3.26.2011

ESPN.CONN PR arm of UConn & the BEast ?

In Women's College Basketball there is one media outlet that exclusively broadcasts the tournament while maintaining the most widely read website for the sport. This is the result of several weeks of research sparked by a widespread general opinion of ESPN's coverage of Women's College Basketball expressed on The SUmmiTT and a few other forums used by Lady Vol fans.

It is 17 miles from Bristol to the XL Center and 44 miles from Bristol to Storrs - the homes of the UConn Huskies. Doris Burke - Providence grad, Rebecca Lobo - UConn grad, Trey Wingo - Greenwich native, Graham Hays - Stonington resident, Beth Mowins - Syracuse grad, Charlie Creme - St Bonaventure upstate NY, and Michelle Jackson - Bristol resident . comprise the most visible of ESPN WCBB experts along with Michelle Voepel - Big 12, Kara Lawson - former Lady Vol but present Connecticut SUN and ESPN employee, and Carolyn Peck - NC winner at Purdue with ties to Florida and Tennessee. Does this proximity along with the affiliations of these major WCBB personalities contribute to a bias toward the BEast and UConn?

It may be difficult to view and read content from ESPN broadcasts and websites with enough detachment to correctly assess bias, but it appears to this Lady Vol fan that the bias toward the Big East in general and UConn in particular is overwhelming. The perception is so strong it has resulted in numerous threads on The SUmmiTT that decry the constant mention of UConn and Maya Moore by the ESPN coverage team no matter which teams happen to be playing the game in progress. The ESPN Drinking Game Thread is a recent example of this phenomenon

Playing the ESPN Drinking Game involves tossing back a measure of one's favorite beverage every time an ESPN talking head launches into gushing praise of UConn or a UConn player during the course of a game involving teams other than UConn or anytime some UConn video clip is played during these games and anytime the studio commentators do the same. Those who like to stay sober will not enjoy this game since there is an amazing amount of opportunity to imbibe - particularly if Doris Burke is anywhere in the vicinity of a microphone.

The ANATOMY OF AN NCAA WCBB BRACKETOLOGY PREJUDICE post back on March 5th was my initial effort to articulate some observations that were just coming in to focus. The emphasis on that limited (Bracketology) prejudice did not quite cover a situation that is far more pervasive. From the results thus far in the tournament it seems clear that the Big East did indeed deserve to have 9 teams included - if not the 10 or 11 that Charlie Creme and Burke, Peck and Jackson often claimed should have been. The Bracketology and the actual NCAA invitations are the effect - not the cause - of this ESPN.CONN bias

This A QUESTION OF BALANCE - the unbalanced Charlie Creme edition thread analyzes the ESPN website coverage following the announcement of the brackets and shows the astounding amount of attention paid to UConn and the Big East entries to the detriment of all other conferences and teams. There are links to 7 articles promoting UConn and Notre Dame vs zero mention of some other teams the first day after the brackets were released while 2 of 4 experts picked UConn to win it all and three chose Tennessee as the first one seed to be eliminated while Creme picked ND to replace UT in the Final Four. Taken alone any of those prognostications is reasonable but given the total imbalance in coverage it appeared to be a deliberate attempt to disrespect everyone but the BEast. Creme's DAYTON REGIONAL PRIMER highlighted the great guards in the region but failed to even mention Meighan Simmons - the AP "Newcomer of the Year" for the SEC and leading scorer for the ONE SEED.

It's interesting to read remarks like OSU coach Jim Foster's in the "FOSTER WON'T BE WEARING ORANGE" article where he says " Like everyone else, he sees top-ranked and two-time defending champion UConn as the clear front-runner overall in the tournament." It seems that Foster must get his opinion from ESPN since he seems to believe "everyone else" shares his opinion. Of course 'everyone else' thinks no such thing but you might get that idea if you read and watch ESPN.

The premise I wish to expound and discuss is this: Proposed: The proximity of ESPN to UConn and the Big East along with the affiliation and loyalties of the commentators employed by the network, website, and publications, has created a damaging bias and prejudice in the most influential media monopoly involved with Women's College Basketball to the detriment of every other conference and university in the USA.

I don't think anyone can argue that ESPN is the most influential media involved with WCBB and as far as the post season goes that media has an effective monopoly since ESPN and it's affiliated networks covers the NCAA tournament exclusively. Aside from a limited presence here on SB Nation and a few obscure Women's Basketball publications and websites there is very little internet presence that isn't specifically individual school oriented like Scout or Rivals or the websites of the athletic departments of the involved schools. This makes ESPN by far the most read and watched purveyor of WCBB in the world.

