19 days remain...
Showing posts with label Pacific. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pacific. Show all posts
Sunday, October 20, 2013
Friday, October 18, 2013
Countdown 10/18/13
21 days remain...
This guy is going to have a lot to do with how the Tigers' season goes.
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Countdown 9/1/13
69 days remain...
Today we'll get into some rebounding numbers for the first five teams, alphabetically, in the WCC.
Today we'll get into some rebounding numbers for the first five teams, alphabetically, in the WCC.
BYU: Last season the Cougars were 1st in the WCC with 35.5 RPG but were just 3rd in rebound rate, due in part to their fast pace (72.5 possessions/40 minutes, 1st WCC). The Cougars are losing the players responsible for 52.04% of last season's rebounds.
Friday, August 30, 2013
Countdown 8/30/13
71 days remain...
Pacific's roster is going to look a lot different this season (there were 7 seniors on last year's team). Unfortunately, these sophomores-to-be are not very experienced. Take a look at the stats.
Friday, August 9, 2013
Monday, July 1, 2013
Welcome Home, Pacific!
Today the University of the Pacific returns to the conference it helped found after a 40+ year absence. Take a look at the WCC Standings section on the left hand side of the site and you'll see ten teams listed. I wrote in detail about the move for Mid-Major Madness; the table shown above is taken from that article, which you can read in full here.
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Offseason Personnel Movement Around the WCC
The landscape of college basketball is ever-changing. Some of that change, conference realignment or selfish reasons for transferring, can be negative. Some though, like natural roster turnover due to graduation, is a necessary part of the college game. Regardless of whether the change is good or bad, we have to deal with it. Unfortunately, that can be really difficult. How are you supposed to keep track of players when so many are graduating, transferring in/out, coming off redshirts/redshirting or arriving for their first year at college?
Well, this is how. I've amassed all the information on the personnel movement happening at WCC basketball programs this offseason. It's all here, listed school-by-school. Take a look at who won't be back on your least favorite team next season (because you should already know who won't be back on your favorite team). You'll also find all the new recruits, the players who will be returning from a redshirt season or two year mission, the transfers, the dismissals as well as any coaching/staff changes. Plus, there are some charts to help you understand just how much each team is losing in terms of production.
Players listed under the "going" section are shown with the year they were listed as during the 2012-'13 season. Players listed under the "coming" section are shown with the year they will be for the 2013-'14 season.
Well, this is how. I've amassed all the information on the personnel movement happening at WCC basketball programs this offseason. It's all here, listed school-by-school. Take a look at who won't be back on your least favorite team next season (because you should already know who won't be back on your favorite team). You'll also find all the new recruits, the players who will be returning from a redshirt season or two year mission, the transfers, the dismissals as well as any coaching/staff changes. Plus, there are some charts to help you understand just how much each team is losing in terms of production.
Players listed under the "going" section are shown with the year they were listed as during the 2012-'13 season. Players listed under the "coming" section are shown with the year they will be for the 2013-'14 season.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
See You Next Year
Not 24 hours have passed since the final buzzer sounded and confetti streamed down from the rafters in the Orleans Arena. I'm already looking forward to next year. |
| The Orleans Arena between the 2013 Women's and Men's Championship Games. |
This year's WCC Tournament was the last in a few categories. It was the last nine team tournament. The last to feature the top seed protecting double-bye into the semifinals. It won't, however, be the last to take place at the Orleans Arena.
“I am very pleased that the West Coast Conference and The Orleans Arena have agreed to extend our partnership for the next three years,” WCC Commissioner Jamie Zaninovich said of the contract extension. The Orleans Arena will play host to the WCC Tournament through the 2016 season.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Thanksgiving Weekend's Second Act
Quick recaps of the WCC action from Friday, Saturday and Sunday. A more editorial, in depth look will follow as there is much to be learned from the Thanksgiving weekend action. The WCC went 7-4 during the Friday-Sunday span with every team taking the court in that time. Even future member Pacific got involved (and spoiled what was supposed to be an Orange County party).
