A-10 Tourney: Game(s) Discussion Thread

[gmutom]

They did what I've been begging for years for Mason to do against vcu: move to the open spots on the floor when the trap comes and pass out of the press. Four turnovers in the entire second half against vcu.

Gemini, that's a great point, but St. Joes's guards also went at the press rather than retreating like we often do. They never looked afraid or frazzled. Rather than trying to split the double teams, their guards anticipated it and dribbled around it to find the open pockets you mentioned.

 

[DeepValue]

The potential UVA v GW game is a good one. Forcing Wichitatto go through Louisville again stands out too. Not sure if that's chance to settle a grudge or just plain mean.

 

[frchrisgaffrey]

St. Joe's provided a great template for beating vcu: protect the ball as much as possible, and don't let vcu get a lot of points in the open court. If you stop the Rams from scoring, they can't set up their press; and when you do score, it allows you to get back on defense. vcu is much more limited when forced to play a half-court game, especially with Melvin Johnson out after injured yesterday.

Truth! I was watching today in Brooklyn and I said to the guy next to me that St. Joes had vcu playing their game not vcu's game. Props to Kanacevic who had an outstanding game today and deserved the player of the tourney award.


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[Vurbel]

At what point do we start saying "vcu can't win a conference tournament outside of Richmond"?

 

[Vurbel]

Stopping the other team from scoring is a pretty good template to beat any team.

Certainly better then our current template of allowing the other team to score.

Also, if you score more points than your opponent, your chances of winning the game greatly increase.

 

[GMUgemini]

Gemini, that's a great point, but St. Joes's guards also went at the press rather than retreating like we often do. They never looked afraid or frazzled. Rather than trying to split the double teams, their guards anticipated it and dribbled around it to find the open pockets you mentioned.

The other thing I liked is how they designed their inbounds plays so the guy getting the pass got the ball I'm the middle of the floor and avoided the coffin corners. Very smart game plan.

 

[Harry]

It was a great back and forth game and very close. I love being in a conference that has their championship game on CBS on Sunday -- maybe one day we can, you know, actually play in it.

I also love being in a conference that sends six teams to the NCAA tournament (vcu, GW, Dayton, UMass, St. Louis, and St. Joseph's).

 

[gmujim92]

I also love being in a conference that sends six teams to the NCAA tournament (vcu, GW, Dayton, UMass, St. Louis, and St. Joseph's).

I'd rather be in a 1-bid league and have that 1 bid than be utterly irrelevant in a 6-bid league.

The A-10 obviously gives us better odds of making the tournament going forward, but we have a TON of work to do before we can even think about that.

 

[GMUgemini]

I'd rather be in a 1-bid league and have that 1 bid than be utterly irrelevant in a 6-bid league.

The A-10 obviously gives us better odds of making the tournament going forward, but we have a TON of work to do before we can even think about that.

At a minimum we are looking at 70k a year for being irrelevant. In a one bid league with a crappy seed and a first round exit we probably get 20k a year. We'd have to make the elite 8 to match what we are getting sitting at home right now and that's if everyone flames out of the first round.

 

[gmujim92]

At a minimum we are looking at 70k a year for being irrelevant. In a one bid league with a crappy seed and a first round exit we probably get 20k a year. We'd have to make the elite 8 to match what we are getting sitting at home right now and that's if everyone flames out of the first round.

OK, but you're completely ignoring the fact that the teams that make the tournament are going to be bringing in amounts that will absolutely dwarf our $70,000.

Several consecutive years of that and it's easy to see how a bottom-feeder could fall even further behind the top teams in terms of athletic resources.

 

[JimP]

OK, but you're completely ignoring the fact that the teams that make the tournament are going to be bringing in amounts that will absolutely dwarf our $70,000.

Several consecutive years of that and it's easy to see how a bottom-feeder could fall even further behind the top teams in terms of athletic resources.

Yeah TOC, the point of being in the A-10 was not just to get in a league w/ 6 bids, but to get one of those bids. Feels like we're gonna be waiting awhile.

 

[Pablo]

I'd rather be in a 1-bid league and have that 1 bid than be utterly irrelevant in a 6-bid league.

The A-10 obviously gives us better odds of making the tournament going forward, but we have a TON of work to do before we can even think about that.

I can understand why nearly everyone on this board is depressed about the current situation. But, how can anyone regret Mason joining the A10?

Frankly, I believe Mason is committed to being successful in the A10. And, while hiring Hewitt does appear to be a mistake, I'm sure that Merten & O'Connor believed he was the most qualified coach to replace Larranaga.

 

[Patriot Lawdog]

I can understand why nearly everyone on this board is depressed about the current situation. But, how can anyone regret Mason joining the A10?

Frankly, I believe Mason is committed to being successful in the A10. And, while hiring Hewitt does appear to be a mistake, I'm sure that Merten & O'Connor believed he was the most qualified coach to replace Larranaga.

Which, if true, is an even scarier proposition. Yet another reason to send TOC to the old folks home.

