LSU-Tennessee game (merged thread)

[Phil]

UT had a great showing vs Lipscomb however.

I didn't think Lipscomb played Texas.

 

[Phil]

Tennessee will be a 2 for the NCAA's, lose a couple more they could drop to a 3

May be a little early to count Tennessee out of the one seed possibilities. Of the eight one seeds in the last two years, half had two or more losses at the time of the selection.

That, of course, is a purely numerical observation, and it makes more sense to look at the current candidates. I think we can safely assume that CT makes the list. Stanford is close to a lock. They only have a single loss. Maybe they stumble against Cal or Colorado, but even if they do, they have two losses and a win over TN, so hard to imagine that TN gets a one seed over Stanford.
However, Notre Dame and duke have two games against each other for certain, and likely a third. In fact, there only way there isn't a third is if one or the other loses early in the conference tournament. So Duke has a loss, and you have to add three losses minimum to the two schools. The best possible outcome is that they both end with two losses, which is the same as TN, so not a certainty that they both get a one seed ahead of TN. If they don't split the right way, one will have at least three losses. That alone makes it very possible that TN gets a one seed ahead of one or the other, without even consdering the possibilityy that MD or UNC or Syracuse or FSU manages an upset.

Another scenario is that ND stumbles against TN, I don't think that is likely, but they have a track record of losing to TN even when seemingly of similar strength.

As Nan points out, even if ND and Duke beat up on each other and knock one of them down to a two seed, Baylor might grab the last one seed ahead of TN, but if CT does its job, Baylor will have two losses as well, so that's not a certainty.

Of course, if Kentucky or LSU hangs anther loss on the LVs, a one seed is out of the picture, but I think it is a bit too early to count it out now.

 

[msf22b]

I'm thinking that you are correct.

More than likely Baylor. They might only lose to Uconn going forward.

Using my great prediction skills (I'm never right)

1 seeds - Uconn, Stanford, Duke, Baylor
2 seeds - ND, Kentucky, Louisville, Maryland

Where do you put UTenn Doggy, a three?
I just can't see the conference foes coming out ahead of ND.

 

[Phil]

One Lady Vols fan take on the Game. Margo uploads a video after each Lady Vol Game.

Sometimes she's objective and other times........!!!!!

Margo is entertaining, but some things crack me up.

She says she doesn't want to harp on the three point pline, as an introduction to harping about the three point line (plus another mention) She says how great LSU is at stopping post players as an intro to exclaiming how great Izzy did in the post.

But she is right about some things. Other SEC teams no longer see TN as THE team (you need) to beat.

She says TN should have won. Well, yes, LSU had zero wins over ranked teams. Why they were ranked is a mystery, although now they'll keep their ranking.

She thinks the loss will drop TN to ten or beyond. Not a chance.

 

[Phil]

Where do you put UTenn Doggy, a three?
I just can't see the conference foes coming out ahead of ND.

I think DD's predictions skills are quite good- better than mine, but when it comes to TN, I think there a tiny bit of bias.

 

[Phil]

I don't disagree the T's were huge but I don;t think they cost TN the game. While it seems obvious that 4 points on T's in a three point game is the difference, those T's also occurred at the start of the come-back, and I don't think that's a coincidence.

JMHO, but if it had just been the T by Simmons, it wouldn't have been that close. The T by Holly helped fire up the team for a comeback, and they almost pulled it off.

 

[Tonyc]

Don't worry about A'ja and the Wilsons. First UConn has nothing to prove. Uconn and their records speak for themselves. The Wilsons got to see UConn up front. A'ja got to play with Breanna Morgan and MoJeff on team USA. She knows what they can do and she knows them. Tenn however did have something to prove and showed what they are all about losing to LSU. You only get one chance to make a good first impression and Tenn blew it last night. I have to believe Tenn was trying to hype the Wilsons appearance by retiring Parker's number which could've been a publicity stunt to help recruiting and attendance. If you disagree. Hey we all know how Tenn operates.