It is my hope that interested Tennessee fans at Rocky Top Talk and perhaps fans of other programs who follow SB Nation's Swish Appeal will join me in trying to assess the bias of ESPN (if you agree with me that such bias exists) in order to provide the other conferences and coaches compelling evidence that might encourage them to address this imbalance and compel ESPN to provide a fair and balanced coverage of the sport we enjoy. Now that you've become aware that someone thinks this might be a problem will you pay a little more attention to what you see and hear in order to confirm or refute my suspicions?

Here is why this is important : You're a 14 -18 year old HS player who wants to play WCBB

What do you watch and read in order to satisfy your interest in the sport you love?
What effect does that have on which conference and team you would like to consider?
Does ESPN coverage of the BEast or UConn give them an unfair advantage in your recruitment?
If it does what effect does that influence have long term on the sport of WCBB?
If what I presume here is true wouldn't you want your conference and your coach and her staff to be aware of the problem so they might be open to a solution?
is ESPN to the BEast as FOX is to the TEA PARTY?

Has ESPN become the equivalent of FOX News as promoter of Tea Party Rallies as a Public Relations arm of the Big East and UConn? FOX News has serious equivalent competition in the news business but there is no alternative for WCBB. CBSSports and ABC, NBC and FOXSPORTS cover Men's basketball and football but they do not offer any equivalent coverage of the women's sport. WCBB broadcasting is owned by ESPN.

Is there anything that can or should be done to try to mitigate this problem? Is the strength of the Big East this year just a cyclic phenomenon or are we seeing a shift in the balance of power from the SEC, ACC and Big 12 to the monster conference who's markets encompass a full third of the US population soon to be increased by the addition of TCU in the DALLAS FORT WORTH Market?

in addition: 18 of the 40 AP Poll voters live and work in Big East Markets while only 5 are located in SEC markets. When the ESPN and AP polls are voted on by more Big East affiliated voters does that create an unfair result?

I can admit to a serious Lady Vol bias so I ask you to visit the ESPN WCBB WEBSITE and read the links to the right of the main article to make your own evaluation of the situation and to view the games in the Sweet 16, Elite 8 and Final Four with an ear to the commentators and the balance of their commentary to see if you perceive the same things I've been hearing and reading. I actually did a word count analysis of Michelle Voepel's TAYLOR MADE LOOK AT THE SWEET 16 to determine 220 words devoted to Tennessee vs 670 devoted to UConn. That's obviously borderline obsessive but it mirrors the method used by Media Matters and other media watchdog sites to measure fairness.

Isn't a LEVEL PLAYING FIELD the result we all wish to preserve in every college sport? Does having a billion dollar network as an effective public relations firm predominantly devoted to one conference and team constitute a threat to that illusion of fairness? What is more problematic - inviting a couple of Juniors to a barbeque or hearing your rival praised 24/7 on the nation's leading WCBB media outlet that gives private tours to your rivals top recruits? I wish we could poll the HS sophomores and juniors watching ESPN coverage of the WCBB NCAA tourney this week to evaluate the impact of ESPN coverage on their impressions of the conferences and teams and recruiters outside the BEast to see if they are concerned.

Anatomy of the STREAK

Much has been made of the amazing 90 game winning streak of the UConn Huskies. Quite a feat to go for 2 plus years without a defeat in any sport. But nobody has taken the time to analyze that streak to see exactly what made it possible.

How many of those games were played on UConn's home courts for instance?
How many were played vs significant highly ranked out of conference foes?
We all realize that the best chance of being beating in WCBB is to play a top 10 team on the road and that is intensified by playing 2 or 3 top 10 opponents in a row on the road so the team has more limited time to prepare So how often did UConn take a significant risk to it's streak?

XX Out of Conference Road game
YY Conference Road Game
Italics - NCAA Tournament Neutral Court Game Sweet 16 to Final Four
BOLD = significant top 10 ROAD Win Out of Conference

2008-2009 SCHEDULE
11/16/08 vs. Georgia Tech Storrs, Conn. W, 82-71
11/20/08 vs. San Diego State Hartford, Conn. W, 99-55
11/22/08 vs. Rhode Island Hartford, Conn. W, 91-43
11/25/08 at BYU Provo, Utah W, 96-47...XX
11/30/08 vs. Oklahoma Storrs, Conn W, 106-78
12/03/08 vs. Holy Cross Storrs, Conn W, 96-37
12/14/08 vs. Penn State Madison Sq Garde W, 77-63
12/18/08 vs. Washington Cancun, Mexico W, 109-51
12/19/08 vs. N Colorado Cancun, Mexico W, 85-40
12/21/08 Florida State Cancun, Mexico W, 83-71
12/28/08 South Carolina Columbia, S.C. W, 77-48..XX
12/31/08 vs. Hartford Hartford, Conn. W, 78-41
01/03/09 vs. LSU Hartford, Conn. W, 76-63
01/06/09 at USF * Tampa, Fla W, 83-37..YY
01/10/09 at W Va Morgantown, W.Va W, 85-55..YY
01/13/09 vs. DePaul * Storrs, Conn W, 77-62
01/17/09 vs. Syracuse * Hartford, Conn. W, 107-53
01/19/09 at North Carolina Chapel Hill, N.C. W, 88-58XX
01/24/09 at Cincinnati * Cincinnati, Oh W, 65-34..YY
01/26/09 vs. Louisville * Storrs, Conn. W, 93-65
01/31/09 at Georgetown * Washington, D.C W, 80-61..YY
02/03/09 vs. Rutgers * Hartford, Conn. W, 75-56
02/07/09 at Marquette * Milwaukee, Wisc. W, 83-49..YY
02/11/09 at St. John's * Queens, N.Y. W, 77-64..YY
02/15/09 vs. Pittsburgh * Storrs, Conn. W, 95-42
02/18/09 at Providence * Providence, R.I W, 75-39..YY
02/22/09 vs. Notre Dame * Hartford, Conn. W, 76-66
02/24/09 vs. Villanova * Storrs, Conn. W, 74-47
02/28/09 vs. Seton Hall * Hartford, Conn. W, 81-50
03/02/09 at Rutgers Piscataway, N.J. W, 69-59..YY
BIG EAST Tournament
03/08/09 vs. USF Hartford, Conn. W, 79-42
03/09/09 vs. Villanova Hartford, Conn W, 72-42
03/10/09 vs. Louisville Hartford, Conn. W, 75-36
NCAA Tournament
03/22/09 vs. Vermont Storrs, Conn. W, 104-65
03/24/09 vs. Florida Storrs, Conn W, 87-59
03/29/09 vs. California Trenton, NJ W, 77-53
03/31/09 vs. Arizona State Trenton, NJ W, 83-64
04/05/09 vs. Stanford St. Louis, Mo. W, 83-64
04/07/09 vs. Louisville St. Louis, Mo. W, 76-54

21 games AT HOME
Out of Conference significant road wins – ONE vs NC in Chapel Hill
significant neutral court wins – ONE vs Stanford in Final Four

2009-10 UConn Women's Basketball Schedule
11/17/09 at Texas San Antonio, Texas(AT&T Center) W, 83-58
11/20/09 at Holy Cross Worcester, Mass. (DCU Center) W, 87-34..XXX
11/27/09 vs. Hofstra Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 91-46
11/28/09 vs. Richmond Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 91-37
11/29/09 vs. Clemson Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 87-48
12/03/09 vs. Vermont Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 84-42
12/10/09 vs. Hartford Hartford, Conn. (XL Center) W, 80-45
12/20/09 vs. Iona Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 90-35
12/23/09 vs. Stanford Hartford, Conn. (XL Center) W, 80-68
12/28/09 at Florida St Tallahassee, Fla. W, 78-59..XX
01/02/10 at Seton Hall * Newark, N.J. (Prudential Center) W, 91-24..YY
01/04/10 vs. USF * Hartford, Conn. (XL Center) W, 84-42
01/07/10 vs. Cincinnati * Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 83-51
01/09/10 vs. North Carolina Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 88-47
01/13/10 at Marquette * Milwaukee, Wisc. (Al McGuire Center) W, 68-43..YY
01/16/10 vs. Notre Dame * Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 70-46
01/18/10at Duke Durham, N.C. (Cameron Indoor)W, 81-48XX
01/23/10 at Villanova * Villanova, Pa. (The Pavilion) W, 74-35..YY
01/26/10 vs. Rutgers * Hartford, Conn.(XL Center) W, 73-36
01/30/10 at Pittsburgh * Pittsburgh, Pa.(Petersen Events Center) W, 98-56..YY
02/02/10 vs. West Virginia * Hartford, Conn. (XL Center) W, 80-47
02/07/10 at Louisville * Louisville, Ky. (Freedom Hall) W, 84-38..YY
02/10/10 at DePaul Chicago, Ill. (McGrath Arena W, 95-62..YY
02/13/10 vs. St. John's * Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) W, 66-52
02/15/10at Oklahoma Norman, Ok (Lloyd Noble) W, 76-60XX
02/20/10 vs. Providence * Hartford, Conn. (XL Center) W, 85-53
02/24/10 at Syracuse * Syracuse, N.Y. (Carrier Dom W, 87-66..YY
02/27/10 vs. Georgetown * Hartford, Conn. (XL Center) W, 84-62
03/01/10 at Notre Dame *South Bend, Ind. (Joyce Center) W, 76-51..YY
BIG EAST Tournament
03/07/10 vs. Syracuse Hartford, Conn.(XL Center) W, 77-41
03/08/10 vs. Notre Dame Hartford, Conn. (XL Center) W, 59-44
03/09/10 vs. West Virginia Hartford, Conn. (XL Center) W, 60-32
NCAA Championship
03/21/10 vs. Southern orfolk, Va. (Constant Convocation Center) W, 95-39
03/23/10 vs. Temple Norfolk, Va. (Constant Convocation Center) W, 90-36
03/28/10 vs. Iowa State Dayton, Ohio (UD Arena) W, 74-36
03/30/10 vs. Florida State Dayton, Ohio (UD Arena) W, 90-50
04/04/10 vs. Baylor San Antonio, Texas (Alamodome) W, 70-50
04/06/10 vs. Stanford San Antonio, Texas (Alamodome) W, 53-47

19 home games
2 significant out of conference road wins at Duke and at Oklahoma

12/28/10 Stockton, Calif. (Alex G.Spanos Center) 85, Pacific 42.. XX
12-21-10 XL Center (Hartford, Conn.) 93, Florida State 62
12/19/10 New York, N.Y. (Madison Square Garden) 81, OHIO STATE 50
12-09-10 Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.) 79, Marquette 47
12-05-10 XL Center (Hartford, Conn.) 86, Sacred Heart 32
12-02-10 Tampa, Fla. 80, USF 54..YY
11-28-10 Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.) 81, LSU 51
11-27-10 Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.) 81, Lehigh 38
11-26-10 Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.) 86, Howard 25
11/21/10 Alexander Mem Col, Atlanta, Ga 71, Georgia Tech 51.. XX
11-16-10 XL Center (Hartford, Conn.) 65, Baylor 64
11-14-10 Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.) 117, Holy Cross 37
12/30/10 Stanford, Calif. Stanford 71 UCnn 59

48 HOME GAMES compared to 37 for the Lady Vols
26 True Road Games compared to 36 for the Lady Vols
16 Neutral Court Games compared to 17 for the Lady Vols
6 ROAD GAMES VS TOP 2O RPI vs 18 ROAD GAMES VS TOP 20 RPI
See Tennessee's comparative schedule in the post directly below this one


UConn played an amazing 48 home games during this streak. In part because UConn gets the incredible advantage of playing every Big East Tournament game on it's home court at the XL center in Hartford.

IN addition UConn played 16 neutral court games during their long streak

Leaving only 26 of 90 games on the road on opponent’s courts and 18 of those 26 games were against conference foes YY leaving a total of 8 games on the road Out of Conference designated by XX Those 8 out of conference road games:
Holy Cross
Pacific
Florida State
Georgia Tech
South Carolina
BYU
Duke
UNC
Oklahoma

in conference road games 16
USF
West Virginia
Cinn
Georgetown
Marquette
St John's
Providence
Rutgers
Seton Hall
Marquette
Villanova
Louisville
DePaul
Syracuse
Notre Dame
USF

Here are the top 20 teams by RPI for the 2009 and 2010 seasons
Teams in bold were UConn opponents during the year

2010 Top 20 RPI
1 Connecticut 33-0 0.7323 2 0.6431 1 1
2 Stanford 31-1 0.6996 9 0.6098 2 2
3 Tennessee 30-2 0.6955 7 0.6148 4 4
4 Nebraska 30-1 0.6769 31 0.5800 3 3
5 Duke 27-5 0.6735 5 0.6167 9 8
6 Texas A&M 25-7 0.6646 3 0.6258 15 14
7 Notre Dame 27-5 0.6635 12 0.6034 6 7
8 Oklahoma 23-10 0.6583 1 0.6454 11 12

9 Ohio State 30-4 0.6517 39 0.5748 10 10
10 West Virginia 28-5 0.6453 33 0.5775 7 9
11 Xavier 27-3 0.6400 61 0.5533 5 5
12 Oklahoma St 23-10 0.6367 6 0.6167 20 20
13 Texas 22-10 0.6288 10 0.6093 18 22
14 Florida St 26-5 0.6286 54 0.5585 8 6

15 Baylor 23-9 0.6266 14 0.5958 14 15
16 Virginia 21-9 0.6233 13 0.5977 24 19
17 Michigan St 22-9 0.6226 17 0.5935 25 23
18 Georgetown 24-6 0.6212 50 0.5615 12 11
19 Kentucky 25-7 0.6193 48 0.5653 19 18
20 Vanderbilt 22-10 0.6187 1 0.5958 unranked

2009 TOP TWENTY RPI
Connecticut 33-0 0.7064 7 0.6086 1 1
2 Oklahoma 28-4 0.6984 2 0.6396 3 3
3 Maryland 28-4 0.6959 3 0.6361 4 4
4 Louisville 29-4 0.6728 10 0.6041 5 5
5 Duke 26-5 0.6687 6 0.6120 6 8
6 Baylor 27-5 0.6618 12 0.6012 7 7
7 Texas A&M 25-7 0.6609 5 0.6208 10 9
8 Auburn 29-3 0.6562 33 0.5729 8 6
9 Stanford 29-4 0.6519 30 0.5762 2 2
10 Tennessee 22-10 0.6518 1 0.6399 19 24
11 North Carolina 26-6 0.6512 14 0.5974 11 11
12 Florida St 25-7 0.6484 11 0.6041 13 13
13 Ohio State 27-5 0.6441 26 0.5776 9 10
14 Iowa State 23-8 0.6280 17 0.5900 18 19
15 Notre Dame 22-8 0.6252 18 0.5891 24 20
16 Pittsburgh 22-7 0.6221 29 0.5765 14 17
17 Rutgers 18-12 0.6217 4 0.6290

18 Texas 21-11 0.6197 8 0.6075 23 21
19 Virginia 23-9 0.6170 22 0.5831 25 23
20 LSU 18-10 0.6152 9 0.6060

3.24.2011

Comparing Schedules TN 2007 08 and 09

11/11/07 vs. UT-Chattanooga Knoxville, Tenn. W, 76-56
11/15/07 vs. Oklahoma Tampa, Fla. W, 70-67
11/18/07 vs. Texas Knoxville, Tenn. W, 92-67
11/21/07 at West Virginia Charleston, W. Va. W, 67-49
11/26/07 vs. Louisiana Tech Knoxville, Tenn. W, 81-60
12/02/07 vs. North Carolina Knoxville, Tenn. W, 83-79
12/05/07 vs. Old Dominion Knoxville, Tenn. W, 83-51
12/13/07 vs. Middle Tennessee State Knoxville, Tenn. W, 84-61
12/16/07 vs. Gonzaga Knoxville, Tenn. W, 96-73
12/19/07 at UCLA Los Angeles, Calif. W, 82-70
12/22/07 at Stanford Stanford, Calif. L, 73-69 (OT)
01/02/08 at DePaul Chicago, Ill. W, 102-68
01/05/08 at Notre Dame South Bend, Ind. W, 87-63
01/10/08 vs. Auburn * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 85-52
01/13/08 at South Carolina * Columbia S.C. W, 71-48
01/17/08 at Kentucky * Lexington, Ky. W, 65-40
01/20/08 vs. Vanderbilt * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 79-63
01/24/08 vs. Arkansas * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 98-55
01/28/08 at Duke (Big Monday) Durham, N.C. W, 67-64
01/31/08 at Mississippi * Oxford, Miss. W, 68-44
02/03/08 vs. Kentucky * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 79-51
02/07/08 at Mississippi * Starksville, Miss. W, 87-69
02/11/08 vs. Rutgers Knoxville, Tenn. W, 59-58
02/14/08 vs. LSU * Knoxville, Tenn. L, 78-62
02/17/08 at Vanderbilt * Nashville, Tenn. W, 81-68
02/21/08 at Alabama * Tuscaloosa, Ala. W, 85-58
02/24/08 vs. Mississippi State * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 72-46
02/28/08 vs. Florida * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 88-61
03/02/08 at Georgia * Athens, Ga. W, 72-63
SEC Tournament
03/07/08 vs. Florida Nashville, Tenn. W, 92-61
03/08/08 vs. Vanderbilt Nashville, Tenn. W, 63-48
03/09/08 vs. LSU Nashville, Tenn. W, 61-55
NCAA Tournament
03/23/08 vs. Oral Roberts West Lafayette, Ind. W, 94-55
03/25/08 vs. Purdue West Lafayette, Ind. W, 78-52
03/30/08 vs. Notre Dame Oklahoma City, Okla. W, 47-46
04/01/08 vs. Texas A&M Oklahoma City, Okla. W, 53-45
NCAA Final Four
04/06/08 vs. LSU Tampa, Fla. W, 47-46
04/08/08 vs. Stanford Tampa, Fla. W, 64-48


