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Best Games Today [2020.03.12] - GAMES CANCELLED - March Madness is now March Sadness

Pretty good idea for a thread, especially going into tourney time. I agree that the winner of Louisville-FSU likely shares the regular season ACC title with Duke (especially because Duke lucked out by only having to play Louisville and FSU once, and both were at Cameron.) I think FSU beats Louisville in a close defensive battle. WVU has stumbled lately, but I think they get back on track and trounce Texas.
 
Pretty good idea for a thread, especially going into tourney time. I agree that the winner of Louisville-FSU likely shares the regular season ACC title with Duke (especially because Duke lucked out by only having to play Louisville and FSU once, and both were at Cameron.) I think FSU beats Louisville in a close defensive battle. WVU has stumbled lately, but I think they get back on track and trounce Texas.

I’ve got Duke losing at UVA and FSU losing at either ND or Clemson. Which, if true, if FSU beats UL tonight and UL wins out, it’s a 3 way tie at 16-4.
 
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Louisville still has to go to Virginia as well so I’m not chalking that up as a win.
 
Besides Louisville, I think the ND game is going to be the most likely source of a loss. They played us really tough at our place, and a win over us probably puts them in the midst of the bubble conversation. Right now they aren't really there. I will say that we didn't play a very good game the first time around against them, and part of that was the way they operate, but I expect a better overall performance than what we put up in January.

With Clemson, I know they have some really good wins this year, but we just seem to have their number and they bring out the best in us when it comes to our outside shooting. I like our matchup against their personnel a lot better than I do against ND who will just launch from 3 all night long
 
Pretty good idea for a thread, especially going into tourney time. I agree that the winner of Louisville-FSU likely shares the regular season ACC title with Duke (especially because Duke lucked out by only having to play Louisville and FSU once, and both were at Cameron.) I think FSU beats Louisville in a close defensive battle. WVU has stumbled lately, but I think they get back on track and trounce Texas.

Yep, we had to play them once at their place last year so this year we got them once at our place. So it evened out.
 
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I’ve got Duke losing at UVA and FSU losing at either ND or Clemson. Which, if true, if FSU beats UL tonight and UL wins out, it’s a 3 way tie at 16-4.

Duke has had UVA’s number recently (one of the few teams to beat UVA more often since they’ve become good). I think it will be close, but Duke wins.
 
I’ve got Duke losing at UVA and FSU losing at either ND or Clemson. Which, if true, if FSU beats UL tonight and UL wins out, it’s a 3 way tie at 16-4.
Scheduling for the ACC is probably a pain in the butt, especially since there are so many teams and an odd number.
 
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Duke has had UVA’s number recently (one of the few teams to beat UVA more often since they’ve become good). I think it will be close, but Duke wins.
I actually think UVA will win this because of their need for a win to stay in the field comfortably. They force outside shots and that is what Duke is worst at for the most part. Can Carey be a force inside on the offensive boards? They won't let him go one on one at all, will he be able to make smart decisions with the ball or will he turn it over. UVA is frustrating with their approach but it is successful for a reason, and seeing it for the first time in the final week of the season means that they have had all year to work on it. Should be a great game.
 
I actually think UVA will win this because of their need for a win to stay in the field comfortably. They force outside shots and that is what Duke is worst at for the most part. Can Carey be a force inside on the offensive boards? They won't let him go one on one at all, will he be able to make smart decisions with the ball or will he turn it over. UVA is frustrating with their approach but it is successful for a reason, and seeing it for the first time in the final week of the season means that they have had all year to work on it. Should be a great game.

If K wasn’t as successful against Bennett, I would be worried. This isn’t a vintage UVA team, but with us being great on defense and they struggle to score, we should be ok. UVA ranks 214th in offense per KenPom. I think UVA is in the tournament no matter the outcome of the Duke game. They’re not NC State who was on the bubble.

