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A Baylor Sweep + XII Tourney Preview
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Welcome to Episode #47 of the No Conference for Old Men Podcast.
Our Houston Cougars are now 27-4 & 19-1 in conference, after a workman-like win over Baylor in Waco to sweep this series as well to end the regular season! Next up is the somewhat meaningless XII Tournament, where the main objective needs to be avoiding injury ahead of the NCAA's (since the Cougars have basically locked up a #1 Seed). The 3 Old Men provide a recap & preview the XII Tournament as the special topic this week. And then we prep for the Big March Madness Bracket Episode that will drop next week!
Please have a listen as the 3 Old Men weigh in & discuss the topic of the week, as well as provide some quick-hit game summaries and previews.
- No Conference for Old Men is available for free via Spotify / Apple Podcast / SoundCloud & the GoCoogs.com website; we're also available via the Republic of Football Podcast feed from the folks at Dave Campbell's Texas Football as their only basketball-centric offering
- Intro / Exit music: Ground Zero provided by FreeBeats.io
- Please follow us on gocoogs.com/old-men/
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Episode 47
00:00:07
@NoConfForOldMen
Welcome folks to episode number 47 of the Neural Conference for Old Men podcast. the podcast where three old guys are talking Houston Cougars basketball with a bit of Big 12 coverage added in as well, and proud members the GoCougars.com network, the undisputed number one Houston Cougars content provider.
00:00:22
@NoConfForOldMen
We're here today again with all three of the old men, Tom Lediac, former coach, Bill Walker, former player, and myself, Steve Chang, analyst guy for this episode. Well, our
Houston Cougars Victory Recap
00:00:31
@NoConfForOldMen
Cougars finished out the regular season with a record-setting 14th consecutive conference road win, 65 to 61 over Baylor and Waco.
00:00:40
@NoConfForOldMen
Samson's Cougar teams just never let up, even though they had already wrapped up a share of the regular season title three games prior.
Big 12 Tournament Preview
00:00:47
@NoConfForOldMen
Now comes what I'll call kind of a somewhat meaningless Big 12 tournament to me, where there's really nothing left to gain and all to lose with risk of injury going into the real tournament.
00:00:57
@NoConfForOldMen
At this point, we already know we're playing Colorado in Big 12 tournament, so we'll preview the next game and project out how we think, or at least hope, the tournament will play out.
Cougars vs Baylor Analysis
00:01:07
@NoConfForOldMen
So this week, the three old men will cover the Big 12 tournament in anticipation of the big episode next week as we break down the brackets for the real March Madness Tourney.
00:01:15
@NoConfForOldMen
So let's get into it, guys. In dissecting our win against Baylor, let's begin with the post-game analyses of the workmanlike win in Waco to end the regular season. Then we'll transition to a more free-flowing discussion on the conference tournament,
00:01:27
@NoConfForOldMen
what you're expecting to see from a results perspective, and what each of you are expecting out of the Scougar squad in the prelude to March Madness. Let's start with you first, Tom. What were some of the things you saw from a coach's perspective in the Baylor game?
00:01:41
Tom
The big thing was the motivating factor for the Cougs, a chance to go 10-0 on the road. Check Mark did that. in conference, and with the conference going from 20 games to 18 next year, that 19 win season is going to be hard to replicate.
00:02:00
Tom
You know, they might never go back to a 20-game schedule. So, you know, there were a lot of things that was there to motivate U of H.
00:02:09
Tom
plus you got the Hall of Fame coach over there to motivate you if you don't play very well.
00:02:11
@NoConfForOldMen
i know
00:02:12
Tom
So oh kind of got off to, I wouldn't say a rocky start, but I think we were down, what, 29, 26 at half. Win the game, 65, 61.
00:02:25
Tom
What I got out of this was LJ was on fire. There were some boos for LJ going back to Baylor. I don't think they were – you know, just a chorus of boos or whatever, but they were loud enough for him to hear them and he definitely heard them. And, he was just literally on fire.
00:02:41
Tom
a few other things got from this game. Everybody came out, uh, pretty much unscathed. The TA came out. It looked like he tweaked his Achilles a little bit in the
Game Incidents Discussion
00:02:51
Tom
second half, but as far as I know, he's good to go for the tournament.
00:02:52
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:02:55
Tom
And then, Stuff that's not basketball related. You got the frosty handshake between Kelvin and Scott Drew. i got some theories on that. I wouldn't say I'm a conspiracy theorist, more like a conspiracy realist.
00:03:04
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:03:08
Tom
But yeah, that very, very frosty handshake between Kelvin and Drew, which kind of raises some eyebrows there. You had Qantas yelling at a Baylor assistant during a timeout.
00:03:20
Tom
I don't know what's going on there.
00:03:22
Tom
You had Milo's. draining the three and then getting that chicken shit tee for saying
00:03:26
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
Player Performance Analysis
00:03:27
Tom
something to the bench.
00:03:27
Tom
You know, what gets me is, you know, we go for a shot and the opponent's bench. They can say whatever they want. You know, when you're going for a shot, they never get teed up. And then as soon as you clap back at them, they slap the T on them.
