Irish Envy's March Madness

[leprechaun4life]

Originally Posted by Vince Young

But hey, at least I picked right with Texas Tech, eh?

Rome wasn't built in a day, it probably took, like, eight years. So, Knight has two more years, possibly three to four.

[Vince Young]

Originally Posted by leprechaun4life

Rome wasn't built in a day, it probably took, like, eight years. So, Knight has two more years, possibly three to four.

Oh, it's all because he's having to build Texas Tech up from scratch, eh?

So... what was Bob Knight's excuse at Indiana from 1994 through 2000? Was he "building Rome" then too?

2007: Lost in the 1st round.
2006: Didn't make the tourney at all.
2005: Lost in the Sweet 16.
2004: Lost in the 2nd round.
2003: Didn't make the tourney at all.
2002: Lost in the 1st round... to an 11-seed.
2001: Was not coaching at all for this tourney.
2000: Lost in the 1st round... to an 11-seed... by 20 points.
1999: Lost in the 2nd round.
1998: Lost in the 2nd round.
1997: Lost in the 1st round... by 18 points.
1996: Lost in the 1st round... to an 11-seed... by 13 points.
1995: Lost in the 1st round.
1994: Lost in the Sweet 16.
1993: Lost in the Elite 8.
1992: Lost in the Final 4.

Research is so pesky, ain't it?

Bob Knight's last championship was in 1987.

Knight's last Final 4 appearance was in 1992.

His last Elite 8 appearance was in 1993.

Since then, he compiled a stellar 4-7 tourney record in his last 7 years at Indiana, and has followed it up with a breathtaking 3-4 tourney record in 6 years at Texas Tech.

Since his last Elite 8 trip, his tourney record has been 7-11.

Since his last Elite 8 trip, Bob Knight has had 6 1st-round losses. 3 of those 6 were by double-digits. 2 of those 3 were to 11-seeds.

And I haven't even mentioned any of his behavioral issues over the years.

Oh, but Bob Knight gets his players to graduate and runs a disciplined team, right? And he's the only coach ever in the entire history of college basketball to accomplish this. (*cough* Billy Donavan *cough* Roy Williams *cough* Mike Brey *cough* Coach K *cough* Rick Pitino *cough* Tubby Smith *cough* Digger Phelps *cough*) Pardon me for the coughing fit there. I think I need to go get some Ricolas.

To borrow someone else's catch-phrase from the ancient history of IE, my heart pumps piss for Bob Knight.

[notredomer23]

Bob knight is the tye willingham of basketball. He has one good to decent year and then he does horrible.

[NDBCSChamps]

I think the biggest problem with Knight is that he isn't really looking to win titles anymore. I think right now he has reached a point where he just wants to get good solid kids, that he knows he can teach and not have to deal with all the crap that comes with prima donna HS kids. I believe he has basically said that he doesn't like recruiting the elite kids anymore. He loves the teaching aspects of the jobmoe then anything else, and now that he is in Lubbock he doesn't have the pressure of Hoosier nation to deal with. Trust me I don't think TT will ever run him out, he has improved that team so much that I think they are happy with him just making that program a "winner".

[Vince Young]

Alrighty, I missed my window to update the rankings going into the Elite 8, but I might as well do this now. Here's the pool rankings halfway through the Elite 8 round. Ohio State and UCLA are in the Final 4, and on Sunday we'll see Florida vs. Oregon and North Carolina vs. Georgetown.

