SelectionSunday
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What's happened and what's ahead in the world of college basketball. All RPI rankings are courtesy of CollegeRPI.com.
Tracking My Preseason Final 4
1. Duke (20-3)
6. North Carolina (20-2)
11. Louisville (18-4)
39. Arizona State (18-5)
CollegeRPI.com Gopher/Metrodome Projections
Jerry Palm's most recent bracket projection (Feb. 9) has the Gophers as a #7 seed playing #10 San Diego State in Dayton in the East Region. Palm's current projections for the Metrodome are: #3 Memphis vs. #14 Tennessee-Martin; #6 Washington vs. #11 Siena; #3 Michigan State vs. #14 North Dakota State; and #6 Gonzaga vs. #11 Boston College.
Tracking the Gophers' Nonconference Opponents
11. Louisville (18-4, 9-1 Big East)
95. North Dakota State (16-5, 12-1 Summit)
100. Virginia (7-12, 1-7 ACC)
106. Cornell (13-7, 5-1 Ivy)
149. Bowling Green (11-9, 6-3 MAC)
168. Colorado State (8-14, 3-6 Mountain West)
228. Eastern Washington (10-13, 5-7 Big Sky)
273. Georgia State (5-17, 5-8 Colonial)
278. South Dakota State (8-15, 5-8 Summit)
289. Southeastern Louisiana (5-13, 3-6 Southland)
333. High Point (3-17, 2-11 Big South)
Gophers' Nonconference SOS Rank = 224 of 343 (bottom 34.7%)
Winning on the Road in the BCS Conferences
The most difficult BCS conference to win on the road? Here's the percentage of games won by the road teams, from toughest to easiest conference.
1. Big Ten -- 20 of 59 (33.9%). ... Gophers own 3 of these 20 wins.
2. SEC -- 18 of 50 (36%)
3. Big Twelve -- 20 of 51 (39.2%)
4. ACC -- 21 of 52 (40.4%)
5. Big East -- 35 of 84 (41.7%)
6. Pac Ten -- 24 of 54 (44.4%)
This & That
**Every year at this time I start putting together my "list of 8" I'd like to see in person at the NCAA Tournament (this year at the Metrodome). It's always a mix of majors, mid-majors and small majors. The list changes week to week in February and March, but here's my initial wish list of teams: Arizona State, Davidson, Marquette, Michigan State, North Dakota State, Pitt, Utah State and VMI.
**If Syracuse stud big man Arinze Onuaku doesn't get healthy soon, the Orangemen for the third straight year could fall completely out of the NCAA picture. A week ago the 'Cuse looked like a mortal lock for the NCAAs. The Orangemen have a brutal schedule remaining that includes UConn, Marquette, Villanova, Cincinnati and Georgetown.
**If the Big Ten Network wants to add a top-shelf analyst to go along with solid color guys Shon Morris and Gregory Kelser, it should go after former Wisconsin guard Mike Kelley, who does excellent work for ESPNPlus/Full Court.
**It's been a great year for former Tom Izzo assistants. Dayton (21-3) and Utah (16-6) appear headed for the NCAA Tournament under the direction of Brian Gregory and Jim Boylen, respectively, while Tulsa (16-7) under Doug Wojcik has his Hurricane in the mix for an at-large bid. All three have huge games on Wednesday: Dayton hosts Xavier with a shot at a share of the A-10 lead; Utah hosts San Diego State with the winner taking sole possession of first place in the much-improved Mountain West; and Tulsa (7-2 and 2nd place in Conference USA) travels to C-USA kingpin Memphis looking for a signature win for its resume.
**Looks like the same-old Duke (recent vintage) to me. A very solid but overrated club with no legitimate post presence and minimal help from the bench. Not a recipe for an extended stay in March.
**Maybe I should "diss" a coach more often. Since questioning whether Frank Martin was the right long-term solution as K-State's head coach, the Wildcats have won five straight to get to 5-4 in the Big 12. Martin has the resurgent Wildcats in the at-large conversation. My apologies Mr. Martin, for now.
**Something to ponder. ... why is it that seemingly every time there's an upset (i.e. South Florida over Marquette, Northwestern/Penn State over Michigan State), the talking heads/studio hosts immediately say "(favored team) didn't come to play."? Is there a rule I'm unaware of that says every time an underdog wins it's because the favored team didn't show up? How about giving the winning team some credit. What fun would sports be if the most talented team won every game?
Selection Sunday Mailbag
SS,
Do you think Butler has earned its high ranking?
-- Gopherholefan --
Gopherholefan,
Butler has been a great story this year, no doubt about it. After losing most everyone to graduation, I don't think anyone expected the Bulldogs to be 20-2 and ranked #11 in the AP poll. However, I'd say the Bulldogs are ranked too high. I'm not sure a team with two top-50 wins (at Xavier, UAB) deserves to be ranked near the top 10, or even top 25 for that matter.
SS,
What matchup in the Bracket Busters do you find most intriguing? And are there any games featuring unranked mid-majors that we should be aware of?
-- bushwood manor --
bushwood manor,
The answer to your first question is easy. ... Butler at Davidson. In my opinion, the best pairing of unranked teams is Illinois State at Niagara.
I would have preferred they pair Utah State vs. Davidson & Butler vs. St. Mary's. I understand that Butler/Davidson presents a "marquee" matchup, but in all likelihood both are going to the NCAA Tournament no matter the outcome of their game and their conference tournament performances. I'd rather see likely bubble teams Utah State and St. Mary's (if they don't win their conference tourney) get a crack at Butler and Davidson instead of having to play head to head.