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Countdown 9/29
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| Click for full size. |
40 days remain.
Today is my first day living in a new apartment. In the spirit of new homes today's countdown focuses on the Pacific Tigers. In approximately one year and 40 days the Tigers will be playing their first game as a WCC team. They've been a decent mid-major over the past decade but are currently in the midst of a downward trend that should follow them into their new WCC home.
Also, if you didn't know, Pacific was a founding member of the WCC back in 1952 before moving to the conference now known as the Big West in 1971 so this is more of a homecoming than a new home.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Bye Bye Double Bye
With the addition of the University of The Pacific for the 2013/2014 season the West Coast Conference will sit at 10 members. The addition of Brigham Young in 2011 necessitated a change in the conference tournament set up. The change wasn't much, just the addition of what was essentially a play-in game contested between the 8 and 9 seed. Now though, the WCC is making some more serious changes.
In a league, like the WCC of the recent past, where only one team (Gonzaga) played at a nationally competitive level, it was of the utmost importance for the league to make it as easy as possible for that team to win the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. If Gonzaga were to get upset in say, a first round game against the 8 seed (the tournament was held on a WCC campus until the 2009 edition when it moved to the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, so an 8 seed, at home, upsetting the Zags isn't too farfetched.) then their chances of an at large bid to the big dance would take a serious hit, regardless of how well they had played up to that point. Remember when Murray State lost it's first game of the season this past year and people began to wonder if another loss, possibly an early exit in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament, could or should exclude them from the big dance? Well, if the Zags lose early, miss out on an at large berth, and the WCC sends another team dancing, even the second best that year (remember, I'm talking about the WCC circa 2003 when the double bye was implemented and the second best team was pretty far from deserving of being called "best"), the level of interest in the WCC is seriously diminished from where it would be if Gonzaga was dancing.
To help prevent this from happening, the WCC adopted a double-bye for the top two seeds in 2003. This meant that for Gonzaga to win the WCC and get an automatic bid to the big dance, they needed only to win two tournament games. Even a loss, which happened twice, both times to San Diego in San Diego (see my point on upsets above), wouldn't look so bad as it could come no sooner than the tournament semis (Those two losses were in the finals, and the Zags received an at large bid both years so, kudos WCC administrators.)
Then, starting in 2005, Saint Mary's became nationally relevant, and the double bye became not just something that helped Gonzaga, but also helped the Gaels build their program. These two teams have met in six of the past nine WCC Tournament Championship games and including the past four straight. Now, while this helps them build programs, it also helps the league build it's brand. Because of the double-bye, the Gonzaga vs. Saint Mary's rivalry has become very big very fast.
But now, with 10 teams, the addition of another nationally relevant program in Brigham Young last season, and a steady improvement in the rest of the league, the WCC feels it no longer needs to protect the two best teams to ensure multiple bids to the big dance. So it's bye bye to the double bye and hello to a standard 10 team tournament format. That means it will take three wins to cut down the nets. The changes won't be implemented until the 2014 Tournament, so enjoy the double bye, or play in game, whichever you prefer, for one more season.
It's also worth noting that the last year of the double bye format is also the last year on the current contract with Orleans Arena. The WCC is currently exploring the option of moving to another venue and will announce if they're staying or going sometime later this summer.
In a league, like the WCC of the recent past, where only one team (Gonzaga) played at a nationally competitive level, it was of the utmost importance for the league to make it as easy as possible for that team to win the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. If Gonzaga were to get upset in say, a first round game against the 8 seed (the tournament was held on a WCC campus until the 2009 edition when it moved to the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, so an 8 seed, at home, upsetting the Zags isn't too farfetched.) then their chances of an at large bid to the big dance would take a serious hit, regardless of how well they had played up to that point. Remember when Murray State lost it's first game of the season this past year and people began to wonder if another loss, possibly an early exit in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament, could or should exclude them from the big dance? Well, if the Zags lose early, miss out on an at large berth, and the WCC sends another team dancing, even the second best that year (remember, I'm talking about the WCC circa 2003 when the double bye was implemented and the second best team was pretty far from deserving of being called "best"), the level of interest in the WCC is seriously diminished from where it would be if Gonzaga was dancing.
