Kim Mulkey Needs to be Held Accountable for her Comments | Conference Tournament Recaps + Previews

“Coast to Coast” Hosts Calvin Wetzel and Crina Mustafa of Her Hoop Stats discuss all things Conference Tournaments: the SEC (South Carolina, LSU, Tennessee), the end of the PAC 12, the ACC + Notre Dame + Hannah Hildago, and more. They also preview this week’s games.

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Hey everybody welcome back to another episode of coast to coast on the her hoop stats podcast Network I’m K Mustafa alongside Calvin Wetzel and today we’re gonna get into everything conference tournaments some are over some are still happening Cal you ready I don’t know if I am ready for

This one this one’s about to get crazy I feel like no no I’m ready let’s di in so much to talk about there’s so so much to talk about talk about a crazy weekend of conference tournament play I don’t even know where to begin but I think we

Should start with the SEC and their tournament um South Carolina uh is the champion once again they get that automatic bid let’s kind of go through their performance over the weekend plus some extra stuff um let’s start with South Carolina Tennessee because as we kind of mentioned previously that was

Tennessee was the team that played South Carolina the best and at first in this game it didn’t look like it because South Carolina came out to a really big lead again and you were kind of like okay this is how it’s going to go but little by little Tennessee crawls back

And they make it a very close game they take the lead at one point very late in the fourth quarter and then we get a Camila cardoso3 to win the game for South Carolina an absolute Heartbreaker for Tennessee but man oh man what a moment Cal what was going through your mind

When that cardoso shot went in just a like of of I don’t even know like nothing like my mind was blank like of of all the ways for South Carolina to stay undefeated you could have asked me to guess a million times how it’s going to

Happ happen I would not have landed on Camila cardoo 3 0 for one in her career across four years before this and we like you said we talked about it last week on the Pod Tennessee played him pretty well twice already we had this matchup circled if they both got there

And they did they’ve there’s been eight times this year where someone came within 11 points of South Carolina tennessy is three of those eight now after this one so you kind of have to feel for him in Kia Jackson especially who played like an absolute superstar in

This game I think put a lot of WNBA Scouts on notice obviously she probably has already but she was pretty close to a triple double against the best team in the country and just came up short of of getting the win but this was I mean we

Were only getting started on the weekend when this happened as crazy as that is yeah I don’t even know like how I still feel like I’m kind of like processing everything that happened but but this was this was classic March classic March indeed oh my God

After that shot went in I don’t think I knew how to act for like the next three hours I didn’t know what to do there were other games on and I’m kind of just sitting there like I can’t believe this happened I’m like yelling I’m like

Telling my mom I’m like this team was undefeated the whole year and nobody’s come close to winning them to beating them and Tennesse did but then this player who never made a three before in her career makes the first three ever on the game winning shot my parents were

Looking at me like I was absolutely crazy but it was a really really good game honestly like if you go back and just watch like the reactions when cardoso hits that three-pointer just Don Staley jumping up some of the assistant coaches were like running off like it

Was just pure chaos um but a very well-deserved win and obviously a heartbreaking moment for Tennessee you really kind of felt for them you saw a coach Kelly Harper just kind of make that face and like put her head down when she saw that shot go in and

Like she did become a meme I’ve instantly saved that to my camera role but like as cool of a moment as that was like you really do feel for Tennessee and like I know essentially that game doesn’t technically matter too too much but that still has to be a game where

You’re just like we almost beat South Carolina and that’s how it ends like that that in itself is like kind of just like a stab to the heart you know yeah you know it doesn’t matter maybe in term I mean we’ll see I don’t think it should affect Tennessee seed at all obviously

South Carolina’s the number one overall no matter what but so maybe it quote unquote doesn’t matter in terms of the seed line but it matters a lot it with to people on both teams when you talk about South Carolina like that undefeated season in the SEC Championship that came the following

Game for them that’s a big deal and for Tennessee if they would have been able to close that out which by the way they were down I think what was it 23 at least 20 they were they lost the first quarter 19 to something like that yeah

