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Ohio Basketball Topic
Topic: The MAC
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OUVan
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Posted: 2/26/2015 1:40 PM
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Does any team have any chance of doing any damage in the postseason? IMO the MAC got significantly better overall this year with far fewer really bad teams. But I don't see a single really good team. Possibly Central but I can't say I see them as being as good as the top teams in the league the past few years.
GoCats105
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Posted: 2/26/2015 2:16 PM
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I'm with you. Overall, I think the MAC took a step in the right direction for the conference as a whole. I just don't know if there is one team out there that has the right pieces to do anything in March.
OU_Country
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Posted: 2/26/2015 2:18 PM
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I think CMU, Toledo, and UB have a chance because they seem to have pretty decent guards. I'm not sure BG or Kent would, but then again, they're waaaay above what I expected of them. Part of that could have to do with having plenty of seniors getting it done.


Fowler and Juice are both very good, and having good guards is key in March as we all know. UB's trio of Evans, Skeete, and Bearden are pretty solid as a group, and Shannon Evans is more than solid. Frankly, at 9-6, I'd consider UB an underachieving bunch right now.
Recovering Journalist
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Posted: 2/26/2015 2:25 PM
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As the league ascends the RPI ladder, I think it'd be good for every member of the conference to have some more NCAA wins, but a MAC cinderella seems unlikely this year. It seems like the mid-majors that do the most damage in the Tournament do so on the strength of great guard play. It's not always true (Kent's Elite Eight forward-fueled team comes to mind even though Trevor Huffman was great) but it's usually true.

Central's as good as their record suggests and Chris Fowler is a great guard. If any team could do it this year, I think it's them, especially since they lead the league in 3-point accuracy.
JSF
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Posted: 2/26/2015 2:43 PM
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It's a good question. Toledo, maybe? It really all depends on the matchup. We've gotten flat-out horrible matchups the last two years.
Pataskala
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Posted: 2/26/2015 3:12 PM
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A lot would depend on matchups, but the numbers don't look good for the MAC. Buffalo has the best RPI (45) and would probably be seeded 12th at best, which is traditionally the best seed to pull an upset. Toledo and CMU are in the 70s, so they would probably get a 13-14 seed. Everyone else is 90+ and would be 15-17. Given that all would probably play a top-25 RPI team in the opening round, it's safe to say that Ohio will continue to be the only MAC team to make it out of the opening round in the past 10 years. No MAC team has beaten a top-25 RPI team this season; among the top teams, Buffalo and Toledo are 0-2, Kent is 0-1.

BTW, Ohio has the second-toughest schedule in the MAC this season (77); Buffalo is first (67).
Eagle66
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Posted: 2/26/2015 3:30 PM
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As others have said, it would depend on who the opponent is. I wouldnt be surprised to see CMU. Kent, Toledo or Buffalo win a game. A lot of this will also come down to which other teams in the smaller conferences win their tournaments. Some lower RPI ranked teams winning some of the one bid leagues could push the MAC Champ up a seed line, giving them a more favorable matchup.

All season I've been waiting for CMU to stumble but they keep winning. I'd give them the best chance at an upset, especially since I think they're the team best equipped to get hot from 3. Having Fowler doesnt hurt either.
GoCats105
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Posted: 2/26/2015 3:52 PM
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Pataskala wrote:expand_more
A lot would depend on matchups, but the numbers don't look good for the MAC. Buffalo has the best RPI (45) and would probably be seeded 12th at best, which is traditionally the best seed to pull an upset. Toledo and CMU are in the 70s, so they would probably get a 13-14 seed. Everyone else is 90+ and would be 15-17. Given that all would probably play a top-25 RPI team in the opening round, it's safe to say that Ohio will continue to be the only MAC team to make it out of the opening round in the past 10 years. No MAC team has beaten a top-25 RPI team this season; among the top teams, Buffalo and Toledo are 0-2, Kent is 0-1.

BTW, Ohio has the second-toughest schedule in the MAC this season (77); Buffalo is first (67).
It could be argued the best seed to be is an 11. While the 12 seed holds more first round (44-41) and second round upsets (20-17), the 11 seed is more likely to advance further into the tournament. Only one 12 seed has ever won a Sweet 16 game, but there have been six 11 seeds to do it. And out of those six, three have advanced to the Final Four (George Mason, VCU and LSU).

However, very unlikely the MAC would get an 11-seed in the near future.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NCAA_Men%27s_Division_I_Bask...
bobcatsquared
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Posted: 2/26/2015 4:37 PM
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The good news in all of this is that these teams being mentioned should be better (possibly much better) next year. Especially, I believe, CMU and UB.
Andrew Ruck
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Posted: 2/26/2015 9:20 PM
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Toledo because apparently they play better AWAY from Toledo, and against better teams - Formula for postseason success.
RSBobcat
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Posted: 2/26/2015 10:25 PM
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I was very impressed with CMU. Balance. Team. Guards. Hustle. Grit.
GroverBall
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Posted: 2/26/2015 11:47 PM
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OUVan wrote:expand_more
Does any team have any chance of doing any damage in the postseason? IMO the MAC got significantly better overall this year with far fewer really bad teams. But I don't see a single really good team. Possibly Central but I can't say I see them as being as good as the top teams in the league the past few years.
Damage? Like win a game in the the BIG Dance? I highly doubt it, I don't see a team with the right combination of special players and the execution of a system that might pull off the upset. But, like I said in another post, you can never count out the magic that sometimes strikes in March. You won't find me placing any money on that magic however.
Pete Chouteau
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Posted: 2/27/2015 7:53 AM
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I'm not going to disagree that a) there is no likelihood of an at large for the MAC or 2) the conference representative will lose in the first round.