I mean, our team last year was worser (lol) at shooting the 3 and we went into UVA last year shooting the lights out from 3. This team shoots it a lot better. Duke is shooting 35.5% from 3 this year and UVA is shooting 30.3%. Duke is also holding teams to to 29.5% from 3 and UVA is holding teams to 29.2%. So both teams are great at holding teams to low 3 point shooting, but Duke shoots it better. That’s why I think Duke wins a close one.
 
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If K wasn’t as successful against Bennett, I would be worried. This isn’t a vintage UVA team, but with us being great on defense and they struggle to score, we should be ok. UVA ranks 214th in offense per KenPom. I think UVA is in the tournament no matter the outcome of the Duke game. They’re not NC State who was on the bubble.
It's definitely plausible, we have had a good amount of success against them as well but they have picked up the offense in their recent games. What I can say is that if Duke shoots reasonable from 3, like 35%, I think they will win.
 
It's definitely plausible, we have had a good amount of success against them as well but they have picked up the offense in their recent games. What I can say is that if Duke shoots reasonable from 3, like 35%, I think they will win.

I just edited my post to include the 3 point %
 
It's definitely plausible, we have had a good amount of success against them as well but they have picked up the offense in their recent games. What I can say is that if Duke shoots reasonable from 3, like 35%, I think they will win.

What was their offensive rank before their recent games? Because if they rank 214th now, what were they before? 300th?
 
What was their offensive rank before their recent games? Because if they rank 214th now, what were they before? 300th?
I'm not sure. But in the last 8 games, Woldentensae has made 30 3 pointers(44%), in all of their previous games he had made only 20.

Clark is 8 of 16 over the last 5 games, whereas the previous 6 he was 0/14.

Morsell is 4/8 over the last 3 games, prior to that he had two made threes in 10 games.

So they are picking it up. We will see how it goes, I am not rooting for either team unless it has an impact on our seeding.
 
I'm not sure. But in the last 8 games, Woldentensae has made 30 3 pointers(44%), in all of their previous games he had made only 20.

Clark is 8 of 16 over the last 5 games, whereas the previous 6 he was 0/14.

Morsell is 4/8 over the last 3 games, prior to that he had two made threes in 10 games.

So they are picking it up. We will see how it goes, I am not rooting for either team unless it has an impact on our seeding.

I don’t keep up with their scheduling, but what defenses have they faced that’s as good as Duke’s during that stretch?
 
I don’t keep up with their scheduling, but what defenses have they faced that’s as good as Duke’s during that stretch?
I mean all you have to do is just look at their schedule. But Duke has given up 88,98, and 88 points in 3 of their last 7 games. So clearly, it isn't as though it is a defense that is a juggernaut to try and dissect.
 
Scheduling for the ACC is probably a pain in the butt, especially since there are so many teams and an odd number.

Well, with 20 games you still play a bunch of teams twice. It just sucks that this year happened to be a year where Duke has FSU and UL once, and UNC was awful.
 
I mean all you have to do is just look at their schedule. But Duke has given up 88,98, and 88 points in 3 of their last 7 games. So clearly, it isn't as though it is a defense that is a juggernaut to try and dissect.

I mean, you brought up their improved offense over the past several games. I assumed you would know the teams they’ve faced so we could compare their defenses to Duke.

And yes, Duke has given up those points, but UVA has never scored that amount of points either, so not sure what those 3 teams have to do with UVA’s 214th ranked offense, but ok. Duke also went 2-1 in those 3 games as well.
 
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I mean, you brought up their improved offense over the past several games. I assumed you would know the teams they’ve faced so we could compare their defenses to Duke.

And yes, Duke has given up those points, but UVA has never scored that amount of points either, so not sure what those 3 teams have to do with UVA’s 214th ranked offense, but ok. Duke also went 2-1 in those 3 games as well.
I assumed you would know that you don't plan to allow any facts to deter you from your opinion, so I didn't think I needed to give you that info. I was just trying to provide some info on my opinion. Feel free to have yours.
 
