The 2020-2021 Season Thread

[Dave]

Thank goodness we don't have a game thread for this game. We have forgotten how to play basketball.

Sorry, been sick today, got the thread up now so 2nd half can be done there if you guys want.

No worries! Hope you feel better soon.

[Chicat]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

[TatetheGreat]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

We should have moved on years ago and now I will move on from this site.

[azgreg]

I will move on from this site.

[Chicat]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

We should have moved on years ago and now I will move on from this site.

Oh no

Didn’t take much, did it?

[ChooChooCat]

So in a loss Miller decides to blame the players, notably Mathurin. Why am I not surprised? When will the UA finally realize Miller has overstayed his welcome? He never takes responsibility for anything including the FBI/NCAA kerfuffle. I don't blame ESPN for suing. Miller and the UA's evasiveness during the whole 'investigation' has been nothing short of catastrophic. An innocent man has nothing to hide. It's way past time to move on from Miler. I know you miller blowhards will question who could possibly be good enough to replace the great Sean Miller. For those of you who are stuck in that idiotic mindset just stop it. He's replaceable, VERY replaceable. Quit trying to convince yourself all is well. It's not, and it's a disturbing trend that is not going to change. We've turned into a mediocre conference team in an already weak conference. That's not my idea of progress.

He got asked why Mathurin didn't start in the second half. What answer would you have given? When someone doesn't start a second half, it's fairly obvious something negative is the reason.

His options were to duck the question or be direct about why. It's not blaming a guy to give a direct response to a question.

Saying we've turned into a mediocre conference team overlooks that we won conference titles in 4 of 5 years before the FBI investigation happened. For a guy named Captain Obvious, I would say it would befit your name to acknowledge the FBI investigation was going to be a blow to anyone and we'd been rolling before that point.

I've posted before, but we've actually done better than most of the programs implicated by the FBI. KU is struggling this year. Auburn is 10-9. Ok. St. is 7th in the Big 12 at 4-5. Miami is 7-10. NC State is 7-7. The FBI scandal has taken a toll on programs.

We’re currently in 7th place in the Pac 12 and only have as good of a record as we do because we played the weakest Non-Conference schedule known to man.

[Beachcat97]

Haven’t been able to watch either game this past week, but I can tell by the posts here that they took a pretty sizable step backwards the past two games.

It’s hard to see that so late in the season and still put a positive spin on it. If the “process” is working, shouldn’t there be steady, appreciable improvement between November and March? Yes, we’ve been undermanned, but a lot of these guys (Akinjo, Brown, et al) have gotten big minutes.

Schedule is about to get harder, too.

[Merkin]

Miller's post game presser was much more positive. Said that CU was just the better team, and that all the UA players played well. Mathurin sure did.

But these games on FS1 are just too hard to watch trying to find a stream. Hopefully no more FS1 games.

[Chicat]

Haven’t been able to watch either game this past week, but I can tell by the posts here that they took a pretty sizable step backwards the past two games.

It’s hard to see that so late in the season and still put a positive spin on it. If the “process” is working, shouldn’t there be steady, appreciable improvement between November and March? Yes, we’ve been undermanned, but a lot of these guys (Akinjo, Brown, et al) have gotten big minutes.

Schedule is about to get harder, too.

I actually think we have appreciably improved. But honestly, why does it matter? Shouldn’t you want to see improvement happen between the end of this stupid throw away year and the beginning of next year?

And please stop with the “process” stuff. No one except a poster who hates CSM has said anything about “trust the process” and that person meant it as snark.

[EastCoastCat]

Chi, I’m with you on this. It is a throwaway year and this team shows some really positive progress although defensively they still have more work to do.

I hate anytime we lose and the last 2 games are no exception. But since we have no March to look forward to it’s all about preparing for next year.

And next year my expectations will be huge if this team for the most part returns.

