Elite 8 games: Washington-Stanford and Syracuse-Tennessee

[EricSD]

Why is that impressive? Didn't it prove that they had no business losing 13 games to begin with? I watched Tennessee-ASU and Tennessee-OSU. Tennessee clearly had more talent that those teams and played good and won. My thoughts were how did this team lose 13 games in the first place?

I'll give them a bit of a pass because they were missing their PG today but Syracuse, much better IMO than OSU/ASU, exposed the same problems about this team which caused them to lose 13 games in the first place. Coaching and chemistry.

Bingo. It's the Diamond Deshields show. I wonder if her father is satisfied with the season or if he will cause more problems...

 

[Plebe]

Only for the first 3 Q. The last Q Tenn played like D2 school.

If you'll check the conversation history, you'll see I was talking about the Arizona St and Ohio St games.

 

[Plebe]

As a 2 seed, ASU was over rated and a gift to Tennessee. If you can't see that I have no words. OSU had injuries and had only 6 players really to use vs. Tenn. Again if you can't see how lucky Tenn was, I have no words. I'm just so thrilled that Tenn has lost and is out of the tourney. Just because a team sprang an upset in the NCAA"s does not make them a top 10 teams, even tho anyone in the final 4 will probably be in the top 5 come the year end rankings.

If ASU was overrated as a 2 seed, who was the team that should have been made a 2 seed in their place? Tennessee beat them on a court where ASU had gone undefeated in the Pac-12 season.

 

[bballnut90]

A disappointing finish for Tennessee after a nice tournament run. Tennessee really missed Reynolds, and Holly did an abysmal job coaching today. The game was 63-59 in the 4th quarter, and Syracuse goes on a monster 23-4 run to turn it into a blowout. Not one timeout was called the entire 4th quarter. Not after Cuse scored 8 straight points in less than a minute to turn the 4 point lead into a 12 point one, not after Te'a Cooper had 3 turnovers in less than 2 minutes, no after Tennessee couldn't break the press, and when they did, they made poor decisions. There wasn't urgency to win the game, it almost seemed like they were content to keep the game close into the 4th and that was a nice consolation prize. Cooper was pretty dreadful today and there were zero post entries, everything was on the perimeter. The reason they did so well against Ohio State is Graves/Russell got touches and looks. Cuse played a great zone, but there were numerous opportunities where Russell had great position and was one on one, but Cooper/other players didn't get her the ball.

Going into next year, I really don't know what to expect. If everyone comes back, they'll once again be strong on paper, not that it means much.

 

[Kaizen]

If you'll check the conversation history, you'll see I was talking about the Arizona St and Ohio St games.

This is what you said:
Tennessee played better against both. They shared the ball well, got good movement on offense, limited turnovers. Everything they hadn't been doing well for most of the season.

I was responding to this post not your past conversations.

 

[msf22b]

I think we can all be big enough to admit that (as a group) we exalted in and were fascinated by Tennessee's ineptitude and misery earlier in the season

And that they performed much better in the NCAA's, credit to their players
And perhaps Sub-Deacon, Margo.
The sideline coaching still appears to stink.

 

[BigBird]

In the closing moments of the Syr/Tenn game Deshields let go with one of the most bizarre passes (let me clarify, attempted passes) I've ever seen. What was she trying to do here? There is no Tenn player within 5 yards of where she throws this?????

Perhaps she was committing an act of violence against the face of the 'Cuse player with whom she was ostensibly preturbed.

...or it was what is sometimes called an "errant pass."

 

[Kaizen]

Dare I suggest it was a deliberate attempt to hurt another player? Revenge?

Yes, that should be a deliberate foul with attempt to throw the ball to the opponent body.

 

[EricSD]

If ASU was overrated as a 2 seed, who was the team that should have been made a 2 seed in their place? Tennessee beat them on a court where ASU had gone undefeated in the Pac-12 season.

ASU was not undefeated in their league. They had 2 losses. They were awarded the 2 seed, and that's up to the committee based on the season performance. They had losses to Kentucky, Oregon State, South Carolina, UCLA, Cal, and Virginia Commonwealth. They had wins over Syracuse, Stanford X2 and UCLA - all ranked teams. It didn't help that Tenn played over their heads and were much more athletic than ASU. To go by 2 games, 1 of them against a depleted 3 seed, does not make them a great team. When the seedings came out, I thought (and said) that Tenn got a gift of ASU in their region and likely would advance just based on superior athleticism. Then the old Tenn showed up vs. Syracuse - the one that lost 13 games this season. Great day for WCBB!

