Big East Tournament

[knightni]

Starts March 12, at Madison Square Garden.

 

Can Georgetown repeat?

Will Syracuse continue it's run after beating Marquette the other night?

 

[CWSGuy406]

http://www.muscoop.com/index.php?topic=6727.0

 

First post.

[knightni]

Thanks!

[Brian]

As much as I hate to say this, I may have to take Notre Dame.

[CWSGuy406]

As much as I hate to say this, I may have to take Notre Dame.

 

Not a chance in hell. Nope -- not a chance. In fact, I was just going to post how glad I am that Marquette -- if they're lucky enough to make it to round two -- won't have to face UConn and instead gets ND.

 

So... If ND gets by (what will most likely be) Marquette -- which is no given, seeing that Marquette pounded ND at home by about 30 and lost by all of three at ND. And I'm not just being a Marquette homer, either, it's just how Marquette matches up with ND. Harangody will get his but Dominic James eats Kyle McAlarney's lunch -- they won't get by Louisville.

 

Book it. Except the whole Marquette thing. The way they're playing now I'm sure they'll f*** me over and lose to Seton Hall on the first night.

[knightni]

Not a chance in hell. Nope -- not a chance. In fact, I was just going to post how glad I am that Marquette -- if they're lucky enough to make it to round two -- won't have to face UConn and instead gets ND.

 

So... If ND gets by (what will most likely be) Marquette -- which is no given, seeing that Marquette pounded ND at home by about 30 and lost by all of three at ND. And I'm not just being a Marquette homer, either, it's just how Marquette matches up with ND. Harangody will get his but Dominic James eats Kyle McAlarney's lunch -- they won't get by Louisville.

 

Book it. Except the whole Marquette thing. The way they're playing now I'm sure they'll f*** me over and lose to Seton Hall on the first night.

I'm just playing "wait and see" on the whole thing anyway.

 

No matter how ND does, they're in the NCAA, so, doing well here is just a bonus.

[whitesoxfan101]

Nobody has an easy road on a bracket that tough, but I think the matchups are condusive for UConn to do very well.

[knightni]

Man...

 

Having 9pm EDT tip-offs in New York is brutal.

[Fotop]

Not a chance in hell. Nope -- not a chance. In fact, I was just going to post how glad I am that Marquette -- if they're lucky enough to make it to round two -- won't have to face UConn and instead gets ND.

 

So... If ND gets by (what will most likely be) Marquette -- which is no given, seeing that Marquette pounded ND at home by about 30 and lost by all of three at ND. And I'm not just being a Marquette homer, either, it's just how Marquette matches up with ND. Harangody will get his but Dominic James eats Kyle McAlarney's lunch -- they won't get by Louisville.

 

Book it. Except the whole Marquette thing. The way they're playing now I'm sure they'll f*** me over and lose to Seton Hall on the first night.

 

Obviously, this road for ND is sub-optimal as the best case scenario would have been getting WVU in the quarters and GTown in the semis. I really think Louisville is the best team in the Big East; they're really deep and play lockdown d. Avoiding them until a potential matchup in the final would have been nice, but it didn't work out that way, and it's the Big East...no one ever gets a break.

 

That isn't to say I think ND is going to be a quick out. This is a talented team. Personally, I think on paper we matchup really well with Marquette (assuming they beat SHU). Marquette has no answer inside for Harnagody, and Kurz should do damage as well. The game will be won or lost on the wings for them, which is pretty much their M.O.

 

James is overrated. There I said it, but the guy reminds me too much of Chris Thomas to have an unbiased opinion of him. Regardless, much like Thomas, if he gets hot he's dangerous; if not, he forces stuff and is typically a detriment, again much like Thomas. McNeil worries me more than James to be honest. Defensively, if ND were to play man, we'd probably see Tory Jackson covering James due to his quickness...McNeil vs. Macalarney in that case would worry me.

 

So like I said, it comes down to Marquette guards vs. ND bigs. I like the fact that ND has already played in MSG this year and well against a solid team (KState). Mcalarney has been lights out anywhere near a couple hundred miles of his hometown of Staten Island.

 

I also like the fact that ND has been using some diverse looks on d (3 quarter press, multiple zones, man, etc). Marquette will have to prove they can shoot well to win this game, because I'm certain ND will come out in zone (probably some sort of 1-2-2 or 3-2 variation with one of our "long" players at the top of the key...think Zach Hillensland or Ryan Ayers). ND will need to extend the d a bit to cover the three early on; but Marquette will have to prove they can shoot consistently well from outside to win as the zone will sag to prevent penetration if the shots do not fall.

 

In short, it's going to come down to how well Marquette shoots. If hot, that picks up their entire game, and they start running. If ND can drag them into a physical, lower tempo half court game (neutralize Marquette's transition game) I think that plays to ND's advantage (this isn't to say ND can't fill it up...they're near the top in scoring avg. and generally play up tempo).

 

But that's just my two cents. Per usual, I expect to get blasted for my perceived "blatant homerism".