[Spaceman Spiff]

So in a loss Miller decides to blame the players, notably Mathurin. Why am I not surprised? When will the UA finally realize Miller has overstayed his welcome? He never takes responsibility for anything including the FBI/NCAA kerfuffle. I don't blame ESPN for suing. Miller and the UA's evasiveness during the whole 'investigation' has been nothing short of catastrophic. An innocent man has nothing to hide. It's way past time to move on from Miler. I know you miller blowhards will question who could possibly be good enough to replace the great Sean Miller. For those of you who are stuck in that idiotic mindset just stop it. He's replaceable, VERY replaceable. Quit trying to convince yourself all is well. It's not, and it's a disturbing trend that is not going to change. We've turned into a mediocre conference team in an already weak conference. That's not my idea of progress.

He got asked why Mathurin didn't start in the second half. What answer would you have given? When someone doesn't start a second half, it's fairly obvious something negative is the reason.

His options were to duck the question or be direct about why. It's not blaming a guy to give a direct response to a question.

Saying we've turned into a mediocre conference team overlooks that we won conference titles in 4 of 5 years before the FBI investigation happened. For a guy named Captain Obvious, I would say it would befit your name to acknowledge the FBI investigation was going to be a blow to anyone and we'd been rolling before that point.

I've posted before, but we've actually done better than most of the programs implicated by the FBI. KU is struggling this year. Auburn is 10-9. Ok. St. is 7th in the Big 12 at 4-5. Miami is 7-10. NC State is 7-7. The FBI scandal has taken a toll on programs.

We’re currently in 7th place in the Pac 12 and only have as good of a record as we do because we played the weakest Non-Conference schedule known to man.

Which I would think tends to support the theory the FBI investigation took a toll on us like it did those other teams.

As I've posted before, we would have been two of three tourneys in the three full years since the FBI. Kansas and Auburn are the only teams to do better.

It was a tough loss last night, but we played 30 minutes of the best I've seen us play. This is a building year, and I like that we responded to adversity.

Saying we're 7th...we were 4th going into last night and would have stayed there if we won and we're now either 7th or 6th depending on the metric. I would have preferred if we'd finished the comeback vs Colorado, but there are too many posters acting like the sky is falling.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Miller's post game presser was much more positive. Said that CU was just the better team, and that all the UA players played well. Mathurin sure did.

But these games on FS1 are just too hard to watch trying to find a stream. Hopefully no more FS1 games.

The first 8-10 min was a disaster, but after that point, it was some of the best we've played. They shot 8-11 on 3's in the first half and pretty much every one was guarded.

We had way more energy than Utah despite the terrible start and them being really hot from 3. I actually sort of disagree with Miller in that we outplayed them basically all but that first few minutes. We were up 3 with 8 min left, meaning we outscored them by 20 in the middle 20-24 min.

They hit that big three to tie with about a minute left and we missed, then Wright hit the floater. It was basically those plays that swung the outcome.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

Miller has repeatedly recruited top ten ranked classes.
Fisch's first class was #75 nationally and second to last among P5 schools.

But because Miller's played and lost games and Fisch is still undefeated, people think Fisch is better. Oh, fans.

[Captain Obvious]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

We should have moved on years ago and now I will move on from this site.

But, but, we have to DWWD and be patient. Doing less with more and expecting a positive outcome is the Miller way. We've only been a year away from reaching the pinnacle of college hoops............for the last ten years. But believe you me, next year is THE year.

[Beachcat97]

Haven’t been able to watch either game this past week, but I can tell by the posts here that they took a pretty sizable step backwards the past two games.

It’s hard to see that so late in the season and still put a positive spin on it. If the “process” is working, shouldn’t there be steady, appreciable improvement between November and March? Yes, we’ve been undermanned, but a lot of these guys (Akinjo, Brown, et al) have gotten big minutes.

Schedule is about to get harder, too.

I actually think we have appreciably improved. But honestly, why does it matter? Shouldn’t you want to see improvement happen between the end of this stupid throw away year and the beginning of next year?

And please stop with the “process” stuff. No one except a poster who hates CSM has said anything about “trust the process” and that person meant it as snark.

These are good points, Chi.

It only matters because I had hoped to be in contention for the league title, regardless of the postseason situation. I've never been entirely comfortable with calling it a "throw away year" because that's not the case for some of our players. This does count towards their eligibility clock. I'm not sure Miller and the players see this as a throw away year.

