Our ballroom for the dance is...

[gmartin]

Suzy thought leaving EMU to go to MSU meant she would not face Coach Miller. Second time in two years.

[gmartin]

On a side note, look at all the bids coming out for the mid-majors. Teams like Hartford, Temple, Fresno State, Green Bay all getting in as at-larges. Looks like the committee is starting to repent a bit after screwing teams like us over year after year. I'll have to count them all up later.

EDIT: Forgot Arkansas-Little Rock. No way did I see them making it.

Very interesting. Surprised a bit by Hartford getting in as at-large but their body of work schedule wise is probably a lot better than ours to say the least. All we needed to do is prolly beat at least St. Bonnie and either Marist or Hartford and maybe we could've gotten one. BTW, Suzie Merchant has got to be *hitting herself right now at her draw.

Last week Hartford RPI and SOS was in the 20's. Our RPI was in the 50's and SOS, well, we will leave it at that. I have no problem with Hartford getting in.

[AyZiggy97]

MSU is on a roll. Including winning 12 of its last 13, including beating OSU in Columbus. Other common opponents that we each beat would be Western Michigan and Detroit.

Going to be a tough game. MSU has a 6'9 center than will eat up Breske inside. However MSU does not guard the 3 point line very well so that could be a plus for us.

ON A DOWNSIDE, MSU likes to do a lot of full court pressing and we all know how well we handle the press. I think Coach Miller will have these girls ready and I think we will pull this out. Suzy Merchant has not seen the last of BG.

BG 77
MSU 66

She's tall, obviously, but if Tara can push her away from the basket it can be negated. DeHaan is stronger than she looks, but not similar to Breske.

[vwfalcon]

I think Tara is going to need to hit some deeper jump shots and take them with confidence to get DeHaan away from the rim... If we can stretch them and not allow them to collapse the lane we will have a punchers chance at this game.

[Bleeding Orange]

I think the most important thing we all need to remember is that we have almost 5 full days of the following:

I saw today that a Senate candidate in CT named a yacht after her.

Best of luck to this team on Saturday. So proud of their effort this year, and especially how they closed out the season. MSU may be on a roll right now, but don't forget that we are, too.

GO FALCONS!

[gmartin]

Punchers chance?? I like our chances alot in this game. I like our chances even more against Kentucky. If we can bring our game like we played Miami and make our foul shots like we are capable of doing then I plan on seeing BG facing Nebraska in the Sweet 16!

Just remember, we are also 3 hours closer to Lexington so I am going to say we may have a bigger crowd and I think we will have the Kentucky fans on our side as well.

[Falconboy]

MSU is on a roll. Including winning 12 of its last 13, including beating OSU in Columbus. Other common opponents that we each beat would be Western Michigan and Detroit.

Going to be a tough game. MSU has a 6'9 center than will eat up Breske inside. However MSU does not guard the 3 point line very well so that could be a plus for us.

ON A DOWNSIDE, MSU likes to do a lot of full court pressing and we all know how well we handle the press. I think Coach Miller will have these girls ready and I think we will pull this out. Suzy Merchant has not seen the last of BG.

BG 77
MSU 66

She's tall, obviously, but if Tara can push her away from the basket it can be negated. DeHaan is stronger than she looks, but not similar to Breske.

Matchups like this is what I mean by we had distinct advantages during the Ali Mann , Honneger years in that we had very good 3pt shooting forwards and centers in Ali and Liz. A good 3pt shooting center can pull the gigantuan Dehann away from the basket allowing Tamika and Lo to penetrate with not as much of a desperation attempt. Yes, Breske is quite physical has very good athleticism and packs some muscle but not sure how much that will even matter with the 9in. in height disparity. If Breske were say at least a legit 6'3 or 6'4 she could make things alot tougher for Dehann offensively and defensivley, but Breske's greatest chance to effect the game would be if she could hit some outside shots making Dehann vacate the paint. MSU beating OSU at their place is pretty impressive and this MSU team has to be much better than last version we faced. I still think MSU is beatable but it will again always depend on our outside shooting percentage, especially from 3 land.

[BigGibber]

I believe MSU plays a lot of zone with DeHaan clogging up the middle. That will take away our drive to the basket/get to the foul line game that Lo and Tamika excel at but it could open up our 3-point game. We may have to go deep into the bench running Tara, Jen, Maggie, Kelly, Chelsea and Allison out to pound on DeHaan, hope she gets in foul trouble. She also has been experiencing back spasms lately that has kept her out of entire halfs of games.

[Jacobs4Heisman]

Dehaan is a tough matchup, and we'll need to hit our 3s and play great defense to win. If we shoot like we did in the first two rounds of the MAC tourney, I like our chances. If we shoot like we did in the final, we lose.

[bgsufalcon24]

Dehaan is a tough matchup, and we'll need to hit our 3s and play great defense to win. If we shoot like we did in the first two rounds of the MAC tourney, I like our chances. If we shoot like we did in the final, we lose.

J4H, you're right on. Against a team with a superior post like DeHaan, it really does come down to outside shooting. If we make em, we're looking good. If they aren't going down, our only shot will be to play exemplary defense for 40 minutes, which is a tough thing to do against an upper level BCS conference team.

[BGSUVA]

I wish I could get out there to support my old school, but since I can't, can you all that are going stay for the second game (you are paying for two after all, might as well get your $$$ worth) and pull for my current school Liberty?

[Rollo83]

The only thing I don't like about the matchup is Suzy Merchant. I wish we could face an opponent that didn't know Curt and our system so well. Is there another coach in the 64 team field that has already spent hours breaking down tape of a Curt Miller team? I think that gives her a big advantage.

Consequently, Curt has spent a lot of time reviewing teams Suzy has coached at Eastern Michigan. Not sure if she's coaching the same style in the Big Ten as she used in the MAC?

Overall I could have picked far tougher first round opponents for us, so I am not upset with MSU...just wish Suzy wasn't on the bench.

[Flipper]

Dehannn has been struggling with a back injury this month.....

[i zig a zoomba]

I think this is a decent draw for us... not too far, and with a familiar opponent. Didn't really expect anything higher than a 12, but if we could have beat Hartford and Marist, I wonder what our seed would've been. Can't wait for the game...

[OSUFALCON]

The only thing I don't like about the matchup is Suzy Merchant. I wish we could face an opponent that didn't know Curt and our system so well. Is there another coach in the 64 team field that has already spent hours breaking down tape of a Curt Miller team? I think that gives her a big advantage.

Consequently, Curt has spent a lot of time reviewing teams Suzy has coached at Eastern Michigan. Not sure if she's coaching the same style in the Big Ten as she used in the MAC?

Overall I could have picked far tougher first round opponents for us, so I am not upset with MSU...just wish Suzy wasn't on the bench.

Suzy is one hot looking coach! Very easy on the eyes!