Week #17 - Games of Interest

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

Week #17 begins. The A-10 has no teams in either national polls. in the others category, VCU does get 4 votes in the AP poll. No URI OOC opponent gets any votes in either poll.

Following Duke's loss at North Carolina, Gonzaga takes over the top spot in both the AP and USA Today polls. Both polls have the identical top five teams. After Gonzaga they are Virginia, Duke, Kentucky, and North Carolina.

With the loss to Davidson, the URI key measurements continue to tumble:

NET - 146, down 7
BPI - 151, down 16
Sagarin - 142, down 8
Pomeroy - 165, down 12

The cumulative record to date for URI OOC opponents now stands at 174-153, .532, slight decrease from previous week. Any hope for postseason play for URI evaporated long ago, so how our OOC partners do is irrelevant. But for the record, out of 12 opponents, maybe two will make the NCAA tournament.

What is now most important is how URI finishes conference play. Currently URI is in 10th place, just ahead of GW and Saint Joseph's which underscores the importance of Tuesday's game against GW in the Rams' quest to get a first round bye in Brooklyn.

No games on Monday in the A-10 and there are no games involving URI OOC opponents.

One game of interest on the national level is #16 Kansas State at #15 Kansas, 9 PM. On ESPN. Kansas State currently is the leader in the Big 12 with an 11-3 mark. The Wildcats already own a 74-67 win over KU, but that was notched on their home court and taking a big rivalry game at Allen Fieldhouse will require a special effort.

NYGFan_Section208 · Unread post by **NYGFan_Section208** » 5 years ago

Obadiah wrote: ↑5 years ago Week #17 begins. The A-10 has no teams in either national polls. in the others category, VCU does get 4 votes in the AP poll. No URI OOC opponent gets any votes in either poll.

Let that sink in...one team in the whole conference with 4 votes...not only no teams in the conference ranked, but not one OOC opponent ranked. Weak (really weak) schedule + bad year = bad combo.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 5 years ago

208, and no one is happy at URI...….way worse than what was expected...and they didn't expect an NCAA berth.

As wacky as this board can get, the general feeling isn't far off from ours.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

Kansas State was unable to overcome the mystique of Allen Fieldhouse and was soundly beaten by Kansas, 64-49. The game was close for the opening eight minutes, but once KU got the lead and drove it into double digit margins, KSU folded. The win keeps Kansas' hopes alive for a 15th consecutive big 12 championship. Talk about conference domination!!

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

Three games on tap on Tuesday in the A-10:

George Washington at URI, 7 PM. On ESPN+.

Dayton at UMass, 7 PM. On ESPN+.

Saint Louis at VCU, 7;30 PM. On CBSSN.

In games involving URI OOC opponents:

Providence at Butler, 7 PM. On FS1.

TCU at West Virginia, 7 PM. On ESPNU.

Other:

In a ACC battle, #4 Duke at #20 Virginia Tech, 7 PM. On ESPN.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 5 years ago

Dayton leads UMass 40-18 at half...at UMass....

Now there's a team that has quit.

Except when they play us.

DC_Rams · Unread post by **DC_Rams** » 5 years ago

Dayton is the scariest team in the A10 imo. I really don’t want to see them again until we reload.

steviep123 · Unread post by **steviep123** » 5 years ago

DC_Rams wrote: ↑5 years ago Dayton is the scariest team in the A10 imo. I really don’t want to see them again until we reload.

Well that’s Friday

steviep123 · Unread post by **steviep123** » 5 years ago

Providence gave up 2 late 3 pointers late (1 with 12 seconds left). In OT. Providence up 2 with ball. 39.4 secs left.

Cooley’s suit is awful. I guess Al Skinner’s leather suit wasn’t available.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

Duke without Zion Williamson fell at Virginia Tech, 77-72.

PeterRamTime · Unread post by **PeterRamTime** » 5 years ago

Obadiah wrote: ↑5 years ago Duke without Zion Williamson fell at Virginia Tech, 77-72.

Tech also beat Duke without Justin Robinson, their best player and an all time VT great.

SmartyBarrett · Unread post by **SmartyBarrett** » 5 years ago

steviep123 wrote: ↑5 years ago Cooley’s suit is awful. I guess Al Skinner’s leather suit wasn’t available.