Anyway, as long as there's noticeable development taking place, and as long as we can keep this roster in tact, I'm a happy camper.

[ChooChooCat]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

Miller has repeatedly recruited top ten ranked classes.
Fisch's first class was #75 nationally and second to last among P5 schools.

But because Miller's played and lost games and Fisch is still undefeated, people think Fisch is better. Oh, fans.

Dude I’m not touching a Fisch vs Miller debate as that’s just beyond moronic, but 90% of his recruiting class was signed before he ever got the job and they don’t count transfers as part of recruiting classes, which is pretty much every thing he added since he’s got here. By all means have this debate if you want, but at least make valid arguments.

[ChooChooCat]

Haven’t been able to watch either game this past week, but I can tell by the posts here that they took a pretty sizable step backwards the past two games.

It’s hard to see that so late in the season and still put a positive spin on it. If the “process” is working, shouldn’t there be steady, appreciable improvement between November and March? Yes, we’ve been undermanned, but a lot of these guys (Akinjo, Brown, et al) have gotten big minutes.

Schedule is about to get harder, too.

I actually think we have appreciably improved. But honestly, why does it matter? Shouldn’t you want to see improvement happen between the end of this stupid throw away year and the beginning of next year?

And please stop with the “process” stuff. No one except a poster who hates CSM has said anything about “trust the process” and that person meant it as snark.

These are good points, Chi.

It only matters because I had hoped to be in contention for the league title, regardless of the postseason situation. I've never been entirely comfortable with calling it a "throw away year" because that's not the case for some of our players. This does count towards their eligibility clock. I'm not sure Miller and the players see this as a throw away year.

Anyway, as long as there's noticeable development taking place, and as long as we can keep this roster in tact, I'm a happy camper.

This year does not count against their eligibility clock.

[UAEebs86]

CU's last two made threes were like 5 feet behind the line. Probably considered bad shots that you would let an opponent take, but props to them for making them.

[EastCoastCat]

And let’s not forget that foul away from the ball (like 50 feet away) with :15 left with CU inbounding to the back court was beyond incredulous.

But we could have easily won that game if Brown Jr makes that layup and the And1.

[U.P. Zona Fan]

What happened to ira lee? Looks like hes part of club trillion now?

[Chicat]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

Miller has repeatedly recruited top ten ranked classes.
Fisch's first class was #75 nationally and second to last among P5 schools.

But because Miller's played and lost games and Fisch is still undefeated, people think Fisch is better. Oh, fans.

I can't wait until Football goes 2-10 and 3-9 in Jedd's first two years and people will be all over the Football board with "We need a Sean Miller!" hot takes.

[Beachcat97]

This year does not count against their eligibility clock.

I thought that was only for seniors. My bad.

Even if it doesn't count against this "clock," we all know there's a different clock always ticking in the background: the one counting down to players turning pro. I don't know how long Mathurin and Kriisa and Tubelis plan on being at AZ, so in a weird way, this season does matter. Or maybe it's just the self-imposed postseason ban. Maybe that's what has people feeling indifferent about going 0-2 on an important road trip in February. Not sure.

But I'll follow the leaders here. The prevailing opinion here is, wait till next year. Will do.

[Chicat]

This year does not count against their eligibility clock.

I thought that was only for seniors. My bad.

Even if it doesn't count against this "clock," we all know there's a different clock always ticking in the background: the one counting down to players turning pro. I don't know how long Mathurin and Kriisa and Tubelis plan on being at AZ, so in a weird way, this season does matter. Or maybe it's just the self-imposed postseason ban. Maybe that's what has people feeling indifferent about going 0-2 on an important road trip in February. Not sure.

But I'll follow the leaders here. The prevailing opinion here is, wait till next year. Will do.

If we were currently in first place in the Pac and only lost a couple of games, all the fretting here would be about who was going pro and how much we'd need to replace next year in order to be competitive.

I hate watching this team lose. But I think some humility and a bad taste in their mouths could have everyone (or nearly everyone) back next year with a real serious chip on their shoulder and a whole lot to prove.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

Miller has repeatedly recruited top ten ranked classes.
Fisch's first class was #75 nationally and second to last among P5 schools.

