Loyola NCAA

[Dr. Blackheart]

The Ramblers beat Wardle's Bradley team yesterday (nice rebuild) and play ISU today for the MVC autobid.  Loyola's coach, Porter Moser, is a Rick Majerus disciple, and an ex-ISU coach.  This is a nice article on Moser's friendship with Rick.

Go Ramblers!

https://www.google.com/amp/www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/ct-spt-loyola-porter-moser-rick-majerus-20180301-story,amp.html

[skianth16]

If Loyola loses today and doesn't get the auto-bid, do they have a realistic shot at am at large bid? Their SOS at 125 is pretty bad, but having an RPI in the 25-30 range if they lose today is going to look good to the committee. I would think they'd have a good chance to get an at large, but some of those bad losses may come back to haunt them.

[muwarrior69]

If Loyola loses today and doesn't get the auto-bid, do they have a realistic shot at am at large bid? Their SOS at 125 is pretty bad, but having an RPI in the 25-30 range if they lose today is going to look good to the committee. I would think they'd have a good chance to get an at large, but some of those bad losses may come back to haunt them.

Didn't they win an NCAA championship in the sixties?

[jsglow]

Dancin' for the first time since 1985.  Fantastic!

[4everwarriors]

Didn't they win an NCAA championship in the sixties?

'63, hey?

[Galway Eagle]

Loyola to the BE?

[warriorchick]

Loyola to the BE?

Maybe we can swap out DePaul.

[tower912]

 Porter Moser is going to be on high major short lists for coaching replacements this offseason.     

[MU82]

My gratitude to Loyola for winning the conference tournament and eliminating any chance of that increasingly bad conference getting 2 bids.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

My gratitude to Loyola for winning the conference tournament and eliminating any chance of that increasingly bad conference getting 2 bids.

In the grand scheme of things, the MVC is a pretty decent mid-major.

[Galway Eagle]

In the grand scheme of things, the MVC is a pretty decent mid-major.

Maybe when Wichita and Creighton were there and N Iowa has an occasional good year but this is not one of those years where it's a decent conference

[GGGG]

It's #8 in conference RPI ahead of the Mountain West (which is very down this year), the MAC and the A10.

The conference that has really fallen off is the A10.  Rhode Island and St. Bonaventure will get bids this year, but much of that conference is just a steaming pile of crap.

Which of course gives me an excuse to link to this.

https://www.muscoop.com/index.php?topic=34539.msg422884#msg422884

[Galway Eagle]

It's #8 in conference RPI ahead of the Mountain West (which is very down this year), the MAC and the A10.

The conference that has really fallen off is the A10.  Rhode Island and St. Bonaventure will get bids this year, but much of that conference is just a steaming pile of crap.

Which of course gives me an excuse to link to this.

https://www.muscoop.com/index.php?topic=34539.msg422884#msg422884

I wish we'd play dayton again only to see him come back on the board and make a fool of himself

[jsglow]

It's #8 in conference RPI ahead of the Mountain West (which is very down this year), the MAC and the A10.

The conference that has really fallen off is the A10.  Rhode Island and St. Bonaventure will get bids this year, but much of that conference is just a steaming pile of crap.

Which of course gives me an excuse to link to this.

https://www.muscoop.com/index.php?topic=34539.msg422884#msg422884

Nice find.  Thrilled that rant was in response to me.

[MU82]

It's #8 in conference RPI ahead of the Mountain West (which is very down this year), the MAC and the A10.

The conference that has really fallen off is the A10.  Rhode Island and St. Bonaventure will get bids this year, but much of that conference is just a steaming pile of crap.

Which of course gives me an excuse to link to this.

https://www.muscoop.com/index.php?topic=34539.msg422884#msg422884

That is effen precious, sultan. I love that!

I'm willing to give the MVC a slight upgrade based on your evidence. I'll switch from "bad" to "aspiring for mediocrity."

[GGGG]

What was so funny about it wasn't just how wrong UDPride was, but how quickly he was wrong. 

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

That post aged brilliantly. Plus, with no expansion in sight Dayton can go ahead and rot in the A10.

