Selection Sunday thread

[Mystery_Meat]

Maybe Akron quietly rejected consideration? Because there was the faintest of NCAA at-large hopes for them, so I can't imagine why they wouldn't get at least a 6 in the NIT.

 

[Twoback]

The only smart thing Vitale has said - since the Tennessee radio call-in debacle - is that Arkansas has no business being in the tourney after winning just seven league games in the **** SEC division.

Syracuse won 10 league games in a better conference.

This is ridiculous. Arkansas' league wins were over Vandy (twice, a No. 6 seed in this tournament), Alabama (twice, a 20-win team), Mississippi State (twice, 18 wins), Auburn (17 wins), LSU (17 wins).
Sorry, but South Florida, Cincinnati and Seton Hall do not stack up to that.

 

[Twoback]

And your NIT bracket:

http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nit/sports/m-nit/auto_pdf/2007-Bracket.pdf

Maybe I'm missing something, but when did the NIT cut back to 32 teams?

Wasn't it a 40-to-44-team tourney for the last several years?

Yes, you're missing something. The NIT announced it was cutting to 32 this year because it considered the 40-team bracket to be unwieldy.

 

[Oz]

is ridiculous. Arkansas' league wins were over Vandy (twice, a No. 6 seed in this tournament), Alabama (twice, a 20-win team), Mississippi State (twice, 18 wins), Auburn (17 wins), LSU (17 wins).

I still say Kansas State > Arkansas, based on wins at No. 4 seed Texas and No. 5 seed USC, plus that 21-point victory against Texas Tech to make the Big 12 Tournament semis.

 

[farmerjerome]

FJ, you're my gal and all, but you're going pure fanboy route here.

You're pointing out a paucity of good: wins over Marquette, Georgetown, Villanova versus ignoring a whole lot of mediocre, i.e., all of Syracuse's other Big East wins and its non-descript nonconference schedule. I know you're a Syracuse fan, but if you separate yourself from that, I think you can see my point.

It's a similar argument Valley fans in my neck of the woods made about Missouri State. They beat Wisconsin! They beat Wisconsin! Ignoring the fact that they lost in every other game of consequence they played.

The Big East was the sixth-best conference in the RPI (realtimerpi has them there). Why? Because it's too big for its own good. Just because a team goes 10-6 doesn't mean it's a legit 10-6. The bottom six of the Big East -- all of the teams below 100 in the RPI -- are absolute shirt. Seven of Sycacuse's 10 wins were against the bottom eight of the league in a 16-team conference. That's nothing to write home about.

Syracuse is a function of a friendly schedule creating an overinflated resume. The truth of the matter is that the committee called them (or more accurately, the Big East itself) on it and Syracuse was justifiably left out.

That Big East unbalanced schedule screws up everything when it comes to fairly assessing teams. So blame that, not me or the committee.

The numbers don't add up to Sycacuse getting screwed. Of course Digger Phelps, et al, will think they did because Jim Boeheim was at their roast or something.

I understand you point. But teams like Xavier getting in? Come on. Illinois? Stanford?

Syracuse is certainly better than a Xavier or an Arkansas.

 

[Oz]

Xavier:
24-8; RPI 27, 3-2 vs top 50; 8-3 vs 51-100; Non-Conf. SOS 47
Beat Nova

Texas:
23-8; RPI 29; 4-5 vs Top 50; 5-3 vs. 51-100; Non-Conf SOS 180
Lost to Nova

I rest my case.

Farmer, this is why Xavier is in the tournament.

 

[Mystery_Meat]

Here's my wack-ass attempt at doing the brackets. Three games still going on, but I still have Kansas as a 1 if it loses, Ohio State and Wisconsin winner gets a 1 and loser gets a 2, and Texas A&M CC-Northwestern State is for a 15. If Texas wins, they switch places with Texas A&M. I assume this is how the selection committee handles contingencies like this.

EAST​

1. Ohio State vs. 16. North Texas-Jackson State winner
8. USC vs. 9. Xavier

4. Villanova vs. 13. New Mexico State
5. Maryland vs. 12. Davidson

6. Nevada vs. 11. Old Dominion
3. Texas A&M vs. 14. Holy Cross

7. Duke vs. 10. Purdue
2. Georgetown vs. 15. Eastern Kentucky

SOUTH​

1. Florida vs. 16. Belmont
8. Virginia vs. 9. Syracuse

4. Washington State vs. 13. Albany
5. Southern Illinois vs. 12. George Washington

6. Boston College vs. 11. Winthrop
3. Louisville vs. No. 14 Oral Roberts

7. Tennessee vs. 10. VCU
2. Wisconsin vs. 15. Niagara

MIDWEST​

1. Kansas vs. 16. Jackson State
8. Kentucky vs. 9. Arizona

4. Virginia Tech vs. 13. Wright State
5. Notre Dame vs. 12. Gonzaga

6. Marquette vs. 11. Illinois
3. Texas vs. 14. Penn

7. Creighton vs. 10. Georgia Tech
2. Memphis vs. 15. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

WEST​

1. UCLA vs. Florida A&M
8. Vanderbilt vs. 9. Indiana

4. Pitt vs. 13. Miami (Ohio)
5. UNLV vs. 12. Texas Tech

6. BYU vs. 11. Drexel
3. Oregon vs. 14. Long Beach State

7. Butler vs. 10. Michigan State
2. North Carolina vs. 15. Weber State


FIRST EDIT: Syracuse, Indiana and Xavier swap spots to avoid too-soon conference matchups.
SECOND EDIT: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi officially in. Their logo reminds me of minor-league hockey, but what the fork, congrats.
THIRD EDIT: Forget what I said before. Texas gets a 3, WSU down to fourth, Texas A&M keeps its 3.
FOURTH EDIT: Crap, forgot that Maryland and Virginia were in the same region. Maryland and So. Illinois switch

