March Madness

[Beco]

Love Kentucky! Great game...

 

[Colonel Hogan]

FINAL 4OUR BABEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://vaughtsviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/rupp2.jpg

 

[Colonel Hogan]

I have a lot of respect for AZ. Had the Badgers lost yesterday I would have been cheering on AZ for the rest of the tournament.

Congrats to the Badgers. That's a big move knocking off a #1 seed this deep in the dance.

See ya in Big D.

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

My bracket is still perfect!

 

[Beco]

Personally, I think Kentucky has the most personality of any team left in, Florida, maybe a close second. Ratings just seem to soar when Kentucky is in it, they're the college version of the Miami Heat with Lebron. Do you hate them, or root for them?

 

[DooleyDarter]

UCOOOOOOOONNNNNNN Huskies

 

[Colonel Hogan]

Personally, I think Kentucky has the most personality of any team left in, Florida, maybe a close second. Ratings just seem to soar when Kentucky is in it, they're the college version of the Miami Heat with Lebron. Do you hate them, or root for them?

Yeah it wouldn't be the same without UK.

What was unfortunate was that since Kentucky trailed most of the entire game the crowd never had a chance to get really into it, and I can guarantee you with Indy being only two hours up the road, that crowd was Wildcat Blue.

You can also bet that after the Louisville game UK fans were approaching Cardinal fans in an effort to buy Sunday tickets. Of course, the Wildcat faithful probably had to dress in Michigan gear to find willing sellers. U of L hates us that much.

 

[Beco]

Oh yeah, great final four. Surprised Florida went down, but great game. It should be a good final, with Kentucky winning, probably....either way, one of the best tournaments! in a long while

 

[Boxlicker101]

So the final is a #7 seed vs a #8 seed.

 

[Wrong Element]

Personally, I think Kentucky has the most personality of any team left in, Florida, maybe a close second. Ratings just seem to soar when Kentucky is in it, they're the college version of the Miami Heat with Lebron. Do you hate them, or root for them?

I hate their frontrunning fans in SW Ohio, mostly. And I don't agree about the personality thing, considering they have a new roster every season.

Tournaments can be amazingly random. UConn won its first game in overtime, and they actually trailed by 4 points with 3 minutes left in regulation.

 

[patient1]

As a casual observer, maybe you guys can clue me in.
Great game last night. Kentucky was amazing. Looks like the birth of a dynasty.
They must be doing something right.

How does an all freshman starting team make it to the finals, or for that matter-

How is an all freshman starting team possible? I can't remember that happening before. Did Kentucky change coaches or come off of probation recently?

I don't get it. If they can recruit that kind of talent, why don't they have gifted upperclassman starting? Please explain.

 

[Beco]

So the final is a #7 seed vs a #8 seed.

Seeds lose their meaning after the first round, maybe second....and then they are arguing that Kentucky was seeded too low....who cares

 

[Beco]

I hate their frontrunning fans in SW Ohio, mostly. And I don't agree about the personality thing, considering they have a new roster every season.

Tournaments can be amazingly random. UConn won its first game in overtime, and they actually trailed by 4 points with 3 minutes left in regulation.

Personality, maybe not the right word. More " interest", mainly due to how they win and also, their coach. People may watch to root against him....

 

[Boxlicker101]

As a casual observer, maybe you guys can clue me in.
Great game last night. Kentucky was amazing. Looks like the birth of a dynasty.
They must be doing something right.

How does an all freshman starting team make it to the finals, or for that matter-

How is an all freshman starting team possible? I can't remember that happening before. Did Kentucky change coaches or come off of probation recently?

I don't get it. If they can recruit that kind of talent, why don't they have gifted upperclassman starting? Please explain.

Here is another example, but this might be the only other time: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fab_Five_(University_of_Michigan)

One reason for so many underclassmen starting is that a lot of the players play their Freshman years and then enter the NBA draft, which ends their eligibility in college.

 

[Beco]

As a casual observer, maybe you guys can clue me in.
Great game last night. Kentucky was amazing. Looks like the birth of a dynasty.
They must be doing something right.

How does an all freshman starting team make it to the finals, or for that matter-

How is an all freshman starting team possible? I can't remember that happening before. Did Kentucky change coaches or come off of probation recently?

I don't get it. If they can recruit that kind of talent, why don't they have gifted upperclassman starting? Please explain.

I think Michigan was the only other team to start all freshman, that so called "Fab Five" you might have heard about but that was many years ago. calipari, the coach, for whatever reason, recruits these "one and done" type players and seems to have found the formula to win big. Lets say, half of hit starting five might leave for the NBA after this is over, and he is forced to start again. Thats why there arent many seniors on this team....

 

[Boxlicker101]

I hate their frontrunning fans in SW Ohio, mostly. And I don't agree about the personality thing, considering they have a new roster every season.

Tournaments can be amazingly random. UConn won its first game in overtime, and they actually trailed by 4 points with 3 minutes left in regulation.

