demone

A few thoughts: I have to give the fellas credit - I predicted a closer game and while NU certainly had some challenges on the offensive end, they did score 75. I will watch again but it seemed like the back cuts were there a lot today and NU rarely took advantage. Way too much dribbling and standing around. Man, that was a difficult game to watch. Illinois plays a style that makes you want to poke your eyes out. NU’s defense was solid all day - something I hope this team continues to bring each night. I’m not sure we won’t see Harris as the #2 PG fairly soon - he played well today and I don’t know how comfortable I am with TA playing extended minutes at point. I know Borchardt doesn’t offer a lot of firepower offensively, but he was open in the post several times today and NU didn’t even look his way. A common theme unfortunately: the officiating was awful once again. The inconsistency makes watching college basketball a chore at times. All in all, a good performance under the circumstances and a good start to conference season.

Nebraska 77 Minnesota 70

Nebraska 73 Illinois 63 11 wins

Yep...I did too...will be very happy to be wrong if this holds up.

Exactly what I would think Clemson wants - slow game, a lot of half court and zero rhythm. Not inspiring a lot of confidence at this point.

What a freakin joke - get kicked in the face and get a T. Another reminder of why it is so difficult to watch CBB any more. The officiating is consistently awful.

Found a pretty good write up about these rankings here: https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/release-of-first-net-rankings-creates-more-questions-than-answers-when-ncaa-keeps-formula-a-secret/ While it doesn't give specific details or how these metrics are being used, at least it provides an idea of what is being measured. As noted by Husker Actuary above, Palm seems to think the "cap" on scoring margin is rendered basically meaningless because there is no such cap on OE & DE.

Clemson 69 Nebraska 62

NU 82 WI 60

Pretty much hate everything about what happened in this game tonight. Reminded me too much of what I've been watching for the past 15+ years.

Ain't just the casual fan...it's crossed my mind as well.

NU 76 TT 68 4

Wasn't thrilled with the way we were "chucking" from 3 in the 1st half. Got much better shot selection in the 2nd half. Wish Roby would play with more aggression like he did toward the end of the 2nd half. When he does, he can be really powerful. JPJ's outside shot is just off. Not sure why but his rhythm is all over the place. Starting to think the straw that will stir this drink in 2018-19 is Isaac Copeland. Not flashy but man is he some kind of glue for this team.

NU 80 MO St 69

NU 77 SH 66

NU - 83 SELA - 65

I hope you are right, but Palmer is a senior so I'm not sure how he is "just growing into his body". Regardless, I never said the sky was falling but simply said my expectations are tempered somewhat.

One of the things that has been gnawing at me since the end of last season - did Palmer cap out last year? My gut tells me that he doesn't have a much higher ceiling than what he showed a year ago. And don't get me wrong, he had a really good year for Nebraska. But given the strength of coaching in the B1G, will he be able to even match that production when teams are scheming to stop him? If not, who will pick up the slack? I could be completely wrong and he may have a whole lot more upside. But that one question has tempered things a bit for me. I still think we are in for a good year, I'm just not sure how good.

Ha not too concerned about MVSU - was referring more to the win totals.

NU - 79 MVSU - 52 9 Non-con wins 21 Overall wins Would love to be wrong on the good side but have a few concerns that keep me from being wildly optimistic.

April 3 at 10:00 am CDT.

Definitely appreciate all of the effort in running this thread - I continue to demonstrate a consistent ability to be very, very mediocre at anything that resembles making a prediction about sporting events.

This is an interesting topic and boy, do I have some mixed feelings: I like the AQ but have always wondered why the AQ bid is given to the conference tourney winner vs. the regular season winner. I think you prove yourself more over the course of the conference season vs. getting hot for a 3-4 days to win the conference tourney. This, of course, only truly works out if you have a 'balanced' schedule. I also like the smaller schools having a chance to get in and do some damage. Buffalo is just the latest example from last night. Could you do a moderate expansion to say, 80 without going all the way to 128? Perhaps expand the "play-in" round to 16 teams (4 per region) and make it a 4-team playoff to get into each regional?

1. I like the idea of quarters, but the 1-game we have experienced is not enough to know whether it actually makes the men's game better. 2. Wider lane & 20-second reset was really not noticeable to me. 3. The longer 3-point shot is a good addition, provided you have a team with shooters. (We need to be careful what we wish for here).

Combine that game with South Daum-kota State getting 7.5 and losing by 8...well that's how my day has gone...