Defend That, Digger! The Overrated/underrated edition

so an exhibition game is your basis for Syracfuse as being overrated? Didn’t Kansas lose to a D2 school the year they won the NC in an exhibition game?

Funny how you mention Cornell as underrated but fail to mention that Syracuse BEAT Cornell.

Purdue – Evidence of being overrated? Nice loss against Northwestern. Forgot to mention that as well.

Also forgot to mention that the same Indiana team that beat Pitt (minus 2 of their best players mind you) gave Purdue all they could handle over the weekend.

Your research is just stellar.

If Purdue makes it out of the 2nd round I would be stunned.

Cornell is very under rated. However Syracuse blew them out very easily. At least give them credit for that.

I understand the logic behind your abhorrence for the Big East. Here, in the Northeast, we can’t stand games featuring color commentary by Dick Vitale. He only talks about Duke, Kansas, Michigan State, Tom Izzo, Calipari’s Bank Account and Tom Izzo some more. That being said, please review our RPI (#2) and our www.KenPom.com (Ken Pomeroy) ranking (#3) in conjunction with our statistical superiority, not only from a Big East perspective, but on a National Scale. Where should Syracuse be in the polls? Should they be 6th? The numbers say that they should be somewhere between #2 and #3.

Yes we lost to LeMoyne. Didn’t Michigan State lose to UNC (one of not so great wins)? It all comes out in the wash friend. Hopefully, a few the Big 10 teams will be matched with the Orangemen in the Dance and they can experience our tentacled 2-3 for themselves.
Regards.

Nova is overrated. Battled tested? I think not, there strength of schedule is like 90th, way below Syracuse’s. Yea Syracuse’s is down from earlier but still up there AND who cares what nova did last year, that was LAST year!!! Besides your a prudue fan, even if the Big East is overrated, which it is not, you guys play in the Big Ten, your like one step up from the Pac 10. Try again please.

put this blog on the page. you are going to see a lot of Cuse fans

Northwestern 72 – Purdue 64

Syracuse lost to Lemoyne because we played man to man the whole game to prove a point…that we can’t play man to man.

The Big East is not only the best basketball conference but they are the most entertaining games. Go to MSG in the middle of March and see you yourself.

Just an FYI, do not take anything you saw in the Lemoyne game as a barometer of how good this SU team really is. Just so you know, SU played man to man the entire game, never once got into the 2-3 zone which makes them so good. Also, Boehiem went 10 deep in that game. SU does not play 10 deep anytime of the year unless its the walk ons or due to injuries. This team has a 7 man rotation, thats it. However, the 2 players off the bench would start in most D-1 schools. Of course since I am SURE you watch the SU-Lemoyne game you would have known all this and probably just omitted from you blog.

I’d like to add to the firestorm here, but I can’t. I actually do think Syracuse is a very good team and the Big East’s best chance of making the final four. They have looked very good in the regular season. They actually were my favorite Big East team until I had to read their fan comments on here, but I still have a lot of respect for them and what they’ve accomplished. Villanova is the overhyped team that I think is way overrated and I believe West Virginia will smoke them tonight. Georgetown is good, but inconsistent. The Big Ten is better than the national media give them credit for. Purdue smoked West Virginia and Wisconsin is very legit this year. Mich St. but they always play better at the The good thing about basketball is that unlike football, it will be decided on the court.

I meant to say Michigan St. did lose to UNC, but they always play better at the end of the season.

This is comical to see that someone who is a fan of the most overrated team at the beginning of the season (Purdue) is ripping apart top 10 teams in the country. Listen buddy, just because you play in arguably one of the worst basketball conferences as far as the big time conferences go, and just because your team had a little skid but is now back on track does not give you any right to tear these teams apart. Purdue would get wrecked by Cuse, Nova, Texas, G’Town and probably the other 75 percent of the Top 25. You’re basing your blogs on one game for each team and basically saying Purdue should be top 3 because they beat cream puffs like penn state and other teams in the most overrated conference in the preseason. Here’s an idea for your next blog: Chances Purdue will make it to the Sweet 16. Mark my words, You’ll lose to a team like Temple in the first or second round. Better luck next year. Oh and remind me the last time Purdue won a national championship and then look up the last National Championship or Championship appearance was for the teams you called out……..Nuff Said

Being a huge Cuse fan, I dont want to see Purdue in the tourney. They match up against us very well.

