Hoops-NIT Brackets Announced-Red No. 9 Seed

[CornellFan]

http://cornellbigred.com/Pdfs/mbball/2008/8/19/2008%20DSG%20NIT%20Season%20Tip-Off%20Bracket.pdf

[Beeeej]

For those assuming that's a link to a post on CornellFan's blog, it's not; it's a link to a PDF file of the bracket that will automatically download.

Anyway, what are your informed thoughts on whether we have a shot at making it to the Garden?  Whether I go to North Dakota or not, I'll still be here on Wednesday for the semis.  :-)

[CornellChris]

I'd say we have a decent enough chance of advancing. We were certainly placed in the most favorable region. We could beat any one of these three teams... but they could also easily beat us.

St. John's, a once proud program, has fallen on hard times and I'm beginning to wonder if it's even possible for them to turn it around. Last year they lost to teams like Niagara, Tulane, and Ohio, which would have been unthinkable 10 years ago. Lately it seems like they're losing players left and right for one reason or another, and nobody seems to make it to senior year. Still, they're a Big East team and, no matter how far they've fallen, you have to respect that.

Boston College might be a tougher foe, even though they too were disappointing last season. However, unlike St. John's, I actually think B.C. can/will turn it around. They finished dead last in the ACC, but it is the ACC after all. They did a fair job of taking care of business out of conference.

Loyola actually might be our toughest test. Remember how bad they whooped Penn last season? They would have to get past B.C. first though (unless we BOTH lose).

Honestly, it could go either way. This is a very winnable bracket, but you can't predict any victories when the competition is from the Big East & ACC.

-Chris

[CornellFan]

Andy Katz had this to say yesterday on his blog:

"The NIT Season Tip-Off announced its matchups Tuesday (with seeds)...Clearly this wasn't done in a traditional NCAA tournament style, since top-seeded Purdue isn't playing 16-seed Mississippi Valley State. But the gist in seeding is to increase the likelihood of the favorites getting to New York. Cornell in the East, Davidson in the South and UAB in the West are the three potential upset teams."

[Dpperk29]

[quote CornellFan]Andy Katz had this to say yesterday on his blog:

"The NIT Season Tip-Off announced its matchups Tuesday (with seeds)...Clearly this wasn't done in a traditional NCAA tournament style, since top-seeded Purdue isn't playing 16-seed Mississippi Valley State. But the gist in seeding is to increase the likelihood of the favorites getting to New York. Cornell in the East, Davidson in the South and UAB in the West are the three potential upset teams."[/quote]

aren't all of the lower seeds potential upsets? Cornell, Davidson, and UAB might be the most likely to pull an upset, but all the lower seeds can potentially pull one off.

[KeithK]

[quote Dpperk29]aren't all of the lower seeds potential upsets? Cornell, Davidson, and UAB might be the most likely to pull an upset, but all the lower seeds can potentially pull one off.[/quote]
You know what that means.  "Potential upset" means one that is technically an upset (lower seed wins) but would not be surprising.

The #65 team in the March tournament could beat the #1 team too.  It's possible.  But it's definitely not a "potential upset" that you can identify in advance.

[Jim Hyla]

[quote KeithK][quote Dpperk29]aren't all of the lower seeds potential upsets? Cornell, Davidson, and UAB might be the most likely to pull an upset, but all the lower seeds can potentially pull one off.[/quote]
You know what that means.  "Potential upset" means one that is technically an upset (lower seed wins) but would not be surprising.

The #65 team in the March tournament could beat the #1 team too.  It's possible.  But it's definitely not a "potential upset" that you can identify in advance.[/quote]

Um, excuse me but I think Dpperk29 is correct. #65 beating #1 is a potential upset. Not one that I'd bet on, but potential it has. All upsets were potential upset before they became the "upseter". Yes, we can read into it that he means more likely, but why don't we ask our sports reporters to use correct English? Putting it another way, can we have a "non-potential upset"? Does that mean an upset that is really surprising? After all, those do occur from time to time.

To me, potential upset means exactly what it says, potential. And yes, it would be nice if hockey season were starting, so we could argue about that and not grammar. By the way, I did get to order my season tickets today. Does that count as the season starting?

[KeithK]

Yes, literally speaking any lower seed is a potential upset.  But that's not what the idiom "potential idiom" means.  You may not like this idiom (and I'm not enthralled with it either).  But that's still the idiom.

Maybe I should've read Dpperk29's comment as a comment on the silliness of the idiom.

[Dpperk29]

[quote KeithK]
Maybe I should've read Dpperk29's comment as a comment on the silliness of the idiom.[/quote]

the down side to pursuing a degree in engineering is you tend to look at everything a little too technically. it ruins some otherwise very entertaining movies and tv shows...

and I agree with Jim (apparently pigs have developed a way to fly without assistance), how long until hockey season starts?

[KeithK]

[quote Dpperk29][quote KeithK]
Maybe I should've read Dpperk29's comment as a comment on the silliness of the idiom.[/quote]

the down side to pursuing a degree in engineering is you tend to look at everything a little too technically. it ruins some otherwise very entertaining movies and tv shows...[/quote]
Now I'm really confused.  Do you mean me or you? :-D

[billhoward]

"The race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but that's the way to bet." -- Damon Runyon

[Dpperk29]

[quote KeithK][quote Dpperk29][quote KeithK]
Maybe I should've read Dpperk29's comment as a comment on the silliness of the idiom.[/quote]

the down side to pursuing a degree in engineering is you tend to look at everything a little too technically. it ruins some otherwise very entertaining movies and tv shows...[/quote]
Now I'm really confused.  Do you mean me or you? :-D[/quote]

I think it applies to both of us... though I didn;t know you were an engineer.