Can the Big 12 beat the top three?

[DblT81]

Before the season began, I was positive that OU had as good a chance as anyone to beat Connecticut.

I also thought Tech could take Vanderbilt at home.

And this is a year when I thought burnt could beat bright.

[Note:UC and Tenn definately are in the top 2 and to make this topic look better I am assuming Vandy is top 3.]

Hmmm, none of the three Big 12 teams are hitting on all cylinders right now. OU seems to be playing best but they meet the toughest team.

Texas has a little longer to find some offense for their game against Tenn.

Tech is tough at home.

These games will be fun. I say- Big 12 takes 'em 3-0, baby!

[JK]

I sure wish your predictions would come true. However, I think you're all gonna find out very soon just how OVERRATED Oklahoma is. Don't mean to offend, but there's no way they're #4 in the nation. Tech will be tough at home, but they've got a tall order in Vandy (no pun intended). UT has a little more time before running into the Lady Vols. Let's just hope we get better as the season goes. Tennessee will be ready to put a butt-kicking on us given the way we played them last year. Should have beaten them when we had the chance (last year and in '96-97). Looks like the Bright Orange will extend it's streak to ????? Huh, I stopped counting about eight or nine years ago!!!!

[schooner2]

All right! Nothing like some smack against Oklahoma coming from a Longhorn fan.

At first you see OU as #3 or #4 in the country and you look at UCONN and Tennessee just ahead of them and you wonder how in the world does OU belong at 3 or 4. Maybe this is what you are thinking JK - and I agree. But what you have to do is look at who is at #3 and below. And then I say, what do you mean Oklahoma is overrated? Who in the world do we not belong with in the Top 10 besides UT and UCONN? We already beat Purdue. Stanford is there, but OU beat them twice last year and the Sooners are a stronger team this season. You may mention Vandy - and I think that would be a great matchup against Oklahoma. Who knows. Vandy came on strong at the end of last season and still looks very strong.

So, in short, JK, don't give us smack without giving some type of Top 10 and explanation who OU belongs below in the polls. I can only name UT and UCONN.


[This message has been edited by schooner (edited 12-11-2001).]

[swok34]

I agree, Schooner........and the crazy thing about people saying that OU's overranked is that they've only seen one game.....
season opener vs Purdue, where Stacey Dales had a really bad game and Laneisha who sat most of the first half......Vanderbilt is not as athletic as Oklahoma and that's what got them into trouble at Connecticut. Duke, La Tech...they've all faltered..
Stanford is having a good year, they meet Tennessee this Sunday.
Purdue is having a better year than I thought they would, their only loss is to OU.

[JK]

I knew somebody would take that the wrong way. But that's the way I feel. I also have considered the fact that after UCONN and TENN, there is really nobody else that looks that great right now. Believe me, I'm very proud of OU and the things Coach Coale has accomplished. I spent six of my grade school years in Oklahoma, and finished in Denison,TX which is right on the state line on TX and OK. But, just like last season, I still don't see them to be as good as people are saying. Outside of Hill, the inside game is not strong enough and there's not much depth. The ONE good thing about UT losing to Miami is that they were on the verge of being overranked also. With the loss, they fell one spot to #18 which is right around where they belong. I sure would LOVE to see OU beat UCONN... a lot of people would. But I just don't even see it being close.

[DblT81]

Ok. Maybe my 3-0 is not a slam dunk 3-0, but it can be done.

Like they all say, on any given Sunday uh... I mean in any given game the ball can bounce the underdog's way. Yes, the top 3, particularly the top 2, look formidable, but they are not unbeatable. "Lesser" talent can win with heart, preparation, execution and a little luck, see, for example, Texas Tech at New Mexico, 11/30/01 or Texas at Miami Fl, 12/09/01 .

Coale has proven that she can get the ball to bounce OU's way. They are a smart team that can adapt. A whole bunch of beating Conn. is mental. At Storrs, OU will not see a bigger or louder crowd than they have already faced in Lubbock the past two years or will face in Ames this year. The crowd should not intimidate. OU can score and they can defend. Protecting the ball, getting the loose ones, making the freebies can be done. Defense by OU will be key. They need to come out with that attitude they had last season when they played Tech or when they play Texas. It can be done.

Re: Texas Tech v Vandy. Free throws. Offensive movement. If Tech can improve those two things in the two weeks left, they can win. If they can't, it will be a long two hours in the USA. The Lady Raider defense is coming on strong. They have talented athletes that can put the ball in the hoop if they get a good look. When the half court offense stands around waiting for another player to make a play, it is awfully hard to get open looks. When the percentage of free throws made approaches the percentage of 3pt shots made, it is awfully hard to win games. If Tech can get a big home crowd in spite of the coinciding bowl game, they can do to Vanderbilt what NM did to them. Lot's of 'ifs' there, but I saw Tech win a big game over ISU in Lubbock last season with a rowdy crowd behind them. It can be done.

If Texas didn't have to go to Knoxville, of course they would have a much better shot. But I seem to remember a Longhorn team in Lubbock a year earlier that was facing a large, hostile crowd supporting a tough Texas Tech team that had the nation's longest winning streak at home. UT had been embarrased in their previous visit to Lubbock the prior year. I don't think many people gave the Longhorns much of a chance to win in Lubbock last year, but they did. UT had that attitude. They wanted it. They got it. They are going to have to want it bad against the Vols and they are going to have to do some things to make the ball bounce their way. Can Conradt get them prepared to make the ball bounce their way and can they execute it? It can be done.

So my 3 win projection for the B12 is based on an optomistic view of the coaching of these three teams and the American way for the gritty, determined underdog to prevail! Now I'll just keep my fingers crossed while holding my rabbit's foot and four leaf clover that Coale, Sharp and Conradt will show up with gritty, determined teams. http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/wink.gif