...Can we make the Tournament?

GL13MV" post=420279 said:
hello all - long time fan and follower. Great content/ Information by many on this forum 

Hoping we can beat DePaul , finish off remainder of league play 2-1 + win 1 game in BE tourney.  anything less than this and we are feeling very nervous on selection Sunday 

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Welcome here GL13MV- good to have you.

I don't like talk of a sweet 16, gives me the jinx feeling and an NIT bid coming.

Don't even like the worrying about Nova, SH, et al., let's focus on DePaul, they have some decnt players y'all. know that right?

I know CMA knows that and so do Posh, Dunn and Champ and GWill.


 
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SJUFAN2" post=420303 said:
Roamer" post=420294 said:
The fact that this is even a valid thread and topic after all the damage and negligence this program has been through means it’s been a successful season.  
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Hard to believe that just 21 months ago we were the laughing stock of college basketball as we stumbled through an internal power struggle and an epically inept coaching search.

Now following a 1st season that never ended, a year long pandemic, and a shortened 2nd season, we have:
A HC who is lauded by local HS & AAU coaches. 
We have a roster full of blue collar, lunch pail type players with a heavy NY area presence.
We have a staff who has shown their kids get better as the year progresses, not worse.
We have a HC who should be the BE Coach of the Year.
We have a Soph from NY who should be the BE Player of the Year.
We have a Frosh from NY who should be the BE Freshman of the Year.
We have a team that is on the precipice of making the NCAA tournament.
We have developed a reputation as a team nobody wants to play in Feb/March.

And yet, there are still haters.   Go figure.
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You are one of the guys who was very patient when the team got off to a bad start.   Good for you!
 
Roamer" post=420294 said:
The fact that this is even a valid thread and topic after all the damage and negligence this program has been through means it’s been a successful season.  
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From a fans stanpoint, its time for us to get greedy. The diehards deserve it.
 
Beast of the East" post=420351 said:
SJUFAN2" post=420303 said:
Roamer" post=420294 said:
The fact that this is even a valid thread and topic after all the damage and negligence this program has been through means it’s been a successful season.  
Click to expand...
Hard to believe that just 21 months ago we were the laughing stock of college basketball as we stumbled through an internal power struggle and an epically inept coaching search.

Now following a 1st season that never ended, a year long pandemic, and a shortened 2nd season, we have:
A HC who is lauded by local HS & AAU coaches. 
We have a roster full of blue collar, lunch pail type players with a heavy NY area presence.
We have a staff who has shown their kids get better as the year progresses, not worse.
We have a HC who should be the BE Coach of the Year.
We have a Soph from NY who should be the BE Player of the Year.
We have a Frosh from NY who should be the BE Freshman of the Year.
We have a team that is on the precipice of making the NCAA tournament.
We have developed a reputation as a team nobody wants to play in Feb/March.

And yet, there are still haters.   Go figure.
Click to expand...
You are one of the guys who was very patient when the team got off to a bad start.   Good for you!
Click to expand...
I'm a big Rudyard Kipling fan...  /media/kunena/emoticons/smile.png
 
Maybe it's just me, but I actaully for once feel like we have a team that could make some noise in the NCAA tourney, should we sneak in. No, I don't even consider us close to a national title contender. But maybe a team who could pull off an upset or two. 

The last 3 NCAA tourney appearances we had, I don't remember feeling confident at all. 

2011 - Once DJ Kennedy went down with injury in the BE tourney, started to get that sinking feeling. Then we were sent for a nighmare matchup against Gonzaga out west in Denver. 

2015- This team literally had no depth and no height, which was made worse by Obekpa getting suspended for smoking weed. 4 of our 5 starters literally ended up playing 39 minutes each. San Diego State also wasn't a great matchup for us, and it wasn't close. 

2018 - Another team that had no depth and no size. The game vs Arizona State was pretty much a toss up, but never felt good about or prospects for surviving long without a bench. 
 
Room112" post=420359 said:
Maybe it's just me, but I actaully for once feel like we have a team that could make some noise in the NCAA tourney, should we sneak in. No, I don't even consider us close to a national title contender. But maybe a team who could pull off an upset or two. 

The last 3 NCAA tourney appearances we had, I don't remember feeling confident at all. 

2011 - Once DJ Kennedy went down with injury in the BE tourney, started to get that sinking feeling. Then we were sent for a nighmare matchup against Gonzaga out west in Denver. 

2015- This team literally had no depth and no height, which was made worse by Obekpa getting suspended for smoking weed. 4 of our 5 starters literally ended up playing 39 minutes each. San Diego State also wasn't a great matchup for us, and it wasn't close. 

2018 - Another team that had no depth and no size. The game vs Arizona State was pretty much a toss up, but never felt good about or prospects for surviving long without a bench. 
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Totally agree. And because I started watching SJU basketball as a kid during the last couple Norm years, I can say with confidence that I think this is the most a St. John's team has been built for March in my lifetime as a fan. 

We are a deep team. When Greg is healthy like he appeared to be the other night, our depth really skyrockets to another level. 

We are missing that one bruiser who can come in and grab some boards (Toro failed us in that regard, was supposed to be his role) 

but we are still a solid group. I want us to get in to the tournament so bad because I really think the landscape this year in college hoops is Gonzaga/Baylor and then everyone else. If we can get in as a 12/11 seed I'm giving us a chance against anyone 
 
Other than Arizona which put itself on probation this season, so generous of them, is there another highly ranked team that will have to sit out this season big dance ? 
thanks in advance. 
 
