Official 2007-2008 College Basketball Thread

[cartman]

I thought for a second there Bruce Pearl was going to pull a Joe Namath on Suzy Kolber move...

[JonInMiddleGA]

Don't anybody get carried away about #1 seeds, certainly not for UT.
They've still got a killer three game stretch to go and that's before the conference tournament even starts.

[Pumpy Tudors]

Originally Posted by Lathum

I wonder if this will cost Memphis a #1 seed

If this is Memphis' only loss of the season (and it probably will be), they should still be a #1 seed. It just wouldn't make sense if they drop to a #2 because of this one loss. Lose to Rice, lose your #1 seed. Lose to #2 Tennessee, I hope not.

[Warhammer]

Originally Posted by Lathum

At least the game delivered.

I wonder if this will cost Memphis a #1 seed

It shouldn't. You can still argue that Memphis has the best credentials of any team in the land, even with the loss.

How can you deny a team that beat Georgetown, UConn, USC, Gonzaga, etc., a #1 seed when they lost to the #2 team in the country?

[Warhammer]

I hate to say it too, Memphis lost this game with their terrible possession with 1:30 left in the game. They started to stall rather than play their game. Bad, bad move.

[Radii]

Originally Posted by Lathum

I wonder if this will cost Memphis a #1 seed

I seriously doubt it. Memphis probably won't lose another game, and even with a weak conference schedule they have some very good wins. Kansas lost today, Duke/UNC have 2 more losses coming between them at least, and that's if they both win all their other games and meet in the ACC finals. UCLA isn't guarenteed to finish without another loss by any stretch... I'd say Memphis is still the most likely 1 seed out there, followed by Tennessee, then 2 of Duke/UNC/Kansas/Texas/UCLA

[Young Drachma]

Is D.J. White of Indiana a legit NBA prospect?

[Johnny93g]

Originally Posted by Dark Cloud

Is D.J. White of Indiana a legit NBA prospect?

Im really hoping the Raptors can pick him up in the draft. He's exactly what they need. I think right now, he's a mid first round pick.

[GoldenEagle]

Those asking about the timeout do not understand the offense Memphis runs.
There are not real set plays. Its free flowing.Doizer had the three foot look that we wanted, he just missed. Dorsey pulled him down fighting for the rebound.

UT just game out in the 2nd half and took it to Memphis. We could not drive and we were very impatient on the offensive end.

But in the end, its still just a loss in Feb. It would not surprise me if we lost one more time before the tournament.

[Radii]

Originally Posted by GoldenEagle

Those asking about the timeout do not understand the offense Memphis runs.
There are not real set plays. Its free flowing.Doizer had the three foot look that we wanted, he just missed. Dorsey pulled him down fighting for the rebound.

Not there, that was on the super long possession where Memphis kept getting offensive rebounds. All the time out talk was on the offensive possession with ~15 seconds left after Tennessee took the lead. If they had gotten a remotely good shot on that possession then it might not have been all the talk about bad coaching, but neither of Memphis' best two scorers touched the ball, and they took a terrible shot over two defenders with 8 seconds still on the clock that didn't even touch the rim. At that point, knowing they had a time out, it looks to everyone watching like they had no clue what to do on that play, were completely out of sync and got the worst result possible.

[MrBug708]

No set plays?!?

[Mr. Wednesday]

I don't think ND runs a lot of set plays.

[Groundhog]

A team may not run set plays most times down the court, but in a situation when you need a basket, you should have a couple of plays up your sleeve that you can pull out to get a good look.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

New bracketology 101 is out for this week. Starting to become pretty relevant as the season nears March.

http://bracketology101.blogspot.com/...65-feb-25.html

One seeding of note: KU fans face the prospect of facing another BB team in the first round. #2 KU may face a first round matchup against current #15 Belmont Bruins. Previous BB first round catastrophes include the Bucknell Bison and the Bradley Braves.

