1/13 | UMass | 2:00PM (ESPN+)

[rhodyrudder]

It's pretty simple

Our OOC was disastrous and theirs wasn't. That's why we are still ranked so low.

And that's why these rankings are stupid. Teams improve as the year goes on. Some teams improve more than others. Some teams even improve dramatically more than others. We are better than those 3 teams RIGHT NOW. Who cares what happened 2 months ago?

lol the NET takes into account the whole season.

You can’t just forget the first two months of the season just because Green has become eligible.

True…but the NCAA forgot about Florida State’s ENTIRE F-N SEASON cuz their qb went down.

They do whatever they want, and don’t care if it’s hypocritical.

[rhodyrudder]

The three A10 teams that Rhody beat are all still ahead of them. Not sure how NET rankings work, assuming OOC play carries a lot of weight until more conference games get played? When teams play head to head and Casual Fan can see that one team is better than the other (Rhody is better than all 3 teams they beat)...these rankings seem kinda silly.

That's why I hate the way teams are ranked, especially when deciding which teams should play in The Tournament. We could go 18-0 in conference and still have to win the A10 tournament to get in. In the old days, the teams that got in were because of the eye test and the teams that were playing the best in January and February. There was no, 'Oh, they lost to Brown and UNH in November so they're not good enough to get in'. It's stupid.

If the team goes 18-0 in conference, they're in...I know what you're saying, but that's like hitting 14 3's, "you gotta win that game."
Doesn't matter though, next loss likely to be sometime after March 17. Going to be a crazy ride. Crazy train....I know they play it at almost every game (in every arena everywhere), but that's what Rhody is embarking on. Didn't Arch say something about getting on the train? Crazy train.
Revive the Crazy Train crowd involvement for that hokey old song!

ALL ABOARD!!! HA HA HA!!!

[Blue Man]

The three A10 teams that Rhody beat are all still ahead of them. Not sure how NET rankings work, assuming OOC play carries a lot of weight until more conference games get played? When teams play head to head and Casual Fan can see that one team is better than the other (Rhody is better than all 3 teams they beat)...these rankings seem kinda silly.

It's pretty simple

Our OOC was disastrous and theirs wasn't. That's why we are still ranked so low.

And that's why these rankings are stupid. Teams improve as the year goes on. Some teams improve more than others. Some teams even improve dramatically more than others. We are better than those 3 teams RIGHT NOW. Who cares what happened 2 months ago?

Disagree. Perfect point being that we play in a dogshit conference and our best chance for big wins is in the OOC. In the future when we want to be an at large team, we won’t want those big games counting for less because they happened in November.

I don’t see any other playoffs that give bonus points for later in the season wins. The Eagles went 1-5 down the stretch and the Patriots 2-4, does that mean the Pats deserved a playoff spot more? The whole season counts.

And any complaints about our ranking are moot because with or without David Green this team should’ve never lost to Brown or UNH at home.

[PeterRamTime]

I think they'd actually put us in if we ran the table to the A-10 championship and lost lol

[hrstrat57]

We would have lost to UNH with Green.

[Rhody15]

We would have lost to UNH with Green.

We beat UNH and Brown with Green.

Delaware a toss up and probably lose to Charleston.

[steveystuds06]

We would have lost to UNH with Green.

I don't know how you can watch this team healthy and think they would lose to UNH. Daniels would have had a much tougher time against Green. Fuchs is our best rebounder, and I think he's also been great on the defensive end. Our offense is drastically better with an option like Green out there.

[PeterRamTime]

The way we are playing right now they only team that could beat us is Charleston.

Green would have eaten, Brown, Delaware and UNH alive.

[jcru]

I think we might have beaten Charleston with DG. If you remember the game, the Rams played them even for the first 15 mins out of 40, and then the bottom dropped out and they allowed Charleston to take a commanding lead thereafter. That was actually the trend we were watching for every loss around that time. And when the bottom dropped out, it's like the team completely lost all confidence, and didn't ever come back.

