Octopus Overlords

Jaymann wrote: ↑Fri Mar 22, 2024 7:05 pm WTF? Yale beat Auburn.

And this is why I don't do my own brackets.

Hell, I could probably be a great counter-indicator though.

Looks like some good matchups coming in the Sweet 16:


UConn - SDSU

Houston - Duke

Illinois - Iowa State

North Carolina - Bama

Purdue - Gonzaga

Clemson - AZ

Creighton - Tennessee

In a bit of a surprise, Michigan picked up the biggest name in the coaching cycle. I think it was considered a sure thing that FAU coach Dusty Mays would end up at Louisville, but he's a Wolverine now. Both schools face major rebuilding hurdles, but basketball is the prime sport at Louisville. Given Michigan's notorious issues with getting transfers approved through admissions (they weirdly reject credits for a lot of classes that are typically accepted at a lot of other elite academic schools), Louisville might have been easier to deal with. Michigan's AD has been under heavy fire from the fan base, but you have to give him credit for this one.

I don't know really know much about Mays, but hopefully the hype is real and he can make Michigan competitive again.

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Mon Mar 25, 2024 5:21 pm Dusty Mays

Is he a baseball player from the 30's?

Carpet_pissr wrote:

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Mon Mar 25, 2024 5:21 pm Dusty Mays

Is he a baseball player from the 30's?

You're thinking of Musty Days.

And apparently it's Dusty May (no s).

On the women's side, Utah's team was forced to change hotels at the last minute after targeted racial harassment by the Nazi chuds in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

They went on to lose the game to Gonzaga.

I also hate Idaho Nazis.

Roll Tide!

Fuck up Clemson for me.

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Tue Mar 26, 2024 11:35 am On the women's side, Utah's team was forced to change hotels at the last minute after targeted racial harassment by the Nazi chuds in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

They went on to lose the game to Gonzaga.

I almost took a job there about 10 years ago. Lots of money and beautiful country. But the North Idaho nazis were too apparent. Hard "fuck no."

Oof.

Something I didn't realize until yesterday...

UConn has had simultaneous Men's and Women's championship wins twice in the past...2004 and 2014. If they can pull off a double win again this year, it would be pretty crazy coincidence to have three double wins each ten years apart. The men have a good chance at pulling off their end of the deal, but I'm not sure the women have what it takes this time.

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Fri Mar 29, 2024 10:30 am Fuck up Clemson for me.

there you go. You're welcome.

Roll Tide!

Much appreciated.

Congrats to Alabama. I was ready to write them off when they got down early but they showed great heart.

Jaymann wrote:Congrats to Alabama. I was ready to write them off when they got down early but they showed great heart.

And played defense. They didn't play much during the regular season, but have certainly dialed it up in the tourney.

Yes! Congrats to NC State for taking down Duke. Here's hoping for a 'Bama - Wolf Pack final.

I'm a lifelong Duke fan but I was pulling for NCSU. I've been rooting for State to get back to major rival status for literally decades. Plus I attended NCSU for a year so I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for them. What a run.

Jaymann wrote: ↑Sun Mar 31, 2024 7:31 pm Yes! Congrats to NC State for taking down Duke. Here's hoping for a 'Bama - Wolf Pack final.

Jaymann wrote: ↑Sun Mar 31, 2024 7:31 pm Yes! Congrats to NC State for taking down Duke. Here's hoping for a 'Bama - Wolf Pack final.

Man, that would be sweet~ But UCONN looks unbeatable right now...

I've been stunned by my beloved Wolfpack's March run. I couldn't believe it when they won the ACC tournament (where they won 5 games in a row in 5 days). I am beyond stunned they are now in the final 4. Coach Keats would have absolutely been fired if they hadn't won the ACC tournament. Just a crazy March madness story. It's why the NCAA tourney is awesome.

My son is a Purdue grad so I'm pulling for them. With that said I wouldn't be upset if NCSU won it all.

I got a chance to meet Coach Keatts when he was head coach for UNCW. He was a super nice guy and I really loved his time with the Seahawks. I was really sad to see him go, but we all knew he was destined for greater things than the CAA.

Bama and NC State literally gave it the old college try, but were clearly outmatched. I think it is fairly rare for two #1 seeds to meet in the Final, but here we are.

Forbes

No. 1 seeds have excelled in the tournament, winning 24 of the last 38 national championships (63.2%), including 12 of the last 16.

There have been 37 No. 1 seeds to reach the championship game in the last 38 years – an average of nearly one per season. Meanwhile, 60 of the 152 Final Four teams (39.5%) have been No. 1 seeds.

That said, No. 1 seeds are not guaranteed success in the NCAA tournament. There was only one Final Four during this period (2008) where all four teams were No. 1 seeds. There were five other instances with three No. 1 seeds making the Final Four.

Congrats Lady Gamecocks! Woot.

Holy moly! Calipari leaving Kentucky for Arkansas???

Pyperkub wrote:Holy moly! Calipari leaving Kentucky for Arkansas???

All Bama fans hoping Oates wants to continue to build a program here...

Sent from my Pixel 6 using Tapatalk

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Mon Apr 08, 2024 1:15 pm Holy moly! Calipari leaving Kentucky for Arkansas???

We lost one of our best players to Kentucky after we got knocked out of the tournament, so I feel a bit smug right now. This was before the Calipari news was announced.

Young kids just chasing what seems to be greener grass…there’s a lesson in there somewhere.

Nice to see Bama played UConn tougher than Purdue. And Oats says he's staying at Bama. Yay!

I knew women’s bb had been gaining popularity, but this surprised me:

In a historic moment for college basketball, the women’s national title game has not just captured the nation’s imagination but has also achieved a milestone that will be etched in the annals of sports history. For the first time ever, the viewership for the women’s final eclipsed that of the men’s, signaling a seismic shift in the sports landscape.

Seismic.

Too early to say whether it's a "shift" or just a blip. While I think WBB will continue to enjoy popularity, I suspect it will dip a bit in the post Caitlin Clark years. It'll never happen (and it shouldn't happen), but I wonder what would happen if you put the championship games on against each other on equivalent networks.

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Wed Apr 10, 2024 8:59 am I knew women’s bb had been gaining popularity, but this surprised me:

In a historic moment for college basketball, the women’s national title game has not just captured the nation’s imagination but has also achieved a milestone that will be etched in the annals of sports history. For the first time ever, the viewership for the women’s final eclipsed that of the men’s, signaling a seismic shift in the sports landscape.

Not knocking the women at all, but I wonder how much the time slot had to do with it. Sunday at 3pm is a hell of a lot easier for me to watch a game than Monday night with a 9:30pm tip off. That's past my bed time.

Jaymann wrote: ↑Wed Apr 10, 2024 10:19 amSeismic.

LOL. Can’t believe I missed that. OTOH. I suspect like so many sports ‘articles’ these days, it was written by AI.

Tara Vanderveer retiring from Stanford WBB (and declining to deal with the move to the ACC)

Stanford's Tara VanDerveer retires: College basketball's all-time wins leader steps away after 38 seasons
VanDerveer won 1,216 games and led Stanford to three national championships

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Wed Apr 10, 2024 2:34 pm Tara Vanderveer retiring from Stanford WBB (and declining to deal with the move to the ACC)

Stanford's Tara VanDerveer retires: College basketball's all-time wins leader steps away after 38 seasons
VanDerveer won 1,216 games and led Stanford to three national championships

Makes sense to me, she's 70!

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Wed Apr 10, 2024 3:03 pm

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Wed Apr 10, 2024 2:34 pm Tara Vanderveer retiring from Stanford WBB (and declining to deal with the move to the ACC)

Stanford's Tara VanDerveer retires: College basketball's all-time wins leader steps away after 38 seasons
VanDerveer won 1,216 games and led Stanford to three national championships

Makes sense to me, she's 70!

I think she truly loved coaching this team as well. She probably knew it was just about done, and really seemed to be having fun all season.

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Wed Apr 10, 2024 10:32 am Too early to say whether it's a "shift" or just a blip. While I think WBB will continue to enjoy popularity, I suspect it will dip a bit in the post Caitlin Clark years. It'll never happen (and it shouldn't happen), but I wonder what would happen if you put the championship games on against each other on equivalent networks.

WNBA believes!

https://mastodon.social/deck/@BleacherR ... 1183286574

WNBA announced 36 of 40 Indiana Fever games will be nationally broadcast

Compare that to last year…