NCAA 2023 Brackets

Donate To GopherHole
cloupher said:
Absolute beatdown after that. Congrats Wenaas on the title. She had a great championship game.
Click to expand...
Did she?

I wasn't able to watch much but saw it was a Texas sweep.

Thought I had been reading that Wenaas hadn't really done much for Texas this year.
 


The Big Ten is not so Big. Texas knows how to get players from the transfer portal.
 

4EverAGopher said:
Did not catch the first set, but I don't need to. I can see that Texas is in full command of this Championship. They more or less picked up where they left off with Wisconsin.

Wenaas played one of ther best matches for the season. Glad she can share this title with her teammates. I am hoping O'Neal can make our Olympic team next year. Both her and Skinner displayed how to serve your opponent off the court. Skinner is a phenominal OH. I recommend everybody watching Texas' loss to Long Beach State, their first match of the season. A complete turn a round for this team.

Serve receive....now we can all see just how important it is. Unfortunately, these four programs in the Final Four will all still benefit from top recruits moving forward.
Click to expand...
Happy for Wenass and glad Texas took out Booth and badgers in the semifinals. Texas could be a 3 peat with Skinner coming back next year. She is a phenomenal player.
 

Nipomo 56 said:
Happy for Wenass and glad Texas took out Booth and badgers in the semifinals. Texas could be a 3 peat with Skinner coming back next year. She is a phenomenal player.
Click to expand...
Her serves are wicked. Nebraska was really struggling to receive and pass them, especially in that third set.
 


walleye said:
The Big Ten is not so Big. Texas knows how to get players from the transfer portal.
Click to expand...
Big ten usually has two teams in the final four. I would say the conference is still the best conference. Texas was the best team this year, no doubt.
 

Reminder....History was almost rewritten. Tennessee was up 23-20 in the 4th set vs Texas and up in sets 2-1. They just collapsed and could not put it together in that set nor in the fifth. With this come from behind victory, it was certainly the turning point for Texas in this entire tournament. It was in this match where that serving pressure started for them.

John Cook is doing his post match trash talk like he has been known to. He has a bench full of players waiting to get playing time with more recruits coming in for 2024. He did bring in RS Beason from Florida and he will go back to the portal, if he deems it necessary.

There is no doubt in my mind teams like Wisconsin, Pitt and Penn State who have benefited from the portal a lot, will continue that trend for this next season. Yes, in this case, the rich will get richer.
 

MplsGopher said:
Did she?

I wasn't able to watch much but saw it was a Texas sweep.

Thought I had been reading that Wenaas hadn't really done much for Texas this year.
Click to expand...
I think she was their second best player in terms of kill/point statistics.

Good for Wenaas. I always knew she was a great person to have on the U of M campus and on the Gopher volleyball roster.
 

In some ways hindsight would say we should’ve kept Wenaas and shown Landfair the transfer portal door.

Of course no one would have predicted that she’d go from POY 3ro OH to a below average 6ro OH.
 



Landfair played 6 ro last year when she was POY.
MplsGopher said:
In some ways hindsight would say we should’ve kept Wenaas and shown Landfair the transfer portal door.

Of course no one would have predicted that she’d go from POY 3ro OH to a below average 6ro OH.
Click to expand...
 

Yep. Mpls continues to try to rewrite history. And Wenaas was behind Wucherer, not Landfair.

Now, it is true that Taylor had less responsibility as a passer when Kilkelly, Wenaas and CC were there, but she was still passing AND playing defense. But I still believe she catches way too much flak because she isn't Kendall White. Not everyone is that demonstrative (thank gawd) and it has zero to do with laziness.
 

Such bulls___.

How many attempts did she even make at defending or receiving a ball and trying to get it to the setter last year? Like 5% as many as this year???


And so typical of volleyball snobs to act like the “difference” between OH1 and OH2, as if they aren’t completely interchangeable (they are), is like the difference between third base and right field in baseball. :ROFLMAO:

Wenaas played RS last year, just to get on the court.
 





MplsGopher said:
:rolleyes:
Click to expand...
Yes, she played RS. Because Wucherer was the OH ahead of her. I wasn't referring to L1 or L2. Wucherer was hurt. When she came back, who went to RS? Remind me. Because I could have sworn it wasn't Landfair.

"Why does she move around on the court like the most lackadaisical player in high-major college volleyball??" you ask.

Why do you continue to be such a jerk? Talk about lazy. You can't even bother to address the points in my post.
 

By the way, L1 and L2 are NOT completely interchangeable. Careful, your ignorance is also showing.

AND, because you are too lazy:

866 receptions, 229 digs in 2023
505 receptions, 179 digs in 2022
 

(R)uffda! said:
Yes, she played RS. Because Wucherer was the OH ahead of her.
Click to expand...
And Wenaas owned her early this season, too.

Guess my thought about hindsight really could apply to either of the so-called "#1 ranked" recruits we have/had.

(R)uffda! said:
"Why does she move around on the court like the most lackadaisical player in high-major college volleyball??" you ask.
Click to expand...
And you did not answer.