00:03:39
Tom
So I thought that was, that was pretty bad. Yeah. And then you had Baylor six foot ten injured center wearing red sweatpants on the Baylor bench.
00:03:49
Tom
So I don't know. And then Kelvin and all the assistants had more than just a good game.
00:03:52
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:03:55
Tom
You know, hope you're well. little chat through the handshake line. So make of it whatever you want.
00:04:04
Tom
Yeah, that's about all I have on this. You had Juwan getting fouled. Late in the game, Baylor needed the ball. They didn't get the ball. They needed a foul.
00:04:09
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:04:12
Tom
So before the ball was even brought in, away from the ball, they pretty much just like mugged Jawan. Maybe just call a regular foul and not a flagrant.
00:04:18
@NoConfForOldMen
what a chicken shit move right yeah
00:04:21
Tom
But Jawan, you know, Jawan goes to the – he steps up to the free throw line and makes both free throws. I think after he had missed like three in a row. So overall, big point.
00:04:31
Tom
10-0 on the road. We went 19-1 in conference.
00:04:35
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, fantastic. Bill, how about your views of the Baylor win from a player's perspective?
00:04:41
Bill Walker
Before I get into Baylor, one quick mention. i know a few podcasts ago i wanted to offer condolences to Alvin Franklin's family and everything and having known Alvin.
00:04:52
Bill Walker
I wanted to mention that. Tonight we'll go to the opposite end of the spectrum. I want to congratulate Coach Qantas White, who accepted the position at UL Lafayette.
00:05:02
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, here,
00:05:03
Bill Walker
Great accomplishment, obviously, Best wishes, best of luck it at ULL and ULALA.
00:05:13
@NoConfForOldMen
ha Yeah, we're going to miss them.
00:05:17
Bill Walker
Hopefully we'll see him if and when he brings the squad to Fertitta.
00:05:24
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:05:26
Bill Walker
Yeah, this is a game. This was a game, Baylor, where I mentioned that this might be closer than one might think as Baylor only lost two home games this entire year.
00:05:32
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
00:05:37
Bill Walker
And quite honestly, they didn't disappoint. Although I think in the first half, we definitely helped out. Tom, you mentioned it. We only scored 26 points. and we were down three at halftime.
00:05:48
Bill Walker
The positives were Yuzan, who was solid in the first half, and absolutely Cryer, who went five of five from beyond the arc and quite honestly kept us from being down a fair amount more.
00:06:02
Bill Walker
The negatives were... in the first half were sharp, uh, who looked largely non-existent. And then most of all, Roberts who went one of three from the field, turned the ball over three times.
00:06:11
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:06:23
@NoConfForOldMen
Agreed.
00:06:33
Bill Walker
And he said that he, in language, that could only stay in the locker room. told the players to start going through Roberts to get the ball inside because if the shots from the outside weren't fouling, then start to get the ball inside everybody and shoot free throws.
00:06:40
@NoConfForOldMen
Mm-hmm.
00:06:56
Bill Walker
If we're not scoring and not hitting shots, hopefully we're getting fouled and we can go to the line. And fortunately, the players absorbed everything Calvin said previously yeah Robert's got a ton of touches coming out of the half. He finished with 11 points, 10 boards.
00:07:12
Bill Walker
He was three of five from the field in the second half and two massive free throws, which Tom mentioned, and I'll get to a little bit in a second. But the other star was certainly sharp.
00:07:25
Bill Walker
He was focused clearly on getting to the hoop and being aggressive on both ends. He He took eight shots. He went four or five from the line in the second half, 11 points, five boards.
00:07:37
Bill Walker
And we're going to absolutely need that from Sharp in the NCAAs.
Controversial Calls and Strategies
00:07:42
Bill Walker
Yeah. What I want to also mention were two absolute horse blank calls late in the game that could have really turned things.
00:07:51
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah.
00:07:54
Bill Walker
up First involved Sharp, who even though Edgecombe scored 23 points and had a great game, i mean Sharp really was down his defensive stance.
00:08:06
Bill Walker
He was making Edgecombe work for everything that he got.
00:08:06
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:08:09
Bill Walker
so you know I guess hats off to Edgecombe because he was able to score 23 despite being defended really well. But late in the game, Sharp was standing perfectly straight up on an Edgecombe shot.
00:08:26
Bill Walker
He got just... drilled in the face. The refs, of course, called a foul on Sharp.
00:08:32
@NoConfForOldMen
Sharp.
00:08:33
Bill Walker
And he wasn't leaning into Edgecombe.
00:08:35
Bill Walker
He literally was straight up.
00:08:36
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:08:38
Bill Walker
There was no contact. Yet the calls made on him.
00:08:40
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:08:42
Bill Walker
They go to look at the play to see if there might be a flagrant on Edgecombe. And I kind of did not think that there was one.
00:08:48
@NoConfForOldMen
yep
00:08:52
Bill Walker
But I also... said that there's no way they're going to call a second flagrant on him. They'd called one earlier in the game on him.
00:08:59
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh yeah.
00:09:00
Bill Walker
They weren't going to do it again. And of course they didn't. And then he gets to go to the line and hits a couple of free throws. And yeah, I just thought that was just a brutal call.
