stringertom
Bionic Poster
Sparties to the Final Four with a determined effort and a gift at the charity line in the closing seconds of regulation. Two Big 10 teams still alive.
College Hoops 2015
- Thread starter spinovic
- Start date
dlk
Hall of Fame
Nice to see Big 10 get some love; still gonna be KY & winner of this game. for the marbles.
Mr.Lob
G.O.A.T.
Ouch. Cold shooting in second half and a missed free throw did my Cards in.
Gotta cheer for the Wildcats now.
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
who is in final four this year ?
Topspin Shot
Legend
Notre Dame, South Carolina, the winner of UConn/Dayton, and the winner of Maryland/Tennessee.
Mr.Lob
G.O.A.T.
The Harrison's are amazing. As mentally tough as they come. But, I was a little worried that Andrew made the play too early when he left 6 seconds on the clock. That's almost 3 times as much time as Duke had in the most crushing loss in UK's history, right?
I think Brey's strategy was the right one. Towns got his, but no other Kentucky player ever truly got going offensively. He did double a couple times and it resulted in good looks and points for UK, one being the key 3 by Ulis when ND had taken their biggest lead, 59-53. ND employed similar tactics in their 3 games against Duke and they won two of those. Okafor went a combined 32-47 from the field and 6-17 from the FT line, averaging 23.3 pts/g. So, I can't really fault that. I also think those who criticize them for going isolation with Grant in the last few possessions are wrong. Once again, that is what they did all season. They let Grant take over and make the plays down the stretch in big games. As the old saying goes, You dance with the one who brought you. I think both teams did that and in the end, Kentucky was just a little bit better.
I couldn't disagree more about Kentucky's chemistry. They are a very unselfish team and play well together. Outside of Towns, they just had an off night offensively. They're never going to look like Notre Dame because they're a different type of team. Pounding the ball inside and playing inside-out is never going to look as entertaining as a guard heavy team that moves constantly and shoots well does, but that doesn't mean Notre Dame is a more cohesive team.
I just think ND is better equipped than anyone else to attack and break down Kentucky's defense, and they're a tough team to tackle with only a day to prepare. I don't think they played harder or that UK played bad defensively. There's a reason they're one of the best offenses in the nation. They had some potential mismatches with their quickness and simply exploited that and out-executed for much of the game. Kentucky had an off night offensively for about 3/4 of the game, but Towns kept them afloat until they got some plays from elsewhere down the stretch.
Would have liked Harrison to take the shot, hit the rim, with 4 seconds left. You really don't want to run all the time off. Better to leave a few ticks on the clock for an offensive rebound.
On chemistry, of course Kentucky is unselfish and play well together. But to have frequent mass substitutions, no way they can develop the type of cohesiveness other top 5 teams do. Thus far they haven't needed to. Notre Dames defense did a number on UK, and N.D defense is ranked around 100. So IMO Kentucky should have been a lot smoother on offense.
Wisconsin looks a lot like Notre Dame. They shot the lights out against Arizona. So should be another great game.
Wisconsin (35-3) v Kentucky (38-0)
Michigan State (27-11) v Duke (33-4)
Basically, three heavyweights and an improbable run by Michigan State, if that is possible with Izzo. He's done this so many times now, I can't imagine anyone is surprised. They are a #7 seed. The rest are #1 seeds.
Kentucky being unbeaten and making a run at history is the dominant story of the tournament this year. They are going to have to earn it to finish the deal though - I cannot recall a stronger Final Four in recent memory. Either of these three teams would have been heavy favorites in last year's tournament.
Ouch. Cold shooting in second half and a missed free throw did my Cards in.
Gotta cheer for the Wildcats now.
Tough loss. You are right. The missed FTs were fatal. If only the big could have controlled the ball or hit both FTs in that sequence. Of course, considering the great bounce, an MSU fan could easily say he should have missed both. Great game.
And, who would have bet UK/MSU would be higher scoring than Duke/Gonzaga?