But because Miller's played and lost games and Fisch is still undefeated, people think Fisch is better. Oh, fans.

Dude I’m not touching a Fisch vs Miller debate as that’s just beyond moronic, but 90% of his recruiting class was signed before he ever got the job and they don’t count transfers as part of recruiting classes, which is pretty much every thing he added since he’s got here. By all means have this debate if you want, but at least make valid arguments.

I didn't bring it up and I don't think it's a debate. My point is that we have someone saying we need a Fisch type for basketball, and Fisch's recruting ranking would get Miller fired in a second.

It's the silly Fisch/Miller take that's only based on Fisch not losing yet. You can look at the football board if you'd like my actual takes on Fisch.

My other point for the guy who brought this up is that it isn't really that unfair because what else has Fisch done that's a meaningful point of comparison?

This isn't to dog Fisch. It's to point out how illogical people get with Miller.

[DrWildcat]

I can't wait until Football goes 2-10 and 3-9 in Jedd's first two years and people will be all over the Football board with "We need a Sean Miller!" hot takes.

No doubt we are going to suck in football next year or more, but I think everyone can agree that comparing what Arizona should be in basketball vs football is a little stupid. On that note, of course we would want someone as successful in football as Miller has been in basketball. But for basketball, it should be fine and expected for the fans to want more. People are just frustrated with the results, mainly tournament results, over the past few years and thats obviously not going to change this year.

[prh]

Wait, people are curious why we are inconsistent this late in the season? A season with an entirely new team, that knows they aren't going to the postseason, and just added a freshman to the rotation for his first ever collegiate games?

Or is it only the trolls? Not wasting enough time to check

Worst start we've ever seen, 2 days after getting blown out in the 2nd half at Utah, and this team battled back to take the lead? That was an impressive 25 minute stretch.

[catgrad97]

Most casual Arizona fans, the past 20 years: "When does basketball season start? Our upcoming team is just like 1997! National champs baby!""

1997: "You know we got swept at the Bay Area schools in the last weekend of our regular season, right?"

2020 casual Arizona fans: "Why did this team get swept on the road this late in the season? Miller sucks, let Robbins hire the next coach because he knows how to get our football rocks off!"

Perspective. It helps.

[legallykenny]

Most casual Arizona fans, the past 20 years: "When does basketball season start? Our upcoming team is just like 1997! National champs baby!""

1997: "You know we got swept at the Bay Area schools in the last weekend of our regular season, right?"

2020 casual Arizona fans: "Why did this team get swept on the road this late in the season? Miller sucks, let Robbins hire the next coach because he knows how to get our football rocks off!"

Perspective. It helps.

The PAC was a power conference in 1997. In 2021 it’s a mediocre mid major that has become a national joke.

Other than that, great take.

[catgrad97]

Most casual Arizona fans, the past 20 years: "When does basketball season start? Our upcoming team is just like 1997! National champs baby!""

1997: "You know we got swept at the Bay Area schools in the last weekend of our regular season, right?"

2020 casual Arizona fans: "Why did this team get swept on the road this late in the season? Miller sucks, let Robbins hire the next coach because he knows how to get our football rocks off!"

Perspective. It helps.

The PAC was a power conference in 1997. In 2021 it’s a mediocre mid major that has become a national joke.

Other than that, great take.

And it also had two fewer teams then, and no conference tournament. What's your point?

Just to say, "Well, given the tournament results, the conference was clearly a national power compared to the laughingstock Larry Scott made it. So your perspective is stupid."?

Just going off your consistently fact-challenged generalizations from the past which, clearly, have not matured in the least.

Nobody knew that '97 team was going to win it all, until it happened. As you well know, the team was down double digits to South Alabama with 6:00 to play in the game. Six minutes away from another first-round loss.

Neither South Alabama nor College of Charleston, a near second-round defeat, would be considered a Pac-level program--then or now.

Conference RPI may have had something to do with that team making the tournament despite nine losses, but it had zero to do with that team winning the title.

