How certain are you BYU will make the NCAA Tournament?

Dick Vitale doesn't believe. Cougar fans seem to think this team is considerably better than last year. Where do you fall?

BYU brings a new brand of basketball with a lot of Bigs and a lot of firepower. They will outscore a lot of teams. 9-12 seed.

Disclosure: I picked 9-12 seed, I'm thinking 12.

The lack of points in the paint has been killing us. We'll get some this season. Better bigs will also lead to better low post defense and rebounding. I'll take all three of those over Haws - no offense to Haws.



We have plenty of shooters. We may not be the nation's top scoring team this year without Haws, but the above will win us games.



Our schedule is easier this season, which is a double edged sword. We won't have resume building teams making an at large bid harder to come by, so we will have to make up for it in winning streaks.



We'll need 28+ win, which hopefully includes a win against Utah and Gonzaga.



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Gunk wrote:
The lack of points in the paint has been killing us. We'll get some this season. Better bigs will also lead to better low post defense and rebounding. I'll take all three of those over Haws - no offense to Haws.



We have plenty of shooters. We may not be the nation's top scoring team this year without Haws, but the above will win us games.



Our schedule is easier this season, which is a double edged sword. We won't have resume building teams making an at large bid harder to come by, so we will have to make up for it in winning streaks.



We'll need 28+ win, which hopefully includes a win against Utah and Gonzaga.



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I am really, really concerned about our Defensive. IMO our above average defensive players list is just KC and Kaufusi. Everyone else is below average or average. We can overcome this with our incredible shooting. Or if someone else can step up defensively.

At this point, I think BYU rides the bubble all year and perhaps sneaks into the play in game (what I voted for). BYU can beat good teams if they get hot, but will get blown out by good teams when shots aren't falling due to lack of defense and no semblance of post play.

After the Alaska game I would change my vote to not getting in the Tournament. Yes, it's preseason and they're working out kinks, but these are teams that they should be beating by 30 points while working out those kinks.

hawkwing wrote:
After the Alaska game I would change my vote to not getting in the Tournament. Yes, it's preseason and they're working out kinks, but these are teams that they should be beating by 30 points while working out those kinks.

Hawkwing, Hawkwing, Hawwing, yet again you disappoint me. Where are you azule color goggles?



https://i.vimeocdn.com/video/518477441_1280.jpg" alt="" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%">



How can I shrink an inline picture?

the greatest threats to an NCAA bid are--

1. selfish play, jacking indiscriminate, quick, nba threes all year (see game vs Alaska), which includes hungry hungry freshman (other than Emery who will have a solid fg%), trying to prove they deserve starter minutes and shots.

2. Injuries. If our bigs are prone to injuries--three of our four best are down (Kaufusi, Davis, Aytes) Otherwise, with Hartsock and Shaw who both are looking very good as freshman, coming off the bench as 5th and 6th Big men (worthington should transfer to UVU or football NOW), our bigs will be very versatile and deeper than in who knows how long.

3. If the above two are managed better, (and Rose is all over this after Alaska), defense, which is usually a problem with Roses team of high scoring offenses, will not be as big of a problem. But perimeter D will be the greatest challenge.

If, however, these three items are dealt with and injuries dont kill us (im worried about how waek Davis knee looks) BYU will end up in the big dance (9-12 seed) and take at least one of two from the Zags.

Qman wrote:

The lack of points in the paint has been killing us. We'll get some this season. Better bigs will also lead to better low post defense and rebounding. I'll take all three of those over Haws - no offense to Haws.



We have plenty of shooters. We may not be the nation's top scoring team this year without Haws, but the above will win us games.



Our schedule is easier this season, which is a double edged sword. We won't have resume building teams making an at large bid harder to come by, so we will have to make up for it in winning streaks.



We'll need 28+ win, which hopefully includes a win against Utah and Gonzaga.



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I am really, really concerned about our Defensive. IMO our above average defensive players list is just KC and Kaufusi. Everyone else is below average or average. We can overcome this with our incredible shooting. Or if someone else can step up defensively.

I think Davis, Shaw, Aytes, Calvert and Hartsock can play average defense. Emery and Toolson could if they would. However, I'm concerned that it isn't part of the plan.



If they play like they did in the Alaska game they'll lose some games they could win. Too soon after they crossed the mid point someone would jack up a 3 instead of working it in for a better shot. They have ball handling skills and post players to do this. It seemed like they wanted to get their own shot off before somebody else did. This only works when shots are falling. There are plenty of teams that will take advantage of this if they don't use a back up plan.

From what I've seen so far this year and persistent questions that remain unanswered, I see us a step or two behind where we were last year, so I voted NIT.

Cougs_Rule wrote:
the greatest threats to an NCAA bid are--

1. selfish play, jacking indiscriminate, quick, nba threes all year (see game vs Alaska), which includes hungry hungry freshman (other than Emery who will have a solid fg%), trying to prove they deserve starter minutes and shots.

