Creme

[river rat]

Charlie's latest has UConn in Albany with Syr, SC, ORST, and ND... Wow

 

[PAHuskeyFan]

Charlie's latest has UConn in Albany with Syr, SC, ORST, and ND... Wow

Can't get too excited about Charlie's brackets...they don't match the Committee that often, and there is just too many more games to play.
in many ways, I suspect the Committee would rather have a possible UCONN vs ND rematch during final four than during Albany Regional...

 

[Centerstream]

He's just putting what many here (I think) believe is cr*p just so he creates a discussion and gets his paycheck.
Look at it this way, if his brackets matched the Committee brackets exactly, then the Committee would become unnecessary .

I guess I am being hypocritical here because I have said that the only bracket that matters is the final Committee's decision and I still stand by that.

 

[huskeynut]

A lot of basketball to be played. Creme is speculating. Every upset he has to change his pairings.

Any of the top 6 to 8 teams could loose one or two more games before the tournament brackets are set.

Relax!!

 

[EricSD]

Bottom line, it will be what it will be. Geno has said numerous times things along the line of "It doesn't matter who we play in March/April. You still have to beat 6 really good teams to win the NC"...

Also, ND will likely play L'ville in the ACC tourney. If ND wins, it could push them to a 1 seed and drop L'ville to a 2 seed. Honestly, ND is the team I'd least like to face of the possible 2 seeds, even tho we beat them at ND earlier in the season.

IMHO Baylor, Oregon, UCONN and ND have the most complete and talented rosters in the country. But give Walz credit for doing what he's done with L'ville, who lacks the sheer volume of AA's that UCONN, Baylor and ND have on their roster.

Same goes for Graves at Oregon. I watched Heberd as a freshman and thought "Meh. Has some potential, but we will see how she develops". Well, "meh" has turned into "wow". I think much of the credit has to go to the coaching and how they developed/pushed her.

Lastly, and it's a bit OT, but since I mentioned coaching...

UCONN fans often talk about how the coaching at UCONN is the best in the nation. While I largely agree, there are other programs that seem to be developing players just as successfully as UCONN. Look at what Walz has done at L'ville. Graves with Heberd, etc at Oregon. Muffet with Shephard etc. Mulkey with Cox etc. Tara with Smith. Schaffer with McCowan. The list goes on and on. I still think UCONN is the best, but there's not much that separates numerous top coaches in how they develop players.

I tend to cringe a little at comments about how "X player would be SO much better had she come to UCONN". That's true of any player who goes to play for Warlick especially (Fargas and McCallie also immediately spring to mind), or any of those other coaches who do so much less with more, but UCONN has also had its' share of duds (comparatively speaking) who were never really developed under Geno...

Lastly, Heberd injured her knee against OSU the other day. Last I checked, there was no official word. If anyone hears I'd love to know. Losing her would be like UCONN losing Walker.

 

[Carnac]

Charlie's latest has UConn in Albany with Syr, SC, ORST, and ND... Wow

Here's the link to the latest from Chuckie Brackets that everyone in this thread is referring to: [LINK]
This year's tournament is going to be crazy. I expect some "dark horses" and sleepers to rise up and upset some unsuspecting teams in every round of play. I expect some high seeds to fall early.

EricLA said "ND is the team I'd least like to face of the possible 2 seeds, even tho we beat them at ND earlier in the season." I agree. If I have to see them again, let it be in Florida (the FF).

 

[MilfordHusky]

Charlie has a loaded bracket there! I think that ND could steal a 1 seed.

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

He's just putting what many here (I think) believe is cr*p just so he creates a discussion and gets his paycheck.
Look at it this way, if his brackets matched the Committee brackets exactly, then the Committee would become unnecessary

I guess Joe Lunardi and the men's bracketology is then superfluous.

Playing devil's advocate...
Interesting how ESPN know has bracketology for the women, yet many people dismiss the bracket as unnecessary or "cr*p." In an era and in a market where women's basketball struggles to gain traction, having this type of coverage is actually a very good thing.

And, as @huskeynut noted, there are a good number of games remaining that must be played. Creme is giving a projection as of the date of publication. As we have seen this year, there are big upsets that have taken place that shift the landscape (e.g., UNC defeating Notre Dame) and have significant changes for the seedings and team placement.

For those who question Charlie Creme's accuracy, I can search for the hundreds of posts over the years where the committee disregarded its own rules/parameters for a final bracket. Shall we penalize Creme for not anticipating the committee's disregard of its own rules or for not properly determining which rules it will disregard?

ETA: High Post Hoops just released its latest bracket and, like Charlie Creme, has UConn as the #1 seed in Albany with Notre Dame as the #2 seed.
Women’s basketball bracketology: The problem with sending Notre Dame to Chicago

 

[Golden Husky]

I heard Tony Dungy saying that the rematch favors the team that lost the initial encounter because the losing team makes changes and the winning team is reluctant to alter what was a successful game plan. He was speaking about football, of course, but if that theory relates to basketball, as well, then UConn probably would be better off facing Louisville in in a regional final than meeting Notre Dame again.

As many have written, there's still some significant basketball to be played--especially in the ACC--so some seedings and destinations remain unclear at this point.

 

[Jmsdawg]

Bottom line, it will be what it will be. Geno has said numerous times things along the line of "It doesn't matter who we play in March/April. You still have to beat 6 really good teams to win the NC"...

Also, ND will likely play L'ville in the ACC tourney. If ND wins, it could push them to a 1 seed and drop L'ville to a 2 seed. Honestly, ND is the team I'd least like to face of the possible 2 seeds, even tho we beat them at ND earlier in the season.

IMHO Baylor, Oregon, UCONN and ND have the most complete and talented rosters in the country. But give Walz credit for doing what he's done with L'ville, who lacks the sheer volume of AA's that UCONN, Baylor and ND have on their roster.

Same goes for Graves at Oregon. I watched Heberd as a freshman and thought "Meh. Has some potential, but we will see how she develops". Well, "meh" has turned into "wow". I think much of the credit has to go to the coaching and how they developed/pushed her.

Lastly, and it's a bit OT, but since I mentioned coaching...

UCONN fans often talk about how the coaching at UCONN is the best in the nation. While I largely agree, there are other programs that seem to be developing players just as successfully as UCONN. Look at what Walz has done at L'ville. Graves with Heberd, etc at Oregon. Muffet with Shephard etc. Mulkey with Cox etc. Tara with Smith. Schaffer with McCowan. The list goes on and on. I still think UCONN is the best, but there's not much that separates numerous top coaches in how they develop players.

I tend to cringe a little at comments about how "X player would be SO much better had she come to UCONN". That's true of any player who goes to play for Warlick especially (Fargas and McCallie also immediately spring to mind), or any of those other coaches who do so much less with more, but UCONN has also had its' share of duds (comparatively speaking) who were never really developed under Geno...

Lastly, Heberd injured her knee against OSU the other day. Last I checked, there was no official word. If anyone hears I'd love to know. Losing her would be like UCONN losing Walker.

I watched a presser where Geno said there were teams that if they played their A game and UConn plays their A game there is no way UConn wins. It is a matchup dilemma for all the teams, some team you just do not match well against. So, IMHO, it does matter what teams are in you regions.

 

[Centerstream]

I guess Joe Lunardi and the men's bracketology is then superfluous.

Playing devil's advocate...
Interesting how ESPN know has bracketology for the women, yet many people dismiss the bracket as unnecessary or "cr*p."

I have no idea who Joe Lunardi is because I don't have any interest in men's basketball but I would just wonder if his brackets were close to the men's Committee's brackets. But I really don't care what the answer is.
ESPNW has his brackets but in my opinion they are unnecessary because they can change daily, they have no bearing on the real brackets and the NCAA actually has seeding announcements during the season.

 

[PAHuskeyFan]

I have no idea who Joe Lunardi is because I don't have any interest in men's basketball but I would just wonder if his brackets were close to the men's Committee's brackets. But I really don't care what the answer is.
ESPNW has his brackets but in my opinion they are unnecessary because they can change daily, they have no bearing on the real brackets and the NCAA actually has seeding announcements during the season.