[jsglow]

That post aged brilliantly. Plus, with no expansion in sight Dayton I can go ahead and rot in the A10.

As can everyone else.  The BEast is a nearly perfect creation.

[tower912]

It sure would be fun if he came back and tried to defend it.   

[LAZER]

Maybe we can swap out DePaul.

I'm all for it

[ZiggysFryBoy]

UDPride

If you think schools are going to "beat a path to your door" for the privilege of insecurity, instability, no TV contract, no conference tournament, and the chance many of those same schools in a newfangled conference bolt once again as soon as they see something better, I want the same liquor you are drinking. 

You wont be raiding the A10, but the A10 might raid you -- if you're that fortunate. The A10 is stability in a sea of chaos. They have no reason or urgency to leave. More money wont put them over the top because theyve been stretching a dollar all their lives. That's their normal. They are used to making the Big Dance on a shoestring budget -- and have done quite well for themselves.

If you believe all the BE basketball schools have to do is yell "jump", and the A10 schools will respond with "How high?", you are seriously over-estimating your negotiating position in this giant mess.  The A10 schools have the high ground.  They dont NEED you. They might want you, but NEEDING and WANTING are two entirely different things. You NEED the A10 schools however if you cut bait with football. Big difference.

While you guys were sitting around counting the checks the last 6-7 years, the A10 was busy trying to position themselves as the best basketball-only conference. They never tried to be something they were not. They didn't sit still. They added Butler and VCU and St. Louis.  They never twiddled thumbs waiting on conference collapses to snag a Georgetown.

Five years ago, some of the A10 schools might have listened to your plea to form a new hoops only league. But you were too busy counting benjamins. That ship has sailed, my friend. There may or may not be a collective empowerment between the Big East and A10, but if there is, it will be on the A10's terms.

The A10 has the luxury of doing nothing and remaining relevant, secure, stable, and collectively united among all of its member institutions in a common goal.  Unfortunately, you don't have that option. Your re-invention requires a lifeboat someone else must provide. And when someone else provides it, its not your position to demand hot towels and a wine list.

The Big East name means nothing now. The value was not in the name, but the value of the institutions within it. That's gone now. With Barclays Arena committed to the A10, MSG is no longer the carrot it once was. And history? History is for historians.  That and a cup of coffee won't get you far, and it certainly won't get you into the BIG12 or ACC as a basketball-only member -- as some delusional fans on here are trying to talk themselves into.

Many of you are right in this sense: you are second class citizens in the Big East and have been for years. You cashed the paychecks, but were otherwise red-headed stepchildren. Your say never counted at the board meetings and you were to be seen and not heard. Football drove the bus and basketball was back-burner.  But you should have seen this coming a long time ago. You waited far too long. Instead of being proactive and guaranteeing your own autonomy, nothing mattered as long as the checks didnt bounce. From the very beginning you never had a hand on the wheel -- and no conference should ever be run without all hands steering together in the same direction.

The A10 has always had that luxury. And member institutions are not in any hurry to jump ship in 50-foot seas when the boat ain't leaking. It might not be the fastest or prettiest ship on the high seas, but she's not foundering, and that's quite impressive given the current climate.

If you truly believe you hold the cards, why the panic?  Nobody in the A10 is panicking. Your stress level tells me all I need to know about where the leverage really is.

********************************************
This needed to be posted for the lazy who don't want to click links.  UDPride, goodnight!

[TSmith34, Inc.]

That post aged brilliantly. Plus, with no expansion in sight Dayton can go ahead and rot in the A10.

The A10 -- the only conference with THREE teams with the same nickname?

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

The A10 -- the only conference with THREE teams with the same nickname?

SEC has three Tigers.

[GooooMarquette]

That UD Pride post was classic stupidity.  Thanks for the laugh, Sultan.

And I agree with the proposal to swap DePaul for Loyola.  All in favor?

[dgies9156]

Dancin' for the first time since 1985.  Fantastic!

I was a grad student there last time Loyola made the dance. Had Alfredrick Hughes!