Interesting...

On the one hand, he's right, we had to play 6 games against really good teams, plus ooc losses were to 3 more good teams. On the other hand, Missouri and Oklahoma State. That's two really really really bad losses, and our only good win was @ Kansas State.
 
I liked what Blair had to say, he's a class act....
We did wait too long to get GG, but that's water under the bridge..I think she will get there..

We had some moments of brilliance this year, and some moments of sheer idiocy...I still hope we get into NCAA's.

Reminds me of nursery rhyme (loosely transfigured)

"When we were GOOD, we were very, very good, and when we were BAD we were horrid"

hookem.gif
 
I agree with Coach Blair but don't know if the committee will look at it that way. Hope they do. We got three good wins: @ KSU, @Tech and over Tech at home. And two losses that should not have happened and if they had not, we would not be having this discussion: @ MU and @ OSU. Still, to my way of thinking, those are explainable since it's tough to win on the road in the Big 12. My concern is the blowout losses to OU in Norman and the one yesterday against A&M.

It's hard to predict which way the committee will go. But Texas' RPI and SOS is much better than a lot of others that are competing to get an at large invite. I hope that makes the difference.
 
You're right, Babhorn, it is hard to predict what the committee will do, but our RPI will hopefully serve us well. Not that it's the only thing, or even the main thing the committee looks at, but it should be a primary factor in their decision (for obvious reasons). And when you look at a lot of the bubble teams, our #36 RPI definitely helps us, and our SOS of #10 is almost impossible - or should be anyway - to ignore. I go back to the Syracuse example because it's one Blair highlighted, but there are certainly other similar teams out there. There is just no way that a program with 21 or 22 wins and RPI/SOS of 70th/90th (or 60th/80th, or anything in that range) should get an invite over a program with 19 wins and RPI/SOS of 36th/10th. Obviously there are always going to be automatic invitees who aren't particularly strong, or as good as some who get left out of the equation, and that's okay. But the committee has complete control over the at-large selections and should do their best to bring in the most deserving programs. All so-called bubble teams have had up and down seasons, and the RPI is really the best, and most fair way to determine who those last spots go to.
 
I'm torn on this. I agree and understand taking the RPI into consideration and we should get an invite. I want us to go.

However, on the other hand not being invited might do us some good. Here's my reasoning. Not being invited is a clear message to our program that we must do better regardless of our RPI. Our RPI alone is not going to get us invited to the Big Dance. Winning games will get us invited. So what does our team do in the off season? We get in the gym and we practice, practice, practice. We master our offense. We take it upon ourselves to prove them wrong. We find a sense of urgency in every game and play 40 minutes of defense and offense. We make up in our minds that this will not happen again. We will win 20+ games period! Those bunnies that we've missed around the basket will no longer be an issue because we will pay the time in the gym to get that out of our systems. Those missed free throws - not happening in '11-'12. Some say that AG is a defensive stopper and yes she is but now she decides to be an offensive beast in the paint. Brewer and Reed take note on the bench and decide they will not let this happen on thier watch and decide to become a force to be reckon with down low.

Sometimes a team needs a little motivation and being bypassed for the Big Dance might just be the swift kick in the rear that this team needs.

I'm not going to leave the coaches out of the mix. They will take it upon themselves to MAKE IT HAPPEN. They will find a way to make the team mentally tough. If they have to go to seminars, webinars, whatever. They will figure it out. They will review and scan hundreds of videos to learn everyones strengths and build a team around it. Everyone will work on their strengths and weaknesses as a coach and improve on it to make the program better.

When the program is denied a ticket to the dance then everyone is held accountable. So maybe not going to the dance is not such a bad thing for our program if in the end we come out of it ahead and our a team becomes a great contender from this day forward.
 
I think our RPI should get us in...

I'd like to see if we could do what we are capable of, and maybe pull an upset or 2...

Just sayin', it'd be cool to see....

hookem.gif
 
I don't think getting bypassed, unfairly, would be good for the team, or provide any extra motivation. If they deserve an invite then they should get one, period. Making it to the NCAA tournament (or not as the case may be) isn't about punishing a squad, or teaching a lesson or whatever. This team faced some difficult circumstances this year, in particular with injuries, and I'm proud of them for continuing to fight. Yes, a few upsets would have been nice, but we should remember they only lost two contests they were supposed to win. All other losses were to ranked, and in most cases top 5 programs. That's why their RPI is still where it is (two spots ahead of K-State, who the Horns beat, by the way. And our SOS is 40 places higher than than the Wildcats). Based on RPI and SOS we certainly deserve an invitation.
 
I doubt if being left out will cause them to worker any harder than they will this offseason. They will be much improved next season, not just because of the incoming freshmen and the return of Cokie but because they know they need to work harder to be able to compete successfully against Baylor and A&M, the current standards in the Big 12.

I hope they get in since I'm not quite ready to call this season over. I want to see Kat making some more 3s and AG swatting away some more shots.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Weekly Prediction Contest

* Predict HORNS-AGGIES *
Sat, Nov 30 • 6:30 PM on ABC

Recent Threads

Prediction Results Threads

2024 Schedules

Back
Top