And it has zero to do now with the delusions of the uncritical portion of our fan base--one which goes from wanting to hang our school president for hiring our football coach to wanting him to fire Sean Miller and hire our next coach based on one lousy road trip.

You want to belittle a take? Start with that one and work your way up.

[ChooChooCat]

Fuck it. Let Robbins hire the next HC. We're going to need a Jedd Fisch when all is said and done.

Oh, is that what you want? You ready for the Joe Mazzulla era?

Get the fuck out with that bullshit.

PS - Tate sucked. Get a real screen name.

Miller has repeatedly recruited top ten ranked classes.
Fisch's first class was #75 nationally and second to last among P5 schools.

But because Miller's played and lost games and Fisch is still undefeated, people think Fisch is better. Oh, fans.

Dude I’m not touching a Fisch vs Miller debate as that’s just beyond moronic, but 90% of his recruiting class was signed before he ever got the job and they don’t count transfers as part of recruiting classes, which is pretty much every thing he added since he’s got here. By all means have this debate if you want, but at least make valid arguments.

I didn't bring it up and I don't think it's a debate. My point is that we have someone saying we need a Fisch type for basketball, and Fisch's recruting ranking would get Miller fired in a second.

It's the silly Fisch/Miller take that's only based on Fisch not losing yet. You can look at the football board if you'd like my actual takes on Fisch.

My other point for the guy who brought this up is that it isn't really that unfair because what else has Fisch done that's a meaningful point of comparison?

This isn't to dog Fisch. It's to point out how illogical people get with Miller.

I think him saying the basketball program needs to hire someone like Fisch is beyond stupid. Fisch is great for football because the man is selling the community and the alumni to buy in to Arizona Football as he’s making it fun and about family. Arizona Basketball does not have that problem. The community and alumni have been bought into the program for a long time, what Arizona Basketball needs is to fucking win and that’s it. Any coach that provides that and the fanbase would respond with “you had me at hello.” Arizona needs a guy that’ll get them past this BLAH period and back into the big Ws. Plain and simple.

[IndianaZonaFan]

As of today:
RPI-44
BPI-36
AP- 31
Coaches- NR (48 teams receiving votes)
NET- 21
KenPom-28

after getting swept at home by LA schools

RPI-79
BPI-46
AP- NR (46 teams receiving votes)
NET- 39
KenPom-42

after beating Oregon state by 30+

RPI-66
BPI-33
AP- NR
NET- 31
KenPom-29

after winning @ ASU

RPI-59
BPI-36
AP- 43 (out of 43 receiving votes)
NET- 32
KenPom-27 (16/63)

after L vs Stanford & W vs Cal & ASU

RPI-67
BPI-36
AP- NR (43 teams receiving votes)
NET- 41
KenPom-32 (22/56)

After Losing @Utah and @Colorado
RPI-70
BPI-40
AP- NR
NET- 44
KenPom- 39 (18/84)

[Spaceman Spiff]

I think him saying the basketball program needs to hire someone like Fisch is beyond stupid. Fisch is great for football because the man is selling the community and the alumni to buy in to Arizona Football as he’s making it fun and about family. Arizona Basketball does not have that problem. The community and alumni have been bought into the program for a long time, what Arizona Basketball needs is to fucking win and that’s it. Any coach that provides that and the fanbase would respond with “you had me at hello.” Arizona needs a guy that’ll get them past this BLAH period and back into the big Ws. Plain and simple.

I'd add to the list that expectations are in a completely different place.

I'm not as big on Fisch as some, but I'll give him credit for having done well in engaging people and doing well in the transfer portal. I'm not super fired up about our HS recruiting ranking, but you're correct in point out he came in late in the game without much talent in the fold. As I've said on the FB board, I think Fisch's recruiting test will be in years 2 and 3 and it isn't fair to ding him for this year.

I'm just saying it drives home the difference in standards for Miller and Fisch, which is why TatetheGreat saying we'd need a Fisch after Miller is so insane to me. People are excited Fisch hired Cecil, Sanders and Hunley. Miller hired Jason Terry. Miller's lowest ranked class in the last 10 years was #22 the year the FBI/ESPN stories crushed us.