Yeah yeah they South Carolina jumped all over which kind of reversed the script because we’re used to South Carolina starting maybe a little bit slow and then stepping on the gas in the second half and pulling away and winning by 30 after true like a fivepoint halftime

Lead totally flipped the script in this one this would have been a big deal for Tennessee too but I think this is what March not only like the craziness and you know buzzer beaters and comebacks and someone who’s never heard of three in her career winning the game on on one

Not only all of that stuff but for me March also comes down to like this sort of emotional dichotomy of like all of these moments that you see simultaneously there’s absolute Joy on one side and complete heartbreak on the other and if you’re like a human

Being with any empathy at all you have to process both at the same time while you’re watching this and somehow feel elated for all these players and coaches on South Carolina and for cardoso for having this moment and also just completely gutted for Tennessee for RIA Jackson for Kelly Harper and for

Everyone who was that close and it’s that’s what I have such a LoveHate relationship with it because it’s so hard sometimes to like kind of process both sides of all these and we’re going to get these moments again and again throughout March where someone who we’ve

Never heard of is going to hit a buzzer beater and have the moment of your life going to be thrilled for him on the other side someone who had a stellar career is going to watch their career come to a close on that shot and you’re going to be heartbroken for them and

Having to like sort of just process all of this as a fan is it’s so tough but it also it’s what makes March so exhilarating and and I love it I’m addicted to it so this I think this game just exemplified all of that that’s a

Really great way to put all of that um and yeah I couldn’t I couldn’t have said it better it really is is just very much like ups and downs and let’s go to their championship game the SEC Championship game because and I was I will preface it

By saying we’re not going to stay too long on The Dramatics that happened because I think it was still a really solid weekend of basketball for South Carolina for all of these teams and I think that’s like the most important thing that should be at the Forefront of

All these discussions um but near the end of the game uh little I don’t even know what to call it I don’t know what the word is but there are some altercations between the South Carolina players and the LSU players and also FL J Johnson Johnson’s brother jumping on the court and being

Escorted out of the building I have no idea if he was actually arrested or whatever the reports that were that came out but it was pretty much chaos in a different form um and I think where we’re going to go with this discussion is talking about the comments of each of

The coaches after the fact uh the comments from Don Staley and the comments from Kim Moy and how they very much differ in the way that they approach this um Don went on TV when she was doing her sideline interview after the game and honestly just apologized for what happened saying just talking

About how emotions run really high in games like these and that doesn’t mean that that’s who they are and just gave a really nice perspective and a nice way to kind of like you’re not blaming anybody but you’re also taking a little bit of of accountability and you’re

Protecting your players at the same time for everything that happened Kim Moi like she normally does kind of goes the other direction and says some really whack comments about wishing that her players went after wishing that South Carolina went after um Angel Reese instead which I think is a like crazy

Like that is an absolutely crazy thing to say as a coach as just like anybody commenting on what happened um like in what way is that protecting your player ERS and like lowkey there’s so many problematic layers within that statement itself that we should probably like peel

Away but Cal what are your thoughts on like what Don said versus what Kim said and like maybe how we need to start keeping Kim accountable for the things that she says because it seems like it just gets more off the rails every single time I love that you just said

Keeping her accountable because we obviously rightfully so praised on Staley all the time and everything about the way she handled this was spoton as expected from her and on the other side like we need to talk more about what a problem Kim mili is like just I don’t

Know how many people are gonna be mad and I don’t really care like piece of trash human being absolutely disgusting and this is like just prime example of how many times have we seen this type of thing you know with like going back to how she’s handled the Britney grinder

Stuff and then uh like some of the Angel early this year Co stuff Angel yes there’s a really long list at this point it’s not like a one-off type of a thing where she said like one random whack thing in a press conference and that’s it like it’s building up at this point

And it’s I don’t know what like the correct path about it is but we got to talk about it like you said and keep her accountable in some form because like come on man you can’t you can’t say that stuff I don’t know like you just can’t

And it’s it’s like you said it’s problematic uh and clearly da Staley obviously the total opposite end of that Spectrum just knowing exactly what to say when to say it how to say it everything about that so that’s that’s really it that’s what it comes down to yeah and I think just kind

Of cap things off like th those type of comments takes away from the weekend of basketball even more than the fights at the end of that game did like I feel like that just prolongs all of this and we are no longer speaking about how Camila had a great weekend about how

Raven Johnson had a great weekend Tina powpow all these players on South Carolina Ria Jackson with Tennessee like it just feels like it takes away from what was a really exciting weekend of conference play and like I know we’re talking about it now but it’s more so to

Be like it’s just really unfortunate that things ended the way that they did um and also just as a side note uh Camila cardoso is not like allowed to play in the first round of the tournament of the actual like NCW tournament when it they originally said

That it was going to be like everybody who got ejected and I was like there’s no way like they they got rid of like both benches and that was it was like there was no way that about to get wild yeah so I’m glad they corrected that but

Like I I am too it was going to be crazy because the thing is too like and I this was a possibility possibility in the last couple minutes of that game even like in the NBA there’s there’s the rule where if you’re down to five and someone

Fouls out they can stay in the game and you get a technical that doesn’t exist in college so if you’re down to five and someone fouls out now you’re down to four and we could have got there at the end of that game if what they would have

Said would have been true about all these players being ejected you were going to have to really sort of manage that in terms of fouls with with the first round or two I mean I don’t think South Carolina’s going to lose to a 16 seed even with five players but still or

Would have obviously they don’t have to deal with that but but still it would have been it would have made added some Intrigue to those games I’m glad it doesn’t happen because I don’t think any of those players deserved it certainly uh I don’t this leaving the bench

Thing I don’t know it seems extreme to me I think like which one one thing to talk about like a fan coming onto the court obviously totally different situation when you’re talking about like a player who is involved in the game just happen to not be one of the five

Players in the game at the moment and there’s something like this going on and they’re like again if you come out and start throwing punches it’s different but if you come out to try to like pull your teammates back or whatever or try to basically like become Peacemaker and

You just happen to leave the bench in order to do that I don’t know I don’t I don’t I think that’s penalizing that is a little bit harsh I know yeah we weren’t going to necessarily get into all that but that’s that’s just my thoughts on that so I’m glad that those

Players who that was kind of their only involvement get to play in the first round of the NCA tournament because I think they deserve it I know I was like freaking out when that was the original report I was like that’s crazy but anyway that’s all for SEC talk so far

Let’s move on to the Big 10 championship game where Nebraska nearly beats Iowa uh but they don’t Iowa takes it in overtime before we talk about even Iowa I mean before yeah before we talking about Iowa let’s talk about Nebraska a little bit because Jazz Shelly is her

She is her in the game before the one with Iowa she hit like what six three-pointers like her jumper is so beautiful and she hit this like really off-balance shot too that like the broadcast was comparing her to Kobe but like in my head I was like that’s Marine

Johannes like right there it is it was the game before I think right basically the dagger in the semi-finals I think if I’m thinking of the same one you’re talking about was towards the end of the game before yeah exactly I don’t know my thought too the little one legged end of

The shot clock yeah I was like that’s MJ right there and not Michael Jordan so other MJ oh you did there yeah exactly let’s let’s not get it twisted but what were your thoughts on Nebraska’s performance over overall during this weekend and then we can move on to Iowa as well

Nebraska is quintessential peing at the right time team and the fact that it would have been so easy like when you beat Iowa the way you did in your place I think like the whole world from what I saw in terms of talking points and stuff was like yeah I was gonna make

Adjustments they’re gonna like they’re going to be pissed off about that they’re going to come out and win this game by 25 like this is Hardcore Revenge game energy and that’s not what happened at all Nebraska was ready to go again from the start jumped out to a double

Digit lead at halftime J Shelly was hooping all weekend including in this game she averaged 20 points and eight assists on the tournament crazy I definitely would have been the MVP if if they won and uh they held Caitlin C defensively that was the that was the

Story in the first or not the first game the second game but the first game Nebraska won against Iowa um they held Caitlyn Clark to four points in the first half of this one obviously her shot was off you have to give Nebraska a lot of credit for that too and this is

The type of Team especially when you talk about J shell like fifth year senior I think this time of year you know it’s such a cliche that people talk about like seniors experience it matters in March blah blah blah I think honestly more so than having the experience of

Having played in these games before I think what is a big deal is when you see the end of your career in sight when you start to see that on the horizon and you realize at any point this could be it we lose this next game career’s over and

That clock starts ticking and it starts ticking faster sometimes some of these players just have a way of taking their game up to the next level because they know if I show up to play today I get to play again tomorrow and obviously Nebraska was going to the tournament anyway it’s

Not like losing this game end of their season but just we’re getting close to that point now and I think J shell is getting to that point where she is just taking over it’s it’s j shell time every game and I think they’re not going to

Get a top four seed they’re not gonna be playing at home but I do think that if they play the way they did in that game and in the last game in Iowa in the last couple weeks and especially ja and Alexis marowski who we should mention who’s been

Phenomenal I think they could be a second weekend team I like it it’s kind of like that like All or Nothing mentality when you’re just like I really have nothing to lose except for the game in front of me and I think that’s kind of where Jaz Shelly and like players

Like that kind of have their mindset at uh but yeah Iowa Escapes in overtime and speaking of overtime let’s move to the conference that we actually placed a metaphorical bet a figurative bet I don’t even know if anybody actually did this we set it at over four and a half

Um overtimes last week for the Pack 12 Conference tournament play we didn’t hit it but like barely and I know we got four we got four and like honestly I’m good with that I I call that a wi in my book because we didn’t actually like put any real money

On it so I think it works but I mean we got I think we got pretty excited when like one of the first games had like two overtimes in just like One Singular game we’re just like oh we’re going to hit this so easy but uh we didn’t but it’s

Fine um but USC wins the pack P 12 title with a win over Stanford Cal how did you like the weekend of Pack 12 Conference play to kind of say goodbye to the Pack 12 exactly so much fun it makes me miss it even more and you know at the end

Right after the championship game they played that little Montage going through all the different moments of the Pack 12 or whatever over the years and it was like a little sad it was like wow this really is over forever like it’s never happening again it’s crazy and how what

A year to end on credit to the Pack 12 for going out with an absolute bang this year in the regular season and now in this tournament two games went to two overtimes USC UCLA and and the semis was an electric game so much fun and and

Then USC comes out on top gets to call himself the last pack 12 Champion ever despite I want to say Juju scored nine points I don’t have the box score in front of me I don’t think she got to 10 maybe barely but this goes out to what

Uh I think Mark Schiller said on Twitter the the other day that USC is kind of JuJu gets the attention that she deserves but at the same time like this is a team McKenzie Forbes won the MVP of the Pack 12 tournament which she deserved because she stepped up big time

And this is a team that can still beat a top four team in the country in Stanford on a night when Juju shot isn’t going in because they have players like MacKenzie Forbes and Raya Marshall and the all the ivy league transfers you know they three fifths of their starting lineup is Ivy

League transfers who who all have their kns and so this is a team that can really make some noise even when guju isn’t necessarily clicking and when she is forget it it’s over when she’s having those nights where she’s dropping 51 and you have the rest of this Talent around

Them forget about it absolutely and like yeah like you said um I was actually going to bring that up too uh about tweet about like it’s not just Juju like they are very much like built around her and um they keep like picking up these like number one recruits and so I think

Like they’re in a very very good spot um this year and honestly like coming up too like it’s just exactly there’s there won’t be any rebuilding here since I know a lot of people like to throw around that word yeah not at all they have a really good class coming in next

Year too so they’re not going anywhere Juju is gon to get even more Talent around her in about six months exactly absolutely so very much welld deserved for them to win the last pack 12 Conference tournament in Championship we’ll see what they do in the upcoming March Madness Tournament very excited to

