Shea and Vandy make the tourney

[PhilipVU94]

Can someone help me understand why an 11 seed would still have to compete in a "play-in" game? And there's even a "play-in" game for a 12 seed. I can understand- sort of- a play-in for the lowest seeds, the 16's. But why in the world would relatively well-seeded teams be forced into a play-in? Seems really random and unfair to those teams.

It's purely about NCAA balance of power -- politics, if you like that word, or consensus-building, or compromise.

The NCAA is nothing more than a thin veneer over committees made up of college ADs and conference commissioners -- and at the highest level, presidents. As the number of conferences has grown and threatened to take away the number of at-large spots, some new compromise had to be worked out. So far in both women's and men's, the compromise has been half the First Four of AQs (16-seeds) and half of AL (usually 11s, occasionally 10s or 12s).

There isn't some cabal full of external folks called "NCAA" that bosses the schools around and just can't make up its mind who is more deserving. It's the schools themselves who have negotiated a balance of power that everyone is sorta-OK with...

...for now, which will all fall apart when the football factories secede and ruin everything else. But for now, I'll enjoy it even in its imperfection.

 

[PhilipVU94]

...while the 11's and 12's got picked by a bunch of people sitting in a room looking at spreadsheets.

Rhetoric aside, hopefully the spreadsheets reflect on-court performance. Would you prefer a tournament with only AQs? No Stanford, Ohio State, UCLA, LSU... ?

 

[fomalhaut]

Rhetoric aside, hopefully the spreadsheets reflect on-court performance. Would you prefer a tournament with only AQs? No Stanford, Ohio State, UCLA, LSU... ?

No, I'm perfectly fine with at-large bids, but the weakest of those should be assigned to all of the play-in games.

 

[Urshurak]

Vanderbilt beats Columbia. They overcame pretty poor shooting and gave up a 12 point lead towards the end, but dug in enough to get the win. Congrats on the first win Shea!!!! On to Baylor!

 

[ochoopsfan]

 

[msf22b]

The curmudgeon in me reappears.

Among others, it was hard to root against Columbia, the only group who actually defeated Carla's Ivy juggernaut. Nice team, nice coach...and a reestablished fan base in my ole home town...cool

They actually outplayed Vandy for much of the first half and didn't give up at the end.

But where was Shea's offense? That's all they do?
Looked like Tennessee of 5 years ago...pass it around the outside, heave up long shots or feed the post and hope for an O board putback. Is the SEC disease catchy?

I must admit to not having watched them through the season as they compiled an excellent record but this was a disappointing performance. And unlikely to be a one-off: they'll get killed in the next round or two if that's all they do.

I know, we're all loyal to UConn alums and Shea is one of the best.

But based on last night; Carla's coaching can be found somewhere in another light-year of the galaxy.

Before you get outraged....Watch the first half
I'm not exaggerating. It was not great. Far from it.

 

[Dillon77]

I watched most of this game. While I admire Shea and Vandy, my rooting interest was Columbia because all the females in my family have/are doing grad work on the Upper West Side. Still, some takeaways:

• While I thought Vandy had slightly better overall athleticism, it only appeared in a few areas: Sacha Washington down low. Columbia had no answer for her: 8-9 shooting from the field and 15 rebounds. Slightly faster "burst" speed, which resulted in a number of 50-50's.
• Still, Columbia and Vandy were tied on the boards -- the Henderson sisters, both 6'0" guards -- were tough all night.
• When Columbia last came back, Iyana Moore sealed with deal with a dagger 3 with time expiring on the time clock. She went 4-7 from three. Clutch shooter.
• Justine Pissot is getting more and more floor time. Didh't shoot well last night, but at 6'4", she can be a weapon. KLS should work with her a lot before next season.
• Abby Hsu had a horrible shooting night (3-14 overall) and that's probably the difference. Vandy had something to do with this initially, but she got her looks in the 2nd and just was off. Tough way to go out, but -- hey -- what a great career.
• All is not lost: all the other starters are coming back. The Henderson sisters and Cecilia Collins will all step up at the guard positions. They need some height to battle the Sacha Washingtons of the world, like when they had Kaitlyn Davis, now at Southern Cal. Megan Griffith will figure it out...she's terrific.
• BTW, I didn't think Vandy was not without an offensive half-court set. In the first half, they did a fine job of penetrating down the middle and hitting forwards under the boards. The Lions made it tougher in the 2nd by extending pressure.

Baylor is not a big team, so it will be interesting to see how Vandy does next.

 

[Bald Husky]

The curmudgeon in me reappears.

Among others, it was hard to root against Columbia, the only group who actually defeated Carla's Ivy juggernaut. Nice team, nice coach...and a reestablished fan base in my ole home town...cool

They actually outplayed Vandy for much of the first half and didn't give up at the end.

But where was Shea's offense? That's all they do?
Looked like Tennessee of 5 years ago...pass it around the outside, heave up long shots or feed the post and hope for an O board putback. Is the SEC disease catchy?

I must admit to not having watched them through the season as they compiled an excellent record but this was a disappointing performance. And unlikely to be a one-off: they'll get killed in the next round or two if that's all they do.

