Running 2010 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament thread

Perhaps not surprisingly, Da'Sean Butler has more than a sprain: He tore his ACL.

Tough break for a classy guy. Can't see him as a first-round pick anymore, but hopefully someone takes a flier late in the draft.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/tournament/2010/news/story?id=5054764

 

Oh, bullshit. You have absolutely no basis for saying that other than your own self-serving and unsupported speculation.

As I recall, wasn't last year's NBA draft regarded by all the experts as one of the weakest and most shallow in MANY years? At least that's the theme I recall getting repeated over and over again around draft time last year.

So let's see, you take the same talent that was in college basketball last year, remove only the weakest and shallowest draft pool in many years, and add a bunch of studs like Favors, Cousins, Henry and John Wall, who people are calling some of the best prospects to come along in years. Gee, that would tend to suggest to me that there was actually a tad bit more talent in college hoops this year, not less.

Moreover, here are the regular season records of last year's four No. 1 seeds: Louisville 28-5, Pitt 28-4, UConn 28-4, North Carolina 28-4. And here are the regular season records of THIS year's No 1 seeds: Kentucky 32-2, Kansas 30-2, Syracuse 28-4, and Duke 29-5 (now 34-5). Gee, looks to me like like this year's No. 1s not only equalled last years, but actually had slightly MORE dominant seasons in the exact same conferences.

The most talented team last year was plainly North Carolina, which had three No. 1 picks in that weak draft, the first of which was pick No. 13. Well, Kentucky this year had a team with FIVE guys who are widely projected as first rounders in this year's far deeper draft, including three potential lottery picks, two top 5 picks, AND the No. 1 overall pick. Sorry, but when we're comparing which team had more talent after these guys have been in the NBA for a few years, 2010 Kentucky is going to dwarf 2009 North Carolina by a laughablly large margin. Yet, they couldn't even get past the elite 8 in this supposedly watered down tournament.

So where again is this evidence that last year's field was supposedly so much stronger?

 

I hope Butler wins by 50, and their fans chant F--- You J.J. the second half.

 

Exactly. And Ben, love your posts, but the conspiracy theory stuff with the NCAA and Duke is just ridiculous. So untrue. Any team below the top eight was severely flawed. I was an AP voter this year and I can't tell you the amount of times that I felt helpless trying to figure out who was who between Nos. 9-25. They all looked the same to me. Each No. 1 seed was going to get one really tough matchup, one team that spent time in the top 5 this year. A lot of people reasoned that Duke was going to have to win two road games (basically) just to get to Indy, seeing as TAMU was probably the most logical pick out of that four-team pod with Utah State, Siena and hobbled Purdue.

 

Duke had a number of VERY indifferent games this year. But against Baylor and West Va., they played outstanding basketball. If they win tomorrow, there's no complaint from me. They've improved in the tournament, which is the idea.

 

WFW, Cosmo. Add me in to the Ben_Hecht Fan Club, but couldn't agree with the conspiracy theory stuff with Duke. And playing Baylor in Houston "paved the way" for Duke? Um, no.

 

I like Duke Monday - they're playing VERY well right now - but I wouldn't be shocked to see Butler take it, especially if Howard stays out of foul trouble. But the Blue Devils have been playing too well for me to bet against them.

 

OK, let's see -- Michigan State, who Butler had to scrape and fight and struggle just to win by two points, was essentially the same team last year PLUS three players who are better than anyone on the team right now. You think Kalin Lucas and Goran Sutan may have made a difference Saturday?

Louisville had the 11th and 14th picks in the draft plus another excellent college player - oh yeah, and all three were third or fourth year players, not FRESHMEN, and add that to essentially the same guys who played this year.

Villanova lost three starters from last year's team, including Dante Cunningham, a legitimate low post threat who was, yeah, a SENIOR.

Pitt lost four starters, two of whom are very good NBA players right now and three of who were seniors - that team would have beaten the shit out of Butler or Duke.

UConn had essentially the same team plus Hasheem Thabeet and A.J. price

Oh yeah, North Carolina's draft picks -- unlike Kentucky's who are all, with the exception of Patterson, FRESHMAN -- the Tar Heels were all JUNIORS AND SENIORS. So no, Kentucky DOESN'T have more talent than North Carolina -- it might if all those guys stay for two more years -- but five three or four year veteran guys, including three first round picks, are more talented than five freshmen who can't shoot straight, even if the five freshmen are going to get drafted based on their POTENTIAL to be great NBA players. You are comparing apples to oranges with these two teams and if you really think this year's Kentucky's team is even in the same conversation as last year's North Carolina team you are a clearly someone who doesn't know the first thing about basketball.

Syracuse, yeah, add Johnny Flynn to this team and two other extremely good college players, which is what they were.

To even try and argue that the field this year is anywhere close to as deep and talented as last year's field is ridiculous, bordering on downright stupid.

Again, the top eight teams last year were better than any team this year.

I don't give a shit what their records were because their records were against better competition.

Seriously, these things are cyclical and this year was clearly a down cycle.

 

Consider that Duke's last championship was in April 2001. I think the world was definitely a better place then than now. That just might be the fix America needs.

 

There's never an easy path in March, but I think anyone would have taken Duke's path first. I mean, KU's second-round game was against a top-25 opponent with an RPI of 17 -- Northern Iowa was more like a Sweet 16 game in the second round.

 

Bears played with Dookies stride-for-stride, until the closing-moment
Zebra rape . . . just the latest, pathetic
example. Feel badly for Baylor, who
played flat-out great, most of the year.