Texas upsets KU...The big picture

by Ollie on Feb 11, 2008 9:35 PM PST

Besides the fact that a KU loss helps us in the polls, its certainly just a tad reassuring to see KU lose to a team that handed us one of our three losses. Granted we did lose at home, but surprisingly we've played better on the road this year. With KU going to the wire with SC, losing to Texas, and also getting upset by a lesser in state rival, I think this at least helps to show us bruin fans that there a lot of good teams out there, and that while the loss yesterday to Washington was extremely disappointing, no wins are going to come easy and I'm still confident we're still up there with the elite teams in the country. To my surprise analysts have actually given us a bit of a hall pass on this loss to Washington, when i was expecting the coaches to throw us like 12 spots down in the poll. Who knows maybe we can live in a world with no East Coast bias, and one in which ESPN actually respects the pac 10. Point being, regardless of what anyone says about the loss, we have to play top notch ball from here on out. Definitely a must win this Saturday in the ghetto.

Go Bruins

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.

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It's tough to claim

that ESPN doesn't respect the Pac 10 this season. Everybody on the network (or nearly everyone) has called us the best conference in the nation all year long.

by Ryan Rosenblatt on Feb 11, 2008 10:01 PM PST reply actions

yea true

analysts have given the pac 10 and kevin more acclimation than i would of imagined...but ESPN is still huge on the big 10 for obvious broadcasting reasons, and dicky v still loves the acc more than ever. Main point was just to vent that i think while its going to be tougher than ever in what should be a deep field of 64, i still like this team.

O.A.

by Ollie on Feb 11, 2008 10:06 PM PST reply actions

I believe Howland will get us straightened out

his reputation of his teams peaking late in the year is well deserved so I have no reason to believe he won't have this team ready for March. Does that mean we're going to win the title? No because there are other good teams out there and so much depends on your bracket and matchups, but I feel we'll have as good a shot as anyone else when the tourney starts.

by Ryan Rosenblatt on Feb 11, 2008 10:13 PM PST up reply actions

True

I don't think it's just me trying to make myself feel better after the Washington loss, but I agree that we have as good a chance as any team to win the championship, and that ugly loss hasn't changed my sentiment. While a 1 or 2 seeding in the west would be optimal, the bottom line is, the team controls its destiny from here on out, regardless of where they play or where they're ranked. They could be playing in friggin' Omaha and while that route would make getting to the championship game tougher, we're still in it. And if any team can pull it all together, it's our Ben Ball Warriors. Go Bruins!

by bruininthelbc on Feb 12, 2008 8:25 PM PST up reply actions

Thoughts from non-UCLA Fans

I'm a Cubs fan who posts at a Cubs message board...as such, we draw a lot of fans from college basketball programs across the nation (thanks to WGN, the Cubs have a nationwide fan base).

In discussing KU's loss, a KU alum said that he's beginning to realize that his team isn't "special." At that point, someone else said that no team in the nation is special, not even Memphis with their undefeated record (duh). As discussion progressed, the resounding theme (amongst Illinois, Indiana, Penn State, Wisconsin and Iowa fans primarily) was that UCLA was indeed special as long as they got their act together ("get their head out of their ass") and cited the difficulty of the Pac-10 as helping them prepare for success this spring. An Indiana alum said that UCLA hasn't proved it yet but they will show that they are special and they have the coach that will draw this out of them.

It's interesting seeing those outside of the fanbase and conference having so much faith in Howland and the basketball team. It also made me feel a bit better.

by Raisin on Feb 12, 2008 10:04 AM PST reply actions

The biggest thing in this upset

was the huge bump this will give Texas' RPI and as one of our opponents, our RPI too.

by Ryan Rosenblatt on Feb 12, 2008 11:39 AM PST reply actions

Exactly!

That was the only reason I was rooting for Texas. Make no mistake though, Kansas is very good. Brandon Rush would have made a fine Ben Ball player. Who would guard him this year? Shipp and Westbrook, most likely, and they'd better be at the top of their games then if we played them again.

Looking across the college hoops landscape, I feel like we are the most complete team, without any bias. We still have flaws, but I feel like we can beat any team when we play even close to our potential.

by tasser10 on Feb 12, 2008 12:20 PM PST up reply actions

Don't understand the KU Obsession

Except for the nostalgic issue and the crazy unrealistic fan base. I mean, didnt we beat a KU team with a healthy Brandon Rush and Julian Wright in last years tournament, with less depth than we have this year? Kansas certainly has length and athleticism. However, we saw what our suffocating D can do to a team like that. We, with a legitimate inside presence and added depth, seem to be a much better team this year than last year. Also, we are a much better free throw shooting team this year. The only possible draw back, is that I feel we played with a lot more defensive intensity and physicality in '05/'06 and '06/'07, than this year. In the SUC game, I really felt we got out hustled and that SUC was the more physical team. Mata-Real and Luc going down with concussions was certainly supportive of my assessment. We certainly got winded at the end. I think even Ben agreed that he played some of our guys too many minutes. I think we definitely need to step up our defensive intensity on a regular basis. Our losses are a good example of what can happen when we don't play with defensive intensity and our shots aren't dropping. We need to be able to STOP teams when our shots are dropping.

With regards to this East Coast bias, it certainly still and will always exist. However, I think we finally reached a MAJOR milestone, when consistent East Coaster and Bruin Hater Jay Bilas switched sides and called UCLA the best team in America, when healthy. I think this is a direct result of Bilas announcing the home game against Arizona. He was truly impressed with how UCLA thoroughly dominated and dismantled a VERY talented Arizona team. We are the only MAJOR conference in America where every team plays each other twice. I don't think other conferences or detractors realize what this can do to you in a VERY deep and talented conference. We have up to 7 current teams with a legitimate shot to make the tourney. I also think a Pac-10 team with a losing conference record should also make the tourney. With some of the bottom teams in other conferences not being very good at all, I think it is much easier to go over .500 or have a better conference record there than in the Pac-10. Again, not all teams in other conferences play each other twice. This gives some teams with favorable scheduling several passes and more gimmees.

by BruinFaithful on Feb 12, 2008 1:00 PM PST reply actions

yea the pac 10

also has the best job of getting teams tournament ready...the only thing i worry about is that we have to recognize that if the three ball isn't going down we have to really focus on getting the ball into k love. It was also unfortunate that DC and Russ couldn't make anything near the hoop, i know DC will have his floater back come Saturday.

O.A.

by Ollie on Feb 12, 2008 1:25 PM PST reply actions

Only one danger with Texas

I am glad they lost. However, if they manage to earn a higher seed than us (seems doubtful, but possible), that likely puts us out of the Western Regional. Of course, we have to handle business with respect to Stanford, but it is something to consider.

by rfirpo on Feb 12, 2008 1:48 PM PST reply actions