I assumed you would know that you don't plan to allow any facts to deter you from your opinion, so I didn't think I needed to give you that info. I was just trying to provide some info on my opinion. Feel free to have yours.

Oh wow! I was genuinely interested. Cool
 
Good discussion about Duke and UVA.

It's clear that UVA is Duke's Super Bowl.
 
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Oh wow! I was genuinely interested. Cool
You're one of the pillar posters around here and you know basketball, but you were definitely a bit snarky about what was being told to you. If your counter is just, "Yeah but they didn't do it against Duke" then i'm not really going to give you anything that you'll really accept. My main point was that UVA was dying from a lack of confidence on the offensive end. They seem to actually have it now, which is a big step for them. They were probably terrible in practice at some point this year that's how bad they were.
 
You're one of the pillar posters around here and you know basketball, but you were definitely a bit snarky about what was being told to you. If your counter is just, "Yeah but they didn't do it against Duke" then i'm not really going to give you anything that you'll really accept. My main point was that UVA was dying from a lack of confidence on the offensive end. They seem to actually have it now, which is a big step for them. They were probably terrible in practice at some point this year that's how bad they were.

Our bigs are screening a lot better and our guards are cutting a lot harder. That's a big reason why we're making more shots. Yeah, we haven't done it against Duke's defense but we also weren't doing it against Maine before.
 
You're one of the pillar posters around here and you know basketball, but you were definitely a bit snarky about what was being told to you. If your counter is just, "Yeah but they didn't do it against Duke" then i'm not really going to give you anything that you'll really accept. My main point was that UVA was dying from a lack of confidence on the offensive end. They seem to actually have it now, which is a big step for them. They were probably terrible in practice at some point this year that's how bad they were.

I was asking who they were doing it against to compare their defense to Duke’s. I mean, playing against not so great defenses will make your offense look better and Vice versa. There are also anomalies as well. So, we will see if their offense has really improved or it was just due to playing poor defensive teams.
 
I was asking who they were doing it against to compare their defense to Duke’s. I mean, playing against not so great defenses will make your offense look better and Vice versa. There are also anomalies as well. So, we will see if their offense has really improved or it was just due to playing poor defensive teams.
They couldn’t hit the broad side of anything earlier this season, didn’t matter who the opponent was. I don’t know everyone’s defensive ranking but you’ll get open shots no matter who the opponent is
 
updated for tomorrow. Iowa vs Michigan State is the marquee game. Lots of borderline bubble teams in action ( i use that term generously, don't @ me)

1. Iowa (19-8) @ Michigan State (18-9) 4 PM PT ESPN2 - Battle for the 2 seed in the Big Ten
2. Memphis (19-8) @ SMU (18-8) 6 PM PT CBSSN - Memphis could pick up two quality wins in back to back games after beating Houston this weekend to get back on the bubble
3. Kentucky (22-5) @ Texas A&M (14-12) ESPN 4 PM PT ESPN - Kentucky has a chance to clinch a share of regular season title this week.
4. Akron (21-6) @ Bowling Green (20-7) 4 PM PT ESPN+ - Game that will decide who wins the MAC EAST
5. Texas Tech (18-9) @ Oklahoma (16-11) 6 PM PT ESPN2 - Oklahoma on the bubble needs this home win badly.

Bubble Watch - Xavier hosts DePaul; NC State goes to UNC; TCU goes to Ames; Wyoming hosts Nevada, Clemson goes to GA Tech

Tomorrow is better than today.
 
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Time for our annual Breslin beat down.