Uh get into that but let’s go through some of the other Champs Notre damee wins the ACC conference Championship they were down by a little bit in those last couple of minutes um but they’re able to pull through and get the win I know Cal like not Dame is a team that

You were very high on at the start of the Season before the season started and obviously they’ve dealt with so many injuries and just hardships and things like that but how did you like them winning the ACC conference Championship another conference where we’re like this is just the most chaotic place

Ever so chaotic and I was so impressed with their defense in this tournament in the last couple games especially they they play the top two seeds because Notre Dame was the four seed in this league which this league felt like the seeds didn’t mean anything it felt like

Anyone could beat anyone but Notre Dame was the four seed play the top two seeds in the last two games hold of both below 55 extremely impressed and like you said they dealt with some injuries this year obviously ol Olivia miles has been out all year but even for players who have

Been playing this year you know Sonia Citron missed some time but they’re healthy now they’re playing well this another team I wouldn’t want to see next week Hannah hio is also so her we love her she is freshman her freshman fire so good Hanah Hado I think if we didn’t

Have one of the best freshman that we’ve seen in a long time in Juju Watkins Hannah hiago would be the Freshman of the year and she in a lot of years would win it she just happened to be in the wrong class but what she’s done this

Year is remarkable uh can’t wait to watch her career unfold too it feels like just yesterday we were watching the Paris game and I was thinking about that the other day I was like I cannot believe that was like way back in November um where we saw like the

Freshman in South Carolina and nor Dame just kind of take off with Hannah and Malaysia for Wy and all that so like man I can’t believe we’re already like P conference tournaments and heading into March Manis very soon but it very much feels like she’s been like Hannah has

Been at that level for this long and I’m so excited she is such a player for March and I’m so excited to see what her and Notre Dame do um as the first round gets kind of close um and then let’s mention before we get into some other

Recaps in previews let’s mention the Big East um the while we’re recording the champion won’t be decided yet um but I know Cal you wanted to shout out a team yeah you know by the time you’re listening to this this this will be decided and Yukon obviously is heav

Favorites uh Monday night against Georgetown but no matter what happens in this game I don’t care if Georgetown wins or if they lose by 60 what they’ve done this season and what they’ve done in this tournament deserves all sorts of love because when you lose your coach Tasha buts passed

Away you know right before the season and they’re picked second to last in the conference and for them to make this run finish Sixth and and then you know in this last couple days win these games to get to the championship game and by the way Tasha butt’s birthday was yesterday

Sunday on the day that they won the semi-final game so it’s really really special and if they somehow find a way to beat Yukon unbelievable one of the story maybe the story of the year has many cool stories as we’ve had but even if they don’t just like so much props to

Them for what they’ve overcome and what they’ve accomplished and it I think it’s just an incredibly cool story absolutely um totally agree with you what georgetown’s been through this season like I don’t think anybody could even imagine and so like for them to have the most impressive season ever and like I

Think I can’t remember what the stat is I think Mark also posted this but it’s like their first 20 win season I can’t remember if it’s ever or if it’s in like a while um but a 21 season is pretty pretty great for them and for on the

Yukon side like we know Ayah Edwards is most likely going to be out with that broken nose I think Gino said that she doesn’t he doesn’t expect her to play in the conference tournament not that they need her to but it’s more so just like a comfort thing at this point I’m very

Glad it’s not a concussion like we did see with one of the LSU players um during the weekend as well too let’s just put a wrap on injuries please because those are some very scary moments so really glad that Aaliyah Edwards just has a broken nose and not

Anything else um and hopefully we get to see her back soon as well for Yukon who has also kind of been riddled with injuries um just the last week I remember I think people were tweeting it was like really funny that like Paige did the the tip the tip off at the

Beginning of the last game um because that’s how many players Yukon was down and I was like oh God that’s kind of wild um I think Chelsea said that so shout out to you basically uh yeah basically down to Paige at the five at this point but you know as as many

Injuries as they’ve had Paige has been healthy and she hasn’t the last two years before this so Yukon I feel like the way Paige is playing you put any four players whoever four healthy bodies that they have left around Paige and they got a shot they got a shot with