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
I pick Kentucky to win it all. only cause they are able to avoid Stanford this year.
Calipari phased the platoon system out in December and has basically settled on an 8-man rotation (with Lee playing sparingly here and there). So, they are playing a pretty conventional rotation.
Kentucky missed a ton of easy shots they normally make. But, they still shot 53% and didn't miss in the last 12 minutes, making their last 9 FG attempts. They had their way with ND offensively, especially in crunch time, mainly because all that was required was going to Towns in the post. Honestly, both teams pretty much got what they wanted offensively I thought. UK just missed a bunch of 2-3 foot gimmes and committed some uncharacteristically sloppy TOs, especially early, while ND went almost 30 minutes without a turnover.
The big difference between them and ND is that Wisconsin's guys are bigger and slower which is a better matchup for Kentucky. I don't think Wisconsin can break Kentucky down and get to the rim as effectively as Notre Dame. Kentucky is just as big and much more athletic. But, when you are capable of hitting 12/18 threes and are as efficient and disciplined as Wisconsin, you present a different set of problems. I just think Kentucky is better equipped to deal with Wisconsin.
Notre Dame, IMO, should have been a #2 seed. They are every bit as good as anyone Kentucky will see in the Final Four. Everyone seems to remember them losing by 30 to Duke, but forget that ND beat them in their other two meetings. The Irish were undervalued.
Mr.Lob
G.O.A.T.
Wasn't really referring to platoon system, just the number of players that got 20 something minutes and all the subbing they did. Coach Cal is making it work, thus far, hope he continues, but personally I think they are too deep. Cal talks about it all the time on his radio show. How the players are sacrificing their minutes for the sake of the team, when they could be getting 36 minutes a game anywhere else. All of that NBA talent is a nice problem to have though.
They had their way with ND defensively? They had Towns down low shooting layup and dunks, nothing else seemed to be working. Except for Towns no one else seemed to be shooting the ball that well. I thought ND was significantly more efficient in their offense than UK.
If not for UK, or UL, would have loved to see the Fighting Irish win it all. Sucks when you are one play from winning. All about seeding, matchups, clutch play... and a little luck.
Wasn't really referring to platoon system, just the number of players that got 20 something minutes and all the subbing they did. Coach Cal is making it work, thus far, hope he continues, but personally I think they are too deep. Cal talks about it all the time on his radio show. How the players are sacrificing their minutes for the sake of the team, when they could be getting 36 minutes a game anywhere else. All of that NBA talent is a nice problem to have though.
They had their way with ND defensively? They had Towns down low shooting layup and dunks, nothing else seemed to be working. Except for Towns no one else seemed to be shooting the ball that well. I thought ND was significantly more efficient in their offense than UK.
If not for UK, or UL, would have loved to see the Fighting Irish win it all. Sucks when you are one play from winning. All about seeding, matchups, clutch play... and a little luck.
You are correct in that no one, excluding Booker (4-6), outside of Towns was shooting particularly well, but when you can get layups and dunks almost at will, why would you do anything else? Granted, its not as pretty as NDs motion and passing, but you can't do any better than consistently getting layups on offense, which is essentially what Kentucky did. They shot a better % for the game. It was mostly one guy, but after watching a lot of basketball through the years, and watching teams refuse to feed big men with a clear advantage in the post, I think teams like Kentucky and Duke deserve a lot of credit for consistently doing just that, because apparently it is harder than it looks to get teams/perimeter players to do it. They want to shoot the 3-ball.
Definitely gotta have some luck to win it all. I always think of UCLA's most recent title (1995). They won 5 of their six tournament games by 10+. But, that one game was a second round matchup against #8/9 seed Missouri in which UCLA needed it's PG, Tyus Edney, to dash the length of the court to hit a contested, off-balance layup as time expired to secure a one point win. So, a national champion that mowed through the tournament, was one lucky play away from being out in the first weekend. That play, that team and their run to the title is the epitome of March Madness to me.
