Calipari told ESPN today...

[HuskyBballFan]

Sad to say I agree with Calipari. What exactly does the Big East Tournament mean exactly? It is essentially a fund raiser for the conference and a money maker for ESPN. Nothing more. sdon't get me wrong, it often has very good exciting games, but in the Giant schme of the season it is usually no more important than winning the Hawaai tournament. You think Boeheim would trade his 2003 national Championship with BE Champ Pitt? It is usually an interesting and exciting event, I think the venue is the primary reason for that, but it is for seeding in the real tournament, and often even not for that.

Go back and watch Jim Calhoun's reaction when the buzzer sounded last year against Louisville. It's great that you don't care about the Big East Tournament - the players and coaches, at least for the team you root for, care about it quite a bit.

 

[freescooter]

Exactly.

It's demeaning to other conferences and other teams in your conference to say it means nothing. Most of the time Conference Tournaments are the only way a lot of kids will get to play in the NCAAT and/or on TV. It's a big deal to the majority of programs. I like the fact JC has never stepped away from that as a goal, not the goal but at least 1 going into the season.

I don't understand why anyone would "apologize" for it. It should at the least be a fun time for the kids.

Here's the problem...we're not the MAAC or the NEC. While it certainly is a meaningful experience for teams at that level, just as the 9th or 1th place team in the big East has a tournament chance, while the #2 team in the NEC has none, their tournaments are very different too. it matter if you win the NEC tournament. It is likely our only chance to get to the NCAA. But for the Big East, the SEC, the Big 10, the ACC...who cares? Duke is going if they win or if they lose in the first round. Florida State, North Carolina, same deal. Syracuse is going and will be a high seed, probably a 1 whether they win or they don't. marquette is going win or lose. Kentucky is going win or lose. that makes the league tourney much less important to those leagues. Remember, these things began when the NCAA only awarded bids to conference champs. At large bids went to teams not in conferences. You could go 25-0 in the regular season and lose in your conference championship game and find yourself out in the cold. Now, that isn't the case. for the major conferences, they are essentially made for tv festivals. Fun but essentailly meaningless. So I don't have a huge issue with Calipari telling it like it is.

 

[HeGotGame]

The other problem with the Big East tournament, and all conference tournies for that matter, is that they make the regular season meaningless...who was the 2010 regular season big East Champ? and don't look it up? In fact for a few years, the big East didn't even recognize a regular season champion...And then there is the format...bizzarre...in what other tournament do you play 5 consecutive days while somebody else palys only 3 and others play 4? I like it as a spectator but I don't rank winning it as any more valuable than winning 3, 4 or 5 games during the season. In some ways UCONN has been the exception taking the Big East title and going on to win the national championship. For the most part, the Big East Champ has tended to flame out once the real event starts.

You made this point last year and were on an island. You are still on that island.

Syracuse won the 2010 BE regular season, WVU won the BET, who went to the Final Four?

Pitt won the 2011 BE regular season, UConn won the BET, who went to the Final Four?

The tournament provides a chance to add some major hardware and build great momentum. It means a lot to the coaches, fans, and most importantly the players. To compare it to the "Hawaii" tournament is laughable.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

"But my thing to you will be this: If we ever won a national title and no player was drafted, I would be excited for our fans, excited for our school and our program, but I’d be disappointed"

Really tells you all you need to know about where is mind is at.

Thinking about the kids he coaches?

 

[businesslawyer]

"But my thing to you will be this: If we ever won a national title and no player was drafted, I would be excited for our fans, excited for our school and our program, but I’d be disappointed"

Really tells you all you need to know about where is mind is at.

Cut the guy some slack. He's only guessing what it would feel like to win a national title.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

He's got about 3 weeks of guessing left, I would imagine.

This place is going to implode when he wins it.

 

[Huskymaniac]

^^^^ Closet UMess fan.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

^^^^^^ Universally acknowledged lunatic.

 

[tzznandrew]

He's got about 3 weeks of guessing left, I would imagine.

This place is going to implode when he wins it.

They've killed a lot of teams. But they've only beaten two teams that really impress me: UNC and Kansas--both of those wins came in November/early December.

I think there are a number of teams that can give them problems, in large part because they're PG isn't great. They can lose to any number of really good teams (Syracuse, UNC, Ohio State, Michigan State, Kansas)*, and a number of good teams if Davis gets in foul trouble.

*I think Mizzou is good, but Kentucky is a bad matchup for them without foul trouble on Davis.

 

[freescooter]

Of course we can cherry pick tournaments and who did what in the NCAA. Its a good event. But bottom line is for a major conference these post season festivals are nice events to fill the space before the real tournament starts. Want to see the difference? Look at Fairfield or Iona then look at Syracuse and whoever loses the Big East torunament. Iona is playing in the NIT, Fairfield hopes to be. Syracuse is playing in the NCAA and so is the 2nd place team, and probably the 8th place team too. Winning is important for one league. It is "nice" for the other.

