FINAL USA TODAY MBB Poll: PSU #30! *
- Thread starter ILLINOISLION
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And PSU is as good or better than many ranked higher.
I just took a look and noticed they're listing UMBC as "MD Baltimore City" It's Baltimore County, not Baltimore City.
Interesting. In your view, at #30 Penn State is better than at least half of the teams ranked higher, or one of the best 15 teams or so in the country. What do you think caused them to not make the NCAA tournament (let alone the Sweet 16) and lose 13 games?
I'm talking now, not two or three month ago. I also said as good or better.
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anon_1eeb2b426hv3y
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Problem is that we'd lose to many of them even if we're "better."
Brilliant!
Watkins missed 10 games, three of them losses. Reaves missed four games, three of them losses. Indiana, Minnesota and Northwestern.
Virtually every other team in the poll.....both ahead and behind PSU..... would also certainly feel they’re as good as or better and can beat teams that are ranked ahead of them in the poll.
And many if not most of the teams across the country had starters and / or important reserves miss games or play in games where
their injury had a limiting effect on their production. Nothing unique to PSU here.
And many if not most of the teams across the country had starters and / or important reserves miss games or play in games where
their injury had a limiting effect on their production. Nothing unique to PSU here.
Also, PSU lost 4 games by a total of 9 points, including three against B1G opponents (WI by 1, Rider by 1, IU by 4, and PUR by 3). Win those 4 games and things are quite different.
And Rider and Wisconsin were on desperation buzzer beater threes. Both had to be reviewed.
From LOC/Xavier on down (and with the exception of FSU whose helter-skelter athleticism would drive our guys nuts), I wouldn't fear anyone nor chalk it up as a win before we played. Obviously you can match up with the first 6 but your odds drop waaaaay down in a one/done game.
Kinda thought the poll was close to fair but comfortable that psu could play and beat pretty much all of them outside the first 6.
Kinda thought the poll was close to fair but comfortable that psu could play and beat pretty much all of them outside the first 6.
It's really unbelievable how delusional some folks are about the bball program. The bottom line is that Chambers let a golden opportunity slip through his hands by somehow not making the NCAAs with this team.
The excuses are maddening. "But they were mostly sophomores. But Watkins got hurt. But Reaves got suspended." Guess what? All teams have injuries and suspensions and young players. Those teams with good coaching still get to the NCAAs anyway. Admittedly, Penn State's incompetent scheduling made it more difficult to make the NCAA's this year than it should have been, but maybe the program will learn from that huge mistake going forward.
Next year, the excuse will be, "But Tony Carr left for the NBA". As if no other program has players leave early for the NBA. There is still more than enough talent on Penn State's roster to make the NCAAs in 2018-19, assuming competent scheduling and competent coaching. Which one cannot assume when it comes to Penn State.
agreed you guys were a tournament team this year with the talent on the team. i think pat chambers heavily underperformed and i think this might be his peak.
And I hate to say it, PSU played better the last few games with Harrar than it did when Watkins was healthy and in the lineup...... The team chemistry was just there. Who knows if having the rest of the team in the lineup (as you pointed out most other teams have injury issues during a season) would have resulted in the chemistry and game plan that led to the run. Would they have even got by Temple? Who knows.
I believe the #30 ranking is more than fair.
What's maddening is that you think "they were led by sophomores" is an excuse rather than a reasonable explanation. A group of kids that young will be completely different by the end of that season than the beginning, but this is somehow impossible for you to comprehend, so it must be someone's fault...
The Lakers won the title with Magic playing center and Jabbar injured. It worked out but I'd rather have Jabbar in the lineup.
Most teams can absorb injuries better because they have capable backups. Back at the beginning of the season Penn State had no bench. Penn States bench averages less than 4 points and 3 rebounds per game. Villinova's bench just won them a championship.
Nice history. But about the only similarity betwen PSU BB and the lakers is that both teams use a round BB.
My opinion is that PSU played better without Watkins in the NIT when Harrar took on the roles as a rebounder and defender, and left the scoring to the others. We will never know what would have happened had Watkins been in the lineup.
Replacing Garner and Carr, and developing a new team chemistry, will be a challenge. And it will be interesting to see if Harrar can build on his play this year and be a solid starter and compliment to Watkins, Stevens and Reeves next season. We may find that it is easier to play well on a team that has lots of scoring already in the lineup (as PSU did with Carr on fire this year) than it is to play well when you are asked to do a little more in order to have enough scoring to win regularly..... But it should be interesting to watch.
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100% correct about lack of depth. Fortunately Harrar came on strong during the NIT.
I think the biggest improvement down the stretch was on defense. PSU defenders didn't always run back hard on D early in the year. They left their feet too quick and they did a poor job staying on top of screens. Seems like an effort thing to me but they were much better late in the season. They would have won a couple more games and received an NCAA bid if they had that intensity all year long.
Do you really think all the teams that made the NCAA tournament were better than Penn State?
Was he saying that? Or was he saying that although there were some teams in the NCAA that got there due to conference tie in's (weak teams that get auto bids as there always are) that PSU was better than, there were still probably at least 30 teams in the NCAA (of the 68) that were better than PSU.
lol @ the thought that "led by sophomores" is a young team in this era...we weren't young and our window likely already closed without an NCAA bid. Great job! Someone honestly thinks we're a top 15 team when we weren't even a bubble team...lmao. Just people making the NIT more important than it is. It is joking called the "Not Important Tournament" for a reason
We couldn’t make the NCAA tournament with Carr and Garner, I’m not sure how we can make it without them.
No, he asked if PSU was so good, why didn’t they make the tournament...as if every team that made the tournament team was so good. And judging this team right now by using the whole season is not what the people that think they’re better than #30 are saying....It would be like saying Penn State’s football team two years ago wasn’t good at the end of the season because they lost to Pitt and Michigan early in the season.
Harrar is a better basketball player than Watkins. He doesn't have as much raw talent as Watkins, but he is better at basketball right now. Watkins has a chance to get there, but just like Carr, Watkins needs to develop his basketball IQ. Carr showed some signs of "getting it" beginning about mid-February.
