Bracket Challenge 2019

jeffgt14

We don't quite suck as much anymore.
Messages
5,897
Location
Mt Juliet, TN
I still don't understand this rooting for your conference **** came from. It's like rooting for your division rivals in the NFL playoffs, cheering for the Red Sox as a Yankees fans... Only in college sports have we become dumb enough to pull for our conference rivals.
 

lauraee

Helluva Engineer
Messages
2,464
They might chant sec. Uga fans I know hate bama, Florida, Tennessee & auburn. A lot of,them were happy to see bama lose to Clemson.
 

tsrich

Ramblin' Wreck
Messages
789
I still don't understand this rooting for your conference **** came from. It's like rooting for your division rivals in the NFL playoffs, cheering for the Red Sox as a Yankees fans... Only in college sports have we become dumb enough to pull for our conference rivals.
It's pretty different though. The number of playoff bids the AL east receives doesn't depend on the perceived strength of the division, nor does the amount of money each team gets from ML depend on how their division-mates do in the playoffs.

But it doesn't really matter who you're rooting for. I was just interested in how much of the #$#$ <acc school> I see here.
 

Techster

Helluva Engineer
Messages
18,397
I still don't understand this rooting for your conference **** came from. It's like rooting for your division rivals in the NFL playoffs, cheering for the Red Sox as a Yankees fans... Only in college sports have we become dumb enough to pull for our conference rivals.

I root for the ACC in the tournament because it means $$$ for GT.
 

YlJacket

Helluva Engineer
Messages
3,273
I thought Duke's problems with shooting would eventually cause them a real problem on the way to the championship.

I just never knew it would be free throw shooting rather than 3 point shooting.
 

JDjacket

Ramblin' Wreck
Messages
635
Raise your hand if you had TT going to the final 4

No I don't believe you :rolleyes:

Our office pool oddly had mostly FSU or TTU as as final 4. Their defense is insane and culver is a beast.

My final is TTU over UVA. Duke losing I think helped me because I think Dukes talent could overcome TTU easier than MSU
 

RamblinRed

Helluva Engineer
Featured Member
Messages
5,902
Other than Auburn this Final Four is an easy one for me to root for. Three of the coaches are known for doing things the right way.

Heck Brian Bowen's dad at the trial mentioned that his son was very interested in Michigan State even though they weren't offering him anything to go there.

This was also one of the best Elite Eights I can remember in some years. 2 games went to OT. 1 went to the final possession and even the 4th game was a to point game with 12 seconds left before the technical foul.
 

RamblinRed

Helluva Engineer
Featured Member
Messages
5,902
I also decided to go back and look at the Final Four Teams since the introduction of the one and done rule - 2006.
So this is year 14.
You have 2 'one and done' teams that have won Championships- KY in 2012 and Duke in 2015.
What is interesting is that while both are one and done teams - both also got alot of production from non freshmen. Duke's Freshman accounted for 60% of its scoring that year - but Jr and Sr accounted for 36%.
Kentucky's 2012 team had FR accounting for 53% of its points - soph were responsible for most of the rest.

No primarily FR team has made it to the Final Four since Duke in 2015.

I went to one Duke board last night - they were pretty complimentary of Mich St, though quite a few dumped on the refs saying they weren't calling enough fouls on Mich St - especially when they guarded Zion inside and worked to prevent him from receiving the ball.
One interesting comment though was one poster said this now makes just 2 Final Four appearances in the last 15 years for Duke (2010, 2015 - though both times they won the NC) and that is unacceptable and what do they need to do to do better than that. The 2010 squad was before Duke went all in with one and dones and was a Jr/SR dominated team.

There is a talent level you need to have to get to that level, but you also need the right amount of experience to help you get over the hump.

Izzo did a great job coaching yesterday. Twice he called timeouts late and twice Mich St scored and retook the lead.

Duke actually outshot Mich St from three, but that was offset by poor FT shooting and alot of TO issues.
 

CuseJacket

Administrator
Staff member
Messages
19,627
To start, Duke was a flawed team, even at full strength. They beat UNC by a bucket in the ACC tourney, and UNC had many chances to win, yet there was a disproportionate narrative going in to the NCAAT that Duke was somehow unstoppable with Zion back.

MSU was better prepared for Duke than most teams this year, and I’m thinking specifically of their ability to do the best job trying to prevent Zion and Barrett from going left.

MSU also avoided transition buckets for the most part, which essentially negated anything Tre Jones can offer offensively.

Then Reddish did Reddish I.e., be the quietest projected lottery lottery pick out of Duke in who knows how long. Lived in the perimeter and touched the ball once every 3-4 possessions.

I was rooting for Duke for the $$$ and I would’ve liked to have seen a Texas Tech team be the one to take them down, but Cassius Winston and Izzo has other plans.

Now I’m rooting a UVA vs Texas Tech, 43-42 slug fest in the final.
 

MWBATL

Helluva Engineer
Messages
6,595
Now I’m rooting a UVA vs Texas Tech, 43-42 slug fest in the final.

Given that the one thing we have done well in recent years in play defense (well, most of the time anyway), the fact that two defensively oriented teams made the Final Four gives me hope.
 

RamblinRed

Helluva Engineer
Featured Member
Messages
5,902
Cuse,

excellent points.
The transition buckets were huge. Mich St had 15 fast break points, Duke 0.
Duke has been so dangerous in transition this year and Mich St just wouldn't let them get out and run at all.
Also, Mich St outscored Duke off TO 24-9.
 

RamblinRed

Helluva Engineer
Featured Member
Messages
5,902
Depending upon Jones decision (and there are alot of Duke fans who think he is going because it is a weak PG year) and what they can do in the Spring, next year's Duke team is going to be alot less talented than this one and still not hugely experienced.
Bolden, Delaurier and White will be Sr. O'Connell a Jr. Then you have Vernon Carey coming in as a Top 5 player who will be a one and done. But Ellis is not a likely one and done and even Wendell Moore is seen as a potential multi-year player.
 
Top