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2008-09 Men's Basketball Polls/Seeding Projections/Rankings Discussion

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MaxBuck;1365765; said:
So, in the wake of the WVU game, maybe Seth isn't as stupid as you guys thought.
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I think Davis deserves some criticism. He originally said he wouldn't rank OSU unless they were undefeated through the MSU game on 1/6. That is entirely unreasonable, because it would mean they would have had to beat several top-25 teams (four teams that are now in the top-25 in ND, Butler, Minnesota & MSU in addition to two teams that were at times top-25 teams this season in WVU and Miami) and lose to none of them or anyone else just to make it into the top-25. That's a lot higher standard than what top-25 teams are actually held to.

The reality of the situation is the Lighty injury was a huge set-back for this team & they weren't able to make up for it until Buford, Mullens and Simmons all started to play better. They simply weren't very good against WVU, Iowa and on their first Big Ten road trips, but it seems that the post-Lighty version of OSU is starting to come around and play reasonably well now.

I don't think Davis is vindicated at all by OSU losing a few games and struggling because the facts are that OSU with Lighty was good enough to be a top-25 team and without him they lose their most experienced player who happens to be their leader and a pretty good all-around player. It shouldn't be a surprise that it takes some time for a young team to adjust without such a player.
 
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Men's basketball: OSU Insider

The week that was

Albeit with a more-depleted roster, this is beginning to resemble last season. The Buckeyes, losers to No. 25 Illinois and No. 7 Michigan State, are 1-4 against teams above them in the standings and 2-0 against those below them. Be it their youth, lack of toughness, lack of awareness or all of the aforementioned, they continue to suffer lapses that prove costly against teams good enough to capitalize on them. Last week they came right out of the gate at Illinois and late in each half against Michigan State.

The week ahead

I said before the season that the schedule made it very possible the Buckeyes could start 2-5 in the Big Ten; they're 3-4, so they're in better shape than I expected. Now they have to start making up ground and have a good opportunity this week against Michigan and Indiana. The Wolverines' only win in three conference road games was in overtime at Indiana. The Hoosiers have lost nine straight games, five at home, since beating Texas Christian on Dec. 10 and should make it 10 at Northwestern on Wednesday night. But their three Big Ten home losses have been by an average of 6.7 points, and the 24-point beatdown they took in Columbus just two weeks ago will still be fresh in their minds.

How good are they?

They're starting to find their level and, without David Lighty anchoring the defense, it's right around sea level. They're tied for seventh in the Big Ten now and will have to tread hard to keep their heads above water. They are No. 31 in the Rating Percentage Index power ranking, 3-5 against teams in the top 50 and 10-0 against everyone else. They got one 25th-place vote in the media top 25 this week (I don't vote) and none in the coaches' poll, but their nonconference success and overall strength of schedule are keeping them a No. 8 or 9 seed in most mock NCAA Tournament brackets online.
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Thank God Notre Dame and Miami are making our great OOC wins less and less impressive.

Notre Dame could run a 7 game losing streak, and Miami has lost a few winnable games.

When its all said and done, Butler might be our best non-conference win.
 
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DaytonBuck;1394814; said:
Butler is a nice chip in the pocket right now
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Agree but I also think that Notre Lame will still be highly thought of at the end of the season just because of who they are and playing basketball in the Big East where everybody thinks every team should get in will help us... I hope. Saying that, we:osu: just had to take care of business the majority of the season.
 
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LitlBuck;1394830; said:
Agree but I also think that Notre Lame will still be highly thought of at the end of the season just because of who they are and playing basketball in the Big East where everybody thinks every team should get in will help us... I hope. Saying that, we:osu: just had to take care of business the majority of the season.
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I hope Notre Dame comes around along with the U. ND's schedule lets up somewhat coming up.
 
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The win by Miami helps Ohio State and the loss by Notre Dame hurts us so last night was almost a wash for the Buckeyes except for the fact that Notre Dame gets all the love from the media so learn loss prior hurt us more than the Miami win. Go Butler!!
 
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