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New Blog Post: Open Thread Thursday | 12/10/09 https://pickinsplinters.com/2009/12/10/open-thread-thursday-121009/
I didn’t get a chance to see the Kentucky-UConn battle last night but was very interested in the results and following along on B-berry. UK beat North Carolina at home over the weekend, but looked a little shaky … certainly not the same team when Wall is out. But beating UConn at MSG last night, esp coming back from decent sized deficits, tells me this UK team could be something special … and apparently Wall is all he’s cracked up to be.
Thoughts from the bench???
I saw the first half. After falling behind 12-0, UConn went on a 26-6 run. Much of this was fueled by foul problems for Kentucky. Wall was on the bench while UConn took a 6 point lead at half. UConn never had a lead of more than eight points.
Some interesting stats – the teams combined for a total of 18 attempts behind the arc. Villanova MADE 16 in a recent game. Much of this game was played in the paint. UConn out-rebounded Kentucky and had more assists and made three more foul shots. Here’s the difference: Kentucky had 13 steals to UConn’s 3 leading to 13 more shots. Take care of the ball.
There is no questioning Wall’s athleticism.
I think Kansas, Kentucky, ‘Cuse, ‘Nova, and maybe a couple of other teams right now have shown that they can consistently beat top teams.
I think there is a second tier that includes UNC (young), Duke (not very athletic), UCONN (will be better come League play and tourney time due to Calhoun’s “aggressive” coaching).
I think Michigan State is overrated.
These are just the teams that I’ve seen. I haven’t seen everyone out there as I’m not incredibly interested in teams like Texas or Gonzaga, etc. until they start playing better competition in league play.
Just some humble opinions…please feel free to tell me I’m wrong…
I am starting to wonder what the world is coming to – Russia just open admitted to having Adolf Hitler’s body for nearly 30 years before burning it and now the Cleveland Browns beat the Pittsburgh 13-6.
If monkeys start to fly, I am so outta here.
Gonzaga has played Michigan State, Duke, Wisconsin, Cincinnati, and Washington State. That is some decent competition.
Don’t forget, last year North Carolina threw MSU around like they were rag dolls. Then the Spartans made a run. Izzo does a good job of not showing his hand too early.
Who would have the Steelers would lose to Kansas City, Oakland Free Academy, and now …CLEVELAND!
Dan, I may not actually disagree with your assessment of the best teams right now, but in the case of Gonzaga, what they do NOW is a better measure of their worth than league play. Their league is the cupcake games for the most part, which is why they have such a brutal early season schedule. This is one of those few years where SU has taken a similar tack. We are learning early what they really have.
Pete
Delivering the beat down on the West Coast Conference – wow! Cupcakes?! 🙂
Actually, the WCC is holding their own so far this year. Portland has wins over Oregon, UCLA, and Minnesota. They hung with West Virginia for 30:00 before falling in that game. Yes, the Pilots have had some disappointing losses of late, but the potential is there.
San Diego has beaten Oklahoma, Stanford, and Houston (yes, I know the Cougars are a mid-major).
St. Mary’s has been taking care of the mid-majors but has a 6-1 record. Their one loss is to Vanderbilt by 2. WCC teams can take down a major team, and the argument could be made that the WCC is stronger than the Pac 10 this year.
Is “stronger than the PAC 10” a testimonial, or an insult? You know what I say; even a broken clock is right twice a day! Gonzaga has been the only consistently competitive team out of the WCC for many years. If some of those teams are showing signs of early life, well…broken clock. If the Zags find their conference to be the toughest games they have, then their NCAA exit will be earlier than usual.
I was watching the Syracuse vs Florida game while the Browns were upsetting the Steelers.. however I see the talk on Pittsburgh message boards is that Big Ben is to slow.. and they need new WR’s. Any outside opinions on this topic?
Did I hear that Roethlisberger was sacked 8 times?