15 Home Games
9 Neutral court games
13 True Road Games

11/12/06 vs. Chattanooga Knoxville, Tenn. W, 102-72
11/16/06 vs. UCLA Knoxville, Tenn. W, 83-60
11/19/06 at Arizona State Tempe, Ariz. W, 83-74
11/24/06 vs. Stanford Knoxville, Tenn. W, 77-60
11/26/06 vs. Mid Tennessee Knoxville, Tenn. W, 88-64
11/28/06 at Louisiana Tech Ruston, La. W, 71-50
12/03/06 at North Carolina Chapel Hill, N.C. L, 70-57
12/05/06 vs. Tennessee-Martin Knoxville, Tenn. W, 85-29
12/07/06 vs. G Washington Knoxville, Tenn. W, 85-62
12/17/06 at Texas Austin, Texas W, 67-46
12/20/06 vs. West Virginia Knoxville, Tenn. W, 66-51
12/22/06 at Old Dominion Norfolk, Va. W, 75-59
12/30/06 vs. Notre Dame Knoxville, Tenn. W, 78-54
01/03/07 vs. Alabama Knoxville, Tenn. W, 72-36
01/06/07 at Connecticut Hartford, Conn. W, 70-64
01/11/07 at Florida * Gainesville, Fla. W, 80-58
01/14/07 at Georgia * Athens, Ga. W, 52-41
01/18/07 vs. Missi State * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 73-44
01/22/07 vs. Duke Knoxville, Tenn. L, 74-70
01/25/07 at Vanderbilt * Nashville, Tenn. W, 67-57
01/28/07 at Alabama Tuscaloosa, Ala. W, 80-51
02/01/07 vs. South Carolina * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 72-36
02/05/07 vs. Georgia * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 73-57
02/08/07 at Auburn * Auburn, Ala . W, 72-62
02/11/07 vs. Kentucky Knoxville, Tenn. W, 84-62
02/15/07 vs. Mississippi * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 81-69
02/19/07 at LSU * Baton Rouge, La. W, 56-51
02/22/07 at Arkansas * Fayetteville, Ark. W, 75-68
02/25/07 vs. Vanderbilt * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 73-53
SEC Tournament
03/02/07 vs. South Carolina * Duluth, Ga. W, 81-63
03/03/07 vs. LSU Duluth, Ga. L, 63-54

NCAA Tournament
03/18/07 vs. Drake University Pittsburgh, Pa . W, 76-37
03/20/07 vs. Pittsburgh Piitsburgh, Pa . W, 68-54
03/25/07 vs. Marist Dayton, Ohio W, 65-46
03/27/07 vs. Mississippi Dayton, Ohio W, 98-62
04/01/07 vs. North Carolina Cleveland, Ohio W, 56-50
04/03/07 vs. Rutgers Cleveland, Ohio W, 59-46

15 Home Games
8 Neutral court games
13 True Road Games


73 games prior

11/21/08 at Chattanooga Chattanooga, Tenn. W, 66-63
11/23/08 vs. Louisiana Tech Knoxville, Tenn. W, 94-59
11/25/08 vs. Western Carolina Knoxville, Tenn. W, 83-56
11/30/08 vs. DePaul Knoxville, Tenn. W, 88-67
12/02/08 at G Washington Wash, D.C. W, 71-59
12/11/08 vs. MidTenn State Knoxville, Tenn. W, 81-52
12/14/08 at Texas Austin, Texas L, 73-59
12/18/08 at Old Dominion Norfolk, Va W, 81-76
12/21/08 vs. Stanford Knoxville, Tenn. W, 79-69
12/30/08 at Gonzaga Spokane, Wash. W, 77-58
01/03/09 at Rutgers Piscataway, N.J. W, 55-51
01/08/09 vs. Kentucky * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 69-64
01/11/09 at Vanderbilt * Nashville, Tenn. L, 74-58
01/15/09 at Mississippi State * Starkville, Miss. W, 63-56
01/18/09 vs. South Carolina * Knoxville, Tenn. W, 68-56
01/22/09 at Arkansas * Fayetteville, Ark. W, 76-67
01/25/09 at Auburn * Auburn, Ala. L, 82-68


7 Home Games
10 True Road games

90 Game Total
37 Home Games
36 Road Games
17 Neutral Court Games
18 ROAD GAMES vs TOP 20 RPI TEAMS

2006-7 RPI - Teams in BOLD on Lady Vols Schedule
1 Tennessee 28-3 0.7270 1 0.6683 2 2
2 Duke 30-1 0.7100 2 0.6241 1 1
3 Connecticut 29-3 0.6803 6 0.6050 3 3

4 Purdue 28-5 0.6726 4 0.6139 15 14
5 Maryland 27-5 0.6700 5 0.6121 6 5
6 North Carolina 30-3 0.6699 18 0.5902 4 4
7 Oklahoma 26-4 0.6620 16 0.5938 12 11

8 Ohio State 28-3 0.6585 32 0.5769 5 6
9 Vanderbilt 27-5 0.6575 13 0.5954 13 13
10 Stanford 28-4 0.6538 28 0.5801 7 8
11 Georgia 25-6 0.6524 9 0.6010 10 12
12 Rutgers 22-8 0.6484 3 0.6201 18 22
13 Middle Tenn St 29-3 0.6482 47 0.5622 17 17
14 LSU 26-7 0.6457 10 0.5983 11 10
15 George Washington 26-3 0.6430 50 0.5585 8 9
16 Arizona St 28-4 0.6415 46 0.5636 9 7

17 Baylor 25-7 0.6409 15 0.5941 16 15
18 Marquette 25-6 0.6407 21 0.5855 23 19
19 Michigan St 23-8 0.6329 11 0.5966 22 23
20 Old Dominion 24-8 0.6265 22 0.5854

