whitesoxfan99

QUOTE (fathom @ Mar 8, 2010 -> 07:42 PM) Fairfield's going to burst someone's bubble if they upset Siena here. Siena's best win is against Northeastern and they got their asses kicked by every good team they played except for Temple.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Mar 8, 2010 -> 02:49 PM) I think that if Minnesota makes the Big Ten final with wins over MSU & Purdue, they could easily snag one of those at-large bids as well. Sure and obviously a lot of the above teams could make a run in their tourneys that would chance things but assuming Illinois loses to Wisconsin and none of those teams add big wins, a case could certainly be made for Illinois making the tourney over the other teams listed.

QUOTE (fathom @ Mar 8, 2010 -> 01:59 PM) If they lose to Wisconsin, they're out. Their RPI is awful, and with 13/14 losses and losing 5 of their last 6, they'd have no shot. Probably but the bottom of the bubble teams are truly awful. Here is Lunardi's current last 4 in, first four out and next four out. Also, RPI is a truly awful tool that I wish the committee would do away with. There are much better indicators (Kenpom, other statistical rankings) of a teams quality than RPI. Last Four In * Memphis * Arizona State * San Diego State * Illinois First Four Out * Washington * Seton Hall * Rhode Island * Ole Miss Next Four Out * Dayton * UAB * Mississippi State * Minnesota Can you really tell me any of the teams below Illinois are clearly more deserving. This is exactly why I am so against expansion btw. None of the last 4 in should really be in the tourney and none of the 8 teams after them should be either. Washington and Arizona St. are only even being mentioned because of how truly terrible the Pac 10 is and I still think that should be a one or two bid league. Expansion to 96 is so laughable. You can't even fill a field with 65 deserving teams (there is never 34 good at large teams and then you also have the 16 and 15 seeds which basically never have a shot at winning even a game).

If Illinois beats Wisky and OSU they are 100% in. If they beat Wisky they are very likely in the tourney. If they lose, sadly the bubble is so bad they would still have a slim shot although they sure as hell wouldn't deserve it.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Mar 7, 2010 -> 04:34 PM) Well, their two starting big men are absoultely soft, couple of wimps. Then you have McCamey, who is a mental midget (he had quite the meltdown down the stretch today), and additionally you have a somewhat inconsistent freshman in Richardson and a wildly inconsistent one in Paul. It's just a weird team. Tisdale is weak but he isn't really soft. He battles in the post, doesn't shy away from contact and isn't scared to take big shots (maybe the best clutch player on the team). Unfortunately he just isn't strong enough to always hold position and he is also playing too many minutes because the bench has been terrible and he wears down over the course of games. Davis on the other hand plays like a p**** far too often.

DMac is the rare player who played Illinois into being in great position to make the dance and then almost single handedly blow it (not that he didn't have help). His play the last week has been embarrassing. 4-18 against Minny with the terrible turnover late where if they go ahead they very likely win the game. Deciding to not even attempt to guard Diebler on Tuesday leading to his barrage of wide open 3s when Illinois was playing well and had a chance to pull ahead in the 1st half. And then again today getting abused on defense, having a terrible turnover at a key time, and shooting the ball horribly. Also, Mike Davis still sucks and Richardson has completely disappeared. Cole has actually been playing well lately and Tisdale had a good game today, but just terrible play this last week. As for the comment that Weber has gotten less out of this team than any coach in America has gotten out of theirs that is just downright laughable. Roy Williams and Paul Hewitt have way more talent and have actually done less than Weber. Rick Barnes has taken a team that has as much talent as really anyone in America out of the Top 25 rankings and a 9-7 record in the Big 12. Billy Donovan has a talented team squarely on the bubble. Jim Calhoun at UConn has been horrible this year and I probably can name a few others if I tried hard enough. Also, Mike Davis still sucks. I thought the reffing was fair and sitting on the court pretty much every foul was legit. Wisconsin hacks a lot, just like Purdue (Illinois has been guilty of this in the past as well) so when they get refs that call it tight they are going to get called for a lot of fouls. With that said, I hate Jim Burr with a passion and he needs to go ahead and just die already. He is absolutely clueless out there and is on a ridiculous power trip every time he is on the court.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Mar 3, 2010 -> 04:09 PM) As a guy who has seen Bertrand play probably two dozen times, I don't think he can play point at the Big 10 level. You are probably right about Richmond though because he's so good. As for the tournament, 2 more wins and they are a lock. No more wins and it's NIT team. If they just beat Wisconsin at home and then lose their 1st game in Indy (or lose to them and then win 1 in Indy) it'll be just like '06-'07 where they are like the last team in or first team out. Hopefully if that happens, the result is the same as that year and they sneak in. Bertrand may not be able to play PG full time but he can certainly handle the ball well enough to give you 5-10 minutes at that position off the bench and that is all they need if McCamey stays (which he clearly should since I don't think he has anywhere near a first round pick).

QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Mar 3, 2010 -> 12:48 PM) Not making the tournament in '07-'08 was not surprising (although just how bad they were was), but it would be pretty impressive for a team with a reasonable amount of talent like this years Illini have to not make the tournament. And if they don't win their next 2 games, I think they're out. The problem is that as talented as the class this year was in recruiting, and as talented as the class next year will be, they still really only have one point guard in McCamey. Unless I'm really missing something, Head and Richmond can't play point either, so this isn't a problem that's going away (although they will be better next year. I think.) If they beat Wisconsin they should be in. 4 top 25 wins and an 11-7 conference record in a good Big 10 should definitely be enough. I don't think a 2nd PG is a huge deal as long as you have other guys who can handle the ball. Bertrand is solid in that regard, and Richmond is a very good ball handler who could definitely bring the ball up for stretches next year, especially since he won't be pressured by the other teams PG. Richardson and Paul need to improve their ball handling going forward and Head is injured so I can't really speak to his current status as a ball handler but he wasn't a bad ball handler (definitely not a PG though). The 07-08 team sucked, but interestingly they were the 40th ranked team in the Kenpom ratings that year which are usually a very good indication of how good a team is. That team just had an amazing ability to not win close games which was directly related to their struggles to score in general and the fact that their best offensive player was a liability in key situations because he was terrible at the line which directly cost them the IU game, and indirectly cost them several other games.

QUOTE (hitlesswonder @ Mar 3, 2010 -> 12:26 AM) They generate a lot of long 2s, not necessarily 3s, in my estimation. Maybe I'm mistaken about that as well, but it seems like a very jump shot heavy offense to me. The last two years have been very heavy on jump shots which is based heavily on the personnel. Meacham was a spot up shooter, Davis and Tisdale both love the midrange jump shot. Richardson has been primarily a shooter but has shown the ability to hit the pull up J and get to the rim at times, Cole can only shoot jump shots. DMac has been the only player the last 2 years that can really get to the rim but he still doesn't finish that well consistently and prefers the jump pull up jump shot to taking it all the way to the rim. The 04-05 team was heavily dependent on 3's but also generated wide open 3's for great shooters on a consistent basis and that offense worked perfectly for that team. The 05-06 team was somewhat dependent on the 3 but was a very good offensive team in large part due to Augustine's offense and being a very good offensive rebounding team. The 06-07 and 07-08 teams with Pruitt at C took less jump shots but still took quite a few because the guards were very one dimensional (with McBride and Meacham being the 2Gs and also that Warren Carter was just an absolute stud his SR year and scored mostly on jump shots). I'd say Weber's offense is more geared towards jump shots than some but also leaves a lot of room for guys to take the ball to the rim. He also has shown a willingness to pound it inside when he has the personnel to do so.

QUOTE (kjshoe04 @ Mar 2, 2010 -> 11:57 PM) If you guys think your refs are bad. Try playing in the valley. I'm sure some of the SIU fans can tell you they protect the slow, white kids from the cornfields. Refs throughout college basketball are just absolutely horrible. I'm actually surprised when I watch a game these days where I don't notice the officiating.

