2004 UConn vs. Gonzaga

[G0UCONN]

I know its a long time ago, but the Big East Champion 89-90 roster would compete as well. Smitty and Tate (6'5" PG) along with Nadav and Toraino along with the Microwave would have wrecked havoc. Hell Lyman and Scotty would have shut down duty. Cyrulik, Sellers and even Murray would bring some value to the court.

Their defense was the best ever at UConn. The team could also score a bunch, especially with Smitty. They averaged almost 80 points a game, and held opponents to 66.

I just wanted to remind the young'uns of this often overlooked juggernaut.

Agreed. Our best defensive team ever. Great press back when presses worked.

Ray Allen's last 2 teams were great too. I thought best in country both years just didnt win it. That UCLA loss was soul crushing....great game but tough as I think UCLA playing that way was only team that could beat us that year.

 

[Scoe]

It would be a good game. I'm a UConn fan so I think UConn wins, but that team wasn't unbeatable. We can talk all we want about how that team wouldn't lose to another team, but they lost to a 19-13 Notre Dame that lost in the Quarters of the NIT.

The talent level is certainly lower in general, but this Zags team has multiple pros. Each team had an equal amount of Top 100 talent, too.

They might have tried to lose that game. They were playing in the old big east trying to save their wad.

 

[Sky ball]

SimMatchup College Basketball - Free NCAA Matchup and College Basketball Sim Games

find out and settle the debate

This site shows this years Gonzaga beating 3 out of 4 UConn National Champions.

If UConn played Kentucky in 2014 they would have been beat by 14! LOL

Final - 4/4/2021	1st	2nd	Total
13-14 Connecticut	29	22	51
13-14 Kentucky	31	34	65

 

[tzznandrew]

UConn in 2004 wins easily. If UConn in 2004 had Gonzags schedule of Pacific, UC Irvine, St Marys and whoever else they play UConn would also be undefeated.

Outside of the WCC they played a number of excellent teams, including 3 seeds Kansas and West Virginia.

Given the 2004 UConn team didn't go undefeated out of conference themselves, I'm not convinced they'd have gone undefeated.

 

[aburks41]

Outside of the WCC they played a number of excellent teams, including 3 seeds Kansas and West Virginia.

Given the 2004 UConn team didn't go undefeated out of conference themselves, I'm not convinced they'd have gone undefeated.

KU and WVU were not really that good..especially compared to past KU teams. Gonzaga is obviously a great team, but quite a few championship teams from the 2000s would run these guys out of the gym. Talent stuck around longer back then

 

[B1GEast]

Agreed. The 04' people are crazy

The 2004 team was better than the 99 team

 

[Lefty2one]

We had six future 1st rounders including four lottery picks, plus Rashad and Denham. That team was very up and down due to a variety of issues (Okafor's back, Charlie's eligibility, Gordon's broken nose, Williams' ineligibility) but on all cylinders we paste this Gonzaga team. If you picked any random night from the 2003-04 season then sure, we could lose to Gonzaga. But when healthy and normal we'd smoke this Gonzaga team.

 

[CallMeBruce]

This is probably the best point and maybe the only thing that matters. Bad match up for Timme and Zags struggle significantly if Timme doesn't play well.

They haven't lost a game all year. You guys are delusional.

 

[UCLJ0211]

The level of talent across college basketball was so much better 16 years ago that you have to assume UConn wins.
Gonzaga stands out now because of the weak state of the game.

It was even better 17 years ago. ?

 

[QDOG5]

We had six future 1st rounders including four lottery picks, plus Rashad and Denham.

Gonzaga has one guaranteed pro in Suggs. They almost lost to an 11 seed last night. UConn 2004 would have routed them.

 

[navery12]

Gonzaga has one guaranteed pro in Suggs. They almost lost to an 11 seed last night. UConn 2004 would have routed them.

Gonzaga has 3 projected 1st rounders including 2 lottery picks (though I suspect Kispert drops out of the lottery) and then Drew Timme who's projected as a 2nd rounder this year. And then Andrew Nembhard who's projected as a 2nd rounder next year, which I'll give you is not a guarantee. The other 4 are locks to get drafted this year

 

[Lefty2one]

Yeah, Kispert is a guaranteed pro. I assume Timme will hang around the league for a while. Ayayi is an interesting prospect.

 

[UofCT]

KU and WVU were not really that good..especially compared to past KU teams. Gonzaga is obviously a great team, but quite a few championship teams from the 2000s would run these guys out of the gym. Talent stuck around longer back then

We are obviously nitpicking here and we are incredibly biased but great teams usually beat great teams and I just don't see that on Gonzaga's schedule this year.

Their best wins are:
Iowa in December
Kansas in November
West VA in December
USC in March

 

[navery12]

We are obviously nitpicking here and we are incredibly biased but great teams usually beat great teams and I just don't see that on Gonzaga's schedule this year.