2007 - 08 RPI Teams in BOLD on Lady Vols Schedule
1 Tennessee 30-2 0.7287 1 0.6592 3 3
2 Connecticut 32-1 0.7222 3 0.6397 1 1
3 North Carolina 29-2 0.6933 6 0.6126 2 2
4 Rutgers 24-6 0.6842 2 0.6456 7 7

5 Maryland 30-3 0.6839 9 0.6088 5 6
6 Stanford 30-3 0.6655 26 0.5843 4 4
7 Texas A&M 26-7 0.6557 7 0.6116 11 12
8 LSU 27-5 0.6544 19 0.5913 6 5
9 Duke 22-9 0.6526 4 0.6336 10 10

10 Baylor 24-6 0.6496 13 0.5994 9 8
11 Old Dominion 29-4 0.6489 29 0.5723 14 14
12 Louisville 24-9 0.6443 5 0.6167 23 22
13 Oklahoma 21-8 0.6385 8 0.6099 13 11
14 Notre Dame 23-8 0.6355 12 0.6000 17 19

15 Virginia 23-9 0.6307 11 0.6014 24 23
16 UTEP 27-3 0.6240 82 0.5321 22 25
17 Vanderbilt 23-8 0.6240 25 0.5847 20 20
18 California 26-6 0.6230 44 0.5598 8 9
19 West Virginia 24-7 0.6227 30 0.5721 16 18
20 Oklahoma St 25-7 0.6209 36 0.5675 18 17

2009-10 RPI BOLD = Lady Vols opponent
1 Connecticut 33-0 0.7064 7 0.6086 1 1
2 Oklahoma 28-4 0.6984 2 0.6396 3 3
3 Maryland 28-4 0.6959 3 0.6361 4 4
4 Louisville 29-4 0.6728 10 0.6041 5 5
5 Duke 26-5 0.6687 6 0.6120 6 8
6 Baylor 27-5 0.6618 12 0.6012 7 7
7 Texas A&M 25-7 0.6609 5 0.6208 10 9
8 Auburn 29-3 0.6562 33 0.5729 8 6
9 Stanford 29-4 0.6519 30 0.5762 2 2

10 Tennessee 22-10 0.6518 1 0.6399 19 24
11 North Carolina 26-6 0.6512 14 0.5974 11 11
12 Florida St 25-7 0.6484 11 0.6041 13 13
13 Ohio State 27-5 0.6441 26 0.5776 9 10
14 Notre Dame 22-8 0.6252 18 0.5891 24 20
15 Rutgers 18-12 0.6217 4 0.6290
16 Texas 21-11 0.6197 8 0.6075 23 21

17 Virginia 23-9 0.6170 22 0.5831 25 23
18 LSU 18-10 0.6152 9 0.6060
19 Middle Tenn St 28-5 0.6151 81 0.5373

20 Florida 23-7 0.6129 52 0.5616 21 22

3.23.2011

SUmmiTT Sixteen Bracket Challenge

DAYTON REGION
Tennessee vs Ohio State Winner ________________

Oklahoma vs Notre Dame Winner __________________

PHILADELPHIA Region
5X vs GTown Winner____________________

Depaul vs Duke Winner_____________________

SPOKANE REGION
Stanford vs UNC Winner_____________________

Gonzaga vs Louisville Winner _________________

DALLAS Region
Baylor vs Green Bay Winner____________________

Texas A&M vs UGA Winner_____________________

DAYTON
game 1 winner vs game 2 winner = DAYTON Winner _____________

PHILADELPHIA
Game 1 winner vs Game 2 winner = PHILADELPHIA winner _____________

SPOKANE
Game 1 winner vs Game 2 winner = SPOKANE Winner ______________

Dallas
Game 1 winner vs Game 2 winner = DALLAS Winner ________________

DAYTON vs Philadelphia Winner _________________

SPOKANE vs Dallas Winner ___________________

National Champion winner __________________ Score _________



Sample Entry
Elite Eight
Tennessee vs Oklahoma

GTown vs Duke

Stanford vs Gonzaga

Baylor vs Texas A&M

Final Four
Tennessee vs Duke

Baylor vs Gonzaga

National Championship
Tennessee over Baylor 77 to 74

3.05.2011

Anatomy of an NCAA WCBB Bracketology Prejudice

It is now being postulated by Charlie Creme and his ESPN Bracketology that the Big Least might get 10 teams in the NCAA tournament. This seems grossly unfalr to the members of conferences with 10 or 12 teams for the following reasons.

Bear with me.

