Guru's Musings: NCAA Bracket Thoughts on Maryland and Staley

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

Because most of the issues involving the NCAA Women’s Bracket have been given the thorough going-over, instead of piling on per se, the Guru offers a random sample of inner thoughts while trying to catch up to the conversation:

The Guru didn’t see the horde's spin out of UConn so this may already been addressed but if not, while all are offering sympathy to Maryland with a three seed and in UConn’s region, how about the reverse look.

Who can beat UConn? has been the mantra for the past week heading into the bracket announcement.

Maryland and Baylor have been the two most common answers because of the competitiveness of both teams’ games against the Huskies.

Well, Baylor can’t happen again until the Women’s Final Four in Dallas.

But Maryland? Whoa. Elite eight in Storrs.

In terms of getting to the Final Four, and the Guru hasn’t seen this phrase in discussion from the pundits, but whatever happen to the issue of protecting the No. 1 seed.

 On that issue alone, the third seeded Terrapins deserved to be elsewhere, not as much in this instance of meeting the eye test of most observers – as the AP final poll reflects – but as the ability to inflict damage.

Suppose the game becomes reality just when UConn suddenly suffers another Tulane moment at the same time that Brionna Jones, Shatori Walker-Kimbrough, and freshman Destiny Slocum get hot hands.

If that happens, it will be 1995 and Virginia vs. UConn in the same Gampel Pavilion in the Elite Eight all over again.

ACC/Big 10 Challenge

Not really that way, but of course Maryland could have other issues before any meeting with UConn in the form of second seeded Duke, no longer an ACC rival now that the Terrapins are in the Big 10.

Just 11 years ago in 2006 up north in Boston was the famous Duke/Maryland showdown that occurred in the TDBank Arena in Boston.

The Blue Devils have come roaring back into the field after missing the NCAA for the first time in a long time a year ago.

The omission caused as run on torches by the local townsfolk looking for the Duke administration to make a change.The Duke success this season has made the disgruntlement  fade to a back corner for now.

Another thought: At the first media day after the Terrapins moved from the ACC to the Big 10 they arrived as the conference favorite to win the league. What no one saw coming was while Maryland might be capable of aspiring the rest of the conference to raise to a new level, who’d believe the Big 10 would go the other way and pull the Terrapins down with them.

Who’s believe when Rutgers moved with Maryland into the conference instead of maintaining as an anchor in the game the Scarlet Knights would become a heavy anchor sinking many RPIs.

What Has the Committee Have Against Dawn Staley?

Now that the aforementioned Rutgers program has had problems making the NCAA field, depriving the committee of delivering the many sins coach C. Vivian Stringer believes they enjoy heaping upon her in seed and time zone placement, is South Carolina coach Dawn Staley the committee’s new whipping woman.

Seeing Staley’s face on TV and hearing her talk about the Gamecock’s potential trip to Stockton, Calif., to get through the Elite Eight is mindful of a similar look back in 2006.

Led by Candice Dupree the Owls had a landmark season, perhaps just slightly better than Temple’s current one. They swept the Big Five and dominated the Atlantic 10, perhaps slightly better than this one.

Their RPI had everyone clamoring for a fourth or fifth seed. But when the field was announced the Owls were sixth playing s very good Louisiana Tech squad seeded 11th at Storrs, Conn.

The moment came for Temple’s name to come up on the screen and the photographers were in place. As soon as the Owls were shown a big cheer rose up, then they saw the rest of it as the team lapsed into dead silence though a good lip reader could know what they were thinking.

And as for Staley, that same look appeared during interviews about South Carolina’s regional placement.

Say this. She knows how to fight for her players, which is good, right, especially if she has to do likewise later as the U.S. Olympic coach.

Now the committee changes and no one from 2006 is currently on this one. So unless someone left the descendants a book  on how to place Staley’s teams …

More to Come