A 6 seed is actually a very good spot. I would rather be under seeded as a 6, compared to being over seeded as a 4 or 5. As a 6, you would avoid the 2 seed until the Sweet 16, and you would not have to worry about the 1 seed until the Elite 8, provided they make it that far.
Good thinking. Avoiding the top 8 teams is the path of least resistance. Outside of the top 8 tournament teams, the competition levels out. A Sweet 16 run would be a good outcome for this year and allow Hurley to show further progress. This would still be a difficult achievement with the current playing roster dilemma.
A line-up change appears warranted, but each alternative choice has a downside. If Whaley sits, UConn becomes small upfront and weaker defensively. Even with him on the floor, Xavier had more front court length which helped negate Sanogo offensively; and Martin would go from being a good-size, physical 3 to an undersized 4. If Jackson sits, there's only been Cole as a reliable ballhandler. And as others have pointed out, If Jackson and Whaley are both playing, that's two players the opposing team can sag off of to double down on Sanogo. Polley understands his role, but he is limited dimensionally (shooting 3s only when open and reliable at the foul line) and not consistently able to dribble-drive, cover quicker players or rebound.
Until Jackson demonstrates consistent ability and willingness to take open outside shots and/or drive to the basket to score or dish off, I favor giving Hawkins a little more PT (maybe 2 to 4 additional minutes each half) to help him gain confidence and hopefully further develop another consistent outside scoring option that could help limit the doubling down on Sanogo. Hawkins currently has a weaker handle than Jackson, but the coaches can drill and prioritize in practice that he and Martin stay focused on assisting Cole with good ball movement.