Mr.Lob
G.O.A.T.
I haven't seen a big man dominate in the post, like Towns did the last 10 minutes of that game, in a long time. Maybe ND doubled down on him some, but you have to stop the endless parade of layups and finger rolls. Towns was all that was working yeah, so make somebody else beat you. Both coaches didn't seem to deviate much from their game plan.
hollywood9826
Hall of Fame
I guess you have to give Duke some credit for getting thier despite the fact they were gift wrapped a 1 seed with the easiest road of all. Utah was the only team that was ever going to scare them in that region. but you still have to play the games and you still have to win.
AZ still should have been the other #1 seed. Its kinda tough for them to lose backto back years to wisconsin.
Wis/KU I dont think is going to be close. If KU is going to lose it will be to duke in the title game. with the 4 or 5 days of Prep for the semi they will be ready for Wisconsin. But to come back on short rest and play Duke (Big If) if Winslow keeps running all over the place and affecting every play like he did against Gonzaga and Okafor making life for Towns tough they can maybe do it.
MSU simply cant.
AZ still should have been the other #1 seed. Its kinda tough for them to lose backto back years to wisconsin.
Wis/KU I dont think is going to be close. If KU is going to lose it will be to duke in the title game. with the 4 or 5 days of Prep for the semi they will be ready for Wisconsin. But to come back on short rest and play Duke (Big If) if Winslow keeps running all over the place and affecting every play like he did against Gonzaga and Okafor making life for Towns tough they can maybe do it.
MSU simply cant.
Outside of referencing epic upsets, I see no reason to think MSU could beat Duke.
I think it is Kentucky who will make life difficult for Okafor, should they play. You nailed it with Winslow though - he could be a really difficult matchup for them. After the ND game, I'm certain that Trey Lyles can't check him. That would be another game where having Poythress would help. As it is, Willie Cauley-Stein may be Kentucky's best option.
But, both teams still have to win to make the dream game happen.
You're right. Neither coach really changed anything they were doing. The biggest difference was the last couple of minutes when ND kinda put the ball in Grant's hands in isolation and expected him to make plays. For the first time all game, Kentucky's defense was more comfortable and consequently they got the stops. It's easy to second guess that in hindsight, but that was ND's winning formula all season and Grant has been a big time playmaker in pressure situations. I understand why they did it. It just didn't work out for them.
stringertom
Bionic Poster
Okafor gets much hype but Winslow has been the force all tourney long for the Dookies' run to the finals. Happened again tonight.
borg number one
Legend
Go Big Blue! I lived in Lexington in the 1970's and what a basketball city that is!
Winslow is a beast. Gonna be a tough matchup for either Kentucky or Wisconsin.
Crazier than ever with what Calipari has done...
borg number one
Legend
Lol! True.
borg number one
Legend
I bet spinovic. He's made for that job. Good luck to them, they need to pick it up now.
S
Sirius Black
Guest
That officiating was pretty bad for both teams.
dParis
Hall of Fame
Agreed. Tough game to officiate.
The blown shot clock violation was big. Wisconsin really needed those two points as the Wildcats were on the verge of taking control of the game. Even bigger though, was Dekker's step-back trey.
osutennis24
Semi-Pro
ya, I don't understand how in the world UK didn't get called for a flagrant 1 on that possession before
S
Sirius Black
Guest
And the foul on Harrison, the charge on Kaminsky...others as well.
Don't worry, the TBS broadcast was the Wisconsin stream.
Tough loss for KY. Now that it's over, as a UK fan I can say it, I hope they never go into the tournament unbeaten again. Not because I think it helps the team to have a loss...it helps me. I so badly wanted to see a team go undefeated, it made these games unbearably stressful.
. Let somebody else make a run at it. As long as they aren't playing UK, I will be pulling for them.Congratulations to Wisconsin. They played a strong game and was just a little bit better in the end. I hope they've got one more in them.
College officiating is horrific. It's one of the contributing factors that make college basketball virtually unwatchable.
