Can we win it all?

N

NorthCoastHorn

500+ Posts
I know it is a long shot, but this team has a special feel in terms of chemistry. Do we hav enough talent to bring home the national title?

Hook,em

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If Butler last season could be within a couple of points of the NC, then there are a lot of teams which can win it.

I do love the persistent defense this team plays. That can cover up a poor shooting (or foul-shooting) night.
 
I think so, depending on the seeding and who we draw.

This team reminds me of the TJ Ford led final four team except with more talent. Like that team, this group of players have great defense, solid offense, everyone knows their role and doesn't try to play beyond that role, and great chemistry.

Also, outside of free throws, this team doesn't really have any glaring weaknesses.
 
This team will go as far as J'Covan Brown will take them. He plays like he did at KU, they will have no weakness at any position, and they can win it all. If not, Elite 8 will be it. I hope he will step up under the brightest lights when they get that far.
 
Unlike most Texas teams in the past, this team seems to play its best in the biggest games. That's something that bodes well come tournament time. Plus, they seem to just keep getting better as the season goes along.

I think the team's biggest weakness is depth. Every player seems to have a critically important role on the team. Foul trouble or injury to virtually any of the top 7 seems like it would create a major hole of some sort to the team.
 
I don't think we'd have too good a shot at beating Ohio State. Other than that, the way we are playing right now we can play with anybody in the country.
 
There aren't any really dominant teams, and Texas is having one of the best seasons.

They can win it all if their shooting improves a bit and the FTs, as well.

tOSU, Pitt, KU, UConn, etc., are all tough teams, but they are all beatable. I think UT matches up well against tOSU because of depth and the athleticism and willingness to play perimeter D. tOSU doesn't always play great D, though when the chips are down they rise up and play well against talented teams.

Texas can beat anyone. They've proven as much. They have some chemistry, they have depth, and they have experience and hunger in equal measures. They are going to be a tough out. Barring some sort of mini-collapse, they will be either a 1 or a 2 seed. If they don't run cold against a hot shooting team they will go far.
 
I think they can but the elephant in the room is the Free Throw percentage. If we can hit 60% we have as good a shot as anyone. But, no team can recover in an Elite 8 game or Final 4 game with the percentage we had tonight vs Mizzou.
 
we have good backcourt depth with j. brown and j. lucas.
our front court depth is what may end up biting us. i love matt hill's hustle and defense, but offensively, he and wang are not polished (to put it mildly). on defense, wang can give some fouls and get a few rebounds, but i don't see him as someone who is really adept at cleaning the glass and shutting down the opposition's post players.

as long as TT, hamilton, and gary johnson can play most of the game without fouls or injury, we will be ok. but, if we have to rely on our front court bench players, we are going to be in trouble.

skc
 
Way too early for this question. We still have a few gaping holes with FT's being the most obvious. That said Texas is definitely one of the 6 or 7 teams this year that would seem to have a legit shot.
 
Every team has significant weaknesses - that's the nature of college basketball with so many kids leaving early. As for FT shooting, it's definitely a problem. But on the other hand, they just beat a top 15 team by 14 points despite being about as bad as even they can be at free throws - that's a really good sign. And they've actually improved that aspect of their game recently as well.
 
Maybe if we get in the Texas regional. Home games every round.

But in all honesty, probably not. We still make a bunch of turnovers (even in big wins) because of our lack of a true PG. If a frustrated Thompson were to get 3 quick fouls in a tournament game and sit for 12 minutes, we'd pretty much have to bet on a loss, even if it was the 2nd round against a fiery 7-seed.

Like another poster said, it does depend a ton on Brown. If he can become "the guy" on a regular basis by March, then there's no telling how far we can go... possibly even Final Four. But if he has "absentee" games like 10 min, 3 points, 1-5 from the floor... then he's no better than having a noboby come off the bench for scrub minutes.
 