Most of his suits are awful. I often wonder if he gets dressed in the dark.

ramfan85 · Unread post by **ramfan85** » 5 years ago

When I saw Cooley's jacket, I didn't know if he was there to coach or clear the tables.
Only Pitino can wear white after Labor Day.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 5 years ago

PC by beating Butler at Butler just about kills their chances for a bid....hello NIT for them....PC might get an NIT bid but will have to keep winning.

BE is looking like 3 or 4 dance bids...lowest in a long while.

rjsuperfly66 · Unread post by **rjsuperfly66** » 5 years ago

rambone 78 wrote: ↑5 years ago PC by beating Butler at Butler just about kills their chances for a bid....hello NIT for them....PC might get an NIT bid but will have to keep winning.

BE is looking like 3 or 4 dance bids...lowest in a long while.

The sad thing is that for as bad as PC has played in the last two months, there is a potential path for them to get an at-large bid. It's about a 2% chance, but it's a chance. They'd have to win their next 4 -- which is @ Creighton, home Butler, likely BE round 1, and BET vs. Villanova. It sounds crazy, but all you have to do is look at potential bubble teams and see what types of resumes you are looking at. If you compare PC to Davidson (Bracket Matrix's 3rd team out right now)...

PC/Davidson
NET - 78/67
SOS - 46/110
Average NET Win - 143/170
Average NET Loss - 69/107
Q1 Record - 3-7 /0-2
Q2 Record - 5-4/4-2
Q1/Q2 Away - 5-5/1-1
Q1/Q2 Neutral - 1-2/2-2
Q3/Q4 Losses - 2/3

And now I'd like to further play out my scenario where both teams win out to their conference semi-finals.

Q1 Record - 5-7 /0-2
Q2 Record - 7-4/4-2
Q1/Q2 Away - 6-5/1-1
Q1/Q2 Neutral - 3-2/2-2
Q3/Q4 Losses - 2/3

Again, it's a very unlikely scenario, but stranger things have happened....

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 5 years ago

The one thing that really stands out about the difference between PC and Davidson's record....the number of Q1 games played.

That is truly sad.....that is today's A10.

And good luck trying to schedule more Q1 games in the OOC going forward.

Rhode_Island_Red · Unread post by **Rhode_Island_Red** » 5 years ago

ramfan85 wrote: ↑5 years ago When I saw Cooley's jacket, I didn't know if he was there to coach or clear the tables.
Only Pitino can wear white after Labor Day.

Cooley could walk out of Brooks Brothers and look like he spent the night in a hamper five minutes later.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

Wrapping up last night's action.

Dayton drubbed UMass, 72-48 before 2,478 hardy souls.

Saint Louis fell at VCU, 71-65. The Billikens trailed the entire game limping into the break with a 14 deficit, but they managed to rally in the last minutes to reduce deficit to three points, but could get no further. Both teams did not shoot well from 3-point land and the FT line.

TCU got two three pointers in the closing 30 seconds of game to force overtime at West Virgina, but they fizzled in the 5 minutes of OT to lose, 104-96.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

Wednesday action in the A-10:

Davidson at La Salle, 7 PM. On ESPN+.

Richmond at George Mason, 7 PM. On ESPN+.

Duquesne at St. Bonaventure, 7;30 PM. On ESPN+.

Saint Joseph's at Fordham , 9 PM. On ESPN+.

We need for La Salle, Richmond, and Saint Joseph's to lose

In games involving URI OOC opponents:

Holy Cross at Colgate, 6 PM.

UMBC at Stony Brook, 7 PM. On ESPN+.

Bucknell at Navy, 7 PM.

reef · Unread post by **reef** » 5 years ago

RJ what’s Xavier’s path to getting an at large thanks

DC_Rams · Unread post by **DC_Rams** » 5 years ago

LaSalle about to knock off Davidson by double digits. LaSalle shot the cover off the ball tonight.

RamStock · Unread post by **RamStock** » 5 years ago

DC_Rams wrote: ↑5 years ago LaSalle about to knock off Davidson by double digits. LaSalle shot the cover off the ball tonight.

Anyone still think this lowly rated league is still getting three bids to the tourney?

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 5 years ago

Davidson now has to win the A10 tourney.

