These rankings aren't just who I would strictly want the Jayhawks to play in the Dance. It is a combination of how high they are seeded (so when we would see them) and the percentage chance that we can come out victorious. I have mixed in some teams who have very high seeds (Ohio State and Pitt both 2's) and mid-range seeds (lowest is Notre Dame's 8 seed). Without furthur ado, here is my recap of the #10 team I would want to see in our bracket, the Ohio State Buckeyes.
The Rundown:
Record: 25-3
Coaches Poll: #1
AP Poll: #2
RPI: #3
Offensive Efficiency (Adjusted): 3rd
Defensive Efficiency (Adjusted): 18th
Bracketology: 2 Seed
Bracketography: 2 Seed
Bracket Project: 2 Seed
Blog to Check Out: Around the Oval
Why I Want To See Them
I'm not a big fan of statistics in basketball, but I do trust simple things like offensive and defensive efficiency. With those ratings, why would I want to see them on our quarter of the 64 team tournament? Reason #'s 1, 2 and 3 is because I think they are the worst team (besides another member that will show up later on the list) in the first 2 seed lines. In other words, they are OVERRATED. I try not to use that word too often, but I think it applies when you are talking about the Oden-led Buckeyes. Oden is a great player, probably a Top 5 big guy in the country, but is nowhere near as good as the Worldwide Leader (and namely Dicky V) say he is. The most valuable player so far this season for Ohio State, at least in my opinion, is Oden's former high school teammate Mike Conley Jr. This kid is amazing, having shot well from 3 point range and setting the Ohio State freshman record for assists in a season already, with a couple of games left.
Our Gameplan Against Them
The extent of my knowledge is mostly based off of last night's game, a narrow win over Big 11 bottom feeder Penn State, but the way to stop Ohio State is, get this, make Greg Oden beat you. The thing that kills you is the fast break and their 3 point shooting, both things that win you games in March. We hardly ever allow fast break points, so we should be able to handle that part of the game, but the 3 point shooting of Conley Jr., Ron Lewis and Dequean Cook could kill us. Make sure they don't get an open look from outside and let Sasha, Darrell, Darnell and even Julian all have a chance at Oden. If you get him off of the block, while easier said than done, he isn't near the player although he will probably have a better mid-range game once his wrist is all healed (whether it will or not by when we would face them is debatable). Still, I wouldn't be as angry if we lost because the man-child had 25 and 15 as if we gave up 15 3 point shots to lose.
That had two WAY too long paragraphs, hopefully I'll figure out a way to clean it up by #9.
Rock Chalk!