 

[Plebe]

ASU was not undefeated in their league. They had 2 losses. They were awarded the 2 seed, and that's up to the committee based on the season performance. They had losses to Kentucky, Oregon State, South Carolina, UCLA, Cal, and Virginia Commonwealth. They had wins over Syracuse, Stanford X2 and UCLA - all ranked teams. It didn't help that Tenn played over their heads and were much more athletic than ASU. To go by 2 games, 1 of them against a depleted 3 seed, does not make them a great team. When the seedings came out, I thought (and said) that Tenn got a gift of ASU in their region and likely would advance just based on superior athleticism. Then the old Tenn showed up vs. Syracuse - the one that lost 13 games this season. Great day for WCBB!

Oregon State had 2 losses as well. ASU tied for first with OSU, and both teams were 2 games ahead of both UCLA and Stanford. If the "bad" Tennessee had shown up to play that game, they would've lost. ASU has thrived on pressure man-to-man D, but Tennessee handled the pressure very well, unlike in so many games where they'd turn the ball over.

ETA: ASU was undefeated at home in conference games. That was what I meant. They hadn't lost a home game in about 3 months.

 

[toadfoot]

(( yawn ))

My sentiments exactly!

 

[pacific 44]

Is the answer that all 4 coaches would be men? Just a wag on my part(wild a$$ed) guess.Not a swag(scientific wild a$$ed)guess.

 

[Gus Mahler]

Perhaps she was committing an act of violence against the face of the 'Cuse player with whom she was ostensibly preturbed.

...or it was what is sometimes called an "errant pass."

We are on the same page; see post #125.

There is no way that was a pass to a teammate. And it was so hard from such a distance as the SU player could not catch it, only block it.

And then DD loped innocently back to the other end, as though nothing strange had happened.

 

[baggerbob]

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...!!!

Couldn't be more pleased to see Tenn bow out, and not just by a bit, but in a blowout. People who think Tenn made such great strides in the NCAA's need to remember they squeaked past the 10 seed, beat a highly over rated ASU team tailor made for Tenn (a bunch of slow white girls), ran into an undermanned OSU team, and then got blown out by Syracuse. Tenn showed they are a top 25 team, but they are a long way from being an elite team. and with no recruits coming in, and losing who they lose, I will be surprised if they even squeak into the top 10 next year.

But hey, anyone who wants to really believe that Tenn is back can go enjoy the orange kool aid with the Tenn fans. Watching them this tourney showed me that they are a top 20 team. Nothing more. And they are decidedly NOT back.

The SEC needs to recruit better guards, ones who can run an offense, and create for others. Dawn, and Holly both all the emphasis is pound it inside, as UConn has shown , you need a well rounded attack with multiple players who can attack the defense.

 

[EricSD]

The SEC needs to recruit better guards, ones who can run an offense, and create for others. Dawn, and Holly both all the emphasis is pound it inside, as UConn has shown , you need a well rounded attack with multiple players who can attack the defense.

Bingo. A GREAT quote by Doris Burke - I'm paraphrasing and going from memory but it went something like this...

2 of the past 3 years Dawn's team has lost to the 4 seed as a 1 seed. She said at the beginning of the year that she was a better offensive coach, but that does not appear to be the case. She needs better guards and better shooters.

Me again - the problem for SC is that they lose ALL their guards and only bring back the out of control Cuevas. Are Alisha Gray and Kaela Davis the answers at the guard spots? I think SC will be a lesser team than they were this year. SC fans disagree but you don't graduate the starting guards they did and expect to be the same (unless you are UCONN of course!!)...

 

[msf22b]

ASU was not undefeated in their league. They had 2 losses. They were awarded the 2 seed, and that's up to the committee based on the season performance. They had losses to Kentucky, Oregon State, South Carolina, UCLA, Cal, and Virginia Commonwealth. They had wins over Syracuse, Stanford X2 and UCLA - all ranked teams. It didn't help that Tenn played over their heads and were much more athletic than ASU. To go by 2 games, 1 of them against a depleted 3 seed, does not make them a great team. When the seedings came out, I thought (and said) that Tenn got a gift of ASU in their region and likely would advance just based on superior athleticism. Then the old Tenn showed up vs. Syracuse - the one that lost 13 games this season. Great day for WCBB!

