Sasser
Dec 22, 2009 Mar 26, 2012 8 873
website: Bleed Wildcat Purple
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Bid Stealing Update, March 8
by Sasser on Mar 8, 2012 7:15 AM EST
on Sippin' On Purple
With every game counting for so much now, we Wildcat fans need to be wary of any teams who are out to try and steal one of the automatic bids in their conference tournaments from more accomplished, possible at-large invitees to the NCAA Tournament.
Alright, since I covered all the conferences (except, somehow, the Summit League) in my earlier posts, it's time to cover the games. Some tournaments are done, some are in progress, and a few haven't started quite yet. I'll break it down into three categories -- In the Clear, In Good Shape, and Could Be Trouble. Let's get cracking, shall we?
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Bid Stealing, March 6: The Other Multi-Bids
by Sasser on Mar 6, 2012 7:38 AM EST
on Sippin' On Purple
With every game counting for so much now, we Wildcat fans need to be wary of any teams who are out to try and steal one of the automatic bids in their conference tournaments from more accomplished, possible at-large invitees to the NCAA Tournament.
The risk rating system I'll use is 0-5 (where 0 = zero risk, and 5 = OMG DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN!) A lot of conferences do not have a bid-stealing risk, simply because no team could be eligible for an at-large bid.
Today's round of bid thievery is shorter than the rest -- we're talking about the other "mid-major" conferences who haven't started their tournaments yet. (Sorry Missouri Valley and Great West, you would otherwise be here!) As I mentioned yesterday, for multi-bid conferences, the more teams that are "locks", the less likely a non-deserving team will be a bid thief. Tournament formats also affect the likelihood that bids are stolen. Today's slate after the jump: The Mountain West, Atlantic 10, and Conference USA.
Bid Stealing, March 5: The "Big Six" Conferences
by Sasser on Mar 5, 2012 1:44 AM EST
on Sippin' On Purple
With every game counting for so much now, we Wildcat fans need to be wary of any teams who are out to try and steal one of the automatic bids in their conference tournaments from more accomplished, possible at-large invitees to the NCAA Tournament.
The risk rating system I'll use is 0-5 (where 0 = zero risk, and 5 = OMG DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN!) A lot of conferences do not have a bid-stealing risk, simply because no team could be eligible for an at-large bid.
With regular season play just about wrapped up, we'll be taking a look at the "Big Six" conferences. (I'll be doing the 3-4 remaining conferences within the next day.) Generally speaking, for multi-bid conferences, the more teams that are "locks", the less likely a non-deserving team will be a bid thief. Tournament format also comes into play: For example, the Big East's tournament features two rounds of byes, meaning that bid thieves have to take each other out before they challenge "lock" or "bubble" teams. Therefore, it's much less likely you'll see a bid thief come out of that conference (although it has happened, sort of). I'll give you the rundown after the jump:
Bid Stealing, March 3: The Lesser Conferences
by Sasser on Mar 3, 2012 11:19 PM EST
on Sippin' On Purple
With every game counting for so much now, us Wildcat fans need to be wary of any teams who are out to try and steal one of the automatic bids in their conference tournaments from more accomplished, possible at-large invitees to the NCAA Tournament.
For this post, I'll be looking at the lesser conferences and conferences currently in their tournaments. A lot of conferences do not have a bid-stealing risk, simply because no team could be eligible for an at-large bid. The risk rating system I'll use is 0-5 (where 0 = zero risk, and 5 = OMG DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN!). I'll put up another post in the next couple of days for the conferences with more at-large bids in play, since, well... it could take a while.
I'll start with the zero-risk conferences first, and then get into the meat of the matter. More on that after the jump!
My (Too Early) Take on Big Ten Basketball Teams
by Sasser on Nov 23, 2011 7:28 AM EST
on Sippin' On Purple
While we've all been basking in the success of men's basketball and winning the Charleston Classic, many of us have been discussing the remainder of the non-conference schedule -- particularly, whether or not we can defeat Baylor and Creighton before the calendar turns to January. That's all fine and dandy, but we all know that our hopes of reaching our first Big Dance hinge on our performance in the 18 B1G games in January and February. Coming up, I'll provide my take on each of the B1G teams based on their performance so far this year.
Women's Lacrosse shows ESPN a thing or two
So apparently the team is playing William and Mary at Cowboys Stadium tonight. Awesome! As for the rest of the article, Ms. Voepel talk about how our team an indication of the expansion of the sport across the country.
'Cats and Brackets, Dec. 15
With five weeks of college hoops in the books, new brackets are coming out. ESPN's Joe Lunardi keeps us in his bracket as a #12 seed. This is notable, as last year he largely kept the 'Cats out of the bracket despite the media hype.
SBNation has the 'Cats placed as an 11 seed, but drops Michigan State all the way down to a 6.
Could this finally be the year?
NU Basketball Nearing Top 25
NU men's basketball is getting some respect!
AP Poll: T-34 (6 points)
USA Today Coaches Poll: T-31 (9 points)
Women's basketball, as well!
AP Poll: 34th (4 points)
Writer's Note: This was as of last Tuesday's poll. The women's loss to Georgia Tech has removed them from the Dec. 7th AP poll.
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