Kansas Crimson

twocoach wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 7:29 am Duke and Kentucky losing to unranked teams on back to back nights makes me happy. There might be multiple #1 seeds with 7+ losses this year.

What a weird year. Mark Few might finally get his elusive natty this year. God, I'll barf if Self finishes his career with 1 national title and 1 of the best winning %s of all time. He should have about 4.

IllinoisJayhawk wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:28 am

twocoach wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 7:29 am Duke and Kentucky losing to unranked teams on back to back nights makes me happy. There might be multiple #1 seeds with 7+ losses this year.

What a weird year. Mark Few might finally get his elusive natty this year. God, I'll barf if Self finishes his career with 1 national title and 1 of the best winning %s of all time. He should have about 4.

This year I wouldn't be surprised if Gonzaga loses to someone like Minnesota in the 2nd round.

NDballer13 wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:34 am

IllinoisJayhawk wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:28 am

twocoach wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 7:29 am Duke and Kentucky losing to unranked teams on back to back nights makes me happy. There might be multiple #1 seeds with 7+ losses this year.

What a weird year. Mark Few might finally get his elusive natty this year. God, I'll barf if Self finishes his career with 1 national title and 1 of the best winning %s of all time. He should have about 4.

This year I wouldn't be surprised if Gonzaga loses to someone like Minnesota in the 2nd round.

Sure, but you can insert every top 40 team into that sentence and it'd be hard to disagree with.

IllinoisJayhawk wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:35 am

NDballer13 wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:34 am

IllinoisJayhawk wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:28 am

What a weird year. Mark Few might finally get his elusive natty this year. God, I'll barf if Self finishes his career with 1 national title and 1 of the best winning %s of all time. He should have about 4.

This year I wouldn't be surprised if Gonzaga loses to someone like Minnesota in the 2nd round.

Sure, but you can insert every top 40 team into that sentence and it'd be hard to disagree with.

This doesn't make sense--the top 40 is essentially the at-large field, so of course most of those teams will always lose in the 2nd round every single season.

But, of course, that was not not ND's point. The difference between Gonzaga and another top program that consistently loses before the Final Four, like, say Kansas, is that Gonzaga is always a top seed in the easiest bracket.

How about this since we are nit picking word choice of top 40....

Any teams seeded on the 1 line to the 4 line could easily lose in the 2nd round. Same as Gonzaga. Not disagreeing about the Gonzaga statement, but the same can be said about any team currently ranked inside the top 25 right now.

No idea how we determined that Gonzaga is always in the easiest bracket.

And since we are nit picking word choices, pretty much every top program "consistently loses before the final 4".

IllinoisJayhawk wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 9:11 amNo idea how we determined that Gonzaga is always in the easiest bracket.

At the most basic level, the colonial history of these United States of America and its effect on geographical population density.

IllinoisJayhawk wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 9:11 ampretty much every top program "consistently loses before the final 4".

But not like Gonzaga and Kansas.

Gonzaga may be in a mid major conference. But they are no mid major.

MICHHAWK wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 11:23 am Gonzaga may be in a mid major conference. But they are no mid major.

Neat?

I think there's a good argument to be made that they might have had a lot more postseason success over the last couple decades if they hadn't spent January-March playing LMU and Santa Clara, etc.

jfish26 wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 11:53 am

MICHHAWK wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 11:23 am Gonzaga may be in a mid major conference. But they are no mid major.

Neat?

I think there's a good argument to be made that they might have had a lot more postseason success over the last couple decades if they hadn't spent January-March playing LMU and Santa Clara, etc.

Do they just have the lone final four appearance?

Yes, and just four Elite Eights since 1999 (in comparison to our ten).

jfish26 wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 12:07 pm Yes, and just four Elite Eights since 1999 (in comparison to our ten).

4 elite 8s in 20 years in pretty damn good. I don't imagine there are all that many schools that have more than that. Ku duke kentucky michigan state those kind of people

Right. But there's no shortage of people who want to say that Gonzaga is on that level. They're simply not.

They're not in that echelon of programs. There are really only 4 or 5 (or maybe 6). Nobody else sustains it. Kansas Duke Kentucky UNC. You could argue for a 5th or 6th team in that echelon, but for me that is the cut off for my personal tier 1.

Gonzaga comes into every season over ranked. They don't play a particularly difficult non-conference schedule. Other top ten teams do, and they lose a few. Gonzaga plays through their weak conference schedule...usually finishing out in the top 5 or so.

Decent success in the tourney...the cycle repeats next year.

Seriously, do any of us here feel that Texas Tech wouldn't dominate that conference?

What would the zags average conference finish be if they played in the big 12?

Depends on what time period you're asking. Probably 2.something.

The problem with the Big 12 is that in the Self era everything has been so up and down when you have schools doing things like firing Rick Barnes to hire Shaka Smart.

ousdahl wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:19 pm What would the zags average conference finish be if they played in the big 12?

It'd be good as long as we weren't in it in this hypothetical....otherwise best case would have been 2nd for many years of our streak.

First world problem being in so many tournaments we bitch about losses. To win six in a row without seeding help or kind whistles is a tough act in a parity sport. Cripes, even Baylor has bought themselves a great defensive coach.

ousdahl wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:19 pm What would the zags average conference finish be if they played in the big 12?

Excellent chance it wouldn't be 1st. Obviously there is not a single person in the world who knows the definitive correct answer to your question.
I would guess with the exact same teams they have had over the past 20 years, 5th or 6th.
I'm curious as to where people feel KU would have finished on average in the ACC, SEC, and Big 10 over the past 20 seasons.

Grandma wrote: ↑Fri Jan 17, 2020 5:40 am

ousdahl wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 8:19 pm What would the zags average conference finish be if they played in the big 12?

I'm curious as to where people feel KU would have finished on average in the ACC, SEC, and Big 10 over the past 20 seasons.

We would have won each of those conferences numerous times.....but nothing close to the domination of conference titles we've enjoyed in the Big12. Especially in the ACC. I still think we'd have won the ACC numerous times, without looking I'd guess 10ish conference titles, but not almost a decade and a half straight streak.