DG changed all of that. He changed the way they play for 40 mins. He became a lightning rod for all of the other players turned to, to keep up their intensity. He leads by example and from his very first game he was directing traffic and telling various players where to go, and what to do. And getting in their faces and giving constructive criticism. So, with DG we may have lead the entire way. It's impossible to tell obviously, but it's just as likely that that scenario would have played out.

With the DG we have had for the last 4 games, I think we either would have won those other 4 as well, or we may have lost at either Charleston or against Delaware, not both.

[jcru]

Of course, you could also argue, that if they didn't go through the diversity of the OOC schedule, they may not be making the gains they have right now.

In other words, if everything did not happen exactly the way it happened, with DG getting screwed by the NCAA and coming back with a fire in the belly, and this team not becoming lost and looking for someone to right the ship... that we might not be where we are right now.

And where we are right now, playing at this level, with this kind of team chemistry, is pretty sweet.

[NYGFan_Section208]

Did anybody notice that we're averaging 82 PPG in the 3 conference games?

Sorry, too locked in on that napkin

[Billyboy78]

It's pretty simple

Our OOC was disastrous and theirs wasn't. That's why we are still ranked so low.

And that's why these rankings are stupid. Teams improve as the year goes on. Some teams improve more than others. Some teams even improve dramatically more than others. We are better than those 3 teams RIGHT NOW. Who cares what happened 2 months ago?

Disagree. Perfect point being that we play in a dogshit conference and our best chance for big wins is in the OOC. In the future when we want to be an at large team, we won’t want those big games counting for less because they happened in November.

I don’t see any other playoffs that give bonus points for later in the season wins. The Eagles went 1-5 down the stretch and the Patriots 2-4, does that mean the Pats deserved a playoff spot more? The whole season counts.

And any complaints about our ranking are moot because with or without David Green this team should’ve never lost to Brown or UNH at home.

I'm just saying that I liked it better the way it used to be. When I was in school back in the Dark Ages, the teams that were the best teams (32 back then) at the time of selection Sunday went. I could argue in today's game that if the games in November count as much as they do in February, the ones in early March (conference tournaments) count too much. You can absolutely suck all year and get hot for 3 or 4 days in March and get in. So, what sense does it make that you can get in if you get hot for 3 days and you don't get in when you get hot for 2 months at the end of the season? Whatever. I'm old school. Shoot me.

[luke]

You definitely have a valid point Billyboy . And recently the NCAA has discounted losses by the P5 teams when a well known star missed some games due to injury or illness . In URI's case both Fuchs and Green missed games that maybe wouldn't have resulted in losses had they been available . The NCAA
reasoned that since the injured players had returned and would be available therefore they were a different team now and should be accepted . Under
that logic URI is clearly not the same team now as they were when the bad losses occurred . Of course there has to be somebody there to plead their case
because most of the selectors probably would otherwise have no idea about URI and its players.

[PeterRamTime]

Weird stat in this game

We didn't have a single steal...how many games have we won where we had ZERO steals? Or how many games have we played without a single steal period?

[Blue Man]

You definitely have a valid point Billyboy . And recently the NCAA has discounted losses by the P5 teams when a well known star missed some games due to injury or illness . In URI's case both Fuchs and Green missed games that maybe wouldn't have resulted in losses had they been available . The NCAA
reasoned that since the injured players had returned and would be available therefore they were a different team now and should be accepted . Under
that logic URI is clearly not the same team now as they were when the bad losses occurred . Of course there has to be somebody there to plead their case
because most of the selectors probably would otherwise have no idea about URI and its players.

Yeah and if we win 19-20 games in a row and make that kind of noise, I would bet we would get in just based on that. Bubble teams get that kind of deference.

But we lost 5 straight including 2 Q4s to awful teams, and will in that scenario be like 2-4 in Q1 games.

The world isn’t out to get us. The conference might be with the way they’ve always shafted us on awards, but the world is not. Very rarely have we ever done enough and won the right games to deserve a bid.

But if we go like 14-4 and don’t win the A10T, a 19-11 team with zero Q1 wins and several Q3/Q4 losses doesn’t deserve it.

But again, there’s no reason for at large talk. We’re not an at large team. Get top 4 in the A10 and see how it shakes out in Brooklyn.

And the idea that the hottest teams for a couple games get in? That’s the whole point of the tourney. Total madness. It’s why 16’s can beat 1s. Anything can happen. Best sporting event in the world.

[Jersey77]

You definitely have a valid point Billyboy . And recently the NCAA has discounted losses by the P5 teams when a well known star missed some games due to injury or illness . In URI's case both Fuchs and Green missed games that maybe wouldn't have resulted in losses had they been available . The NCAA
reasoned that since the injured players had returned and would be available therefore they were a different team now and should be accepted . Under
that logic URI is clearly not the same team now as they were when the bad losses occurred . Of course there has to be somebody there to plead their case
because most of the selectors probably would otherwise have no idea about URI and its players.

Yeah and if we win 19-20 games in a row and make that kind of noise, I would bet we would get in just based on that. Bubble teams get that kind of deference.

But we lost 5 straight including 2 Q4s to awful teams, and will in that scenario be like 2-4 in Q1 games.

The world isn’t out to get us. The conference might be with the way they’ve always shafted us on awards, but the world is not. Very rarely have we ever done enough and won the right games to deserve a bid.

But if we go like 14-4 and don’t win the A10T, a 19-11 team with zero Q1 wins and several Q3/Q4 losses doesn’t deserve it.

But again, there’s no reason for at large talk. We’re not an at large team. Get top 4 in the A10 and see how it shakes out in Brooklyn.

And the idea that the hottest teams for a couple games get in? That’s the whole point of the tourney. Total madness. It’s why 16’s can beat 1s. Anything can happen. Best sporting event in the world.

Yes Blue Man. I agree.

We aren't getting an at-large nor do we deserve it.
Right now, I am just glad we have Green available and let's see how things shake out for us the rest of the way.

We are on a little bit of a roll right now and hope we can keep the momentum going.
These next 2 games will show us a lot.

If we can finish top 4 that would be huge, much better than I expected, and would give us a good shot in the A10T.
Every team in our conference is beatable.
Also having quality depth which we do right now gives a team an advantage in our conference tournament where you play many games in such a short span.

[McRam]

Weird stat in this game

We didn't have a single steal...how many games have we won where we had ZERO steals? Or how many games have we played without a single steal period?

Good point! The good defensive teams turn their opponents over and usually have a solid rim protector. Our wins seem to be based on the offense, not our defense.

[bigappleram]

Weird stat in this game

We didn't have a single steal...how many games have we won where we had ZERO steals? Or how many games have we played without a single steal period?

We are dead last or near the bottom in turnovers created and steals. That may be by design but it’s the facts nonetheless. That means in order to run we have to be a great defensive rebounding team.

[Section104]

You definitely have a valid point Billyboy . And recently the NCAA has discounted losses by the P5 teams when a well known star missed some games due to injury or illness . In URI's case both Fuchs and Green missed games that maybe wouldn't have resulted in losses had they been available . The NCAA
reasoned that since the injured players had returned and would be available therefore they were a different team now and should be accepted . Under
that logic URI is clearly not the same team now as they were when the bad losses occurred . Of course there has to be somebody there to plead their case
because most of the selectors probably would otherwise have no idea about URI and its players.

Yeah and if we win 19-20 games in a row and make that kind of noise, I would bet we would get in just based on that. Bubble teams get that kind of deference.

But we lost 5 straight including 2 Q4s to awful teams, and will in that scenario be like 2-4 in Q1 games.

The world isn’t out to get us. The conference might be with the way they’ve always shafted us on awards, but the world is not. Very rarely have we ever done enough and won the right games to deserve a bid.

But if we go like 14-4 and don’t win the A10T, a 19-11 team with zero Q1 wins and several Q3/Q4 losses doesn’t deserve it.

