Elite 8 Game Thread

Deathofthebambino

Drive Carefully
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Apr 12, 2005
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Not sure why the thread hasn't been started yet, but what the hell. Here it is.

Loyola/Kansas State already underway, and Loyola is not wilting. 11 seed versus a 9 seed, one of them will be in the Final Four, which is AWESOME.

Loyola out to an 11 point lead halfway through the 1st.
 

Infield Infidel

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If Mawein gets into foul trouble, I don't know if K-State can stop Loyola from driving to the hoop. They really aren't even doing it with him in there but forget about it if he's out.
 

54thMA

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11 seed versus a 9 seed, one of them will be in the Final Four, which is AWESOME.
Question from a very casual college basketball fan, as in I only watch the sport during March madness; with the one and one concept, will we be seeing more of this going forward? By that I mean smaller schools who aren't loaded with NBA level prospects, but have a very good college team that stays together for three or four years and advances in the tournament by playing traditional powerhouses that have mostly Freshmen who play for a year and then move on?

Neither of these two teams were top 25, correct?
 

RedOctober3829

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Question from a very casual college basketball fan, as in I only watch the sport during March madness; with the one and one concept, will we be seeing more of this going forward? By that I mean smaller schools who aren't loaded with NBA level prospects, but have a very good college team that stays together for three or four years and advances in the tournament by playing traditional powerhouses that have mostly Freshmen who play for a year and then move on?

Neither of these two teams were top 25, correct?
No major magazines had either of these team even projected in the NCAAs.
 

OurF'ingCity

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Feels like this happens once every 10 years or so - George Mason in 2006 was also an 11 seed that made the Final Four and I seem to remember a bunch of other crazy upsets that year.
 

Infield Infidel

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While they weren't ranked, Loyola's RPI was 22. They were horribly underseeded, should have been at worst a 7. Kansas St's RPI was 53, yet they are seeded higher.

Edit: the thing that drives me mad, when it comes to underseeding mid-majors, is that it hurts everyone in their bracket. Imagine you're Miami, you get a 6 seed, and then find out your 11-seed opponent has a top 25 RPI. Miami's RPI was 28, worse than Loyola.
 
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shawnrbu

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The draw has certainly helped. If you were ranking the Elite 8 teams, the Top 5 teams are in other regions.

George Mason had to beat Michigan St, UNC and UConn in 06.

When UConn won it all as a 7 in 2014, they had to get by Villanova, Iowa State's best team ever and maybe the best Michigan State team since Draymond graduated.

Kentucky as an 8 seed in 2014 had to beat undefeated Wichita St, Louisville and Michigan to make the Final 4 (all 3 of those teams made the Final Four in 2013).

Great job by Loyola to make the Final 4 even if they didn't have to pull off a big upset.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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I was looking at all time stats and it’s actually pretty interesting how often 8/9 or 11 seeds win this round. Maybe it’s because the 8/9 can only go through if the 1 doesn’t or something but the 8/9 or 11 is 9-8 in the elite 8. Obviously, there will be a win and a loss here.
 

Ale Xander

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Missouri Valley always seems to play well in the tournament. No one remember Northern Iowa?
LC is doing a good job taking over from Wichita State moving on.
 

Deathofthebambino

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Apr 12, 2005
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What the hell was that call? The Loyola player dropped the pass, the K State player dives for the ball and takes out his legs, and they call a foul on Loyola?
 

Deathofthebambino

Drive Carefully
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Apr 12, 2005
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Not liking the last couple trips down by Loyola. Don't tighten up now. 6 minutes to go, and KState just got it below 20.
 

Deathofthebambino

Drive Carefully
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Apr 12, 2005
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Just saw a highlight blurb of "Sale gets drilled by liner and has to leave in 1st inning." Let's just say things got really tense here until I found the video.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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They get this down to single digits and it's anyone's game, especially if they do it before the 3:00 mark.
The best thing about a 23 point lead is you can get outscored by 22 the rest of the way and win.

Loyola needs to just not miss from the free throw line.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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If I were a coach down double digits late and we had six fouls I would foul immediately every time the other team got possession. Save clock and make them shoot all one and ones.