Does that count as another W for the reverse jinx?
8 Likes
This may make recruiting the DC area a bit more difficult going forward.
Not sure where to put this but since it’s the heart of the off-season why not have some fun with stupid pre-season bracketologies.
Lunardi in the B1G has:
Michigan - 1 seed
OSU - 2 seed
Purdue - 2 seed
Maryland - 3 seed
MSU - 5 seed
Illinois - 6 seed
Indiana - 7 seed
Iowa - 11 seed
Wisconsin - 1st 4 out
NW - 1st 4 out
No mention of Rutgers, Nebraska, Minnesota or PSU.
Unsurprisingly with Lunardi there are some logical inconsistencies. Ignoring the fact that he has Iowa, Wisconsin and NW anywhere near the tournament, which I vehemently disagree with, he has Michigan as the 1 seed in the South, Kansas in the East, and UCLA in the Midwest. Gonzaga being the #1 seed in the West makes sense, but I can’t imagine how the other 3 end up in those spots. If Michigan or Kansas is the 2nd 1 seed, they’ll go to Chicago in the Midwest. And if it’s UCLA, I’d imagine they’d choose the South (San Antonio) over Chicago.
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Having finished the latest Moving Screen pod yesterday, 8 feels like too many B1G tourney teams.
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I am super curious what people do with Ohio State if and when Liddell doesn’t return, since that chatter is growing louder and louder. Do they drop like a rock? Instant afterthought? Does someone bold keep them as a 2?
Also Illinois as a 6 feels like way too much benefit of the doubt for a program with one bid in nine years.
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I wouldn’t consider them one of the 2-3 favorites for the conference like they’re considered right now with the assumption that Liddell and Washington come back. But Holtmann has been able to cobble together competent teams every year despite the roster management being a circus. I’d still consider them a top half team if Liddell leaves. Zed Key looked ok as a backup last season so I think he could be competent, but definitely lowers their ceiling. Joey Brunk…no comment
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As long as Washington is back, I think they’ll surprise people like Holtmann usually does. Their upside will be meh, but they just have too many B1G caliber pieces to be worse than, like, 25th to KenPom? Here’s a fun hot take: Kyle Young is their starter at the 5 by the end of the year.
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@bacon141 pretty much sums up my thoughts completely on OSU. And the thought of Young as the starting 5 isn’t that far off as it could be argued he was basically a quasi-5 this year. And if Liddell wants more action as a 4 (good idea for his pro prospects) Young may slide into being even more of a 5.
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That’s interesting…I swear I looked at those predictions just a few days ago, and noticed Michigan was picked as a 2-seed. If I remember correctly, the 1 seeds were Gonzaga, UCLA, Kansas, and Alabama.
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He just updated them today
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OSU is high floor/low ceiling as a rule now, it seems.
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LOLouisville
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does NCAA have a whistle blower program?
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I could see 8 tournament/ bubble quality teams, and 6-7 would then actually make the tournament depending on how it shakes out. Projecting 8 right now is way too much
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Don’t forget about defensive pest Jamari Wheeler. OSU wasn’t a strong defensive team last year he should be able to upgrade the team a bit. He’s not a ball dominant guard but can rebound, assist and get after it defensively. Might actually be an upgrade over Walker in some respects.
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Thought this might be of interest
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instead of a 5 out offense, it’s a 5 in offense 
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No pace, no space.
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4th ranked offense in ken pom, poor defense, 13th in the country fg%, 7th in assists. They had a couple NBA guys, one guy who is still in the NBA and still a bully to people. They had a frosh at the time in Tyrese Rice who went on to have a real good career at BC. Top 10 team that year for BC and after they fired Skinner they have been terrible haven’t made the tournament since 09.
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As an alternative history to hiring Juwan Howard, just thinking about the tight flex has me clenching my…
…teeth.
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