IF you
didn’t get a chance to see it, you missed a great one in Ann Arbor! Crisler was rockin’ and the mood was
electric. I have said that the hate for Bucky
the Badger (in hoops) by Michigan fans is real and it might rival that of
Sparty (naw) and the suckeyes (close).
Those who don’t remember history are doomed to repeat it or
something like that….Wiscy has thrown more deadly daggers in the
hearts of Michigan fans than I care to remember, but last night, no demon
named Brust would arise and toss in a half courter... (I can post this now as it's history and I feel good enough to do so after last night's victory!!!)
I
LOVED seeing Zak Irvin find his game last night and for a minute I
thought he had hit a season high in scoring until I looked it up this AM. Irvin actually scored 20…Against Wiscy in the
Kohl Center about a month ago! So maybe
it’s a cheesehead thing, but let’s hope he’s turned a corner of some sort and
is back on permanent track.
Love
#2: Wagner is becoming the inside guy I
thought he could be. While his defense
is at times unwatchable, on the other end of the court he’s doing
things inside and outside that will give other coaches fits as this season
continues.
And
Walton is the steady rock right now guiding this team…
I recall someone once saying that high scoring teams with
great PG play that also shoot free throws well are a team to watch out for come
March. Let’s see,
High Scoring – Check!
Point Guard Play – Check!
Team Free Throws - Check!
Add to that but Michigan actually is forcing turnovers on
defense!!!
Some
will say that Wiscy wasn’t at full strength….well,
it’s late February and there’s a lot of teams that are gassing or fighting injury. It’s how you manage it right now, boys
and girls. March Madness is right around the
corner and the time for excuses is GONE!
The
Michigan Resume
Record: 17-9
BPI: 23
Kenpom: 28
RPI: 52
Opponent Location Date Day and Time Result
Indiana Home 1-26 Thursday, 9:15 90-60 Blow-Out
Sparty Away 1-29 Sunday, 1:00 70-62
Loss
Suckeyes Home 2-4 Saturday,
6:00 70-66 Loss
Sparty Home 2-7 Tuesday, 9:00 86-57 BLOW-OUT
Indiana Away 2-12 Sunday, 1:00 75-63
SWEEP OF IU!!!!
Wiscy Home 2-16 Thursday,
7:00 64-58 Win
Minnesota Away 2-19 Sunday, 7:00
Rutgers Away 2-22 Wednesday, 6:30
Purdue Home 2-25 Saturday, 4:00
Northwestern Away 3-1 Wednesday,
7:00
Nebraska Away 3-5 Sunday, 8:00
Michigan is 7th overall in the B1G Standings and
has a unique opportunity to take over 6th place with a win at
Minnesota in Williams Arena on Sunday night.
(that’s an EST 7:00 start - 6:00
Local).
That game will probably be a toss –up or have the Gophers
slightly favored. Minnesota, by most
projections, is solidly in the field of 64 (68 – whatever) but don’t think they
don’t want to win this game. Should be a
good one….
Some of you texted or e-mailed regarding my take on RPI, BPI and Kenpom stating that the committee
has to look at RPI and in particular, Sparty LOSING those big games is what will
get Sparty into the field of 64 regardless of their BPI/Kenpom rank. I hear what you’re saying but respectfully
disagree. There are at least 5 AT LARGE teams that Lunardi has IN
the Bracket with RPI’s worse than Michigan’s…
The Worst: Lunardi
has Marquette
in as an at large 12 Seed with an RPI of 81.
Marquette
Kenpom: 41 Sparty:
50
BPI: 40
Sparty: 54
Here are the lowest RPI teams that were
DISSED over the years that didn’t make the field of 64!!!! (From one of my favorite little websites):
The highest rated team left out: #21
Missouri St, #30 Hofstra (2006), #30 Air Force (2007)... among the big six: #40
Cincinnati (2006).
Therefore,
Dismissing Sparty as a 41 RPI is not inconceivable….But then there’s this:
Most losses to get an ALB: 14
(Arizona - 2008, five teams in 2011).
Worst record to get an ALB: 18-14
.563 (Arizona - 2008, Michigan
St - 2011)
Number of times a team with at least
20 wins has been left out: 215 ... among the big six: 37
So as a Sparty, you can keep saying that the other indices DON’T
MATTER, but be careful…They have to make at large slots available
somehow and teams with respectable RPI’s with crappy records sometimes get
hosed…If Sparty wins out, I believe they’re in.
Lose a couple, it’ll be Izzo’s charm and Mark Hollis being the 2017
Director of the Selection Committee that will prevail and nothing else.
Of
course, someone MAY bring up last season’s 2-15 MTSU Upset victory and ruin
Sparty’s day!!!
Lunardi won’t update
today, but with the Wiscy win, I would think things would be better for
Michigan regarding his forecast.
Obviously better than losing that game…Michigan’s RPI is SLOWLY Creeping
down as it plays better teams.
1 comment:
While it was definitely a great victory, we actually did not play very well for many long stretches. We gave up several 3s, as it seems that we just refuse to prioritize denying the 3 to post D. I will continue to say, give-up the easy 2 rather than the 3.
Next, we went long stretches NOT even attempting 3s, and several of the second half 3 attempts were out of desperation at the end of the clock, after clearly trying to work the ball inside.
I SAY AGAIN...SHOOT THE 3, DENY THE 3, DON'T FOUL, and I will add as secondary points, move without the ball and rebound.
It is great to see that we can get a W against a top team without playing our best. These guys MUST now realize that they have enough talent to compete with nearly anyone. They just need to play smart and hard the ENTIRE game. NOW BRING ON MARCH AND LET'S GO BLUE!!!!!
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