I like the UNLV-ISU matchup. I am glad that game is not the same night as the Bradley-Utah game. I might drive over to Normal watch that one.
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BU to host Utah in MVC-MWC Challenge Dec. 4, 2010
- Thread starter Da Coach
- Start date
I like the UNLV-ISU matchup. I am glad that game is not the same night as the Bradley-Utah game. I might drive over to Normal watch that one.
it's boogie time
Active member
It may turn out to be a great game, but UNLV brings basically everybody back from an at large team while ISU lost three starters.
San Diego State brings back five starters and Wichita State looks to be one of the favorites in the Valley.
It looks like a little flexibility could have brought togehter some better matchups. The four tournament teams from the two leagues last year are all on the road. You'd think UNI would play somebody other than TCU.
Odd fact from the WSU release: Teams from the two leagues have squared off 47 times since the inception of the Mountain West in 1999, with MWC teams holding a 24-23 edge in those contests, although the MVC had a 6-4 edge in games played this past season.
San Diego State brings back five starters and Wichita State looks to be one of the favorites in the Valley.
It looks like a little flexibility could have brought togehter some better matchups. The four tournament teams from the two leagues last year are all on the road. You'd think UNI would play somebody other than TCU.
Odd fact from the WSU release: Teams from the two leagues have squared off 47 times since the inception of the Mountain West in 1999, with MWC teams holding a 24-23 edge in those contests, although the MVC had a 6-4 edge in games played this past season.
TheAsianSensation
New member
On a side note, who else can't wait to see it tied 4-4 with Evansville and Air Force playing for the whole thing? Riveting action!
OrangeandBlack74
New member
I see that both UNM and UNLV are playing their MVC opponents on the 1st, while the Utah/BU matchup is on the 4th. There could be some sort of scheduling conflict (either at the CC or with one of the MWC teams) that prevented scheduling against BU.
Just a thought...
BradleyBrave
New member
It's a good point. We're at the mercy of the PCC when it comes to scheduling, and the Utah matchup probably makes the most sense (although the BYU-BU matchup this year made little sense in that regard). From what I hear the exempt tournament we're going to be playing isn't going to have that stellar of a field, so we're going to need to make sure we don't muddle through the non-con like we did this year if we're going to have legitimate postseason aspirations.
LittleBrave
Active member
What kind of tournament are we looking at participating in?
Hope it's not like the Drake Invitational or I.S.U. Open (where any team is "Open" to walk in and play)
It will be like the tournaments we have played in the last 3 years. There will be a couple home games against lesser teams, then the primary 4 teams will all meet at the designated tournament city for a couple more games. The competetion will be better than the last few tournaments.
BradleyBrave
New member
Perhaps the home games, but if we're going to the one I have been hearing since the season the teams won't be better than Oklahoma St and Illinois.
If the teams are that good, then I can't wait to find out about which tourny we are in and who else is in it!
Gah so many things I am full of anticipation about this offseason! :-D I wish I was an insider.
SIU beat writer seems to think the Saluki's didn't get any favors from the MVC by getting MWC champion New Mexico-
http://www.thesouthern.com/sports/article_dd3f31ee-4781-11df-97e3-001cc4c002e0.html
Note that the article states that "SIU could return 14 of 15 players this winter, including four starters and seven players that started at least one game."
I am not sure what he's referring to, since a couple of the players who were on the roster this season (Ryan Hare and Nick Evans) have already left the team, along with losing one senior Tony Freeman. And he seems to be intentionally ignoring the strong rumors that several other key players are leaving.
http://www.thesouthern.com/sports/article_dd3f31ee-4781-11df-97e3-001cc4c002e0.html
Note that the article states that "SIU could return 14 of 15 players this winter, including four starters and seven players that started at least one game."
I am not sure what he's referring to, since a couple of the players who were on the roster this season (Ryan Hare and Nick Evans) have already left the team, along with losing one senior Tony Freeman. And he seems to be intentionally ignoring the strong rumors that several other key players are leaving.
tornado
New member
"pairings didn't do the rebuilding Southern Illinois University men's basketball team any favors Tuesday"
what? would they be better to get the 9th best team in the MWC? how's that gonna help your team get better or how's it help in any way?
It seems this guy just wants to whine....
..and I agree....to say they return 4 starters is a stretch, since their starters most of the year were Dillard, Fay, Freeman, Bocot, & Evans...
two of whom are already gone, and strong rumors of Dillard leaving, too.
what? would they be better to get the 9th best team in the MWC? how's that gonna help your team get better or how's it help in any way?
It seems this guy just wants to whine....
..and I agree....to say they return 4 starters is a stretch, since their starters most of the year were Dillard, Fay, Freeman, Bocot, & Evans...
two of whom are already gone, and strong rumors of Dillard leaving, too.
tornado
New member
Just an update on Utah - the Mountain West team that Bradley plays this comnig season....