I think you guys have a beef with WVU being ranked ahead of Purdue but how can Syracuse not be ranked where they are?

You guys are bagging on their schedule which happens to be 13th in the country while Purdue is 43. So one team has one loss with a tougher schedule but the 3 loss team against a weaker schedule is clearly better? I guess I missed something there. BTW, Georgetown has played the toughest schedule of anyone and WVU is #12 in that category. I don’t make the numbers, just passing them along.

Kentucky and Nova have both played weak schedules. Nova had their first tough game of the year over the weekend and they lost. Maybe the guy who says Nova should STILL be ahead of Syracuse can explain that logic. Kentucky’s SOS is a very weak 76. They have no business being ranked ahead of Syracuse either.

Are you guys seriously bagging on SU because they lost an exibition game before the season started? A ridiculous loss? Come on man. Syracuse is off to the best start in school history and you want to talk about a game that won’t be remembered by history? I think you can understand why Syracuse fans have moved on. This might be the best team Jim Boeheim has ever had at Syracuse, the last thing on the team or the fans minds is what happened in November BEFORE the season even started. It sure looked awful at the time but anyone, I repeat anyone who has followed this team can attest, that game was an indication of absolutely NOTHING.

If anything, perhaps you should be questioning Cincinnati, Georgetown, WVU, Notre Dame, UNC, Memphis, Florida, Cal, Cornell, Seton Hall, Providence, South Florida (all teams better than LeMoyne, I am sure you would agree) and others who have all failed against SU, how they could lose when a crappy D2 team can beat them, in the Dome no less?

If Syracuse has all these flaws that a D2 team can exploit, why hasn’t someone, other than their biggest nemesis (Pitt) over the last few years, figured it out?

Right, MSU lost to UNC, a team that is just dreadful at the moment and the excuse is, MSU plays better late in the season anyway.

Well Syracuse fans feel the same way. Our team always plays better ONCE THE GAMES START TO COUNT.

You lose credibility right from the beginning and I quote "From what I have seen of Kansas and Kentucky, they can only beat themselves on a neutral court. "

Who has Kentucky beat? You rip Syracuse for a blowout win against NC on a netural court yet Kentucky could only beat them by 2 at home. They beat an average Big East team in UConn on a neutral court by 3. Only beat Miami at home by 2, lose on the road to South Carolina who is 13-9 by 6. Not to mention their SOS of 51. They did beat Indiana by 17 on the road but lets face it, they are horrible.

Now lets look at Purdue. Those 3 straight losses don’t look good. Losing to Wisconsin is no joke but to lose at home to Ohio St and then the topper to perennial powerhouse that they are, Northwestern. The only thin that’s overrated is the Big Ten. I do agree on one thing, Wisconsin is always underrated when i comes to basketball. Bo Ryan deserves much more credit then he gets.

Look, I could find some proof that the WAC is a better conference that the Big Ten, so give it a rest. There is evidence that points both ways in any of these discussions, so just drop it. I don’t think anyone in the history of arguing has every claimed that no Big Ten team can ever possibly beat a team from the Big East. The Big Ten always has a couple of good teams. The Big East just usually has at leat one more.

This year you have Purdue, MSU and Wisconsin. The Big East has SU, Nova, G-Town and WVU.

BTW, Temple who had beaten Nova, 17th in the RPI, Pitt who beat SU, 23. Northwestern 66.

Just out of curiosity, where do you Big Ten guys think UConn would be in the Big Ten if they played there?

Syracuse is no lock for the Final 4 but most impartial observers have claimed they are one of the very best in the land, with a good number of folks saying they are the very best.

This isn’t homerism, this is the guys who told us before the season we would be ranked 50th now telling us they are number one.

Just listen to Mick Cronin talk about Syracuse and what they do to you.

http://blog.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/2010/02/what_theyre_saying_about_syrac_11.html

Thanks for the mention BoilerTMills. Didn’t come here to spam your site. Like others you post was headlined on syracuse.com so it send us all scrambling here to read the entire article. The sign-up was easy so that is why you are getting our two cents.

Come on Syracuse fans, be civil. We can do it in visiting arenas, we can do it on the web.