But again, there’s no reason for at large talk. We’re not an at large team. Get top 4 in the A10 and see how it shakes out in Brooklyn.

And the idea that the hottest teams for a couple games get in? That’s the whole point of the tourney. Total madness. It’s why 16’s can beat 1s. Anything can happen. Best sporting event in the world.

Finish top 4 in the A10, Holmes from Dayton leaves, and you're looking at a possible A10 preseason #1 going into next year with the entire team returning.

[Rhody15]

You definitely have a valid point Billyboy . And recently the NCAA has discounted losses by the P5 teams when a well known star missed some games due to injury or illness . In URI's case both Fuchs and Green missed games that maybe wouldn't have resulted in losses had they been available . The NCAA
reasoned that since the injured players had returned and would be available therefore they were a different team now and should be accepted . Under
that logic URI is clearly not the same team now as they were when the bad losses occurred . Of course there has to be somebody there to plead their case
because most of the selectors probably would otherwise have no idea about URI and its players.

Yeah and if we win 19-20 games in a row and make that kind of noise, I would bet we would get in just based on that. Bubble teams get that kind of deference.

But we lost 5 straight including 2 Q4s to awful teams, and will in that scenario be like 2-4 in Q1 games.

The world isn’t out to get us. The conference might be with the way they’ve always shafted us on awards, but the world is not. Very rarely have we ever done enough and won the right games to deserve a bid.

But if we go like 14-4 and don’t win the A10T, a 19-11 team with zero Q1 wins and several Q3/Q4 losses doesn’t deserve it.

But again, there’s no reason for at large talk. We’re not an at large team. Get top 4 in the A10 and see how it shakes out in Brooklyn.

And the idea that the hottest teams for a couple games get in? That’s the whole point of the tourney. Total madness. It’s why 16’s can beat 1s. Anything can happen. Best sporting event in the world.

Finish top 4 in the A10, Holmes from Dayton leaves, and you're looking at a possible A10 preseason #1 going into next year with the entire team returning.

I continue to not understand multiple people here saying “with the entire team returning” or something along those lines about next season.

Just setting yourself up for disappointment if/when key contributors enter the portal.

It truly is a year by year case for mid majors these days.

Cannot automatically assume everyone will be back.

They could, but people are speaking like it’s a guarantee.

[Section104]

Yeah and if we win 19-20 games in a row and make that kind of noise, I would bet we would get in just based on that. Bubble teams get that kind of deference.

But we lost 5 straight including 2 Q4s to awful teams, and will in that scenario be like 2-4 in Q1 games.

The world isn’t out to get us. The conference might be with the way they’ve always shafted us on awards, but the world is not. Very rarely have we ever done enough and won the right games to deserve a bid.

But if we go like 14-4 and don’t win the A10T, a 19-11 team with zero Q1 wins and several Q3/Q4 losses doesn’t deserve it.

But again, there’s no reason for at large talk. We’re not an at large team. Get top 4 in the A10 and see how it shakes out in Brooklyn.

And the idea that the hottest teams for a couple games get in? That’s the whole point of the tourney. Total madness. It’s why 16’s can beat 1s. Anything can happen. Best sporting event in the world.

Finish top 4 in the A10, Holmes from Dayton leaves, and you're looking at a possible A10 preseason #1 going into next year with the entire team returning.

I continue to not understand multiple people here saying “with the entire team returning” or something along those lines about next season.

Just setting yourself up for disappointment if/when key contributors enter the portal.

It truly is a year by year case for mid majors these days.

Cannot automatically assume everyone will be back.

They could, but people are speaking like it’s a guarantee.

Probably worded poorly. That said, I think the likelihood of everyone, or most everyone, returning increases if the outlook for next year is a top 3 finish. It also helps us attract top tier talent to replace departures.

Sorry for being positive.

[LIRAM]

Weird stat in this game

We didn't have a single steal...how many games have we won where we had ZERO steals? Or how many games have we played without a single steal period?

We are dead last or near the bottom in turnovers created and steals. That may be by design but it’s the facts nonetheless. That means in order to run we have to be a great defensive rebounding team.

