News Flash Regarding AP Poll

[CocoHusky]

Good morning yarders.

Somebody talk to me please.

PRESEASON rankings/polls that are voted on and released to the public BEFORE a single game is played. What does this mean?

The pre-season purpose serve a good purpose in that it energizes the relative fan bases and gives each something to look forward to. This year there are more contenders so the pools will have a good effect for WCBB. UCONN is kind of different in the sense that only here would anybody consider it a diss to rank UCONN anything other than #1 as opposed to a place like South Carolina that could revel in being ranked #1 for the first time in program history. I don’t think the polls should be based solely on how you did last year, but how you did last should be a factor.

Here's my biggest gripe: How can a team be ranked higher right now, than another team that finished the tournament in a higher position than they did?
I don’t think you have a legit gripe because the tournament is unique format with neutral site games, cross country, cross conference games that make upsets possible. It was a slew of upsets that led to 3 teams making their first appearance in the FF last year.

What changed between late March or early April and now?

• Injuries-TN (Cooper & Carter) July 2016? Turner ND had surgery
  
  
• Transfer-White at FSU-immediately eligible to play. Stevens & Camara makes UCONN better just by being there to practice for a year. White from SC to Texas leaves SC without much post depth.
  
  
• Recruits have been on campus for a summer session and enough practices now for coaches to confirm (or deny) what they thought they had.
  
  
• Summer basketball including the Olympics and USA tournaments have made Nurse & Romero (FSU) better players.
  

 

[donalddoowop]

You're complaining that a player who has played most of her college career with an injured shoulder isn't diving for loose balls? Really? Think about that for a second.

And the irony is that she got that shoulder injury by, wait for it...wrestling for a loose ball!

Why do you respond to this poster? What you say is true. What that poster says has little fact to it.

 

[Dillon77]

PRESEASON rankings/polls that are voted on and released to the public BEFORE a single game is played. What does this mean?

The pre-season purpose serve a good purpose in that it energizes the relative fan bases and gives each something to look forward to. This year there are more contenders so the pools will have a good effect for WCBB. UCONN is kind of different in the sense that only here would anybody consider it a diss to rank UCONN anything other than #1 as opposed to a place like South Carolina that could revel in being ranked #1 for the first time in program history. I don’t think the polls should be based solely on how you did last year, but how you did last should be a factor.

Here's my biggest gripe: How can a team be ranked higher right now, than another team that finished the tournament in a higher position than they did?
I don’t think you have a legit gripe because the tournament is unique format with neutral site games, cross country, cross conference games that make upsets possible. It was a slew of upsets that led to 3 teams making their first appearance in the FF last year.

What changed between late March or early April and now?

• Injuries-TN (Cooper & Carter) July 2016? Turner ND had surgery
  
  
• Transfer-White at FSU-immediately eligible to play. Stevens & Camara makes UCONN better just by being there to practice for a year. White from SC to Texas leaves SC without much post depth.
  
  
• Recruits have been on campus for a summer session and enough practices now for coaches to confirm (or deny) what they thought they had.
  
  
• Summer basketball including the Olympics and USA tournaments have made Nurse & Romero (FSU) better players.

Looking at the transfer wire, I agree that White being able to play pronto will make a difference for the Seminoles. Might take a bit to get the flow right (she's not a traditional center by any means), but will help.

I noticed this article on a Raoul post about Natalie Romero, the guard who transferred from Nebraska to Washington, seeing if her waiver for playing immediately will be approved. If so, that will help the Huskies. Won't be able to pound Plum into submission.
Husky women start kicking tires on bench players in exhibition opener

On the mend. How Turner responds to the surgery (so far, so good we hear) is a critical factor for the Irish, but another one worth noting is that Ali Patberg, the redshirt freshman, finally stepped into a scrimmage after Fall break. She was rusty, but having a legit sub point guard (not a Mabrey stepping over) will be a good development, considering Allen did get into some foul trouble last year.

Frosh newbies. Every team has 'em. How they all mesh, amend, develop their games, hang in during the long season is why we all watch the games.

Can't wait for the commit watch to take a back seat to the games (although I will be checking the wires Wednesday between 3 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. for news out of Queens).

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

My wife took a theology class one time with someone whose "saying" was "most reverent best guess". Preseason rankings are just that (reverent or not) - "best guesses".

I have no problem understanding UConn being #1 - as I said in the thread about the coaches poll. You take an expected final four team, reigning NC and add Geno and it is understandable. It is also understandable (provided they are still in the top 4) for someone to think that -Geno notwithstanding - UConn might not be the best team right now.

And regardless of what a poll responder uses as their criteria (current status or future result), their guess is always based on "right now" - because I don't think any of them can see the future.

 

[BroadwayVa]

UConn will not be #1 in upcoming AP Poll.

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Hot dang!! How can that be---WE OWN that spot!! I hope Geno makes Muffy pay rent while she is keeping it warm for Geno...

 

[Orangutan]

Why do you respond to this poster? What you say is true. What that poster says has little fact to it.

Lack of self control, mostly.

 

[meyers7]

Seems much more accurate than the other polls we've seen so far.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Lack of self control, mostly.

Gonna be alright Silly O:

 

[southbendcane]

I guess crowd sourcing isn't a valued resource here.

