Looking for signature wins

[captainron2]

This board is always complaining about the lack of opportunity for signature wins and yet the number 10 team in the country is right down route 6.

 

[Stainmaster]

We played Maine, New Hampshire, Sacred Heart, and UMass Lowell already, and we have CCSU on Wednesday. We don't have the margin of error to include any more New England cupcakes on our schedule. Sorry.

 

[intlzncster]

This board is always complaining about the lack of opportunity for signature wins and yet the number 10 team in the country is right down route 6.

You putting together a pickup game?

 

[CTBasketball]

I for one think Dunn would dismantle our putrid defense.

 

[gtcam]

John Hancock

 

[mauconnfan]

I for one think Dunn would dismantle our putrid defense.

Good news is they couldn't guard us either. Bentil (sp?) would have some fun too though!

By the way who cares about #10?

 

[Kitaman]

I think we should play them always at Gampel. We could use a little brother relationship rivalry, its been boring lately.

 

[lange10]

I for one think Dunn would dismantle our putrid defense.

Our 3 point defense has been suspect the entire season but up until UMass-Lowell we were a top 20 team in defensive efficiency.

 

[Migs]

Dunn would have a field day like Trimble. Doesn't mean Prov wins, but he would be a load to handle with our penchant for hand checking.

Since it's a little late to schedule this game this year, going forward establishing a rivalries with Georgetown, Cuse and/or Nova would be best. P-town crying about being our rival after every time they plucked a midseason win doesn't make me long for the olden days.

Captainron the second, Enjoy your year in the mid top, hopefully the collapse doesn't come too soon.

 

[caw]

This board is always complaining about the lack of opportunity for signature wins and yet the number 10 team in the country is right down route 6.

Knowing UConns luck with scheduling, if UConn had scheduled PC, PC would have lost to URI and Illinois (both games PC could have easily lost). Heck, I bet if PC was on the schedule big Z would have been healthy for Zona and PC wouldn't have that win either.

I love Dunn and think PC could do some damage if Cooley has finally learned how to coach a first round game but please, are you this lonely on the holidays?

 

[champs99and04]

This will likely mark the third straight season that Providence makes the tournament. Even with Dunn gone after this season, Cooley has proven that he knows what he's doing. Assuming they're going to be a perennially relevant program, I would rather schedule them than say, 'Nova. Hell, I wouldn't be opposed to scheduling URI. If Hurley stays put for another couple years, they're going to have some really good teams.

On the topic of Providence, they are beginning to remind me of our 2011 team. It's not a one man show. Ben Bentil has exploded as a potentially elite player, Rodney Bullock is finally healthy, and Jalen Lindsey is slowly coming along. It's too bad Chukwu decided to transfer, because the one piece they're missing is somebody like that.

 

[captainron2]

I just think it's a good RPI game that always draws a full house and is a short bus ride away. I don't see the downside.

 

[caw]

I just think it's a good RPI game that always draws a full house and is a short bus ride away. I don't see the downside.

As a PC fan why would you?

The downside is that UConn plays/ed Texas, Maryland, Syracuse, Georgetown, Michigan, OSU, and Gonzaga OOC.

PC has played Arizona, Illinois and MSU OOC.

UConn has no room for a home and home and PC won't play solely at UConn. That and players only get four years (Dunn)

 

[caw]

This will likely mark the third straight season that Providence makes the tournament. Even with Dunn gone after this season, Cooley has proven that he knows what he's doing. Assuming they're going to be a perennially relevant program, I would rather schedule them than say, 'Nova. Hell, I wouldn't be opposed to scheduling URI. If Hurley stays put for another couple years, they're going to have some really good teams.

On the topic of Providence, they are beginning to remind me of our 2011 team. It's not a one man show. Ben Bentil has exploded as a potentially elite player, Rodney Bullock is finally healthy, and Jalen Lindsey is slowly coming along. It's too bad Chukwu decided to transfer, because the one piece they're missing is somebody like that.

There are some similarities to 2011. Dunn to Kemba, Bentil to Oriakhi, Lindsey to Lamb. They are missing that tall African center who "...love(s) this team." Also UConn started OOC that year undefeated against a much tougher slate in Maui. Now if PC had beaten MSU, then the 2011 comparisons could blast off (equating MSU this year to UK in 2011).

 

[August_West]

I think we should play . It's good for New England hoops. Saying home and homes with PC isn't good for us makes us sound like pathetic Syracuse fans. I never want to sound like a cuse fan so bring it on.

 

[caw]

I think we should play . It's good for New England hoops. Saying home and homes with PC isn't good for us makes us sound like pathetic Syracuse fans. I never want to sound like a cuse fan so bring it on.

