Haha Bill Self!

[Zippy Chippy]

Unbelievable game by the Rams!

Im so sick of seeing all these big name coaches getting all the best teams and players. I'd like to go see Calipari, Self, Calhoun go coach a team like VCU.

[Dave Schwartz]

Was that a great game or what?

And Obama is 0-4 in his final four prediction!

[Striker]

That's an amazing feat that quite possibly may never be accomplished again by a team playing in the so called new "play in" games in VCU. The Morris boys got what they deserved after what they pulled before that Richmond game.

[Zippy Chippy]

That's an amazing feat that quite possibly may never be accomplished again by a team playing in the so called new "play in" games in VCU. The Morris boys got what they deserved after what they pulled before that Richmond game.

Never see that again. So happy for them. Well deserved. I think they will beat Butler!

[cj]

Never see that again. So happy for them. Well deserved. I think they will beat Butler!

Why wouldn't we see it again? Do you mean an 11 seed reaching the Final Four? I think it is more likely now than ever. If the NBA changes the rule and lets players enter out of high school again, it will be even more likely.

[Zippy Chippy]

Why wouldn't we see it again? Do you mean an 11 seed reaching the Final Four? I think it is more likely now than ever. If the NBA changes the rule and lets players enter out of high school again, it will be even more likely.

Mean a team playing the playin game and then going to the Final 4. I mean ya it probably will, but probably not with a more unlikely team.

[cj]

Gotcha. Many thought they didn't belong, but honestly, you could make a case for or against the last 6 in and the last 6 out. It is a crapshoot at that point.

[Zippy Chippy]

The funny thing about VCU is that if you never watched basketball and you watched the games you would think they were the better team every game they've played (probably except FSU)... They've rolled ..

This is funny. In the regular season they lost to:

Georgia St
Northeastern
Drexel
James Madison
UAB

Now they are beating everyone they face

[sonnyp]

say what you want about calapari, but he's a lot easier for me to take than guys like self and williams. (maybe because he's italian and doesn't look like he goes to a stylist instead of a barber).

anyway...always nice to see roy and bill go down.

wow, kansas got to be getting tired of this act.

"ROCKCHALK JAYHAWK" yer ass !!

[sandpit]

say what you want about calapari, but he's a lot easier for me to take than guys like self and williams. (maybe because he's italian and doesn't look like he goes to a stylist instead of a barber).

anyway...always nice to see roy and bill go down.

wow, kansas got to be getting tired of this act.

"ROCKCHALK JAYHAWK" yer ass !!

Once every week Calapari goes to breakfast at some greasy spoon in the Lexington area and has a very low-key meal at the counter with a bunch of crusty old Kentucky fans, typical diehards...he says he learns more about his team from them than anywhere else. Amazing really that he doesn't get mobbed by all the Big Blue fanatics and even better to show that he is a down to earth guy...hard to see a guy like Pitino, for example, who rolls everywhere with entourage, doing that kind of thing.

That being said, I have UConn winning the whole thing.

[sonnyp]

interesting coincidence for me and kentucky. i come from a factory town in upstate ny. grew up in a big family. my older cousins went to school with a tough greaser kid (hard to believe, but that's what he was) who was a better quarterback than basketball player.

back in those days adolph rupp recruited white, blond haired blue eyed rebs for his squads. he NEVER came to our neighborhood for his guys.

he came to get this kid who jumped center at 6'4" on a team that came to be known as rupp's runts.

the kid was pat riley.


pitino ??? guess i've got to claim him too...his being italian. he looks like a pimp.

[Dave Schwartz]

I grew up on Kentucky basketball. Not that I was from Kentucky, but the coach I had all the way through school was. He taught what he called, "Three-man Kentucky basketball."

That is, three men try to work something while the other two get the heck out of the way so their defenders don't pick up the driver.

It would either be a forward, guard and pivot or 2 guards and pivot.