There are a few teams out there that could match up well with Syracuse. If they are in the same bracket then the cuse is obviously not a lock. The only team I see as a lock for the final four is Kansas.

it’s great you that you love the boilers, and that you defend them aginst all comers. i love the ‘cuse and defend them. it doesn’t matter what we say now, March Madness will sort it all out. purdue will have a high seed and the ’cuse will have a high seed. love to see them in the same region.
one thing i will agree with you on is that “dancin” digger phelps and dick “the mouth” vitale should retire ASAP

One didn’t count, one did? Green Bay is a nine loss team. But one team gets a pass because you’re a big ten fan. Good times. Underrated Cornell got stomped by 15 to overrated Syracuse. Has Purdue ever done anything in basketball? Outside of MSU and OSU, does the big ten ever do anything come tournament time? You must be smoking some of that good stuff.

the wins over florida and north carolina don’t look good for syracuse? tell that to michigan state, since they lost to both teams

Syracuse is 6-0 on the road for the first time in 10 years. Now you can poo poo who they have played and all that. All I can tell you and Jim Boeheim will tell you the same thing, they haven’t failed to reach 6-0 on the road, in conference in the last ten years because the schedule has been tougher.

I am sure you would agree about the Big Ten. Except for a game here or there, road wins are tough to come by. I just heard Coach K talking on the radio about how proud he was to have TWO ACC road wins at this point. And that conference stinks.

I think the LeMoyne game is fair game, if a team hasn’t spent the next 24 games proving that game meant nothing. That is the kind of game you use against UNC fan who is on here arguing that his team is still the same team this year or something like that, not a program with a rich history having perhaps its best year. That game might as well have been last season or ten years ago. Just doesn’t matter anymore. Can you Purdue fans really say you would feel different about this team and have less faith if a similar thing had happened to them before the season started? This blog would be full of post about how Purdue is a joke and the 19-3 record means nothing compared to an exibition loss?

Last thing, why does it matter about a road record anyway? Syracuse will open the Dance in Buffalo and then will proceed if they win two games to some neutral site. Why should I as a Syracuse fan or a fan of any team concern themselves with a team that “hasn’t proved itself on the road”? It sounds like it matters but it doesn’t. NCAA tourney games are always played at neutral sites and Syracuse always concerns themselves with scheduling those type games instead of worrying about road test that gear you up for nothing. Playing good teams is important. Given the neutrality of the NCAA tourney, where you play means nothing come March.

EZE1, great point. Big Ten fans spouting about Syracuse WINNING over both UNC and Florida when the best team in the Big Ten lost to both.

You couldn’t make it up if you tried.

6-0 on the road in the Big East, Phoenix.

I think the road/home argument should come up at seeding time. A team being compared to another team with a similar resume should get an edge if they picked up a big road win and the other didn’t but in the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter.

Syracuse more prepared themselves for the Big East tourney and the Dance by playing Cal and UNC at Madison Square Garden compared to going on the road to either place IMO.

They lost to an Ohio St. team that lost to UNC, yes the UNC that Syracuse beat by 16
- They lost to Wisconsin who has 5 losses, one to Green Bay Phoenix
- They lost to North Western, who is 5-6 in an overated conference

I wish I had seen more of the Purdue-WVU game. IIRC, ESPN had some silly bowl game on before that game and just about the entire first half was missed due to an overlap of the football game.

I don’t want to say much since I did not see the game but how much of that was Purdue is better and how much was it, Purdue was at home?

Wouldn’t you have a better feel for the team if that game had been played on a neutral floor? Are you certain you can play a team like WVU like that when your student section isn’t playing the role of 6th man?

Take it back to Syracuse.com shutitdown2-3. Please. You are not helping.

Disclaimer up front: I’ve followed Syracuse Bball for nearly 25 years and would pretty much consider myself a die-hard. I probably watch too much college basketball every year (just ask my wife) but it sure helps come tournament time when I have to fill out my brackets. Look, we can love all over our favorite teams this time of year and talk about how good we are and everyone else is overated, but it really comes down to two things: your team’s seeding in the tournament and how well they do with that seeding in the dance. Sure it helps to be in a favorable region, but you gotta win six straight games to bring home the hardware. I think both Purdue and Syracuse fans need to remember that winning all these games in conference is great, you’ll have a high national ranking and will boost your tourney seeding for sure, but you still gotta prove it in March. I wouldn’t mind seeing the two teams meet in a Final Four match-up and settle this on the hardwood. Talk is cheap.

I hear ya. Save it for UConn, Nova and G-Town.