 

[Inyatkin]

If Calipari doesn't win this year, with at least four top-10 recruits, it may not ever happen. Even for a great recruiter, this kind of talent these days is rare.
If he wins, I won't like it, but whatever

 

[caw]

The other problem with the Big East tournament, and all conference tournies for that matter, is that they make the regular season meaningless...who was the 2010 regular season big East Champ? and don't look it up? In fact for a few years, the big East didn't even recognize a regular season champion...And then there is the format...bizzarre...in what other tournament do you play 5 consecutive days while somebody else palys only 3 and others play 4? I like it as a spectator but I don't rank winning it as any more valuable than winning 3, 4 or 5 games during the season. In some ways UCONN has been the exception taking the Big East title and going on to win the national championship. For the most part, the Big East Champ has tended to flame out once the real event starts.

WVU, no?

 

[tzznandrew]

If Calipari doesn't win this year, with at least four top-10 recruits, it may not ever happen. Even for a great recruiter, this kind of talent these days is rare.
If he wins, I won't like it, but whatever

First hope: UConn wins, Kentucky loses to a #16 seed, Calipari quits in embarrassment
Second hope: UConn beats Kentucky in the tournament
[A number of other hopes]
Last hope: Reminiscient of 1999, an underdog Syracuse beats Kentucky.

This is not the best case scenario (and Kentucky winning, Duke winning, UNC winning would be worst cases), but it is an ending I could live with.

 

[businesslawyer]

He's got about 3 weeks of guessing left, I would imagine.

This place is going to implode when he wins it.

Kentucky is one of the two best teams in the country. They may have a better chance of winning than anyone else. But the best team in the country over the course of the season does not usually win the Championship. We'll see.

 

[tzznandrew]

For the most part, the Big East Champ has tended to flame out once the real event starts.

Last 10 BET Champions:
2011: UConn - NCAA Champs
2010: WVU - Final Four
2009: Louisville - Elite 8
2008: Pittsburgh - Round of 32 (Flame Out)
2007: Georgetown - Final Four
2006: Syracuse - Round 1 (Flame Out)
2005: Syracuse - Round 1 (Flame Out)
2004: UConn - NCAA Champs
2003: Pittsburgh - Sweet 16 (Flame Out)
2002: UConn - Elite 8

So, in 10 years, the BET Champion has produced:
2 NCAA Championships
2 Final Fours (on top of that)
2 Elite 8s (on top of that)
1 Sweet 16
1 Round of 32
2 First Round Losses.

40% of the teams went to the Final Four, 60% went at least to the Elite 8, and 70% made it to the second weekend.

40% were Syracuse and Pitt, notorious March underachievers. In fact 100% of the flameouts were from these two teams. Rather than it being the BET's fault, I suspect it has to do with the teams.

 

[caw]

Here's the problem...we're not the MAAC or the NEC. While it certainly is a meaningful experience for teams at that level, just as the 9th or 1th place team in the big East has a tournament chance, while the #2 team in the NEC has none, their tournaments are very different too. it matter if you win the NEC tournament. It is likely our only chance to get to the NCAA. But for the Big East, the SEC, the Big 10, the ACC...who cares? Duke is going if they win or if they lose in the first round. Florida State, North Carolina, same deal. Syracuse is going and will be a high seed, probably a 1 whether they win or they don't. marquette is going win or lose. Kentucky is going win or lose. that makes the league tourney much less important to those leagues. Remember, these things began when the NCAA only awarded bids to conference champs. At large bids went to teams not in conferences. You could go 25-0 in the regular season and lose in your conference championship game and find yourself out in the cold. Now, that isn't the case. for the major conferences, they are essentially made for tv festivals. Fun but essentailly meaningless. So I don't have a huge issue with Calipari telling it like it is.

Eh, it's an opinion of yours, which you happen to share with Calipari. My opinion differs. Even still, apologizing for it? In what world does that make sense?

Even if it doesn't necessarily give a team a bid to the NCAAT, it does change seeding in the tournament and even region the team is placed. If Duke loses early in the ACC Tournament, and Cuse wins the BET this year, Duke gets the 2 or possibly the 3 in the East and has Cuse in Boston if both teams get there. If Cuse loses early and Duke wins, maybe they ship Cuse out West and put Duke as the 1 in the East. Honestly, not 100% sure where teams would go, but just saying that it's possible, but if Cuse wins they don't have to worry at all about being the 1 seed in the East. If you are a 2 seed or a 3, you want to avoid UK and SU as long as possible this year and Duke/UNC winning the ACC Tournament would help them do that immensely.

UK and SU are probably the teams least affected by conference tournament play but WVU/UConn/Marquette/etc. all could get bumps in seeding which could help them considerably down the road. I think you could even argue UK has the least to worry about because there is just more competition for the East region #1 seed than UK's. That still doesn't excuse apologizing for it.

 

[Huskymaniac]

Who is Calipari's biggest threat? UNC? Maybe. Syracuse? I would say so, in my opinion. And Yahoo sports breaks a major story about his biggest threat just before the tournament. Sound familiar?