Well, looks like Miami ran out of luck

[rsvman]

Digger Phelps just picked them to win the National Championship.



Oh, well. Sorry, Miami fans. Guess it was fun while it lasted.

[Newton_14]

Digger Phelps just picked them to win the National Championship.



Oh, well. Sorry, Miami fans. Guess it was fun while it lasted.


Doomed I tell you, they are doomed! Kiss of death!

[NYBri]

Second round...max.

[oldnavy]

Ouch!! Wonder if he uses an orange or green highliter???

But, I can think of worse things than Miami winning it all. It would be a nice validation for Jim Larranaga, he seems like an OK guy to me.

[ChrisP]

Miami will not win the National Championship this year. Mark it down. Take it to the bank. Count on it. Note that I'm not saying that they don't have the talent or potential to win it (because they certainly do). But programs like Miami just don't win it all in March.

I'm not saying this just because Digger picked them - although that alone should be very troubling to UM fans - but Miami ain't gonna win it all. After selection Sunday, I'll fill out my brackets and I'll pick them to go far (just like I did FSU last year) and then...they'll flame out early. Hear me now and believe me later - UM won't be cutting down the nets at the end.

I like Larranaga, too and hope he does well in the future, but Reggie Johnson's taunting antics after big wins this year make him a punk in my eyes and that, right there, is reason enough for me to hope they flame out early and don't even sniff the Final Four.

[wilko]

Oh goodie.
I've been waiting for the wheels to fall off their wagon.....

[Kedsy]

But programs like Miami just don't win it all in March.

What are "programs like Miami"? Smallish private schools have won. Football schools from Florida have won. Schools under potential minor NCAA violation clouds have won. Schools that hadn't done much recently but had a lot of seniors have won. I don't understand your statement.

[Duke09]

Miami will not win the National Championship this year. Mark it down. Take it to the bank. Count on it. Note that I'm not saying that they don't have the talent or potential to win it (because they certainly do). But programs like Miami just don't win it all in March.


Way to go out on a limb there. The odds are overwhelming against any one team winning. Miami's chances can't be better than 10%. But someone has to win

[Olympic Fan]

What are "programs like Miami"? Smallish private schools have won. Football schools from Florida have won. Schools under potential minor NCAA violation clouds have won. Schools that hadn't done much recently but had a lot of seniors have won. I don't understand your statement.

How about a school that has never before been to the NCAA Tournament?

I know that Miami has been in the past ... the distant past. But for all the sixth-year and fifth-year seniors on this team, there's not one current Miami player who has ever appeared in the NCAA Tournament.

I don't know -- I'm just asking -- when was the last time a team without any NCAA experience won it all? Or even made it to the Final Four? Even VCU and Butler in their recent FF runs were tourneu-tested teams.

[ChrisP]

What are "programs like Miami"? Smallish private schools have won. Football schools from Florida have won. Schools under potential minor NCAA violation clouds have won. Schools that hadn't done much recently but had a lot of seniors have won. I don't understand your statement.

The reason I said what I did is because Miami has virtually no basketball tradition. In the past 25 years, the only "smallish private schools" that have won it all are spelled D-U-K-E. In the past 30 years, there have been two others, Georgetown ('84) and then 'Nova ('85). The only "football schools from Florida" that have won is actually A school. Florida won twice in back-to-back to fashion in 2006 & 2007 with what was essentially the same team both years. I'm not going to look up the stats for schools under "potential minor NCAA violation clouds" or try to find data on senior-laden teams without much recent success. I am going by my gut. And my gut tells me Miami will not win the NCAA championship in men's basketball this year.

[ChrisP]

Way to go out on a limb there. The odds are overwhelming against any one team winning. Miami's chances can't be better than 10%. But someone has to win

I swear, some people on this board just seem to want to argue or pick fights. Obviously, someone has to win (thanks for clearing that up for me). But it won't be Miami. Call it a hunch. Call it whatever you like. But they won't win the whole thing. And I wasn't trying to "go out on a limb" and make some bold prediction. I was just commenting on the fact that teams like Miami (no bball tradition, small, private school, football school) rarely win the men's championship in D-1 basketball.

[jv001]

It's over, turn out the lights. Digger kills another teams chances. GoDuke!

[Kedsy]

I don't know -- I'm just asking -- when was the last time a team without any NCAA experience won it all? Or even made it
to the Final Four? Even VCU and Butler in their recent FF runs were tourneu-tested teams.

Well, I'm too lazy to test this thoroughly, but the last such Final Four team I can find is George Mason in 2006... coached by Jim Larranaga.

I can also remember 1979 Indiana State, off the top of my head. I'm sure there've been others. It's probably been awhile since we've had a champion who hadn't been to the Dance in the previous three years.

However, the juniors and seniors on VCU's Final Four team had played exactly one game (first round loss in 2009) in the NCAA tournament. Not sure I'd call that "tourney-tested." I'm too lazy to test this thoroughly, but I don't think it's so uncommon for a team with one tournament game (in three years) under their belt to make the Final Four (e.g., Georgia Tech in 2004).

[NashvilleDevil]

If a certain Hick from French Lick wasn't on that Indiana St team then I think you'd be right about the Sycamores.

[Cameron]

I hope they do. Go win it for the ACC, Miami.