Like @Centerstream I don't follow Men's College BB... and suppose Joe Lunardi's "bracketology" is intended to do much the same as Charlie Creme's... give people something to ponder, talk about, worry about, hope for, and so on. None of it matters. None of it makes one bit of a difference since as we all know too well, it's the Bracket unveiled by the Committee on Selection Monday (??) that matters....and I suspect Charlie Creme will have some reactions about that Bracket like he did on the first reveal. IF they followed the "standard S curve"... it's easy to figure out the brackets and pairings...assuming we know what they use for their 1 - 64 rankings... but no one will be able to predict the "variations" that always happen.

SO...we use Charlie's brackets to talk about while waiting for the games between now and Selection Monday to make the final decisions for us all.

 

[Irish88]

Good news out of Oregon: Ruthie Hebard's MRI revealed no structural damage and she's questionable for this weekend's game. Oregon is probably not as interested in ranking and S curves than most as they are almost certainly going to be in the Portland Regional whether as a 1 or a 2. (WNBA Fans Nation)

 

[VAMike23]

Good news out of Oregon: Ruthie Hebard's MRI revealed no structural damage and she's questionable for this weekend's game. Oregon is probably not as interested in ranking and S curves than most as they are almost certainly going to be in the Portland Regional whether as a 1 or a 2. (WNBA Fans Nation)

That is good news — I hope she gets the rest and recup time she needs.

 

[Bigboote]

I heard Tony Dungy saying that the rematch favors the team that lost the initial encounter because the losing team makes changes and the winning team is reluctant to alter what was a successful game plan. He was speaking about football, of course, but if that theory relates to basketball, as well, then UConn probably would be better off facing Louisville in in a regional final than meeting Notre Dame again.

I absolutely agree. Last year, UConn was ousted by Notre Dame, whom they beat during the year. Year before it was Mississippi State, whom they'd drubbed a year earlier. For a few years before their run, I think each time they lost in the NCAAs it was to a team they'd played (and I believe beaten) during the season.

 

[Centerstream]

I absolutely agree. Last year, UConn was ousted by Notre Dame, whom they beat during the year. Year before it was Mississippi State, whom they'd drubbed a year earlier. For a few years before their run, I think each time they lost in the NCAAs it was to a team they'd played (and I believe beaten) during the season.

Well then I would be worried if I was a fan of Baylor or Louisville if they happen to meet us in the Big Dance...

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

I have no idea who Joe Lunardi is because I don't have any interest in men's basketball but I would just wonder if his brackets were close to the men's Committee's brackets. But I really don't care what the answer is.

In the five years prior to the expanded opening round, Lunardi averaged 63.8 teams correctly predicted (98.15%) and 26.8 seeds correctly predicted. In the five years since the field expanded to 68 teams, Lunardi has averaged 66.6 teams correctly predicted (97.94%) and 36 seeds correctly predicted (52.94%).

It should also be noted that Lunardi has over an 80 percent accuracy rate in terms of correct seeds or +/- 1 in terms of seeding. But he was over 98 percent accurate in terms of who made the NCAAT, from 2006 through 2015.

Source:
How Accurate Are Joe Lunardi's Bracketology Predictions? | Sports Insights

ESPNW has his brackets but in my opinion they are unnecessary because they can change daily, they have no bearing on the real brackets and the NCAA actually has seeding announcements during the season.

The reason why there are brackets is because the men's NCAAT is one of the biggest sporting events in the world. The hype leading up to the "one and done" is tremendous and the interest in brackets involves millions and millions of fans.

The fact that you do not follow men's basketball or believe that they are unnecessary does not comport with the majority of the sports-viewing public, which does maintain a strong interest in such things (and results in tremendous amounts of hits and traffic for ESPN). You are certainly entitled to your beliefs/opinion, but ESPN's revenue and traffic generated from such things is tremendous.

 

[Plebe]

I for one am grateful ESPN has someone doing bracketology for the women's game. For those of us who enjoy analyzing and speculating how teams are likely to be seeded and placed into the bracket, Creme's work serve as a nice touchpoint for discussion, whether we agree or disagree. Those who don't enjoy geeking out on bracketology, or who find it silly or pointless, can and should assert their right to ignore such discussion.

