2022 NCAA Tournament

[dukeboy911]

We definitely got the more favorable potential 2nd round opponents compared to Zags. Boise St/Memphis tracking more like 7 seeds whereas MSU/Davidson more like 10 seeds.

 

[Bullettoothtony]

We're losing to Michigan State in the 2nd round.

I had a premonition.

K has owned Izzo so badly... but Izzo making MSU Zion's last game... then doing it to K... Those feathers in his cap would probably mean more to him than his national championship...

 

[Slap the Floor]

Michigan State is a more favorable matchup for us than Davidson. They have the #11 offense in the country, whereas Michigan State has the #38. They have 6 guys that played 20+ minutes per game, and the lowest 3pt% in that group is 38%, and they have guys on 45%, 41%, 43%, and 44%. Michigan State has the #38 offense, which is also bad for us because our defense is truly horrendous, but the glimmer of hope there is that their offense isn't elite like Virginia Tech, Miami, and Syracuse which all rate in the top 20, and Davidson which is the best of that group at #11.

If we're talking about ideal match-ups, we probably want Michigan State in the Round of 32, and then hope we get Rutgers in the Sweet Sixteen. Rutgers plays with a true center, which is good for us and Mark. Rutgers is #74 on KenPom, with a sub 100 offense and the #43 defense. Rutgers has a lot of Quad 1 wins, but also some unexplainable offenses. Throughout the years, Coach K has generally done very well against B1G teams in the tournament.

If we have to choose between Alabama and Texas Tech, we should prefer Texas Tech, although they present a huge problem with the #1 overall defense. This reminds me of the South Carolina buzz saw we ran into when they had an elite defense, but the TT offense is #65 and they are #282 in 3pt FG percentage- very good for our shit defense, under the assumption that there may be offenses that our defense can perform average against, although our defensive decline is so dramatic we don't know if this is true. In 3pt rate, Texas Tech is #256. They don't take a lot of threes, and when they do, they miss a lot. On paper this is good for us, and also should allow Mark and Theo to make meaningful impacts defensively inside.

We want to avoid Alabama, but it's not a complete disaster scenario. Nate Oats offense is very open with attacking guards that get endless paint touches and create a lot of kick out 3's. They are #14 in KenPom offense, #12 in 3pt rate, but the silver lining is despite taking so many 3's, Alabama is only 31% on the season in 3's, ranking #306 in the country. This is good news on paper, but in the real world we all know that Alabama will hit 40% against us, embarrassing us in a 2nd half blowout.

 

[StopThePumpFakesShav]

Texas Tech doesn’t really have a true center either though right? Is that a concern re: Mark?

 

[physicsfactor]

You guys are doing what sports message boards are meant to do, so by all means, continue. But I can’t even bother to spend any time thinking about potential Sweet 16 matchups for Duke. I’m not exaggerating when I say at this point I’ll be thrilled for Duke to get that far.

 

[deepdarkblue]

You guys are doing what sports message boards are meant to do, so by all means, continue. But I can’t even bother to spend any time thinking about potential Sweet 16 matchups for Duke. I’m not exaggerating when I say at this point I’ll be thrilled for Duke to get that far.

My standards for this to be a "successful" tournament:

Duke wins 2 games.
UNC doesn't get out of their region.

That's it.

 

[DrKlahn]

You guys are doing what sports message boards are meant to do, so by all means, continue. But I can’t even bother to spend any time thinking about potential Sweet 16 matchups for Duke. I’m not exaggerating when I say at this point I’ll be thrilled for Duke to get that far.

Does anyone know what time our Elite 8 game would be?

 

[TS9]

Does anyone know what time our Elite 8 game would be?

I think you meant to type "will" be.

 

[TS9]

Also, just want to drop a note and make sure everyone recognizes how proud the ACC should be that the No. 2 seed in the league tournament this year barely snuck into the field, and happens to be one of the teams – if not *the team* – most widely considered to be least deserving of a bid. What a tremendous year all around for the conference.

 

[rome8180]

And the team with the Coach of the Year didn't even make the tournament.

 

[physicsfactor]

You guys are doing what sports message boards are meant to do, so by all means, continue. But I can’t even bother to spend any time thinking about potential Sweet 16 matchups for Duke. I’m not exaggerating when I say at this point I’ll be thrilled for Duke to get that far.

Does anyone know what time our Elite 8 game would be?

HEY FUCK YOU!

 

[TyusStones5]

I hope the committee chairman wore a chastity belt for Cal. What a &^%% easy bracket for UK.

I think their bracket is pretty loaded. Murray State in the 2nd round has lost two total games. UCLA is a 4 seed but is 8th on Kenpom.

I'm not sold on Murray State. I'll give you UCLA, I overlooked them.

 

[SeanMayTriedToEatMe]

Honestly laughed out loud when I saw this.

 

[SeanMayTriedToEatMe]

Gonzaga gets rewarded with the best 16 seed ever. Duke would clearly lose to this team.

 

[Grit]

That's why it's a shame Duke didn't get a 1 seed. K losing to a 16 in his last game could've been just what the world needs right now. Putin would end the war, realizing nothing in Ukraine could surpass the gift from Georgia State.

 

[SeanMayTriedToEatMe]

Ended up deducing Gonzaga over Auburn (Gonzaga over Kentucky, Auburn over Arizona) as optimal in a 50-100 entry pool. Hoping Auburn is weird enough on its own to avoid relying on earlier round picks to win, but that may be a terribly flawed premise. Have not seen any of these teams play other than their games against Duke.

 

[aiw]

This reminded me of when Greg Newton called Tim Duncan soft and Duncan said Newton was the greatest player he's even seen.

 

[rome8180]

Boeheim thinks our three best players are Paolo, AJ, and Keels. No wonder Syracuse has sucked so much recently if that's his scouting.

NCAA Tournament 2022: Duke youth may be its downfall during March Madness, Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim says

...

247sports.com

 

[Grit]

Apparently money is pouring in for Duke to win. Bettors must have realized this team has been sandbagging to make 6 feel even more special.

 

[DrKlahn]

The smart money has been watching the wastewater data in Durham and Brooklyn