2009 NCAA Tournament

Monty'sBiggestFan

Monty'sBiggestFan

Starter
#1
#1
2009's March to the Arch starts with Selection Monday, March 16th 4pm on ESPN. Kara Lawson will be in studio breakin' it down for those filling out your women's tourney brackets.


Interested in seeing regional semifinals and finals? UC Berkeley will host well, the Berkeley Regional...at Haas Pavilion.


Saturday, March 28, 2009
Session 1
6:00 p.m. PT - Regional Semifinal Game 1
8:30 p.m. PT - Regional Semifinal Game 2
​

Monday, March 30, 2009
Session 2
6:00 p.m. PT - Regional Championship Game



Get your tickets here.

​
 
R

RDub21

Bench
#2
#2
I just recently moved out to the East Bay, so it's cool that I can make it out to Berkeley for the regional final. Here's hoping for a Maryland/Stanford showdown, would love to see Marissa Coleman play in person :). Anyone ever make it out to Haas Pavillion before...how's the area/traffic situation?
 
U

uncommonclay

Bench
#3
#3
RDub21; said:
Anyone ever make it out to Haas Pavillion before...how's the area/traffic situation?
Click to expand...
get there early and park in the neighborhoods ... read the signs carefully !!! ... a 5 minute walk will put a lot of spots within reach ...

think about the area around dwight between shattuck and telegraph ...

that's what i do anyway ...

area is rated safe to fun by me .. i used to live there ... ; )
 
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Monty'sBiggestFan

Monty'sBiggestFan

Starter
#4
#4
If you can catch BART, that's my recommendation. The downtown Berkeley station is a relatively short walk to Haas and the cost may be substantially less than what they will charging for parking.
 
Monty'sBiggestFan

Monty'sBiggestFan

Starter
#8
#8
Ahhhhh yessssss.....as I watch the selection show I have gotten much what I wanted for the Berkeley regional.


Here are the teams in this region...

1. Duke
16. Austin Peay

8. Middle Tennessee St.
9. Michigan St.

5. Tennessee
12. Ball St.

4. Iowa St.
13. E. Tennessee



6. Texas
11. Mississippi St.

3. Ohio St.
14. Sacred Heart

7. DePaul
10. San Diego St.

2. Stanford
15. UC Santa Barbara


Nice match ups up and down. Potential Sweet 16 of OSU and Stanford would be nice. Duke should get to Berkeley, and it might be a nice path to get Tennessee here.
 
6th

6th

Homer Fan Since 1985
#11
#11
Okay, so Stanford will be playing here at Berkley? Yes!!


BTW - I am waiting for the posting of the bracket. Please let me know a link if you find it. Thanks!
 
6th

6th

Homer Fan Since 1985
#13
#13
Monty'sBiggestFan said:
If Stanford wins their first two games down in San Diego, yes...they will come back up here for the regional semi-finals against whoever advances out of the group that has Ohio State in it.

Here is the bracket
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Thanks for the bracket. Whoa! There are 4 strong #2 seeds. Glad to see that Auburn got one of those.
 
6th

6th

Homer Fan Since 1985
#17
#17
I think the Oklahoma City bracket is the one that is really up for grabs. While it could be Oklahoma, MBF and I both agree that it might very well come from the bottom half of the bracket. If Rutgers upsets Auburn then it could be Rutgers or North Carolina. If Auburn wins, they will have their hands full with NC. Any of those 3 teams can beat Oklahoma.

In loyalty to Ruthie, I picked Auburn.
 
creative one

creative one

Bench
#18
#18
6th said:
Louisville could get upset by LSU before the winner would meet Baylor. Maryland is riding a high, so I'll stick with them for the Raleigh bracket.
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If you can't defend, it doesn't matter how "high" you're riding. You won't get out of a region where the other top four seeds CAN defend. The NCAAs test the mettle of the participants by purposefully grouping teams with contrasting styles early on. A "run-and-gun" team will surely face a "slow and plodding/methodical" or "press and defend" team before the regional finals. If you slip up just once, you could be going home.

Louisville can defend, so I like their chances of getting out of Raleigh more so than Maryland's. Just because LSU plays on its home court doesn't mean it's going to advance even past the 1st round (which would kill your argument). Rutgers, UNC, and even Tennessee have a history of beating teams on their home court in the early rounds. It's not exactly unheard of. You have Stanford moving on even though they might have to face San Diego State on its home floor (and please don't say that Stanford would definitely win that game because we can all come up with examples of Stanford's NCAA shortcomings).

When it's all said and done, though, I expect to see Baylor in the Final Four from that region. Great coach, good athletes, strong defense, and a nice chip on their shoulders after what happened to them (1) the last time they were in Raleigh and (2) the last time they played Maryland.
 
creative one

creative one

Bench
#19
#19
6th said:
I think the Oklahoma City bracket is the one that is really up for grabs. While it could be Oklahoma, MBF and I both agree that it might very well come from the bottom half of the bracket. If Rutgers upsets Auburn then it could be Rutgers or North Carolina. If Auburn wins, they will have their hands full with NC. Any of those 3 teams can beat Oklahoma.

In loyalty to Ruthie, I picked Auburn.
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No offense, but you guys couldn't be more wrong. Sheesh. :p

Rutgers can't beat Oklahoma. They don't have enough offense, and OU's defense is as good as Rutgers (which is the only thing that Rutgers is remotely "good" at). Vaughn can't guard both the Paris Twins at once, and the SKs don't have an answer to the Robinson/Hand backcourt. OU would win handily (no pun intended).

UNC is 10-6 since beginning the season 17-0 and almost lost to the University of South Dakota (not South Dakota State), a team that lost to Houston Baptist University. The Tar Heels are 5-4 on the road this year. This version of UNC wouldn't beat Oklahoma State, let alone Oklahoma.

Auburn essentially has a cake walk to the regional finals for a bout with Oklahoma.
 
6th

6th

Homer Fan Since 1985
#20
#20
I do not expect a major surprise in the Trenton bracket. UConn should sail through that one.

The Berkeley bracket will be fun, especially if I can get tickets for the 28th. :D I'm going Stanford all the way if they can get past Ohio State. Duke could be upset by Iowa State, assuming Tennessee does not upset teams along the way. :p I would like to see Pat Summitt's young girls get to Berkeley.
 
Monty'sBiggestFan

Monty'sBiggestFan

Starter
#21
#21
I don't think Rutgers can beat Oklahoma, I do think they can beat teams that are a danger to Oklahoma. Rutgers can get to the Sw16 thanks to the path created for them but they have to pull off their first upset to make that happen.

As for UNC...yeah, I'm aware of their record, but they've got something I think that can hurt Oklahoma and that's speed and athleticism. If they can find a couple of weeks of consistency, that's all it will take.

Hand might want to make a shot soon....
 
creative one

creative one

Bench
#22
#22
Monty'sBiggestFan said:
As for UNC...yeah, I'm aware of their record, but they've got something I think that can hurt Oklahoma and that's speed and athleticism. If they can find a couple of weeks of consistency, that's all it will take.
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All that "speed and athleticism" resulted in sloppy turnovers and losses down the stretch. They aren't the UNC of yesteryear. This group can't rebound, can't hang on to the ball, and lacks heart. If they make it to see the second weekend, they should consider themselves lucky (or blessed, depending on what you believe). Simply put, they aren't that good.

Hand might want to make a shot soon....
Click to expand...
Maybe it's best to wait until she's completely healthy first. I think we all know what she can do when she's on.
 
Monty'sBiggestFan

Monty'sBiggestFan

Starter
#23
#23
It's all about gelling right now, and it will be a matter of who figures themselves out and makes their run. I'll still find a matchup between UNC/OU interesting nonetheless, should it happen. And wouldn't be shocked if UNC won it.


I've seen Hand healthy and I agree, I'm just saying she might want to get healthy and her stroke back...soon.
 
creative one

creative one

Bench
#25
#25
So, you think beating a DII team by six points on your home floor in March would be considered "gelling at the right time"? Make no mistake about it. The University of South Dakota is NOT South Dakota State. The former lost to Houston Baptist University. They shouldn't be able to compete with UNC if UNC is a true contender (they aren't).
 
Monty'sBiggestFan

Monty'sBiggestFan

Starter
#27
#27
Come co-mingle with your fellow boardsters....

As the two local bay area schools take to the floor Saturday night for their first round matchups, a group of us have decided to get together at a local establishment in Natomas to watch...The tip off for Cal's game scheduled for 5pm with the Stanford game following shortly thereafter.

If you're interested in joining the fun, send me a pm for details.
 
Monty'sBiggestFan

Monty'sBiggestFan

Starter
#30
#30
Thank you Kia and Piph....but MAN, that team is an ulcer waiting to happen for anybody watching them. Should be a fun one Monday night.

Bracket made it through the first session of the morning with just one casualty (sorry ASU)...let's see how I get through the afternoon.
 
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