Today's BET Slate -- Predictions

[ShimmyJr]

Here goes - let's hoping the Hoyas make a resounding statement and put UConn on notice that we're not going quietly...NEED good defense tonight!

Georgetown 61
Seton Hall 52

Notre Dame 72
Rutger 59

Upset Special:

Providence 66
West Virginia 60

[HoyaSox04]

Georgetown 66
SHU 61

ND 74
Rutgers 63

Agree with you on this one:

Providence 68
WVU 65

Jeff goes for 20/12, with BB chipping 15/8. Ashanti and JWall also go for double digits.

Lattimore and Francis eat up Rutgers terrible low-post defense for combined 28 pts. Falls/Quinn go 7-18 from 3.

Gomes BLOWS up for 25/10. Pittsnogle comes out with a tattoo of a mermaid on fire on his head after shaving his hair, trying to impersonate his personal hero, Bam Bam Bigelow.

[Fan Of The Game]

March is all about Miracles

Georgetown 87
Seton Hall 42

Providence 63
West Virginia 50

Rutgers 62
Notre Dame 61

And only one Big East bubble team will still be playing tomorrow.

[HoyaSox04]

If ND loses to Rutgers tonight, do you think they're out of the NCAA's?

[Fan Of The Game]

Not necessarily. They just won't be playing tomorrow.

I think they'll be in that "too close to call without knowing the results of all the conference tournaments" category.

[ShimmyJr]

HoyaSox430 said:

If ND loses to Rutgers tonight, do you think they're out of the NCAA's?

Rest assured everyone, Digger said it was definitely FICTION that ND would be out if they lost tonight to Rutgers - so glad that an objective analyst came out with a well-reasoned argument for ND's inclusion.

[Cambridge]

I'm not sure how that would be the case Digger...

A loss to Rutgers would definitely destroy the ND RPI, as it would count as a full neutral court loss (1) to a team with an RPI of 171 and a record of (8-18). I mean, I could be wrong, but I would think that that would drop them about 15 points in RPI, placing them around 75-80.

That coupled with their dismal away game/neutral court record of 4-7, with their only road victories coming against Seton Hall, West Virginia, Providence and Indiana...I would find it VERY difficult to believe that the committee would pass them through.

I'm not saying they would take us instead, nor should they, but I think the Big East would lose the bid altogether.

Interestingly enough, if we beat Seton Hall and Notre Dame lost to Rutgers, our resumes would be surprisingly similar. That's why I'm pretty sure, they would not go with a loss to Rutgers, because at that point there would be very little separating us from them and that is not a good thing for ND.

Here are our resumes, if ND falls to Rutgers and we beat SHU and loose to UConn:

Records:
Irish -- 17-11 (9-8)
Hoyas -- 17-12 (9-9)

RPI:
Irish -- 70 est.
Hoyas -- 80 est.

Away (Neutral) Record:
Irish -- 4-6 (0-1)
Hoyas -- 4-6 (2-2)

Good (Top 50 RPI) Wins:
Irish -- Nova, UConn, BC
Hoyas -- @pitt, @nova
I would argue, two away is the same as three at home...

Bad (100+ RPI) Losses:
Irish -- @michigan, Rutgers*
Hoyas -- Temple, @st. John's

Just, saying, I don't think we would deserve to be in, but it would be real, real, real hard to say that Notre Dame is a lock with a loss to Rutgers. I mean, they would be about as bubbleliscious as you can get. Their resume would be nearly identical to ours...and I don't think anyone would argue we should get the birth.

However, should Notre Dame loose to Rutgers and we beat SH and UConn then lost to whomever, then I think we have a shot at the dance. Look at this resume:

Record:
Hoyas -- 18-12 (10-9)

RPI:
Hoyas -- 65 est.

Away (Neutral) Record:
Hoyas -- 4-6 (3-2)

Good (Top 50 RPI) Wins:
Hoyas -- @pitt, @nova, UConn(N)

Bad (100+ RPI) Losses:
Hoyas -- Temple, @st. John's

[HoyaSox04]

Do you think Digger actually knows what RPI is? To him, I think its just crazy acronym...

[Bahstin]

Remember, the committee like to punish teams for poor OOC schedules. Here is ND's: (kenpom ratings)

(210) Harvard
(281) IUPU Fort Wayne
(276) Charleston Southern
(128) Michigan
(48) Indiana
(50) DePaul
(323) Army
(254) Marist
(200) Western Illinois
(199) Samford

[HoyaFanNY]

hoyas 63
hall 57

wvu76
prov 54 ;D

nd 81
rutgers 67