There is no way this team makes the NCAA! Their resume is just too weak and does anyone really think they'll beat UConn on the road? Really? Honestly?
Assuming the best and this team somehow flukes their way in (and it has happened -- see 1977, NCAA Tournament, Last Team in, Last team Out), the team is a 9 seed to a 12 seed. They end up playing a 5 seed to an 8 seed at a neutral court and get beaten, probably in the last five minutes.
This year's team is the NCAA version of Bill Murray's Ground Hog Day. It just keeps happening over and over and over and over again.
Candidly, the only way they win in the NIT (Or National Mid-Major Also-ran Championship) is if they draw a first and second round home game.
Sadly, this team should be better. As I said under "Leadership," there's something lacking in their game management. They don't deserve an NCAA bid and if they get one, it's not worth the trip.
Minimum of 7 games left to play...if the bids were today, it would be scary because we're at .500, but the bids aren't today. Let's see what the boys can do.
I can no longer tell from thread titles what's sarcasm and what's not.
BTW, I disagree for reasons set forth on about 100 other threads here, but especially because it's way too early.
I'm not ready to write them off just yet. There are still chances for quality wins and plus the BET. Its not looking too good right now but i'd say its about a 50-50 chance.
Sorry, but this is such a dumb comment.
SJU @ home
SHU @ home
@ UCONN
Prov @ home
CINCY @ home
@ SHU
I see a 5-1 record in those games, which easily gets us in to the tournament. Probably as a 6 or 7 seed, at worst.
I wouldn't be surprised with a 4-2 record in those games. That equates to 10 wins, which, again, easily gets us into the tournament.
Go 4-3 in those games, we're probably in trouble unless we win a couple in the Beast tournament.
If this team can't get to ten wins, they probably don't deserve to get in. We have the easiest part of schedule still ahead of us. Everyone needs to relax. The loses are frustrating as hell, especially because the talent is there to have at least 3 or 4 more wins....but, at the same time, all of the NIT talk is just silly.
Quote from: ChicosBailBonds on February 14, 2011, 07:22:23 PM
Minimum of 7 games left to play...if the bids were today, it would be scary because we're at .500, but the bids aren't today. Let's see what the boys can do.
I happen to like the work done by Andy Cox over at Crashing the Dance http://www.crashingthedance.com/ (http://www.crashingthedance.com/). He's averaged predicting just over 31 of the 34 at large teams over the last 5 years, and about 80% of the seeds predicted +/- one line. He currently has MU with a 95% selection confidence (kinda like a prediction interval) as of yesterday's results.
(http://www.solopassion.com/files/trolls.png)
My troll radar is going off the charts.
He's not a troll, at least not in the sense of a fan from another school.
Dgies - your challenge is very simple - follow-up with a threat listing 50 teams you believe should be picked in the tourney ahead of us. It will be fun picking a bunch of them off if you get to 50, but I suspect you will give up and we will never see a list to back up your initial post
Quote from: marquette99 on February 14, 2011, 08:49:39 PM
Dgies - your challenge is very simple - follow-up with a threat listing 50 teams you believe should be picked in the tourney ahead of us. It will be fun picking a bunch of them off if you get to 50, but I suspect you will give up and we will never see a list to back up your initial post
For the past 25 years, I've tried to guess who the NCAA wants in the tournament. I'm not Joe Lunardi, so I don't spend my life worrying about it. Last I checked, no one paid me to be a bracketologist.
That said, the last 16 to 18 teams in the tournament are a joke. The next dozen or so are a crap shoot and I'll argue that Marquette falls somewhere in that group this year. The first 16 and maybe the first 24 are the real entrants. The rest usually is window dressing and cannon foddler, no matter how the NCAA spins it.
I reiterate my point though. If we get in, what do you really expect? First round cannon foddler for a team with a legitimate shot at a national title? Maybe we'll give 'em a game, but given our recent history, we'll fail when it matters.
Maybe Father Wild should change the team's nickname again, to the Marquette Ground Hogs.
Im not even going to dignify that with response
Quote from: dgies9156 on February 14, 2011, 09:26:06 PM
For the past 25 years, I've tried to guess who the NCAA wants in the tournament. I'm not Joe Lunardi, so I don't spend my life worrying about it. Last I checked, no one paid me to be a bracketologist.
That said, the last 16 to 18 teams in the tournament are a joke. The next dozen or so are a crap shoot and I'll argue that Marquette falls somewhere in that group this year. The first 16 and maybe the first 24 are the real entrants. The rest usually is window dressing and cannon foddler, no matter how the NCAA spins it.
I reiterate my point though. If we get in, what do you really expect? First round cannon foddler for a team with a legitimate shot at a national title? Maybe we'll give 'em a game, but given our recent history, we'll fail when it matters.
Maybe Father Wild should change the team's nickname again, to the Marquette Ground Hogs.
Well do yourself a favor and stop watching. Better yet, do us all a favor and stop posting too.
Quote from: dgies9156 on February 14, 2011, 09:26:06 PM
For the past 25 years, I've tried to guess who the NCAA wants in the tournament. I'm not Joe Lunardi, so I don't spend my life worrying about it. Last I checked, no one paid me to be a bracketologist.
That said, the last 16 to 18 teams in the tournament are a joke. The next dozen or so are a crap shoot and I'll argue that Marquette falls somewhere in that group this year. The first 16 and maybe the first 24 are the real entrants. The rest usually is window dressing and cannon foddler, no matter how the NCAA spins it.
I reiterate my point though. If we get in, what do you really expect? First round cannon foddler for a team with a legitimate shot at a national title? Maybe we'll give 'em a game, but given our recent history, we'll fail when it matters.
