Post Season Coaches Poll - Wisconsin #4

[MikeDeanesDarkGlasses]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/rankings

Despite beating Florida and playing a much more impressive Final Four game, the Badgers were edged out 31 points by #3 Florida to earn #4 final ranking for the year. 

I thought this was a little surprising.  Florida may have had the better overall record, but I thought Wisconsin was more impressive in the post season, especially in their Final Four game. 

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Can I get a Jay Cutler, "Dont care" pic here?

[Let's Go Warriors]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/rankings

Despite beating Florida and playing a much more impressive Final Four game, the Badgers were edged out 31 points by #3 Florida to earn #4 final ranking for the year. 

I thought this was a little surprising.  Florida may have had the better overall record, but I thought Wisconsin was more impressive in the post season, especially in their Final Four game. 

Not so sure about that.  Look what Uconn was doing to Kentucky before Cal goes to the zone to slow the game down.  They were destorying Kentucky because of the defensivie pressure and speed at Guard.  I am pretty sure Bo would not go zone and UW would have also been destroyed by the pressure at Guard from Uconn.

[GooooMarquette]

I think the only sure thing about the post-season poll is that the champ will be #1 and the runner up will be #2.  From there, it is a combo of regular season and post-season performance...perhaps a bit weighted toward post-season, but not predictably so.

Look at last season.  MU made it to the Elite Eight, and finished #11...behind I4 (#7) and Miami (#10) - both of which lost in the Sweet Sixteen.  Heck, MU totally dominated Miami in the Sweet Sixteen game, and we still finished a spot behind them.

Or in haiku form:

Don't look at the polls
They will make you go crazy
They just don't make sense

[🏀]

[Let's Go Warriors]

you cared enough to post in this thread. And then come back again to read this post.  We thank you for caring enough to read.

[NickelDimer]

Superbar

[Groin_pull]

Thank you.

[Dawson Rental]

I think the only sure thing about the post-season poll is that the champ will be #1 and the runner up will be #2.  From there, it is a combo of regular season and post-season performance...perhaps a bit weighted toward post-season, but not predictably so.

Look at last season.  MU made it to the Elite Eight, and finished #11...behind I4 (#7) and Miami (#10) - both of which lost in the Sweet Sixteen.  Heck, MU totally dominated Miami in the Sweet Sixteen game, and we still finished a spot behind them.

Or in haiku form:

Don't look at the polls
They will make you go crazy
They just don't make sense

IIRC, in 1977 after winning the NCAA, Marquette finished the year ranked seventh.

[Ari Gold]

[WarriorHal]

IIRC, in 1977 after winning the NCAA, Marquette finished the year ranked seventh.

I think the final polls used to be taken midway through the NCAA tournament, which was really strange. I can recall Marquette moving up dramatically in 1974 as we won some big games (Vanderbilt, Michigan) on the way to the Final-4 and the title game against NC St.

Polls throughout the regular season are fun, they generate discussion. By why bother having a poll after the NCAA tournament? The results speak for themselves.

[mug644]

Wow, Ari, I never noticed the similarities between Winnie the Pooh and Homer Simpson! Somehow, I'm not surprised that Homer stole Pooh's shirt, but put it on like a diaper.

[Ari Gold]

Wow, Ari, I never noticed the similarities between Winnie the Pooh and Homer Simpson! Somehow, I'm not surprised that Homer stole Pooh's shirt, but put it on like a diaper.

Just saw it... frightening

[ChicosBailBonds]

I think the final polls used to be taken midway through the NCAA tournament, which was really strange. I can recall Marquette moving up dramatically in 1974 as we won some big games (Vanderbilt, Michigan) on the way to the Final-4 and the title game against NC St.

Polls throughout the regular season are fun, they generate discussion. By why bother having a poll after the NCAA tournament? The results speak for themselves.

As Al McGuire said, we weren't the best team but we won the title.  If the polls are to say who the best team is, then there wouldn't be much of an issue if the winner wasn't ranked #1, because quite frankly they shouldn't be.  One off night doesn't mean you aren't the best team, but it could mean you are out of the tournament. 

No one in their right mind is going to say a team that was the 11th seed in their own conference based on 4 months of work is suddenly the #1 team in the country based on 6 days work.  Or for that matter, that the runner-up (using the same logic) should be the #2 team in the country and the other Final Four teams are automatically 3 and 4....and stringing it out even further, if that means teams 5 through 8 should be the Elite 8 teams.  Teams 9 through 16 should be the remaining Sweet 16.  I thought Wichita State was overrated this year, but does someone really want to say they aren't in the top 16 teams in the country?  I don't think so.

So using the NCAA tournament results is a slippery slope to argue the champion determines the best team, then why don't all the other results count the same in the same tournament?

[Frenns Liquor Depot]

So using the NCAA tournament results is a slippery slope to argue the champion determines the best team, then why don't all the other results count the same in the same tournament?

I agree with WH -- It is all intellectually interesting, but the fact of the matter is that teams play to win the National Championship.  Same as the NFL crowns a Super Bowl winner every year.  Its fun to muse about who is the "best" with a full-year body of work, but its water cooler banter at best. 

You can want it to be different, but the yardstick everyone remembers is where a team went in the tourney.  If they lose early you remember bitterly that the team was better than the result -- or on the flip side that you got surprised by the success.

[ChicosBailBonds]

I agree with WH -- It is all intellectually interesting, but the fact of the matter is that teams play to win the National Championship.  Same as the NFL crowns a Super Bowl winner every year.  Its fun to muse about who is the "best" with a full-year body of work, but its water cooler banter at best. 

You can want it to be different, but the yardstick everyone remembers is where a team went in the tourney.  If they lose early you remember bitterly that the team was better than the result -- or on the flip side that you got surprised by the success.

OK, then carry the logic then.  The runner-up, then, has to be the #2 team.  The other Final Four teams, have to be the 3rd and 4th best teams.  The Elite 8, regardless of who made it, are the top 8 teams, so on and so forth.  Does anyone really believe Duke is the 33rd through 64th best team?  Wichita State is really 17th through 32nd?

Of course not, so why are the "results" used only for one part of the ranking and not all?

I'll stick with Al McGuire...the tournament is the tournament...to crown a champion of the tournament.  That is its sole function.  Some years it will also accurate identify the best team, most years it doesn't.

[Frenns Liquor Depot]

OK, then carry the logic then.  The runner-up, then, has to be the #2 team.  The other Final Four teams, have to be the 3rd and 4th best teams.  The Elite 8, regardless of who made it, are the top 8 teams, so on and so forth.  Does anyone really believe Duke is the 33rd through 64th best team?  Wichita State is really 17th through 32nd?

Of course not, so why are the "results" used only for one part of the ranking and not all?

I'll stick with Al McGuire...the tournament is the tournament...to crown a champion of the tournament.  That is its sole function.  Some years it will also accurate identify the best team, most years it doesn't.

I am not disagreeing with your logic -- it is sound -- I am more pointing out that in my estimation very few people care whether or not the tourney is accurate at identifing the 'best' team in the country or the 16th best team for that matter.  It's a discussion that may only be relavent if you are paid to fill time on a TV show or are a fanatic -- which is a very small percent of the population.  That is why I agree the poll after the tourney is silly -- who cares who is the 2nd or 16th 'best' for that matter when the goal is to win a National Championship.