Fri 11/29 BE Game Thread (6 Games)

[Lavinwood]

Have to at least tie and make 1 of those…wow. Good game guys, you hung tough. At some point though we need a major win. We have 0. VCU doesn't count.

VCU to real basketball people is a major win.

No mid major is a huge win IMO. We are major, they aren't. We should be the favorites in any game where a Big East school plays a mid major school with the exception of maybe SHU and DePaul. VCU doesn't look sexy. It's a solid win, but not an amazing one. We need to prove we can win vs. those big country football schools always in the top 15.

[stever20]

Have to at least tie and make 1 of those…wow. Good game guys, you hung tough. At some point though we need a major win. We have 0. VCU doesn't count.

VCU to real basketball people is a major win.

No mid major is a huge win IMO. We are major, they aren't. We should be the favorites in any game where a Big East school plays a mid major school with the exception of maybe SHU and DePaul. VCU doesn't look sexy. It's a solid win, but not an amazing one. We need to prove we can win vs. those big country football schools always in the top 15.

A win over VCU means more than about half or more of all the BCS football conference teams at least. Same with Wichita St.

And- I'm sorry but real basketball people do not look at VCU or Wichita St as mid majors. same with Gonzaga.

[bman95]

With what Butler has been through this past year that was an exceptional game, and it was a game that many BE teams couldn't match at this point. Everything I saw from Butler bodes well for the future.

[Lavinwood]

IMO the only technical mid major that really is a major team playing in one is Gonzaga. They are amazing every year and I can't remember the last time they weren't in the top 25 or didn't make the tourney. They routinely pound major teams. They are the only exception. Wichita St. is the perfect example of a team that hit the lotto with a player (Early) who would have been at a Duke or UNC if people knew how good he would be. Once this current crop is gone Wichita St. will be decent at best. They are not a perennial program that can survive losing their current crop of players. They are Davidson. Once Curry leaves…kiss em goodnight.

Don't get me wrong, VCU was a good win, but they were overrated with their #10 ranking. I see them as a #21-25 kind of team. At some point though, we need to stop accepting these close calls vs. OSU's, and other top 10 teams and start expecting wins at some point. We're going to need a few or the perception will be "Big East…the new A-10". That will affect recruiting, and it all goes downhill falling like dominoes. We need to start racking up wins that are nationally discussed on sports center as being a great win.

[JOPO]

Have to at least tie and make 1 of those…wow. Good game guys, you hung tough. At some point though we need a major win. We have 0. VCU doesn't count.

VCU to real basketball people is a major win.

No mid major is a huge win IMO. We are major, they aren't. We should be the favorites in any game where a Big East school plays a mid major school with the exception of maybe SHU and DePaul. VCU doesn't look sexy. It's a solid win, but not an amazing one. We need to prove we can win vs. those big country football schools always in the top 15.

Sorry, but SHU should NEVER be a dog to a mid-major team! That's just an insult!

[GumbyDamnit!]

Butler nation, great job today. Just couldn't get over that hump. Thought there was a lot of contact on that last drive with about 20 sec. to play, but the refs let 'em play. Tough loss but you represented us all very well. Looking forward to seeing you guys on 12/31.

As a fan of one of the C7, let me be the first to publicly say that the New3 are more than holding up their end of the bargain with their efforts in this early going. Not winning every game but you've got to love the fight in each of these teams. This conference is going to be an absolute grind this year. If someone thinks that a team is going to win 14-15 conference games this year, they just haven't been watching. My prediction is 12-6 for the top spot. Every night will be a tough out. Can't wait to see us all start squaring off against each other. This is turning into a really fun league to be a part of...

[ruechalgrin]

VCU to real basketball people is a major win.[/quote]

No mid major is a huge win IMO. We are major, they aren't. We should be the favorites in any game where a Big East school plays a mid major school with the exception of maybe SHU and DePaul. VCU doesn't look sexy. It's a solid win, but not an amazing one. We need to prove we can win vs. those big country football schools always in the top 15.[/quote]
A win over VCU means more than about half or more of all the BCS football conference teams at least. Same with Wichita St.

And- I'm sorry but real basketball people do not look at VCU or Wichita St as mid majors. same with Gonzaga.[/quote]

VCU could be a major win, but right now they are #71 RPI, #81 teamrankings.com, #29 Sagarin, and #37 kenpom. Their expected rpi is #32 according to rpiforecast.com and they have a 75% shot making NCAA according to teamrankings.com. So right now ok win, which should be solid top 50 (but not top 25) win by the end of the year.

