Thursday, February 12, 2009

Mick Speaks Out

It was a very entertaining media session Thursday afternoon. Just as U.C. Head Coach Mick Cronin was about to wrap up, I asked him if his mind had changed at all about how many Big East teams should make the NCAA. He asked what the latest projections were showing, and when he learned some had 8 Big East teams, and Joe Lunardi's ESPN bracketology 7, then things heated up. Mick said, "I would tell Joe Lunardi he needs to buy the ESPN Full Court package." After a couple of chuckles from the media, Mick continued. "You're telling me Syracuse wouldn't win the Atlantic-10? Does somebody want to give me that answer? I'd like to have that argument with somebody. Will you tell me Syracuse, with their McDonald's All-Americans and their talent would not win the Atlantic 10? So how many are they going to have from that conference, or Conference USA? They're (Syracuse) in 8th in our conference. For us to not at least get 8 this year is only a by-product of us beating up on each other and being penalized for us for having too good of a conference. With all due respect to the teams that are getting ranked that are sliding into the top 25, they're not playing and taking the losses that the teams that have dropped out from the Big East, they're not playing the same teams."
Lunardi has Syracuse making the field, but Cincinnati and Georgetown among the first 4 to miss the field. The whole "how good is the Big East" issue is really heating up nationally. When Louisville's Terrence Williams was asked if the Big East is better than the A.C.C. , The Sporting News quotes Williams as saying, "Look how physical we are. The ACC, that's not physical. Our last-place team in the Big East could win in the ACC. We're the toughest conference." U.C. probably needs 3 more grab a spot in the NCAA. Pitt, Louisville, West VA., Syracuse, So. Florida, and Seton Hall remain. It's not a stretch for the Cats to pull it off.

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