ESPN: Gonzaga’s “20 Years Of Greatness”

[swami7774]

That’s what they’ve titled an upcoming piece on the Zags.
Now, they’ve got a nice team and have been steady performers, but “greatness”? How many titles have they won in that 20-year span? If they won 2 or 3, that’s one thing. Or if they won 4...but of course, only 1 school in the last 20 years has done that...

 

[8893]

That ‘98-‘99 Gonzaga team almost gave me a great big heart attack, as I watched the game with two Final Four tickets in my pocket...

 

[boog204]

I'd consider it greatness... For twenty years a mid-major has been one of the absolute top teams in the country with for the most part, mid-level recruits or transfers. Mark Few is a fabulous coach and anyone who rips them/him b/c they haven't won a title is missing the point I think.

 

[Robertelamin]

That’s what they’ve titled an upcoming piece on the Zags.
Now, they’ve got a nice team and have been steady performers, but “greatness”? How many titles have they won in that 20-year span? If they won 2 or 3, that’s one thing. Or if they won 4...but of course, only 1 school has done that in the last 20 years...

They are a good story but that title is a joke. 1 final four.

 

[swami7774]

That ‘98-‘99 Gonzaga team almost gave me a great big heart attack, as I watched the game with two Final Four tickets in my pocket...

Same here. They would NOT go away.

 

[swami7774]

I'd consider it greatness... For twenty years a mid-major has been one of the absolute top teams in the country with for the most part, mid-level recruits or transfers. Mark Few is a fabulous coach and anyone who rips them/him b/c they haven't won a title is missing the point I think.

I heartily disagree. “Greatness” is WINNING. Getting close is not “great.”

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

If that’s greatness, what have we done the last 20 years?

 

[Robertelamin]

 

[swami7774]

If that’s greatness, what have we done the last 20 years?

Another example of how the word “great” has lost its meaning due to overuse.

 

[scrappy2.0]

Ive always equated Gonzaga as a second coming of a west coast uconn. Like Uconn they went far but never finished the job. But they never lost the momentum as a program--same we we hadnt until we won it all. Theyre trip has been longer but Im hoping they get it this year

 

[Walker11]

I'd consider it greatness... For twenty years a mid-major has been one of the absolute top teams in the country with for the most part, mid-level recruits or transfers. Mark Few is a fabulous coach and anyone who rips them/him b/c they haven't won a title is missing the point I think.

Their consistency is unbelievable. We have immediately seen the challenges of competing while in a sub par league and the WCC is a shell of the AAC.

 

[Robertelamin]

Greatness at work.

 

[huskiesouth]

Yep, Zags going down to St. Mary’s in WCC finals.

 

[uconnfan68]

Their consistency is unbelievable. We have immediately seen the challenges of competing while in a sub par league and the WCC is a shell of the AAC.

This I agree with.

 

[UCDaveD]

Who's bubble just got burst?

 

[storrsroars]

Who's bubble just got burst?

Pretty confident St. Mary's was in anyway, so no bubbles burst. Some seed lines might change though.

 

[UCDaveD]

Pretty confident St. Mary's was in anyway, so no bubbles burst. Some seed lines might change though.

Not according to the latest bracketology. Lunardi has them in the Next 4 Out pile.

 

[storrsroars]

Not according to the latest bracketology. Lunardi has them in the Next 4 Out pile.

Everyone needs to remember that Lunardi's "97% accurate" only pertains to his bracket on day of the selection show, not all those brackets before. Odds are pretty good that with six days to go, at least two teams he's got in there aren't going. Probably more than that.

 

[uconngb]

Everyone needs to remember that Lunardi's "97% accurate" only pertains to his bracket on day of the selection show, not all those brackets before. Odds are pretty good that with six days to go, at least two teams he's got in there aren't going. Probably more than that.

Yeah, the 97% thing is a total farce. What it really boils down to is getting about 5-6 teams right. If you get two wrong, you’re more like 60%. But ESPN has figured out how to hoodwink people.

 

[UConnNick]

Pretty confident St. Mary's was in anyway, so no bubbles burst. Some seed lines might change though.

There's no way Saint Mary's was in as an at large. Somebody else will be staying home and watching on TV. They just stole somebody else's at large bid.

 

[RayIsTheGOAT]

Everyone needs to remember that Lunardi's "97% accurate" only pertains to his bracket on day of the selection show, not all those brackets before. Odds are pretty good that with six days to go, at least two teams he's got in there aren't going. Probably more than that.

Well if he's 97% correct on the last day before Selection Sunday, surely he would be roughly 97% correct on his mid-January bracket if the season ended that day?

 

[Ts5034]

Ive always equated Gonzaga as a second coming of a west coast uconn. Like Uconn they went far but never finished the job. But they never lost the momentum as a program--same we we hadnt until we won it all. Theyre trip has been longer but Im hoping they get it this year

When the dust settled and the AAC was formed, many UConn fans thought we would be the east coast version of Gonzaga...a storied program and perennial top 10 team dominating an unimpresive conference year after year. That has obviously not been the case, yet.

Our 6 years in the AAC has made me appreciate what Mark Few has done at Gonzaga. The AAC is a much more competitive conference than the WCC, but the bottom line is that its not easy to win at that level every single year.

 

[intlzncster]

Our 6 years in the AAC has made me appreciate what Mark Few has done at Gonzaga. The AAC is a much more competitive conference than the WCC, but the bottom line is that its not easy to win at that level every single year.

It helps a lot to have a good coach.

 

[storrsroars]

Well if he's 97% correct on the last day before Selection Sunday, surely he would be roughly 97% correct on his mid-January bracket if the season ended that day?

Strange but fair point I guess. However, we - including Lunardi - don't really know how final NET ratings will be employed since this is the first time they're being used.

So I'll appeal to logic here... If an at-large team in the 30s in NET can't make the cutoff, then what's the point of having the NET in the first place? It would seem to me that if Q1 wins and Q3/4 losses are so important, that should've been addressed in initially formulating the NET algorithm. Seems pretty easy to do. If St. Mary's wasn't in the field, then the NCAA failed in its job by foisting a crappy RPI replacement on college hoops fans.

 

[swami7774]

Yep, Zags going down to St. Mary’s in WCC finals.

But they exhibited "greatness" while losing.