Reply to thread

Message: [QUOTE="Carnac, post: 2469735, member: 5798"] [B]This is just 1 man's opinion but - [/B]I use to be very critical of TOP 15 teams for filling their non-conference schedules with an assortment of "BAKERY GOODS". I thought that if UConn could play a demanding preseason schedule, so should they. I was so caught up in (as a fan) what UConn was doing, and the ridiculously strong preseason schedule Geno puts together every year, that I lost sight of the the [I]real reason[/I] he has to do it. At the end of the year, when the NCAA Tournament selection committee looks at the 64 (plus the play-ins) teams they are going to invite (minus the automatic bids) to participate in the tournament, [I]strength of schedule[/I] plays a very important part in their decisions. Some of you will argue that SOS is not a factor with UConn. Their conference so so weak, they are all but guaranteed to getting an [I]automatic bid[/I] every year., so they need not be concerned about SOS. UConn has had to play a ridiculous out of conference (OOC) schedule since leaving the BIG East for several reasons. [B]Note - [/B]Nothing in this post is a revelation, we all know why Geno does what he does. Just sharing an observation here. [B]1.[/B] [B]To evaluate his team,[/B] and to measure where they are, so that the staff knows [I]exactly[/I] where the team is collectively and individually. To evaluate who can do what, and the weaknesses they need to work on to get where Geno wants them to be. Geno indicated early in a presser this season that every player starts out at even at the beginning. No one begins practice on their laurels from last year. Seeing his team in practice everyday is one thing, seeing then perform in a game against other top 10 comparable teams is something else. Look at the game between Texas and Tennessee yesterday. That game revealed some warts that had previously remained hidden. Mid-majors and cupcakes (i.e, Winthrop/Middle Tennessee State) do not normally expose a team's warts. [B]2. To expose the team to other elite teams in Division 1. [/B]Teams (and the level of play) that they will have to face and defeat if they are to win the championship this year. [B]Texas, Notre Dame, Maryland, Louisville, Tennessee, Mississippi State, South Carolina [/B]and maybe Oregon and UCLA etc. All of these teams should make the sweet 16. After that, it's survival of the fittest (survive and advance). The last two years, several #1 seeds have been defeated during the second weekend of the tournament. However nothing is guaranteed beyond that point. Geno wants his team to play the teams (and the type of play) he knows they'll see during the last two weeks of the tournament. Teams UConn will not see after the Christmas break. The AAC is comprised of Mid-Major level teams. It is genius for him to schedule 3 of his alloted 13 OOC games in January and February, not only as a break from the monotonous AAC conference schedule, but to serve as a way to measure their growth and development at that point in the season against other top 5 teams. I'm not attempting to throw shade on any of these teams. It is what it is. UConn and USF are the only AAC teams that are ranked in the top 25 consistently. [B]Iron sharpens iron.[/B] That will never change!! Playing the schools in the AAC CAN NOT & WILL NOT get UConn ready to play the level of competition they are going to see in the tournament. Conference teams such as [B]Memphis, Wichita State [/B]and[B] Tulsa [/B](all of whom are currently at the bottom of the conference standings for OOC games played so far this season) are simply not at that level yet, and can't do anything for UConn except get out of their way. Top 10 teams in other conferences have several teams that are formidable (some ranked), that have a top 100 ranking that not only will enhance their over all SOS number, but will help them to improve and get ready for post-season play. We can easily criticize other top ranked programs and the teams they choose to schedule in the preseason. Because of the strength of their respective conferences, they can do that. [B]Kim Mulkey[/B] (Baylor) has scheduled some embarrassingly easy OOC games recently to begin the season. She does so not to impress other coaches or pundits, but to prepare her team for the second half of the season, and to enter league play with an impressive W-L record. In spite of those soft OOC schedules, she has managed to secure a [B]# 1[/B] tournament seed the last 3-4 years. That's the bottom line. She's getting away with it, so no doubt she'll continue to do it. UConn has been the elephant in the room the past few years. THEY have been the team to beat, and will be again this year. The goal is always to win the NC, but it's understood by other teams that have those aspirations that at some point, you're going to have to go through UConn to do it. UConn can't play itself, all it can do is prepare to play those in March that are assigned to their bracket, and go from there. Other teams (that will be in other brackets) are preparing to (hopefully) play UConn, but they have to play the teams between UConn them first. Playing a weak OOC schedule allows teams to build momentum and confidence going into conference play. Start out with the softer teams, and work your way up from there. Getting blown out twice to begin the season like [B]Stanford[/B] did 3 weeks ago, IS NOT the way any coach wants to push away from the dock, because you start out in a deep hole you have to climb out of. Once you get out, you reach back down a try to pull your confidence out. For many top 25 teams, 1 or 2 ranked teams in their OOC is deemed enough. Realistically, there are only 6-7 programs that have [B]a real chance[/B] of winning the national championship. Look at the current top 8 teams. Do you think any team ranked #9 or below has any kind of a "[I]legitimate[/I]" chance to win the NC? If #11 wants to win it all, they'll have to beat at least 3 teams ranked above them to do so. That's a one heck of a gauntlet. Sure, every once in a while, a "dark horse" (Texas A&M in 2011) will come out of nowhere to win it, but not often. You can lay odds that the winner of this year's NC is somewhere in the current top 8. The top 4-5 teams at the beginning of conference play will probably remain there the rest of the season. The cream always rises to the top. It will by Jan 1. Every coach has to do what they feel is best for their program, and will put their team in the best position to win an automatic bid, or be invited to the tournament. [B]There are different paths that lead to the final four.[/B] They're just trying to get into the tournament, then survive and advance to that final weekend in April to compete for the championship. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach