In Reply to: This tourney undercuts CMC's "theory of the case"... posted by BabyBear on March 28, 2025 at 11:30:24
I completely agree with your point that having scorers and playmakers is essential to advancing. In fact, I believed at the time he was emphasizing it that Cronin was wrong because toughness alone isn’t enough if your opponent is just as tough but also just bigger and more athletic.
That said, I don’t think Cronin’s argument is entirely without merit. Last night, Texas Tech won because they were simply the tougher team, even though most analysts would agree that Calipari’s team has more overall skill.
As the saying goes, there’s more than one way to skin a cat. But to your point, I think success requires a balance—you need both offensive firepower and toughness to win.
I’m picking Duke to win it all because they have both, but if I had to choose a second team, I’d go with Houston. In my mind, they’re the toughest team in the tournament.