Final 4

[TheSultan]

This game is really dull.

[Nukem2]

This game is really dull.

Obviously, Duke is better. What happens when an 8 seed sneaks through.

[MUMac]

That was my preseason prediction, and when asked in November if I'd take Duke & Kentucky or the field to win the title, I said Duke/UK. Fully believe it's the best possible matchup.

I agree. I said at the beginning of the year that the best 3 teams were Kentucky, Duke and Kentucky's 2nd 5 (not necessarily in that order).

[Markedman]

7 seed actually......not sure the seed has much to do with it.....UCONN won it last year as a 7 IIRC

Duke just played great.....better team plays great it can get away in a hurry......

[Nukem2]

7 seed actually......not sure the seed has much to do with it.....UCONN won it last year as a 7 IIRC

Duke just played great.....better team plays great it can get away in a hurry......

A lower seed in any event. UConnwas an anomaly.....

[MUMac]

A lower seed in any event. UConnwas an anomaly.....

Not necessarily. Al's '77 team was the last one in ... Many, many others.

MSU was inconsistent this year. Played well early, middle a bit down, finished strong. The middling MSU team showed up today.

[Nukem2]

Not necessarily. Al's '77 team was the last one in ... Many, many others.

MSU was inconsistent this year. Played well early, middle a bit down, finished strong. The middling MSU team showed up today.

Nope. MU was 1 or 2 in all the AP, UPI, BW, etc. pre-season polls. The season was affected by Al's announcement inDecember and his silly playing of Neary. UConn was no where near all of that. MU simply righted it's ship. That was a very good team. UConn rode the stellar play of Napier. That was an anomaly.

[MUMac]

Nope. MU was 1 or 2 in all the AP, UPI, BW, etc. pre-season polls. The season was affected by Al's announcement inDecember and his silly playing of Neary. UConn was no where near all of that. MU simply righted it's ship. That was a very good team. UConn rode the stellar play of Napier. That was an anomaly.

MU was still the last team in, so how can you dispute that? At Michigan, Al changed his suit for the first time in many games (I forget the number), as he found out they were in. So YES, they were the last team in. I know what they were rated at the beginning of the year. What was MSU rated at the beginning of the year? Does it matter? No, what matters is the end of the year and in '77, MU was not a favorite to win it. Many felt if it were not Al's swan song, that they may not have made it. In '77, MU had the most number of losses of any NCAA Champion to date. So, how does "no" apply to my previous post?

In fact, my analysis of MSU in my prior post would apply to MU in '77 as well.

BTW, UCONN was 18th rated in the preseason last year. Again, preseason matters to no one.

[TheSultan]

Are we sure that Marquette was the last team in? I have seen that on Marquette boards, but haven't really seen it anywhere else.

[Nukem2]

MU was still the last team in, so how can you dispute that? At Michigan, Al changed his suit for the first time in many games (I forget the number), as he found out they were in. So YES, they were the last team in. I know what they were rated at the beginning of the year. What was MSU rated at the beginning of the year? Does it matter? No, what matters is the end of the year and in '77, MU was not a favorite to win it. Many felt if it were not Al's swan song, that they may not have made it. In fact, my analysis of MSU in my prior post would apply to MU in '77 as well.

BTW, UCONN was 18th rated in the preseason last year. Again, preseason matters to no one.

Point is that MU should never have been the last team in. Al put so much pressure on that team by his announcement and his silly use of Neary. In the end, that MU team did what the prognosticators said in the pre-season an what those of us that lived through it saw. Don't mean to be argumentative, but that team endedup doing what it should have. Last year's UConn team was simply an anomaly in the the scheme of things. MU 1977 was eons superior to UConn last year.