NCAA Tournament Bracket

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#226      
Calvin
NarrowJ said:
The fanbase this season seems as divided as ever on Brad...
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March is a tough time --coaches get measured against the best of the best, while watching a number of smaller programs make amazing runs. Begs the question of how so-n-so coach gets more out of less talent. But then the grass is always greener....
As far as Illinois, I look at this season as ambitious --some really good talent in the roster turnover that had some early success but has been inconsistent. Hoping they make a run, but not feeling it's likely.

Makes me appreciate TSJ even more --guy was a frickin boss. Tremendous athlete, hard worker, leader, cool under pressure, and really shined in the post-season with the BTT championship and E8 run before he went pro.
 
#227      
RollChief
Calvin said:
March is a tough time --coaches get measured against the best of the best, while watching a number of smaller programs make amazing runs. Begs the question of how so-n-so coach gets more out of less talent. But then the grass is always greener....
As far as Illinois, I look at this season as ambitious --some really good talent in the roster turnover that had some early success but has been inconsistent. Hoping they make a run, but not feeling it's likely.

Makes me appreciate TSJ even more --guy was a frickin boss. Tremendous athlete, hard worker, leader, cool under pressure, and really shined in the post-season with the BTT championship and E8 run before he went pro.
Click to expand...

All of that after during and after an absolute bloodbath of the worst possible accusations... Absolute mental titan. I don't know if I've rooted for an individual player to succeed more than TSJ.
 
#228      
Ghost77
NarrowJ said:
The fanbase this season seems as divided as ever on Brad... say his approval rating is currently 50%... you know what, I'll give him another 5-10% because I think the fans that disapprove are just a fair bit louder than those that approve, so lets say 60%

I could easily see a 20% swing there based on just this one, single first round game

Overall, currently I'm happy with him and think this season has been, I'll call it 'acceptable', given the circumstances... I'd like to see Hamer replaced, that's the biggest thing for me right now... No issue with Tyler if he's the guy on offense (our offense was so good last year, and been pretty good this year outside of the insistence on shooting a lot of 3s even though we are terrible at making them)

A win on Friday night and I'll probably be ok with whatever happens from that point on, but if we lose that game, idk... then next season becomes: I need to see something more than a 7th place conf finish and 1st round NCAA exit while also getting hammered by 20, 30, 40 points in a handful of games to boot
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I like Brad and think he has done great things for us, especially considering the state of the program prior to his arrival. One of my main criticisms of Brad has been his temperament, but I think he has greatly improved on this over the past few seasons. However, one thing I will never be able to shake (and perhaps this is unfair to Brad) is what happened on March 21st, 2021, which has gone down as one of the darkest days in Illinois hoops history. It's almost unfathomable to me for a team to fall that badly after coming so far, achieving so much, and having such generational talent. We were set to go the distance and instead ended up being absolutely embarrassed.
 
#229      
PlayDeeBrownNote
RollChief said:
All of that after during and after an absolute bloodbath of the worst possible accusations... Absolute mental titan. I don't know if I've rooted for an individual player to succeed more than TSJ.
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This team misses his, Coleman's, and MD's leadership. I hope KB and Tre show up in that respect this week. Someone has to step up and produce when we get punched in the mouth and need a stop.
 
#230      
Bucktown
Illini4Chief said:
DO away with auto bids from conference playoff champs. Go with the BEST 68 teams determined by polls. You have small conference champs who get the auto bid, denying the best teams. Indiana/WVU are better than the last of the 68.
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The tournament is so successful precisely because of the auto bids. It widens the audience tremendously, and makes those first 2 days of the tournament maybe the best 2 days in sports.
 
#231      
Mobi
NarrowJ said:
The fanbase this season seems as divided as ever on Brad... say his approval rating is currently 50%... you know what, I'll give him another 5-10% because I think the fans that disapprove are just a fair bit louder than those that approve, so lets say 60%

I could easily see a 20% swing there based on just this one, single first round game

Overall, currently I'm happy with him and think this season has been, I'll call it 'acceptable', given the circumstances... I'd like to see Hamer replaced, that's the biggest thing for me right now... No issue with Tyler if he's the guy on offense (our offense was so good last year, and been pretty good this year outside of the insistence on shooting a lot of 3s even though we are terrible at making them)

A win on Friday night and I'll probably be ok with whatever happens from that point on, but if we lose that game, idk... then next season becomes: I need to see something more than a 7th place conf finish and 1st round NCAA exit while also getting hammered by 20, 30, 40 points in a handful of games to boot
Click to expand...
Same here.
 