… congrats to you and your alum Drew Brees.

thanks to the classy syracuse fans on here and their props for Brees! Like I said, I think Syracuse is an excellent team and would look forward to a final four matchup In some of the comments, there at least needs to be reason, however. Ohio St. without Evan Turner and with him are a completely different team. Homecourt may have helped a little in the WVU game, but we blew them out and the final score was closer than the game. Can homecourt advantage really be worth 15-20 points a game?

Key wins: UNC ,Cal(12th), Florida (11th) @West Virginina, Gtown
Margin of victory were: 16, 22, 12, 1, 17

• The florida game was played in tampa, Florida was coming in off a win against Mich St.
  *Beat Cornell by 15, yes the same cornell team that took Kansas to the end

Lost one game to the 23rd ranked team, who was playing out of their mind at the time ( won 8 in a row when they beat SU)

1. in the country with 53 percent FG

8 players averaging at least 8 ppg
4 players averaging double figures

top 5 in the coutry with opponents fg percentage

if you want to say anything about the lemoyne fluke you cant, the game didn’t count or matter. If you werent paying any attention, SU played Man to man the entire game… SU plays a zone at all times … the game was a fluke it can happen to anyone

I could be way, way off but I got WVU winning easily. Color me least impressed with Nova out of all the top teams I have seen this season. Outside of 1-1 vs. Georgetown, each winning at home (no surprise) VIllanova has played a very weak schedule and they aren’t exactly destroying people.

If Purdue is the 2 seed in a 1 seed Nova bracket at this point, Purdue is most likely my Final 4 team. I am much more impressed with the Boilers to this point.

I’m also not sure about WVU. Lots of raw talent but their coach wears a windsuit on the sideline. Can’t take them too seriously. G-Town is going to be tough out IF they are making outside shots. That sounds like something you could say about a lot of teams but this is as good of a Georgetown team as they have had in awhile IMO.

I don’t think you put a number on the homecourt advantage. All I can say is that it is an advantage. Whenever a team plays well in the Carrier Dome against Syracuse I wonder how they did it. The building itself is opposing, let alone the record crowds.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying Purdue won big because of the home floor. I just don’t think you subtract a certain number of points and then say, oh they would have won by 8 at WVU if the game was there. We don’t know. That is my point of why I like the neutral site games. That and the fact that Syracuse always has the crowd advantage at the neutral sites. LOL.

problem with your logic. North Carolina beats OSU & Mich State. Big 10 doesn’t really count

And the Big Ten is overrated: Penn State (laugh), what has Purdue ever done in the NCAA (choke). How’s Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan, Northwest doing this year? It’s looking that the Big Ten may only get 4 bids again this year…..Don’t you dare call the Big East overrated when your own team and conference sucks.

Remember the ‘03 tourney? The Big 12 teams SU played couldn’t handle the 2-3 zone. This year’s version is even better and will certainly be the key to success for this team come March.

Asfar as rankings go, how UK is put ahead of SU boggles my mind for reasons previously stated here. Hope we get the ’Cats in our bracket!!

I’ll concede that the Big East is the best conference this year. I think there’s also a strong argument that the Big Ten would be #2. Now before anyone freaks out and goes all Penn State, Iowa, IU, Michigan on me, hear me out: 4 teams in the top 15/16 depending on which poll you look at.

The only other conference with 4 ranked teams (notwithstanding the Big East) is the Big 12 and that’s a stretch since Baylor is unranked in the coaches poll.

The ACC has 2 ranked teams in what is likely one of the more balanced conferences (8 teams with 16 or more wins).

The SEC has Kentucky, Tennessee and Vandy. Beyond that they are very unpredictable.

I’m not convinced that the Mountain West is for real, and a lot of that can be blamed on non-conference games against the black hole that is the Pac-10.

Convince me that I’m wrong.

Jan 13,1978 Mackey Arena Orange win 66-61 Sweet victory

I’m a Cuse fan. Saw the link on syracuse.com. Just stating that up front.

1) The use of “we.” I’ve heard this boring point made time and time again throughout my 35 years of life, that it’s not “we” because “you don’t have any effect on the game.” True. Whatever. I think that may be an appropriate point to make for pro leagues. But for college teams, it IS different. I will always be a Syracuse alum. Carmelo Anthony can go to the Nuggets and might play for five more teams before he retires. But he will always only be a Syracuse man. It’s not just who we cheer for – our college is part of who we are. When our friends who went to other schools hear that Purdue won or Syracuse won, they think of US. We went to classes with the players, we shared the same space, had some of the same experiences. I think for college sports “we” is perfectly appropriate. As much as I love Derek Jeter, it’s much harder to be “we” when thinking about a team like the Yankees.

