Very surprised at how unprepared the Hoosiers looked last night. It wasn't as though Syracuse surprised them by playing a 2-3 zone for the first time. Good night for the Big East (RIP) knocking off the Big Ten champ and the ACC champ.
I agree with you, gip, re: the Hoosiers. I guess Indiana fans need to reflect on the huge step forward this season in getting to the sweet sixteen and try to put aside last night's ugly loss. What makes it tough to swallow is the expectation fueled by an outstanding regular season ending in the Big10 championship. IMO it was three steps forward and a half step back, but I'm guessing the fanatic element of IU fans won't see it that way. It looks like the Big East is celebrating its final season as the original conference by playing like the top conference in the tournament.....so far.
And if we had a full fledged football playoff we would have the same feeling prevailing. At least teams in football that have no realistic shot at winning it all can claim a win in a bowl game as their last game experience and take that good feeling through the winter with them. I like the existence of the bowls for that reason but I do endorse the upcoming 4 team playoff format in CFB..... that should count among all of it's particpants teams that really do have a realistic shot of winning it all.
I have to disagree Sid. Thus far the record would indicate the B1G has been superior....that may change over the weekend, but the B1G currently stands at 11-4, 6 out of 7 teams won in the first round and got 4 of 7 to the sweet sixteen -v- the Big East record of 9-5, only 4 out of 8 won in the first round and got 3 of 8 to the sweet 16. Things may change, but thus far, the numbers would seem to indicate the B1G has had better results. No doubt tho, after a slow start, the Big East is coming on strong M and Sparty have tough match-ups, but at this stage of the game, they are all tough or they wouldn't be here.....
Last night Jimmy Boeheim ruled. Tonight it's Izzo vs. coach K ( pick one ) and Self. I like the the coaches who have been there in this tournament. A Final Four of OSU, Kansas or Florida, Syracuse and of course Rick Pitino and L'ville or Izzo and MSU or coach K and the Dukies would not surprise me at this point. Wow....that is one tough region for L'ville, MSU and Duke.
Sid, why should that make me feel better? Facts are facts......if you conceded that the Earth is round, I daresay that my first impulse would not be to feel better, but if it makes you feel better, I'm good with it...... :roll:
KP, I can see your frustration, but it's all relative to each sport and recruiting plays a big part. Just as in football, you've got to take a look at where you are and work your way out from there. You have talent pools around Alabama, but you're going to have to work your way into them. You can work your way into them with reputation. Typically, the fastest way to do this is within. You have an interesting situation, much like the state of Minnesota with hockey. People often discount the level of athlete in that state and that's a mistake. They have great athletes, the vast majority of whom would rather play hockey than breath air. In Alabama, even the urban black population would rather play football for the Tide (or Auburn, or anywhere in the SEC) than play hoops. You don't have a lot of people in this state (a bit more than 4 million). In other states, guys can't get that 6'5" 250lb kid to play football because they are busy chasing a hoops dream. In Alabama, even those that play hoops, would typically rather play football. The upside to all those fantastic defensive ends, lineman, tight ends and linebackers is you have world class college football. The downside is that you don't have a lot of power forwards and rebounding machines on the hoops team. We don't have the population here to support both without a tweak in culture that isn't coming any time soon. He has to get to a point in which he owns the state of Alabama. Saban did this in football even before the titles. I thought that was the first thing he did and he did it well as success came, he cemented it even further and now dips into MS, TN and GA almost at will with the occasional plum from Florida. From there, he has some good options but they are tough nuts to crack. There is a belt of corruption that runs from Memphis, Tennessee to Lexington, Kentucky. That's his recruiting ceiling and it keeps him from snagging those good kids along that run and up into the talent rich St. Louis & Chicago areas. Aside from ferocious B1G competition for talent, you have several mid-majors who have great reputations... and again, Memphis and Kentucky have historically done whatever it takes to get the best of the best, especially in that area. To his east, he has the ACC which is a proverbial stone wall.. but I think he could make headway into Atlanta and those southern plain cities. It's just a matter of selling and success. To the west, you have a lot of open country. It doesn't help him that Ole Miss is doing well, but I think he could swipe a few kids from Louisiana and Mississippi. There are bodies to be had, but it's a tough fight to get them. One thing that would greatly help them in the long run, and in the immediate future, is a lights out point guard. I don't think it has to be an NBA talent. He needs a good old fashioned gym rat with ball skills and a lights out shooter. He can find the shooter in-state, but he's going to have to travel to get that PG. I hope he does, because Grant is a good coach. He just keeps missing on that recruiting front and I'm not sure his assistants are getting in done in recruiting. In my opinion, he's really only one player away from being a Sweet 16 team.
Granted. I was using the eye test, the margins of victory, etc., for the 4 remaining Big East teams vs. their Big 10 counterparts. I have no preference for the Big East and no abiding interest in who is the better conference by any measure. If anything, I'm more of a Big 10 fan. My eye roll was based on the fact that you felt compelled to contest what was intended as a harmless observation from a casual observer and not as a challenge to the Big 10's manhood.
Corey, Really except for Wimp Sanderson's teams in the 70's Alabama has never really consistently been a threat to crash the sweet 16. Looking at this year's team was like watching a pickup game at the local park. Everybody working for their own shot but they did play good D. I was watching Duke earlier in the year and there were crisp passes and unselfish picks and movement away from the ball. I didn't see that very often from Alabama. If we had less than a 10 point lead at the 3 minute mark, I was worried.
How in the **** did we win that game. Kansas beat our asses for 38 minutes but we pulled this one out. I'm absolutely numb.
Congrats, Bobda. IMO, Kansas played the last few minutes of regulation not to lose and as a result lost the mojo that enabled them to score at will on M's defense. On the other side, Burke is a heckuva player who took full advantage of the open door. Did you see what I saw on K's last possession? That kid had an open layup to tie the game in OT but he passed it out to a teammate for a possible 3. M was not going to foul him. If I was a K fan, I'd be tearing my hair out. It doesn't mean K would have won the game, but they would have had new life and a second chance.
Sid, I saw the same thing that you did. Very, very entertaining game. Congrats Bobda. Sometimes a win like this one catapults a team deep into the tournament.
With Florida wining late last night, it appears to me almost any of the final teams have a chance at the Nation Championship. Duke is back at full strength and really controlled Michigan State. Ohio State has a real test with Wichita State this evening. Marquette has looked solid. Syracuse is in the mix from the Big East. Should be some great basketball over the weekend.
Sid, what a chickenshit response. The silence you have heard is the distinct lack of any self-masturbatory chest thumping - the kind of which is commonplace from other quarters during football season - coming from any B1G supporter over the entirety of the basketball season. If we can't disagree politely and offer an opposing view here without getting your panties in a wad, why have a message board? Life's just too short for that nonsense.....