12/21/24
March 29, 2022
SportsFilter: The Tuesday Huddle:
A place to discuss the sports stories that aren't making news, share links that aren't quite front-page material, and diagram plays on your hand. Remember to count to five Mississippi before commenting in anger.
Funny tweet which will probably be true for many Carolina and Duke fans.
Meanwhile, us State fans will still be throwing rotten fruits n veggies at the NCAA for basically rigging last night's game in favor of UConn. Just one more thing to throw on the ol' "NC State shit" pile.
posted by NoMich at 03:43 PM on March 29, 2022
How was the game rigged?
Will say that was one heck of a game. Refreshing after having to watch the Duke and Carolina games on the weekend.
posted by cixelsyd at 01:28 PM on March 30, 2022
I was surprised at how strong a NCSU contingent there was at the UConn game, which was basically a home game for the Huskies given the venue.
That game could have gone either way. The TO call by the State coach was a factor of sorts. Some of his subbing in crunch time was questionable.
Bueckers has a whole court / whole game savvy that is not often seen. She took a less prominent role during the middle portion of the game and at one point was described as having "an efficient 12 points" by the announcers. But she was doing all sorts of other things on the floor that were important.
Then they got into the 4th quarter and the OT's and Bueckers cranked up her offense when she knew it was needed. She's so fundamentally solid and has great discipline and mental toughness. Geno obliged by no longer having her be the inbounder so she'd have more chances to create and/or go to the line.
The level of play in that game was great. I began watching the Louisville - Michigan game and found it not nearly as compelling so I ended up turning it off.
posted by beaverboard at 02:27 PM on March 30, 2022
Bueckers was out for 3 months until late February and has only returned to her normal minutes the last 3 games. She's off the charts tremendous as far as a point guard goes: a pass first play maker who can score at will and shoots 55 percent from the field.
Have only coached men's BB but think the best approach with someone like her is to deny full court then play box and 1 on the defensive end. Keep the ball out of her hands and force someone else to beat you.
posted by cixelsyd at 04:28 PM on March 30, 2022
How was the game rigged?
Eh, we're just salty that the lower seed got to play what was essentially a home game over a #1 seed.
posted by NoMich at 04:34 PM on March 30, 2022
we're just salty
Hey, not at all. Noticed that as well. Thought NCAA Women were supposed to play at the higher seed home. They played the game at a semi-neutral site but in Connecticut. Advantage for UConn fans for sure. NC State fans traveled and showed great support as well.
What was the logic for playing the game where it was? Were the other E8 games played is similar not so neutral sites?
posted by cixelsyd at 08:16 PM on March 30, 2022
I think the logic is a guaranteed sell out with UConn playing there
posted by NoMich at 08:25 PM on March 30, 2022
Plus everyone gets to hang out in Bridgeport and who wouldn't want that?
It's the jewel in the crown of gritty post industrial disrepair along the Connecticut shore. Rivaled by neighboring New Haven (some sections of which make the presence of Yale utterly irrelevant).
But - if you need arcane industrial supplies, like brake parts for a vintage Otis freight elevator, Bridgeport is the promised land of dusty inventory languishing on back shelves. Along with a few 80 year old guys who have all the part numbers committed to memory.
posted by beaverboard at 09:34 PM on March 30, 2022
And something about big time rasslin'?
posted by NoMich at 07:41 AM on March 31, 2022
Money.
Money ruins the men's game as well. In many ways.
As far as the NCAA Tournament goes the absolute worst is playing the Final 4 every year in a venue where Basketball is never otherwise played. Lousy courts that get rolled out once every 10 years, garbage sight lines for the players - it's why the Final 4 is always the worst part of the tournament.
But more money. That's all that matters.
posted by cixelsyd at 09:58 PM on March 31, 2022
NoMich, the Basketball Illuminati podcast found that, between the men's and women's tourneys, the #2 seed traveled an average of (going from memory, so don't quote me) 1,000 miles.
Except UConn, which took a leisurely 79-mile day trip.
posted by The_Black_Hand at 05:12 PM on April 04, 2022
Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk dies at 62