2) The LeMoyne exhibition is so incredibly silly that it shouldn’t even be discussed.

3) One loss does not mean a team is overrated!! My God! And I’m talking about one loss for any team, in any sport. If Purdue lost to Ball State it doesn’t necessarily mean anything (it might, but not necessarily). All it means is that it was “just one of those days” or that Ball State was just lights out from behind the arc or that the Purdue team lost focus or their star player broke up with his girlfriend the night before. The Yankees lose to the Royals, but it just doesn’t mean anything. So stop screaming about THIS Team lost to THAT team who beat ANOTHER Team so this is proof!! It’s a factor, and an entire body of work comes in to play, along with what you see with your own eyes.

I’d take Syracuse’s FG%, scoring numbers, and assist numbers on the season into account more than I would, say, a loss at Louisville.

4) No point here other than to say this is the best start in SU history, and considering we’re fifth all-time in wins in college basketball…that’s pretty good. Oh, and we’re doing it with no McDonalds All Americans. The Donte Greenes of the world have loads of talent but don’t make good teammates, necessarily. This SU team is special. Will they go all the way? Maybe. Will they have “one of those days” in March? Maybe. But that doesn’t necessarily reflect anything on Boeheim or the team.

Take care.
Jack

How could you even CONSIDER the game to be a real game?

It was an EXHIBITION, you imbecile.

Are you in favor of counting all of the NFL pre-season games? Why don’t we just start Major League Baseball in January? Or throw the Winter Olympics into the NHL season standings.

If Syracuse did not play MORE games than most other teams (they’re 23-1), and played on the road against GOOD teams before its conference schedule started (don’t give us the crap line that UNC isn’t good now but was good then – Purdue “was” better a couple of months ago than it is now).

Syracuse is NOT overrated. Kentucky is overrated. RPI and strength of schedule quantify this.

Just wait until John Wall and his pouty face get bounced in the second round of the Tourney. Or other teams exploit Kentucky’s lack of rebounding.

BoilerTMill, since I wasn’t there, could you give some examples as to why Syracuse on that particular day, should have beaten LeMoyne in an exibition game with their eyes closed? Or are you just saying Syracuse is awful and this proves it? What exactly is your point with this LeMoyne thing? Is it because you have nothing else to say about the Orange? What is it?

I know you position has been “swayed” but you still seem to be sticking to this point that the LeMoyne game means something in the big picture. Curious as to what that is?

I was definitely embarrassed by the loss to LeMoyne, so I understand the feeling that ‘Cuse should always beat LeMoyne. It almost goes without saying. I mean, they’re LeMoyne! Two things have helped me get through that difficult time:
1. When I was there, I worked at Bennigan’s on Erie Blvd with a couple of guys who went to LeMoyne, so it kind of felt like a charitable contribution to them.
2. Since then, with the exception of the Pitt game, ’Cuse has destroyed all comers, defeating powerhouse teams from the ACC, SEC, Pac-10 and ConfUSA, as well as some of the top teams in the Big East, the best conference in America.

Lets see, Purdue has played: Cal State Northridge, South Dakota State, Central Michigan, Buffalo, Valpo, Alabama, Ball State, SIU, and the week Big Ten teams.

Syracuse has beat: West Virgina (U did too), GTOWN, Memphis, Florida, UNC, Cornell, Cincy, California

November 13 Cal State Northridge W 89-64 1-0
November 20 vs. South Dakota State* W 74-63 2-0
November 22 vs. Saint Joseph’s* W 85-60 3-0
November 23 vs. No. 11 Tennessee* W 73-72 4-0
November 28 Central Michigan W 64-38 5-0
December 1 Wake Forest W 69-58 6-0
December 5 Buffalo W 101-65 7-0
December 9 Valparaiso W 86-62 8-0
December 12 at Alabama W 73-65 9-0
December 19 vs. Ball State* W 69-49 10-0
December 22 SIU-Edwardsville W 90-63 11-0
December 29 at Iowa W 67-56 12-0 (1-0)
January 1 No. 6 West Virginia W 77-62 13-0
January 5 Minnesota W 79-60 14-0 (2-0)
January 9 at No. 20 Wisconsin L 73-66 14-1 (2-1)
January 12 Ohio State L 70-66 14-2 (2-2)
January 16 at Northwestern L 72-64 14-3 (2-3)
January 19 at Illinois W 84-78 15-3 (3-3)
January 23 Michigan W 69-59 16-3 (4-3)
January 28 No. 16 Wisconsin W 60-57 17-3 (5-3)
January 31 Penn State W 66-46 18-3 (6-3)
February 4 at Indiana W 78-75 19-3 (7-3)

the level of discourse in these comments is sub-ESPN.com commenters level. all of you should be ashamed of yourselves.