We used to run this play with a high post, two guards and the forwards in the corners. One guard passed the ball to the pivot, then both guards cut across the pivot. Like a quarterback, depending upon who's defender was best beaten, the pivot would choose who to hand the ball off to, or turn and take a free throw himself. Worked great. The only defense against it was a zone to stop the drive and then we'd shoot over them. Or they could sag the coverage on the forwards in which case they'd be wide open in the corner. (Only worth 2 points back then. No, the goal was not a peach basket.)


Dave

[slew101]

Calipari is a great basketball coach. He'll win a national title at some point simply because he'll be in contention every year. Might even be this year. He's done a great coaching job with this team.

As for mingling with fans, he knows that's part of the job with that school. It's likely all a game for Calipari.

Once every week Calapari goes to breakfast at some greasy spoon in the Lexington area and has a very low-key meal at the counter with a bunch of crusty old Kentucky fans, typical diehards...he says he learns more about his team from them than anywhere else. Amazing really that he doesn't get mobbed by all the Big Blue fanatics and even better to show that he is a down to earth guy...hard to see a guy like Pitino, for example, who rolls everywhere with entourage, doing that kind of thing.

That being said, I have UConn winning the whole thing.

[Robert Goren]

Calipari is a great basketball coach. He'll win a national title at some point simply because he'll be in contention every year. Might even be this year. He's done a great coaching job with this team.

As for mingling with fans, he knows that's part of the job with that school. It's likely all a game for Calipari.Cheaters should never win. Sometimes they do, but have their wins taken away. It says lot about the once great Kentucky basketball program that even think about hiring some like him. Who do think they are, Tennessee?

[slew101]

No Finals Fours since 1998 is the reason they hired him.

Interesting line from Jim Nantz in the final seconds. He said "Calipari takes his 3rd team to the Final Four."

I was thinking, "will it hold up in a year?"

Do you think any of these team's who had seasons erased would have had them erased if they actually won the title in those given years or just been put on probation? Seems like it's always the runner-ups or Final Four teams that get seasons erased and not any champions? I don't think the NCAA wants its history to read "champion vacant."

Cheaters should never win. Sometimes they do, but have their wins taken away. It says lot about the once great Kentucky basketball program that even think about hiring some like him. Who do think they are, Tennessee?

[cj]

No Finals Fours since 1998 is the reason they hired him.

Interesting line from Jim Nantz in the final seconds. He said "Calipari takes his 3rd team to the Final Four."

I was thinking, "will it hold up in a year?"

Do you think any of these team's who had seasons erased would have had them erased if they actually won the title in those given years or just been put on probation? Seems like it's always the runner-ups or Final Four teams that get seasons erased and not any champions? I don't think the NCAA wants its history to read "champion vacant."

I wouldn't think so, but football did take away one from USC, right? So maybe...

[JustRalph]

Sonny,.....don't tell me you are an Italian from "Rome" ?

[slew101]

USC did keep the 2004-05 title from the AP that season despite the cheating, although the NCAA has no power there.

I wouldn't think so, but football did take away one from USC, right? So maybe...

[sonnyp]

Sonny,.....don't tell me you are an Italian from "Rome" ?

no ralph, not rome, ny...nor utica, nor canastota. all are close to home.

ah canastota !!! home of boxing's hall of fame and "onion capital of the world". in summer, traveling on the thruway, you can smell the onions growing in the fields.

i miss those days. funny the things you remember. the little roadside stands..... jersey- beefsteak tomatos and cantaloupes, saratoga- the backroads are canyons thru the forests of sweetcorn.

great stuff....just great. nothing better

[Valuist]

Calipari is a great basketball coach. He'll win a national title at some point simply because he'll be in contention every year. Might even be this year. He's done a great coaching job with this team.

As for mingling with fans, he knows that's part of the job with that school. It's likely all a game for Calipari.

Calipari is a great RECRUITER. Alan Boston, one of the best known college bball bettors and the main handicapper featured in "The Odds" says Calipari is TERRIBLE when it comes to x's and os. He basically rolls the ball out there and says go.

Stevens....now THERE is a great coach.

