Does 10-8 get us
- Thread starter rcatalano
- Start date
I think we get in with 10 big east wins. It may not be the top 10 machine it was a few years ago, but it's clearly the deepest and toughest conference in America. Take into account our age, our #1 market, signature wins, an above .500 conference record, etc. and I think we get there. When NYC is relevant in basketball it's always a great thing for the sport whether it's the NBA or NCAA. Just getting back to the tourney 2x in the past 3 years would really start to prove our worth again and would wake recruits up. To go from picked last in the Big East to an at large team would really force people to rethink their assertions.
redmen2014champs
Member
I love the Big East but I don't think it is clearly the deepest and toughest conference in America this year. In my opinion, and most of America's, the Big Ten is tougher and deeper. The Big East has only two "elite" teams in Syracuse and Louisville and both have flaws. South Fla., Rutgers, Depaul, Providence and Seton Hall are all pretty weak. SJU would need at least one win the the BET to have a chance. If they get to 19 wins, which is very possible, they may not need a win in the BET. 19 wins and one win in the BET, the NCAA should be wrapped up. Need to win the 3 home games and win at Providence to get to 19. Would be nice to steal a road game at Cuse, Ville or ND for some margin of error since Pitt and Marquette will be very tough home games. I didn't check at the beginning of the year but I'd like to know who picked the Redmen to be last. Myself and everyone I spoke to were pretty optimistic on this team. I don't know how anyone could have thought they would come in last.
Prov is playing without a lot of their talent and they just beat #16 Cincy tonight. They also beat #1 Pitt 2 or 3 years ago and Nova twice this year who beat L'Ville and Cuse. When Prov is all healthy and gets a few more pieces, they are going to be scary. Cotton is a monster.
beast of the east
Active member
I love your optimism, but I think 10-8 would likely get us a cupie doll, not a ticket to the dance. We NEED to beat USF and Providence, which would give us 9. If after playing Pitt and Marquette at home, and ND, Syracuse, and Louisville on the road, if the selection committe saw a 1-4 record in those games, I fear they would conclude we aren't tournament worthy and the five teams ranked at present would slip in before us.
The most winnable of the five aforementioned games are Pitt and Marquette at home. Win those 2, plus USF and Providence, and at 11-7 we'd be a pretty good bet to pack our bags. Still, one game at a time, because as we all know, we can lose any of those games.
With seven games left, there is a lot of season left to play, but its becoming harder and harder not to look ahead. Let us and the team stay in the present, and perhaps we can come out of the next two games with one stunner.
The most winnable of the five aforementioned games are Pitt and Marquette at home. Win those 2, plus USF and Providence, and at 11-7 we'd be a pretty good bet to pack our bags. Still, one game at a time, because as we all know, we can lose any of those games.
With seven games left, there is a lot of season left to play, but its becoming harder and harder not to look ahead. Let us and the team stay in the present, and perhaps we can come out of the next two games with one stunner.
A nice byproduct of last night's W is that the next two games are now "house money" games. We got the split we needed from Gtown/UConn, and can play pressure-free against Cuse/Lville knowing that 0-2 doesn't really change things. Having that kind of confident, little downside mindset is usually when you steal one.
Really intrigued by what we can do offensively against Cuse with the emergence of Marco. He really changes the dynamic in terms of teams being able to zone us when he's on the floor (as was the case last night). Cuse is obviously going to zone us anyway, and if we can get he and D-Lo going at the same time from 3 we could be really dangerous (acknowledging that you don't want to rely on the 3 to beat a zone, but the simple fact remains we'll have to knock some down if we want to win that game).
Really intrigued by what we can do offensively against Cuse with the emergence of Marco. He really changes the dynamic in terms of teams being able to zone us when he's on the floor (as was the case last night). Cuse is obviously going to zone us anyway, and if we can get he and D-Lo going at the same time from 3 we could be really dangerous (acknowledging that you don't want to rely on the 3 to beat a zone, but the simple fact remains we'll have to knock some down if we want to win that game).
IMHO neither 18-12 nor 19-11 should be an NCAA bid, unless that record includes a signature win (as in, beat Louisville or Syracuse on the road, which is highly unlikely).
I think that people are vastly overrating the Big East. With the exception of Louisville and perhaps Syracuse, the league is totally mediocre this year, and we are in the middle of the mediocrity. It's likely that the selection committee is going to continue its trend (which i agree with) of putting good non-BCS conference teams in over mediocre BCS-conference teams. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if the Big East got 5 or 6 bids this year.
If we win 20, then I think we will be playing an 8/9 game, or maybe a 10/7 game as the 10.
I think that people are vastly overrating the Big East. With the exception of Louisville and perhaps Syracuse, the league is totally mediocre this year, and we are in the middle of the mediocrity. It's likely that the selection committee is going to continue its trend (which i agree with) of putting good non-BCS conference teams in over mediocre BCS-conference teams. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if the Big East got 5 or 6 bids this year.
If we win 20, then I think we will be playing an 8/9 game, or maybe a 10/7 game as the 10.
FKASJU
Member
I believe that this team needs at least 19 wins. That being said, that could change if they get a signature road win at Cuse or L'Ville. The biggest problem with their current resume is that they lack a signature win (especially with Cincy losing again) but definitively have a signature Loss (UNC-A @ home).
100%. I'm sure the staff has seen or will soon see the way Pitt attacked the zone on Saturday, as that was masterful. They were patient and did a great job of getting the ball to the soft spots on the interior of the zone. They were able to run a little more high-low action than we'll likely be able to because of their size and their bigs ability to create and hold space at the rim, but we're better equipped to catch and shoot from 12-15 ft as you mention.
The biggest thing Saturday will be our ability to keep them off the offensive glass. They're 11th in the country in team rebounding, and if we don't wrap up defensive possessions we're going to have a tough time winning the game.