The blaming of the refs and being down 15 pts at home to a team with a lot less talent is not the refs fault. Especially when Tenn went to the foul line much more then LSU. For me it shows me Tenn cant adjust to what the refs are calling, even though, with LSU leading LSU committed more fouls then Tenn. LOL Really how is it with less then 3 minutes in the game a team that doesn't play any defense can make up double digit points without fouling?????????? Hey but that's what happens when you play at Tenn. Thank goodness LSU had a 15 pt lead and thank goodness for Tenn they weren't on the road.

My concern is that some of the Tenn boosters and fans are contacting A'ja through email, face to face and texting. I have to wonder if the NCAA is watching them and if this would be a violation. Im sure if UConn was doing this Tenn would embarrassedly be filing another 37 page report with the SEC and NCAA. LOL Gotta wonder if they went to Wendy's. LOL

A'ja is a politically correct young lady. I've heard that from friends of mine. She knows how to answer questions when asked and is not revealing where she's going to play. Tenn appears to be pulling out all stops to make a great impression on her however last night, their first impression, was a complete disaster. When comparing Tenn to UConn....well there is no comparison, only hope for Tenn. I am told its between SC and UConn. As A'js's dad said in an interview. If it comes down to BB its UConn. IMO if it doesn't well SC is leading. SC is looking pretty good pre SEC conference games. I guess the waiting will come down to how SC finish's the season. IMO if SC falters UConns chances are better. If SC makes a great showing in the SEC tourney and NCAAs then perhaps A'js decision will be more difficult. However with UConns incoming class it appears to me that, its all set up for A'ja.

As far as the NCAAs. I don't see UConn or Stanford losing a game the rest of the season and even if they do lose one game the ACC and Big 12 will have a lot of creditability with the selection committee and the SEC won't. Yesterdays loss by Tenn was a big blow even if they do win the SEC and imo right now that will be difficult for them. Tenn continues to struggle against mediocre teams. With all their talent and all those AA's they don't play together. Last night showed a lack of team development and a lot of individual one on one playing. I said preseason they weren't a top 5 team. Their stuggles are proving that. How do you beat Tenn? If you have a good perimeter shooting team they don't defend the perimeter well. Last night LSU shot 50% from 3 pt and most of those shots were uncontested. If you can penetrate they will foul you as they don't know how to play defense underneath. If you take away their fast break they struggle in a half court offense. When you look at the stat sheet some Tenn kids shot the ball well and some didn't and that's the way it is with almost any team win or lose. The stats that stood out to me were turnovers. Tenn had 21 turnovers. Another stat LSU shot 50% from 3.

One last point Graves was out for Tenn. However LSU had their bigs out in the first half , so why didn't Tenn capitalize? KML and Tuck were out for UConn and UConn rolls past 4 top ranked teams 3 on the road???? Gotta wonder if Nicki Caldwell, CVS and Jim Foster will be receiving a phone call...soon.

 

[Wbbfan1]

I see Ky beating Tenn twice. Once in regular season and then again in Conference tournament. If I'm Tenn, I'm also concerned about Graves' injury, if she's out for any extended period of time that's really going to hurt.

May be a little early to count Tennessee out of the one seed possibilities. Of the eight one seeds in the last two years, half had two or more losses at the time of the selection.

That, of course, is a purely numerical observation, and it makes more sense to look at the current candidates. I think we can safely assume that CT makes the list. Stanford is close to a lock. They only have a single loss. Maybe they stumble against Cal or Colorado, but even if they do, they have two losses and a win over TN, so hard to imagine that TN gets a one seed over Stanford.
However, Notre Dame and duke have two games against each other for certain, and likely a third. In fact, there only way there isn't a third is if one or the other loses early in the conference tournament. So Duke has a loss, and you have to add three losses minimum to the two schools. The best possible outcome is that they both end with two losses, which is the same as TN, so not a certainty that they both get a one seed ahead of TN. If they don't split the right way, one will have at least three losses. That alone makes it very possible that TN gets a one seed ahead of one or the other, without even consdering the possibilityy that MD or UNC or Syracuse or FSU manages an upset.

