I've decided that if Gophers make tourney as #8 or #9 seed. ...

SelectionSunday

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I hope we're not in the 8-9 game opposite of Kentucky. Wow, they look like a machine. Try to avoid hyperbole, but I think this is a team that can go 39-0. The only roadblock before SEC play is @ Louisville. If UK wins that one, I wouldn't bet against it. The SEC is the weakest of the major conferences, and the only other elite program (Florida) is a bit down by its standards. The Wildcats have a shot at it.
 

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Go Gophers!!
 

I hope we're not in the 8-9 game opposite of Kentucky. Wow, they look like a machine. Try to avoid hyperbole, but I think this is a team that can go 39-0. The only roadblock before SEC play is @ Louisville. If UK wins that one, I wouldn't bet against it. The SEC is the weakest of the major conferences, and the only other elite program (Florida) is a bit down by its standards. The Wildcats have a shot at it.

I think both Kentucky and Duke look scary good. You are correct about Kentucky will have an easier time. By the way SS, the Huskers lost at Rhode Island last night. They and in particular Pettaway seem to be really forcing the issue. Shavon Shields is by far their best player right now.
 

I watched part of their game against Kansas.

Oh my...

It's Kentucky vs The Field for the Championship this year.
 

Put me in the camp that Kansas was way overrated. Their Big 12 title streak is going to get snapped this year. They lost a ton after the great team they had in 2013, they still had a very good team last year but that was largely because Wiggins and Embiid propped them up, but now they're really in more of a rebuilding season.

KY was losing at halftime to Buffalo. They will not go unbeaten. I don't like the platoon strategy, it keeps guys from really getting in a rhythm and can also limit their ability to exploit mismatches that relate to a particular player's skills.
 


I hope we're not in the 8-9 game opposite of Kentucky. Wow, they look like a machine. Try to avoid hyperbole, but I think this is a team that can go 39-0. The only roadblock before SEC play is @ Louisville. If UK wins that one, I wouldn't bet against it. The SEC is the weakest of the major conferences, and the only other elite program (Florida) is a bit down by its standards. The Wildcats have a shot at it.

So if you wanted to talk about how great UK is, why didn't you just start an OT thread instead of labeling it as some discussion on Gopher seating?
 

Gopher seating? Did you mean seeding? Are we allowed to discuss college basketball here?

Maybe we should have a thread on the basketball board about the injustices involved with the term "co-champs"?
 

Duke will lose. Way too many good teams in the ACC to make it through clean. Louisville, Virginia, North Carolina, Pitt, are all good teams.

Who is going to challenge Kentucky in the SEC? Florida? No Can't evn think of another decent team.
 

I think both Kentucky and Duke look scary good. You are correct about Kentucky will have an easier time. By the way SS, the Huskers lost at Rhode Island last night. They and in particular Pettaway seem to be really forcing the issue. Shavon Shields is by far their best player right now.

We've been talking about whether Mathieu will be able to recapture the magic of last year. I've had the same thought about Pettaway.
 



By the way SS, the Huskers lost at Rhode Island last night. They and in particular Pettaway seem to be really forcing the issue. Shavon Shields is by far their best player right now.

Bright side for the 'Huskers is URI shouldn't end up being a bad loss. Rams are expected to be pretty decent this season. Nevertheless, would have been nice to get that road win.
 

Kentucky looks frighteningly good. I think there was a graphic during the Kansas game stating that the Wildcats had a taller starting front court than every other NCAA team and all but one NBA team. The biggest obstacle could actually be chemistry. Right now Calipari is running basically two shifts of five players each. As time goes on, whatever his intentions now, he's likely going to start giving more time to certain guys at the expense of others. When you consider that there might be guys who wind up as role players when they had dreams of doing a one and done, then heading to the NBA for 2015-16, there could be some bruised egos that might make for some tension filled moments behind the scenes. That is a giant "What if?" and may not come to pass, but it may be all that stands between Kentucky and a national title not to mention going undefeated.
 

The only time Kentucky could run into some problems is if they start to overlook teams and not play with intensity every night. If they come out like they did against Kansas like they're on a mission I don't see anybody beating them. Basketball is a long season though so you never know when they could have a off-night
 

Kentucky, like N. Carolina type teams of the past; only weakness seems to be outside shooting. Besides the obvious ones of chemistry and experience, on a team so young. When you are a team of 9 McDonald's All Americans, and the 10th rotation guy Cauley-Stein a potential lottery pick, how much time do most of these guys spend just shooting from distance? A very physical team with quickness could possibly box and one Andrew Harrison the one 3pt shooter and try and try to keep them off the boards. Not sure anyone in the SEC fits that bill, maybe Florida?? Tough games with UNC, Texas, Florida, and Louisville. Kentucky has been stacked for how many years now? I gave up on a ton of them transferring, i guess they like competitive practice. Lee could be a 15 and 9 guy if he went somewhere else. Slow it down teams like Wisconsin, Virgina, probably drive them nuts.
 



Gopher seating? Did you mean seeding? Are we allowed to discuss college basketball here?

Maybe we should have a thread on the basketball board about the injustices involved with the term "co-champs"?