#232      
Illini2010-11
OrangeBlue98 said:
He's not wrong. I get that the conference enjoys the big TV ratings it gets for the BTT final, but for all intents and purposes it's a glorified exhibition game. It does absolutely nothing for the teams in it unless it has a "bid-stealer" impact like what would have happened if Illinois defeated Michigan State in 1999.

The ACC and Big 12 have decided to have their conference tournament finals mean something, so they moved their finals to Saturday night. The SEC and Big Ten have decided ratings are more important. Each conference has its own priorities.
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I completely disagree with the bolded. The finals game matters a ton to the players that play in the game. Not to mention, playing to raise a banner/lift a trophy. When you see the joy in players like TSJ after winning the BTT to the tears of disappointment on the other bench, it is hard to call it anywhere close to an exhibition game. The conference tournament still means quite a bit, albeit much less important than success in the NCAAT.

Just because the results of the BTT final do not impact the seeding that much, it does not take away the importance of the game to the players.
 
#233      
OrangeBlue98
NarrowJ said:
The fanbase this season seems as divided as ever on Brad... say his approval rating is currently 50%... you know what, I'll give him another 5-10% because I think the fans that disapprove are just a fair bit louder than those that approve, so lets say 60%

I could easily see a 20% swing there based on just this one, single first round game

Overall, currently I'm happy with him and think this season has been, I'll call it 'acceptable', given the circumstances... I'd like to see Hamer replaced, that's the biggest thing for me right now... No issue with Tyler if he's the guy on offense (our offense was so good last year, and been pretty good this year outside of the insistence on shooting a lot of 3s even though we are terrible at making them)

A win on Friday night and I'll probably be ok with whatever happens from that point on, but if we lose that game, idk... then next season becomes: I need to see something more than a 7th place conf finish and 1st round NCAA exit while also getting hammered by 20, 30, 40 points in a handful of games to boot
Click to expand...
I know I've said this one before, but for me the one big issue is replacing Hamer and Jones - particularly Hamer given the importance of his current role - and getting a significant upgrade in the staff. I haven't really written this season off, because there have been so many things with injuries and illnesses. What happens Friday night won't really change that for me. I also know that batting 1.000 on players never happens, so I'm not even upset about Booth. Upgrading the staff, particularly moving on from Hamer, is what will show me what Brad did think of this season. Our issue was defense - pure and simple. I know we had some clunkers on offense, but there were at least some visible efforts earlier to adjust (getting the ball to the rim more against Minnesota and Iowa were the big games for me with that). It took far, far too long to make adjustments on defense, and we have seen too many players have career nights against us. That's Hamer's accountability. I don't like to see anyone lose a job, but this is a ridiculously competitive business. Hamer isn't ready to be an assistant coach at the Big Ten level.

I'm a big process person. Sometimes, you will have a good process and a bad result. Sometimes, you'll have a bad process and good result. I just feel like part of the process has to be moving on from Hamer. If Brad doesn't do that, I'll have some pretty serious questions about the process he's trying to follow.
 
#234      
OrangeBlue98
Bucktown said:
The tournament is so successful precisely because of the auto bids. It widens the audience tremendously, and makes those first 2 days of the tournament maybe the best 2 days in sports.
Click to expand...
Exactly. I NEVER want to see the auto-bids for the smaller conferences go away. Getting to the tournament is their reward, and sometimes they just pull off the impossible. It's one of the few magical things left in sports. Give those players a chance to shine for one game under the bright lights.
 
