Running 2022-23 NCAA Basketball Thread

Glad I asked. I know the phrase “A friend of Dorothy” and I couldn’t figure out what you meant.

I haven’t seen it enough to remember the theme song. Thanks.

 

Well, it was a hell of a run for my Aztecs. I am a little disappointed, obviously, but pretty damn proud of the team, the school, the fans who came out in droves to Houston, and the program. I've referred a few times on this board about how bad the program was when I was there in the '90s, and if you had told me that the team would be playing for the national title in 30 years, I would have said you were crazy.
Tip of my cap to UConn; they were easily the best team in the tourney. I remembered watching them against Gonzaga, and then again vs. Miami in the Final Four and asking myself the last two days "How the hell are they going to beat this team?" Well, they couldn't; unfortunately, they were totally cold from the field, but a lot of that had to do with the opposition; I hadn't seen them get stifled on offense the way UConn did it to them tonight.
But, they'll be back. They've proven in the past they can regroup and put in another monster season. They had the breakthrough season in 2011, when their only losses were to that damn Jimmer Fredette and then in the tourney to UConn, and then another Sweet 16 appearance in 2014, then the 30-2 season that was negated by COVID, before this run happened.
So, yeah, there's plenty of room for optimism, and the possibility of getting into a higher-profile conference.
I believe that we will win ... again!

 

I guess San Diego State is now invited, too?

 

Consternation in the Hermes household as UConn matches Indiana in national titles.

It didn’t go over well when I reminded that all five have come more than a decade after IU last won one.

 

By my count, so check this, only 35 schools have won the NCAA tournament in its history, and there have now been 83 of them. Fifteen schools have won more than one, which works out to more than three-fourths of them. In this century alone, six schools have multiple titles, while seven schools have won one, including three (Mich. St., Kentucky and Louisville) who are multiple title-winners throughout history. The field of 68 obscures this to some extent, but the tourney is very much a "round up the usual suspects" event when it comes to winners.

 

Was at Philly in 1981, Virginia vs. LSU.

 

So was I. Wasn't that the last one?

 

I don't love how she phrased it, but she's not wrong. Jill Biden made a mistake, and between that and the focus on Reese's trash gesturing, I can understand why the kid speaking up.

 

Yeah, GTFO with trying to invite a runner-up to the White House. That's nonsense.

 

UCLA winning 10 titles in 12 years played a major role in limiting the number of schools who have won the title.

 

In those 10 title wins of the Wooden era, four of the championship game wins were against schools that have won multiple titles anyway (Kentucky, Duke, Villanova and North Carolina) while two (Marquette, Michigan) would be multiple title winners had they beaten UCLA. They beat Memphis, which had another bite at the apple under Calipari. That leaves three schools (Florida State, Dayton, Purdue) who only made a final once only to lose to UCLA.

 

Sounds like a real charmer.