They make terrible calls on a regular basis and they are maddeningly inconsistent. Tonight, at least in my opinion, the calls didn't affect the outcome of the game. Wisconsin just outplayed UK in crunch time of a tight game.
Kentucky got conservative with a 4-pt lead and about 5 minutes to play and basically wasted 3-4 possessions. If they want to point to any one thing that cost them, look no further than that stretch.
But, regarding officiating and college basketball in general. There's a lot that needs to be addressed to make it more entertaining. Speaking for myself, I have zero interest in college basketball outside of watching Kentucky. It's just a bad product.
They make terrible calls on a regular basis and they are maddeningly inconsistent. Tonight, at least in my opinion, the calls didn't affect the outcome of the game. Wisconsin just outplayed UK in crunch time of a tight game.
Kentucky got conservative with a 4-pt lead and about 5 minutes to play and basically wasted 3-4 possessions. If they want to point to any one thing that cost them, look no further than that stretch.
But, regarding officiating and college basketball in general. There's a lot that needs to be addressed to make it more entertaining. Speaking for myself, I have zero interest in college basketball outside of watching Kentucky. It's just a bad product.
r2473
G.O.A.T.
I'll take a piece of that
dParis
Hall of Fame
I finally figured out that the Wisconsin stream was on truTV and TBS carried the national broadcast, actually. I watched the first game on the Duke stream. I do not recomend. It's a poorer production all the way around, though the Wisconsin stream had Wayne Larabee doing play by play, who's a pretty decent sportscaster.
That's why it's called March Madness. :twisted:Tough loss for KY. Now that it's over, as a UK fan I can say it, I hope they never go into the tournament unbeaten again. Not because I think it helps the team to have a loss...it helps me. I so badly wanted to see a team go undefeated, it made these games unbearably stressful.
Wisconsin has done nothing but impress, but so has Duke. They have been playing great in this tournament and just manhandled Sparty today. Beat the Badgers earlier this season by 10 points and Wisconsin has to guard against even a slight letdown after slaying the mighty Wildcats. I'll be watching Monday.
stringertom
Bionic Poster
I think the final will be a classic...two very evenly talented teams on a roll with just enough contrast in styles. If both play to their potential it's a total pick 'em.
Technology Ruined Tennis
Hall of Fame
The 1-done has really hurt college ball. Just think that Anthony Davis would be a senior under the old landscape. Mid majors and mid powers like Wisconsin have really benefitted from the top teams getting worse.
There needs to be major rules changes to get offense up. And make kids stay 2-3 years if they don't jump from high school (nba union won't allow that though).
There needs to be major rules changes to get offense up. And make kids stay 2-3 years if they don't jump from high school (nba union won't allow that though).
Mr.Lob
G.O.A.T.
Great talent AND teamwork win championships. As I noted earlier, UK too deep for their own good. The cohesiveness and chemistry not developed due to playing too many players.
Also, not enough inside out by UK. Last five minutes, driving to the basket and throwing up a prayer. Then getting rebounded. Wisconsin, and Notre Dame, looked the better TEAM. Hope Wisconsin and win final.
Also, not enough inside out by UK. Last five minutes, driving to the basket and throwing up a prayer. Then getting rebounded. Wisconsin, and Notre Dame, looked the better TEAM. Hope Wisconsin and win final.
I think way too much is made of the one-and-done. It's an easy scapegoat for critics to single out as what ails college basketball.
The problems begin with how it is officiated. They let teams flop way too much, although they have addressed this a bit and improved. They also let defenses play way too physical, which bogs the games down, makes them ugly and doesn't allow the talented players to really flourish. I think it's comparable to the NBA for a while post-Bad Boys Pistons. They've cleaned the NBA up and it's probably as exciting as it's been since the '80s. This style enables less talented teams to turn games into grindfests.
The one-and-done is what it is. It's up to the NBA to change that. But, college basketball, regardless of what people want to believe, is an entertainment business, and businesses should strive to improve their product. They need to make some changes that allows its talented players to shine more instead of dragging them all down with the hacking and holding that occurs far too much.