If we somehow knock off Dayton, the same will hold true for them.

ramster · Unread post by **ramster** » 5 years ago

1 team in the ncaa remember only 1 A10 team is getting in

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 5 years ago

well now we know 2 is the max

RhodyRam86 · Unread post by **RhodyRam86** » 5 years ago

Big win for LaSalle to hold onto the 8 seed. With Richmond losing, LaSalle avoids a 3 way tie with Richmond and URI. Without knowing how the three way tie breaker works, I would think URI would have had a distinct advantage having gone 2-0 vs. those teams.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 5 years ago

ace · Unread post by **ace** » 5 years ago

I like how they planned ahead to coordinate wearing those maroon t-shirts. Looks good.

hrstrat57 · Unread post by **hrstrat57** » 5 years ago

uMass is on my hate list along with friartown and uConn

But this right here does our league no good, heck how can I hate something so pathetic.....

C'mon Amherst show some pride.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 5 years ago

If we win 2 out of 3 we will likely play LaSalle 8 versus 9

RhowdyRam02 · Unread post by **RhowdyRam02** » 5 years ago

TruePoint wrote: ↑5 years ago

I remember being in the student section for Jerry D games and this was about what it looked like

adam914 · Unread post by **adam914** » 5 years ago

ramster wrote: ↑5 years ago 1 team in the ncaa remember only 1 A10 team is getting in

Ramster, I know you’ve been saying more than 1 will get in for a while now, but how many at large teams do you think will get in? Obviously there’s always a chance of a surprising automatic bid from the tourney, but it’s very hard to see more than 1 at large bid at this point in my opinion.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

In Wednesday action in the A-10, the results are viewed through the prism of URI not finishing in the A-10 bottom four and avoiding playing in the first round in Brooklyn.

In a 79-69 surprise, Davidson was upset by La Salle which keeps the Explorers one game ahead of URI.

Richmond lost at George Mason, 77-63, which puts the Spiders in a two tie with URI for ninth place.

Saint Joseph's overcame a 16 point deficit early in the second half to defeat Fordham, 66-52. The Hawks losing would have put them two games behind URI in standings. The March 5 game against the Hawks in Philly takes on more importance.

rjsuperfly66 · Unread post by **rjsuperfly66** » 5 years ago

ramster wrote: ↑5 years ago 1 team in the ncaa remember only 1 A10 team is getting in

Davidson now has 4 bad losses and only 4 Q2 wins. Their next 4 games will likely all be Q3/Q4 opponents, before hopefully getting another Q2 game in the A10 semifinals. There is now zero way they can make the tournament without another run through the A10 Tournament. It's possible, but I don't think it's something worth celebrating as a huge victory.

ramster · Unread post by **ramster** » 5 years ago

adam914 wrote: ↑5 years ago
ramster wrote: ↑5 years ago 1 team in the ncaa remember only 1 A10 team is getting in
Ramster, I know you’ve been saying more than 1 will get in for a while now, but how many at large teams do you think will get in? Obviously there’s always a chance of a surprising automatic bid from the tourney, but it’s very hard to see more than 1 at large bid at this point in my opinion.

More than 1 from the A10, not just the auto bid

adam914 · Unread post by **adam914** » 5 years ago

ramster wrote: ↑5 years ago
adam914 wrote: ↑5 years ago
ramster wrote: ↑5 years ago 1 team in the ncaa remember only 1 A10 team is getting in
Ramster, I know you’ve been saying more than 1 will get in for a while now, but how many at large teams do you think will get in? Obviously there’s always a chance of a surprising automatic bid from the tourney, but it’s very hard to see more than 1 at large bid at this point in my opinion.
More than 1 from the A10, not just the auto bid

Interesting, I don't see how we get to 2 or more at large bids at this point, but I hope you end up being right.

rjsuperfly66 · Unread post by **rjsuperfly66** » 5 years ago

Ramster is banking on VCU not winning the A10T and still getting an at-large, allowing the A10 to get 2 by way of the autobid.

adam914 · Unread post by **adam914** » 5 years ago

rjsuperfly66 wrote: ↑5 years ago Ramster is banking on VCU not winning the A10T and still getting an at-large, allowing the A10 to get 2 by way of the autobid.

Right, and thats why I asked specifically about at-large bids. To which he replied "More than 1 from the A10". I don't see it personally.

steviep123 · Unread post by **steviep123** » 5 years ago

I think unless VCU tanks, they should be in regardless. I do hope VCU gets to the championship game and loses to someone else giving the A10 2 bids. I don't see anyone other than VCU getting an at large...possibly Dayton if they lose to VCU in the championship, but doubtful. A whole lot will need to break right.

rjsuperfly66 · Unread post by **rjsuperfly66** » 5 years ago

steviep123 wrote: ↑5 years ago I think unless VCU tanks, they should be in regardless. I do hope VCU gets to the championship game and loses to someone else giving the A10 2 bids. I don't see anyone other than VCU getting an at large...possibly Dayton if they lose to VCU in the championship, but doubtful. A whole lot will need to break right.