If UConn were in a better conference I would agree with you but with the current environment UConn finds itself in, it has to play the odds that a power five, or teams like Gonzaga, Nova not in the P5, home and home will be better for the program. Not only for RPI and but also for exposure and recruiting.

It's a poor comparison to Cuse because Cuse has the luxury of being in a good basketball conference.

If UConn ever gets into a good basketball conference again, PC would be one of my first calls to set up a home and home.

 

[Palatine]

I think that UConn basketball should play a game in Boston every year or almost every year. UConn/PCU at the Garden would be a way to do it. For some reason, the university ignores the Boston market. That has been a great recruiting ground for us and there are a lot of TVs in the market. It would also help to have a presence in Boston to make us more attractive to a better conference.

 

[imno1]

I think we should play . It's good for New England hoops. Saying home and homes with PC isn't good for us makes us sound like pathetic Syracuse fans. I never want to sound like a cuse fan so bring it on.

This series makes so much sense.

 

[August_West]

If UConn were in a better conference I would agree with you but with the current environment UConn finds itself in, it has to play the odds that a power five, or teams like Gonzaga, Nova not in the P5, home and home will be better for the program. Not only for RPI and but also for exposure and recruiting.

It's a poor comparison to Cuse because Cuse has the luxury of being in a good basketball conference.

If UConn ever gets into a good basketball conference again, PC would be one of my first calls to set up a home and home.

Eh, The "recruiting area" thing is so old. In this day and age you get exposure by playing good games and winning them. Everything is televised or available nationally for every big program. I personally dont see playing Gonzaga or Nova as any better than playing PC, except for a possible slight RPI difference. A recruit from Washington State or Philly knows exactly who UConn is and will come here if it makes sense for them, whether or not we schedule the Zags or Nova.

Now I would add the following addendum though. If they drop through the toilet bowl like UMess did, then we drop them from the schedule like we dropped UMess. As long as they are top 1/2 team in their conference, it makes sense to me.

 

[sdhusky]

I just think it's a good RPI game that always draws a full house and is a short bus ride away. I don't see the downside.

And once every 25 or 30 years, PC is relevant as well.

 

[mauconnfan]

I just think it's a good RPI game that always draws a full house and is a short bus ride away. I don't see the downside.

Let's not try to say this is an automatic RPI game by any means. PC isn't normally a much better RPI game than Quinnipiac when the season ends. They are good this year and I would love to have seen these 2 teams play but you can't guess who's going to be good and when with team like PC.

Bentil was "wow" good last night 32 and 16. Now that's improvement!

 

[alexd]

And once every 25 or 30 years, PC is relevant as well.

This is their first top 10 ranking since 1978. You read it right.

 

[Tenspro2002]

I think we should play them always at Gampel. We could use a little brother relationship rivalry, its been boring lately.

That's the thing about little brothers, they don't make for much of a rivalry. It's kind of an oxymoron. That said, I'm all for upgrading 2-3 of our cupcakes.

When are we going to learn that, in the AAC, we can't afford to have 6 horrible teams (current RPI, out of 351: 229-NH, 256-UM-L, 298-Furman, 305-Maine, 341 - Sacred Heart, 350-CCSU), when our conference already handcuffs us with 167-Houston(x2), 185-ECU, 244-USF, 247UCF(x2), 271-Tulane(x2).

If we replaced Maine, Sacred Heart, and Central with Hofstra, URI, and Yale, we'd get a serious RPI boost, a better test for our guys, and some more interest from the fans (the UM-Lowell game was an embarrassment for everyone involved, to be honest, fans and players alike).

FYI, we're currently 98 in the RPI. Obviously it's early, but this shows how the early season schedule has not helped. (Georgetown is currently 152 in the RPI, not doing us any favors.)

 

[tcf15]

Such a little brother move when Providence reaches top 10 for first time since 1978 and first thought is to post on the Boneyard. While not as trollish, this thread does remind me of that time last year when seanmc94 randomly posted an alley oop highlight of Dunn and Chukwu.

I like Bentil a lot - watched highlights and he's doing the Jeff Adrien "Give me that sh t" on every block.

 

[1999.2004.2011]

Looking at it retrospectively, yeah it would be nice to have Providence on the schedule this year instead of Ohio State, Georgetown or Texas because Providence is ranked higher than either of those three teams (not including Michigan, Syracuse or Gonzaga because that was a tournament) but these series are usually booked multiple years in advance. History says that all three of those teams are better than PC in most years, but this year is the exception to the rule.

Honestly, I'd rather see UConn play series against the following former Big East teams than PC:

1. Syracuse
2. Pitt
3. Georgetown (already on the schedule)
4. Villanova
5. Louisville
6. West Virginia
7. St. Johns (MSG)
8. Notre Dame
--------------------------------------
9. PC

Not trying to be mean here or completely dismiss the idea, just trying to give an honest opinion.