 

[GMU What]

I'm sorry but there is absolutely no way that I regret Mason being in the A10. As bad as this year was, it was downright depressing to barely squeak by last season in an incredibly weak CAA. Being in the A10, every win feels like a big accomplishment and is much more satisfying than beating UNCW or Northeastern at home.

Wait until we actually win something.....ANYTHING for that matter, it'll be worth the wait.

 

[smccart5]

How was overall attendance this year at Barclays?

 

[GMUgemini]

OK, but you're completely ignoring the fact that the teams that make the tournament are going to be bringing in amounts that will absolutely dwarf our $70,000.

Several consecutive years of that and it's easy to see how a bottom-feeder could fall even further behind the top teams in terms of athletic resources.

I get that. I was just pointing out that even being irrelevant in the A10 we will have much more resources now than being in a one bid league. And remember there's a 5 year rollover so we are talking a couple hundred thousand dollars more per year. For instance, last year the A10 got 9 units (4 teams, three made the round of 32, one made the sweet 16), 2012 the A10 got 5 (three teams in, one advanced the the sweet 16), this year we have a minimum of 6 (and that's if not a single team wins).

Coupled with the TV revenue, what this means is we have much more resources at our disposal to improve the one thing that is holding us back: our coach.


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[gmujim92]

I can understand why nearly everyone on this board is depressed about the current situation. But, how can anyone regret Mason joining the A10?

Frankly, I believe Mason is committed to being successful in the A10. And, while hiring Hewitt does appear to be a mistake, I'm sure that Merten & O'Connor believed he was the most qualified coach to replace Larranaga.

Who said anything about "regretting" the move?

Regret is an emotion. Some of you guys may be looking at this situation emotionally, and yeah, it's nice to be associated with a much better group of basketball programs who just received 6 bids to the NCAA tournament.

I'm using my head, not my heart. And my head says that unless some significant changes are made to address our program's short- and long-term needs, we will remain in over our heads in the A-10.

Like it or not, but the A-10's history suggests that the rich (fomerly Xavier and Temple) get richer, while the poor (Fordham, Duquesne) get poorer.

From a financial perspective, because A-10 teams keep 75 percent of the tournament units they earn, you need to make the dance (and win games) on a semi-regular basis to get a decent piece of the A-10's revenue pie.

If you don't, you face an enormous financial disparity that can manifest itself in less money available for salaries, recruiting, charter flights, buy games -- all areas that directly impact the program's on-court competitiveness.

We're already starting off behind the 8-ball because of Bozo the Coach, whose hiring doesn't exactly inspire confidence that our administration is serious about winning.

If that commitment isn't there, we would've been better off being a big fish in the CAA than a guppy in the shark-infested A-10. I'd love to know how anybody could argue that.

 

[gmujim92]

I get that. I was just pointing out that even being irrelevant in the A10 we will have much more resources now than being in a one bid league. And remember there's a 5 year rollover so we are talking a couple hundred thousand dollars more per year. For instance, last year the A10 got 9 units (4 teams, three made the round of 32, one made the sweet 16), 2012 the A10 got 5 (three teams in, one advanced the the sweet 16), this year we have a minimum of 6 (and that's if not a single team wins).

Coupled with the TV revenue, what this means is we have much more resources at our disposal to improve the one thing that is holding us back: our coach.

Sorry, you've still lost me.

If our resources are increased, but by a much smaller percentage than roughly half our conference, are we not still falling behind?

 

[GMUSSTN]

If that commitment isn't there, we would've been better off being a big fish in the CAA than a guppy in the shark-infested A-10. I'd love to know how anybody could argue that.

We weren't a "big fish" by any means (not since PH was hired anyway) so I'd rather meddle in the A-10 then meddle in the CAA. At least the teams that meddle in the A-10 can still sniff the tournament as a 10-12 seed.

That's assuming this season was a low-point, which I'm hoping it was. The CAA looked much more profitable because it had 2 Final Four appearances it was still paying out, and I'm assuming that makes the CAA look much more attractive than it actually is (which is a one-bid, no NCAA win conference).

 

[gmujim92]

We weren't a "big fish" by any means (not since PH was hired anyway) so I'd rather meddle in the A-10 then meddle in the CAA. At least the teams that meddle in the A-10 can still sniff the tournament as a 10-12 seed.

That's assuming this season was a low-point, which I'm hoping it was. The CAA looked much more profitable because it had 2 Final Four appearances it was still paying out, and I'm assuming that makes the CAA look much more attractive than it actually is (which is a one-bid, no NCAA win conference).

We were a big fish in the CAA through most of Larranaga's tenure. We did very well for ourselves there and could still be doing so if he had managed to keep our coach.

If you're going to make a dramatic step up in conferences, you should make sure you have the resources and administrative commitment to compete.

Finally, assuming this season was a low point is dangerous when your coach is Bozo. I expect we'll be even worse next season without Allen and Wright.