I see it this way, Miller was performing better than Lute in most objective measures prior to the FBI investigation becoming public. Do we let him try to get back to that level, hoping he'll recapture the momentum when the FBI is in the rear view mirror, or change to someone new?

My take is pretty straightforward. The FBI scandal did real damage to us and other programs and we're not really past it. That fact would not change with a new HC. If we want to win, I'd rather go with the guy who's proven he can win like Arizona wants to win until/unless it becomes clear that something's changed with him, and it isn't the influence of the FBI/NCAA.

[ChooChooCat]

Spiff only one school involved in FBI gate has fired their coach and that is Louisville. You can argue they’re in the best place out of anyone going through FBI gate currently.

[IndianaZonaFan]

Spiff only one school involved in FBI gate has fired their coach and that is Louisville. You can argue they’re in the best place out of anyone going through FBI gate currently.

I live right outside of Louisville...I hear a lot of chatter from their fans about firing Mack.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Spiff only one school involved in FBI gate has fired their coach and that is Louisville. You can argue they’re in the best place out of anyone going through FBI gate currently.

Yes, but I'd argue they also came into the scandal in a better place than other teams.

In the 6 years prior to the FBI, Louisville had a NC, 2 Final Fours, an Elite Eight, Sweet 16, Second Round and one year they self imposed a tourney ban.

They were also #1 or #2 in national revenue during that time period and have some of the best facilities in the nation.

In the years after, they went 22-14, 20-14, 24-7 and are at 11-4. I think you're probably correct they're in the best shape now. Auburn staved off the negatives, but has been hit this year, and Louisville is stronger right now. Still, I'd argue Louisville isn't at the level of being close to the NC like they were before the FBI.

I don't think you're wrong that they're in the best place right now. I do think the reasoning behind that is more than just what they did with Pitino, and that they took a hit from the FBI.

The negative effects on each school have been different, IMO. Some, like KU, that weren't hit up front, have suffered delayed consequences. Louisville fired Pitino (in my opinion, to avoid potential death penalty) and as such are probably closer to the end. I'm not sure I'd put that on Miller, as a lot of that for Arizona has to do with the legal decision makers.

Also, I think Schlabach's story has been a separate impediment in the public sphere for us that no other program (except maybe oddly LSU) has had to deal with. I'm pretty sure we're still getting negative recruiting off that article.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Spiff only one school involved in FBI gate has fired their coach and that is Louisville. You can argue they’re in the best place out of anyone going through FBI gate currently.

I live right outside of Louisville...I hear a lot of chatter from their fans about firing Mack.

They went from Final Fours under Pitino to a projected 8 seed right now. I have sympathy for Mack in that situation. It isn't an easy situation to dig out of for any coach or any program.

[UAEebs86]

[Spaceman Spiff]

It's an incredible year. Kansas, Duke and Kentucky were all preseason top ten teams.

Michigan State was a top team preseason, they're 9-7. ASU (LOL) was ranked in the top 20 and they're 6-8.

I was watching Duke/UNC this weekend. It's two blue bloods and CBB's best rivalry, and it was just a crappy basketball game. The only fun was seeing Duke failing so hard.

[MountainCat]

Let's re-rank this list according to this years winning percentage (regardless of SOS):

1. UCLA 13-4 0.765
2. Arizona 13-6 0.684
3. North Carolina 12-6 0.667
4. St John’s 13-7 0.650
5. Kansas 12-7 0.632
6. Syracuse 10-6 0.625
7. Indiana 10-8 0.556
8. Utah 8-7 0.534
9. Duke 7-7 0.500
10. Cincinnati 5-7 0.417
11. Notre Dame 7-10 0.412
12. Temple 4-7 0.364
13. Kentucky 5-12 0.294

Anything notice what stands out?

Our year is not so bad as some would think - Especially with 100% of starters not returning, and only 14% of scoring returning.

[gronk4heisman]

What stands out to me isa weak conference and a weak out of conference help a team out. Thanks for everything you have done for us Larry!

