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I think my chin hit the floor when I saw us throw the SIU game away, and I can't help but put the blame on Les. When you know your weakness is rebounding, why did he not put some of our bigger defenders on the floor? Danny Adams had no business being in the game at that point. Watching three Braves stand there and not box out was infuriating. /end rant
Anyway, if you do one of those blind tournament resumes that ESPN loves so much, no one could possibly say that Bradley would not get in. There would be no question if this was a BCS conference, but since it is the MVC we are still going to get the elitist prick "no-mid-majors" sentiment despite last year's tournament.
My crystal ball is showing a complete reversal from last year's Nantz and Packer "who the hell is Bradley" mess, with a "where the hell is Bradley" rant. God forbid that happens, but if it does, I'll take an NIT championship please!
I mostly agree with you, except the first part of your "rant".
I think you are wrong to use terms like "throw the SIU game away", "I can't help but put the blame on Les", and "Adams had no business being in the game at that point".
The reason Danny was at the line in the first place is because he snared the important rebound that gave Bradley the chance to go ahead. Maybe you didn't notice, but Danny spent also a lot of time defending Falker and Shaw, both of whom had subpar games thanks to DA. And if you want, I'll list all the games this year we wouldn't have won without Danny. There were a lot of them.
And I am sure Coach Les will accept responsibility for the loss you are blaming him for, and I don't need to come to his defense, but I thought the game was well coached and the game-planning was brilliant.
SIU won the game because they are a Top 20 caliber team with superb talent and coaching. It's clear Bradley is near that same level. Count me as one who is glad to have a coach like Jim Les running the show and players like Danny Adams.
I mostly agree with you, except the first part of your "rant".
I think you are wrong to use terms like "throw the SIU game away", "I can't help but put the blame on Les", and "Adams had no business being in the game at that point".
The reason Danny was at the line in the first place is because he snared the important rebound that gave Bradley the chance to go ahead. Maybe you didn't notice, but Danny spent also a lot of time defending Falker and Shaw, both of whom had subpar games thanks to DA. And if you want, I'll list all the games this year we wouldn't have won without Danny. There were a lot of them.
And I am sure Coach Les will accept responsibility for the loss you are blaming him for, and I don't need to come to his defense, but I thought the game was well coached and the game-planning was brilliant.
SIU won the game because they are a Top 20 caliber team with superb talent and coaching. It's clear Bradley is near that same level. Count me as one who is glad to have a coach like Jim Les running the show and players like Danny Adams.
I was not referring to Adams being in the game when he got the rebound or shot the free throws. I was referring to the small lineup we had when the game was tied, and SIU drove down and got the tip in at the end of the game.
I am not, and never have been, a fan of the 4 guard offense, mainly because of situations like that. It's the reason we were one of the worst rebounding teams in the country, and allowing that tip in was just inexcusable. I also thought his timeout management could have been better, but I'll let that slide.
I give Les all the props in the world for taking a decimated team, and getting them to play as good as they did. I just hope next year we get away from this 4 guard nonsense.
I just hope next year we get away from this 4 guard nonsense.
Nonsense? Hardly. Most teams have already gone to a 3 guard offense, and several are going to a 4 perimeter player attack. Get used to it. It's the wave of the future, and when we get some impact bigs to go with our perimeter attack, we'll be impossible to stop. The Suns are revolutionizing the NBA with this type of basketball, and teams like Villanova and BU are doing the same thing in the college game.
I just hope next year we get away from this 4 guard nonsense.
Nonsense? Hardly. Most teams have already gone to a 3 guard offense, and several are going to a 4 perimeter player attack. Get used to it. It's the wave of the future, and when we get some impact bigs to go with our perimeter attack, we'll be impossible to stop. The Suns are revolutionizing the NBA with this type of basketball, and teams like Villanova and BU are doing the same thing in the college game.
Guard is a relative term. Lets call it 4 guys who can play on the perimeter. Egolf my will be our 4th "guard" in the future and he is 6'9. Ray Brown might start as our 4th "guard" next year and he is the same size as Salley. The four guard offence is about having players who can play both inside and out. Its about creating mismatches on offence. I think that next year we will be pressing and trapping allot and this will make up for our size. I really like the system we played this year, this years team was the most fun to watch in the 11 years i have been a fan. I think and hope that Coach Les will keep it the same.
Back on topic, as far as BU having enough to get in. Well, we all pretty much think that it's not happening, but if you look at things in 'yes' and 'no', we look pretty good.
Does BU have....
1.) A good RPI?
Yes. Mid-40's has always been good enough if the other factors are there.
2.) A good SOS?