I might not even turn the game on. Seriously.
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The Iowa vs MSU game is not much of a contest as Iowa has only won @ MSU twice since 1992 when Chris Street was killed in a car accident. so its just a ho hum game tonight.

the calls will go MSU way
 
New post for today

LSU (19-8) vs. Florida (17-10) 6 PM PST - Big game for SEC tourney seeding - two tournaments teams
Rutgers (18-10) @ Penn State (20-7) 4 PM PST BTN - A stumbling Rutgers who has lost 5 of 7 has to go up against a PSU squad coming off a disappointing loss of their own. This game will impact Big Ten tournament seeding
Georgetown (15-12) @ Marquette (17-9) 530 PM PST FS1 - Two teams nearing elimination from contention cannot afford a loss (Georgetown moreso than Marquette)
Furman (23-6) @ UNC Greensboro (23-6) 4 PM PST ESPN+ - Both teams are just a game behind East Tennessee State in the Southern League and try to keep pace
Utah (15-12) @ Stanford (18-9) 7 PM PST PAC-12 - Utah coming off a win over USC tries to help ruin Stanford's season.

Duquesne (18-8) @ St. Bonaventure (18-9)
St. John's (14-13) @ Villanova (21-6)
Virginia (19-7) @ Viriginia Tech (15-12)
Syracuse (15-12) @ Pittsburgh (15-13)
Tennessee (15-12) @ Arkansas (17-10)
Georgia (14-13) @ South Carolina (16-11)

Deep day of compelling basketball.
 
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New post for today

LSU (19-8) vs. Florida (17-10) 6 PM PST - Big game for SEC tourney seeding - two tournaments teams
Rutgers (18-10) @ Penn State (20-7) 4 PM PST BTN - A stumbling Rutgers who has lost 5 of 7 has to go up against a PSU squad coming off a disappointing loss of their own. This game will impact Big Ten tournament seeding
Georgetown (15-12) @ Marquette (17-9) 530 PM PST FS1 - Two teams nearing elimination from contention cannot afford a loss (Georgetown moreso than Marquette)
Furman (23-6) @ UNC Greensboro (23-6) 4 PM PST ESPN+ - Both teams are just a game behind East Tennessee State in the Southern League and try to keep pace
Utah (15-12) @ Stanford (18-9) 7 PM PST PAC-12 - Utah coming off a win over USC tries to help ruin Stanford's season.

Duquesne (18-8) @ St. Bonaventure (18-9)
St. John's (14-13) @ Villanova (21-6)
Virginia (19-7) @ Viriginia Tech (15-12)
Syracuse (15-12) @ Pittsburgh (15-13)
Tennessee (15-12) @ Arkansas (17-10)
Georgia (14-13) @ South Carolina (16-11)

Deep day of compelling basketball.
No Maryland at Minnesota? That's a tough game for Maryland. Minnesota is a 1 point favorite.
 
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Shit i missed today.

Here is what I would have done:

1. Arizona @ USC 7 PM PST ESPN
2. Wisconsin @ Michigan ESPN2 4 PM PST
3. Arizona State @ UCLA PAC 12 NETWORK 8 PM PST
4. Indiana @ Purdue FS1 4 PM PST
5. Temple @ Witchita State ESPN 5 PM PST

Honorable Mention LA Tech @ Western Kentucky - battle for 2nd place in C-USA
 
Here is tomorrow so i don't forget - I will update the OP after the games finish tonight

1. Wright State (24-6) @ Northern Kentucky (21-8) 4 PM PST ESPNU - Final game of the season for both, this game decides the one seed and regular season championship in the Horizon league

2. Davidson (15-12) @ Dayton (26-2) 4 PM PST ESPN2 - Important for Dayton to win out if they want a one seed.

3. Washington @ Washington State 6 PM PST FS1 - Only P6 game in town. I left off the records for a reason, this is a rivalry and records dont matter!

4. Georgia Southern (17-12) @ Georgia State (18-11) 4 PM PST ESPN+ - Winner takes command of the third seed while the loser drops to fifth

5. Monmouth (16-11) @ Rider (15-12) 6 PM PST ESPNU - Monmouth can lock down the 3 seed with a win.

Mid Major showcase.
 
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