I knew that it would only be a day for an article like this

[HockeyShock]

Here is the deal...there are some minor stretches, but stay with me.

We beat Virginia, thus a 3-1 noncon record.

Wsu game yesterday against chaminade doesn't count for anything and won't be recognized by the NCAA.

Anytime you have decisions based by subjective means rather than objective (e.g.: selection committee vs. auto-bid) then things like this do count for something.

Just sayin'.

:clap: :wsu_posters: :yahoo: :clap:

[DUShock]

THe Shocks lost a game they should not have therefore they have dug themselves a hole. Fortunately a win tonight and taking care of business the rest of the season will resolve much of the uncertainty.

Go Shocks!!!!

[ShockerFever]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

[Kung Wu]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

If, and that's a HUGE "if", UConn wins tonight then the loss is all but forgotten. It will be a "quality loss" (whatever that means) by the selection committee. We need UConn to step up tonight.

[shock-it-to-me]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

Sad but 100% true.

[ShockerFever]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

If, and that's a HUGE "if", UConn wins tonight then the loss is all but forgotten. It will be a "quality win" (whatever that means) by the selection committee. We need UConn to step up tonight.

Yeah you're gonna have to explain that one to me. How is a loss a quality win?

And besides, it still doesn't change the fact that Chaminade and Virginia don't help the resume.

[Kung Wu]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

If, and that's a HUGE "if", UConn wins tonight then the loss is all but forgotten. It will be a "quality win" (whatever that means) by the selection committee. We need UConn to step up tonight.

Yeah you're gonna have to explain that one to me. How is a loss a quality win?

And besides, it still doesn't change the fact that Chaminade and Virginia don't help the resume.

Meant loss but stupid iPhone too hard to edit crap.

Right Chaminade win was worthless. Virginia win hardly noticable. But barely losing to UConn won't hurt as bad as we all thought if they beat Mich. St. and Kentucky. However the chances of that are super slim.

[SHOXAAC]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

If, and that's a HUGE "if", UConn wins tonight then the loss is all but forgotten. It will be a "quality win" (whatever that means) by the selection committee. We need UConn to step up tonight.

Yeah you're gonna have to explain that one to me. How is a loss a quality win?

And besides, it still doesn't change the fact that Chaminade and Virginia don't help the resume.

Meant loss but stupid iPhone too hard to edit crap.

Right Chaminade win was worthless. Virginia win hardly noticable. But barely losing to UConn won't hurt as bad as we all thought if they beat Mich. St. and Kentucky. However the chances of that are super slim.

No, we don't have to sneak in the top-25. Yes, we have to play well. I put it in another thread. We go 12-2 in noncon (meaning we take care of business at home & win either at SDSU (preferred), or at LSU (more likely). Finish 14-4, or 15-3 in the Valley. Get to the championship game in STL and lose, we still finish 28-7 or 29-6. That scenerio will put us, if not in the top-25, somewhere in the discussion. It will be good enough. If not, I like carp with my crow. It would have looked good to beat UConn, but it didn't happen. It wasn't like we were this big favorite. That loss won't kill us.

[ShockTalk]

I'm not sure that a loss to UConn wasn't the next best thing to winning the tourney. If they continue to school #9 Kentucky, after just beating #2 Mich St., they will surely be ranked in the top 15, if not the top 10. Yea, they probably won't stay there (I reserve the right to take that back), but it will still be a loss to a quality team.

[ShockerFever]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

If, and that's a HUGE "if", UConn wins tonight then the loss is all but forgotten. It will be a "quality win" (whatever that means) by the selection committee. We need UConn to step up tonight.

Yeah you're gonna have to explain that one to me. How is a loss a quality win?

And besides, it still doesn't change the fact that Chaminade and Virginia don't help the resume.

Meant loss but stupid iPhone too hard to edit crap.

Right Chaminade win was worthless. Virginia win hardly noticable. But barely losing to UConn won't hurt as bad as we all thought if they beat Mich. St. and Kentucky. However the chances of that are super slim.

No, we don't have to sneak in the top-25. Yes, we have to play well. I put it in another thread. We go 12-2 in noncon (meaning we take care of business at home & win either at SDSU (preferred), or at LSU (more likely). Finish 14-4, or 15-3 in the Valley. Get to the championship game in STL and lose, we still finish 28-7 or 29-6. That scenerio will put us, if not in the top-25, somewhere in the discussion. It will be good enough. If not, I like carp with my crow. It would have looked good to beat UConn, but it didn't happen. It wasn't like we were this big favorite. That loss won't kill us.

That smells like Illinois State in 2008, especially if you take the not-win-at-SDSU option. SDSU has become a must-win.

[SHOXAAC]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

If, and that's a HUGE "if", UConn wins tonight then the loss is all but forgotten. It will be a "quality win" (whatever that means) by the selection committee. We need UConn to step up tonight.

Yeah you're gonna have to explain that one to me. How is a loss a quality win?

And besides, it still doesn't change the fact that Chaminade and Virginia don't help the resume.

Meant loss but stupid iPhone too hard to edit crap.

