Here we go - Selection Monday

[MilfordHusky]

That's terrific. Rice is a tremendous institution of higher learning.

I have no true ties to Rice, other than picking them as an interesting 2nd team after watching their basketball team play UConn in Houston. It's my dream to see Rice and UConn at the College World Series.

That would be cool. Rice won in 2003, with a fabulous pitching staff. They have a handful of MLB players and their 3B was a very high pick by the Nationals this year.

 

[MilfordHusky]

If we have Rutgers, Kentucky, and Miami in our bracket, we should practice against the press. We'll need Tiff at full strength.

In my view, if Kentucky does not get easy baskets off of TOs, they can be offensively challenged. Against Miami, force Williams to take low percentage shots as she too often does. Johnson will be one of the best players we face if we get Miami.

 

[rocky rococo]

The thing with Miami is that with all the attention Johnson and Williams draw, they have what every really good team has, a significant third scorer, the girl with the Swedish name. She can pile up points in a hurry, too.

 

[triaddukefan]

The thing with Miami is that with all the attention Johnson and Williams draw, they have what every really good team has, a significant third scorer, the girl with the Swedish name. She can pile up points in a hurry, too.

Its too bad for Miami that they lost their 3rd best player to an Achilles tendon, PF Morgan Stroman back in late January. She was averaging about 13 points and 7 rebounds.... and provided some balance to the mad gunners in Williams and the Swedish girl.

 

[boontonbomber]

The new president--from Columbia Law--is raising tuition. It has more than doubled in a decade. They want to be priced like the Ivies. My son was anxious to leave Texas. He's in NYC and will be an honorary BYer on Saturday (but doesn't know it yet).

might more likely be the result of Marsh Rice's endowment being hit by a plummeting stock market . a friend of mine went to Rice in the 60's, and there was no tuition then. did not know that the new president was from Columbia. when my son was at rice, george rupp was the president, who went from rice to become president of columbia .

 

[MilfordHusky]

might more likely be the result of Marsh Rice's endowment being hit by a plummeting stock market . a friend of mine went to Rice in the 60's, and there was no tuition then. did not know that the new president was from Columbia. when my son was at rice, george rupp was the president, who went from rice to become president of columbia .

Yeah, the tuition went from zero to below market to nearly market and will increase a little more. I think it's at $34K now. My son was there in 1997-2001, when it was about $15K. The tuition and scholarship were factors in his decision. He got 2 degrees and paid no tuition.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Its too bad for Miami that they lost their 3rd best player to an Achilles tendon, PF Morgan Stroman back in late January. She was averaging about 13 points and 7 rebounds.... and provided some balance to the mad gunners in Williams and the Swedish girl.

They would have been better with Stroman, no question.

Stefanie Yderstrom is the Swedish player. She averages 11 ppg, but shoots the ball about as well as Williams and Johnson.

 

[boontonbomber]

Yeah, the tuition went from zero to below market to nearly market and will increase a little more. I think it's at $34K now. My son was there in 1997-2001, when it was about $15K. The tuition and scholarship were factors in his decision. He got 2 degrees and paid no tuition.

texas is not my favorite state, but not a bad place to get a good education on the cheap. basically the same situation for my son at rice. it cost almost nothing for him to go there. and then got his law degree at UT, as a resident, and that cost very little.

 

[Kait14]

I think Rutgers is going to have a very tough time with Gonzaga

 

[triaddukefan]

They would have been better with Stroman, no question.

Stefanie Yderstrom is the Swedish player. She averages 11 ppg, but shoots the ball about as well as Williams and Johnson.

She has stepped up her scoring since Stroman went down.... and she has no conscience when it comes to putting up threes.

 

[Bestiarius]

Of course I am not comparing then and now, but my point is Nneka is smart enough and knows how to adjust her game and would not be intimidated, She has a face-up 15 foot shot, and even 3pt threat. I want Griner to come on Nneka, so she can blow past her. Nneka can also get Griner in the air and foul trouble too.

Blowing past BG doesn't seem to help much. She just follows you in and blocks from behind. And since the shooter is going away from BG, there is little chance of a foul.

The question mark in my mind is how will the altitude in Denver affect the teams. Could it be a factor?
Home altitudes of the 1 seeds: Palo Alto 56 feet. Waco 427, Storrs 665, South Bend 725.

 

[cardfan]

Blowing past BG doesn't seem to help much. She just follows you in and blocks from behind. And since the shooter is going away from BG, there is little chance of a foul.

The question mark in my mind is how will the altitude in Denver affect the teams. Could it be a factor?
Home altitudes of the 1 seeds: Palo Alto 56 feet. Waco 427, Storrs 665, South Bend 725.

