It’s 80% a ruse. I think they’re more likely a sweet 16 or elite 8 type team.
Also now that they’ve clinched a better conference record than Wisconsin I can officially stop stanning for them.
I just want @umhoops to admit their defense isn’t as putrid as everyone thinks anymore.
They HAVE played pretty darn good D lately!
Their defense is effective when the other team misses threes. It definitely isn’t good, though.
Well they’re officially in the top half of the conference in defensive efficiency in conference play. If I claimed that would happen pre-season I think you and everyone else here would have banned me from the forums.
One early NCAA Tournament pick: Ohio State to lose in the first weekend.
Bold. I will disagree.
Richard Pitino out at Minnesota. He’ll coach the remainder of the season.
Tough break, right as they were about to land Chet Holmgren
Dickie V was just tweeting about programs should be patient with coaches this year. I imagine this is what he was talking about
That’s a tricky one. They’ve certainly been tanking but injuries have done them no favors. Though I suppose you could argue that even a shorthanded Minny should beat Northwestern and Nebraska.
I think the pandemic saved his job last year and I don’t think they were willing to wait another one.
Unless Washington plays like he does against us.
Holtmann hasn’t been a great tourney coach so far. I could buy that.
they are technically 7th in raw defensive efficiency in conference play. Per T-rank, though, their adjusted D in conference play is 10th because they have played fewer games against the best offenses. I mean they couldn’t play vs their own #1 offense, 2 games vs #2 OSU, 1 game vs #3 UM, 1 game vs #4 Illinois, and 1 game vs #5 Purdue.
Relatively very easy slate for a defense to face in conference play this year.
Man, Tuesday is gonna be a huge day for the B10.
Illinois - Michigan fighting for the conference title
Indiana - MSU in what is pretty much a tournament play-in.
Wisconsin - Purdue fighting for the 4 seed
Vitale coming to the defense of a Pitino? Next thing Tuesdays will start falling on the day after Mondays.
Unseld didn’t play in the 90s.
I don’t think Wisconsin can get the 4 seed. Even if they win out, they’re gonna be 12-8, with Michigan and Illinois ahead no matter what. The 3 teams currently ahead of them are OSU, Iowa and Purdue. If Wisconsin were to win out, and those 3 teams all were to lose out, OSU and Iowa would be at 12-8 with Purdue at 11-8. That would put Wisconsin, OSU and Iowa in a 3 way tie, but Wisconsin is 0-1 against OSU and 1-1 against Iowa would have them lose the tiebreaker (OSU would be 2-1 against the other 2 and Iowa would be 2-2). So best Wisconsin can do is the 5 seed.
This game is big for Purdue (and Michigan too) though. Purdue is 11-6 with 2 games left while OSU is 12-7 with one game left, and Purdue’s currently in 4th place in the conference. If Purdue either wins out or wins one while OSU loses to Illinois, they’ll take the 4 seed (assuming Iowa beats Nebraska). That would most likely end up in a Purdue-OSU 4-5 matchup with OSU as the 5, and a matchup where OSU has already lost to Purdue twice. That leaves good odds of a Michigan-Purdue semi-final in the BTT, which is probably our ideal matchup.
Yeah, I knew him as a coach (of the Bullets) but his playing days were before my time.