[MountainCat]

Let's re-rank this list according to this years winning percentage (regardless of SOS):

1. UCLA 13-4 0.765
2. Arizona 13-6 0.684
3. North Carolina 12-6 0.667
4. St John’s 13-7 0.650
5. Kansas 12-7 0.632
6. Syracuse 10-6 0.625
7. Indiana 10-8 0.556
8. Utah 8-7 0.534
9. Duke 7-7 0.500
10. Cincinnati 5-7 0.417
11. Notre Dame 7-10 0.412
12. Temple 4-7 0.364
13. Kentucky 5-12 0.294

Anything notice what stands out?

Our year is not so bad as some would think - Especially with 100% of starters not returning, and only 14% of scoring returning.

CORRECTION

Duke is trying hard to beat Kentucky for the bottom slot as they are now below .500 after losing another

1. UCLA 13-4 0.765
2. Arizona 13-6 0.684
3. North Carolina 12-6 0.667
4. St John’s 13-7 0.650
5. Kansas 12-7 0.632
6. Syracuse 10-6 0.625
7. Indiana 10-8 0.556
8. Utah 8-7 0.534
9. Duke 7-8 0.467
10. Cincinnati 5-7 0.417
11. Notre Dame 7-10 0.412
12. Temple 4-7 0.364
13. Kentucky 5-12 0.294

[Merkin]

https://www.azdesertswarm.com/basketbal ... DSln42waz0

Saturday's home game against Oregon has been moved up a few hours, now scheduled to start at 12 p.m. MST. ESPN2 will broadcast the matchup, which is the first of the season between the UA and the Ducks.

The Wildcats' scheduled game in Eugene was postponed due to Oregon's COVID-19 issues and hasn't been rescheduled.

Another of Arizona's remaining games was given a start time, as well as a channel change. The Feb. 25 game at McKale Center against Washington State, previously slated to air on the Pac-12 Network, will instead be shown on Fox Sports 1.

[Beachcat97]

Let's re-rank this list according to this years winning percentage (regardless of SOS):

1. UCLA 13-4 0.765
2. Arizona 13-6 0.684
3. North Carolina 12-6 0.667
4. St John’s 13-7 0.650
5. Kansas 12-7 0.632
6. Syracuse 10-6 0.625
7. Indiana 10-8 0.556
8. Utah 8-7 0.534
9. Duke 7-7 0.500
10. Cincinnati 5-7 0.417
11. Notre Dame 7-10 0.412
12. Temple 4-7 0.364
13. Kentucky 5-12 0.294

Anything notice what stands out?

Our year is not so bad as some would think - Especially with 100% of starters not returning, and only 14% of scoring returning.

What an unbelievable state of affairs, with every damn blue blood barely treading water.

I actually kind of feel bad for Gonzaga because they arguably have their best shot ever to win a title, but it would come in a year with so many big names either noticeably weakened or out of the tourney altogether. Maybe Zags fans don't give a shit, and maybe cutting down the nets this year would be as sweet as if it had happened in any year prior. But don't you kinda want to knock off Duke or UNC or UK or Kansas en route to that title? Maybe not. Maybe a title is a title is a title.

Beyond Gonzaga, though, what a great opportunity this year for other teams trying to sneak into the FF. There is unbelievable parity this year, and it shouldn't surprise anyone to see traditional powers sent home early. I'm not even that confident about Baylor.

[Postmaster]

I don’t know what you are talking about.
There is no tournament this season.

[Merkin]

I don’t know what you are talking about.
There is no tournament this season.

Not for UA, but there is for the rest of the NCAA https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-me ... basketball

[DrWildcat]

Let's re-rank this list according to this years winning percentage (regardless of SOS):

1. UCLA 13-4 0.765
2. Arizona 13-6 0.684
3. North Carolina 12-6 0.667
4. St John’s 13-7 0.650
5. Kansas 12-7 0.632
6. Syracuse 10-6 0.625
7. Indiana 10-8 0.556
8. Utah 8-7 0.534
9. Duke 7-7 0.500
10. Cincinnati 5-7 0.417
11. Notre Dame 7-10 0.412
12. Temple 4-7 0.364
13. Kentucky 5-12 0.294

Anything notice what stands out?

