Washington =

[tower912]

....Villanova.  At least in terms of size and tempo.   Washington gets more scoring out of their forwards and doesn't shoot the 3 as well.   Lots of guards who can handle and a big guy who occasionally plays really well.   Should be an easy game, seeing how well we handled 'Nova this year.

[Norm]

So is Isaiah Thomas more like Scotty Reynolds or Corey Fischer? My guess is Fischer because both are very quick players.

[Benny B]

Size and tempo... 100% agree (although the latter is really a product of the former).

Comparing talent is a different issue altogether.  That would be like comparing the academics of Harvard to, say, a certain "Harvard of the Midwest" school down the road.  Sure, in the grand scheme both look pretty darn good and you may not notice the difference because they both exist in separate neighborhoods, but put the two up head-to-head and there's no question who the winner is.

[LA]

It is scary how similar MU and UW really are. Quincy Pondexter is their Lazar and they do have some talented guards.

Their issue though is that they are one of the most under-achieving teams in the country. They don't play hard the entire 40 minutes, and I think that is why MU will get the W.

I actually grew up in Seattle and have been a Huskey fan my whole life but come this Thursday they are evil and must be destroyed!

[Norm]

If UW doesn't play hard the whole game how do you explain their 7 game winning streak and 2nd half turnaround?

[🏀]

I smell what you're cooking tower, but I disagree to an extent.

Washington = Baby Villanova. UW doesn't have the same talent as Nova to start. While the makeup of the team is similar, Nova would be running laps around UW 9 out of 10 games. UW also doesn't have the experience that Nova has, this will be the biggest advantage for Marquette.

They run a run-n-gun offense similar to the Big 3, but the run-n-gun can easily be rendered uneffective if you have a solid game plan and protect the ball.

[Henry Sugar]

I think a different analogy is that Washington's team is kind of like the MU team when Crean was a coach.  MU wasn't as aggressive on pace and pushing the ball, but still the same emphasis on perimeter defense and turnover margin leading to the break.  Some emphasis on rebounding, but the perimeter focus results in more fouls committed.

Not sure the analogy holds complete, but I kind of like it.

[Jam Chowder]

I think a different analogy is that Washington's team is kind of like the MU team when Crean was a coach.  MU wasn't as aggressive on pace and pushing the ball, but still the same emphasis on perimeter defense and turnover margin leading to the break.  Some emphasis on rebounding, but the perimeter focus results in more fouls committed.

Not sure the analogy holds complete, but I kind of like it.

SO... What you're saying is: UW = Tom Crean = Evil.

Smells like justification for destruction.

[chapman]

I was expecting something different in the body of the first post when I read the subject...something about them being sinister and the need to obliterate them...

[Henry Sugar]

SO... What you're saying is: UW = Tom Crean = Evil.

Smells like justification for destruction.

Any university that supported Rick Neuheisel and Jerramy Stevens is Evil.

and must be destroyed

[LON]

Any university that supported Rick Neuheisel and Jerramy Stevens is Evil.

and must be destroyed

Jerramy Stevens, he's rape-tastic

[NersEllenson]

Washington is the real deal.  Pac 10 may have been down, but that doesn't mean Cal and UW were bad teams.  UW was pre-season #14 team.  Some bumps early, but they've won 14 of their last 16 games.  I'm concerned to say the least.  I see them being of equal caliber to Villanova.  They get to the free throw line a ton...unfortunately, I think this is a game that IS decided by officiating - if called tight, it will favor UW, if not called tight, it will favor MU.  Washington took a ton of free throws this year - 855, compared to MU's 645.  But, UW fouls a lot - 711 this season, versus MU's 560.

This will be the key in the game - if we don't put UW on the line, we probably win.  If they get there a lot, we are in trouble.

[GGGG]

Washington is the real deal.  Pac 10 may have been down, but that doesn't mean Cal and UW were bad teams.  UW was pre-season #14 team.  Some bumps early, but they've won 14 of their last 16 games.  I'm concerned to say the least.  I see them being of equal caliber to Villanova.  They get to the free throw line a ton...unfortunately, I think this is a game that IS decided by officiating - if called tight, it will favor UW, if not called tight, it will favor MU.  Washington took a ton of free throws this year - 855, compared to MU's 645.  But, UW fouls a lot - 711 this season, versus MU's 560.

This will be the key in the game - if we don't put UW on the line, we probably win.  If they get there a lot, we are in trouble.

Thank you Ners.  I have no idea why people on this list are putting down Washington.  They have been playing real well lately and won their conference tournament.  If MU comes out and plays their game, we should win.  If we struggle like we did in the second half v. Georgetown, we will lose.

[Henry Sugar]

Washington is the real deal.  Pac 10 may have been down, but that doesn't mean Cal and UW were bad teams.  UW was pre-season #14 team.  Some bumps early, but they've won 14 of their last 16 games.  I'm concerned to say the least.  I see them being of equal caliber to Villanova. 

I agree that Washington is the real deal.  Against Top 100 opponents, they are about as good offensively as we are.  But their average defense is better than ours.

I've modeled it and the prediction is we lose to Washington 69-66.  The good news is that there is a ton of sensitivity in the model and ways to win.

They get to the free throw line a ton...unfortunately, I think this is a game that IS decided by officiating - if called tight, it will favor UW, if not called tight, it will favor MU.  Washington took a ton of free throws this year - 855, compared to MU's 645.  But, UW fouls a lot - 711 this season, versus MU's 560.

This will be the key in the game - if we don't put UW on the line, we probably win.  If they get there a lot, we are in trouble.

disagree

Here's the order of importance on winning the game.
1.  Win the eFG% battle.  Shoot about average and don't let Washington go nuts
2.  Don't get crushed on offensive rebounding.  Keep it close.  I am Very.  Concerned. about offensive rebounds.
3.  Win the turnover margin battle.  Not concerned about this at all.
4.  Wear the right uniform
5.  Win the free throw rate battle

[LA]

If UW doesn't play hard the whole game how do you explain their 7 game winning streak and 2nd half turnaround?

UCLA
Washington State
Oregon
Oregon State (twice)
Stanford
Cal

They should have won all of won all of those games with the exception of Cal. I am a Washington fan, I know this team has talent but that doesn't change the fact that they have under-achieved this season. They have issues taking care of the ball and while they can score very well they can have have tunnell vision on offense.

This won't be a cake walk by any means (as no NCAA tournament game is) but I think at the final buzzer MU wins the game simply based on hustle plays down the stretch.

[Harryhsky]

Dude....if you've been a Husky fan your whole life the least you could do is spell Husky correctly!!

It is scary how similar MU and UW really are. Quincy Pondexter is their Lazar and they do have some talented guards.

Their issue though is that they are one of the most under-achieving teams in the country. They don't play hard the entire 40 minutes, and I think that is why MU will get the W.

I actually grew up in Seattle and have been a Huskey fan my whole life but come this Thursday they are evil and must be destroyed!

[thekahoona]

(in the ed sullivan - jose jimenez voice)

oh, i hope washington is not the 2006 alabama team...that would be baaaaaad.