[rastajenk]

Man, I don't know about that assessment. That sounds like something someone who's lost some money betting on Calipari would say. This weekend I thought I saw him outcoach two tournament-ready coaches with higher-seeded teams. I don't think you do that by just letting them play.

[Relwob Owner]

Once every week Calapari goes to breakfast at some greasy spoon in the Lexington area and has a very low-key meal at the counter with a bunch of crusty old Kentucky fans, typical diehards...he says he learns more about his team from them than anywhere else. Amazing really that he doesn't get mobbed by all the Big Blue fanatics and even better to show that he is a down to earth guy...hard to see a guy like Pitino, for example, who rolls everywhere with entourage, doing that kind of thing.

That being said, I have UConn winning the whole thing.



I have to ask.....do you really believe he is a down to earth guy? Most down to earth guys that I know have never had year long bodies of their work "vacated" or "erased" like he had happen at UMASS and Memphis......someone who breaks rules seems to be the opposite of down to earth, as they think they are above the rules...eating at a greasy spoon doesnt make someone down to earth to me. Following rules and doing things above board does.....

[Valuist]

Man, I don't know about that assessment. That sounds like something someone who's lost some money betting on Calipari would say. This weekend I thought I saw him outcoach two tournament-ready coaches with higher-seeded teams. I don't think you do that by just letting them play.

North Carolina may have been a higher seed than Kentucky but Kentucky was favored. I do know he has had issues regarding shady recruiting at both UMass and Memphis. When he wasn't able to recruit (when he was in the NBA), he flopped. Probably only a matter of time before he gets the Kentucky program into trouble.

[slew101]

Regardless of whether you like him or not, he is a very good coach. Maybe great was too strong. Look at this year's team. They were not even ranked in the top 15 all season and now they are playing great, with mostly new players from last year.

Calipari has an excellent NCAA tournament record. He's made 3 Final Fours and a bunch of Elite Eights. He's also only lost one time in the opening round of the tournament in 13 trips. You don't just do that by rolling the balls out there.

Calipari is a great RECRUITER. Alan Boston, one of the best known college bball bettors and the main handicapper featured in "The Odds" says Calipari is TERRIBLE when it comes to x's and os. He basically rolls the ball out there and says go.

Stevens....now THERE is a great coach.

[sandpit]

I have to ask.....do you really believe he is a down to earth guy? Most down to earth guys that I know have never had year long bodies of their work "vacated" or "erased" like he had happen at UMASS and Memphis......someone who breaks rules seems to be the opposite of down to earth, as they think they are above the rules...eating at a greasy spoon doesnt make someone down to earth to me. Following rules and doing things above board does.....

For the most part, probably not...it would seem to me to be awfully difficult to be down to earth when you have the top position in your profession, but plenty of people think George W. Bush is down to earth too, for example.

Still, I wonder how many big time program coaches do go out for casual eats with their fans? I think that's pretty cool.

I know zero about Calipari's dealings at UMass, but the deal at Memphis was a typical NCAA switcheroo. First, they investigate Rose for supposedly cheating on his SAT (how do you do that?), then clear him of any wrongdoing, then after they clear him and he plays, they go back and re-investigate, and, voila, declare him ineligible. I don't have any feelings one way or another about Memphis, but the whole deal seems shaky and smells of NCAA vendetta.

[slew101]

I believe another issue with Rose was his brother traveled with the team several times during the season. Hard to believe Calipari didn't know about that, yet somehow the NCAA says he was cleared in the case. Guess he just sat in a different area of the team's plane.

That is why, IMO, coaches dislike Calipari. The Marcus Camby stuff can happen. A player takes money on the side and the coach is clueless (Steve Fisher at Michigan as well). But when stuff like a player's brother traveling with the team? C'mon.

I know zero about Calipari's dealings at UMass, but the deal at Memphis was a typical NCAA switcheroo. First, they investigate Rose for supposedly cheating on his SAT (how do you do that?), then clear him of any wrongdoing, then after they clear him and he plays, they go back and re-investigate, and, voila, declare him ineligible. I don't have any feelings one way or another about Memphis, but the whole deal seems shaky and smells of NCAA vendetta.