00:09:13
Bill Walker
Worse was... the nonsense with Roberts at the end. I mean, there's under a minute left.
00:09:22
Bill Walker
We're inbounding the ball. We're only up by two, and we run a good play. Cryer breaks free, gets the ball. They foul him instantly, and you're thinking, great, one of our two best free throw shooters. He's been hot the entire game. There's no way he's going to – he's going to not make at least one of two and more almost assuredly two of two he gets fouled and you're thinking yeah perfect except that the refs call a foul on jalen selenstein for an outright assault on roberts that happened on the other side of the court nowhere near the ball and you know even
00:09:57
@NoConfForOldMen
Mm-hmm.
00:10:05
Bill Walker
Our analytics guy and former U of H tennis star Steve Cheng would agree that was blatantly intentional foul, that it should have been two shots of the ball.
00:10:16
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, absolutely.
00:10:18
Bill Walker
The beauty of all this is that our worst free throw shooter, statistically 62% Roberts, roberts ends up going to the line because that's who they went after.
00:10:30
Bill Walker
And he just drills both free throws, just shoving it in Scott Drew's face and ending the game effectively.
00:10:32
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:10:39
Bill Walker
Like you said, Tom, 19-1 in the conference, 10-0 on the road. What an incredible year in the Big 12.
00:10:47
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, it was fitting, right, for Roberts to end the game with those two free throws.
00:10:50
Bill Walker
Oh, God, yes.
00:10:52
@NoConfForOldMen
It was awesome. I mean, looking at it from an advanced analytics perspective, it was as we expected. Baylor was playing hard from the get-go and kept that intensity through the entire game as they were trying to end on a positive note after winning two the preceding games.
00:11:06
Bill Walker
Thank you.
00:11:07
@NoConfForOldMen
It actually took a slight lead going into the half, as we had talked about, twenty nine twenty six so we knew we were getting Baylor's best shot. This was a huge game for Baylor coming into the game.
00:11:17
@NoConfForOldMen
They were safely in the tourney, but still somewhat on the bubble if they didn't end the season well. So they were motivated to try to get that top five win to end their regular season to have some momentum going into the postseason.
00:11:29
@NoConfForOldMen
But that wasn't going to happen against Coach Sampson. We limited them to lowly 41.5% effective field goal percentage, from range, and percent from two point range just crazy numbers We either just couldn't get their offense on track versus our stifling D. Only thing that kept things close was our nemesis, Norchad O'Meara.
00:11:51
@NoConfForOldMen
They're just relentless. Offensive rebounding where he had nine by himself and freshman Edgecombe with his slashing to the basket. For us offensively, we just played our game relying heavily on Cryer in the first half until the rest of the team woke up in the second.
00:12:05
@NoConfForOldMen
At the end of the day, basically, around our averages from a shooting percentage, only thing I could pick on offensively was rebounding. where We were slightly off an offensive rebound rate at 30% for the game.
00:12:16
@NoConfForOldMen
Key stat of the day that ultimately kept the game as close as it was, was around Baylor's offensive rebounding, where they were at almost 45% for the game. But we'll take the four-point win and move on.
00:12:28
@NoConfForOldMen
Now let's get to the Big 12 tournament, and specifically our game with Colorado first. So
Tournament Predictions and Analysis
00:12:33
@NoConfForOldMen
Bill, why don't you go first from a player's perspective, previewing our game versus Colorado.
00:12:38
Bill Walker
Okay, tomorrow, 2 o'clock, we play the lowest-rated team in the Big 12, Colorado. I know that the game will be over by the time you hear the podcast, but just so i don't get on next time and say that I predicted the score exactly right or or something to that effect, I'll do a quick preview now.
00:13:02
Bill Walker
First of all, I am stunned that West Virginia fell apart down the stretch and lost to Colorado today.
00:13:04
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:13:09
Bill Walker
I'm absolutely just stunned by that. You know, i I want to say, make no mistake, that at 19-13 and in conference, that this loss does not keep West Virginia out of the NCAAs. And I do believe that they're going to get in.
00:13:28
Bill Walker
But doesn't. it You know, they were probably 10 seed going in. They could drop to the 11 line now, an 11, and have to play a play-in game.
00:13:41
Bill Walker
I mean, this was not good timing for a loss.
00:13:43
@NoConfForOldMen
They have
00:13:46
Bill Walker
especially a loss to Colorado, who has played better down the stretch in the second half the season for sure and been more competitive.
00:13:50
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:13:54
Bill Walker
But for West Virginia, this was ill-timed. In U of H's lone meeting with Colorado, which was on the road in Boulder, we won by 10, 69-59. And It was a closer than expected game, largely because their point guard, Julian Hammond, went absolutely crazy, scored 22 of their 59.
00:14:15
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:14:17
Bill Walker
No one else on the team exceeded six points, and he hit five of seven threes against us. Yeah. First, there's no way we lose this game tomorrow.
00:14:29
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:14:30
Bill Walker
No chance, none.
00:14:32
Bill Walker
But to help get rest for you know our seven to eight key players, we need to defend Hammond. We need to defend, Jakimovsky. We need, to defend Elijah Malone and RJ Smith.
00:14:48
Bill Walker
Hammond only scored eight points today versus West Virginia and was held to one of five from the field. And granted he was playing against a phenomenal point guard, Javon Small, uh, uh,
00:15:00
Bill Walker
Jack Maweski led CU with 17 shots attempted, and CU's top two scorers today, six ten center Malone and 6'3 guard Smith, came off the bench.
00:15:14
Bill Walker
Roberts, when we played them the first time, Roberts went 9 of 11 20 points, nine of eleven for twenty points and All our starters but Tuggler hit double digits.
00:15:25
Bill Walker
We killed them on the boards. We're a significantly better team inside. We're bigger. We're more aggressive. So we go inside. We're going to dominate this game.
00:15:37
Bill Walker
Quite honestly, I have us winning big like I thought we'd do the first time, 70-49. seventy to forty nine
00:15:44
@NoConfForOldMen
Wow. Yeah. Big one. How about you, Tom, from a coach's perspective?
00:15:49
Tom
This will be Colorado's third game in three days. So you think their legs would be dead, but you just never know.
00:15:52
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:15:54
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:15:55
Tom
NC State won five games in five days last year to win the ACC tournament. So these things are weird. you know Colorado, this is their only chance to make the NCAAs is to go through and win five games in five days.
00:16:12
Tom
Bill mentioned we played him in Boulder last time. This time it'll be a neutral court.
00:16:17
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:16:17
Tom
uh, in Kansas city. their post player Malone, you can call him post Malone, I guess. he's not a bad player, came from the D two ranks.
00:16:28
Tom
I think he came from grace college. Uh, some, I can't remember somewhere in the Midwest. Uh, I don't think he's the most athletic guy. He's got soft hands. He's got a nice little touch there.
00:16:39
Tom
But as we all know, you've been following the Cougs for a while here. You know, we're going to double the post and make a passer out of him. So we'll have to do a good job of getting the ball out of his hands, but also then again, making a rotation. So Hammond doesn't have those open shots.
00:16:56
Tom
You can say Hammond went ham today or Hammond went to ham against us that first game.
00:17:01
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Yeah.
00:17:11
Bill Walker
No way.
00:17:15
Tom
can see Colorado beating Oklahoma state, but I kind of figured, uh, West Virginia would win this game, but yeah, just kind of disappointing performance by them.
00:17:25
Tom
so tomorrow, what do we got two o'clock, uh, two o'clock, uh,
00:17:28
Bill Walker
Yes.
00:17:30
Tom
And like we said, we should be rested. We should be ready. And, and I think we take care of them by double digits.
00:17:39
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. When you look at it from an advanced analytics perspective, Colorado has been really a really mediocre team all year, though they gave us battle earlier in the year in Boulder, as we talked about with Hammond going off.
00:17:50
@NoConfForOldMen
Colorado is now 85 in Ken Palm coming off their surprise win over West Virginia. From an advanced analytics detailed stats perspective, Colorado's number 143 in adjusted offensive efficiency and number 55 in adjusted defensive efficiency.
00:18:05
@NoConfForOldMen
While we've settled in at number nine in adjusted offensive efficiency and moved up to number two now in adjusted defensive efficiency. So on paper, this should be a reasonably comfortable game. Colorado offensively, quite honestly, is just a terrible shooting team this year.
00:18:19
@NoConfForOldMen
They're 181 in effective field goal percentage, number 349th in turnover percentage, and number 212th in offense rebounding. So what they try to do to compensate is taking it to the hoop and getting fouled, where they convert free throws at a reasonably high rate at 75.2%. On D, Colorado's a little bit better, but aren't exceptional at any particular area.
00:18:42
@NoConfForOldMen
Some of their gaps on D are around not turning teams over, at number 241st in turnover percentage D and defending the three-point line where they're a terrible 183 in percentage defense.
00:18:55
@NoConfForOldMen
So overall, we're a bad matchup for Colorado, especially on a neutral court and Colorado having already played two games in two days. So I'd say expect the Cougs to make life miserable for Colorado with our stifling D and expect us to challenge them by spreading our shooters around the yard and pounding it inside a Roberts posting.
00:19:13
@NoConfForOldMen
Based on the metrics, this is actually projected to be a 16-point win for the Cougs based on Ken Palm. But because of what we talked about earlier with tired legs and with Colorado playing three games in three days, I'm predicting also a big win like yourself, Bill. 72 52, 20-point win for the Cougs.
00:19:32
@NoConfForOldMen
So as we
Big 12 Tournament Strategies
00:19:32
@NoConfForOldMen
continue to look towards March Madness, how about we all look into the overall outlook for the Big 12 tourney? And, you know, Tom, why don't you start with your coach's view on how you think the Big 12 tourney plays out for us after this next game, as well as overall with the other teams?
00:19:50
Tom
Well, Iowa was State played today. They picked up a win against Cincinnati, but you also had Keyshawn Gilbert and Taman Lipsy also tweet groans again. Gilbert didn't play second half.
00:20:03
Tom
Lipsy said he's good to go tomorrow, so that should be something to keep an eye on. They got BYU tomorrow.
00:20:08
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:20:10
Tom
Supposed to be a neutral court, but make no mistake, this is going to be an ISU home crowd. They're going to be out in droves. I'm not sure. how much of the arena they'll have, but my guess is they'll have 10,000 or so in that.
00:20:23
Tom
I think it holds like 17,000. So, you know, BYU's got their work cut out for them, even though Iowa state's coming off a game yesterday.
00:20:25
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:20:31
Tom
So that's an BYU's advantage. what was about a week or so ago that BYU beat ISU at Hilton.
00:20:38
@NoConfForOldMen
Ed Hilton.
00:20:39
Tom
So there'll be a little bit of motivation for ISU.
00:20:39
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:20:43
Tom
I just saw an interview with Taman Lipsy and when the reporter asked him about the BYU game, you know, he wasn't cocky or anything, but he had, he just had like a little grin, like, yeah, kind like us in Kansas last year when they beat us in Allen and
00:20:53
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. yeah
00:20:58
Tom
Some of the players, they had the date, I think it was like March 3rd. They would just say March 3rd when somebody asked him about Kansas. And we know what happened there. So that's the top part of the bracket. So if we beat Colorado, we'll be looking at the winner of Iowa State and BYU.
00:21:13
Tom
And that should be a heck of a game tomorrow at 1130. So by the time this podcast gets out, that game will be played.
00:21:17
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:21:20
Tom
Looking at the bottom of the bracket, well, top of the bracket, I see us playing Iowa State in the semis. And, it's going to be a tough one, but I think we pull it out make the final.
00:21:33
Tom
Bottom part of the bracket. Uh, games being played right now, Baylor's up on K state. So you're probably looking at Baylor and Texas tech. I have Texas tech winning that one, UCF and Kansas.
Kansas' Potential in Finals
00:21:45
Tom
That's going to be a home game for Kansas. So I'll see Kansas moving on playing Arizona.
00:21:48
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:21:49
Tom
And then I think Kansas beats Arizona, just because it's the home court and Kansas are a bunch of front runners. You know, they play good at home.
00:21:57
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:21:58
Tom
so you got a Kansas, Texas tech final on the bottom of the bracket. Uh, But I say Tech wins that, and it'll be a Tech University Houston final and with the Cougs coming out not not on top and hanging another banner.
00:22:15
@NoConfForOldMen
All right. How about you, Bill? What's your prediction or forecast of the big goal turning?
00:22:19
Bill Walker
Well, as you'll hear in a second, thanks for that prediction, Tom. I might as well go home.
00:22:25
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah,
00:22:27
Bill Walker
yeah To be honest, I really don't care about the rest of the tournament after we destroy Colorado.
00:22:32
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah I agree.
00:22:36
Bill Walker
i i think Tom, you said it was going to be you're expecting a really good game. I think unless a miracle occurs, Iowa State avenges their loss to BYU and will definitely play us in the semis.
00:22:49
Bill Walker
I realize that an extra day of rest isn't a ton, but if Iowa State gets out to a lead on us and we're able to sit everyone maybe after the first half and then avoid playing another game on Saturday, I'd be ecstatic.
00:23:07
Bill Walker
We're a one seed, likely the number three overall. And ISU right now is, they're kind of right on the three, four seed bubble.
00:23:18
@NoConfForOldMen
Mm-hmm. True.
00:23:18
Bill Walker
So this is, this is a much bigger game for them.
00:23:23
@NoConfForOldMen
true
00:23:24
Bill Walker
You know, go ahead and,
00:23:27
Bill Walker
play to win the battle, you know, while we get ready and stay healthy for, for, winning the war and which is the NCAAs. And, so I'd be okay with us, you know losing to Iowa state. Cause it's just not, it's not going to affect anything with us.
00:23:45
Bill Walker
With that said, I do think we play hard and compete, and we win the road game against Iowa State in Kansas City.
00:23:55
@NoConfForOldMen
Wow, you too.
00:23:56
Bill Walker
I think we play either ta or, and thanks again, Tom, Kansas. Likely Tech in the finals and beat them with, in quotes, their full team playing, leaving no question and in the minds of
00:24:14
Tom
but I stay too, yeah.
00:24:17
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:24:17
Bill Walker
Yeah, like leaving no question in the minds or or what little minds there happens to be of the Tech fans as to who the best team in Texas absolutely is.
00:24:31
Bill Walker
I just think that as long as the games are reasonably close, Kelvin's going to coach to win. And I don't necessarily like this scenario, but I see it playing out that way.
00:24:41
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:24:43
Bill Walker
I think... I think it's going to be a really, really good game in the semis, but i I just think that Tech has the better players and the better team, and I think they beat Kansas, and then I think we beat Tech in the finals. Yeah.
00:24:59
Bill Walker
Sorry to reiterate everything you just said, Tom, but unfortunately we're on the same page there. I will say this. My main focus right now is not on the Big 12 tournament.
00:25:11
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:25:11
Bill Walker
It's squarely on the Big East. Gonzaga, who I was a little concerned about, and and I thought they looked
00:25:17
@NoConfForOldMen
Bit Big East.
00:25:19
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh.
00:25:19
Bill Walker
is now probably a seventh seed after they won the West Coast Championship last night.
00:25:25
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah, that's good.
