X-Expert wrote:tacitus wrote:Three facts which, based on many of the posts over the last few weeks, we can all agree on.
1) The Big Least is over-rated
2) Chris Mack is a horrible coach
3) This team is NIT bound, at best
HAHAHAHAHAHA!
Let's go get our first Final Four and put a "Big Least" team in the Final Four for the second straight year!!!
This is going to be historic game no matter what happens!!!
Good to bring this up again. X going to Elite 8 doesn't mean that Big East wasn't over-rated. Big East did not have a good first round. Lost 57% of first round game but probably not a surprise that most were seeded 7 or worse other than Butler or Nova-which also tells you about the BE. The best BE team going into tourney lost in second round. Just glad X doing its part but these are all actual facts. Thought I would clarify. Find it funny how so many posters wanted that post taken down but would continue to comment on it-thanks for bringing it up again, Go X. Since Zags are in Elite 8, their conference must be among the top conferences
There is a difference between talent, skill and potential, on one hand, and actual performance, on the other. There is no doubt that some Big East teams have underperformed or that the conference record in the tournament is a disappointment. But please do not for a second try to imply that we did not deserve 7 bids. That would, by extension, imply that maybe X had no business getting an at large bid.
Let’s look at the facts:
The lowest seeded Big East team was Providence. They lost a very close game to a USC team that was better on paper and then beat SMU. USC was probably the better team. Disappointing loss because Providence could have one the game, but respectable.
Marquette got blown out by higher seeded and favored South Carolina. A month ago, Marquette was not even in contention for an at large, but then got really productive on offense. It was a bad showing for them to get blown out, but South Carolina went on to beat a pretty hot Duke team and a Baylor team that beat us pretty handily earlier in the season and are now one game away from their first Final Four.
Seton Hall drew Arkansas in the 8/9 game, which is always a toss-up. Arkansas was favored and was better on paper. But it was a good game that went the other way. Arkansas went on to give UNC a good game (and probably a better game than Seton Hall would have). Arkansas was the better team. Disappointing loss because Hall could have one the game, but respectable.
Creighton was rather easily beaten by URI. This was underperformance. They lost their star point guard, but still had a solid team that should have won that game. But in all honesty, Rhode Island was very talented this year and wasn’t that far behind Creighton.
Butler did exactly what it was supposed to do. It beat Winthrop and a very talented Middle Tenn St. team, and then lost to the heavily favored UNC.
Nova… it was too much to expect they would repeat. But I really thought they would make the Elite 8 or Final Four. They had the talent to do so. But they drew a very experienced (especially in the post season) Wisconsin team that just seems to have a knack to win at the buzzer. They did the same thing to force overtime against Florida, only to have it done to them in the end. It is a letdown, but it happens.
So here we are with the 7th place Big East team on the verge of making its first Final Four. And you want to tell me that our league is overrated… Do you think we got lucky? Personally, I think that we have benefited from grinding it out in one of the best leagues in the country so that a few role and bench players are now emerging as major contributors?