Yes, a win versus Kentucky sounds more sexy than Gonzaga (but Gonzaga has a higher expected RPI); a win versus Duke sounds more sexy than UMass (but UMass has a higher expected RPI); a win versus Louisville is more sexy than Witchita St. (but Witchita ST. has a higher expected RPI); a win versus Indiana/Michigan sounds more sexy than VCU/Dayton (but VCU and Dayton have higher expected RPIs). Beating top 25 and top 50 RPI teams (their RPI at the end of the season) are the quality wins that count for NCAA bids.

Currently, BE expected to get 4.5 bids which is 5th most. http://www.teamrankings.com/ncaa-tourna ... /#big-east

[marquette]

I thought we were going to run away with this game for a minute there. Good thing some boneheaded turnovers got my head out of the clouds.

[stever20]

IMO the only technical mid major that really is a major team playing in one is Gonzaga. They are amazing every year and I can't remember the last time they weren't in the top 25 or didn't make the tourney. They routinely pound major teams. They are the only exception. Wichita St. is the perfect example of a team that hit the lotto with a player (Early) who would have been at a Duke or UNC if people knew how good he would be. Once this current crop is gone Wichita St. will be decent at best. They are not a perennial program that can survive losing their current crop of players. They are Davidson. Once Curry leaves…kiss em goodnight.

Don't get me wrong, VCU was a good win, but they were overrated with their #10 ranking. I see them as a #21-25 kind of team. At some point though, we need to stop accepting these close calls vs. OSU's, and other top 10 teams and start expecting wins at some point. We're going to need a few or the perception will be "Big East…the new A-10". That will affect recruiting, and it all goes downhill falling like dominoes. We need to start racking up wins that are nationally discussed on sports center as being a great win.

For this year though- beating a Wichita St would be huge. Or beating VCU- though they have shown some staying power and end of the year them being a top 20 team could wind up being our best OOC win.

This year to me is so critical. I mean, right now we are 2-10 vs RPI top 50 teams. That number has to change. The thing is as well- we after this weekend don't exactly have a lot of huge statement games left.

[Lavinwood]

IMO the only technical mid major that really is a major team playing in one is Gonzaga. They are amazing every year and I can't remember the last time they weren't in the top 25 or didn't make the tourney. They routinely pound major teams. They are the only exception. Wichita St. is the perfect example of a team that hit the lotto with a player (Early) who would have been at a Duke or UNC if people knew how good he would be. Once this current crop is gone Wichita St. will be decent at best. They are not a perennial program that can survive losing their current crop of players. They are Davidson. Once Curry leaves…kiss em goodnight.

Don't get me wrong, VCU was a good win, but they were overrated with their #10 ranking. I see them as a #21-25 kind of team. At some point though, we need to stop accepting these close calls vs. OSU's, and other top 10 teams and start expecting wins at some point. We're going to need a few or the perception will be "Big East…the new A-10". That will affect recruiting, and it all goes downhill falling like dominoes. We need to start racking up wins that are nationally discussed on sports center as being a great win.

For this year though- beating a Wichita St would be huge. Or beating VCU- though they have shown some staying power and end of the year them being a top 20 team could wind up being our best OOC win.

This year to me is so critical. I mean, right now we are 2-10 vs RPI top 50 teams. That number has to change. The thing is as well- we after this weekend don't exactly have a lot of huge statement games left.

2-10…exactly my point. That's not against top 15 teams, it's against top 50! We have the teams to routinely take down some of the Big Ten and ACC big boys. We need to take some. Until we prove we can do that, the Big Least jokes will spread like wildfire. Saying that a #20 OOC win might end up being our conference's best win all year is scary. It's one of those reality check moments because in the old Big East it wouldn't be a big deal at all…it would be expected for most teams to beat #20 ish squads. Hell, even in bad years SJ knocked off the #15, #20, #23 teams. That's without even making the tourney. I'm really getting worried when I see these numbers vs. how they used to be. To go from the undisputed best conference on earth in basketball every year to people arguing if we are a mid major or not is gut wrenching. And all of this because of greed related to football.

By the way, Marquette looks very good they should be fine this game.