[PhantomOnTour]

Bill Self has lost to MANY double digit seeds in the tourney....trying to recall what I heard, but it was something like 5-6 times he's lost to a big dog.

[Striker]

Bill Self has lost to MANY double digit seeds in the tourney....trying to recall what I heard, but it was something like 5-6 times he's lost to a big dog.
VCU this year
2010--#9 seed Northern Iowa
2006--#13 seed Bradley
2005--#14 seed Bucknell

These are some that come to mind.

[slew101]

Self is very fortunate Memphis, and Calipari, choked away the 2008 national title, blowing a 9-point lead in the final 3 minutes and losing in overtime.

Now that was bad coaching from Calipari in that game, I will admit.

VCU this year
2010--#9 seed Northern Iowa
2006--#13 seed Bradley
2005--#14 seed Bucknell

These are some that come to mind.

[Robert Fischer]

Self's postgame interview was either full of propaganda or serious denial. Kansas CLEARLY had the more powerfully recruited team.
WITHOUT A DOUBT.

Self said something along the lines of "we were outplayed" "if we had been playing skins vs shirts nobody would tell the two teams apart"...



Kansas obviously has some more highly regarded talent...

great disparity in coaching with that game/tourney

[kid4rilla]

Calipari is a great basketball coach. He'll win a national title at some point simply because he'll be in contention every year. Might even be this year. He's done a great coaching job with this team.

As for mingling with fans, he knows that's part of the job with that school. It's likely all a game for Calipari.

Lifetime Kentucky fan here. Calipari is a CEO.......a remarkable man of the people. After Billy Joe Bob Clyde Gillespie's inexplicable hire and the resulting P.R. abortion, Calipari blew in to town and took control of every little inch of Kentucky basketball. Gillespie thought that you could show up and coach, and then head to the local bar to have your own (sordid) personal life a la Morris Buttermaker. Calipari took full control. At the first Midnight Madness, stepped to the microphone and explained to all of the Kentucky fans just how things were going to go - and his expectations of them.

As far as being a great coach, I don't want to go too far. When your a fan, you see, and pore over, every possession so my opinion might sway toward negative about the pure x's and o's. But, the guy has been coaching for over 30 years. He worked with Larry Brown, and in the league. He has figured a few things out for sure. Great coaches come in many flavors. Boeheim is considered a great coach but I swear sometimes I think he only coaches the defensive side of the ball. But he's got the hardware.

As far as taking away victories...."vacating" them.....Can you really do that? So I guess now, since Derrick Rose's brother got free flights that Memphis got taken down from 2nd in an inquiry. They were talking about revoking Arizona's 1997 National Championship because of some misdeeds from Lute Olsen. If they did that, would anyone who saw the game consider UK the new champions? Will UK then have 8?

[slew101]

I've been watching college basketball for 30 years, and for the first 20, it was one of my favorite sports. I have never, ever heard anyone refer to Jim Boeheim as a great coach.

But agree 100 percent on your Calipari analysis.


[QUOTE=kid4rilla]Boeheim is considered a great coach but I swear sometimes I think he only coaches the defensive side of the ball. But he's got the hardware.

[rastajenk]

He's got a lot of wins in an always-tough conference. That alone doesn't make him great, but, yeah, I've heard Vitale et al refer to him as a great coach, for sure.

[slew101]

I think the opinion of many basketball fans with Boeheim is the theory someone had with Calipari. Good recruiter, rolls the balls out there and tells them to play. I don't buy that with him either.

Boeheim is a good coach who has made three NCAA finals and winning one, pretty impressive. But he's also remembered for losing a ton of NCAA games to very low seeds and his team hasn't shown to be very disciplined in big games.

He's got a lot of wins in an always-tough conference. That alone doesn't make him great, but, yeah, I've heard Vitale et al refer to him as a great coach, for sure.