Big East W-L GB PCT W-L PCT STRK
#1 UCONN 16-0 -- 1.000 29-1 .967
#12 DePaul 13-3 3 .813 26-5 .839
#7 N Dame 13-3 3 .813 24-6 .800
Rutgers 11-5 5 .688 18-11 .621
#20 Marquette 10-6 6 .625 22-7 .759
Louisville 10-6 6 .625 19-11 .633
Syracuse 9-7 7 .563 22-8 .733
#17 Gtown 9-7 7 .563 21-9 .700
St. John's 9-7 7 .563 20-9 .690
W Virginia 8-8 8 .500 22-8 .733
Providence 6-10 10 .375 13-15 .464
Pittsburgh 5-11 11 .313 14-16 .467
South Florida 3-13 13 .188 12-19 .387
Villanova 3-13 13 .188 11-18 .379
Cincinnati 2-14 14 .125 9-19 .321
Seton Hall 1-15 15 .063 8-22 .267

There is talk about this league getting 10 teams into the NCAA tournament and many of us have decried the rankings of some of these teams all season long

Perhaps it would be edifying to understand the unfair advantage this 16 team conference has over those of us who have teams in 12 or 10 member conferences.

At first it's clear that it's an incredible advantage to play any of the bottom 6 teams in this league. All of the bottom 6 have losing records In comparison there are only 2 SEC teams with losing records - Ol Miss 10 and 19 and Miss State 13 and 16. Our worst SEC team is better that the bottom two above and Ms State is better than the bottom four. The bottom 6 BEast teams scored 4 wins vs the top 10 teams in over 60 games. Some of those top 10 teams played Seton Hall, Cinncinatti, Pittsburg or Providence twice this season since the 16 game league schedule allows for 2 games vs a single team.

To take it further
Pittsburg has one win over the top 10 in the league over W.Va and losses to Dusquene, St Francis, and 12 win 18 loss Minnesota
Providence has ONE win - a 2 point win over Louisville and they lost to Alabama *our 3rd worst and Florida
and they lost to Hofstra and St Josephs
South Florida eeked out a win over GTown but lost to Samford, Nebraska and Morgan State
Villanova failed to win vs any of the top 10 and lost to Delaware, Drexel and St Josephs
Cinncinatti got a final game win over Marquette and lost to Miami Ohio, Wright State and Dayton
Seton Hall no top 10 BEast wins and losses to Drexel, Hofstra and Fla Gulf Coast

So it's clear that these TOP 10 Beast teams get a start with a 6 and 0 Beast record unless they seriously mess up and it's clear that Marquette, WVa and Louisville have some explaining to do along with St John's and Rutgers as NCAA quality teams.

WVA's best win is over IOWA STATE ranked 17 and if you look at their record you will find it difficult to justify their ranking. They also beat a then ranked 25 TCU that is now out of the NCAA it seems. So why is WVA at 22 and 8 in the tournament? They lost to Pittsburg.
ST John's best win was the first game vs Marist. - So their 20 and 9 record is NCAA bid worthy? BS
Syracuse best win is over Ohio State and we know Ohio State but 22 - 8 with one win over a questionable Big 10 team is good enough for a bid to the dance?
Louisville's best win is the mystery win over KY. - but they lost to ODU Marist Houston and Providence so at 19 and 11 they get to dance?
Marquette beat Wisc Green Bay by 3 and lost to Creighton out of conference but they are 22 and 7 with a win over DePaul in conference and a loss to Cinncinatti. Yet they are ranked 22nd? and dancing.
and finally
RUTGERS lost to Cal Temple and Boston College on the way to a 18 and 11 record yet they are in Charlie Creme's bracket.

Here's my theory. The BEast covers territory from Florida to Mass to Chicago and the cities where they play have lots of papers and writers. There are also a plethora of coaches in a 16 team league with associations with the voting coaches. The more teams in more cities equals more votes. The more coaches with more associations equals more votes.. The votes in the rankings tend to effect the Charlie Creme Bracketology and lest we forget that Bracketology is done in Bristol and it ain't Bristol Tennessee.

The Big East schedule is a very weak schedule - No home and home with the best teams facing each other on the road and at home. Instead a team my go through their schedule playing the 7 best teams at home and the worst teams on the road - what an incredible advantage.
No way this situation is fair to teams in a league where they play home and away vs the best teams in their league. Do you see it any other way?

Example of a great BEast schedule is Marquette
they got ND DePaul, Rutgers, Syracuse WVa St John's and Lousiville AT HOME and still lost to SYR ND and Rutgers.
Louisville got St Johns, Rutgers Gtown WVa and DePaul at home and ND 5x and Syr on the road losing to all of them
So is it fair to compare a Big 12 or Big 10 or SEC or Pac 10 team that has to play home and away vs the top teams in their league with a BEast team that only plays one game vs the best in their league and pads their specs with wins over 6 teams with losing records - four of which don't even get to play in the Big Least tournament. What say you? BOGUS or FAIR?
There is much more detailed data included in THIS THREAD on The SUmmiTT message board Several of the least deserving Charlie Creme NCAA Tournament Teams records from the BEast are broken down in detail according to the Real Time RPI.