Because there is no answer. You know it's correct, and you hate it. So you point your anger and hatred towards me.

(R)uffda! said:
By the way, L1 and L2 are NOT completely interchangeable.
Click to expand...
They're barely different. Any player who starts at one can play exactly as well in the other.

You were talking about right vs left, fine. Which I agree are not the same.

(R)uffda! said:
AND, because you are too lazy:

866 receptions, 229 digs in 2023
505 receptions, 179 digs in 2022
Click to expand...
:rolleyes:

866 out of 10000 attempts is exactly the same as 505 out of 505.
 

MplsGopher said:
:rolleyes:

866 out of 10000 attempts is exactly the same as 505 out of 505.
Click to expand...
One thing seemed clear to me, opposing teams directed all of their attacks at Landfair this year. It was as if all the opposing coaches had the same scouting report and then worked off the same memo, serve to Landfair and attack Landfair. It’s like those opposition coaches knew something.
 

She got better towards the end of the season. I fully acknowledge that. But we’re still talking average passer, and a physically large and thus slow person (not at all an insult, just a recognition of reality). Landfair will never be someone to chase down and dive save a ball.

Earlier in the season though? Woof. Cost the team sets and probably matches. Was so bad.


That’s why “littles” are so valuable and it makes so much sense for every player in the back row to be a little DS or L.

Specialization is key, in college.


If you have a freak talent like a Skinner, fine. But you don’t need back row attacks, in college, to win. Not at all.


Trying to force the Olympic style of play with two OH who aren’t talented enough to do it, was one of the two major downfalls of this team. (Other was inconsistent setting.)
 
Last edited:

ClassOf98Gopher said:
One thing seemed clear to me, opposing teams directed all of their attacks at Landfair this year. It was as if all the opposing coaches had the same scouting report and then worked off the same memo, serve to Landfair and attack Landfair. It’s like those opposition coaches knew something.
Click to expand...
Seems like every game I saw on TV said the same thing. Opposing teams are targeting Landfair. Too bad our coaches didn't get the memo.
 

ClassOf98Gopher said:
One thing seemed clear to me, opposing teams directed all of their attacks at Landfair this year. It was as if all the opposing coaches had the same scouting report and then worked off the same memo, serve to Landfair and attack Landfair. It’s like those opposition coaches knew something.
Click to expand...
Exactly correct. Some programs appear to be better at it as one would say "scouting their opponent".
 

I still don’t know who you were going to play instead of Landfair. The fact she was the best passer and defender available was not her fault.

And this idea you have about DSs is absurd. There just are not that many elite ones.

I wonder if Molly Schultz might come home?

L1s and L2s are not interchangeable. An L1 has two rotations where she is one of two hitters. The L2 has 1. Serve receive patterns are generally easier with an L2 and she is ideally the better passer for all the reasons mentioned above.

Finally, I’m not angry and I don’t hate you. I just think you are being unfair.
 

Unfortunately for the Gophers, Landfair was the better 2-hitter OH and the better passer. Hoping for big improvements from Wuch in 2024 because they are going to need it.
 

(R)uffda! said:
I still don’t know who you were going to play instead of Landfair.
Click to expand...
Literally anyone on the roster would have performed better, certainly earlier in the year.

(R)uffda! said:
The fact she was the best passer and defender available was not her fault.
Click to expand...
Just wondering if you’re lying here or you actually believe this?

How can you watch skank after shank after shank after shank after poor, low-effort attempt …. And still be like “well, she’s still the best we have!”

I assume you have eyes and you usually believe what they tell you.
 

(R)uffda! said:
L1s and L2s are not interchangeable. An L1 has two rotations where she is one of two hitters. The L2 has 1. Serve receive patterns are generally easier with an L2 and she is ideally the better passer for all the reasons mentioned above.
Click to expand...
Olympic volleyball is a completely different sport.

Your statement here is Olympic.


This is college. College is not to be played like Olympic.
 

MplsGopher said:
Literally anyone on the roster would have performed better, certainly earlier in the year.


Just wondering if you’re lying here or you actually believe this?

How can you watch skank after shank after shank after shank after poor, low-effort attempt …. And still be like “well, she’s still the best we have!”

I assume you have eyes and you usually believe what they tell you.
Click to expand...
Yes. I have eyes. Did you see how the others passed? If they were better, they would have passed. Only Murr was a better passer on the current roster.
 


You sure are quick to call me a liar.

Pray tell, who was a better passer?
 

MplsGopher said:
Olympic volleyball is a completely different sport.

Your statement here is Olympic.


This is college. College is not to be played like Olympic.
Click to expand...
What the heck are you talking about? It has nothing to do with “Olympic” volleyball. Changes with a 6-2 maybe but that’s not relevant here.
 

As you fully well know:

Olympic volleyball has very few subs. You set a starting lineup of 7 players (including L) and rare if any other player on the roster ever touches the court for the entire set. Also I think both middles have to serve and play defense one half-rotation? It works that way in men's, at least.

College volleyball (in women's at least, don't know if men's is more like Olympic) on the other hand has a huge amount of subs. Not at all uncommon for several other players to touch the court each set.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom