Joe Lunardi now has us as one of the last four in

[HuskyBoi]

BE is obviously a huge inprovement over AAC but it is not P5 (and most of these pundits seem to think this has been a down year for the conference - - I think 8th in conference RPI currently) and the whole system favors the P5 schools unsurprisingly.

Look at Maryland’s resume. They are currently 8th in the conference at 14-10 (8-9) yet I think Lunardi has them as an 8 seed. Their quality wins are all in the B10 and they are 4-5 on the road. But, when you start the season with 6 or 7 teams from your conference ranked and you beat them that is automatically a quality win and when they beat each other none of them really fall in the NET rankings. I am not saying that a sweep of Iowa isn’t impressive or that Maryland isn’t one of the best 30+ at large teams out there but they have an advantage with the preseason rankings.

it really comes down to how many bids you think our conference gets? I worry that we lost the 5th bid to an 8th bid to a P5 conference. At 4 NBE teams, we are right there but we could miss out.

you nailed it so hard. once you rank a team they're going to be viewed as gold all season like illinois, wisconsin, just blatantly overrated teams that look good/get in because of their high starting point in rankings

 

[Ant3411]

Indiana's final 3 games are against against Michigan, Michigan State, and Purdue - decent chance they lose all 3 in which case I would assume they are not in the conversation with 12-14 record.

 

[BlueDogs]

I am actually concerned about the makeup of this committee. I understand they have to leave the room when they are discussing their program but there is nobody in here vouching for the Big East.

NCAA.org - The Official Site of the NCAA

www.ncaa.org

you nailed it so hard. once you rank a team they're going to be viewed as gold all season like illinois, wisconsin, just blatantly overrated teams that look good/get in because of their high starting point in rankings

Self perpetuating country club. The only justice is no matter how many teams they stack in the tournament they ultimately take a beating. Happens every year. Last Natty for the Big10 was MSU in 2000 and before that Michigan in the 89 and Indians in 87.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

i like how, as more and more here, paying closer attention as we reach the finish line, realize that the entire field is highly sketchy, and 'The Year of El-Stinko CBB' becomes clearer. feels like a hot team will be the ultimate champ. why not us?

 

[HuskyHawk]

Does it bother you that no one outside of the UConn bubble agrees that UConn has a bid in the bag? Does UConn get something extra for not firming its bid up?

Nobody inside the UConn bubble thinks we have a bid in the bag. But we do think the team will take care of business and beat the two teams it should beat and possibly beat Seton Hall. If we win all three, we have a bid in the bag. If we win the two, plus one or two in the BET, we also get in.

 

[SportsFan88]

So he isn’t a clown anymore?

 

[Brochacho]

The Bracket Project - Ranking the Bracketologists

Lunardi ranks 55th, why people pay attention to him is beyond me

Ok - but the three most accurate brackets have UConn out, 12 and 11. So he's not far off. We've got work to do.

 

[SubbaBub]

In the bag means losing 4 straight and still getting in. Nothing is in the bag.

We control our own destiny. Win the. Ext 3 and we are in. Lose and sweat it out.

Our resume is very AAC like, not many good wins, only no bad losses this time around.

1 top 25 win and 1 top 50 win isn't enough to showboat.

 

[bendm]

what a crackpot

 

[Marat]

So he isn’t a clown anymore?

He's still a clown.

Does Joe do anything else except bracketology ?

 

[gtcam]

UConn needs to win because the teams like Duke Kansas and MSU are getting late quality wins and the NCAA will not keep them out with a ,500 record

 

[JohnFSilver]

What's dumb about bracketology is that the Huskies have to win more games to get in. If they stopped today, sure 11 seed. But, they need to win 3 more games, and that will move them up a couple of lines to the 9 or 10 seed.

 

[Hi-Low]

Ok - but the three most accurate brackets have UConn out, 12 and 11. So he's not far off. We've got work to do.

I think some of those haven't updated since 2/22. I think 11 is fine but I'm more in the 10 seed camp right now as some other brackets have us, but UConn has work to do for sure. Beat Marquette we should solidify & then need 1 more.

The beefs I have with Lunardi are minor....I think UConn should be in his "last bye" category at minimum right now though.

 

[olehead]

CBS's Jerry Palm currently has us as an 8 seed taking on the 9 seed Terrapins. Same bracket as the Zags.

2024 NCAA Tournament Bracket Predictions - Bracketology - College Basketball

CBS Sports is helping you get ready for March Madness with the latest news, picks, and predictions for the 2024 NCAA Basketball Tournament Bracket.

www.cbssports.com

 

[billybud]

Beat Maryland and the reward for eating all of your peas is playing Gonzaga next game

 

[Hi-Low]

Beat Maryland and the reward for eating all of your peas is playing Gonzaga next game

Yes UConn prefers a 7 or 10 seed please unless an 8 or 9 seed is the only table available.

 

[businesslawyer]

He's still a clown.

Does Joe do anything else except bracketology ?

Yes. He's an Assistant (or Associate) Sports Information Director at St. Joes. He's also a heck of a good guy. Does interviews for free about college hoops with anyone who wants to talk to him. When my son was at GW, he came on my son's show one afternoon for half an hour and couldn't have been more gracious.

 

[ecasadoSBU]

With the way things have gone for the Big East this year I can't help but think about how bad covid19 has been for this league (Please, I know covid19 is much more than a basketball issue. Save yourself the non-basketball comments).

(1) The Big East was freaking loaded last year with 3 top-2 seeds and the best conference RPI/NET and has nothing to show for it, (2) UConn's entry to the league got deflated big time with the lack of fans and covid19 uncertainty, (3) the league has played very few inter-conference games this season and its hurting in the RPI/NET rankings as a result - yes the league is having a down year but its has never been below Top-5 (2019) in its current configuration and has mostly been top 2/3 since 2013 so I can't resist attributing the current top-7 RPI ranking to the lack of games played.

I hope the NCAA fairly takes that into account. This league is deserving of 5 bids. No way the B1G deserves 10+ bids in such a unusual year

 

[Dooooooomed]

 

[UCTitleTown]

College basketball is so mediocre this year. There are only a few strong teams. Without home court advantage, look at how many losses the Top 25 teams have. Such a weird year.

 

[Ewekon]

Two reasons I'm not clutching the rosary right now. One, I don't own one. Two, we're good, we're gonna win out.

5 in a row starting tomorrow. Then I feel more than comfortable.

 

[HooperScooper]

5 in a row starting tomorrow. Then I feel more than comfortable.

I hate all this bubble talk.

 

[HeGotGame]

With the way things have gone for the Big East this year I can't help but think about how bad covid19 has been for this league (Please, I know covid19 is much more than a basketball issue. Save yourself the non-basketball comments).

(1) The Big East was freaking loaded last year with 3 top-2 seeds and the best conference RPI/NET and has nothing to show for it, (2) UConn's entry to the league got deflated big time with the lack of fans and covid19 uncertainty, (3) the league has played very few inter-conference games this season and its hurting in the RPI/NET rankings as a result - yes the league is having a down year but its has never been below Top-5 (2019) in its current configuration and has mostly been top 2/3 since 2013 so I can't resist attributing the current top-7 RPI ranking to the lack of games played.

I hope the NCAA fairly takes that into account. This league is deserving of 5 bids. No way the B1G deserves 10+ bids in such a unusual year

I do not get how anyone can say Seton Hall should be in the tournament. They played 3 decent teams out of conference and went 0-3, they have lost to Gtown, Butler and PC, and their best win is us. Their resume stinks.

The league deserves 4 teams max.

 

[uconngb]

We win the last 3 games we are a lock. Guaranteed. Not even an issue and I can’t believe anyone is making it an issue. 11-6 in the BE with Bouk out for 8 of those games is beyond reproach or speculation. People need to chill.

 

[UconnU]

I think we have to win out and get a couple games in the big east to be comfortable

Our biggest problem is that we just didn’t play enough games. Like why the hell didn’t we play a makeup game Thursday? Hopefully they heavily take the Bouknight situation into account. We look like a top 25 team with him.