Nneka is pretty good athlete, I think she can get a shot off around Griner.

Stanford is in very good shape thanks to Susan King Borchardt, Denver altitude won't bother us if we get there.

http://espn.go.com/espnw/womens-college-basketball/7332417/total-access-seems-rattle-susan-borchardt

 

[HuskyNan]

Of course I am not comparing then and now, but my point is Nneka is smart enough and knows how to adjust her game and would not be intimidated, She has a face-up 15 foot shot, and even 3pt threat. I want Griner to come on Nneka, so she can blow past her. Nneka can also get Griner in the air and foul trouble too.

You keep disregarding the fact that Griner is an excellent athlete. Blowing past her is easier said than done. And, again, Griner doesn't foul as much as she did as a freshman.

 

[cardfan]

You keep disregarding the fact that Griner is an excellent athlete. Blowing past her is easier said than done. And, again, Griner doesn't foul as much as she did as a freshman.

I'm not disregarding Griner's athletic abilities, at all. I'm simply acknowledging Nneka's since I see her a lot more than any fan here. I know Griner doesn't foul as much as her frosh year, but if Nneka can get called for two ticky tack fouls and sit for 17 minutes vs. UConn, which took of us out of the game, the same thing could possibly happen to Griner vs. any opponent.

 

[Icebear]

As I have suggested before the worst thing you can give to Griner is space. You must close space into her and attack her arm pits and make her guard you with her elbows. That and drawing her up to back screen her are the best options. Bt simply relying on space to go by her or pass is simply ineffective.

 

[cardfan]

As I have suggested before the worst thing you can give to Griner is space. You must close space into her and attack her arm pits and make her guard you with her elbows. That and drawing her up to back screen her are the best options. Bt simply relying on space to go by her or pass is simply ineffective.

I agree, I'm not suggesting Nneka beat her in open space, but rather if Brit gets close up on Nneka. Glory Johnson is a pretty good athlete and Nneka has owned her for 4 years.

 

[CompSci87]

I certainly hope that we get to see a Stanford vs. Baylor match-up.

As a Stanford fan, I hope we get that far! Assuming the matchup happens...

I want to see the O sisters make shots around the basket over BG.

They are excellent interior passers, so one theme will be getting Griner to commit to one of them, who then passes to the other. I'm sure Griner's length and quickness will make even that difficult, though.

And I want to see the O sisters match up with BG and see how many fouls they pick up trying to slow her down. BG got to practice against Tina Charles and Swin Cash over the summer. I doubt that the O sisters compare to those two.

You'll see Tinkle on Griner some of the time, and also a little of Boothe coming off the bench.

 

[easttexastrash]

I agree, I'm not suggesting Nneka beat her in open space, but rather if Brit gets close up on Nneka. Glory Johnson is a pretty good athlete and Nneka has owned her for 4 years.

Nneka and BG have both owned Johnson. I truly do want to see a Stanford and Baylor matchup. Who knows...I may walk away saying "yep, Nneka IS the best player." And Tara is a tremendous coach. It should be interesting to see what she comes up with.

Nneka and BG may be a wash. Destiny Williams and Pope will match up fairly well with Chiney. They should be able to play fairly physically against her since they have 10 fouls to give between the two of them. They are both good rebounds as well, although not on the scale of either Chiney or Nneka.

The real difference in this game, assuming that it happens, may be the guard play. Sims is such a defensive force and skilled at getting to the basket. The defense that she and BG play is hard to simulate in practice. Hayden and Madden have great length on the wings. Both are right at 6-0 and have great length. Hayden and Madden are also great rebounders, which will be needed.

 

[easttexastrash]

I'm not disregarding Griner's athletic abilities, at all. I'm simply acknowledging Nneka's since I see her a lot more than any fan here. I know Griner doesn't foul as much as her frosh year, but if Nneka can get called for two ticky tack fouls and sit for 17 minutes vs. UConn, which took of us out of the game, the same thing could possibly happen to Griner vs. any opponent.

If Nneka is better than Griner I don't know why you would want BG out of the game on fouls. Sounds like she will be driving about Griner repeatedly making layup after layup. I hope they all stay out of foul trouble so that we can see them go head to head for 40 minutes.

This game could be a good one for Baylor to pull out the zone defense. Mulkey has done that before when BG had a little foul trouble. BG never left the lane and picked up no additional fouls.

 

[cardfan]

If Nneka is better than Griner I don't know why you would want BG out of the game on fouls. Sounds like she will be driving about Griner repeatedly making layup after layup. I hope they all stay out of foul trouble so that we can see them go head to head for 40 minutes.

This game could be a good one for Baylor to pull out the zone defense. Mulkey has done that before when BG had a little foul trouble. BG never left the lane and picked up no additional fouls.