I'd say Texas and our balance, hunger, and relentless defense are definitely capable. FT shooting in the late rounds will determine alot. Since we played those tough, ranked teams earlier in the season we have improved in many areas. It will be a fun tourney to watch play out. I do expect us to be in the Great 8 (or Elite 8, whatever they call it now). But yes, we are capable of winning the rest with very strong performances in every aspect of our game, which we have shown in some games this year. I know one thing, not a team out there wants to see Texas and that defense.
 
how can you say that we make too many turnovers because we do not have a true point guard? balbay has a far better assist to turnover ratio than tj or dj. if balbay penetrates and SHOOTS then we are a lock for a national championship. we are destroying everyone
 
Uhhh, except for incredible luck we would've beat UConn. We were within 2 of Pitt. OhSU barely scratched out a win against NWestern last night, so they are hardly unbeatable. We dominated Kansas for most of a game at their place.

No one can be favorite to win the title due to the nature of the tourney, but do we have a chance? Obviously, yes we have a chance to win it all. Our defense is pretty amazing and will keep us just about any game. There is always a chance of running into a team that goes crazy shooting those short college 3's, and as others have noted our weakness in foul shooting could cost us in a close game.

At this point, I will be very disappointed if we don't make it at leat the elite 8. That is a fun thought for a season for which I originally didn't have any expectations. Just a WAG, but I would make us a 20-1 shot to win it all at this point....and that is a significant chance. If we get a number one tourney seed, I would take it down to under 10 -1.
 
I think it is interesting how much better on the boards we are this year. We are smaller and we have less depth. However, TT is a much better rebounder than Pittman and James, while athletic, never boxed out last year.
 
It seems the last few games, Barnes has stuck with his starting 5 longer and longer, perhaps getting their wind up for the NCAA run. He does this every year, and we fizz out at the end from exhaustion, among other things. That's how I perceive it anyway. I really hope he gives more time to Wang, Hill, Brown and Lucas to give our starting guys a rest and be fresh for the run.
 
"how can you say that we make too many turnovers because we do not have a true point guard? balbay has a far better assist to turnover ratio than tj or dj."

Um, that's a really odd stat to pull up, considering Balbay plays for 18 mpg while TJ and DJ were hard-pressed to MISS a minute of any game. You're right... he and TJ got about 2.5:1 ratio. But when you consider that TJ was also a threat on offense, well, there truly is no comparison.

What I meant by my comment was that because we DON'T have anyone like TJ or DJ, others are forced into the service of distributing the ball, like Hamilton, which invariably leads to turnovers. When we had those PGs from 2002-03 and 2007-08, turnovers weren't factored in as much because the PG had the ball a lot more than everyone else on the team. Go watch last year's national championship game and see how many times Duke/Butler had sloppy guard play and turn the ball over.
 
i was going to say that nobody mentioned duke as a possible threat to win it all again, but they got stomped today by st. johns
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anyway, regarding balbay, when he takes it to the rim, he's pretty good at finishing and/or dishing for an easy bucket. i wish he would do it more often. he broke that dude's ankles yesterday and Tristan screened his guy to give Dogus an unimpeded path to the basket when Mizzou was getting close.

skc
 
I think we have as good a chance as anyone. I have been very impressed with Gary Johnson lately. He has been nailing his shots when it used to seem he would just brick them up there. They are a threat to score anywhere now so it's hard to stop them. Balbay needs to look for his shot or teams will just lay off him or play zone. This team feels a lot like the final four team. I really liked the crowd last night and the fans can sense this team can be special. At least another final 4 or a championship would be such a huge boost for the program and trend from mainly about football.
 
It's way too early for that kind of talk. But, if the team can consistently hit FTs the way they did against KU and aggy, I like their chances.
 
I'll take a Big 12 conference championship. If we can make the Final Four after that I'll be ecstatic.

If we win it all it would be amazing.
 
Though I think it's too early to be having this conversation, I also think it's amazing that this discussion has become plausible.

Imagine if someone had started a thread back in November about our chances to win it all or earn a No.1 seed. The responses wouldn't have been positive. We've come a long way, baby.
 
Agree with the above posters that it is way too early. BIS will be contacting each and everyone of us.

But it is sure more fun than what we were talking about last year.
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