Their best wins are:
Iowa in December
Kansas in November
West VA in December
USC in March

Am I supposed to think those wins suck? Because that's the KenPom 6, 7, 23, and 30 teams. Those are very good wins

 

[superjohn]

We had six future 1st rounders including four lottery picks, plus Rashad and Denham. That team was very up and down due to a variety of issues (Okafor's back, Charlie's eligibility, Gordon's broken nose, Williams' ineligibility) but on all cylinders we paste this Gonzaga team. If you picked any random night from the 2003-04 season then sure, we could lose to Gonzaga. But when healthy and normal we'd smoke this Gonzaga team.

That's the way I see it, that UConn team was one of the best shotblocking teams in the history of college basketball and shot 40% from three. When healthy and at full strength it really isn't close. Only reason the final 4 game against Duke was close was because the refs and Calhoun took Okafor out of the game in the first few minutes.

 

[gsmooth]

It would be a good game. I'm a UConn fan so I think UConn wins, but that team wasn't unbeatable. We can talk all we want about how that team wouldn't lose to another team, but they lost to a 19-13 Notre Dame that lost in the Quarters of the NIT.

The talent level is certainly lower in general, but this Zags team has multiple pros. Each team had an equal amount of Top 100 talent, too.

Yeah exactly. I don't get the "beat the brakes" off this Gonzaga team talk. I think they would win against this Gonzaga team, but it certainly wouldn't "beat the brakes" off of them. At the same time this Gonzaga team, which I like very much, wouldn't go through the Big East in 2004 undefeated. That Pittsburgh 2004 team was really good, too, and had championship aspirations as well.

Edit: wouldn't

 

[gsmooth]

The 2004 team went through a few rough patches but the talent level just isn’t the same now.

If I recall those rough patches had to do with OK4s back flaring up and Gordon's broken nose. Once they were healthy, it was all systems GO

 

[gsmooth]

Am I supposed to think those wins suck? Because that's the KenPom 6, 7, 23, and 30 teams. Those are very good wins

Not only that but they dropped 98 on a Virginia team that is known to slow the game down and frustrate their opponents with their defense.

 

[Scoe]

Could the Duke and Ok State teams have beaten this Zags team in a single elimination game if the answer is yes then we know UConn wins would be a great game but we prevail.

 

[navery12]

Not only that but they dropped 98 on a Virginia team that is known to slow the game down and frustrate their opponents with their defense.

That's also a good point, that list doesn't include their win over #18 KenPom Virginia and their 3 wins over #19 BYU

 

[tzznandrew]

That's also a good point, that list doesn't include their win over #18 KenPom Virginia and their 3 wins over #19 BYU

The Big East wasn't even great in 2004.

Gonzaga wouldn't have gone undefeated, but if you look at the teams Gonzaga beat in the regular season and up through the Final Four (not counting the Final Four), it's better than 2004's wins. If you assume Gonzaga wins it all, I'll put in bold the Final Four teams.

Here are Top 30 wins for both teams:

2021 Gonzaga
2 Baylor
6 USC
7 Iowa
13 UCLA
18 Virginia
19 BYU
19 BYU
19 BYU
21 Creighton
23 West Virginia
30 Kansas

2004 UConn
1 Duke
5 Pittsburgh
5 Pittsburgh
8 Georgia Tech
23 Vanderbilt
27 Seton Hall
29 Alabama
30 Syracuse

 

[Kitaman]

They haven't lost a game all year. You guys are delusional.

Sanity has never been a requirement here.

 

[tzznandrew]

Yeah, Kispert is a guaranteed pro. I assume Timme will hang around the league for a while. Ayayi is an interesting prospect.

And it's not like our dudes were world-beaters in the NBA. NBA wasn't good at scouting then. No way Brown is a second round pick in 2006 now. Also, Boone didn't survive his first contract, Armstrong did only years later come back for one season. The other 3 topped out as good pieces, but never all stars.

2004 was a very good team. It gets the disrespect by some people because it's pros weren't great and it played down to its competition. 6 losses is a decent amount, and its regular season wins weren't all that impressive.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Gonzaga has one guaranteed pro in Suggs. They almost lost to an 11 seed last night. UConn 2004 would have routed them.

Not we're going way too far in the other direction. They have more than one guaranteed pro on that team.

 

[superjohn]

And it's not like our dudes were world-beaters in the NBA. NBA wasn't good at scouting then. No way Brown is a second round pick in 2006 now. Also, Boone didn't survive his first contract, Armstrong did only years later come back for one season. The other 3 topped out as good pieces, but never all stars.

2004 was a very good team. It gets the disrespect by some people because it's pros weren't great and it played down to its competition. 6 losses is a decent amount, and its regular season wins weren't all that impressive.

So UConn was a very good team with a lot of "buts" for you...

You realize Okafor's back was bad since his junior year of college and then more injuries kept us from ever seeing what he would've been as a pro, right? You realize Gordon was more than just a good piece on the Bulls, right?