Yes. Hard to argue with a top 20 schedule.
3.) A good conference?
Yes. The league has been in in the RPI top 7 all year, at one point being as high as 2nd.
4.) A good conference record?
Yes. 4th place alone at 10-8.
5.) A good record in the last 10?
Yes. 6-4.
6.) A good road record?
Yes. 8 wins away from Carver.
7.) A good record v 1-50 RPI?
No. 2-7. This is our biggest achilles heel right now.
8.) A good record v 51-100 RPI?
Yes. 5-3.
9.) 20 DI wins?
Yes.
10.) Any injuries to consider?
Yes. Lost our leading scorer and the nation's most prolific 3-point shooter for a month of conference play, which included games against the league's elite.
Out of those 10 critical questions, we score very well in 9 of 10. I know it's not as cut-and-dried as 'yes' and 'no', but the more you dissect our resume vs. the rest of our bubble competition, I just don't see how we're not in this thing....
But I don't think we will be, and it will be a travesty.
Did we get swept by MSU? Yes and this hurts the most
Do you have more then 10 losses? Yes
Did we make our conference final? No
Combined with our record against the top 50 and its hard to say us not getting in is a travesty. I want us to be in as bad as anyone but us being left out while disappointing would not be a travesty. Certainly not as big a travesty as MSU being left out last year. I guess, I dont want to get my hopes up.
Did we get swept by MSU? Yes and this hurts the most
Do you have more then 10 losses? Yes
Did we make our conference final? No
Combined with our record against the top 50 and its hard to say us not getting in is a travesty. I want us to be in as bad as anyone but us being left out while disappointing would not be a travesty. Certainly not as big a travesty as MSU being left out last year. I guess, I dont want to get my hopes up.
It would be a travesty because a BCS team with the same resume would be a lock without question. I never said MSU wasn't a travesty, in fact on several other boards I have said that was the ultimate travesty.
How is beating VCU in their building on national television not a signature road win? Everybody said it was at the time, and VCU hasn't lost since. They're in the RPI top 50 and are receiving votes for the top 25. If that's not a signature road win, I don't know what is. Their numbers speak for themselves.
Our 'bad' road loss pales in comparison to bad losses by Drexel, Old Dominion, UMass, Syracuse, West Virginia, Kansas St, Purdue, and DePaul. Plus, our record away from Carver trumps all of their road records. Most of the majors in that group were afraid to leave their own building.
Saying we were swept by MSU is true, but it also gives no credence to Crouch's injury having any influence. If we aren't going to get any credit for that injury, than this is all moot. Same thing with the 10+ losses thing. Kentucky had our exact record and same computer numbers, but got in because of their suspended player last year. We got help because of POB and WF's suspensions. Losing your leading scorer and the nation's top 3-point shooter certainly should merit some consideration. I'm not advocating us getting in instead of MSU. I'm advocating this league being a 4-bid league. The facts say that it is.
Why is making the conference final a requirement? Yeah, I think it probably would have put us near 'lock' status, but it's not like we got upset on the way there. We lost to the #11 team in the country on a tip-in at the buzzer.
No resume is perfect. Compare ours to other 'bubble' teams, and ours compares favorably. We did what the committee has said over and over is important - Playing a tough schedule, and playing road games. We've done both, and done both well while withstanding a rash of injuries. I don't expect a bid, but we deserve it as much as any of the other bubble teams. The numbers bear this out.
Just some ammo for you guys. The MVC will finish 5th in the overall standings. No team has been left out with 20 D1 wins, in a top 5 RPI conference (since 1999 where Ken Pomeroy's site goes back to). Stamp your ticket to the dance.
Just some ammo for you guys. The MVC will finish 5th in the overall standings. No team has been left out with 20 D1 wins, in a top 5 RPI conference (since 1999 where Ken Pomeroy's site goes back to). Stamp your ticket to the dance.
Did we get swept by MSU? Yes and this hurts the most
Do you have more then 10 losses? Yes
Did we make our conference final? No
Combined with our record against the top 50 and its hard to say us not getting in is a travesty. I want us to be in as bad as anyone but us being left out while disappointing would not be a travesty. Certainly not as big a travesty as MSU being left out last year. I guess, I dont want to get my hopes up.
Lakeview, I think the Road win at VCU could be called our Signature Road Win.
I'm getting cable run into my office next week and bringing in an extra TV from home. We'd better make The Dance
Don't forget about free internet video streaming from CBSSportsline.com. It'll come in handy when you are stuck watching the Tarheels in your local area playing in the 1-16 game while there are Barnburners all over the Tourney.
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