Right Chaminade win was worthless. Virginia win hardly noticable. But barely losing to UConn won't hurt as bad as we all thought if they beat Mich. St. and Kentucky. However the chances of that are super slim.

No, we don't have to sneak in the top-25. Yes, we have to play well. I put it in another thread. We go 12-2 in noncon (meaning we take care of business at home & win either at SDSU (preferred), or at LSU (more likely). Finish 14-4, or 15-3 in the Valley. Get to the championship game in STL and lose, we still finish 28-7 or 29-6. That scenerio will put us, if not in the top-25, somewhere in the discussion. It will be good enough. If not, I like carp with my crow. It would have looked good to beat UConn, but it didn't happen. It wasn't like we were this big favorite. That loss won't kill us.

That smells like Illinois State in 2008, especially if you take the not-win-at-SDSU option. SDSU has become a must-win.

SDSU might be 15th by the time we play them. We lose that game, play like I projected, finish 28-7 and lose to Creighton or MSU in the title game. We will be dancing. Don't panic. Plus, I don't know this as fact, but my logic tells me that the 2008 ISU-red team wasn't talked about as a top-25 team before the season even started. Just sayin!!!

[ShockTalk]

SF - I still believe that last year, losing to Pitt and Utah St, did less damage to our dance card than the losses to Drake and Evansville. Win those two games and we would have been 27-7 and in. Even if we had won one of the Pitt/Utah St games, I'm still not sure we'd gotten in because of those bad losses. We MUST take care of business and not have that kind of let down this year.

[The Mad Hatter]

The thing that killed that Illinois State team wasn't just their non-conference issues, it was failing to win the regular season and being beat down by 30 in the MVC tournament final.

If Illinois State had won the Valley regular season and lost in the final by a reasonable margin, it could have been a very different story.

[Aargh]

The committee usually seems to give some weight to "at least they scheduled them" on losses to other teams in the tourney.

That's how UConn can end up being a "good loss".

I certainly would have preferred that game would have resulted in a "good win" - even if it had been followed with two "good losses".

A bubble team that has scheduled up always seems to get preference over a bubble team that hasn't taken some scheduling risks.

I've had WSU at 16-2 in the Valley since I first took a look at what the other teams had. That was before the absolute "self-destructo" play exhibited by many Valley teams so far.

I've got WSU sweeping CU - Echinique will only have played with the team for about a month when we run into them in Omaha. Hopefully, Cu will still be working out how to work him m into the lineup then.

I also have WSU sweeping MSU by beating them in Springfield on their Sr. Night. MSU is short on depth. WSU should have fairly fresh legs late in the season. MSU should not.

Any loss to a Valley team other than CU, MSU, or UNI (road or home) probably punches a ticket to the NIT - or worse.

[AG1219]

Everybody knew about 8 months in advance that the UConn game was gonna make or break our potential NCAA at-large lives. The players, coach, and us fans all knew this.

A couple of wins to finish the trip is nice but they certainly aren't wins to pad the resume with.

We choked our chance. It's true. The only way now we see an at-large is if we roll through a big winning streak and sneak into the Top 25. We have to beat San Diego State and likely not lose more than 3 Valley games. That's the position we've put ourselves in now.

It sucks but that's what happens when you blow your best opportunity, an opportunity that you had known months about.

If, and that's a HUGE "if", UConn wins tonight then the loss is all but forgotten. It will be a "quality win" (whatever that means) by the selection committee. We need UConn to step up tonight.

Yeah you're gonna have to explain that one to me. How is a loss a quality win?

And besides, it still doesn't change the fact that Chaminade and Virginia don't help the resume.

Meant loss but stupid iPhone too hard to edit crap.

Right Chaminade win was worthless. Virginia win hardly noticable. But barely losing to UConn won't hurt as bad as we all thought if they beat Mich. St. and Kentucky. However the chances of that are super slim.

No, we don't have to sneak in the top-25. Yes, we have to play well. I put it in another thread. We go 12-2 in noncon (meaning we take care of business at home & win either at SDSU (preferred), or at LSU (more likely). Finish 14-4, or 15-3 in the Valley. Get to the championship game in STL and lose, we still finish 28-7 or 29-6. That scenerio will put us, if not in the top-25, somewhere in the discussion. It will be good enough. If not, I like carp with my crow. It would have looked good to beat UConn, but it didn't happen. It wasn't like we were this big favorite. That loss won't kill us.

That smells like Illinois State in 2008, especially if you take the not-win-at-SDSU option. SDSU has become a must-win.

Fever, would UNI have been an at large last year had they lost to us in the final? I ask this because they lost to Depaul in opening round of their exempt tourney, then played two less than steller teams on consolation side. (similar to us except UCONN is much better than BE doormat Depaul)

Their best noncon win could arguably be at big 12 doormat ISU outside of bracketbuster win (we don't know our opp yet)

They won the MVC (which most considered weak, maybe not as weak as this year, but still weak) They lost to MVC doormat EU.

Do you really feel that the @SDSU game is a must win?