Another scenario is that ND stumbles against TN, I don't think that is likely, but they have a track record of losing to TN even when seemingly of similar strength.

As Nan points out, even if ND and Duke beat up on each other and knock one of them down to a two seed, Baylor might grab the last one seed ahead of TN, but if CT does its job, Baylor will have two losses as well, so that's not a certainty.

Of course, if Kentucky or LSU hangs anther loss on the LVs, a one seed is out of the picture, but I think it is a bit too early to count it out now.

 

[Tonyc]

One Lady Vols fan take on the Game. Margo uploads a video after each Lady Vol Game.

Sometimes she's objective and other times........!!!!!

Wow what a great fan. Bottom line you can name all the "IFs" and could've beens that you want but Tenn gave up 80 pts to LSU. No Defense. That's it. I do agree with Phil that the "T"s might have got Tenn going. But as of right now there is a new meaning to "Go Lady Vol's"

 

[Phil]

I watched most of the game, but missed Graves leaving. Was it an injury in the game, or a pre-existing injury flaring up?

 

[doggydaddy]

Where do you put UTenn Doggy, a three?
I just can't see the conference foes coming out ahead of ND.

Well if they are not a one or two, I'd guess a three is about right.

They could lose 2-3 more conference games and the game against ND. They were down 15 with 4 minutes left at home against a good but not great LSU team.

And Phil, I don't think that is bias.

I'm still waiting to see how good ND really is.

 

[UcMiami]

To think TN will roll through the SEC without further losses is pretty unrealistic - I can see them struggling against KY at KY, SC at SC, LSU at LSU and throw in a few other clunkers against the middle. Not saying they lose all of those, but they could easily have 2-4 additional regular season losses and end up on the wrong side of a #10 ranking.
For the other #1s - I could see the ACC having two or an off thought ... Lousiville - if they lose three times to Uconn but win the rest it would be a situation like ND used to face - yes four losses, but three of them to the #1 consensus team in the country.
I have a hard time believing Baylor will escape the B12 unscathed and expect a loss to Uconn so ... maybe a 4+ loss team. The Big12 is really hard to figure - Baylor is the only team of the 1 or 0 loss teams to have played a ranked team and they lost their only game. And while Oklahoma has 4 losses at least they have played 3 ranked teams and a few other good teams. Baylor, Iowa State, Ok State and West VA played a progression of really bad teams to rack up their gaudy records. (Now that is something for Dunn to complain about!)
On Edit - whoops - forgot about KY - it is possible they could roll the SEC, I suspect not, but possible and I give them a better chance to do so than TN because I think they have better coaching. If that happened then I think they get the fourth #1 and even with one regular season and a tournament loss they might still get it.

 

[Phil]

Well if they are not a one or two, I'd guess a three is about right.

They could lose 2-3 more conference games and the game against ND. They were down 15 with 4 minutes left at home against a good but not great LSU team.

And Phil, I don't think that is bias.

I'm still waiting to see how good ND really is.

Maybe. You have Maryland above TN. I'd like to see signs that Maryland deserves their ranking. The next win they have against a ranked team will be their first. I won't be surprised if they beat UNC, but that will be some measure of whether they deserve to be considered in the top 8.

 

[Zorro]

There seems to be some sentiment over on Volnation for trying to hire JW away from Louisville. I was just wondrin;
1) what kind of offer do you think it would take to tempt him to move over to the hot mess that is the UT Athletic Dept.? Or is there that much money?

 

[UcMiami]

There seems to be some sentiment over on Volnation for trying to hire JW away from Louisville. I was just wondrin;
1) what kind of offer do you think it would take to tempt him to move over to the hot mess that is the UT Athletic Dept.? Or is there that much money?