2. Injuries. If our bigs are prone to injuries--three of our four best are down (Kaufusi, Davis, Aytes) Otherwise, with Hartsock and Shaw who both are looking very good as freshman, coming off the bench as 5th and 6th Big men (worthington should transfer to UVU or football NOW), our bigs will be very versatile and deeper than in who knows how long.

3. If the above two are managed better, (and Rose is all over this after Alaska), defense, which is usually a problem with Roses team of high scoring offenses, will not be as big of a problem. But perimeter D will be the greatest challenge.

If, however, these three items are dealt with and injuries dont kill us (im worried about how waek Davis knee looks) BYU will end up in the big dance (9-12 seed) and take at least one of two from the Zags.

Kyle Davis' injury I thought was his ankle, not knee. He doesn't have a history of injury problems either, at least not at USU. I wouldn't panic yet.

BlueK wrote:

the greatest threats to an NCAA bid are--

1. selfish play, jacking indiscriminate, quick, nba threes all year (see game vs Alaska), which includes hungry hungry freshman (other than Emery who will have a solid fg%), trying to prove they deserve starter minutes and shots.

2. Injuries. If our bigs are prone to injuries--three of our four best are down (Kaufusi, Davis, Aytes) Otherwise, with Hartsock and Shaw who both are looking very good as freshman, coming off the bench as 5th and 6th Big men (worthington should transfer to UVU or football NOW), our bigs will be very versatile and deeper than in who knows how long.

3. If the above two are managed better, (and Rose is all over this after Alaska), defense, which is usually a problem with Roses team of high scoring offenses, will not be as big of a problem. But perimeter D will be the greatest challenge.

If, however, these three items are dealt with and injuries dont kill us (im worried about how waek Davis knee looks) BYU will end up in the big dance (9-12 seed) and take at least one of two from the Zags.

Kyle Davis' injury I thought was his ankle, not knee. He doesn't have a history of injury problems either, at least not at USU. I wouldn't panic yet.

YEs, his ankle. but his knee wrap looks fairly padded and contricting. i wonder if there is somehitng serious going on there. he just had that gimpy look a little even before he injured his ankle in the 1st exhibition game.

Can we change our votes?

I'll have to make a new poll.



NIT here we come!

snoscythe wrote:
Can we change our votes?

Oh ye of little faith (no matter how well founded it might be this morning) ;)



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Wolverine wrote:

Can we change our votes?

Oh ye of little faith (no matter how well founded it might be this morning) ;)



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It's kind of funny, but every season since Jimmer graduated, at some point or another, fans on sites like these have boldly proclaimed that BYU is going to the NIT, and they almost always have ultimately been wrong -- well, 3/4 times anyway. Also, a lot of fans think like football when judging basketball. There is so much more parity in college basketball that allows for losses like this to happen sometimes. Wisconsin who played in the national championship game last year already lost this year -- at home to Western Illinois! Those kinds of upsets almost never happen in college football. It's a different game.



Also, unlike in football, one game doesn't make or break a team's season. I think BYU will get it together. The problems from last night are probably correctable, and with the way the big guys played, I have hope that we'll still eventually have a really good team once the guards can get their heads on right. Really, the mistakes that led to the turnovers which were the reason we lost, were mental mistakes that can be fixed, IMO.

BlueK wrote:

snoscythe wrote:
Can we change our votes?

Oh ye of little faith (no matter how well founded it might be this morning) ;)



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It's kind of funny, but every season since Jimmer graduated, at some point or another, fans on sites like these have boldly proclaimed that BYU is going to the NIT, and they almost always have ultimately been wrong -- well, 3/4 times anyway. Also, a lot of fans think like football when judging basketball. There is so much more parity in college basketball that allows for losses like this to happen sometimes. Wisconsin who played in the national championship game last year already lost this year -- at home to Western Illinois! Those kinds of upsets almost never happen in college football. It's a different game.



Also, unlike in football, one game doesn't make or break a team's season. I think BYU will get it together. The problems from last night are probably correctable, and with the way the big guys played, I have hope that we'll still eventually have a really good team once the guards can get their heads on right. Really, the mistakes that led to the turnovers which were the reason we lost, were mental mistakes that can be fixed, IMO.

I'm in agreement with you on this. Coach Rose knows this team will be a work in progress for awhile and I am sure will work hard on correcting the mistakes from last night. What I find particularly frustrating is if the team only made a pathetically low 50% of their free throws, they win the game despite the many other mistakes that were made. It is indeed a long season, but I don't think this team has the margin of error as in years past. Hasn't BYU been in the "final 4 in" game twice since Jimmer graduated? Yes that is considered being in the tournament, barely.

I think we're going to see some changes in BYU's offense starting this week. It makes sense given the players we have and what our strengths are. And by saying "slow down" I doubt it means slowing the game to a boring crawl. What I expect is that Rose will emphasize having the guards keeping it under control once they're in the half court and working on getting it inside first. They've kind of been trying that to an extent already, but have still been stuck on doing it with a frantic kind of pace. That's where I think they'll change it. I'm sure they'll still run when the opportunity is there off a turnover or something.



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