Our year is not so bad as some would think - Especially with 100% of starters not returning, and only 14% of scoring returning.

What an unbelievable state of affairs, with every damn blue blood barely treading water.

I actually kind of feel bad for Gonzaga because they arguably have their best shot ever to win a title, but it would come in a year with so many big names either noticeably weakened or out of the tourney altogether. Maybe Zags fans don't give a shit, and maybe cutting down the nets this year would be as sweet as if it had happened in any year prior. But don't you kinda want to knock off Duke or UNC or UK or Kansas en route to that title? Maybe not. Maybe a title is a title is a title.

Beyond Gonzaga, though, what a great opportunity this year for other teams trying to sneak into the FF. There is unbelievable parity this year, and it shouldn't surprise anyone to see traditional powers sent home early. I'm not even that confident about Baylor.

I sure as hell would not give a shit who we beat to get a title. I just want another damn title, I'll even take a Final Four. Frankly, no one will remember or care who you beat after a year anyway but they will remember you have a title.

Too bad we can't say Gonzaga has to get through Arizona to get out of the west. I know we are not eligible but we wouldn't be a legitimate threat anyway.

[Beachcat97]

I sure as hell would not give a shit who we beat to get a title. I just want another damn title, I'll even take a Final Four. Frankly, no one will remember or care who you beat after a year anyway but they will remember you have a title.

Too bad we can't say Gonzaga has to get through Arizona to get out of the west. I know we are not eligible but we wouldn't be a legitimate threat anyway.

There's always a lot made of the fact that we beat three #1 seeds en route to the title in '97. Would we have been disappointed if those wins had come against teams no one had heard of? No. But I do think beating Kansas, UNC and UK adds a little something special to our run that year. I love that we got to face arguably the greatest program in the sport's history in the title game, plus Pitino!

[Spaceman Spiff]

I sure as hell would not give a shit who we beat to get a title. I just want another damn title, I'll even take a Final Four. Frankly, no one will remember or care who you beat after a year anyway but they will remember you have a title.

Too bad we can't say Gonzaga has to get through Arizona to get out of the west. I know we are not eligible but we wouldn't be a legitimate threat anyway.

There's always a lot made of the fact that we beat three #1 seeds en route to the title in '97. Would we have been disappointed if those wins had come against teams no one had heard of? No. But I do think beating Kansas, UNC and UK adds a little something special to our run that year. I love that we got to face arguably the greatest program in the sport's history in the title game, plus Pitino!

Yeah, but the flip side is they all suck this year.

If Gonzaga had a road that included Baylor, Michigan and Virginia, it would be special because they walked a tough road. Any championship will be great, but you can get a little extra from beating a bunch of good opponents.

It's nice when the good opponents are blue bloods, but that's not really possible this year. Villanova's probably the closest thing to a contender and a blue blood, and I wouldn't really consider them a blue blood.

[DrWildcat]

I sure as hell would not give a shit who we beat to get a title. I just want another damn title, I'll even take a Final Four. Frankly, no one will remember or care who you beat after a year anyway but they will remember you have a title.

Too bad we can't say Gonzaga has to get through Arizona to get out of the west. I know we are not eligible but we wouldn't be a legitimate threat anyway.

There's always a lot made of the fact that we beat three #1 seeds en route to the title in '97. Would we have been disappointed if those wins had come against teams no one had heard of? No. But I do think beating Kansas, UNC and UK adds a little something special to our run that year. I love that we got to face arguably the greatest program in the sport's history in the title game, plus Pitino!

Yeah, for us Arizona fans we take pride in being the only team to beat three #1 seeds for a title and they were all great programs. But, other than some college basketball diehards and being a trivia question, no one else cares or knows was my point.

[Jefe]

Starting to worry we may not have Akinjo and Tubelis back next year. These guys are studs. Really hope Mathurin doesn't take the bait either

Mathurin 40th: https://ftw.usatoday.com/lists/nba-mock ... an-kuminga
Akinjo 83rd: https://nbadraftroom.com/p/2021-2nd-round/