You should ban anyone who comes here to flame. There is no need of it and I don’t like it reflecting on me as a Syracuse fan. I think you were way off saying you couldn’t take Syracuse seriously. However I think you are basing that off paper and not from actually watching the Orange play.

The schedule for Syracuse may not contain the UNC we thought they were playing or the Memphis from the last couple of years and maybe Florida isn’t as good as they were thought to be when SU played them but here is the thing, this isn’t the easiest schedule Syracuse has ever had, yet they have never been 23-1.

BTW, LeMoyne has long forgotten that win over Syracuse. They are having a lukewarm year. They didn’t beat Syracuse because they were some D2 powerhouse who could compete on this level. They in fact are not very good. Your new favorite website, syracuse.com just did a feature on them a week or so ago. Further proof IMO that Syracuse was doing nothing other than getting in a workout while giving LeMoyne the thrill of a lifetime.

I’m sure Purdue fans don’t care one bit about Jim Boeheim but long time Syracuse fans know the best barometer of the Orange is the coach. Back in 2003 after filling out brackets for years for Tony Kornheiser he refused. Why? Because he had his team winning it that year. When he says the team isn’t very good, they aren’t very good. While he is not predicting a championship this year he has readily admitted that he has a really good team. From Jim Boeheim that is high praise. Trust me.

getting a TON of help from the refs. Even the ESPN crew is in shock. Not sure if it’ll be enough- WVU has only managed 6 points in the last 5 minutes.

Hammer and Rails…thanks for the article

Remember Transitive Property is the lowest level of comparison…you have to dig deeper IMHO

Time for us the play a little home and home with Purdue/Cuse…been too long since the Joe Barry Carroll/Rosie Bouie era

So let me get this straight, Georgetown beats Butler by 7, leading for the final 33 minutes, by as many as 17, and it’s a game that “could have gone either way.” Yet against South Florida, the Hoyas lead in the second half, and were within 2 points with 2:30 to go, and that’s considered a “blowout” loss?

Sounds like some fancy work with the facts. The Hoyas have beaten 5 top-25 teams including two of the top 7 teams. Georgetown is not a top-5 caliber team right now, due to their consistency, but the Hoyas should be solidly in the top 10.

Oh, and as to the ODU game, Georgetown has lost to them on campus once before in the last few years. That 2007 Hoyas team made the Final Four, and many of us would be happy with a repeat performance in that regard.

I missed it before but I can’t believe someone suggested that losing at Northwestern is better than losing at home to Pitt.

I know we are talking about this year and Pitt isn’t an elite team like they have been in the past but is there seriously any comparison to the basketball program at Pitt and the basketball program at Northwestern?

One is a perennial power, the other is irrelevant. They are good this year? Why because they have one good win, over Purdue? If Northwestern can be considered good because they took care of business at home against Purdue then what does that say about Pitt who went on the road and did what nobody else has been able to do, beat Syracuse?

I know you guys are in love with the Big Ten, but seriously, Pitt and Northwestern?

By the way, Pitt has been the biggest nemesis for Syracuse the last 5 years or so. I believe SU is 5-11 in their last 16 games against Pitt. Pitt is a heckuva program and the lack of respect afforded to them (saying a loss to Northwestern is more respectable is pretty low) is amazing.

I can’t imagine suggesting that losing somewhere like Seton Hall was more respectable than losing at home to Wisconsin. That is essentially what the guy said. Just to flip it around. In fact I don’ think you could find a better comparison than Pitt and Wisconsin, they are almost mirror programs. And I think comparing Northwestern to Seton Hall is being rather respectful to Northwestern, this year and overall.

On top of all that, Pitt is in the top 25 of both polls while Northwestern is not getting even one vote in either poll. To me the difference in home/away venues is nowhere near enough to catch the Wildcats up to the Panthers.

I do agree Northwestern will make the tournament, the same tournament they make every year, the National Invitational Tournament.