Man, you're really running with that aren't you?

If we got an 8 or 9 seed, I'd want to be matched up with Duke. It'd be fun to beat Tyus since Duke always loses early.
 

Man, you're really running with that aren't you?

If we got an 8 or 9 seed, I'd want to be matched up with Duke. It'd be fun to beat Tyus since Duke always loses early.

Some things are just too hard to pass up, but you're right, I've said enough.

Agree, if given a choice I'd prefer taking my chances with Duke in the Round of 32 than Kentucky.
 

Some things are just too hard to pass up, but you're right, I've said enough.

Agree, if given a choice I'd prefer taking my chances with Duke in the Round of 32 than Kentucky.

Let's just get a 4 or 5 and make it a non-issue.
 



I think people are going overboard about KY. They are very good, they have talent. But Kansas was poorly matched with them being a team without much outside shooting, playing into KY's strength of shotblocking and defending the paint. Chemistry and cohesion are keys to success in March, and I don't like what the platoon strategy does in those regards. Other teams have the same amount of time to improve, and many will improve greatly from now to the end of the season. KY will always have the target on their back and perhaps some overconfidence. A talented team that is very good shooting the 3 that also has some good defensive bigs can knock them off.
 

Right now Calipari is running basically two shifts of five players each. As time goes on, whatever his intentions now, he's likely going to start giving more time to certain guys at the expense of others.

He has to change it up, it has been proven here that the hockey line shift change can't work. If he doesn't change that strategy, I'll be surprised if they win more than 20 games.
 

Come on man...

He has to change it up, it has been proven here that the hockey line shift change can't work. If he doesn't change that strategy, I'll be surprised if they win more than 20 games.

Number one: Kids want equal playing time. 9 McDonalds All Americans: you find the guys happy with less minutes. Playing time is the most important thing to those players.

Number two: If their four best players miss the season for any reason...they will still easily win 20 games. Healthy, they'll win 30+.
Calipari is slick AND he can coach. He communicates well with his players.

Number three: Platoons don't work because teams have top players who want more playing time, not less. Kentucky has 10 top players.
That's unheard of. It will work.
 

Gopher seating? Did you mean seeding? Are we allowed to discuss college basketball here?

Maybe we should have a thread on the basketball board about the injustices involved with the term "co-champs"?

All I pointed out was that you should have titled the thread "My Love for Kentucky", or something like that instead of falsely linking it to the Gophers.

Hey, you have a lot of great contributions to the site, don't get your undies in a bunch.
 

Kentucky, like N. Carolina type teams of the past; only weakness seems to be outside shooting. Besides the obvious ones of chemistry and experience, on a team so young. When you are a team of 9 McDonald's All Americans, and the 10th rotation guy Cauley-Stein a potential lottery pick, how much time do most of these guys spend just shooting from distance? A very physical team with quickness could possibly box and one Andrew Harrison the one 3pt shooter and try and try to keep them off the boards. Not sure anyone in the SEC fits that bill, maybe Florida?? Tough games with UNC, Texas, Florida, and Louisville. Kentucky has been stacked for how many years now? I gave up on a ton of them transferring, i guess they like competitive practice. Lee could be a 15 and 9 guy if he went somewhere else. Slow it down teams like Wisconsin, Virgina, probably drive them nuts.

Virgina can definitely drive them nuts :cool03:
 

Kentucky is a great team, but I still don't buy into all the hype completely. They are just so young, they'll make a mistake somewhere along the line.
 

Number one: Kids want equal playing time. 9 McDonalds All Americans: you find the guys happy with less minutes. Playing time is the most important thing to those players.

Number two: If their four best players miss the season for any reason...they will still easily win 20 games. Healthy, they'll win 30+.
Calipari is slick AND he can coach. He communicates well with his players.

Number three: Platoons don't work because teams have top players who want more playing time, not less. Kentucky has 10 top players.
That's unheard of. It will work.

AND Calipari doesn't even know his own 25-year old daughter's birthday because he's so focused on basketball, that has to count for something, too, right??? :p
 

I hope we're not in the 8-9 game opposite of Kentucky. Wow, they look like a machine. Try to avoid hyperbole, but I think this is a team that can go 39-0. The only roadblock before SEC play is @ Louisville. If UK wins that one, I wouldn't bet against it. The SEC is the weakest of the major conferences, and the only other elite program (Florida) is a bit down by its standards. The Wildcats have a shot at it.

38-1. I think clearly you were correct that KY's SEC schedule made it very easy for them to go unbeaten in league play. They had zero conference road games against teams seeded higher than #8 or #9 seed LSU. KY did not have an overly difficult nonconference schedule, as you pointed out the only toughie being at Louisville when the Cardinals were still working on replacing a lot of key parts from their 2014 team. Kansas was way overrated. UNC they got at home before the Tar Heels hit their stride. Literally the first time KY played a legitimate top-3 seed was the Elite 8 when they narrowly beat ND. It is amazing that Kansas won the Big 12, that just speaks to how average that league was this year that Kansas could manage to win it yet again in spite of them having fairly ordinary talent for an at-large tournament team.
 




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