MBB: Coast 2 Coast Athletic Conference

[Mr. Ypsi]

Crazy Carl (and others),

Big East MUST be the best - they finish with no one in the 'elite eight' (tourney record: 7-6).

Therefore the ACC MUST be the best - they had ONE team in the 'elite eight'!

OOPS!  Wait a second, the much-maligned (this year) Big Ten (our motto: "So we can't count - you got a problem with that?") had THREE teams in the 'elite eight', and has TWO teams in the 'Final Four'.

For THIS year, I hope this will end your bickering - I'm sure you have MUCH too much pride (whether deserved or not!) to fight over SECOND place.  

[cuabigdog]

The ACC may only have one team in the final 4 but that one team (N.CAROLINA) will emerge as the NCAA 2005 NATIONAL CHAMPION and the ACC will also emerge as the 2005 NIT CHAMPION (MD.)

[John Rusnak]

Fight!  Fight!  Rah, team fight!

Victory for MSU...

[John Rusnak]

Something about the Spartans and the Final Four this year...

[Pat Coleman]

There's something to be said for being #1 and #66.

[d-mac]

Hmm - gut feeling tells me Maryland would easily beat a few of those teams that made the "Top-65"... even on "Pool C" bids.

So #66... unofficially.

[John Rusnak]

Maryland just wasn't as solid this year as they have been in recent years.  It would be nice if they can pull off the next two games, but they never would've made a legitimate run in the tournament this year.

However, there's no doubt that they were better than some of the other teams that got in.

[Pat Coleman]

Yeah yeah D-mac, I know ... I reserve the right to not be literal about Division I basketball.

Don't forget to send me those audio files.

[spartanfan]

Hey Rusnak, your name has always sounded familiar...U by any chance spent some time in a federal prison???

[d-mac]

SpartanFan!!!

You actually get the name!!!

Very good!

[Mr. Ypsi]

cuabigdog,

Were it not for a couple of total 'brain cramps' by Wisconsin in the final minute (a 'desperation' 3-point heave down only 5 with 50 seconds left [and 25 on the shot clock!]; a TWO-point miss, down 6 with 12 seconds left; others I may have mercifully blocked-out! - VERY uncharacteristic of what is usually a very 'brainy' team), they might well have beaten UNC.

Since UW already knocked out NCSt, and MSU knocked out Duke, a clean sweep of the ACC 'final three' would have been oh-so-sweet revenge for the ACC-Big 10 debacle back in December!  

[Mr. Ypsi]

Pat,

As we well know from d3 (and is also true for d1), the top team left out of the national tourney is NOT #66 (or in our case, this year, #49).  AQs from lesser leagues would be MUCH farther down the food chain!

Figure Maryland (or St Joe or ??) as somewhere around 40 - figure the top left-out d3s as around 20-25 (as, indeed, your final poll did).

[Pat Coleman]

I reiterate, that was not to be taken literally.

Or, in Cabonney-speak:

I reiterate, THAT was NOT to be taken LITERALLY!

[d-mac]

cabonney... you need help!

[d-mac]

I think this about wraps up cabonney... one that can't even make up his own mind about who he wants to cheer for:
"With my grad degrees from Michigan, and 30+ years employment at EMU, I root for all Big 10 teams (except when they play Michigan - well maybe not Ohio State, I'm not THAT liberal), and all MAC schools (esp. NIU) except when they play Eastern"