Read: Bubble Watch

Posted by Chris on February 05, 2009
Article, Bubble Watch
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Mark Schlabach of ESPN has posted this week’s ‘Bubble Watch’. Schlabach believes that 4 Big East teams are currently “locks” to make the Tourney, and I find it hard to argue. UConn is in the process of sewing up the #1 overall seed, Marquette is actually ahead of them in the Big East standings, and Pittsburgh and Louisville have had outstanding season thus far.espn_logo2

In the “should be in” category, Villanova and Syracuse make the cut. I’m in agreement again. While the Wildcats are approaching lock status (wins over ‘Cuse and Marquette and you can call them that), they still have some work to do, but they should be okay barring a total meltdown. The same goes for the Orange, who at 6-4 in the conference, have performed adequately and have a great OOC résumé .

In the work to do category, 4 Big East teams make the cut (Georgetown, Cincinnati, West Virginia, and Providence). Interestingly enough, Notre Dame is not mentioned at all. The Irish are definitely struggling, but you won’t convince me that they can’t get hot and sneak into the tourney.

Here’s what Schlabach wrote regarding Villanova’s NCAA Tournament chances:

“Villanova [18-4 (6-3), RPI: 10, SOS: 23] The Wildcats’ strong numbers suggest they should be a “lock” for an at-large bid, but their overall résumé leaves a little to be desired. Their 67-57 victory over Pittsburgh on Jan. 28 might go a long way in moving them off the bubble, but they accomplished little before then. They are only 2-4 against RPI top-50 teams, and only seven of their 18 victories against Division I teams have come against RPI top-100 opponents. Playing in the rugged Big East gives Villanova myriad opportunities to improve those areas — seven of their final nine regular-season opponents are RPI top-100 teams.”

…I agree with this assessment by Schlabach…all the stats look good, but I think they do need a couple more signature wins before we can call them a lock to make the Tourney…they’ll get a couple chances in the coming weeks…

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11 Comments to Read: Bubble Watch

Jamie
February 6, 2009

WE PLAY TO WIN THE GAMES. THATS IT!

login77
February 6, 2009

Chris i would like to take my younger daughter to the Syracuse game on Saturday any suggestions on where to get two tickets? Thanks! My older daughter will be in the student section. I tried stubhub but they are so expensive right now.

LarryM
February 6, 2009

Could you consider dropping the link to Lets Go Nova, which has become a sinkhole of irrational Wright hatred?

Chris
February 6, 2009

login77,

How far is the drive for you to the game? If it is a far drive I understand the risk of going without tickets.

I know what a lot of students do (myself included) is buy the Wachovia Center package for all Villanova games before the season as insurance in case they don’t win the student lottery. So if they do win the lottery they are always looking to sell their other tickets for face value just to make their money back.

Since your daughter is a student here, maybe she could ask around campus to see if any students have any extra?

Other than that, your best bet is a place like StubHub or just showing up to the game and walking around the parking lot, I know I’ve done that and bought and sold tickets before.

Wish I could

Chris
February 6, 2009

LarryM,

Is it really that bad over there, I haven’t been since the Pitt win. We’re on a winning streak, can’t imagine it is THAT bad…

Nova85
February 6, 2009

Chris,

Yes it is…don’t go there. You do a much better job of reporting in an unbiased nature and actually supporting (not in an unreasonable way) the team like a fan should. That guy at LGN has no clue.

login77
February 6, 2009

Chris thanks for the suggestion on tickets. I will call my daughter as soon as she gets out of class. Right now on stub the cheapest tickets are at $165. That’s a little pricey for me paying Nova tuition as well. Maybe I will luck out, i don’t mind paying face value or a little premium. I have a feeling the game tomorrow will be a great one. Let’s Go Nova!

Chris
February 6, 2009

login77,

$165 is definitely way too expensive. I don’t blame you. I would suggest McFadden’s at Citizen’s Bank Park right next door as a good place to watch the game if you luck out on tickets, but then again if you are bringing a younger daughter the bar atmosphere isn’t what you are looking for.

Regardless, I think you could definitely do better than $165 a pop by just walking around the parking lot before the game.

LarryM
February 6, 2009

Chris,

Yes it is that bad.

The commentary (the live blog and some of his subsequent comments) on the Providence game was relentlessly negative, focusing on the last 10 minutes and (as usual) finding ways to blame Wright.

Even the commentary on the Pitt game, which did contain some praise of Wright, managed to include at least two swipes at Wright’s coaching.

I’m not as insistent as some people here that a fan blog be “supportive,” though it is certainly not supportive. But more to the point from my perspective, it should be fair and interesting. His obsession with what he believes to be Wright’s deficiencies is neither.

Rich
February 6, 2009

I agree about LGN. It used to be a nice little blog. Maybe the most popular Nova blog at one point but it is clearly going down the drain. Ever since Malcolms transferred the guy has had it in for Jay Wright. He has bashed every player. He laughs at people who call Cunningham an NBA prospect, he disses Redding and Clark to no end along with Dwayne and Scottie. Weird he never bashes Fisher, though I’m sure I’ve seen a couple jabs at him this hear. At one point during the Providence game he said this regarding Villanova when Providence made their run, “I almost hope they lose this game”. The list goes on and on with that guy, I’m not an avid reader of you’re blog which is updated much more frequently and has a bright side point of view.

Chris
February 6, 2009

Well I think that is what makes the blogs great actually. Everyone has their own perspective. I’ve always thought it was just better to be more positive than negative (except with the Mets, they will give me a stroke before my life is over) but everyone is different and has their own perspective.

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