Post by RockawayHoya on Mar 8, 2006 18:02:05 GMT -5
For those without ESPN Insider, Pomeroy gives somewhat of an analysis about tough potential games for top ranked teams in their respective conference tournaments. We are mentioned prominently in the article as being a potential roadblock for UConn. Here's an excerpt:
While Connecticut, Duke, Texas and George Washington all may be the favorites in their respective conferences, each has vulnerabilities that can be exploited. The chances are at least one of them will fall short this week, and in each case, there are lower-seeded teams that are capable of providing a challenge to the conference bullies even before the championship game.
While UConn is beginning to seem invincible, remember that in the last month the Huskies have been taken to the wire in home games against both Louisville and Notre Dame, the two lowest seeds in the Big East Tournament. The Huskies can be beaten, and they'll get a test in their semifinal game.
I'll get in trouble trying to predict the Huskies' opponent in that game, as any one of the three possible teams -- Notre Dame, Marquette or Georgetown -- has a reasonable chance, and none may be particularly easy. In addition to Notre Dame's aforementioned miss, Marquette handed UConn one of its two losses -- by 15 points in Milwaukee.
The team that could provide the stiffest early challenge, though, might be Georgetown. The Hoyas only commit turnovers on 19.7 percent of their possessions, good for 35th best in the country, and UConn only forces turnovers on 18.3 percent of opponents' possessions, ranking a miserable 314th. In their only regular-season game, the Hoyas committed 14 turnovers in a seven-point loss. Had they cut that in half, the game would have joined the list of UConn's nail-biters.
You might think committing just seven turnovers against Connecticut is unrealistic, but the four Big East teams that have been the best at avoiding turnovers this season have averaged 8.2 turnovers per game against UConn. Furthermore, a game against Georgetown will be slower than the average UConn game, so seven sounds about right for the Hoyas.
While there may be favorites in these conference tourneys, remember that this is college basketball, where no team is perfect. At least one of these superpowers will lose this week -- and it may happen earlier than you think.
While Connecticut, Duke, Texas and George Washington all may be the favorites in their respective conferences, each has vulnerabilities that can be exploited. The chances are at least one of them will fall short this week, and in each case, there are lower-seeded teams that are capable of providing a challenge to the conference bullies even before the championship game.
While UConn is beginning to seem invincible, remember that in the last month the Huskies have been taken to the wire in home games against both Louisville and Notre Dame, the two lowest seeds in the Big East Tournament. The Huskies can be beaten, and they'll get a test in their semifinal game.
I'll get in trouble trying to predict the Huskies' opponent in that game, as any one of the three possible teams -- Notre Dame, Marquette or Georgetown -- has a reasonable chance, and none may be particularly easy. In addition to Notre Dame's aforementioned miss, Marquette handed UConn one of its two losses -- by 15 points in Milwaukee.
The team that could provide the stiffest early challenge, though, might be Georgetown. The Hoyas only commit turnovers on 19.7 percent of their possessions, good for 35th best in the country, and UConn only forces turnovers on 18.3 percent of opponents' possessions, ranking a miserable 314th. In their only regular-season game, the Hoyas committed 14 turnovers in a seven-point loss. Had they cut that in half, the game would have joined the list of UConn's nail-biters.
You might think committing just seven turnovers against Connecticut is unrealistic, but the four Big East teams that have been the best at avoiding turnovers this season have averaged 8.2 turnovers per game against UConn. Furthermore, a game against Georgetown will be slower than the average UConn game, so seven sounds about right for the Hoyas.
While there may be favorites in these conference tourneys, remember that this is college basketball, where no team is perfect. At least one of these superpowers will lose this week -- and it may happen earlier than you think.
