Houston really caught so much **** for being in a “terrible conference” for years so they joined the best conference in college basketball and took it over. This is revisionist crap. UH did indeed play in a weak conference for years (catching ****, not so much), but everyone also knew they were a great program, because everyone watched them play in the Tourney. What they've done this year has surprised nobody.
I wouldn't go that far. The majority had kansas being the top dog in the B12. While many didn't expect UH to just drop off, they didn't expect them to be a top of it in their very first year. There are plenty of folks that are surprised how not only UH has transitioned well but also Cincy holding their own as well as UCF. Even byu being a legitimate tourney team has surprised
Lame. UH, Kansas, others, are have done exactly what people thought they would do in the best hoops conference in America. UH has taken over to top spot, nobody is surprised by this. Preseason Poll: 1. Kansas (12) 168 2. Houston (2) 153 3. Texas 143 4. Baylor 137 5. TCU 113 6. Kansas State 106 7. Iowa State 95 8. Texas Tech 80 9. West Virginia 70 10. Oklahoma State 57 11. Cincinnati 55 12. Oklahoma 54 13. BYU 29 14. UCF 14 There's still a conference tourney, btw. I just don't understand how UH is somehow feeling disrespected. BYU and Iowa State have more beef.
Talk about respect. Right now ESPN analytics has us favored 72.7 to 27.3 against Baylor in Waco on Saturday. That's some healthy respect. If TA had not of gotten hurt, if Cryer played every game like he did against Texas at home, and if Dunn could get his confidence back and hit the broad side of a barn no telling how good we would be. Between Sharp, Shead, and Cryer we hit 22 of 24 of our FT's; 91.6%. I think we will be okay at the line in a close game if we keep the ball in the right hands. If Roberts, Francis, or Tugler touch the ball they are probably going to get hammered because they can't hit FT's. Mylik Wilson continues to make big shots. Thank God for his contributions off the bench as Dunn continues to be a no show and find his way closer to the end of the bench. Man what a disappointment. Only 5 games left in the regular season. Three on the road and two at home. Not an easy one left. We are going to have to bring it every night. Would love to win all five and sweep the tourney but who knows with the level of competition we are playing. It has been am amazing ride so far.
is the account you responded to run by UH? Nah it isn't. And there's plenty of teams in that projection that are not as good as they thought they would be That tweet merely speaks to how damn good of a coach KS is and the program that hes built to transition the way that they have
Good assessment. But you forgot Ramon Walker. I think he can be a key player moving forward, if he can regain his form prior to his injury. I like the fact that Sampson is playing more players. They have a deeper bench than in previous yrs and that's going to be key going into the NCAA Tournament
I think what you’re saying is true about people who follow the sport as carefully as you do. But I heard all kinds of **** talking about UH for years that was centered on discounting their record because of the conference they played in. Kansas folks were notorious for talking that stuff.
It's the Gonzaga problem and it still hasn't been disproven. Gonzaga caught **** for years because they play in a soft conference full of nobodies and dominated the WCC for many years. They didn't face real competition until the tournament and still haven't won a national title. UH didn't win a national title while in The American. What they've done upon joining the Big 12 is impressive, but it doesn't negate past criticism of their previous conference.
so national title or bust. got it. what you're speaking to is college basketball casuals for people giving them "shitt" for years. Who don't follow it regularly and don't understand the entire landscape of a season year in and year out. And that's what MM isn't talking about. He specifically is referring to the folks that do follow ncaab regularly. Buck by many accounts follows ncaab fairly often. Just because the Zags haven't won a national title isn't a problem. Their longevity and consistency year in and year out speaks for itself. That's what makes a great program. Doesn't matter what their conference is. Their program is well respected and established. They win a lot. moving into a different conference wouldn't change any of that. Mark Few is one of the best coaches in all of america. There's nothing like March Madness and being one and done in a massive field of teams. So much goes into play there and it isn't some playoff series where the best team typically wins in the end. The worse team wins quite often during the tourney. That's what makes it exciting, when on one random night you could be going home, no matter how well you played or dominated all year to get there. not winning a national title isn't the make or break for what a great program is in reality.
I don't think that I said anything contrary to what you posted. Sustained excellence across an entire season does not matter less than March Madness; you're right that the latter is a total crapshoot and it's a different beast than a regular season. But, the fact of the matter is that the WCC and The American are not the same caliber as the ACC, Big East or Big 12. Kudos to teams like Gonzaga and Houston for dominating their conferences (and to Houston for doing it in the Big 12 now) for sustained periods. That doesn't change the fact that routinely beating teams like San Francisco and Pacific is fundamentally different than running the table against Kansas, Michigan State and Duke. I'm a UT fan so I have no clue what a team with consistent expectations looks like.
Gonzaga is a great program in a weakass conference. UH *was* a great program in a less-weak conference. Now UH is wrecking **** with the big boys on the reg. Over the years, they've both proven themselves (in non-conf and tourney), so who cares? It's ****ing hard to win a Natty...I'd never judge a program by that alone.
Since the NCAA men’s basketball tournament expanded to a 64-team field, No. 1 seeds have secured the championship 24 out of 38 times. When Baylor dominated Gonzaga in the final, it was the fourth consecutive victory for a top-seeded team and the tenth in the last 14 seasons. Other than No. 1 seeds, titles have been claimed by two seeds (five times) and three seeds (four times) and one for a 4th seed and a few others.
On one of the weekend broadcasts, I believe it was Bilas, who said that teams should schedule top-shelf OOC games around this time, instead of frontloading them all in Nov/Dec. I think that is a great idea.
not sure how that would work when OOC play is in Nov/Dec. The rest of the year is conference play. And as far as the B12 goes, conference play is clearly head and shoulders above OOC play when almost every game is a quad 1 game/tourney game
Because it would be fun. Not talking about a stretch of 5 games or whatever, but a couple of solid OOC games later in the season.