#236      
GatorMcKlusky

Duke Math Professor Says Odds of a Perfect Bracket are One in 2.4 Trillion​

March 17, 2015​



Bracket math isn’t an exact science, but for years mathematicians have told us that the odds of picking a perfect NCAA tournament bracket are a staggering 1 in 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 (that’s 9.2 quintillion).
According to Duke math professor Jonathan Mattingly, the average college basketball fan has a far better chance of achieving bracket perfection. Taking into account the fact that a 16 seed has never beaten a one-seed (meaning your bracket should have four guaranteed wins) and adjusting probability based on seeding, the odds of picking all 32 games correctly is actually one in 2.4 trillion.
Using a different formula, DePaul mathematician Jay Bergen calculated the odds at one in 128 billion. Either way, V. Stiviano has a better chance of becoming President of the United States than anyone on Earth has at filling out a perfect bracket.
Story by Nick Schwartz, and posted online: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/03/duk...-of-a-perfect-bracket-are-one-in-2-4-trillion
 
#237      
OrangeBlue98
I can understand that opinion. But 10 years from now, who outside of Illinois players and fans will remember who won the 2024 Big Ten Tournament?

What I can say is that last year, had TSJ or Domask suffered an injury in a game that had zero impact on NCAA tournament seeding, I (and I'm sure a lot of other Illini fans) would not have been happy.

I'll just close with this - why did the ACC move its conference tournament final to Saturday night in the 2014-15 season, several years before the conference realignment? It used to be played at noon CT/1PM ET on Sunday. At the time of the move, the ACC was arguably the best basketball conference in America.
 
#238      
OrangeBlue98
To say nothing about how the guy kept grinding when he wasn't getting playing time with the T-Wolves and bouncing back and forth between Des Moines in the G-League and Minneapolis.

The guy is a dude. All there is to it. He has earned every bit of success he's getting.
 
#239      
Battle89
GatorMcKlusky said:

Duke Math Professor Says Odds of a Perfect Bracket are One in 2.4 Trillion​

March 17, 2015​



Bracket math isn’t an exact science, but for years mathematicians have told us that the odds of picking a perfect NCAA tournament bracket are a staggering 1 in 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 (that’s 9.2 quintillion).
According to Duke math professor Jonathan Mattingly, the average college basketball fan has a far better chance of achieving bracket perfection. Taking into account the fact that a 16 seed has never beaten a one-seed (meaning your bracket should have four guaranteed wins) and adjusting probability based on seeding, the odds of picking all 32 games correctly is actually one in 2.4 trillion.
Using a different formula, DePaul mathematician Jay Bergen calculated the odds at one in 128 billion. Either way, V. Stiviano has a better chance of becoming President of the United States than anyone on Earth has at filling out a perfect bracket.
Story by Nick Schwartz, and posted online: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/03/duk...-of-a-perfect-bracket-are-one-in-2-4-trillion
Click to expand...
1742336123713.png

Of course the good news is that the shame from such a loss inspires a trip to the championship game the following year.
 
#240      
Illiniguy13
OrangeBlue98 said:
I know I've said this one before, but for me the one big issue is replacing Hamer and Jones - particularly Hamer given the importance of his current role - and getting a significant upgrade in the staff. I haven't really written this season off, because there have been so many things with injuries and illnesses. What happens Friday night won't really change that for me. I also know that batting 1.000 on players never happens, so I'm not even upset about Booth. Upgrading the staff, particularly moving on from Hamer, is what will show me what Brad did think of this season. Our issue was defense - pure and simple. I know we had some clunkers on offense, but there were at least some visible efforts earlier to adjust (getting the ball to the rim more against Minnesota and Iowa were the big games for me with that). It took far, far too long to make adjustments on defense, and we have seen too many players have career nights against us. That's Hamer's accountability. I don't like to see anyone lose a job, but this is a ridiculously competitive business. Hamer isn't ready to be an assistant coach at the Big Ten level.

I'm a big process person. Sometimes, you will have a good process and a bad result. Sometimes, you'll have a bad process and good result. I just feel like part of the process has to be moving on from Hamer. If Brad doesn't do that, I'll have some pretty serious questions about the process he's trying to follow.
Click to expand...
I knew Joel Embiid posted on loyalty!
 
#242      
Fighter of the Nightman
PlayDeeBrownNote said:
This team misses his, Coleman's, and MD's leadership. I hope KB and Tre show up in that respect this week. Someone has to step up and produce when we get punched in the mouth and need a stop.
Click to expand...
Yep, what’s exciting and scary about this team is we just might be a guy stepping up as a leader for our MENTAL toughness away from a deep run … but if no one fills that void and things aren’t going our way Friday, we will be one and done.

March is about persevering and finding a way, pure and simple.
 