....since I have seen Utah mentioned several times in discussions of conference change and most recently have been mentioned as possible addition to the Pac-10...
--so I did a little digging as to how their basketball team should look next year....
They lost Marshall Henderson and a lot of other good talent to graduation and players leaving...and as these stories disclose, some think the program is "in shambles" with all the dissatisfaction and player dissent...
http://www.examiner.com/x-2306-Utah...guard-Marshall-Henderson-parts-ways-with-team
http://www.examiner.com/x-2306-Utah...erence-tirade-draws-national-attention--Video
but they just landed a couple of late juco signees...to bring their recruiting class to EIGHT new guys - although not all are signed and fully guaranteed to be in uniform next fall!!
The two latest...
Will Clyburn 6-6 guard
http://utah.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1076666
Chris Kupets - who is 5-11 but said to be capable of playing the 1, 2, or 3!!
http://utah.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1080001
and also Dominique Lee, Antonio DiMaria, Preston Guiot, Josh Watkins, and JJ O'Brien..
FIVE are jucos, and oddly not ONE of the seven is rated even a 1-Star...
http://rivals.yahoo.com/utah/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2010
Their returning roster includes these players, a few of which are walk-ons...
Name Pos. Yr. Exp. Ht./Wt. Hometown (last school)
1 Jay Watkins F Jr. TR 6-7/210 Memphis, TN (College of Southern Idaho)
2 Jace Tavita G So. 1V 6-4/205 Brighton, UT (Brighton HS)
10 Tre Smith G So. 1V 5-10/170 Magna, UT (Cyprus HS)
25 Austin Robison F Jr. TR 6-6/230 Sandy, UT (Salt Lake Community College)
30 Ricky Shoff G Jr. TR 6-2/195 Amercian Fork, UT (Salt Lake Community College)
32 Shawn Glover G Fr. HS 6-6/190 Cedar Hill, TX (Cedar Hill HS)
41 Jeremy Olsen F Fr. HS 6-10/235 Lawrenceville, GA (Collins Hill HS)
42 Jason Washburn C Fr. RS 7-0/220 Battle Creek, MI (Battle Creek Central HS)
51 David Foster C So. 1V 7-3/255 Lake Forest, CA (El Toro HS)
The only players among their entire roster who return with even a modicum of experience are--
Watkins (often injured 6-7 PF) at 9.2 ppg, Foster (skinny 7-foot center who blocks a lot of shots) at 3.5 ppg, Glover (one time BU recruit, 6-6 G/F) at 4.7 ppg, and Washburn (even skinnier 7-ft center with amazingly low rebounding numbers for his size) at 5.0 ppg....
and of their 6250 total minutes from last season, they return less than 2000 of them, only about 30% of their minutes and only 25% of their scoring.
Future Walk-On
New member
we should roll them.
It's a good point. We're at the mercy of the PCC when it comes to scheduling,
Not anymore....we could hold the new digs over their heads for this game.
tornado
New member
BTW -- I didn't see where this was mentioned...
In the NCAA Tournament last season, this was supposed to be THE YEAR for the Mountain West to make a statement,
getting FOUR different teams in the NCAA Tourney - New Mexico, BYU, UNLV, SDSU,
and the Valley was said to be down and was going to get only ONE bid, the automatic bid...
In the end, all four of the MWC guys were gone the first weekend, going 2-4 while the Valley's only representative went to the Sweet Sixteen!
Maybe the fact that the MVC won the Challenge vs. the MWC was the early evidence that despite the gaudy records...
those top teams in the MWC were NOT that good, and their gaudy records were the result of inflated win totals from playing soft non-conference schedules!
(which btw was the reason Wichita State and ISU never got a glance for an at-large bid, but for some reason the NCAA selection committee ignored those lousy non-conference schedules of the MWC!!)
In the NCAA Tournament last season, this was supposed to be THE YEAR for the Mountain West to make a statement,
getting FOUR different teams in the NCAA Tourney - New Mexico, BYU, UNLV, SDSU,
and the Valley was said to be down and was going to get only ONE bid, the automatic bid...
In the end, all four of the MWC guys were gone the first weekend, going 2-4 while the Valley's only representative went to the Sweet Sixteen!
Maybe the fact that the MVC won the Challenge vs. the MWC was the early evidence that despite the gaudy records...
those top teams in the MWC were NOT that good, and their gaudy records were the result of inflated win totals from playing soft non-conference schedules!
(which btw was the reason Wichita State and ISU never got a glance for an at-large bid, but for some reason the NCAA selection committee ignored those lousy non-conference schedules of the MWC!!)
TheAsianSensation
New member
For full disclosure (via InsideRPI) these are the non-con SoS ranks for the relevant MWC and MVC teams:
NM 56
SDSU 96
BYU 176
UNLV 193
WSU 284
ISU 303
For my money, the top 4 teams in the MWC were still better, IMO, than everyone in the Valley not named Northern Iowa. That Northern Iowa was the clear best team from either conference is true, also.