Final Four or Championship #6

[DaMuttzNutt]

Programs that have won back-to-back championships:

Oklahoma State (then A&M) (1945-1946)
Kentucky (1948-1949)
San Francisco (1955-1956)
Cincinnati (1961-1962)
UCLA 7x (1964-1965, 1967-1973)
Duke (1991-1992)
Florida (2006-2007)

It's a small list, filled mostly with all-time great programs, coaches, or players.

Duke and Florida returned their squads for year 2

We are going to run it back after losing 4 of our top 7 players

 

[Waquoit]

Duke and Florida returned their squads for year 2

We are going to run it back after losing 4 of our top 7 players

It's really incredible.

 

[KembaRunner]

Programs that have won back-to-back championships:

Oklahoma State (then A&M) (1945-1946)
Kentucky (1948-1949)
San Francisco (1955-1956)
Cincinnati (1961-1962)
UCLA 7x (1964-1965, 1967-1973)
Duke (1991-1992)
Florida (2006-2007)

It's a small list, filled mostly with all-time great programs, coaches, or players.

Wonder if this motivates Danny

 

[KembaRunner]

Duke and Florida returned their squads for year 2

We are going to run it back after losing 4 of our top 7 players

Agree but also the game is so different now. No powerhouse team ever returns their players anymore + the portal changed everything. Not saying it will happen, but there’s a scenario where a few steller portal recruiters who can also coach (Danny obv one of them) can reload every year and always be super competitive.

Not saying it’s not amazingly impressive, just that we’re not playing the same game that Coach K and Billy D were playing.

 

[RichCTBB]

Title or bust. We have a perfect record in championship games. If we were say, 4-1, then a loss in the final wouldn’t other me as much. I like the clean sheet in finals matchups.

 

[tzznandrew]

Agree but also the game is so different now. No powerhouse team ever returns their players anymore + the portal changed everything. Not saying it will happen, but there’s a scenario where a few steller portal recruiters who can also coach (Danny obv one of them) can reload every year and always be super competitive.

Not saying it’s not amazingly impressive, just that we’re not playing the same game that Coach K and Billy D were playing.

Donovan was already playing a different game than K. Noah would have been #1 in 2006, but only came back because he was someone who didn't need the cash. Most players by mid-2000 who were great prospects weren't coming back for junior years.

K coached and pretty much everyone stayed 4 years. Mid-90s became 3. Late 90s became 2 as they competed with HS prospects.

 

[KembaRunner]

Donovan was already playing a different game than K. Noah would have been #1 in 2006, but only came back because he was someone who didn't need the cash. Most players by mid-2000 who were great prospects weren't coming back for junior years.

K coached and pretty much everyone stayed 4 years. Mid-90s became 3. Late 90s became 2 as they competed with HS prospects.

Billy on the OGs podcast was great. He said the 3 headed monster came back because Taurean Green wasn’t going to get drafted and they felt a sense of responsibility to him. It was all of them or none.

And I’m sure Noah having money didn’t hurt his decision to come back.

 

[storrsroars]

So who is setting up the Boneyard Bracket Challenge at ESPN this year?

no idea if there's a private group yet, but there was a the-boneyard.com which i'd joined before and threw in with again, although there's only one other in it at the moment

 

[cp176]

I don't think this team is as good as last year's, in terms of raw talent. Sanogo was automatic when we needed a basket and Clingan was brought in after the tenderizing began. Cam is a high IQ shooter with great fundamentals, but he's not Hawkins. I guess Castle can be compared to Andre but Andre was an intangible machine that the entire team fed off of. The road should be harder this time.

I loved watching last year's team compete. I think that they over achieved. I think that this year's version is far far deeper than last year's team. Both teams share the toughness and commitment to defense and overall team play that you have to buy in to if you are going to play at UCONN. I think that it is a program that is separating itself from others. Not every AAU star across the land can play here. I think that they represent all of New England very well and if you are good enough and you choose another destination other that UCON - God bless you it is your loss.

 

[Travelman6]

It's tough because UConn got a challenging bracket. Theyve already had a good year though. I don't know who I'd rather see in the second round, nwestern or FAU, leaning towards nwestern and Auburn is very good if they reach the s16. Then another solid b10 team or Iowa State potentially in the e8. (Hope Washington st and duquense pull off some upsets, uab and Yale too. Imagine Yale getting to the s16 like Princeton did a few years ago to face uconn, that'd be amazing!

 

[REB1094]

Before the season I think I said something along the lines of - give me a BET title and a S16, OR no BET title and an E8. Then I’d be satisfied

But this team has played so damn good that the standard is raised. Championship or bust