[Radii]

If Tennessee rolls on and locks up the 1 seed in the east, as a UNC fan I would *much* rather see my team get a 2 seed in the East than a 1 seed anywhere else.

Also, if that's how the bracket were to end up, I'd really feel for a mid major like kent state. I know you want to play for as high a seed as possible, but if you're a team that has the talent to pull a couple upsets, wouldn't you much rather be an 11 seed than an 8 seed?


Other random stuff from that bracket:

The Michael Beasley show vs Duke in round 2 would be a big big highlight for me.

I still don't think 5 ACC teams get in, but it still depends on how they beat each other up in the last couple weeks.

Indiana will be really interesting to watch, they're in of course but so far(based on the actions of the players) they seem much more likely to be primed for a big fall than to rally around Dakich and win the Big Ten Tournament and make a move.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/bubblewatch?id=69

Latest ESPN Bubble Watch column. As always the smaller conference tourneys will be very interesting, there's a lot of one bid conferences with one team with an RPI in the 20s right now, making for tons of action on the bubble and some interesting at large selections if they don't hold up and win their conferences.

[Butter]

Dayton has broken my heart this year. So, so disappointing. I think we're finally officially out of the running for anything except the NIT. At least UMass appears to be actually attempting to give the previously heralded Atlantic 10 more than 1 team in the tournament at this point.

[Johnny93g]

Originally Posted by Radii

Indiana will be really interesting to watch, they're in of course but so far(based on the actions of the players) they seem much more likely to be primed for a big fall than to rally around Dakich and win the Big Ten Tournament and make a move.

Why do you think this?

Everything i have seen, read and heard is that they are rallying around Coach Dakich. They have the us vs. the world mentalitty. I'm obviously biased, but the win against a bad Northwestern win was the biggest and most important in of the season. I think it means the players are not quitting under difficult circumstances, and will be a factor.

[nfg22]

Does anyone think that Nick Calathes is for real? Does this guy have potential to be great? I mean, he has better stats on a less experienced team than Rose. I know he probably isnt as good as Rose but I think he gets overlooked. Thoughts?

[Radii]

Originally Posted by Johnny93g

Why do you think this?

Everything i have seen, read and heard is that they are rallying around Coach Dakich. They have the us vs. the world mentalitty. I'm obviously biased, but the win against a bad Northwestern win was the biggest and most important in of the season. I think it means the players are not quitting under difficult circumstances, and will be a factor.

Well, I'm following the whole thing from afar as my Big Ten interest is marginal at best, but the stuff that has struck me:

1) Players skipping practice, as many pointed out in the Indiana thread this is misguided at best, and should be harshly punished at worst.

2) Players putting Sampson's initials on their shoes. Again, extremely misguided and a negative to me.

3) Team struggling to beat a team that's 0-14 in conference play when you're supposed to be a top 10 quality team, under any circumstances, is a bad sign. Its more of a potential sign of disaster than a gutsy win to me.


I'm not convinced that they're going to collapse, but I don't like what I've seen so far. A bunch of young people have been put in difficult situations and their responses so far in every situation have been the wrong ones in my eyes. They're kids and while I absolutely would have suspended everyone that skipped practice for a game, or at least not started any of them, they have their chance to show some character the rest of the way and to become a great story. Or they could struggle vs Ohio State, lose at Michigan State, fall to a 6 seed, and lose to a mid major in the first round of the tournament. As someone who doesn't care either way about Indiana, I'm curious to see what will happen.

[cartman]

Kansas State's coach looks like Chet, the big brother from the movie Weird Science.

[cartman]

Great game so far from Manhattan. It is tied 30-30 at the break. Beasley is having another great game for K-State.

[nfg22]

Beasley is looking great, despite not getting the ball all that much. He is really surprising me with the way he doesn't need the ball every possesion.

