alexrgct
RIP, Alex
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2011
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Today, I was thinking about a lot of things. One thing was, "Hey, UConn has a game tonight- that's awesome!". Another had to do with the allure of playing ball for Geno, and specifically, it had to do with how consistently UConn contends for national championships.
But then came another thought: what does it mean to contend for a natty?
Surely, UConn has contended the past seven seasons. I mean, a #1 seed in the tourney and at least a trip to the national semifinals- that must count as contention. But what about a year like 1991 where UConn's appearance in the Final Four was something of a surprise? C'mon- the Huskies only lost by six to a team that only lost the NC game in OT. But does how the team fares when they get to the F4 drive whether that team contended?
Along those lines, what if you lost decisively when you were eliminated from the tourney? Louisville 2009 and 2013, ND in 2014, and (ugh), UConn in 2007, all had their butts handed to them in the round in which they lost. Is making a certain stage of the tourney good enough?
Conversely, what about Baylor in 2013? They were the #1 seed- the #1 overall seed even. But they lost in the regional semis, so does that count as contending? Meanwhile, what about UConn and Tennessee in 1999? Both were #1 seeds, but UConn wasn't the #1 overall seed and also lost in the regional semis. Tennessee probably was #1 overall but lost in the regional finals. Did the LVs contend?
You can probably gather the question I have on which I'd like feedback: what's necessary and what's sufficient to have contended for an NC? From there, we can probably gather in what seasons UConn did and failed to contend from 1991 on.
Thanks for your input!
But then came another thought: what does it mean to contend for a natty?
Surely, UConn has contended the past seven seasons. I mean, a #1 seed in the tourney and at least a trip to the national semifinals- that must count as contention. But what about a year like 1991 where UConn's appearance in the Final Four was something of a surprise? C'mon- the Huskies only lost by six to a team that only lost the NC game in OT. But does how the team fares when they get to the F4 drive whether that team contended?
Along those lines, what if you lost decisively when you were eliminated from the tourney? Louisville 2009 and 2013, ND in 2014, and (ugh), UConn in 2007, all had their butts handed to them in the round in which they lost. Is making a certain stage of the tourney good enough?
Conversely, what about Baylor in 2013? They were the #1 seed- the #1 overall seed even. But they lost in the regional semis, so does that count as contending? Meanwhile, what about UConn and Tennessee in 1999? Both were #1 seeds, but UConn wasn't the #1 overall seed and also lost in the regional semis. Tennessee probably was #1 overall but lost in the regional finals. Did the LVs contend?
You can probably gather the question I have on which I'd like feedback: what's necessary and what's sufficient to have contended for an NC? From there, we can probably gather in what seasons UConn did and failed to contend from 1991 on.
Thanks for your input!