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Florida Preview Pod w/ UF Writer
- Thread starter gwhuskyfan
- Start date
Thx. Will watch it later tnt. If I ask for winning lottery numbers can y deliver those too. 😀
willie99
Loving life & enjoying the ride, despite the bumps
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and I don't think we're going to miss 10+ uncontested jumpers
We may very well have #7 if not for him……
You’re technically correct but last year’s team was not winning a title.
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agree. we got a run of a few wins early in the year, but never found any consistncy as the rest of the top teams got a groove. Our best win after that was #29 marquette. we weren't winning 5 in a row (including UF) against KP top 10 teams.
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Lots of excuse making from the UF writer as he talks about the schedule through the first 8 games.
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Doomed by the guy saying they're the worst at something that I'm too superstitious to repeat...
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Florida is benefitting from the defending champs being overrated (almost) every year.
They're still in "prove it" mode as far as I'm concerned.
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This matchup is tough. I have been looking forward to this game above all non-conference games. I get that Florida has lost some games. But you would expect somewhat of a transition when your best/most clutch player leaves. I am curious about how we handle these bigs from Florida. And I am also curious about how we respond to their length when we have the ball. I think Florida and Arizona are the best teams we will face this year. Can I please have Bear for this one?
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Not so sure about that. The 2014 team wasn't the most talented.
Last years team was talented enough. I don't buy the narrative. The tournament is a different animal and things can bounce your way, but teams have to be opportunistic.
We were good enough, Florida was better, but there definitely were opportunities to advance.
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Oh no…
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2014 had the best player on the court every game, the best on-ball defender every game, and a 6-9 dude who could randomly turn into a poor-man's KD. So while we weren't the most talented, we had guys who were matchup nightmares. Our most difficult game was really against St. Joe's because their guard play and big man (who dominated) could compete with ours. Freaking Boatright ruined like 3-4 bigger-name point guards' futures in that run.
It's nice to fantasize, but we were not winning anything last year. We didn't have the guard play or roster to go very far. Our weaknesses showed up in crunch time in that game, when we couldn't guard or make plays down the stretch. The second Golden altered their PNR to the wing instead of from the top of the key; we lost all ability to contain Clayton.
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I'm not dissing the 2014 team. That team couldn't beat Louisville in the league, we lost three times ito them.
Villanova, Florida, Michigan State and Kentucky on paper had very talented rosters.
Nobody saw that title coming. It came out of nowhere. The 2014 team is my favorite team because they were tough and well coached, they had no business winning that title, but did it anyway,
Let me ask you a question, if Willie Caully Stein had played in the title game, do you think the outcome would have been the same? It doesn't matter because you have to play the team in front of you. It doesn't diminish their win because Kentucky was still stacked. But when I say sometimes the ball bounces your way, that's what I mean.
Last years team was good enough to win the tournament. We led the game vs Florida until the 3 minute mark. The team had plenty of talent. Reed, Karaban, McNeeley, and others. The 2025 team wasn't as good as the two previous UConn teams, but it was capable of cutting down the nets
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I hear you on 2014. With WCS, it might be a different game. Also, it would've been a different game if there hadn't been a terrible call on DD when we were up 15. Regardless, to me, the 14 team would beat the 25 team fairly easily. Bazz was the best player on the court every time he took the court. He knew it, the opposing team knew it, and the rest of our team knew it. Boat was a dominant defensive player and, at times unstoppable offensive player. DD is a more talented AK/LM, and AO is at least an equal to Tarris. Last year's team didn't know if they could inbound the ball and was shellshocked most of the year.
In the end, I think the team with the better (best) guards wins. Clayton was the best guard in the country and the most "Bazz-like" player I have seen since 2014. Even if we had beaten FLA, I think our mediocre guard play would've been the death of us. We literally started a guy who was playing on one leg, a guy who couldn't really do anything but shoot, and a guy who was completely out of his league in terms of athleticism and systemic role.
Moral of the story, we played very well against an excellent Florida team and could have easily won that game. But I do not think there was any chance we could win it all. 2014 was very unlikely, but I think it was very apparent that our guards could absolutely dominate a game. The announcers even stated that we just needed one interior player to balance things out, where we could beat absolutely anybody.