Does this change your ranking?

[MooseJaw]

let's just say if UConn plays as poorly as they played last night against Louisville, Stanford, South Carolina or even Baylor they are in trouble.......

conversely, the same holds true for all the teams listed above. What really matters is the ability to overcome a bad game, also you have to take into consideration how well the opposition is playing they may also be playing a stinker of a game. Only way to tell is to play the game.

 

[Tonyc]

I pick UConn number 1 every season and I havent been wrong much.

 

[bballnut90]

Let's face it. They did not look like a #3 team vs Tennessee. There is only one credible game left, and that is South Carolina. I know that the whole season(for all teams) is "unprecedented," so the SC game will be, by far, a huge game.

Arkansas will be a big resume boost too assuming UCONN wins and Arkansas doesn't completely tank.

 

[Charliebball]

conversely, the same holds true for all the teams listed above. What really matters is the ability to overcome a bad game, also you have to take into consideration how well the opposition is playing they may also be playing a stinker of a game. Only way to tell is to play the game.

that's the hope........

 

[NormanDale]

Let's face it. They did not look like a #3 team vs Tennessee. There is only one credible game left, and that is South Carolina. I know that the whole season(for all teams) is "unprecedented," so the SC game will be, by far, a huge game.

They play #18 Depaul and #15 Arkansas, you don't consider those to be credible games?

 

[Monte]

They play #18 Depaul and #15 Arkansas, you don't consider those to be credible games?

Well, DePaul lost to Louisville by 41 points; what "credible" team has DePaul beaten?

'Arkansas is 2-4 in their conference....They lost to SC by 22; to Maryland by 19; and to Tennessee by 15.....You tell me if those are credible facts.

 

[southofnorth]

SC game was not close. They were up 20 for much of the late 3rd & 4th quarter. GA scored a few baskets in the final minute to get it back to 12.

Weren’t both SC and Louisville playing at home? If so that would have to be factored in.

 

[EasyEd]

I would drop UConn to 4th behind South Carolina. Assuming they learned what they claim, I expect a more convincing win at Arkansas. Then when they beat South Carolina, they will move ahead of them again. With Tennessee;s performance I don't think they should drop out of top 25 and they might even move up a spot or two.

 

[MSGRET]

Well, DePaul lost to Louisville by 41 points; what "credible" team has DePaul beaten?

'Arkansas is 2-4 in their conference....They lost to SC by 22; to Maryland by 19; and to Tennessee by 15.....You tell me if those are credible facts.

DePaul did beat Kentucky.

 

[Alydar]

And Ark beat Baylor.

 

[mbr33ct]

DePaul did beat Kentucky.

And Ark beat Baylor.

IMO those two teams would qualify as "credible".

 

[Tonyc]

Remember in the 4th qtr we were on a run up 9 and Paige twisted her ankle. We played a stall game to run down the clock and until she was ready to come back in. I hope we don't go into a stall again. Slowing it down to run out the clock is fine but we need to attack the basket and draw fouls.

 

[NormanDale]

And Ark beat Baylor.

They also got beat by #7 Texas A&M by 1 at the buzzer, there is a reason they are ranked #15 in the country.

 

[Alydar]

The two subjective opinion polls have UConn at 3rd & 5th. Massey and NET. both analytic rankings, have UConn as No 1. It may be that the voters haven't forgiven UConn for those 3 losses last year while algorithms have no memory.

And don't ask me how UConn got those 2 No 1's.

 

[visitingcock]

The two subjective opinion polls have UConn at 3rd & 5th. Massey and NET. both analytic rankings, have UConn as No 1. It may be that the voters haven't forgiven UConn for those 3 losses last year while algorithms have no memory.

And don't ask me how UConn got those 2 No 1's.

Analytics don’t use eyeballs. Hence oregon is ranked 4th

plus, algorithms must have memories. How else are PAC teams SOS so high when they have played nobody out of conference? They started with high rankings from last year and carried them over to this year. Hence, Oregon is 4th.

humans know that Oregon is not the 4th best team in the country. Algorithms don’t.