Edited March 10, 2008 by Fotop

[CWSGuy406]

Nah there will be no blasting from my side. Couple of things:

 

- At this point, who is "overrating" James? The book is pretty much out on him. He's a streaky shooter who, more often than not, is in a bad streak (thus making him a below average shooter). If anything, though, I don't think people understand how good he is on the defensive end. After watching a majority of their games the past two seasons, I'd say James is every bit the defender McNeal is, even better.

 

- I'm conceding that Harangody will get his -- and by "get his" I mean drop anywhere from 25-40. He's going to score, and he's going to score a lot. You're right -- we don't have an answer for him. Mbakwe, Barro and Burke will be there to not give him any *great* looks, but that's not going to shut down Harangody. Someone else is going to have to step up for ND, though. Kurz and Ayers can give MU some trouble -- those lengthy #4s tend to screw with us quite a bit. McAlarney and Jackson... ehh, again, not terribly worried. I think McAlareny combined for less than 20 (or right around there) in his two games versus MU -- Marquette has the guards to keep up with him.

 

- Your last paragraph is right on the money. If ND forces a half-court game and can prevent MU from getting out in transition, I'd say ND will take it relatively easily (double digits).

 

In any case, it should be fun... if Marquette is lucky enough to get to the second round.

[Fotop]

Yeah, think we're on the same page on this one really. Should be a good matchup if we see it...the Big East Tourney is always good fun even though ND is historically horrible in it.

 

As for the James stuff, like I said, he reminds me too much of Thomas, hence the blind rage. I'd say because he was considered so good as an underclassman (again the Thomas parallels are staggering), he constantly has this aura of "well if he puts it all together..." around him. Right or wrong, that "potential" is what makes him consistently overrated. He is a solid defender, but at the same he seems like the type that lets things get into his head and his whole game suffers (really, I could keep drawing the Thomas parallel but I think you get the picture ).

 

I mean I hate to single out ONE play, but a guy of his caliber needs to be a ton smarter at the end of the GTown game. How the heck do you hack Wallace like that? The dude was basically chucking up a prayer fallaway three. Just makes me think his basketball IQ is lacking...fair or not.

[CWSGuy406]

I mean I hate to single out ONE play, but a guy of his caliber needs to be a ton smarter at the end of the GTown game. How the heck do you hack Wallace like that? The dude was basically chucking up a prayer fallaway three. Just makes me think his basketball IQ is lacking...fair or not.

 

Okay, now you've gone too far -- that's a shot below the belt, man. Why you gotta bring up the Georgetown game?

 

Yeah, his game management down the stretch there wasn't very great. He's done that 'strip' play a ton this year and usually gets away with it but right there you just gotta put a hand up and if Wallace hits it over you... tip your cap.

 

I can't comment on the Thomas comparison as I can only recall seeing Thomas a handful of times, but you're certainly not the first one to put the two side-by-side. I'll say this about James -- he certainly has his flaws and I don't think anybody will ever confuse him for one of the better PGs in college basketball. That being said... he brings it defensively, night-in night-out, moreso than anybody on Marquette save for Wes Matthews. Now that I think about it, I have no issues at all with saying James is, in fact, a better defender than last year's BE Defensive PotY, Jerel McNeal. Offensively, we've talked about his shooting, but I can't imagine how Marquette is going to function when he eventually leaves. He's the only guy who can consistently get into the lane whenever he wants. On top of being an athletic freak, he's also a top-notch passer as well. The biggest thing I can say about James is that whenever he's on the floor, Marquette is a much better team -- that includes when he's in the midst of a 2-for-11 night from the field, too.

 

I should also mention that during his freshman year he also had Novak. When he can attack the basket 1-on-1 and not have to worry about a help-side defender crashing down because said defender is glued to Novak, that makes it very tough for the guy who's guarding James. Despite what John Saunders would have you believe, Dan Fitzgerald is no Steve Novak. I'd imagine teams are also zoning Marquette more as -- once Novak left -- Marquette doesn't have anyone who you'd call a superb three-point shooter.

 

But getting back to the tournament itself, I don't think either of our teams (or Seton Hall, if that's what's in the cards) will get by Louisville. And that's not necessarily a bad thing, either -- going 1-1 in the tourney would be a fine result for either team (a little moreso for ND). I think the extra rest is probably more benificial than having to go up against Louisville followed by Georgetown or UConn.

Edited March 10, 2008 by CWSGuy406

[Fotop]

Simply put, Louisville is the best team in the Big East. Losing again to them wouldn't hurt the resume at all (and to a certain extent neither would losing to Marquette who has a rather high RPI). However, ND has a bit to gain by not going 1 and done.

 

Seeding wise they look to be a solid #4 seed right now. If they lose in a bad game to Marquette or God forbid lose to a streaky SHU, I think they drop to a #5.

 

If they lose a close game vs. Marquette, or win vs. Marquette and lose to Louisville I think they stay a solid #4.

 

Make it to the final, and they're a three seed. If they win the BET, they could argue they're a two seed, but would probably still be a three.

