UConn/West Virginia

[ateamstupid]

Kind of surprised this isn't on nationally, but I guess no one expected West Viriginia to be this good. I smell a WVU upset. The key to beating WVU is to make them turn the ball over, and if there's one area where UConn struggles, it's forcing turnovers. Plus Morgantown is never an easy place to win. It's also personally nice to see Truck Bryant, whose games I covered a bunch of times at St. Raymond's, turning into a surprisingly solid point guard as a freshman.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by ateamstupid

Kind of surprised this isn't on nationally, but I guess no one expected West Viriginia to be this good. I smell a WVU upset. The key to beating WVU is to make them turn the ball over, and if there's one area where UConn struggles, it's forcing turnovers. Plus Morgantown is never an easy place to win. It's also personally nice to see Truck Bryant, whose games I covered a bunch of times at St. Raymond's, turning into a surprisingly solid point guard as a freshman.

Yeah, I think WV wins pretty comfortably by 7 and winds up in the top four in the Big East even competing for the championship late in the year. They only have to play Gtown and UConn once each so 14-4 in conference isn't impossible. This one is on ESPNU I think.

[-BT-]

WVU is laying the points in this one. Its tough business playing in that sh!thole they call morgantown, huggybear will have the boys ready to roll

-bt-

[ateamstupid]

Originally Posted by -BT-

WVU is laying the points in this one. Its tough business playing in that sh!thole they call morgantown, huggybear will have the boys ready to roll

-bt-

Interesting. I thought UConn would be favored. Guess you can't outsmart Vegas!

[philcski]

Originally Posted by ateamstupid

Kind of surprised this isn't on nationally, but I guess no one expected West Viriginia to be this good. I smell a WVU upset. The key to beating WVU is to make them turn the ball over, and if there's one area where UConn struggles, it's forcing turnovers. Plus Morgantown is never an easy place to win. It's also personally nice to see Truck Bryant, whose games I covered a bunch of times at St. Raymond's, turning into a surprisingly solid point guard as a freshman.

WVU played them very tough, but UConn gets the win.

While I think the Big East might be the best league ever this year, I don't know if Pitt is really the #1 team in all of the land. They may lose 4 games in their own conference. It's brutal, Syracuse is REALLY good and might finish 5th.

[King Glorious]

Meanwhile, the ACC is ranked 2-3-4 and that doesn't even include Boston College who just won AT North Carolina. I think I'll hold off on being a believer in the Big East just yet. They may be the best 1-16 or however many teams they have but I don't think they are the best 1-4.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by philcski

WVU played them very tough, but UConn gets the win.

While I think the Big East might be the best league ever this year, I don't know if Pitt is really the #1 team in all of the land. They may lose 4 games in their own conference. It's brutal, Syracuse is REALLY good and might finish 5th.

They could easily be 8th but for once played a tough enough non-conference schedule that they will be in at 9-9 and even have a shot at 8-10 . Hell, Notre Dame is looking like they could wind up 9th and they were preseason #11 and already have wins over Texas and Georgetown. They played some absolute joke teams nonconference that is going to make it very difficult for them to get in at 9-9 in league. Louisville is another that was too weak non-conference to count on 9-9 getting in.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

Meanwhile, the ACC is ranked 2-3-4 and that doesn't even include Boston College who just won AT North Carolina. I think I'll hold off on being a believer in the Big East just yet. They may be the best 1-16 or however many teams they have but I don't think they are the best 1-4.

Clemson sucks, they've beat a bunch of crap so far. They'll get a 2 or a 3 in the NCAAs and be out second round after surviving a huge upset scare in the first round. 1-12 the Big East is slightly better but they have four crappy teams at the bottom holding them back.

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

Clemson sucks, they've beat a bunch of crap so far. They'll get a 2 or a 3 in the NCAAs and be out second round after surviving a huge upset scare in the first round. 1-12 the Big East is slightly better but they have four crappy teams at the bottom holding them back.

I don't think Clemson is fourth best in the ACC though. I think it's BC. Top four, I'd take the ACC easily. Overall, the Big East has more depth top to bottom.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

I don't think Clemson is fourth best in the ACC though. I think it's BC. Top four, I'd take the ACC easily. Overall, the Big East has more depth top to bottom.

Time will tell but I think the Carolina game was a fluke and BC is still the same team that lost to St Louis and couldn't blow out some of the worst Division 1 basketball teams in the country like South Carolina Upstate, Bryant, and Sacred Heart. Consider how many points those schools lost by against the big six conference schools they've played:

SC Upstate
Lost by 36 to Notre Dame
Lost by 24 to Georgia
Lost by 22 to South Carolina
Lost by 12 to Boston College

Bryant
Lost by 30 to Connecticut
Lost by 30 to Rutgers
Lost by 27 to Providence
Lost by 21 to Maryland
Lost by 19 to Boston College

Sacred Heart
Lost by 24 to Providence
Lost by 13 to Boston College
Lost by 12 to Penn St

I guess they are at least good at making the crappy teams feel better about themselves. And the margins at halftime were 5 against SC Upstate and 6 against Sacred Heart so it isn't like they called off the dogs after blowing them out early.