 

[Alydar]

Analytics don’t use eyeballs. Hence oregon is ranked 4th

plus, algorithms must have memories. How else are PAC teams SOS so high when they have played nobody out of conference? They started with high rankings from last year and carried them over to this year. Hence, Oregon is 4th.

humans know that Oregon is not the 4th best team in the country. Algorithms don’t.

Massey uses previous years stats until a team hits 10 games, which is about now this year. And the lack of inter-conference opponents may reduce the predictability of Massey, something they have done very well over the years. As for humans and what they know or think they know ??? History is filled with tragedies due to "what humans knew".

The polls start the year as a 100% subjective opinion and once the pecking order is established preseason a team moves slowly up or down, because voters are reluctant to admit they were dead wrong about a team they started at 10th so that team stays on the ranked list while teams left off in preseason don't climb unless the teams ahead lose.
This is a crazy season and teams seem to be playing very inconsistently. Stanford has been living in hotels for a month now. That has to be a strain.
The teams that can keep their focus and peak late will be there. Who they are is another question at this point.

 

[The CDR-Ret]

If anything, I think it showed that Tennessee might be a little better than 25 even if their record doesn’t show it. I thought they were a tough opponent. If UConn had blown them out, it might be a different story, but I think it’s hard to move UConn up or down after last night. Tennessee got a little choppy in the 4th quarter, but I was pretty impressed with them throughout the game.

For "The Big Dance" it will be match-ups that are favorable that will allow them [UT 'Voles' - spelling intentional from a previous BYer's post] to go deep into the tournament. For UCONN, it will be not having "off-nights" by more than two of the starters to get them to the Championship game. Get to the Championship game and see what happens!!!!

 

[Blueconn]

I believe UConn is the best team in the country right now. I am confident that the freshmen on the team just experienced the worst “off night” of their entire four-year UConn playing experience. I believe Tennessee is under rated and is becoming a tough rival for us(and everyone else). I have been ranking UConn #1 in every Boneyard poll since day one this season and will continue to do so until they have at least one loss. I think Lousyville and North Carawho State are second tier teams(first tier UConn, Stanford and S.C.)

I have great respect for and confidence in Geno and his coaching team and his basketball team.

So right. Why even question what we’ve seen for decades ? This group is bonded...and is still getting it together. 7 freshmen finding their way. But room for everybody. By March they could be pure dominance.

 

[chrissaran]

Louisville, NC State, UConn. 1,2,3.

 

[The CDR-Ret]

that's sometimes the price you pay when you get to play a more competitive schedule........unfortunately UConn has only been able to play two decent teams so far this year ...........are you so sure they would have beaten both Baylor and Louisville because I'm not........I hate to say it but I view this season as a learning year leading up to next season when UConn should be close to unbeatable........

I am hoping for next year that no other team is capable of being within 10 points, and 90% of opponents are defeated by 20+ points.

 

[visitingcock]

Massey uses previous years stats until a team hits 10 games, which is about now this year. And the lack of inter-conference opponents may reduce the predictability of Massey, something they have done very well over the years. As for humans and what they know or think they know ??? History is filled with tragedies due to "what humans knew".

The polls start the year as a 100% subjective opinion and once the pecking order is established preseason a team moves slowly up or down, because voters are reluctant to admit they were dead wrong about a team they started at 10th so that team stays on the ranked list while teams left off in preseason don't climb unless the teams ahead lose.
This is a crazy season and teams seem to be playing very inconsistently. Stanford has been living in hotels for a month now. That has to be a strain.
The teams that can keep their focus and peak late will be there. Who they are is another question at this point.

Massey is usually much more reliable than this year. However, the start with the previous year’s stats is a flaw. Human pollsters know when 3 first rounders have moved on and adjust according to what they see in the pipeline.

massey’s algorithms are more unreliable In this crazier year than normal especially regarding the PAC. To start with, we don’t really know how good the conference was at the end of last year because there was no tournament. Second, the PAC has played only one team OOC that is higher ranked than about number 60 and the remainder are ranked below 100. Yet, the computer keeps them at super high SOS.

not saying Massey is a bad system but it is worthless this year regarding the PAC.