The cottage industry of bracketology is an outgrowth of the increased fan interest in the NCAA tournament and, more specifically, in the selection committee's decisions that fill out the bracket. Folks like Lunardi, Palm and Creme are simply greasing the skids of that fan interest.

 

[Centerstream]

I for one am grateful ESPN has someone doing bracketology for the women's game. For those of us who enjoy analyzing and speculating how teams are likely to be seeded and placed into the bracket, Creme's work serve as a nice touchpoint for discussion, whether we agree or disagree. Those who don't enjoy geeking out on bracketology, or who find it silly or pointless, can and should assert their right to ignore such discussion.

The cottage industry of bracketology is an outgrowth of the increased fan interest in the NCAA tournament and, more specifically, in the selection committee's decisions that fill out the bracket. Folks like Lunardi, Palm and Creme are simply greasing the skids of that fan interest.

I guess I now fall into this category and I am now wondering why I even posted anything in this thread, so I apologize.
I did follow men's college basketball back in the days of Larry Bird, Ralph Sampson, Patrick Ewing. Living in the DC suburbs, I was a big Georgetown and Maryland fan but lost interest in the mid 90s.

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

I for one am grateful ESPN has someone doing bracketology for the women's game. For those of us who enjoy analyzing and speculating how teams are likely to be seeded and placed into the bracket, Creme's work serve as a nice touchpoint for discussion, whether we agree or disagree. Those who don't enjoy geeking out on bracketology, or who find it silly or pointless, can and should assert their right to ignore such discussion.

The cottage industry of bracketology is an outgrowth of the increased fan interest in the NCAA tournament and, more specifically, in the selection committee's decisions that fill out the bracket. Folks like Lunardi, Palm and Creme are simply greasing the skids of that fan interest.

Hey Plebe, I agree 100%! I love figuring out who advances and what matches that sets up!
What pi--es me off big time is that you can't print up Creme's brackets, as all the brackets come out on the left side of the page, so I have to write up each set of brackets! A real pain! But it's worth it to set up the possible choices!

 

[Carnac]

Good news out of Oregon: Ruthie Hebard's MRI revealed no structural damage and she's questionable for this weekend's game. Oregon is probably not as interested in ranking and S curves than most as they are almost certainly going to be in the Portland Regional whether as a 1 or a 2. (WNBA Fans Nation)

Thanks, that’s great news.

 

[willtalk]

Bracketing is like a box of chocolates.

 

[Plebe]

What pi--es me off big time is that you can't print up Creme's brackets, as all the brackets come out on the left side of the page, so I have to write up each set of brackets! A real pain! But it's worth it to set up the possible choices!

Have you tried doing a screen shot of the bracket, and then printing out the screen shot? (If that sounds like Greek to you, let us know and we can guide you through it.)

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

Have you tried doing a screen shot of the bracket, and then printing out the screen shot? (If that sounds like Greek to you, let us know and we can guide you through it.)

Hi Plebe! I have tried just about everything I can to print up the Bracketology!
1. I've high-lighted the brackets then copied then print preview and ALL the brackets are on the left side for 8 to 10 pages!
2. I've just gone to print preview with NO highlighting and all the brackets are still on the left side!
3. I've just hit print off the screen image of bracketology and when it started pring page after page of shifted brackets I've hit cancel printing!

I don't have a lot of tech-sense in these 71 year old bones but I've tried just about everything and the brackets ALWAYS go to the left side of the page! Creme or ESPN have it set up so you can't print up the brackets simply!

 

[Rixxx]

What I do is hit shift- print-screen.
Then I go to a microsoft program = Paint. Up in the left upper corner click on paste. The image I want automatically comes up on the screen. I print this image with no problems.

 

[Plebe]

Hi Plebe! I have tried just about everything I can to print up the Bracketology!

I don't have a lot of tech-sense in these 71 year old bones but I've tried just about everything and the brackets ALWAYS go to the left side of the page! Creme or ESPN have it set up so you can't print up the brackets simply!