[Lathum]

The Texas- kState game is why it is a shame that players are allowed to leave after one year. While I don't fault the player it is a shame because you can tell that KState has a ton of talent but are inexperienced. If these guys all played together for another 2 years they would be a national championship contender. Instead Beasly will come out after this year and KState will fade out like OSU did this year.

[cartman]

Texas did a great job of limiting Beasley in the 2nd half. But more importantly, they completely shut down Bill Walker, K-State's second leading scorer, holding him to one point. Great road win for the 'Horns, where no Big 12 team has managed to win so far this season.

However, they need to stop watching the tape from Memphis on how to shoot free throws.

[INDalltheway]

Last time I went on a cruise IU went to the national championship (2002). What am I doing here in a month? Going on a cruise. If it happens again I'm never going on a spring break cruise again.

And my thoughts on the players missing practice. I am sure the guys were wanted at practice, but it wasn't like the interim coach wasn't previously on staff. I'm sure Dakich told the guys to deal with this however they needed. Dakich probably didn't want Sampson to go, so it isn't like he is looked at as an outsider. I'm guessing he is looked at as the coach that will continue what Sampson had started. This is coming from a Purdue fan too.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Butter_of_69

Dayton has broken my heart this year. So, so disappointing. I think we're finally officially out of the running for anything except the NIT. At least UMass appears to be actually attempting to give the previously heralded Atlantic 10 more than 1 team in the tournament at this point.

Don't jinx us - we're way too inconsistent and the A-10 is shockingly good top to bottom (outside St. Bonnie of course.) From an outsider's perspective, that Chris Wright injury really hurt, although some warning signs were there that Dayton was playing a little over its head (lots of close wins, making >50% of 3pt'ers in big wins) but not this much of a free-fall. I still think they have an outside chance if they can sweep the last 3 and win a couple in the A10 tourney (a win there over X could be the difference, but if they get that they might as well just win and get the auto-bid.)

I think our credentials stand on their own (wins at syracuse, bc, dayton, duquesne and uri, home wins over houston, uri and charlotte/only 1 bad loss home vs. Fordham), but there is the specter of St. Joes standing there with a sweep of us and a better conference record. I think the A10 can get 3 teams in, which means I'm rooting deperately for us, X or SJU to make it - Dayton or a Temple/URI/Richmond win and we'll be biting our teeth on selection sunday, probably getting shafted to the NIT.

[Johnny93g]

Originally Posted by Radii

Well, I'm following the whole thing from afar as my Big Ten interest is marginal at best, but the stuff that has struck me:

1) Players skipping practice, as many pointed out in the Indiana thread this is misguided at best, and should be harshly punished at worst.

2) Players putting Sampson's initials on their shoes. Again, extremely misguided and a negative to me.

3) Team struggling to beat a team that's 0-14 in conference play when you're supposed to be a top 10 quality team, under any circumstances, is a bad sign. Its more of a potential sign of disaster than a gutsy win to me.


I'm not convinced that they're going to collapse, but I don't like what I've seen so far. A bunch of young people have been put in difficult situations and their responses so far in every situation have been the wrong ones in my eyes. They're kids and while I absolutely would have suspended everyone that skipped practice for a game, or at least not started any of them, they have their chance to show some character the rest of the way and to become a great story. Or they could struggle vs Ohio State, lose at Michigan State, fall to a 6 seed, and lose to a mid major in the first round of the tournament. As someone who doesn't care either way about Indiana, I'm curious to see what will happen.

Thats definatly a logical view for someone who isnt a fan.

1) The players who missed practise were dealing with the announcement in their own way. I think i saw a quote by DJ saying they never thought about missing a game, they just needed that day to deal with it there own way. I think Dakich handled the situation very well, and said all the right things.

2) The kids are paying respect to the man who never did anything wrong to them. Sampson cheated. Sampson deserved to be fired. But the players lost their coach, a father figure, and want him to be apart of the team. Even if it's just writing on the shoes.