So let's see how I did:

Correctly picked teams -- 63 (Syracuse and Drexel sted Arkansas and Stanford)
Worst call -- Virginia 8 (4)

Eh, could be worse

 

[thebiglead]

The only smart thing Vitale has said - since the Tennessee radio call-in debacle - is that Arkansas has no business being in the tourney after winning just seven league games in the **** SEC division.

Syracuse won 10 league games in a better conference.

This is ridiculous. Arkansas' league wins were over Vandy (twice, a No. 6 seed in this tournament), Alabama (twice, a 20-win team), Mississippi State (twice, 18 wins), Auburn (17 wins), LSU (17 wins).
Sorry, but South Florida, Cincinnati and Seton Hall do not stack up to that.

Ark went 7-9 in the lesser of two SEC divisions.
Syracuse went 10-6 in the Big East.

You spoke of the Ark wins, but only one of those teams is dancing. Syracuse has 3 league wins over NCAA tourney teams.

Care to look at the losses?

 

[Twoback]

FJ, you're my gal and all, but you're going pure fanboy route here.

You're pointing out a paucity of good: wins over Marquette, Georgetown, Villanova versus ignoring a whole lot of mediocre, i.e., all of Syracuse's other Big East wins and its non-descript nonconference schedule. I know you're a Syracuse fan, but if you separate yourself from that, I think you can see my point.

It's a similar argument Valley fans in my neck of the woods made about Missouri State. They beat Wisconsin! They beat Wisconsin! Ignoring the fact that they lost in every other game of consequence they played.

The Big East was the sixth-best conference in the RPI (realtimerpi has them there). Why? Because it's too big for its own good. Just because a team goes 10-6 doesn't mean it's a legit 10-6. The bottom six of the Big East -- all of the teams below 100 in the RPI -- are absolute shirt. Seven of Sycacuse's 10 wins were against the bottom eight of the league in a 16-team conference. That's nothing to write home about.

Syracuse is a function of a friendly schedule creating an overinflated resume. The truth of the matter is that the committee called them (or more accurately, the Big East itself) on it and Syracuse was justifiably left out.

That Big East unbalanced schedule screws up everything when it comes to fairly assessing teams. So blame that, not me or the committee.

The numbers don't add up to Sycacuse getting screwed. Of course Digger Phelps, et al, will think they did because Jim Boeheim was at their roast or something.

I understand you point. But teams like Xavier getting in? Come on. Illinois? Stanford?

Syracuse is certainly better than a Xavier or an Arkansas.

Xavier defeated Illinois, Villanova, K-State and VCU, plus went 13-3 in its league. None of those wins was at the Cintas Center, Xavier's homecourt. What did Syracuse do that was better than that? Of course -- it lost to Drexel, Wichita State and St. John's.

 

[Mystery_Meat]

I'm still waiting, for what it's worth, for someone to point out what mid-majors not named Drexel that got forked over by the selection committee. Having six mid-major at-large selections is supposedly some damning statement about the committee and Billy Packer and God and Jesus and all, but nobody's yet to make the case that a mid-major that didn't make it should have (outside Drexel and to a far lesser degree Missouri State).

 

[Mystery_Meat]

Twoback: Illinois and K-State happened in Cincinnati, though admittedly not at the XU home court.

 

[Twoback]

The only smart thing Vitale has said - since the Tennessee radio call-in debacle - is that Arkansas has no business being in the tourney after winning just seven league games in the **** SEC division.

Syracuse won 10 league games in a better conference.

This is ridiculous. Arkansas' league wins were over Vandy (twice, a No. 6 seed in this tournament), Alabama (twice, a 20-win team), Mississippi State (twice, 18 wins), Auburn (17 wins), LSU (17 wins).
Sorry, but South Florida, Cincinnati and Seton Hall do not stack up to that.

Ark went 7-9 in the lesser of two SEC divisions.
Syracuse went 10-6 in the Big East.

You spoke of the Ark wins, but only one of those teams is dancing. Syracuse has 3 league wins over NCAA tourney teams.

Care to look at the losses?

Syracuse: 3-6 vs. RPI top 50, 8-8 top 100.
Arkansas: 5-5 vs. RPI top 50, 11-11 top 100.

Syracuse: Worst loss to No. 133 St. John's
Arkansas: Worst loss to No. 113 Auburn

Arkansas away: won at Vandy, at Alabama, neutral court over SIU, WVU.
Syracuse away: won at Marquette, at Providence, neutral court over UConn.

Where's your case, Lead?