Maybe Father Wild should change the team's nickname again, to the Marquette Ground Hogs.
So your post should have been NCAA - Crap shoot and if we are we are cannon fodder.
Sounds like someone's still living in the '70's. Who wants to go back to a 24 team tournament? Anyone? The current NCAA tournament isn't entertaining enough.
Quote from: Jam Chowder on February 14, 2011, 08:16:58 PM
My troll radar is going off the charts.
It was an inflammatory title, but the post was well written even if I don't agree with the opinion.
Quote from: BrewCity on February 15, 2011, 10:53:30 AM
Sounds like someone's still living in the '70's. Who wants to go back to a 24 team tournament? Anyone? The current NCAA tournament isn't entertaining enough.
I would. It's ridiculous that you have teams that are going to finish 9th or 10th in a conference and they whine about not getting into the tournament. I wish they would just go back to conference winners. But hey, goes with the everyone gets to play, let's don't keep score mentality of 21st century America. How many National Champs in the last 20 years have actually been legitimate champions (i.e. also won their conference)? Would be interesting to look up.
FWIW, every MU alums favorite, Digger Phelps, was on Boomer & Carton this morning. In his opinion, the Big East gets 10 bids for sure with an 11th very possible. He said the 11th was between Cincinnati & surprisingly West Virginia. He has Marquette & St. John's in.
Quote from: MU Fan in Connecticut on February 15, 2011, 11:43:29 AM
FWIW, every MU alums favorite, Digger Phelps, was on Boomer & Carton this morning. In his opinion, the Big East gets 10 bids for sure with an 11th very possible. He said the 11th was between Cincinnati & surprisingly West Virginia. He has Marquette & St. John's in.
I'm not surprised. Have you seen their remaining schedules? Cin: @ Lville, Prov, Georg, @ UCONN, Marq, @ Georg; WV: @ ND, Pitt, Rut, @ UCONN, @ LVille. I think that it is possible/probable that they only win one more game each.
Quote from: groove on February 15, 2011, 11:00:41 AM
I would. It's ridiculous that you have teams that are going to finish 9th or 10th in a conference and they whine about not getting into the tournament. I wish they would just go back to conference winners. But hey, goes with the everyone gets to play, let's don't keep score mentality of 21st century America. How many National Champs in the last 20 years have actually been legitimate champions (i.e. also won their conference)? Would be interesting to look up.
That's really dumb. So Pitt wins the Big East, and Notre Dame, Georgetown, Villanova and all of the other top 20 teams from the greatest conference don't play in the tourney. Then some crappy team that wins the Horizon League and the Patriot League gets in? Why is that a better tournament?
Quote from: JamilJaeJamailJrJuan on February 14, 2011, 08:07:30 PM
Sorry, but this is such a dumb comment.
SJU @ home
SHU @ home
@ UCONN
Prov @ home
CINCY @ home
@ SHU
I see a 5-1 record in those games, which easily gets us in to the tournament. Probably as a 6 or 7 seed, at worst.
I wouldn't be surprised with a 4-2 record in those games. That equates to 10 wins, which, again, easily gets us into the tournament.
Go 4-3 in those games, we're probably in trouble unless we win a couple in the Beast tournament.
If this team can't get to ten wins, they probably don't deserve to get in. We have the easiest part of schedule still ahead of us. Everyone needs to relax. The loses are frustrating as hell, especially because the talent is there to have at least 3 or 4 more wins....but, at the same time, all of the NIT talk is just silly.
Said well J(s)
Quote from: BrewCity on February 15, 2011, 10:53:30 AM
Sounds like someone's still living in the '70's. Who wants to go back to a 24 team tournament? Anyone? The current NCAA tournament isn't entertaining enough.
The 1970s era tournament was real. It needed adjustment, no doubt, because to other posters' points, we would have a tournament where Murray State from the OVC might be in but 'Nova, Georgetown or Syracuse might not be. But I do think, having experienced both the tournaments then and those now, that the 1970s tournaments were better.
Here's a novel idea for the NCAA. Let the Mid-Majors compete in a mid-majors tournament. Sure, sometimes this might deprive us of Butler in the Final Four, but it also would spare us the ridiculous game where Duke Plays Coastal Carolina, or Belmont plays Pittsburgh. Make it a 36 or 48 team tournament at the most and get the 36 best teams in the country and let them play each other for a meaningful national championship.
That said, going back to 36 or 48 teams will never happen, so lets end this idea now
15-2 upsets get talked about years later. Princeton over UCLA. Valpo. Cleveland St over IU. Northern Iowa. Cornell. Nope. Give me some mid-majors making noise. If/When a 16 beats a 1, books will be written about it.
Quote from: Jam Chowder on February 14, 2011, 08:16:58 PM
(http://www.solopassion.com/files/trolls.png)
My troll radar is going off the charts.
One -- I am not a troll. I'm a 1978 Marquette grad who has been following Marquette basketball since 1966 and have stood with this team through the Dukiet years and the Deane years, as well as some other pretty ordinary basketball since Al left. I was in Minneapolis and Indianapolis when we went to the Final Four and have been a semi-regular at the Bradley Center for years.
Two -- After last night, does anyone still disagree with me?
Three -- The hard part about this team is that it has lots of talent and ability. It just hides it very well. Since this season is just about over (a win at Uconn is a must for the tournament now), it is time Buzz does what Milwaukee Brewer managers have done most years in September -- see what we have for next year.
Four -- The sad thing is this team has not geled. The Amigos, Cubie and Acker, with Lazard. They did. They found a way to win. We don't this year and until we do, the boo birds will be out.
5 Big East games left; 4 are winnable (take out the @UConn game). If we win those 4 we get to 10 wins in conference... that's enough to get into the NCAA.