Just my opinion.
TahoeTennis
Legend
So Sad about riots in Kentucky.
Talk about sore losers. *smh*
Talk about sore losers. *smh*
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Riots???.. Let them wear cheesesheads for life. To be the team you must beat the team, they cannot beat themselves, snap, they just did!
Kevin T
Hall of Fame
Props to Wisconsin for nerves of steel down the stretch. Big fan of Bo Ryan and the way Wisconsin plays, in general, so if UK lost to anyone I'm glad it was them. They deserved it. UK was out-coached and out-played down the stretch, plain and simple. Those are the moments when experience really comes into play.
Officiating was horrendous. From the charge calls and no charges to the obvious flagrant 1 on UK to the Wisconsin bucket after the shot clock expired, it was bad both ways.
Pulling for Wisconsin tonight but Duke looked darn impressive Saturday.
Ashamed to be a UK grad after seeing the behaviour by many in Lexington after the game. Your team has been there many times before and will be back next year...have some class.
Officiating was horrendous. From the charge calls and no charges to the obvious flagrant 1 on UK to the Wisconsin bucket after the shot clock expired, it was bad both ways.
Pulling for Wisconsin tonight but Duke looked darn impressive Saturday.
Ashamed to be a UK grad after seeing the behaviour by many in Lexington after the game. Your team has been there many times before and will be back next year...have some class.
True, true. I agree with all of that. I don't think Bo Ryan did anything special, he just coached great as usual. I question Calipari's decision to try and kill clock with 5 minutes to play and only up 4. But, happy for Bo, I'm glad he's finally having this kind of success. I really hope they beat Duke, but I have my doubts. Good luck to the Badgers. It could be a while before they get back to this level.
As long as Calipari stays, UK should be the pre-season #1 again. They'll be loaded once more...as a fan, you're an idiot if you aren't satisfied with being a legit title contender every season. What more can you ask for?
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Kevin T
Hall of Fame
UK really locked Wiscy down the middle 10 minutes of the second but the first and last 5 minutes of the half belonged to the Badgers. Dekker killed them with his movement and shooting. Of course, UK had what, like 3 consecutive shot clock violations during one stretch? Wisconsin also out-rebounded UK by 10+, which should not happen (really no excuse for that stat). It was actually a well-played game and both teams shot well from the field and the line. Wisconsin just made more big plays in clutch situations and dominated the boards. That was the difference.
Yeah, I thought both teams played pretty good. That stretch of shot clock violations came when they started trying to play the clock. It was a mistake in hindsight, but if Harrison had made a couple of plays at the end of those possessions, it could have iced the game.
I'm officially giving up on ever seeing a historic undefeated season. :-?
osutennis24
Semi-Pro
fun first half
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Woz in the herhouse
stringertom
Bionic Poster
Duke down the stretch played clutch and got a few breaks from the poor officiating. Winslow stepped on the end line...no call and a bucket as a result. Then no overturn when he clearly tipped the ball. Still, clutch shots from freshmen Jones and Allen made the difference. Congrats to Coach K on his 5th title, three of them earned right there in Indy.
Don't understand the decision to foul down 3?
Tough loss for the Badgers...several calls/non-calls that were missed or wrong that really hurt them late. Winslow steps out, doesn't get called, Duke scores. He touches a ball last, they give it to Duke, Jones hits a 3. Five huge points in the last 3 minutes. I hate seeing outcomes affected by poor officiating.
Duke may have won anyway, but...glad I didn't care who won.
Tough loss for the Badgers...several calls/non-calls that were missed or wrong that really hurt them late. Winslow steps out, doesn't get called, Duke scores. He touches a ball last, they give it to Duke, Jones hits a 3. Five huge points in the last 3 minutes. I hate seeing outcomes affected by poor officiating.
Duke may have won anyway, but...glad I didn't care who won.