00:25:26
Bill Walker
So I don't see them matching up against us. But UConn does concern me as a potential 1-8 matchup in the second round.
00:25:33
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh.
00:25:37
Bill Walker
I think if UConn tomorrow is going to have a what should be although they've had some bad losses this year, it should be an easy win.
00:25:47
Bill Walker
And if they can, then on Friday, if they can get by Creighton in the semis, I think they move down to a seven as well.
00:25:59
Bill Walker
Obviously a win over St.
00:26:00
@NoConfForOldMen
Okay.
00:26:01
Bill Walker
John's or Marquette in the final seals that and,
00:26:04
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:26:05
Bill Walker
Connecticut's not an eight seed and we don't have to think about them at all. They're healthy right now.
00:26:10
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:26:11
Bill Walker
And I, I still think we, we beat them if we play them, we're the better team, but I just as soon see them somewhere else.
00:26:16
@NoConfForOldMen
Agreed.
00:26:18
Bill Walker
And even if they're in our region, if they're a seven instead of an eight, then, you know, let them make their way through everyone until they meet us in the elite eight.
00:26:26
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:26:28
Bill Walker
So yes, I am a little more focused on, on that because I, I like our matchups against some of the other potential eight seeds.
00:26:38
Bill Walker
And I, once again, don't particularly care about the Big 12 tournament because once we beat Colorado, we're set.
00:26:48
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:26:49
Tom
Yeah, i heard kel excuse me guys but I heard Kelvin on his radio show, and I wouldn't say it was a rant, but he basically just stated his dislike of the tournament, and I can understand.
00:26:51
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:27:01
Tom
I mean, you just played a 20-game schedule, a grueling 20-game schedule, two games a week for 10 straight weeks.
00:27:01
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:27:07
Tom
and they come and And he said verbatim, it's just a money grab. It's just for money. Why would you do something like this? I know back in the day, you know in the 60s, 70s, the ACC had a tournament, but that's back when only one team from me you did only only one team from each conference made the NCAAs.
00:27:23
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:27:25
Tom
And the winner of the ACC tournament was the team that went. So, there's kind of some tradition there, but, what's the purpose? What's the point of these games?
00:27:35
Bill Walker
Exactly.
00:27:35
Tom
And having said that, though, Kelvin is a competitor, and if it's, you know, it's in his DNA.
00:27:35
Bill Walker
Yeah.
00:27:37
@NoConfForOldMen
yep
00:27:41
Tom
I mean, if it's a game of tiddlywinks or backgammon or whatever you want, p-knuckle, you know, he's going to try to win.
00:27:49
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:27:50
Bill Walker
yeah
00:27:50
Tom
And it's kind of a double-edged sword because, yeah, you want to win. But the best thing for some of these teams right now is to rest up and to heal and just kind of recharge the batteries a little bit. i mean, you look at Iowa State today.
00:28:06
Tom
you know, Lipsy tweaks that groan again. Gilbert doesn't play in the second half because of the groan. You know, there's nothing really to gain except for a trophy and a banner and, everything to lose as far as injury goes.
00:28:15
@NoConfForOldMen
yep
00:28:18
Tom
What would happen if flag goes down, Cooper flag goes down in the ACC tournament? Janai Broom goes down in the SEC tournament. Yeah.
00:28:27
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:28:27
Tom
and It would cost them their chances for a national championship, and it can cost us too if we happen to lose somebody like Sharp or Milo's or Cryer. So I don't know what the answer is.
00:28:37
Bill Walker
jo on
00:28:40
Tom
Be better off just playing a preseason tournament.
00:28:43
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. For me, mean, do you guys know I hate the post season conference tournaments. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying you throw the games.
00:28:54
@NoConfForOldMen
I actually hope that we play our normal rotation versus Colorado, work out some of the kinks on offense from the Baylor game, assuming we win, which we will. Next game, I'd like to obviously still play to win.
00:29:08
@NoConfForOldMen
However, I'd like the lineups to be different. I'd like our backup to play roughly half the game. Still coach to win, but just play more of the kids. Now, I know that might be tough, Especially with Arsenault's injury at this point. I don't know how many minutes he can actually play.
00:29:25
@NoConfForOldMen
But when I look at the draw, I'm actually going to predict some differences in the Big 12 tournament from you guys. I agree, you know, us and Tech will make the semis. However, I'm going to say Arizona upsets KU to make the semis.
00:29:39
@NoConfForOldMen
And then I know, but yeah, I
00:29:39
Bill Walker
They're favored. but Oh, they're the higher seed.
00:29:42
@NoConfForOldMen
They're the higher seed, yeah. Though it's kind of like you guys had both highlighted, kind of like a road game, right, being in Kansas City. But I just think they've been playing better than KU.
00:29:49
Bill Walker
Agreed.
00:29:52
@NoConfForOldMen
And I know both of you guys have picked ISU to beat BYU in the quarters, but just be different, I'm picking the hot BYU team to beat ISU. Again, they're also the higher seed, but I think they're the dogs, right, based on the line.
00:30:06
Bill Walker
Yes.
00:30:07
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:30:08
Bill Walker
Yes.
00:30:09
@NoConfForOldMen
Now, it's interesting. I took a closer look at BYU because they've been really hot as of late.