But I'm having a lot of trouble making what I think I know to be true with the fact that the MAC is a top ten league this season.

I suppose widespread mediocrity floats closer to the surface.
bobcat695
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Posted: 2/27/2015 8:34 AM
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I took the time to go through each MAC team's schedule and I cannot find any really impressive non-conference wins this season. The only three I saw were OU beating DePaul, CMU beating Northwestern and EMU beating Michigan. There were no wins vs. NCAA Tourney teams before January and I have a tough time believing there will be any big victories in March.
The Optimist
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Posted: 2/27/2015 9:02 AM
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I agree with those who feel the MAC has risen as a whole. I also agree that there are not really any teams who seem likely to make noise.
bornacatfan
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Posted: 2/27/2015 10:39 AM
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The Optimist wrote:expand_more
I agree with those who feel the MAC has risen as a whole. I also agree that there are not really any teams who seem likely to make noise.
totally on board with that
Jeff McKinney
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Posted: 2/27/2015 11:41 AM
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I agree also.

The improvement in the league is not just based on computer ratings, but the eye test too. The teams are just better.

The next step, which will hopefully happen next season, is what 695 pointed out...along with the rise in the RPI and other computer ratings, the league needs to start getting some more wins over top 50 and top 100.

I think this improvement is largely related to better coaching. There for awhile the hires were awful. They've been pretty good the past several years and it's showing.
clodney
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Posted: 2/27/2015 12:04 PM
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Buffalo has a higher RPI than the '11-12 OU team and their offense is 100% based on letting guards run the floor. If anything they've underachieved in conference and should probably have an even higher RPI if they only played to their potential consistently. They gave Kentucky and Wisconsin really good games and can run and gun with anyone in the country. In my opinion, they are the epitome of a MAC team that could possibly make some noise in the tournament. They're inconsistent, but when they're on they look incredible and it seems like those are the teams that win in March.

Just because the Bobcats are down doesn't mean the rest of the MAC has no contenders. Toledo, CMU, and Buffalo are all more than capable of winning a game or two in the tourney.
JSF
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Posted: 2/27/2015 12:28 PM
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The chip on your shoulder isn't a good look.
clodney
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Posted: 2/27/2015 12:50 PM
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JSF wrote:expand_more
The chip on your shoulder isn't a good look.
Boy, you love your snarky one-liners. You're like the Don Rickles of internet message boards.

Considering how much I read BA you should be happy I don't respond more often and tend to leave my vitriolic comments to ubfan. I just felt it was necessary to stand up for Buffalo considering this is the most talented UB team I've ever seen.
JSF
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Posted: 2/27/2015 1:07 PM
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Defend Buffalo from what, exactly? The majority of people on the thread saying they could see them winning a game in the tournament? To say we don't have faith in the conference because Ohio is bad this year says more about you than about us or any team.
bobcatsquared
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Posted: 2/27/2015 1:08 PM
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clodney wrote:expand_more
The chip on your shoulder isn't a good look.
Boy, you love your snarky one-liners. You're like the Don Rickles of internet message boards.

Considering how much I read BA you should be happy I don't respond more often and tend to leave my vitriolic comments to ubfan. I just felt it was necessary to stand up for Buffalo considering this is the most talented UB team I've ever seen.
The Don Rickles of the internet message boards - I like that. I wonder who would be our Richard Pryor of the internet message boards. Rodney Dangerfield?
clodney
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Posted: 2/27/2015 2:03 PM
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JSF wrote:expand_more
Defend Buffalo from what, exactly? The majority of people on the thread saying they could see them winning a game in the tournament?
Are we reading the same thread?
JSF
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Posted: 2/27/2015 2:19 PM
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clodney wrote:expand_more
Defend Buffalo from what, exactly? The majority of people on the thread saying they could see them winning a game in the tournament?
Are we reading the same thread?
OK, not majority. But there are a number of positive comments about Buffalo in this thread, more than enough to warrant not triggering your complex, whatever it is (inferiority? Ohio? Something else?).

My only reservation about UB's chances in March is a big one: They have a lot of trouble putting together a consistent, focused 40 minutes of play. Those teams tend to get exposed in the Big Dance.
OUVan
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Posted: 2/27/2015 2:55 PM
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clodney wrote:expand_more
Buffalo has a higher RPI than the '11-12 OU team and their offense is 100% based on letting guards run the floor. If anything they've underachieved in conference and should probably have an even higher RPI if they only played to their potential consistently. They gave Kentucky and Wisconsin really good games and can run and gun with anyone in the country. In my opinion, they are the epitome of a MAC team that could possibly make some noise in the tournament. They're inconsistent, but when they're on they look incredible and it seems like those are the teams that win in March.

Just because the Bobcats are down doesn't mean the rest of the MAC has no contenders. Toledo, CMU, and Buffalo are all more than capable of winning a game or two in the tourney.
Looks like we hit a nerve. Not sure touting double digit losses should be your main selling point in trying to convince people of your stengths. Besides, opposing coaches come on the court way too far for Buffalo to be successful.

In all seriousness if any teams are going to do it it will be either Buffalo or Toledo IMO but neither is strong on the defensive end and that is more important in the tournament than being able to run and gun. You don't see mediocre defensive teams come out of Cleveland very often. If they don't get the double bye I think it will be an awful tough road and neither is in the driver's seat right now.
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