Bradley's Brazil Tour vs. Professional Teams, Can BU Win?

[MacabreMob]

BU are the bold leaders and the best innovators among D-I...
plus recall much of this was arranged in an outstanding fashion before the fine AD left his post......

LOL! Stop it Tornado, you local Agitator.

[planaria]

I read somewhere that Butler was playing some friendly games in Italy.

[DC Brave]

This report on the Brazil teams is from a "personal" source.

"The Fluminese club from the first game was not very good. Kind of a mix of junior players with some older players. Rio has several private athletic clubs and Fluminese is one of the bigger clubs -- pro soccer team, lower-level pro basketball, volleyball, team handball, tennis, swimming, gymnastics.

The Brazilian National League clubs just began "training camps" last week. Bauruna finished fifth in the league last year, but their best player, an American, did not play last night. Fortunately given our own added hardships in the frontcourt last night, their best big man picked up three early fouls and was not a factor.

Bauruna originally was on the other side of the bracket and finished the highest in last year's league standings among the teams in the tournament. The teams are good enough to make us work and probably good enough to beat us if we decide not to play."

[tornado]

I read somewhere that Butler was playing some friendly games in Italy.

Butler played two different teams in Italy but played them both twice...
they were 2-2, losing twice to the Swiss team, but clobbering a low level club team by about 60 points each time in the other two.
I would say the first two games were a good challenge, but the final two were garbage time right from tip off.
Here are some reports I posted:

http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=137688#post137688

[jasonpeoria911]

Do these Brazilian pro players get paid? The ones that we've been playing.

Jason

[Da Coach]

Yes, they all get paid. And they probably get bonuses for winning.
It is similar to the European pro leagues.

[jasonpeoria911]

Shouldn't take any shame in losing to a club that is just "doing its job", while we play with a severely depleted lineup. At least Football starts soon to make these next 3 months go by fast.

Jason

Yes, they all get paid. And they probably get bonuses for winning.
It is similar to the European pro leagues.

[Da Coach]

Shouldn't take any shame in losing to a club that is just "doing its job", while we play with a severely depleted lineup. At least Football starts soon to make these next 3 months go by fast.

Jason

According to Coach JL's Twitter post, the team we lost to last night was a team they knew little about, and was made up of older, veteran players.

I think they will bounce back with a nice win today.

[tornado]

...
--every other foreign tour I have seen has pitted the college teams against "club teams", semi-pro teams, or against Canadian college teams
(as was the case when BU went to Canada six years ago -- and although BU beat all the Canadian teams, numerous coleges
have gone north of the border like U of I and lost, and SIU struggled in every one of their games.)
I cannot recall a single example of where a team took a foreign tour and played a full slate of NOTHING BUT professional teams, can you?
Here's a box score of a select group of players from the Big Ten that went to Europe and played some very low level pro teams and LOST games,
here's an example showing a sound loss to a low level Belgian pro team !
http://www.mgoblue.com/document_file/bigten-tour-4.pdf

In 2006, the Big Ten touring team lost some of their games soundly.
http://www.michigandaily.com/content...ur-good-cagers

--I know they aren't top level pro teams like the Celtics, the Lakers, or even Maccabi Tel Aviv...but even lesser tier PRO teams are
always made up of the best players you can get....
But even many of BU's BEST players don't just jump to the professional level, even at 24 or 25 years of age without a few years of struggle before succeeding!
Even the lesser pro teams here in the US like NBDL or CBA teams would crush most college teams...especially when considering the next point.

--as pro teams, these guys have played together for a long time, and likely have been practicing together for months!
They are playing in their own home environment and would be expected to have a huge "home court" type advantage even if it's not their own actual home arena.

So--- what's everyone's opinion on how hard this tour is going to be?
Can BU win any of these games?
Can a team with largely teenagers and 20 year olds who have only had 10 practices possibly hang with
a series of five different PROFESSIONAL teams in a row..including a couple of them that are clearly top caliber teams?

I think if BU can compete with these guys and even win a couple games, it would be a good sign.


and PS-- one last question. Has ISU ever gone on a foreign tour?
(not counting their 1995 5th place finish in the San Juan Shootout..those were US college teams
and ISU played a Brazilian amateur team as an exhibition in 1999)
http://redbirdfan.com/archives/9900/brazil_9900.htm

I resurrected this thread to point out 3 more things...

--first, now that all the other teams are done taking summer and preseason tours, it appears that the teams Bradley played were probably the toughest set of teams any D-I team scheduled for their preseason exhibition.

--second, that BU not only played well, but won 4 or 5 and almost won them all, and even brought back the hardware.
And we played them with several of our top players ailing or unable to play.

--in the month since I first posted this thread.....I haven't seen an answer to two things I was initially curious about...
--I wanted to know if anyone could give even one example of where a team scheduled only pro teams on their tour and not just college or club teams with amateurs.
--I also wanted to know if ISU had ever taken a preseason tour...but I guess not as nobody seems to be able to recall such.

In the end, I am pleased that our guys did well bringing home the Consolation trophy.

[Bradleyguy10]

I haven't seen an answer to two things I was initially curious about...
--I wanted to know if anyone could give even one example of where a team scheduled only pro teams on their tour and not just college or club teams with amateurs.
--I also wanted to know if ISU had ever taken a preseason tour...but I guess not as nobody seems to be able to recall such.

I'm not so sure anyone cares to do the research in all honesty.

[tornado]

cares vs. unable

[Bradleyguy10]

I'm not doubting that it isn't true...but I doubt anyone really searched haha

[tornado]

B-10, there are a few who lurk and check every fact on BradleyFans, and jump instantly at any and every opportunity to try to prove something wrong...even if it is an insignificant typo.
Their absence on this subject is as good of a proof as I'd ever need that I am right.

[Bradleyguy10]

Fair enough...I wasn't aware anyone was so dedicated to lurk and seek every wrong doing, but now that you mention it I wouldn't be too surprised. You have a lot of enemies, that wouldn't surprise me.

[tornado]

You have a lot of enemies..

I am such a threat...(btw- if there are people who hate others because of what they think, then what do you call that kind of person?)

Why they hate the truth