We are talking about it because you compared one of the elite basketball programs in the country to Northwestern. Pitt is a top 25 team who is probably headed for a 4-5 seed so it is not like they are THAT far off from where they have been.

If anything Pitt falls somewhere behind MSU and Wisconsin and in front of Ohio State. Pitt is not Northwestern and reverting to personal insults (I come off like I have no clue) isn’t going to make it happen. Its an untrue statement. Northwestern is 40 spots from Pitt in the RPI and they are behind NORTHEASTERN for crying out loud.

Maybe they will make the tourney, but it will be as a 12 seed, last team in. Pitt is probably headed for a 5 at this moment and that could easily get as high as a 3. Pitt is 18-6 in the toughest conference in the land with the best win of anyone in the country. They are going to a 23-24 win team before the tourney arrives, perhaps more. Past history or not, Pitt is twice the program, even in a down year like this, that Northwestern is.

Before you bite my head off, I should mention I wrote that post without checking to see if you were the person who originally posted the comparison.

If you were not I apologize for claiming you said something earlier that you didn’t. Those comments should have been directed at the original poster, if that was not you.

Go Orange.

I will take back and apologize to all those Villanova fans posting on here (I’m actually not sure there are any), but I did express my doubts about them earlier. I was impressed with the way they bounced back from the Georgetown loss tonight. Pitt is usually a very good program but I’m not sure they’ll manage to stay in the top 25 this year.

That is a cop out. You compare Northwestern to Pitt and then claim that the people debating you aren’t intellectual enough to carry on a conversation with you when they disagree?

Maybe you could fill me on what part of my argument has not been legitimate?

1. The fans shouldn’t be the one trying to convince you that Cuse is not overrated. Your rinky dink little paragraph failed on its own, and it’s laughable that you’re passing the burden of proof onto your readers.

2. It’s ironic that you changed your stance after receiving 200+ comments, yet can’t even support your own mea culpa with any substance as to why you switched your position (other than your rinky dink blog got a lot of hits and some crap about about the obvious…like how no one punches a ticket to Indy until they win the regionals).

3. If you’re going to judge teams based on the preseason, let’s just analogize with a team you’re obviously fond of — the Saints. The Saints lost to the DOLPHINS during the preseason…and OH MY GOODNESS…IT WAS AT HOME. The Dolphins. I guess that one preseason loss didn’t hurt them so bad, now did it? Did you ever question if Drew Brees and the rest of his team were overrated? Exactly. It’s PRESEASON.

4. I guess since you stretched the transitive property so thin on how Cuse lost to Pitt and Pitt lost to IU, then I guess since IU lost to Loyola Maryland, that Loyola Maryland is (a) way underranked, and (b) Loyola Maryland should be near or at the same level as Cuse. Seriously dude?

I’m sure you’re a nice guy and have plenty of free time on your hands to think of compelling arguments. Try again to persuade us…but this time, at least make an effort to enhance your credibility.

See, not a fan of the reply feature. My last post is way up below the post I responded to. Do you really monitor all of your previous post to see who is responding to particular things you said? I don’t. I just keep an eye on the bottomof the page for new post.

BTW, in regard to the Pitt-Northwestern discussion, I don’t know who you think I am talking to. I think I am starting to agree, this conversation is going nowhere. Obviously winning at Northwestern is akin to beating John Wooden’s UCLA Bruins back in the mid 70s. Not sure what I was thinking.

Heck, I’d like a Saints fan to explain how they could lose, when they were undefeated to the lowly Bucs, during the actual season?

Are the folks who gave the Saints the trophy aware of this? They aren’t a legit champ. Come on, you can’t lose to the Bucs and win the Super Bowl.

Literally, NOBODY has ever lost to the Bucs and won the Super Bowl. Look it up. This is an outrage. I look forward to this blog posting on the subject of Super Fraud, Drew Brees.

The Big East always had 2-3 good teams, even when it was a 9 team conference. In the 80s it was always St Johns, Syracuse and G-Town. In the 90s it was Syracuse, Seton Hall, St Johns and UConn. This decade it has been UConn, Nova, Syracuse, Louisville and Pitt. The only thing that has really changed is the number of solid teams. That has gone up. Right now Joe Lunardi’s first four teams OUT of the tourney are ALL from the Big East. The league will have at least 6 entrants and as of now, 4 more are in line should anyone drop out.

Maybe the Big East should be the Big 10. Any other conference ever had 10 teams up for serious consideration at one time?