Rank . Name .................. Pts . MPS... Status
---------------------------------------------------------
1 .... Pham 1 ................ 930 . 1490 . can still win
2 .... matt_99 ............... 890 . 1170 . can still win
3 .... irishdodger ........... 880 . 1440 . can still win
4 .... RichardRiot ........... 850 . 1410 . can still win
5 .... leprechaun4life ....... 850 . 1210 . eliminated
6 .... stonebreakerwasgod .... 830 . 1390 . can still win
7 .... Magoteaux 1 ........... 810 . 1090 . eliminated
8 .... onenybrother .......... 790 . 1270 . can still win
9 .... Armano 1 .............. 780 . 1340 . can still win
10 ... Uncle 1 ............... 770 . 1250 . would need tiebreaker
11 ... Kickerbg31 ............ 760 . 1320 . can still win
12 ... ojo_223 ............... 760 . 1320 . would need tiebreaker
13 ... brennan 1 ............. 760 . 1040 . eliminated
14 ... GoshenGipper .......... 750 . 1310 . eliminated
15 ... Clausen2Kamara ........ 720 . 1080 . eliminated
16 ... NDFan78 ............... 720 . 1000 . eliminated
17 ... goirish#1 ............. 690 . .... . (not analyzed)
18 ... Jensen 1 .............. 690 . .970 . eliminated
19 ... Texas Tech always loses 680 . 1240 . eliminated
20 ... Akron Irish ........... 680 . .... . (not analyzed)
21 ... Jones 1 ............... 670 . .... . (not analyzed)
22 ... Klang 1 ............... 670 . .... . (not analyzed)
23 ... IrishRamMan10 ......... 670 . .... . (not analyzed)
24 ... AZIRISHFAN ............ 630 . 1190 . eliminated
25 ... Steveo2 ............... 620 . .980 . eliminated
26 ... Stark 1 ............... 610 . .... . (not analyzed)
27 ... Newcomb 1 ............. 610 . .... . (not analyzed)
28 ... jones 1 ............... 600 . .... . (not analyzed)
29 ... Mingea III 1 .......... 590 . .... . (not analyzed)
30 ... phillips 2 ............ 570 . .... . (not analyzed)
31 ... willey 1 .............. 560 . .... . (not analyzed)

(Note: MPS means Maximum Possible Score.)

I've done some scenario analysis. There are WAY too many scenarios to go into detail about here, but 2 of the top 12, leprechaun4life and Magoteaux 1, are already eliminated. Their remaining brackets are too similar to those of people above them, leaving them no room to play catch-up. They can still finish quite high, but taking 1st place is impossible for them. And Uncle 1 and ojo_223 are both on thin-ice: they can still win, but EVERYTHING has to go their way just to force a tie for 1st with someone else in the end, in which case they'd have to win by a tie-breaker. But quite a few people are still in it, thanks to the diversity of the remaining brackets at the top.

Of very special interest are the brackets of both stonebreakerwasgod and onenybrother. They both plummetted in the early going with a lot of 1st- and 2nd-round misses, but they've battled back by virtue of their picks in the later rounds. It just goes to show you how important the later rounds can be.

And now, from the Way Too Much Free Time Department... here's some default comparison brackets to measure yourself against. The RPI method was the only method with any twists left to it. Southern Illinois was supposed to upset Kansas; that didn't happen. But then UCLA was supposed to beat Southern Illinois, and UCLA DID win after all, upsetting Kansas. All of the other default methods had Kansas picked to win that game, so that gave RPI a boost and pushed them to the top. (The Kansas loss REALLY hurt the Poll method, which had Kansas getting to the championship game!) However, RPI also had Wisconsin upsetting Florida, which can't happen, so the other methods can still gain that ground back on Sunday if Florida beats Oregon. All 4 methods have North Carolina over Georgetown, so there's nothing to be gained there. But all 4 of the default methods would be near the top compared to the human competitors here!

Rank . Name .................. Pts . Maximum Possible Score
-----------------------------------------------------------
1 .... RPI ................... 880 . 1360
2 .... USA Today & AP polls .. 860 . 1300
3 tie. Straight seeding ...... 850 . 1410
3 tie. Sagarin's power ranking 850 . 1410

And that's it. I'm going back to bed.

[Vince Young]

Alrighty, here's the standings heading into the Final 4:

### Name ................... Pts . MPS .. Status . Final picks
--------------------------------------------------------------------
1 . matt_99 ............... 1050 . 1170 . OUT .... Kan over OSU
2 . irishdodger ........... 1040 . 1440 . IN ..... G'town over Fla
3 . RichardRiot ........... 1010 . 1410 . IN ..... OSU over UCLA
4 . Pham 1 ................ 1010 . 1290 . IN ..... UCLA over NC
5 . Magoteaux 1 ........... .970 . 1090 . OUT .... Memphis over UCLA
6 . leprechaun4life ....... .930 . 1210 . OUT .... G'town over Wis
7t. Kickerbg31 ............ .920 . 1320 . IN ..... OSU over Fla
7t. ojo_223 ............... .920 . 1320 . IN ..... G'town over UCLA
9 . brennan 1 ............. .920 . 1040 . OUT .... Kan over OSU
10. stonebreakerwasgod .... .910 . 1310 . OUT .... OSU over Fla
11. GoshenGipper .......... .910 . 1310 . OUT .... OSU over Fla
12. NDFan78 ............... .880 . 1000 . OUT .... Kan over OSU
13. onenybrother .......... .870 . 1270 . IN ..... Fla over OSU
14. Armano 1 .............. .860 . .980 . OUT .... NC over Fla
15. Texas Tech always loses .840 . 1240 . OUT .... Fla over OSU
16. Jones 1 ............... .830 . 1230 . OUT .... UCLA over G'town
17. IrishRamMan10 ......... .830 . .950 . OUT .... Tex A&M over Fla
18. Clausen2Kamara ........ .800 . 1080 . OUT .... Fla over Tex A&M
19. AZIRISHFAN ............ .790 . 1190 . OUT .... Fla over G'town
20t goirish#1 ............. .770 . 1170 . OUT .... G'town over UCLA
20t Stark 1 ............... .770 . 1170 . OUT .... Fla over G'town
22. Uncle 1 ............... .770 . .890 . OUT .... NC over UCLA
23t Klang 1 ............... .750 . .870 . OUT .... Pitt over G'town
23t Mingea III 1 .......... .750 . .870 . OUT .... Kan over G'town
25. Steveo2 ............... .700 . .980 . OUT .... G'town over Kan
26. Jensen 1 .............. .690 . .970 . OUT .... OSU over Kan
27. Newcomb 1 ............. .690 . .690 . OUT .... Kan over NC
28. jones 1 ............... .680 . .960 . OUT .... UCLA over Tex
29. Akron Irish ........... .680 . .800 . OUT .... NC over UCLA
30. willey 1 .............. .640 . .640 . OUT .... NC over Pitt
31. phillips 2 ............ .570 . .850 . OUT .... UCLA over Tex

(Note: MPS means Maximum Possible Score.)

Only 6 people still have a chance to win. Interestingly enough, the current leader, matt_99, cannot finish in first no matter what happens. Matt had Kansas picked to go all the way, and while he can still pick up another 120 points from Ohio State, every possible scenario will result in someone having more points than Matt in the end.

Here's the scenarios:

If UCLA wins out, Pham 1 is the winner.

If the title game is between Florida and Georgetown, it doesn't matter who wins the game, because irishdodger would be the winner in either case.

If Ohio State defeats UCLA for the title, RichardRiot wins.

If Ohio State defeats Florida for the title, Kickerbg31 wins.

If Florida defeats Ohio State for the title, onenybrother wins.

And finally, if Georgetown defeats UCLA for the title, irishdodger and ojo_223 will finish in a tie, and the tiebreaker will be needed to determine the winner.

And now, from the Way Too Much Free Time Department... here's some default comparison brackets to measure yourself against.

All 4 default methods started out quite strong against the human selections, but all 4 default methods are beginning to fade out as we head into the Final 4.

Rank . Name .................. Pts . MPS .. Final picks
-----------------------------------------------------------
1 .... USA Today & AP polls .. 940 . 1220 . OSU over Kan
2 .... Straight seeding ...... 930 . 1330 . Fla over OSU
3 .... Sagarin's power ranking 930 . 1050 . NC over Fla
4 .... RPI ................... 880 . 1280 . OSU over UCLA

And that's it. I'm going back to bed.