I've never said Nneka is better than Griner. It would be a great match up, one that I want to see vs. assuming Griner would dominate.

 

[easttexastrash]

Gotta say that Lobo got it right..
Hardest regional: Des Moines. For Tennessee to be the 2-seed there (with No. 1 Baylor) after playing really well in the past week or so, that was the one that stuck out to me.
Easiest regional: Kingston. Connecticut's path to a potential Final Four might be the least difficult. Kentucky is probably seen as the fourth No. 2 seed, and Connecticut -- which opens in Bridgeport -- doesn't have to get on an airplane.
Best potential second-round matchup: Top-seeded Baylor against No. 8 seed Ohio State. The consensus on the Buckeyes is that they deserved a better seed.
Team better than its seed: Sticking with 8-seed Ohio State on this one.
Biggest snub: No. 2 seed Duke in Nashville. The Blue Devils were probably expecting to be in Chapel Hill. Instead, they have to potentially play a second-round meeting with Vanderbilt in the Commodores' town.

 

[easttexastrash]

I've never said Nneka is better than Griner. It would be a great match up, one that I want to see vs. assuming Griner would dominate.

LOL. We have both claimed that our respective players should be POY, thus being the best player in the nation. And that is OK. I respect your passion and appreciation for Nneka's talents. I agree with you that those who do not get to see a player play frequently cannot truly appreciate all of the things that the player does.

This has all been a fun debate about POY. I wish Stanford nothing but the best and hopefully we get to see a great match-up in Denver. It would be a great pleasure to watch Nneka and BG mix it up and I am sure that both will make some players where everyone has to just shake their heads and say "too good."

 

[cardfan]

LOL. We have both claimed that our respective players should be POY, thus being the best player in the nation. And that is OK. I respect your passion and appreciation for Nneka's talents. I agree with you that those who do not get to see a player play frequently cannot truly appreciate all of the things that the player does.

This has all been a fun debate about POY. I wish Stanford nothing but the best and hopefully we get to see a great match-up in Denver. It would be a great pleasure to watch Nneka and BG mix it up and I am sure that both will make some players where everyone has to just shake their heads and say "too good."

Thanks for the nice post. Nneka and Griner are friends and respect each other a lot. It would be a great game if they met. Good luck to your Lady Bears making it to Denver.

 

[Kait14]

Gotta say that Lobo got it right..
Hardest regional: Des Moines. For Tennessee to be the 2-seed there (with No. 1 Baylor) after playing really well in the past week or so, that was the one that stuck out to me.
Easiest regional: Kingston. Connecticut's path to a potential Final Four might be the least difficult. Kentucky is probably seen as the fourth No. 2 seed, and Connecticut -- which opens in Bridgeport -- doesn't have to get on an airplane.
Best potential second-round matchup: Top-seeded Baylor against No. 8 seed Ohio State. The consensus on the Buckeyes is that they deserved a better seed.
Team better than its seed: Sticking with 8-seed Ohio State on this one.
Biggest snub: No. 2 seed Duke in Nashville. The Blue Devils were probably expecting to be in Chapel Hill. Instead, they have to potentially play a second-round meeting with Vanderbilt in the Commodores' town.

Biggest snub is Green Bay getting a 7 seed, as well as the team better than it's seed

 

[Icebear]

Gotta say that Lobo got it right..
Hardest regional: Des Moines. For Tennessee to be the 2-seed there (with No. 1 Baylor) after playing really well in the past week or so, that was the one that stuck out to me.
Easiest regional: Kingston. Connecticut's path to a potential Final Four might be the least difficult. Kentucky is probably seen as the fourth No. 2 seed, and Connecticut -- which opens in Bridgeport -- doesn't have to get on an airplane.
Best potential second-round matchup: Top-seeded Baylor against No. 8 seed Ohio State. The consensus on the Buckeyes is that they deserved a better seed.
Team better than its seed: Sticking with 8-seed Ohio State on this one.
Biggest snub: No. 2 seed Duke in Nashville. The Blue Devils were probably expecting to be in Chapel Hill. Instead, they have to potentially play a second-round meeting with Vanderbilt in the Commodores' town.

Not too much better. OSU's post season record is terrible under Foster and they had numerous bad games within the Big Ten. I wouldn't worry much about them. They finished in a four way tie for second place in the B1G with Iowa, Purdue, and Michigan State and lost in the semis of the tournament. That means they were close to fifth place, too. They were 25-6 but not as good as their record losing most of their big games and going 5-5 over their last ten. They only beat Temple 70-66 at home and beat Cal by 2 at Berkeley and lost to 11-19 IL.