No worries buddy! Are you using a Windows computer (as opposed to a Mac)? If you're using Windows, you can use the Snipping Tool, which is a really handy way to take a screen shot. Nan covered this tool in one of her very handy technology lessons:

Bonus Lesson: The Snipping Tool

Rixxx's advice could work as well. Let us know how it works for you.

 

[EricSD]

I watched a presser where Geno said there were teams that if they played their A game and UConn plays their A game there is no way UConn wins. It is a matchup dilemma for all the teams, some team you just do not match well against. So, IMHO, it does matter what teams are in you regions.

My point was that Geno has said many times that we have no control over where the committee seeds teams or how they bracket them. You still need to beat 6 really good teams to win the NC.

Do we have preferences? of course. I'd much rather have MSU in our bracket than ND or L'ville, but that's just me. I'm sure others feel differently. Bottom line, I don't think UCONN makes it to the NC game - in fact, getting to the final 4 will me a major accomplishment for this team.

 

[Jmsdawg]

My point was that Geno has said many times that we have no control over where the committee seeds teams or how they bracket them. You still need to beat 6 really good teams to win the NC.

Do we have preferences? of course. I'd much rather have MSU in our bracket than ND or L'ville, but that's just me. I'm sure others feel differently. Bottom line, I don't think UCONN makes it to the NC game - in fact, getting to the final 4 will me a major accomplishment for this team.

I realize the brackets have not been determined but as of today it appears UConn will be at the Albany region. Do you really think UConn will not be the favorite to win that region regardless of the other teams in that region? UConn has lost 2 games both away to teams that are projected to be number 1 seeds and UConn is likely to be a number 1 seed. I think UConn is the favorite for th NC.

 

[EricSD]

I realize the brackets have not been determined but as of today it appears UConn will be at the Albany region. Do you really think UConn will not be the favorite to win that region regardless of the other teams in that region? UConn has lost 2 games both away to teams that are projected to be number 1 seeds and UConn is likely to be a number 1 seed. I think UConn is the favorite for th NC.

Glad you feel that way. Geno doesn't, I don't think. I don't think we are the favorite either. But that's what's nice about this NCAA - there is no clear overwhelming favorite. Each team has flaws. IMHO Baylor is the most complete team followed closely by Oregon and ND. I think L'ville is a more complete team than UCONN too (we start a 6'1" "center" - and I didn't necessarily say "better", just more complete). But our starting 5 is as good as any of those other teams.

Not trying to diss MSU - they belong up there in the discussion as well. IMHO there are only 6 teams with a legit shot to win - in this order IMHO... Baylor, Oregon, L'ville, UCONN, ND, MSU. And it's really close between all of them. You could mix and match the order any way you want and probably still be correct.

Let's say ND beats L'ville and becomes the 1 seed and L'ville is put into UCONN's bracket in Albany. We already lost to them once. It's even $ who wins the rematch IMHO. If both teams play their A games... well... we will see!

 

[Jmsdawg]

Glad you feel that way. Geno doesn't, I don't think. I don't think we are the favorite either. But that's what's nice about this NCAA - there is no clear overwhelming favorite. Each team has flaws. IMHO Baylor is the most complete team followed closely by Oregon and ND. I think L'ville is a more complete team than UCONN too (we start a 6'1" "center" - and I didn't necessarily say "better", just more complete). But our starting 5 is as good as any of those other teams.

Not trying to diss MSU - they belong up there in the discussion as well. IMHO there are only 6 teams with a legit shot to win - in this order IMHO... Baylor, Oregon, L'ville, UCONN, ND, MSU. And it's really close between all of them. You could mix and match the order any way you want and probably still be correct.

Let's say ND beats L'ville and becomes the 1 seed and L'ville is put into UCONN's bracket in Albany. We already lost to them once. It's even $ who wins the rematch IMHO. If both teams play their A games... well... we will see!

UConn is the best example of Positionless basketball and IMHO they have been so far a long time. If the UConn players play their A game, I do not see Baylor or any other team beating them. Just my opinion, but I have watched WBB for a number of years and although UConn has flaws when they are really clicking they are a joy to watch.