This is the packline. Ball pressure and everyone else inside the packline (16-17 ft). You have to be very discipline and sound off the ball in the packline. No gambling and no off the ball pressure or denial (no backdoors and brush all basket cuts. No baseline and no straight line drives. Sound close outs and the key is the person on the ball does not get beat! Very hard to turn people over and certainly not the best system to run out of. Many have tweaked the packline to help with transition offence (Buzz Williams, Brian Dutcher and Archie's older brother when at Arizona). I would hope when Ben gets here Archie does the same. Right now we are consumed with getting defensive rebounds and all five are hitting the boards. I think having Green gives Archie another good defensive rebounder and we are getting into our actions faster on the other end and scoring easier. Farrell seems to be a great fit into our defensive plan. Scout on him- Great on ball defender (can guard multiple positions), good defensive rebounder and rim protector.

[NYGFan_Section208]

NET jumped to 174 from 191.

172 now and climbing!

[Rhodymob05]

Zek is definitely bothered by the rotation change, ie Cam. Happens all the time. He needs to accept his role.

[Rhody15]

Zek is definitely bothered the rotation change, ie Cam. Happens all the time. He needs to accept his role.

Green obviously factors in too, regardless of their different positions.

He’s taken a good amount of shots away from Zek.

[SGreenwell]

Zek is definitely bothered the rotation change, ie Cam. Happens all the time. He needs to accept his role.

Green obviously factors in too, regardless of their different positions.

He’s taken a good amount of shots away from Zek.

Eh, I think Zek has taken shots away from Zek because of his meh to poor play. The last 4 games, he's shot 22 percent. The last 10 games, from Yale onward, he's shot 34 percent and averaged 8.3 PPG, 34.9 percent from the field, 25.7 percent from 3. He's been in a funk for a while now. I'm not sure if it's because more scouting tape on him has gotten out, or if he's in his own head a bit, or if he's dealing with an injury of some kind.

[Billyboy78]

Zek is definitely bothered the rotation change, ie Cam. Happens all the time. He needs to accept his role.

Green obviously factors in too, regardless of their different positions.

He’s taken a good amount of shots away from Zek.

Eh, I think Zek has taken shots away from Zek because of his meh to poor play. The last 4 games, he's shot 22 percent. The last 10 games, from Yale onward, he's shot 34 percent and averaged 8.3 PPG, 34.9 percent from the field, 25.7 percent from 3. He's been in a funk for a while now. I'm not sure if it's because more scouting tape on him has gotten out, or if he's in his own head a bit, or if he's dealing with an injury of some kind.

He does have an injury although I'm not sure how much it affects his game. His left shoulder is taped up and I saw him trying to work it out by slowly swinging his left arm' He looked to be in a little bit of pain. It seems to be a pretty recent injury. I had not noticed it before, so that doesn't explain his poor play in previous games.

[ram1980]

Zek is definitely bothered the rotation change, ie Cam. Happens all the time. He needs to accept his role.

Green obviously factors in too, regardless of their different positions.

He’s taken a good amount of shots away from Zek.

Eh, I think Zek has taken shots away from Zek because of his meh to poor play. The last 4 games, he's shot 22 percent. The last 10 games, from Yale onward, he's shot 34 percent and averaged 8.3 PPG, 34.9 percent from the field, 25.7 percent from 3. He's been in a funk for a while now. I'm not sure if it's because more scouting tape on him has gotten out, or if he's in his own head a bit, or if he's dealing with an injury of some kind.

Hoping Zek's issue is confidence and he can play his way out of it. He seems to be hesitating and thinking way too much. Seems slow on the trigger on open jump shots and too late deciding to attack the rack. Unfortunately the hesitancy seems real obvious on the defensive end as he is really struggling there. The kid is an athlete. He needs to embrace his role and get his MOJO back. We need him to get back to alpha Zek. Don't give up on him..

[PeterRamTime]

Going out on a limb and saying Zek goes off against St Bobaventure.