Tracking My Preseason Final 4
1. Duke (20-3)
6. North Carolina (20-2)
11. Louisville (18-4)
39. Arizona State (18-5)
CollegeRPI.com Gopher/Metrodome Projections
Jerry Palm's most recent bracket projection (Feb. 9) has the Gophers as a #7 seed playing #10 San Diego State in Dayton in the East Region. Palm's current projections for the Metrodome are: #3 Memphis vs. #14 Tennessee-Martin; #6 Washington vs. #11 Siena; #3 Michigan State vs. #14 North Dakota State; and #6 Gonzaga vs. #11 Boston College.
Tracking the Gophers' Nonconference Opponents
11. Louisville (18-4, 9-1 Big East)
95. North Dakota State (16-5, 12-1 Summit)
100. Virginia (7-12, 1-7 ACC)
106. Cornell (13-7, 5-1 Ivy)
149. Bowling Green (11-9, 6-3 MAC)
168. Colorado State (8-14, 3-6 Mountain West)
228. Eastern Washington (10-13, 5-7 Big Sky)
273. Georgia State (5-17, 5-8 Colonial)
278. South Dakota State (8-15, 5-8 Summit)
289. Southeastern Louisiana (5-13, 3-6 Southland)
333. High Point (3-17, 2-11 Big South)
Gophers' Nonconference SOS Rank = 224 of 343 (bottom 34.7%)
Winning on the Road in the BCS Conferences
The most difficult BCS conference to win on the road? Here's the percentage of games won by the road teams, from toughest to easiest conference.
1. Big Ten -- 20 of 59 (33.9%). ... Gophers own 3 of these 20 wins.
2. SEC -- 18 of 50 (36%)
3. Big Twelve -- 20 of 51 (39.2%)
4. ACC -- 21 of 52 (40.4%)
5. Big East -- 35 of 84 (41.7%)
6. Pac Ten -- 24 of 54 (44.4%)
This & That
**Every year at this time I start putting together my "list of 8" I'd like to see in person at the NCAA Tournament (this year at the Metrodome). It's always a mix of majors, mid-majors and small majors. The list changes week to week in February and March, but here's my initial wish list of teams: Arizona State, Davidson, Marquette, Michigan State, North Dakota State, Pitt, Utah State and VMI.
**If Syracuse stud big man Arinze Onuaku doesn't get healthy soon, the Orangemen for the third straight year could fall completely out of the NCAA picture. A week ago the 'Cuse looked like a mortal lock for the NCAAs. The Orangemen have a brutal schedule remaining that includes UConn, Marquette, Villanova, Cincinnati and Georgetown.
**If the Big Ten Network wants to add a top-shelf analyst to go along with solid color guys Shon Morris and Gregory Kelser, it should go after former Wisconsin guard Mike Kelley, who does excellent work for ESPNPlus/Full Court.
**It's been a great year for former Tom Izzo assistants. Dayton (21-3) and Utah (16-6) appear headed for the NCAA Tournament under the direction of Brian Gregory and Jim Boylen, respectively, while Tulsa (16-7) under Doug Wojcik has his Hurricane in the mix for an at-large bid. All three have huge games on Wednesday: Dayton hosts Xavier with a shot at a share of the A-10 lead; Utah hosts San Diego State with the winner taking sole possession of first place in the much-improved Mountain West; and Tulsa (7-2 and 2nd place in Conference USA) travels to C-USA kingpin Memphis looking for a signature win for its resume.
**Looks like the same-old Duke (recent vintage) to me. A very solid but overrated club with no legitimate post presence and minimal help from the bench. Not a recipe for an extended stay in March.
**Maybe I should "diss" a coach more often. Since questioning whether Frank Martin was the right long-term solution as K-State's head coach, the Wildcats have won five straight to get to 5-4 in the Big 12. Martin has the resurgent Wildcats in the at-large conversation. My apologies Mr. Martin, for now.
**Something to ponder. ... why is it that seemingly every time there's an upset (i.e. South Florida over Marquette, Northwestern/Penn State over Michigan State), the talking heads/studio hosts immediately say "(favored team) didn't come to play."? Is there a rule I'm unaware of that says every time an underdog wins it's because the favored team didn't show up? How about giving the winning team some credit. What fun would sports be if the most talented team won every game?
Selection Sunday Mailbag
SS,
Do you think Butler has earned its high ranking?
-- Gopherholefan --
Gopherholefan,
Butler has been a great story this year, no doubt about it. After losing most everyone to graduation, I don't think anyone expected the Bulldogs to be 20-2 and ranked #11 in the AP poll. However, I'd say the Bulldogs are ranked too high. I'm not sure a team with two top-50 wins (at Xavier, UAB) deserves to be ranked near the top 10, or even top 25 for that matter.
SS,
What matchup in the Bracket Busters do you find most intriguing? And are there any games featuring unranked mid-majors that we should be aware of?
-- bushwood manor --
bushwood manor,
The answer to your first question is easy. ... Butler at Davidson. In my opinion, the best pairing of unranked teams is Illinois State at Niagara.
I would have preferred they pair Utah State vs. Davidson & Butler vs. St. Mary's. I understand that Butler/Davidson presents a "marquee" matchup, but in all likelihood both are going to the NCAA Tournament no matter the outcome of their game and their conference tournament performances. I'd rather see likely bubble teams Utah State and St. Mary's (if they don't win their conference tourney) get a crack at Butler and Davidson instead of having to play head to head.