QUOTE (hitlesswonder @ Mar 2, 2010 -> 11:44 PM) Illinois should have a huge disparity in FTAs almost every game for 2 reasons: 1) Their idiotic version of the motion offense results in bad long range jump shots almost every possession. No one takes it to the hoop. Early in the season Tisdale could draw some fouls in the post, but by now everyone knows to shove him away from the basket. There hasn't been any change in the offense for years, let alone this season, that would alter this dynamic. 2) Illinois is over-matched athletically against almost any team they play. Richardson is the only player close to having real quickness for them on the floor. And yet they never play zone. They hack a lot as result. If you see an IL game where fouls are even, it's a sign the refs have been very biased in favor of IL. The FTA disparity is the sign of a bad team that is badly coached, not bias by the refs. Paul is plenty quick and has defense has improved over the course of the season but he just takes amazingly bad shots. His first step is actually really explosive but he needs to improve his ball handling and shot selection. Also Illinois doesn't send their opponents to the FT line a lot, the exact opposite in fact so you are completely wrong on that point. Also who would are the players you would have liked to see take the ball to the basket during Weber's tenure. Deron did when he was here but that team was so efficient at getting great shots he didn't need to do it very often. DMac attacks when given the opportunity but doesn't always finish well. DJ and Paul will be able to do it more but neither is great off the dribble yet. Frazier, Meacham, McBride just aren't guys who are going to be able to take someone off the dribble. Dee couldn't do it at any point in his career. It is nice to say players should take it to the basket but you have to have guys capable of making those plays, that is a recruiting issue. Also, two years ago Illinois was 199th in 3PA/FGA so not sure how the offense has never changed. The problems the last few years have been personnel based much more so than coaching based.

I have a serious question about one of the calls in today's game by the way. Why did OSU get possession at the end of the half on the inadvertent whistle when they clearly didn't have the ball when the play was blown dead and then also get the ball to start the 2nd half? It should have been OSU's ball because they had the possession arrow and then the possession arrow should have switched. Obviously this didn't affect the game but am I misinterpreting the rule or is this just typical Ed Hightower garbage officiating?

I love DMac's offensive game but he just kills us with his D. That is two games against OSU where Richardson and Paul did a really solid job on Turner but Diebler kills us with wide open 3 after wide open 3 because of DMac's defense or lack thereof. There isn't a guard in the NBA that wouldn't score 50 if McCamey was guarding them for 35 minutes.

Mike Davis is a joke

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Mar 2, 2010 -> 10:53 PM) Pretty much any team with size can take them down, or a cold shooting night. They play well against teams that dont have length in the backcourt and dont press much. They are only 6 deep, so really a good team could tire them out pretty easily. A dominant big man would cause alot of problems if Lauderdale got into foul trouble. I think Kentucky would potentially be a terrible matchup for OSU. Patterson and Cousins would destroy them and their guards are big enough and athletic enough to stay with OSU's wings.

QUOTE (fathom @ Mar 2, 2010 -> 10:42 PM) They get the short end of the stick EVERY game they play. I still say that if the current fan base ever had to deal with a game at Duke, there might be a riot on Illini message boards. Well we did have Deron get taken out with 2 weak first half fouls against them in the tourney when we were taking it to them early in the game. Does that count?

That last ball was clearly off Madsen's leg. Now somebody on Illinois will get lost and give Diebler a wide open look for 3.

QUOTE (fathom @ Mar 2, 2010 -> 10:29 PM) It's always been that way under Weber, and always will be. They're a catch and shoot team, and rarely drive the ball to the rim. I'm pretty sure for the last 5 years, they're in the bottom 5 in the country for FT shots. Depends on the team, most of his teams won't shoot a lot of FTs but the crappy 07-08 team was middle of the pack because they went inside a lot. He hasn't had guys other than DMac and Williams who can really ge to the basket and that has been the problem. Paul will be a guy who will get to the line and the 2010 recruits should as well.

QUOTE (fathom @ Mar 2, 2010 -> 10:22 PM) yep, Turner's 3rd foul was a joke It was but he also fouled on the dunk attempt.

The reason Diebler keeps getting open 3's is that DMac is guarding him. DMac is a great offensive player but he is one of the worst defensive players in the history of basketball.

How the f*** was that not a foul on Lauderdale on that last play? He was holding Tisdale's right arm and it was clear as day.

Lol wow does Canada suck. Avril Lavigne, Nickelback and Simple Plan at your closing ceremony? Were they trying to find the worst artists that Canada had to offer and get them under one roof?

I really don't like the 4 on 4 overtime or a shootout for a gold medal game btw. I understand they basically have to or the NHL players wouldn't be allowed to play but it doesn't seem right that a game like that would end without the teams playing 5 on 5.

f*** YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow Pavol Demitra missed basically an open net with less than 30 seconds left that would have tied the score. Canada survives and sets up the rematch on Sunday.