[IRISHDODGER]

Originally Posted by Vince Young

Alrighty, here's the standings heading into the Final 4:

### Name ................... Pts . MPS .. Status . Final picks
--------------------------------------------------------------------
1 . matt_99 ............... 1050 . 1170 . OUT .... Kan over OSU
2 . irishdodger ........... 1040 . 1440 . IN ..... G'town over Fla
3 . RichardRiot ........... 1010 . 1410 . IN ..... OSU over UCLA
4 . Pham 1 ................ 1010 . 1290 . IN ..... UCLA over NC
5 . Magoteaux 1 ........... .970 . 1090 . OUT .... Memphis over UCLA
6 . leprechaun4life ....... .930 . 1210 . OUT .... G'town over Wis
7t. Kickerbg31 ............ .920 . 1320 . IN ..... OSU over Fla
7t. ojo_223 ............... .920 . 1320 . IN ..... G'town over UCLA
9 . brennan 1 ............. .920 . 1040 . OUT .... Kan over OSU
10. stonebreakerwasgod .... .910 . 1310 . OUT .... OSU over Fla
11. GoshenGipper .......... .910 . 1310 . OUT .... OSU over Fla
12. NDFan78 ............... .880 . 1000 . OUT .... Kan over OSU
13. onenybrother .......... .870 . 1270 . IN ..... Fla over OSU
14. Armano 1 .............. .860 . .980 . OUT .... NC over Fla
15. Texas Tech always loses .840 . 1240 . OUT .... Fla over OSU
16. Jones 1 ............... .830 . 1230 . OUT .... UCLA over G'town
17. IrishRamMan10 ......... .830 . .950 . OUT .... Tex A&M over Fla
18. Clausen2Kamara ........ .800 . 1080 . OUT .... Fla over Tex A&M
19. AZIRISHFAN ............ .790 . 1190 . OUT .... Fla over G'town
20t goirish#1 ............. .770 . 1170 . OUT .... G'town over UCLA
20t Stark 1 ............... .770 . 1170 . OUT .... Fla over G'town
22. Uncle 1 ............... .770 . .890 . OUT .... NC over UCLA
23t Klang 1 ............... .750 . .870 . OUT .... Pitt over G'town
23t Mingea III 1 .......... .750 . .870 . OUT .... Kan over G'town
25. Steveo2 ............... .700 . .980 . OUT .... G'town over Kan
26. Jensen 1 .............. .690 . .970 . OUT .... OSU over Kan
27. Newcomb 1 ............. .690 . .690 . OUT .... Kan over NC
28. jones 1 ............... .680 . .960 . OUT .... UCLA over Tex
29. Akron Irish ........... .680 . .800 . OUT .... NC over UCLA
30. willey 1 .............. .640 . .640 . OUT .... NC over Pitt
31. phillips 2 ............ .570 . .850 . OUT .... UCLA over Tex

(Note: MPS means Maximum Possible Score.)

Only 6 people still have a chance to win. Interestingly enough, the current leader, matt_99, cannot finish in first no matter what happens. Matt had Kansas picked to go all the way, and while he can still pick up another 120 points from Ohio State, every possible scenario will result in someone having more points than Matt in the end.

Here's the scenarios:

If UCLA wins out, Pham 1 is the winner.

If the title game is between Florida and Georgetown, it doesn't matter who wins the game, because irishdodger would be the winner in either case.

If Ohio State defeats UCLA for the title, RichardRiot wins.

If Ohio State defeats Florida for the title, Kickerbg31 wins.

If Florida defeats Ohio State for the title, onenybrother wins.

And finally, if Georgetown defeats UCLA for the title, irishdodger and ojo_223 will finish in a tie, and the tiebreaker will be needed to determine the winner.

And now, from the Way Too Much Free Time Department... here's some default comparison brackets to measure yourself against.

All 4 default methods started out quite strong against the human selections, but all 4 default methods are beginning to fade out as we head into the Final 4.

Rank . Name .................. Pts . MPS .. Final picks
-----------------------------------------------------------
1 .... USA Today & AP polls .. 940 . 1220 . OSU over Kan
2 .... Straight seeding ...... 930 . 1330 . Fla over OSU
3 .... Sagarin's power ranking 930 . 1050 . NC over Fla
4 .... RPI ................... 880 . 1280 . OSU over UCLA

And that's it. I'm going back to bed.

Nice job, once again.