To help prevent this from happening, the WCC adopted a double-bye for the top two seeds in 2003. This meant that for Gonzaga to win the WCC and get an automatic bid to the big dance, they needed only to win two tournament games. Even a loss, which happened twice, both times to San Diego in San Diego (see my point on upsets above), wouldn't look so bad as it could come no sooner than the tournament semis (Those two losses were in the finals, and the Zags received an at large bid both years so, kudos WCC administrators.)
Then, starting in 2005, Saint Mary's became nationally relevant, and the double bye became not just something that helped Gonzaga, but also helped the Gaels build their program. These two teams have met in six of the past nine WCC Tournament Championship games and including the past four straight. Now, while this helps them build programs, it also helps the league build it's brand. Because of the double-bye, the Gonzaga vs. Saint Mary's rivalry has become very big very fast.
But now, with 10 teams, the addition of another nationally relevant program in Brigham Young last season, and a steady improvement in the rest of the league, the WCC feels it no longer needs to protect the two best teams to ensure multiple bids to the big dance. So it's bye bye to the double bye and hello to a standard 10 team tournament format. That means it will take three wins to cut down the nets. The changes won't be implemented until the 2014 Tournament, so enjoy the double bye, or play in game, whichever you prefer, for one more season.
It's also worth noting that the last year of the double bye format is also the last year on the current contract with Orleans Arena. The WCC is currently exploring the option of moving to another venue and will announce if they're staying or going sometime later this summer.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
University of Pacific to Join WCC in 2013
The WCC had been able to avoid the mess of realignment for 30 years until adding Brigham Young this past season. BYU was a good addition, especially for the bread and butter of the conference, basketball. Now though the conference has joined in the craze of destructive realignment.
I cover WCC basketball so I don't know too much about Pacific's competitiveness in other sports. I do know however that without basketball the WCC is on the level of the Sun Belt, Atlantic Sun or SWAC, small and unimportant.
Pacific had a solid couple seasons in the mid 2000's. From 2004-2006 they made the NCAA tournament. They won one game in the first two years. The Tigers haven't been back since and have only one other time (1997) in the 30 years of WCC stability I mentioned earlier.
This season the Tigers won 11 of 30 games played. They finished 7th in the 9 team Big West. Stat guru Ken Pomeroy has the Tigers ranked at 286 out of 345 D-1 teams. Pepperdine, the lowest ranked WCC team, sits at 289th. Pacific lost to the Santa Clara Broncos who went win-less in the WCC.
I could go on and on about just how bad the Pacific Tigers are. I won't, I think I've proven that point. After the jump I'll explain why this is a horrible move by the WCC. Once again, I'm talking about basketball here.
I cover WCC basketball so I don't know too much about Pacific's competitiveness in other sports. I do know however that without basketball the WCC is on the level of the Sun Belt, Atlantic Sun or SWAC, small and unimportant.
Pacific had a solid couple seasons in the mid 2000's. From 2004-2006 they made the NCAA tournament. They won one game in the first two years. The Tigers haven't been back since and have only one other time (1997) in the 30 years of WCC stability I mentioned earlier.
This season the Tigers won 11 of 30 games played. They finished 7th in the 9 team Big West. Stat guru Ken Pomeroy has the Tigers ranked at 286 out of 345 D-1 teams. Pepperdine, the lowest ranked WCC team, sits at 289th. Pacific lost to the Santa Clara Broncos who went win-less in the WCC.
I could go on and on about just how bad the Pacific Tigers are. I won't, I think I've proven that point. After the jump I'll explain why this is a horrible move by the WCC. Once again, I'm talking about basketball here.
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