I did prefer the briefly used football BCS system that combined Massey with the polls. A balance of humans and algorithms seems the best TO ME.

 

[Charliebball]

I am hoping for next year that no other team is capable of being within 10 points, and 90% of opponents are defeated by 20+ points.

if all the current players return and UConn adds the recruiting class as signed it's going to be difficult for any team not named Oregon, South Carolina or Stanford to stay on the same court with next year's team........

 

[Vowelguy]

Interesting that some of the folks offering up the strongest criticism of the team are the ones saying UConn is top 3.

 

[Plebe]

Arkansas will be a big resume boost too assuming UCONN wins and Arkansas doesn't completely tank.

I've been ripping on Arkansas all season, but now I guess I should be glad they're so overrated (and I better not end up with egg on my face)

 

[BostonBay]

I thought they were one of the top 4 teams in the country before Tenn, but after the last 2 games, I would put them in the #5 thru #8 group. Its clear, this team will only go so far as Paige takes them. ONO & CW are what they are - wildly inconsistent & soft. EW is consistent, but she's more a Robin than a Batman. The depth that I thought they had, has all but disappeared. They just lack the size & physical presence to win 3 tough games in a row from E8 to Title game. I hate using the term "soft", but thats exactly what they seem against the bigger, better teams. But, they have shot at #12 if they get the breaks.

 

[MuchoDogYears]

I thought they were one of the top 4 teams in the country before Tenn, but after the last 2 games, I would put them in the #5 thru #8 group. Its clear, this team will only go so far as Paige takes them. ONO & CW are what they are - wildly inconsistent & soft. EW is consistent, but she's more a Robin than a Batman. The depth that I thought they had, has all but disappeared. They just lack the size & physical presence to win 3 tough games in a row from E8 to Title game. I hate using the term "soft", but thats exactly what they seem against the bigger, better teams. But, they have shot at #12 if they get the breaks.

Taurasi led a far less talented team to a championship her senior year. Don’t know if a freshman Bueckers can do the same, but wouldn’t say it’s impossible.

 

[Dokey]

Nope. Neither up nor down. I rank teams 1-4, 5-8, 9-12, 13-16. Then, I consider teams that have a shot of cracking that top 16. Tenn is a team that has a shot at cracking that Top 16.

I have UConn in the 1-4 category until they lose. SCar, Louisville and NC State round out the top 4. Stanford I have in the 5-8 category because they have played nobody outside their own conference and none of their conference mates have played anybody outside the conference.

UConn played a decent team and struggled a bit after a long layoff. Not unexpected. Unlike Stanford, they have proven that they can beat a decent team outside their conference. The same goes for one loss SCar that has beaten a number of decent teams in and out of conference.

The problem with this analysis is that Stanford doesn’t have to go out of conference to have quality competition. Sorry, but if UConn were in PAC-12, they’d have at least one, if not two losses.

 

[Vowelguy]

Taurasi led a far less talented team to a championship her senior year.

Maria Conlon, Ashley Battle, Morgan Valley, Ann Strother, Barb Turner, Willnet Crockett, and Jessica Moore are far less talented than this year's team (- Paige) ?

 

[hoophuskee]

They are worse because of their injuries to Paige and Anna. Until they come back and show they are healthy then they are worse.

The victory by itself was very impressive:

They have had no rhythm this season while the other team got 3 more games in. Played away from home with basically a new team from last year in which their star player 1st time in a big nat'l game on tv shot as bad as she could possibly shoot while being hurt late in which they were starting to pull away while Liv gave them nothing offensively (maybe that can be expected? But I doubt it.). In addition Anna might've been hurt - and might've been hurt for quite some time, and yet they still won against a pretty good team.

 

[hoophuskee]

The problem with this analysis is that Stanford doesn’t have to go out of conference to have quality competition. Sorry, but if UConn were in PAC-12, they’d have at least one, if not two losses.

I doubt this very much unless you are counting today's game with no Paige and no Anna.