SJUFAN2" post=420303 said:
Roamer" post=420294 said:
The fact that this is even a valid thread and topic after all the damage and negligence this program has been through means it’s been a successful season.  
Click to expand...
Hard to believe that just 21 months ago we were the laughing stock of college basketball as we stumbled through an internal power struggle and an epically inept coaching search.

Now following a 1st season that never ended, a year long pandemic, and a shortened 2nd season, we have:
A HC who is lauded by local HS & AAU coaches. 
We have a roster full of blue collar, lunch pail type players with a heavy NY area presence.
We have a staff who has shown their kids get better as the year progresses, not worse.
We have a HC who should be the BE Coach of the Year.
We have a Soph from NY who should be the BE Player of the Year.
We have a Frosh from NY who should be the BE Freshman of the Year.
We have a team that is on the precipice of making the NCAA tournament.
We have developed a reputation as a team nobody wants to play in Feb/March.

And yet, there are still haters.   Go figure.

right on SJUfan2
well written and insightful
thanks!
 
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Imagine how sweet it will be to watch us play and win an NCAA game!

"it's been a long time coming..."
Sam Cooke


I was born by the river, in a little tent 
Oh, and just like the river 
I've been running ever since 
It's been a long…
 
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SS&G wrote:
Imagine how sweet it will be to watch us play and win an NCAA game!

"it's been a long time coming..."
Sam Cooke


I was born by the river, in a little tent 
Oh, and just like the river 
I've been running ever since 
It's been a long…

Thanks SSG. Great song and reminded me of the movie One Night In Miami which my wife and I watched Wednesday night and which ended with the actor playing Sam Cooke performing that great tune. Excellent flim. Only movie I'll be watching Saturday night is Johnnies vs. Depaul!
 
The most important game of the season is coming up tomorrow (Saturday) against DePaul.
 
We need to win 3 of 4 and probably 1 in the BE Tourney . Or , win the tourney outright to get the automatic bid . It would not be good to face UCONN in the 1 st game of BE .   As a aside , I don't think anyone dislikes CMA personally or as Coach . Is he fair game for fan discussion and comments ? Yes , of course as any Coach would be . This site has had nearly 20 years of bad basketball , save a year or two .  That creates enormous frustration among fans and Alums .  Fans and Alums like me were used to St John's being a Tournament team nearly every year . And , until 2000 we were 4 th in All Time wins , behind only Kansas , Kentucky , etc . Now , we are teeter ing barely in top 10 . And , sinking . But , we appear to be turning it around . We need to get to mid tier BE consistently and then hope to move into the top tier like Nova,, Creighton , Seton Hall , Xavier hsve been . 
 
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SLYFOXX1968" post=420461 said:
We need to win 3 of 4 and probably 1 in the BE Tourney . Or , win the tourney outright to get the automatic bid . It would not be good to face UCONN in the 1 st game of BE . 
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Play well down the stretch and and get a chance to sweep uconn?

As long as we don’t lose to DePaul I think we would jump Uconn and the Hall with a head to head victory over them.
 
Potential Paths (there are others but these are the potentially rational ones):

1.  Beat DePaul, Providence, and either the Hall or Nova
2.  Beat DePaul and Providence, lose to the Hall and Nova, but win a game in the BET. Might need 2 in the BET here.
3.  Beat DePaul, lose to Providence, beat both the Hall and Nova.
4.  Beat DePaul, lose to Providence, beat either the Hall or Nova, win a game in the BET (again, might need 2).
 
lawmanfan" post=420466 said:
Potential Paths (there are others but these are the potentially rational ones):

1.  Beat DePaul, Providence, and either the Hall or Nova
2.  Beat DePaul and Providence, lose to the Hall and Nova, but win a game in the BET. Might need 2 in the BET here.
3.  Beat DePaul, lose to Providence, beat both the Hall and Nova.
4.  Beat DePaul, lose to Providence, beat either the Hall or Nova, win a game in the BET (again, might need 2).



I think even in your first scenario we need to win a game in the BET to secure a bid. Maybe if we beat DePaul
and Providence and Villanova on the road , then we might not need a win in the BET because a win against Nova on the road would hold an enormous amount of weight plus we would probably be the only team in the league to sweep them. But, something still tells me that we are going to need 18 wins to get in. 
 
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lawmanfan" post=420466 said:
Potential Paths (there are others but these are the potentially rational ones):

1.  Beat DePaul, Providence, and either the Hall or Nova
2.  Beat DePaul and Providence, lose to the Hall and Nova, but win a game in the BET. Might need 2 in the BET here.
3.  Beat DePaul, lose to Providence, beat both the Hall and Nova.
4.  Beat DePaul, lose to Providence, beat either the Hall or Nova, win a game in the BET (again, might need 2) 
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I think reasonable minds can disagree but I don't think we miss out if we beat Depaul and one of the other three, and win 1 in the BET.
 
One thing in our favor is that some smaller conferences may not hold end of season tournaments which should increase the number of at-large bids available for the larger conferences. Those smaller conferences, without a tournament, would be limited to just the one bid.
 
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