 

Regardless, considering last year's debacle (being underseeded at 6, sent out to the far west coast to play a tough mid major in Winthrop); ND needs to not leave any room for doubt, for they may get nicked again (this year the excuse will be the weak OOC schedule). Hence, the importance of Thursday. Anything past Thursday would be gravy, but like you said, it could cost them from a fatigue standpoint.

[ChiSox_Sonix]

I'm thinkin this is gonna be a UCONN-L'Ville battle for the title with the winner grabbing a 3 seed in the tourney. Hopefully UCONN can continue their momentum after their demolishing of Cincy the other day. The Huskies fans always travel extremely well to the Garden for this and they should have beaten G'Town in DC earlier in the year. Also, ND is so streaky, if L'Ville can just keep Mcalareny from going off they should control that game. (I'm assuming the top 4 advance, although Pitt could actually give L'Ville a game, IMO.)

[Fotop]

I'm thinkin this is gonna be a UCONN-L'Ville battle for the title with the winner grabbing a 3 seed in the tourney. Hopefully UCONN can continue their momentum after their demolishing of Cincy the other day. The Huskies fans always travel extremely well to the Garden for this and they should have beaten G'Town in DC earlier in the year. Also, ND is so streaky, if L'Ville can just keep Mcalareny from going off they should control that game. (I'm assuming the top 4 advance, although Pitt could actually give L'Ville a game, IMO.)

 

If L'Ville or GTown win the BET, they will get a 2 seed. If not, that'd be quite the job.

 

If UConn or ND win, they'll probably be a high 3, with a case for a two (could be a two depending on how everything else shakes out; Wisky doesn't win the BTT, Stanford gets bumped early in the P10, etc).

 

I'm not really all that impressed w/Pitt this year, but I think I say that about Pitt every year. They're the same team year in and year out. Physical, solid D, and no go-to-guy on the offensive end. L'Ville should beat them in a walk.

 

Don't know how you can say "if L'Ville can keep Macalarney from going off they should control that game." Harangody dropped 40 on L'Ville last time they played. Sure they shut down ND's 3 pt shooting w/an extended zone (and they consistently play this way because Pitino hates giving up the three), but I think they'd def. pay more attention to the big guy the 2nd time around (considering ND will probably perform better vs. the press in a 2nd look at it). One would think the guards would get some better looks in that scenario...

 

Personally, I think a L'Ville/ND matchup in the semis could prove to be the best game of the tourney to watch (way more entertaining than a knock down drag out game between GTown and UConn...that sucker will be like 47-43 for a final, heh).

[ChiSox_Sonix]

Don't know how you can say "if L'Ville can keep Macalarney from going off they should control that game." Harangody dropped 40 on L'Ville last time they played. Sure they shut down ND's 3 pt shooting w/an extended zone (and they consistently play this way because Pitino hates giving up the three), but I think they'd def. pay more attention to the big guy the 2nd time around (considering ND will probably perform better vs. the press in a 2nd look at it). One would think the guards would get some better looks in that scenario...

 

 

Because Luke's gonna get his 25-30 points, its a given. Thats why i'm saying they need to stop Macalarney. ND relies on those two quite heavily, and naturally and not surprisingly they are at their best and very dangerous when Gody's getting his down low and Mcalarney is raining threes. If they can reel him in from the outside and just deal with whatever Harangody does, they should be fine. Thats what i was getting at.

[Brian]

Pop goes Syracuse's bubble.

[knightni]

Pop goes Syracuse's bubble.

They're pretty young.

 

Look out next year though.

[ChWRoCk2]

Pop goes Syracuse's bubble.

Thank god, hate Syracuse

[CWSGuy406]

I apologize to anyone who watched any part of the Marquette/Seton Hall game. If I could refund you two hours of your life, I most certainly would. What a terrible basketball game.

[knightni]

Bracket updated.

[JuiceCruz16]

'Nova is looking strong against G'town. Looks like they will be dancin'. WOW I take that back, I see they are now down 15 with 3 and a half to go. I thought a close loss would be enough let alone a win, but now with a big loss I'm not so sure if it's NIT or the big dance for the Cats.

Edited March 13, 2008 by JuiceCruz16

[whitesoxfan101]

Villanova is done, they had to get a win today and losing by 19 only makes things worse.

[Rowand44]

Villanova is done, they had to get a win today and losing by 19 only makes things worse.

I honestly wouldn't be so sure either way with them. Too many bubble teams are losing right now to completely disregard Nova imo. When a bubble team decides they want to win a game then I might be with you but until than, Nova still has a shot.

[whitesoxfan101]

I honestly wouldn't be so sure either way with them. Too many bubble teams are losing right now to completely disregard Nova imo. When a bubble team decides they want to win a game then I might be with you but until than, Nova still has a shot.

 

That's true, but it's going to take a lot of weird s*** for Nova to make it even still. Then again, Baylor is down 4 with 30 seconds left to Colorado, so maybe I shouldn't rule such things out.