[ateamstupid]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

Meanwhile, the ACC is ranked 2-3-4 and that doesn't even include Boston College who just won AT North Carolina. I think I'll hold off on being a believer in the Big East just yet. They may be the best 1-16 or however many teams they have but I don't think they are the best 1-4.

You're wrong, IMO. Duke and UNC are the only elite teams in the ACC. Wake Forest has potential, we'll know more after this Sunday, and Clemson does this every year: They start 15-0 or better and then sh*t the bed in conference play.

Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Georgetown and West Virginia is a better foursome than any in the country. They may not all get great seeds because they'll beat each other up, but they're more dangerous in March than the ACC's top teams, IMO.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by ateamstupid

You're wrong, IMO. Duke and UNC are the only elite teams in the ACC. Wake Forest has potential, we'll know more after this Sunday, and Clemson does this every year: They start 15-0 or better and then sh*t the bed in conference play.

Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Georgetown and West Virginia is a better foursome than any in the country. They may not all get great seeds because they'll beat each other up, but they're more dangerous in March than the ACC's top teams, IMO.

If Oklahoma, Michigan St, and Tennessee don't dominate their leagues there is a very good chance we could see two #1 seeds from the ACC and two #1 seeds from the Big East.

[philcski]

I'll take a shot at projecting seeds right now. I think the Big East gets 10, deservedly. Nine teams would be locks right now.

Pitt 1
UConn 1
Georgetown 2
Syracuse 2
Notre Dame 3
Villanova 4
West Virginia 4
Marquette 4
Louisville 5
Cincy or Providence will get in as a low seed (9-12).

[ateamstupid]

Originally Posted by philcski

I'll take a shot at projecting seeds right now. I think the Big East gets 10, deservedly. Nine teams would be locks right now.

Pitt 1
UConn 1
Georgetown 2
Syracuse 2
Notre Dame 3
Villanova 4
West Virginia 4
Marquette 4
Louisville 5
Cincy or Providence will get in as a low seed (9-12).

Hey Phil.. I just restarted the blog.. LOL.

[GPK]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

Time will tell but I think the Carolina game was a fluke and BC is still the same team that lost to St Louis and couldn't blow out some of the worst Division 1 basketball teams in the country like South Carolina Upstate, Bryant, and Sacred Heart. Consider how many points those schools lost by against the big six conference schools they've played:

SC Upstate
Lost by 36 to Notre Dame
Lost by 24 to Georgia
Lost by 22 to South Carolina
Lost by 12 to Boston College

Bryant
Lost by 30 to Connecticut
Lost by 30 to Rutgers
Lost by 27 to Providence
Lost by 21 to Maryland
Lost by 19 to Boston College

Sacred Heart
Lost by 24 to Providence
Lost by 13 to Boston College
Lost by 12 to Penn St

I guess they are at least good at making the crappy teams feel better about themselves. And the margins at halftime were 5 against SC Upstate and 6 against Sacred Heart so it isn't like they called off the dogs after blowing them out early.

BC looking wonderful tonight

Harvard

[King Glorious]

I called that one great didn't I?

[philcski]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

I called that one great didn't I?

LOL. Can't hit them all.

For what its worth, I think Miami will be the 4th place team in the ACC with Clemson 5th.

Originally Posted by ateamstupid

Hey Phil.. I just restarted the blog.. LOL.

Sweet... get to work!

I'll do some stuff for you but I have to reconfigure all my spreadsheets since Kenpom isn't doing RPI anymore.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

I called that one great didn't I?

That's good stuff. Harvard? Wow.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by philcski

I'll take a shot at projecting seeds right now. I think the Big East gets 10, deservedly. Nine teams would be locks right now.

Pitt 1
UConn 1
Georgetown 2
Syracuse 2
Notre Dame 3
Villanova 4
West Virginia 4
Marquette 4
Louisville 5
Cincy or Providence will get in as a low seed (9-12).

Not going to happen. The Big East doesn't even have that good of an RPI to get 9 in unless those nine separate themselves and are all 9-9 or higher in league. No way they get 10 in or 9 in the top five seeds. Will look more like this if all nine make it:

Pitt 1
UConn 1
Georgetown 2
West Virginia 3
Syracuse 4
Villanova 5
Louisville 6
Marquette 7
Notre Dame 12

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

That's good stuff. Harvard? Wow.

Yeah I know but after this game, I watched a couple of Harvard games. They have some talent there and of course, with Tommy Amaker coaching them, I think they might surprise a few more times this year. They aren't a bad team.