tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9072987.post2721293561388196403..comments2024-01-27T06:41:13.204-05:00Comments on Bracketology 101: Bracketology 101's Field of 65 - Jan. 14Bracketology 101http://www.blogger.com/profile/01277396896660963269noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9072987.post-18406433081281240562008-01-20T13:59:00.000-05:002008-01-20T13:59:00.000-05:00I know they are under the radar a little bit and h...I know they are under the radar a little bit and had a couple bad losses earlier in the season (Wofford and Iowa State)in the Las Vegas Classic but you better take notice of Purdue and fast.<BR/><BR/>They are 4-1 in the big ten with their only loss being a close game in michigan state that they probably should have won. They also lost very close tough road games to Clemson and Missouri. With their upcoming schedule they could very easily be 8-2 or 9-1 in the big ten. They are dynamite at home and are showing a lot of heart for a young and inexperienced team on the road. I expect them to get a few votes in the media and coaches poll this week as well.<BR/><BR/>I expect 5 big ten teams in the dance, but i wouldn't be surprised to see Purdue leap frog one of if not both of Ohio State and Wisconsin.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9072987.post-80570092789116925362008-01-16T10:54:00.000-05:002008-01-16T10:54:00.000-05:00You could look at the new (but still unbalanced) B...You could look at the new (but still unbalanced) Big East schedule a couple of ways. Playing each team once and three teams twice is certainly a fairer and more balanced schedule than the old one, and will hopefully avoid the recent problem the conference has recently had with some bubble teams, at the end of the year, having played a much tougher Big East schedule than others. Many Big East coaches believe that two more games will give a clearer picture of who the best six or seven teams are in the league, and will hopefully weed out some of the pretenders. As fans, it helps your team if the home-and-home games are against opponents that will help your resume if you beat them. <BR/><BR/>On the other hand, some coaches, like UConn’s Jim Calhoun and Pitt’s Jamie Dixon, aren’t big fans of the two extra conference games for a variety of reasons. Villanova coach Jay Wright made the point at Big East Media Day that having 18 as opposed to 16 conference games makes it more likely that teams will beat up each other in conference play, resulting in less attractive profiles for each bubble team (i.e. 10-6 looks a lot better than 10-8 in conference). <BR/><BR/>In the end, only time will tell how all of the Big East teams will be affected by the new schedule this season. If you want to look ahead, though, here are the teams that each of the bubble teams in the conference play twice (some of these games have already happened obviously). We’ll give Georgetown, Marquette, and Pittsburgh bids; here are the home-and-homes for the rest of the Big East bubbles:<BR/><BR/>Villanova – DePaul, Pittsburgh, Syracuse<BR/>Notre Dame – UConn, Marquette, DePaul<BR/>West Virginia – Pittsburgh, St. John’s, Providence<BR/>Louisville – Marquette, Georgetown, Rutgers<BR/>Connecticut – Notre Dame, Providence, Cincinnati<BR/>Syracuse – Villanova, Georgetown, South Florida<BR/>Providence – UConn, DePaul, West VirginiaBracketology 101https://www.blogger.com/profile/01277396896660963269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9072987.post-90912010439744121222008-01-15T22:33:00.000-05:002008-01-15T22:33:00.000-05:00Looking into your crystal ball, will the number of...Looking into your crystal ball, will the number of conference games (18) help or hurt Big East bubble teams come tournament time?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com