3) Hard to argue that point. I still feel it was a gutsy win. It can easily be looked at as a poor effort as well. I hope they look more like a top 10 team tonight vs Ohio State

[JonInMiddleGA]

Midway through the first half, Vandy is just wearing Tennessee out.
The Vols have had as many shots blocked (3) as they've hit.

[MJ4H]

It is tough playing in the effing twilight zone that is Vanderbilt, though. I see Tennessee is crawling back into it.

[wade moore]

So I'm finally gettint the chance to catch some Vols games...

And..

What the HELL is up with this backwards ass arena?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Getting physical in Nashville. Vols back in it, long way to go.

[wade moore]

I love watching this Vols team the last couple of years. Hate that Memphis was the first game I've been able to watch since conference play started.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by wade moore

What the HELL is up with this backwards ass arena?

LOL, it's always been that way as far as I can remember at least. And, if I'm not mistaken, it actually used to be worse than it is now.

Damned thing ought to be imploded and the pieces stuck inside a toxic waste dump somewhere.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

LOL, it's always been that way as far as I can remember at least. And, if I'm not mistaken, it actually used to be worse than it is now.

Damned thing ought to be imploded and the pieces stuck inside a toxic waste dump somewhere.

Not used to having the pleasure of watching UT on TV up here in VA - so I've never seen this arena.

It is funny to realize just a couple of years ago I was a the arena in Knoxville in the early season of Pearl's first year and the place was a ghost town.

[wade moore]

Chris Lofton is my hero btw.

[JonInMiddleGA]

In case you get curious later, here's the Wiki on that gym.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memoria...ilt_University)
At the bottom are some links that have a little more of the backstory.

[wade moore]

since you're hanging around - random "small world" fact..

I'm now pretty good friends with the guy that played backup to Allen Houston at UT (Terrance Mack).

[JonInMiddleGA]

BTW, have you heard that Yao Ming is out for the remainder of the season AND the playoffs?

Just didn't want anybody to miss that breaking story.

[JonInMiddleGA]

You could really see this one coming I think.

Vandy by 8 with just under 5 minutes to go.

[JonInMiddleGA]

72-69 Vandy, in spite of missing a pair of FT's with just under 2 seconds left.

Props to the Nashville police, who managed to convince the students to stay in the stands instead of rushing the court.

[Mr. Wednesday]

Killjoys.

[Groundhog]

Aussie Ogilvy struggled with fouls for Vandy, but glad he picked up the W.

[MrBug708]

Boy Syracuse is not a very smart team. How the hell did they lose that game?

I'm not sure what to think about Duke too. You can't go very far without a legit post player

[Dr. Sak]

The end of that Pitt/Syracuse game was crazy.

[MrBug708]

34 points for Rice at at halftime of the UNC game.

Damn.

[wade moore]

My W&M Tribe after earlier games today are shockingly in a position to be #4 in the conference and earn a 1st round bye in the CAA tourney. This is a team that in 25 years has made it to the 2nd round of the CAA tourney exactly TWICE.

It's incredible.

Of course - we have to face #1 VCU, but at least on our court. Will be exciting tonight!

[MalcPow]

This Hoyas team is mind boggling. They look terrible for long stretches of most games, but seem to always hang around and pull things out (but never without a bunch of absurd crap happening). They're killing me, but thankfully they also must be absolutely infuriating to lose to. Schadenfreude ftw!

[cartman]

Texas has shot like crap against Texas Tech today. I don't seem them being able to come back in this one.

[MJ4H]

Arkansas rebounded from the worst performance I've ever seen midweek at Alabama and beats Vandy at home today. This team is crazy. Great at home, awful on the road. Can't wait to get some good guard play and decent shooting next year (Courtney Fortson and Rotnei Clarke can't get here soon enough).

[cartman]

Texas did make a hell of a rally, but it was too little too late, and they lost by 3.