#243      
Fighter of the Nightman
Illini4Chief said:
DO away with auto bids from conference playoff champs. Go with the BEST 68 teams determined by polls. You have small conference champs who get the auto bid, denying the best teams. Indiana/WVU are better than the last of the 68.
Click to expand...
Nah, this further de-romanticizes college hoops. I rooted like hell for Bradley the other weekend to finally beat Drake in the Arch Madness final so they could squeak into the Tournament and make Peoria proud. I don’t want that taken away because it would theoretically take college sports in an even more sterile and emotionless direction, lol.
 
#244      
OB positive
Illini2010-11 said:
I completely disagree with the bolded. The finals game matters a ton to the players that play in the game. Not to mention, playing to raise a banner/lift a trophy. When you see the joy in players like TSJ after winning the BTT to the tears of disappointment on the other bench, it is hard to call it anywhere close to an exhibition game. The conference tournament still means quite a bit, albeit much less important than success in the NCAAT.

Just because the results of the BTT final do not impact the seeding that much, it does not take away the importance of the game to the players.
Click to expand...
Only problem is they need to stop playing the championship on selection Sunday.
 
#245      
BalloonsTheElephant
Fighter of the Nightman said:
Nah, this further de-romanticizes college hoops. I rooted like hell for Bradley the other weekend to finally beat Drake in the Arch Madness final so they could squeak into the Tournament and make Peoria proud. I don’t want that taken away because it would theoretically take college sports in an even more sterile and emotionless direction, lol.
Click to expand...
It would definitely take away most of the beauty of rooting for two small schools you've never heard of and giving those kids a chance to play on a big stage and replacing it with big conference bottom dwellers who are probably just waiting for the season to end.
 
#246      
PepeSilvia
BalloonsTheElephant said:
It would definitely take away most of the beauty of rooting for two small schools you've never heard of and giving those kids a chance to play on a big stage and replacing it with big conference bottom dwellers who are probably just waiting for the season to end.
Click to expand...
It would ruin the tournament. Nobody wants to watch Nebraska play USC or something.

We already know these teams aren't good from when they played everyone in conference play. Let's watch the good mid majors play and see what happens.
 
#247      
kleine
GatorMcKlusky said:

Duke Math Professor Says Odds of a Perfect Bracket are One in 2.4 Trillion​

March 17, 2015​



Bracket math isn’t an exact science, but for years mathematicians have told us that the odds of picking a perfect NCAA tournament bracket are a staggering 1 in 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 (that’s 9.2 quintillion).
According to Duke math professor Jonathan Mattingly, the average college basketball fan has a far better chance of achieving bracket perfection. Taking into account the fact that a 16 seed has never beaten a one-seed (meaning your bracket should have four guaranteed wins) and adjusting probability based on seeding, the odds of picking all 32 games correctly is actually one in 2.4 trillion.
Using a different formula, DePaul mathematician Jay Bergen calculated the odds at one in 128 billion. Either way, V. Stiviano has a better chance of becoming President of the United States than anyone on Earth has at filling out a perfect bracket.
Story by Nick Schwartz, and posted online: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/03/duk...-of-a-perfect-bracket-are-one-in-2-4-trillion
Click to expand...
clearly hasn't taken my bracket into account...
 
#248      
EyeoftheIllini
Illini4Chief said:
DO away with auto bids from conference playoff champs. Go with the BEST 68 teams determined by polls. You have small conference champs who get the auto bid, denying the best teams. Indiana/WVU are better than the last of the 68.
Click to expand...
Screw that. As someone pointed out, the success of the tournament was in no small part built on the appeal of David vs Goliath. Indiana, West Virginia and other bubble teams had every chance to make the tournament and they didn’t perform. So screw them. Win more games.

I’d rather see good mid-majors over mediocre teams from power conferences in the tournament. Indiana and West Virginia really would have had little to no chance to win the championship if they were in. And an upset win by a team like UC-San Diego is much more compelling to me than one by team like Indiana.
 
#250      
Illinifrank67
Illini4Chief said:
DO away with auto bids from conference playoff champs. Go with the BEST 68 teams determined by polls. You have small conference champs who get the auto bid, denying the best teams. Indiana/WVU are better than the last of the 68.
Click to expand...
Hey Izzo, nice team you put together this year.
 
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