I'd be hard-pressed to say VCU could find themselves on the outside looking in.
They are comfortably in the tournament on Bracket Matrix, 10th position from out.
If they lose three more games and don't win the A10T (so 2 regular season, 1 tournament), at best they are in a play-in game, that is the only situation I could see them feeling uncomfortable.
If they lose two more games and don't win the A10T (1 regular season, 1 tournament), I think they probably miss the play-in game but it's close.
If they lose one more game and it's in the A10T, I think they stick to that 9/10 seed area.
VCU would really have to bottom-out to not get an at-large, IMHO.

reef · Unread post by **reef** » 5 years ago

Yeah I agree looks like 1 bid if VCU wins tournament and 2 if they don’t

What’s up with Oklahoma 5-10 in conference yet on the 9 seed line bracket matrix ????

rjsuperfly66 · Unread post by **rjsuperfly66** » 5 years ago

reef wrote: ↑5 years ago Yeah I agree looks like 1 bid if VCU wins tournament and 2 if they don’t

What’s up with Oklahoma 5-10 in conference yet on the 9 seed line bracket matrix ????

Oklahoma will be a really interesting case study this season.
They have a NET of 42 and a Q1/Q2 of 9-11.
If you take out games against the top half of Q1 (fair to do because the NCAA team sheets do split Q1 and Q2 in half), they are 9-3 against the bottom half of Q1 + Q2.
12 of their 28 games have been against Q1 opponents (and they still have two remaining).
They've also played 8 Q2 games.
Just 8 Q3 games (with 1 left).
By B12 tournament tims, they will have played 14 Q1 games, 8 Q2 games, and 9 Q3 games.
The NCAA has been consistently adamant that they seed teams based on the entire season (thus the removal of team performance in the last 10 games and why they don't look at conference records).
Teams can also get hot, so it should still be about getting the best teams in the tournament.
If not, there would be no reason to include teams who win conference tournaments but couldn't perform at a certain level during the regular season.
It'll be interesting to see if Oklahoma becomes the first 6-12/7-11 team to make the NCAA Tournament.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 5 years ago

UConn drops another one, this time to Wichita State, 65-63. The road, unkind.

They are now 13-15...done like dinner. We know how they feel.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

UConn is now 0-8 on the road with one to go at East Carolina.

reef · Unread post by **reef** » 5 years ago

That was a buzzer beater too

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 5 years ago

Concentrating mainly on Saturday games in the A-10:

Fordham at Davidson, 1 PM.

UMass at Duquesne, 2PM. On ESPN+.

George Mason at Saint Louis, 3 PM. On NBCSN.

VCU at Richmond, 4 PM. CBSSN.

St. Bonaventure at George Washington, 4 PM. On ESPN+.

La Salle at Saint Joseph's, 5 PM. On NBCSN.

NYGFan_Section208 · Unread post by **NYGFan_Section208** » 5 years ago

Flipping thru channels and stopped on Purdue-Indiana blowout.
That wraparound stripe on the shorts thing that Purdue has going on...that just seems like a questionable choice...

JimSidd · Unread post by **JimSidd** » 5 years ago

I know the opponent was lowly Fordham, but Gudmundsson almost had another triple double this afternoon: two assists shy. (Yes, I’m the one who posted about him in the Davidson thread and no, I am not related to him

.)

NYGFan_Section208 · Unread post by **NYGFan_Section208** » 5 years ago

JimSidd wrote: ↑5 years ago I know the opponent was lowly Fordham, but Gudmundsson almost had another triple double this afternoon: two assists shy. (Yes, I’m the one who posted about him in the Davidson thread and no, I am not related to him .)

Are you related to Sidd Finch?

Billyboy78 · Unread post by **Billyboy78** » 5 years ago

NYGFan_Section208 wrote: ↑5 years ago
JimSidd wrote: ↑5 years ago I know the opponent was lowly Fordham, but Gudmundsson almost had another triple double this afternoon: two assists shy. (Yes, I’m the one who posted about him in the Davidson thread and no, I am not related to him .)
Are you related to Sidd Finch?

Best fastball I've ever seen.