I know, we're all loyal to UConn alums and Shea is one of the best.

But based on last night; Carla's coaching can be found somewhere in another light-year of the galaxy.

Before you get outraged....Watch the first half
I'm not exaggerating. It was not great. Far from it.

For someone who admits they haven't seen Vandy play much this year (probably once), it's hard for me to imagine anyone criticizing them. UConn doesn't always play well, sometimes we are great, sometimes not. This is the NCAA tournament, and as Shea said it can be a grind. Last night it was, as they didn't play their best. I know because I have seen them play many times this year. I congratulate Shea and her players for getting an NCAA win, the first in many years. UConn wins games when they don't play well, and Vandy just did the same, which leads me to believe that if they do play well, they can beat Baylor. It's funny, I just saw Baylor play once this year and they were terrible, but I know they are more a capable team than the one I watched months ago. They deserve credit, so I am giving it to them now. Anchor Down!

 

[BRS24]

As Jimmy V once said, survive and advance. The first NCAAT victory is always the hardest if you've never been there before.

✅ First 20 win season since 2012-13
✅ First NCAA tournament appearance in a decade
✅ First NCAA tournament win since 2013

Go "Dores!

 

[FormerCTrez]

Congrats to Shea and the coaching staff for guiding the ‘Dores to a grind-it-out kind of game. And congrats in winning her first NCAA game as a Head Coach. It was also awesome to see Kyra and Lou as coaches, on the Vanderbilt’s bench cheering on the team. The goal this time of year is to win and move on, or lose and go home. This team accomplished the former. Congrats again!!

PS: I just had A crazy thought — what if the ‘Dores and Huskies have to play each other in Portland? Okay, I took a deep breath and reminded myself of not thinking too far ahead.
Beat wishes to the ‘Dores. Best wishes to the Huskies. Go UConn!!

 

[msf22b]

For someone who admits they haven't seen Vandy play

I just couldn't fathom all the standing around
Am concerned it's endemic.

 

[WiseWillie]

It's purely about NCAA balance of power -- politics, if you like that word, or consensus-building, or compromise.

The NCAA is nothing more than a thin veneer over committees made up of college ADs and conference commissioners -- and at the highest level, presidents. As the number of conferences has grown and threatened to take away the number of at-large spots, some new compromise had to be worked out. So far in both women's and men's, the compromise has been half the First Four of AQs (16-seeds) and half of AL (usually 11s, occasionally 10s or 12s).

There isn't some cabal full of external folks called "NCAA" that bosses the schools around and just can't make up its mind who is more deserving. It's the schools themselves who have negotiated a balance of power that everyone is sorta-OK with...

...for now, which will all fall apart when the football factories secede and ruin everything else. But for now, I'll enjoy it even in its imperfection.

Here's a crazy suggestion: Eliminate the automatic qualification for conference winners. But there is a reason for including them. I get it. But there is also a downside including bringing in less than qualified competition. Just a thought. OK, let me have your poison. I can take it.

 

[jeff30189]

• Abby Hsu had a horrible shooting night (3-14 overall) and that's probably the difference. Vandy had something to do with this initially, but she got her looks in the 2nd and just was off. Tough way to go out, but -- hey -- what a great career.

Slightly off topic, but does Abbey Hsu have a 5th year of eligibility even though she already played four? I think Ivy rules allow for a 5th Covid year if the student athlete enrolls as a grad student at the institution. Pretty sure Hsu won't get drafted to the WNBA, so maybe she comes back to a REALLY strong established core for another run.

 

[Dillon77]

Slightly off topic, but does Abbey Hsu have a 5th year of eligibility even though she already played four? I think Ivy rules allow for a 5th Covid year if the student athlete enrolls as a grad student at the institution. Pretty sure Hsu won't get drafted to the WNBA, so maybe she comes back to a REALLY strong established core for another run.

Abby knew of the Ivy "Four years only" rule and was pro-active about it:
She opted not to enroll at Columbia University due to the cancelation of the season and the COVID-19 pandemic in '20-'21. By doing that, she was not at Columbia at all. So, she got her four years at Columbia. But, by not being in college during the NCAA "covid" year, she probably doesn't qualify for the waiver.

BTW:

• Ivy rules don't allow for a fifth year (four years and done), which is why you see so many Ivy seniors enter portals, from hoops to lacrosse.
• Hsu surprisingly made a U.S.A. international team over many P5 players recently, so she may have a shot at getting drafted/getting a tryout. Given how tight competition is, I suspect we'll ready about her in an international league to work on her game.

 

[HuskyNan]

There is a thread about Columbia on the General board

 

[Urshurak]

They lost to Baylor today. Nice season though. A lot to be proud of.

 

[Zarathustra]

They lost to Baylor today. Nice season though. A lot to be proud of.

It is tough to have a "play-in" game and then the short turn around. I suspect
Vanderbilt had some tired legs against Baylor. Shea and Vandy will be primed for next year...
"no play-in game"!!! It could happen! Go Commodores! GREAT SEASON!

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[Blueconn]

I really want to root for Columbia but I cannot root against Shea. It's a conundrum.

Had conundrum once. Once they straightened out my enigma it all went well. Good luck.