness of the MAC this year, but what Taylor's doing with a team full of JC transfers and true freshmen and sophomores is pretty awesome to see. Taylor is the nicest guy in the world based on my time covering the team last year, and I'm really glad to see him succeeding this early. He definitely would've had another year of honeymoon if BSU had sucked in the league again this year, but instead they could be a contender for the league title.

[NCCubFan]

It would be quite an accomplishment if Ball State made postseason in both basketball (even if it's the NIT) and football the same year. To the best of my knowledge they've never done that before.

[CubbieBum]

It would be quite an accomplishment if Ball State made postseason in both basketball (even if it's the NIT) and football the same year. To the best of my knowledge they've never done that before.

 

Quite possible they've only made the NIT or NCAA maybe a dozen times and a bowl game I think six times (number escpaes me right now).

[mul21]

Illinois up to 20th in the ESPN poll. MSU 9, Purdue 17, and Minnesota 24. Anybody seen the AP poll results yet?

[SouthSideRyan]

St. Mary's has managed to go 19 games into the season without playing a tourney team. They're a bit of a sham.

 

ETA: 19th in AP.

[abuck1220]

oh no, i thought we were done with ball state talk.

[TruffleShuffle]

St. Mary's has managed to go 19 games into the season without playing a tourney team. They're a bit of a sham.

 

ETA: 19th in AP.

 

they still might be pretty good. they were very good last year as well and it looks like they only lost a couple of role players.

 

they'll certainly get to play a real team this week since they travel to gonzaga.

[hotshot13422]

no spin, i think that the university of louisville fighting cardinals are the best team in the nation right now, but aren't going to move up much in the polls. i think that we may get a few votes for number 1 in both polls, but might only be #5 tops. 4-0 on the road in the toughest conference in the country this year (yeah, two were against south florida and rutgers) is nothing to sneeze at. until i see dook play a top team on the road, my opinion is not going to change on that.

 

your big east champion is either pitt, uconn or uofl, and the winner is going to have at least 3 conference losses. georgetown and syracuse played themselves out of contention. neither can afford another loss in-conference and both are probably going to get them from somewhere along the way.

 

Seriously, Louisville? You might be able to play it off as the best "right now" but they are not they best. A team that has lost to Minnesota, WESTERN KENTUCKY, and UNLV(at home), is far from the best team in the country.

[SouthSideRyan]

Mark Gottfried out at Bama.

 

It's not a loss, I have faith in CNS

[bukie]

Mark Gottfried out at Bama.

 

It's not a loss, I have faith in CNS

Dude, show some respect for CMG.

[bukie]

BP's John Gasaway posted an article on conference analysis (still early edition).

 

On Illinois:

The news about Illinois isn't their league-best efficiency margin seen here, which in truth owes much of its glitter to a quaint and rather well-attended reenactment of Little Big Horn in Champaign on January 10, wherein Indiana obligingly portrayed General Custer and his men. No, the news is merely that the Illini are so much better than expected, sitting atop of this list even though they're already done playing road games against both number-two Michigan State and number-three Purdue. Who'da thunk, right?

[Andy]

oh no, i thought we were done with ball state talk.

They're at least as likely to make the tournament as the other team I talk about, so why not?

 

Notre Dame still ranked 22nd in the coaches' poll, which is a joke.

[Guest]

St. Mary's has managed to go 19 games into the season without playing a tourney team. They're a bit of a sham.

 

ETA: 19th in AP.

 

they still might be pretty good. they were very good last year as well and it looks like they only lost a couple of role players.

 

they'll certainly get to play a real team this week since they travel to gonzaga.

 

I love Diamon Simpson. Probably because he has an awesome name.

[SouthSideRyan]

oh no, i thought we were done with ball state talk.

They're at least as likely to make the tournament as the other team I talk about, so why not?

 

Oh my God, no they don't. Ball St. has like a 1% chance of making the tourney. The MAC West is terrible.

[bukie]

oh no, i thought we were done with ball state talk.

They're at least as likely to make the tournament as the other team I talk about, so why not?

 

Oh my God, no they don't. Ball St. has like a 1% chance of making the tourney. The MAC West is terrible.

Well, the MAC is definitely a one-bid league this year, so maybe he just thinks there's just as much chance Ball State wins the MAC tourney as the 8th best team as ND has winning the Big East tourney as the 9th best team.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

BP's John Gasaway posted an article on conference analysis (still early edition).

 

Big 12: If Mike Anderson's Brother-in-Law were President, You'd be Hearing about Missouri

 

Nice. I love reading Gasaway's stuff.