Interesting, but ... I think they would find it very hard to come up with enough money. Seems like Jeff has a good situation with great facilities and support from the school for HIS program. Why inherit Pat's program and try to bring it back, when he can continue to develop his own program in the what will be the strongest BB conference in the country? And I am pretty sure Louisville is making Jeff happy financially as well.
Bottom line: I think he wants to be the next Geno, not the caretaker for Pat.

 

[Phil]

What's he making now? I could see it.

 

[Adesmar123]

What's he making now? I could see it.

There seems to be some sentiment over on Volnation for trying to hire JW away from Louisville. I was just wondrin;

I think they want Geno..

 

[Zorro]

Walz has a base salary of $775,000, with $8,000 in endorsements, according to his contract obtained by USA TODAY Sports.

 

[meyers7]

My concern is that some of the Tenn boosters and fans are contacting A'ja through email, face to face and texting. I have to wonder if the NCAA is watching them and if this would be a violation. Im sure if UConn was doing this Tenn would embarrassedly be filing another 37 page report with the SEC and NCAA. LOL Gotta wonder if they went to Wendy's. LOL

Yea, let's not go there.

As far as the NCAAs. I don't see UConn or Stanford losing a game the rest of the season

I think one of them will. In fact I'm gonna go out on a limb and guarantee that one of them will lose a game this season.

 

[Zorro]

I think they want Geno..

Maybe Geno's head on a platter.

 

[Phil]

Walz has a base salary of $775,000, with $8,000 in endorsements, according to his contract obtained by USA TODAY Sports.

Thanks, I'm rethinking my comments. While I think TN could come up with more, it would have to be a big jump to justify the move, plus UcMiami made some good points.

 

[Wbbfan1]

If I'm Jeff, I jump at the chance to coach the Lady Vols. Including UConn, Lady Vols are the best at supporting their Women's BB program and can't see that changing. Much easier to recruit as the Lady Vols head coach then Louisville. Also it will be considerably easier to win the SEC Conference and get a #1 seed then it will be for Louisville to win the ACC and get a #1 seed.

Now I do wonder if the Lady Vol fanbase would accept Jeff or would they prefer a female and one of their own.

There seems to be some sentiment over on Volnation for trying to hire JW away from Louisville. I was just wondrin;
1) what kind of offer do you think it would take to tempt him to move over to the hot mess that is the UT Athletic Dept.? Or is there that much money?

 

[triaddukefan]

Maybe. You have Maryland above TN. I'd like to see signs that Maryland deserves their ranking. The next win they have against a ranked team will be their first. I won't be surprised if they beat UNC, but that will be some measure of whether they deserve to be considered in the top 8.

I agree about Maryland. Their best wins are Ohio State and South Florida. I think they are a good team.... but they havent done anything this year to show that they deserve a high ranking.

 

[UConnCat]

Interesting, but ... I think they would find it very hard to come up with enough money. Seems like Jeff has a good situation with great facilities and support from the school for HIS program. Why inherit Pat's program and try to bring it back, when he can continue to develop his own program in the what will be the strongest BB conference in the country? And I am pretty sure Louisville is making Jeff happy financially as well.
Bottom line: I think he wants to be the next Geno, not the caretaker for Pat.

Agree completely. Unless Tenn throws an unbelievable amount of money at him -- a scenario I don't see happening -- there's no reason for Walz, a Kentucky native, to leave a program he's building at Louisville in order to coach in Summitt's shadow. What does Tenn offer that Louisville doesn't? Plus, there's the hideous color and the hideous song he'd have to see and hear every day, not to mention looking up at the mural of Pat on the wall of Pratt pavilion.

 

[hussybulldog]

JW will stay. With a nice salary, hold a speedier path than even Geno on winnings, trips to F4s, why not stay and create a legend instead of trying to continue someone else's legend?