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I don't get why nd is ranked so high? They lost their 2 best scorers leaving Turner who is overrated and can't play a whole season without getting hurt and their star guard who disapears in big games. They couldn't even make the final 4 last year, so what am i missing?

Uconn will move right up to #2 after they smoke Fla and baylor the first week.

Lost their 2 best scorers? Mabrey and Huffman were not one of the leading scorers. Cable was but Turner Allen .Westbeld ,Ogumbawale and Marina Mabrey are 5 of the top scores all returning. They also added a All American back from injury in Patberg and 2 more All Americans that were 2 of the top 6 players in the country in Young and Boley along with 2 other solid 3 year roll players in Nelson and Johnson. They only lost one game all of last year to U Conn and beat at least 10 ranked teams and were a #1 seed until they got upset by Stanford. If that one loss is all you are judging them by then you are missing a lot. 3 #1 seeds didn't make the Final Four last year. Not just the Irish.

 

[BobbyJ]

Good morning yarders. Today is going to be a great day!!! The smell of basketball is finally in the air.

I've got a serious question that I really need some clarification on. PRESEASON rankings/polls that are voted on and released to the public BEFORE a single game is played. What does this mean? Is where a team finished the season last year (and who they lost to) given any consideration? - Are the rankings based on where the voters feel the teams will finish the season? - Are the rankings based on where the voters feel the teams rank at the beginning of the season?

Is the criterion for ranking the teams the same across the board and used by all of the voters?, or do the voters use their own individual criterion (which may be skewed or biased in some cases) when making their selections? Everyone looks good on paper at the start of the season. Hope springs eternal. Some teams are ranked in the top 5 that got knocked out of the tournament early last year. Why are they ranked high again to begin the season? Some of them lost key players to graduation. Since no games have been played yet, How do voters say or determine that this team is better than another team this season, even though a highly ranked team lost games they were suppose to win last season to supposedly a lesser team?

Do they throw last season's results out the window, and everyone starts out on a level playing field? It doesn't look that way to me. Except for the 1-2 teams that return their entire roster from last year, most teams are not the team that finished the season last year. Seniors have left, freshmen have come in. Last year's team is not this year's team.

If it is, how can you rank a team in the top 4 that didn't make the final 4 last year? It's for this reason that I don't put much stock in preseason rankings. Are they voting, keeping a team's "reputation" and past history of success in mind when they do??? It seems to me that the same teams are ranked in the top ten every year, regardless of how they finished the prior season, or regardless of player defection(s), injuries, a coaching change, etc., that may have an effect of the team's success this season. Here's my biggest gripe: How can a team be ranked higher right now, than another team that finished the tournament in a higher position than they did? A team that lost to a lower seed, AND..that has not played a game yet, but they're ranked higher than the the team that finished the tournament in a higher place (4th place, 6th place, 2nd place, etc) or finish than they did. What changed between late March or early April and now?, keeping in mind that no games have been played yet??? What gives here???

Somebody talk to me please.

Carnac, you're a smart guy. You already know the answer to all these questions. Pre season and in season polls are meaningless. They are only good for sports bar arguments. The only poll that matters is the one AFTER the NCAA tourney.

 

[triaddukefan]

Well since you all think nd is so great lets put our money where our Keyboards are. I bet you uconn goes farther in the ncaa tournament then nd, any takers?

I'll put up Boneyard Trophy Points in lieu of money.... you game ?

 

[choochoo]

Pretty safe bet on your part. There's no way Notre Dame can go farther than UConn. From South Bend to Dallas is 1,023 miles. Storrs to Dallas is 1,693 miles. UConn will go 640 miles farther.

Who ever goes further ...now that's a different issue.

​

Very keen gramatical observation.

 

[southbendcane]

I'll put up Boneyard Trophy Points in lieu of money.... you game ?

Well since you all think nd is so great lets put our money where our Keyboards are. I bet you uconn goes farther in the ncaa tournament then nd, any takers?

"I'm Your Huckleberry "

 

[SCGamecock]

I think the Rankings are good.....For the Huskies. No particular pressure on the Big-3 Less Huskies now.
No reputation to defend ; No pressure when they meet the teams Ranked above them (SC, ND, BU). The Rankings
gives the Huskies time to jell and mature before Rankings really count. Now when the Huskies and those teams ranked above them meet all the pressure will be on the higher ranked team. And I think that's better for these young
Huskies.

These Huskies can now play a little more loose , gain experience , mature , and grow. And be in a better position to
gain back the No.1 Ranking in April..When Rankings really count.

UCONN is actually ranked higher than SC in 3 out of 4 polls (Coaches, AP, and ESPNw), including the two that actually matter (USA Today Coaches poll and the AP poll). The only poll I've been able to find where SC outranks UCONN is the USBWA (United States Basketball Writers Assoc.) poll compiled by Mel Greenberg, a popular WBB writer.

UCONN will not go into that game pressure free regardless. They will be defending their home court against a SC team that will want to take their lunch money by the time February rolls around (just like UCONN did to them the past 2 years). UCONN will be working their butts off to make sure that doesn't happen. Both teams should be operating at or near peak levels by then and if SC's talent is operating at the level of their potential then that should be scary for any team in the country. SC has the talent, but still, a lot of people are in wait-and-see mode with the Gamecocks. They need to put that chip on their shoulder and play to prove a point this year.