No one said (at least I didn't) that they were a grest team
Let's acknowledge that the girls, got themselves out of the dog house, stopped shooting themselves in their feet
And played some reasonablely competitive basketball for a fortnight.

 

[Nuyoika]

Tennessee getting to the Elite 8 isn't all that surprising. You only have to have your crap together for 3 games to do that. Now... if they had won today that would have been really impressive. Not because of the bracket they were in, not because they were expected to be a #1 seed preseason, but because they have not won 4 games in a row since before the conclusion of their OOC schedule. Essentially, if they had won today it would have been a statistical anomaly for this team.

 

[toadfoot]

Bingo. A GREAT quote by Doris Burke - I'm paraphrasing and going from memory but it went something like this...

2 of the past 3 years Dawn's team has lost to the 4 seed as a 1 seed. She said at the beginning of the year that she was a better offensive coach, but that does not appear to be the case. She needs better guards and better shooters.

Me again - the problem for SC is that they lose ALL their guards and only bring back the out of control Cuevas. Are Alisha Gray and Kaela Davis the answers at the guard spots? I think SC will be a lesser team than they were this year. SC fans disagree but you don't graduate the starting guards they did and expect to be the same (unless you are UCONN of course!!)...

It's part of the Summitt legacy. Her formula for success was defense and rebounding and it worked well for a long time because there weren't as many skilled offensive players in the women's game. It was much easier to recruit women that were athletic and long. Because it worked so well for so long most SEC coaches adopted the same formula, however the women's game has progressed beyond that, but the SEC by an large has not.
As evidence look at the remaining teams. All have skilled offensive players.

 

[Nuyoika]

It's part of the Summitt legacy. Her formula for success was defense and rebounding and it worked well for a long time because there weren't as many skilled offensive players in the women's game. It was much easier to recruit women that were athletic and long. Because it worked so well for so long most SEC coaches adopted the same formula, however the women's game has progressed beyond that, but the SEC by an large has not.
As evidence look at the remaining teams. All have skilled offensive players.

Summit's influence on the SEC reigns supreme that's for sure. The coaches in the SEC don't realize it though. They put themselves on so much of an island that it doesn't become apparent until they play a quality opponent out of conference or get to the tourney. Then they realize the games in the rest of the country are played faster, with a lot fewer fouls, and a lot more scoring. For example Vic Schaefer was saying in practice he was chastising his team for their pace... Why now? I have watched enough SEC games to know you let them walk the ball up the court all season long. Same goes for Dawn Staley. Her team got to the free throw line this year more than any other team in the country but her team can't make free throws. So why work so hard to get teams in foul trouble just to miss the free throws? The top 5 teams in the SEC need to beef up their OOC schedules next year and for the love of all things basketball pleases leave teams .500 and below in the SEC out of the tourney and let a couple more mid-majors in.

 

[Gus Mahler]

for the love of all things basketball pleases leave teams .500 and below in the SEC out of the tourney and let a couple more mid-majors in.

Hear, hear!

 

[geneticrex]

i am sure I will get some backlash for saying this but having graves, carter, and reynolds hurt at the same time just made this impossible. TN was never going to win like that. if they had been healthy, TN would be headed to Indy.....NO DOUBT

I, on the other hand, am sure I will not get too much backlash for saying this since facts is facts, but had Shea, Svetlana, Bird, Cash, Thomas, Green and Doty not sustained season and/or career ending injuries, and EDD, Walker and McCormack not all transfered out in Maya's senior campaign, UCONN would be chasing title number 17.

 

[Kaizen]

I, on the other hand, am sure I will not get too much backlash for saying this since facts is facts, but had Shea, Svetlana, Bird, Cash, Thomas, Green and Doty not sustained season and/or career ending injuries, and EDD, Walker and McCormack not all transfered out in Maya's senior campaign, UCONN would be chasing title number 17.

17 NCs, that is too much to handle...LOL

 

[geneticrex]

17 NCs, that is too much to handle...LOL

Especially for dan small 'd'-small 's' shaughnessy.

 

[Vowelguy]

Quentin Hillsman is among my least favorite coaches. I rooted for him today because he helped set the following milestones.

1. Tennessee's Final Four drought now spans 2009-2016.
2. TENN finished with a record 14 losses (19-14).
3. They failed to win 20 games for the first time since the mid 1970s (Pat summitt's second season).

2 and 3 are not correct. Vols finished 22-14

 

[toadfoot]

Really? I shouldn't have penciled the Bears in, true. But wouldn't you agree Baylor is a strong favorite?

No.