00:30:13
Tom
you
00:30:13
@NoConfForOldMen
And when I look at Haslam metrics, they show that BYU has started to play slightly better D, especially over the last seven games. Though, if you look at their stats over the course of the season, they've been reasonably flat.
00:30:27
@NoConfForOldMen
So you can't really pin it on their defense. But it's actually on offense that you see an uptick. Young has figured out some slight nuances on offense that has caused their three-point shooting to start going up as the season has gone on.
00:30:42
@NoConfForOldMen
Slight improvements in turnover percentage, even though they're still not great. they're They're actually terrible on that front, but just slightly better than they were at the beginning of the year.
00:30:51
@NoConfForOldMen
And then slight... Terrible.
00:30:51
Tom
Yeah, they had 29 against ISU a week or so ago.
00:30:53
Tom
Still
00:30:54
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Yeah. terrible
00:30:57
Tom
won the game.
00:30:57
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah And then they've got slight improvements on free throw rate. So they've been taking it to the hoop a little bit more than earlier on in the season, all of which has actually resulted in a very noticeable trend upwards in terms of efficiency on offense since January.
00:31:13
@NoConfForOldMen
You know, in comparison to the first half the season when they were still trying to figure things out or Young was still trying to figure out the college game. From there, i actually wouldn't mind, or I'm actually even hoping that BYU, or if it's ISU, that we actually lose in the semis. We play hard, figure out our kinks, we lose and yeah you know get to rest our players. And then on the other side, I think Tech's going to squeak by Arizona, and then Tech wins the conference tournament.
00:31:41
@NoConfForOldMen
Now, after the tournament, as you guys are starting to look at potential seedings in the real tournament, at the conclusion of the Big 12 tournament, I think there's a consensus that the Big 12 gets eight teams in since since they kind of played itself out of the possibility of getting in.
00:31:58
@NoConfForOldMen
How do you guys see the Big 12 seeding of teams? you know What kind of respect are we going to get as a conference? How many teams do you guys think will actually get into a top four seed?
00:32:10
@NoConfForOldMen
I mean, Bill, what what's your take on it? What you what do you think when the real brackets come out? How many are we going to get it in the top four?
00:32:20
Bill Walker
We'll be in the top four. Tech will be in the top four.
00:32:22
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:32:25
Bill Walker
Iowa State will be in the top four.
00:32:28
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:32:31
Bill Walker
That's it.
00:32:32
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, okay. So you don't, you don't think Arizona is going to make it up?
00:32:35
Bill Walker
I think Arizona, if Arizona's Well, I have them losing to Kansas, so I'm just going to stick with that and assume that's the way it goes.
00:32:44
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:32:46
@NoConfForOldMen
Yep.
00:32:47
Bill Walker
And if that's the case, I think they're a five. if
00:32:51
@NoConfForOldMen
Okay.
00:32:51
Bill Walker
Now, if they if they go through and they beat Tech, I think maybe maybe, even if they don't win the conference tournament, if they beat Tech but get to the finals, they...
00:33:03
@NoConfForOldMen
they pay They play Kansas though, right?
00:33:03
Bill Walker
Yes, but...
00:33:05
@NoConfForOldMen
Arizona. Arizona's on.
00:33:07
Tom
They play winter UCF Kansas.
00:33:07
Bill Walker
yeah so Yes, yes.
00:33:09
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:33:10
Bill Walker
I'm ah ah assuming there they've got to win that game if they they want any shot at a four.
00:33:13
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Okay.
00:33:15
Bill Walker
So I'm saying they have to win that game.
00:33:16
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:33:18
@NoConfForOldMen
Got it.
00:33:18
Bill Walker
And then I think they have to beat Tech as well.
00:33:22
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, wow. Okay. So they have to win the tournament to get
00:33:23
Bill Walker
to
00:33:24
@NoConfForOldMen
to get a
00:33:26
Bill Walker
Well, no, that's they're on that side of the draw. They'd be playing either us, us Iowa State, or BYU in the championships.
00:33:36
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, I see, see, see, I see. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:33:38
Bill Walker
So I think that if, I think that if Arizona, if they get to the championship, I think, I think a win over both Kansas and tech helps their cause significantly.
00:33:38
@NoConfForOldMen
You're right.
00:33:52
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, absolutely. Yeah.
00:33:53
Bill Walker
And, and, and maybe they, they do become a four, but I think they've got to win both of those to, to do so.
00:34:00
@NoConfForOldMen
Okay. Okay.
00:34:03
@NoConfForOldMen
How about you? Yeah.
00:34:03
Bill Walker
By the way,
00:34:05
Bill Walker
Just real quickly, I forgot to mention it when we were predicting the Big 12, but I did think that Kansas State would upset Baylor this evening.
00:34:15
Bill Walker
and
00:34:15
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, did you?
00:34:16
Bill Walker
I could see that with a minute to go in the first half, Baylor's up by 15.
00:34:21
@NoConfForOldMen
Oh, wow. Okay. Yeah.
00:34:23
Bill Walker
so So much for that.
00:34:25
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:34:25
Bill Walker
So much for anything I predict.
