Some interesting pairings of style.

[Bill Marsh]

I can't imagine that the tournament planned it this way, but there are some interesting pairings in this tournament.

Begin with Louisville. Their first round matchup is against Manhattan and Pitino protégée Steve Masiello. I got to see Manhattan a couple of times this year and yhey play exactly the same style as Louisville, As Masiello said when he saw the pairing, "They're a bigger, better version of us and they have a better coach. He taught me everything I know." Assuming that Louisville gets by the Xavier/St Louis winner, they will then meet Wichita State, another team whose offense begins with its pressure defense. Will Wichita State also find that Louisville is a bigger, better version of themselves?

Then go to the South regional where VCU brings its Havoc defense. But who will they be facing? Stephen F. Austin, who also thrives on turning teams over and creating . . . well, havoc. Waiting for the winner of that game will likely be UCLA, who Steve Alford has turned into a defensive team that also likes to turn its opponents over. Any of these 3 teams can be a bad matchup in the tournament because it's hard to prepare for their style of play. But these 3 are all going to be knocking each other off instead. Should be interesting to see which one emerges and see if they can wreak havoc on Florida.

Meanwhile we have similar pairings of a different sort potentially in the Final Four. If either Louisville or Wichita state makes it to the regional finals, they may well be facing Michigan and old friend John Beilein's motion offense. Few teams in the country pass the ball as well as Michigan does and as a result, few turn it over infrequently - only 9 turnovers per game. If Michigan wins this game, they will likely face the team that's the mirror image of themselves in the Final four, Wisconsin, one of the few teams in the country who turns the ball over less often than they do - only 8 times per game. Of course, Wisconsin may not get there at all because they will likely meet Creighton along the way, one more team that emphasizes passing, perimeter shooting, and minimal turnovers - only 10 per game. One other thing that Michigan, Creighton, and Wisconsin all have in common is great foul shooting - 76%, 75%, and 74% respectively.

[milwaukeejedi1]

I can't imagine that the tournament planned it this way, but there are some interesting pairings in this tournament.

Begin with Louisville. Their first round matchup is against Manhattan and Pitino protégée Steve Masiello. I got to see Manhattan a couple of times this year and yhey play exactly the same style as Louisville, As Masiello said when he saw the pairing, "They're a bigger, better version of us and they have a better coach. He taught me everything I know." Assuming that Louisville gets by the Xavier/St Louis winner, they will then meet Wichita State, another team whose offense begins with its pressure defense. Will Wichita State also find that Louisville is a bigger, better version of themselves?

Then go to the South regional where VCU brings its Havoc defense. But who will they be facing? Stephen F. Austin, who also thrives on turning teams over and creating . . . well, havoc. Waiting for the winner of that game will likely be UCLA, who Steve Alford has turned into a defensive team that also likes to turn its opponents over. Any of these 3 teams can be a bad matchup in the tournament because it's hard to prepare for their style of play. But these 3 are all going to be knocking each other off instead. Should be interesting to see which one emerges and see if they can wreak havoc on Florida.

Meanwhile we have similar pairings of a different sort potentially in the Final Four. If either Louisville or Wichita state makes it to the regional finals, they may well be facing Michigan and old friend John Beilein's motion offense. Few teams in the country pass the ball as well as Michigan does and as a result, few turn it over infrequently - only 9 turnovers per game. If Michigan wins this game, they will likely face the team that's the mirror image of themselves in the Final four, Wisconsin, one of the few teams in the country who turns the ball over less often than they do - only 8 times per game. Of course, Wisconsin may not get there at all because they will likely meet Creighton along the way, one more team that emphasizes passing, perimeter shooting, and minimal turnovers - only 10 per game. One other thing that Michigan, Creighton, and Wisconsin all have in common is great foul shooting - 76%, 75%, and 74% respectively.

Intentional?
pro·té·gée noun \ˈprō-tə-ˌzhā, ˌprō-tə-ˈ\
: a woman who is a protégé
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictiona ... A9g%C3%A9e

[Bill Marsh]

I can't imagine that the tournament planned it this way, but there are some interesting pairings in this tournament.

Begin with Louisville. Their first round matchup is against Manhattan and Pitino protégée Steve Masiello. I got to see Manhattan a couple of times this year and yhey play exactly the same style as Louisville, As Masiello said when he saw the pairing, "They're a bigger, better version of us and they have a better coach. He taught me everything I know." Assuming that Louisville gets by the Xavier/St Louis winner, they will then meet Wichita State, another team whose offense begins with its pressure defense. Will Wichita State also find that Louisville is a bigger, better version of themselves?

Then go to the South regional where VCU brings its Havoc defense. But who will they be facing? Stephen F. Austin, who also thrives on turning teams over and creating . . . well, havoc. Waiting for the winner of that game will likely be UCLA, who Steve Alford has turned into a defensive team that also likes to turn its opponents over. Any of these 3 teams can be a bad matchup in the tournament because it's hard to prepare for their style of play. But these 3 are all going to be knocking each other off instead. Should be interesting to see which one emerges and see if they can wreak havoc on Florida.

Meanwhile we have similar pairings of a different sort potentially in the Final Four. If either Louisville or Wichita state makes it to the regional finals, they may well be facing Michigan and old friend John Beilein's motion offense. Few teams in the country pass the ball as well as Michigan does and as a result, few turn it over infrequently - only 9 turnovers per game. If Michigan wins this game, they will likely face the team that's the mirror image of themselves in the Final four, Wisconsin, one of the few teams in the country who turns the ball over less often than they do - only 8 times per game. Of course, Wisconsin may not get there at all because they will likely meet Creighton along the way, one more team that emphasizes passing, perimeter shooting, and minimal turnovers - only 10 per game. One other thing that Michigan, Creighton, and Wisconsin all have in common is great foul shooting - 76%, 75%, and 74% respectively.

Intentional?
pro·té·gée noun \ˈprō-tə-ˌzhā, ˌprō-tə-ˈ\
: a woman who is a protégé
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictiona ... A9g%C3%A9e

No, it's the only option the computer would give me if I wanted the line over the e.