I suspect the fans you deprecate are fans of Cincy or Ohio State and, after their favorites were eliminated, started cheering for the team from the neighboring state.

 

[Beco]

I suspect the fans you deprecate are fans of Cincy or Ohio State and, after their favorites were eliminated, started cheering for the team from the neighboring state.

I guess....good basketball attracts an audience. This year, I'm a fan of the Tournament, not sure I care who wins Monday night. After the last Superbowl, I'm just hoping for a good game...

 

[patient1]

I think Michigan was the only other team to start all freshman, that so called "Fab Five" you might have heard about but that was many years ago. calipari, the coach, for whatever reason, recruits these "one and done" type players and seems to have found the formula to win big. Lets say, half of hit starting five might leave for the NBA after this is over, and he is forced to start again. Thats why there arent many seniors on this team....

Okay. I hadn't considered professional attrition of top talent. Thanks!

 

[Wrong Element]

I suspect the fans you deprecate are fans of Cincy or Ohio State and, after their favorites were eliminated, started cheering for the team from the neighboring state.

Not quite. The Cincinnati area, not just the part that's actually in northern Kentucky, is famous for its contempt for Ohio State and its ambivalence about being in Ohio generally.

I think Michigan was the only other team to start all freshman, that so called "Fab Five" you might have heard about but that was many years ago. calipari, the coach, for whatever reason, recruits these "one and done" type players and seems to have found the formula to win big. Lets say, half of hit starting five might leave for the NBA after this is over, and he is forced to start again. Thats why there arent many seniors on this team....

The thing about Calipari is that while most coaches regard the one-and-done players as a necessary evil, he actually welcomes them and markets his program as the place that can get you to the NBA right away. That makes him unpopular, though the only difference between Kentucky and the other schools is that he doesn't give any lip service to "fight for old alma mater" and the rest of that crapola. His program is openly NBA prep and no one pretends to care about an education.

This team has a lot in common with the 1992 Michigan team, which also looked mediocre for most of the regular season before jelling at the very end.

 

[Colonel Hogan]

As a casual observer, maybe you guys can clue me in.
Great game last night. Kentucky was amazing. Looks like the birth of a dynasty.
They must be doing something right.

How does an all freshman starting team make it to the finals, or for that matter-

How is an all freshman starting team possible? I can't remember that happening before. Did Kentucky change coaches or come off of probation recently?

I don't get it. If they can recruit that kind of talent, why don't they have gifted upperclassman starting? Please explain.

Once upon a time, college athletes needed four years of college competition to physically mature a 17-year-old body into that of a 21- or 22-year-old man. That is still somewhat true in football, but not so with basketball and many other sports.

In the old days, most schools would recruit one or two superstars and build a championship team around them.

Today, U of K's coach Calipari claims not to like the NBA rule that allows kids to sign pro contracts at age 19 and only one year out of high school, but he has adopted the philosophy of "if you can't beat 'em, then at least exploit 'em" for the benefit of the school and the player.

"What these kids are faced with is having a big pile of money put in front of them for something they already love. People jumping at money isn't particular to basketball. Or sports. It's what most people do, given the opportunity.

"Nobody makes a big deal of it when baseball players turn pro out of high school. I don't recall an uproar when Tiger Woods left Stanford for the PGA Tour. Neither Bill Gates nor Steve Jobs made it all the way through college.

"We're not keeping these NBA-quality players for four years. Those days are gone. My point is there is a middle ground.

"When a player comes to me now and he's considering the NBA, the first thing I do is go out and get information on his draft prospects. A player's family, friends and associates are almost always giving him a best-case scenario: You're a lottery pick. You're going to make X amount of money. You'll be an All-Star.

"But one of my most important roles is to give them the worst-case scenario. Are you willing to live with the consequences if it doesn't work out and you end up playing in Europe, Asia or South America—and the next spring you're sitting by yourself, watching on TV, as your former teammates are playing in the Final Four and having a ball?"

In other words, as a "subjective realist," Coach Cal has no problem urging a player to stay in school if his pro prospects are less than a sure thing. On the other hand, Calipari has publicly questioned the ethical right of any coach to cling to a probable first round NBA draft pick and run the risk of that player losing his potential professional market value by getting injured while still playing college ball.

"Every player that I've recruited, and they will tell you, I say the same thing: 'Don't plan on coming to school for one year. You make a huge mistake. Plan on being in school two or three years. But if after one year you have options, that's up to you and your family."

If you were an amateur athlete whose near-term potential was valued in the tens of millions of dollars, it stands to reason that you would want to play for a coach who has a track record of both developing that talent to its full potential and NOT standing in your way when you felt you were ready to cash in.

And so the best come to Kentucky. And if that means a major roster make-over every year or two, so be it. The coaching staff seems to be up for it.

 

[Cratchit]

after last night's Kentucky/Wisconsin game, shouldnt we be calling it March and April madness?