00:34:28
@NoConfForOldMen
Tom, how about yourself? How do you see the seating?
00:34:30
Tom
Yeah, speaking of K-State, K-State peaked about a month or so ago when they were winning, and we were all saying, hey, they're playing like a top-10 team and all that, but you know it was a flash in the pan, and then they went back down to the mean.
00:34:35
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:34:43
Tom
so and I don't know, unless they make a really good comeback here, they're down 15 right before halftime to Baylor, so i don't see them. pulling that one out.
00:34:54
Tom
But back to the original question, I see you have a U of H tech and Iowa state is getting seeds one through one through four.
00:34:59
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:35:05
@NoConfForOldMen
okay
00:35:05
Tom
I don't put Arizona in there because I think Kansas is going to be UCF.
00:35:09
Tom
It's going to be a home game.
00:35:11
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:35:11
Tom
And like I said before, many times before, you know, Kansas, they're front runners. They're holy. They're a totally different team at home than they are on the road. And then i think they're buoyed by the home court.
00:35:22
Tom
They beat Arizona. Arizona travels pretty well, but they're going to be drowned out by k you fans. And then I do think Kansas will lose to Texas Tech.
00:35:28
Bill Walker
I agree.
00:35:29
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:35:34
Tom
So that puts Arizona out of the running as far as I'm concerned. But you never know.
00:35:40
Bill Walker
Of course, Kansas...
00:35:41
Tom
you know There's all sorts of data out of there.
00:35:41
Bill Walker
course cans
00:35:43
Tom
And then, I mean, for every person you ask, they're going to tell you something different.
00:35:48
Tom
ah you know who knows? The committee gets in there and they look at the data all that.
00:35:50
@NoConfForOldMen
yeah
00:35:52
Tom
And then it comes down to humans making the decision you know after all, as much data as they have. So there's going to be a little bit of bias in there.
00:36:02
Tom
And nobody knows what the biases might be.
00:36:02
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:36:05
Tom
But that's the way look at it.
00:36:07
Bill Walker
the other thing tom Tom, is that last year, and it's a different team this year, although maybe results-wise, not really, but last year, Kansas was a much higher seed going into the first round of the Big 12 tournament, and they got absolutely annihilated.
00:36:20
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:36:27
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:36:28
Bill Walker
So you never know with Kansas. They've certainly been...
00:36:33
Tom
Yeah, who was it that beat them last year and in a Big 12 tournament?
00:36:34
Bill Walker
Mediocre times this year.
00:36:36
Tom
Who was it? Was it Cincinnati that beat them?
00:36:40
@NoConfForOldMen
I don't even remember.
00:36:40
Bill Walker
i
00:36:40
Tom
I don't remember who beat them.
00:36:41
Bill Walker
I think you're right. i think you're right.
00:36:43
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:36:43
Bill Walker
Yeah.
00:36:44
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Yeah. They've been definitely the and enigma.
00:36:46
Tom
Now, hey, don't get me wrong.
00:36:47
Bill Walker
yeah
00:36:48
Tom
Now, don't get me wrong.
00:36:48
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:36:50
Tom
If UCF beats Kansas tonight, you know, hey,
00:36:52
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah.
00:36:54
Bill Walker
Yeah, well, I'm with you. I think Kansas beats UCF, and I think Kansas beats Arizona, and I think they have a really good game with Tech, as I mentioned, but but it's it's in the back of my mind that Kansas could go down tonight.
00:37:04
Tom
But if they don't, I'm i'm happy.
00:37:10
@NoConfForOldMen
Yeah. Yeah. We'll see.
Conclusion and Listener Engagement
00:37:13
@NoConfForOldMen
i mean, when I look at it, I'm also thinking UH is the number one. i think Tech and ISU end up on the three line, though Tech has an outside chance, depending on how they do in the tourney, to even sneak into the two, possibly.
00:37:28
@NoConfForOldMen
I also think Arizona sneaks in as the final number four seed. Of course, I've got them basically going to the finals. or at least the semis, I think, for the tournament.
00:37:41
@NoConfForOldMen
If that happens, I think it sets the Big 12 up to make some noise in the tourney and maybe surprise some SEC teams along the way with all these write-ups around how dominant they've been this season. So for me, I'll be curious to see how Coach manages his lineups in the Big 12 championships from a minutes perspective. I'm hopeful that we're going go into the tourney with fresh legs this year.
00:38:04
@NoConfForOldMen
And looking forward to next week when we do our big bracket episode, because I think that'll be a fun one. So anyways, that's it for our 47th episode of the No Conference for Old Men podcast. We hope you all enjoyed it.
00:38:17
@NoConfForOldMen
And again, would really appreciate it if folks would follow, subscribe, or collect our podcast, depending on your podcast platform of choice. We're also available via the Republic of Football podcast feed from the folks at Dave Campbell's Texas Football as the only basketball-centric podcast.
00:38:32
@NoConfForOldMen
We're at the gocooks.com website for those that prefer to digest the content that way. We appreciate the continued support from all. Also, please give us follow on our Twitter account, No Conference for Old Men.
00:38:43
@NoConfForOldMen
Thank you all again for listening. And be on lookout next week to download and listen as our next big episode drops. Take care, everyone.