Because Paige Beckers has been special this year and hit some unreal shots in that champion in the semi-final game so can’t wait to see what she does tonight Monday as we’re recording um but all right those are some of the conference tournaments that we just recapped from

Over the weekend and now we’re going to get into some extra Recaps and then some quick previews for some more games to watch all right Cal let’s go to the Atlantic 10 where Richmond wins it um I know you want to shout out uh the coach coach go

Ahead yeah Aaron rousell you know I talked to him a couple times a few years ago uh for some articles and and you know when you talk to someone and you can just kind of you get the Positive Vibes and you can kind of tell they’re all about the right stuff and that’s

That’s what I got from Aaron rousell and he and he came in there they won nine games season before he got there they’re at 29 now they’re a win away from 30 and they got a they got a conference Championship so I very happy for for

Aaron rousell and that whole team uh I I am this is going back to one of those emotional dichotomy type of things that we talked about because I’m also kind of gutted for George Mason in the way that they went out in this tournament I think Vanessa Blair Lewis is another coach who

Has done an outstanding job turning around a program they had three wins a few years ago and now again another team that that has won in the 20s and she’s in the top five by the way for our uh the her hoop stats mid major coach of

The year uh that will be awarded in a you know we put out the top five watch list and that award will be out in a few weeks so uh congrats to her obviously on that and and on a great season but for for her season they ended in the

Quarterfinals in a wild classic March matchup against Duke Kane couple late calls in that one where they you know reversed like a foul that was an and one and and made it on the floor uh and then another one and the A10 put out a statement afterwards that like the refs

Did it wrong they weren’t supposed to review this and all this stuff and so basically admitted like made a mistake what a bummer yeah and but you can’t do anything about it now and I mean that I’m sure if you’re on a George Mason player coach like okay cool you made a

Mistake so what you still ended our season that isn’t what are you gonna do like that doesn’t mean anything to us and and to end a season like they were having like that I mean I they W they didn’t end their season they’ll be a postseason team in the NIT or whatever

The case but I don’t know I I felt really bad for them obviously going out like like that in the quarterfinals as well but so happy for Richmond and I think Richmond is is going to be a team that has a shot to to Really raise some

Eyebrows in in their first round game in March I like it I like it um and Now cal go through the other bids that have been punched so far and your kind of bullet points on each one and then we’ll get into some previews to end things off

Yeah we do have a few bids punched already we got UT Martin out of the Ohio Valley and I just need to get on my soap box here real quick and not away from them I was waiting for this I was waiting for it yeah you knew this

Was coming shout out UT Martin by the way like no disrespect great for them cool cool that they get to go to the big dance but we have talked before about the stupid NCAA rule on this pod where when you transition to a division one team first four years you don’t get to

Go to the tournament and Southern Indiana is in that period right now and they went 24 and six and they won this championship game but they don’t get to go to the NCA tournament and I hate it I hate it so much I think they deserve it we need to

Get rid of this rule Southern Indiana should be in the tournament we’ll see them in the wnit but they should be in the real tournament but UT Martin gets the bid out of the Ohio Valley Chattanooga gets the bid out of the socon back-to-back years sha poppy building something there Presbyterian

Out of the Big South First winning season in almost a decade so another one of those cool stories I love when these teams have come kind of come from the depths and then finally you know they’re building building and then they reach this Pinnacle and they get to go to

March Madness it’s so it’s just like makes me feel so good so warm and fuzzy and and Marshall earlier today Monday as we’re recording in the Sun Belt the fun belt there’s a reason they call it the fun belt because this game was so fun overtime against James Madison uh to

Earn the Sun Belt title and punch their ticket Marshall is a really fun really unique team the way they press the way they run the way they shoot they actually didn’t shoot very well for much of today’s game but still managed to pull it out in overtime Mark Schindler

Has done some great work on them on Marshall and why you should familiarize yourself with this team and and what a kind of fun and unique style they play if you’re not familiar uh you will be seeing them in March Madness so go read Mark’s Work uh before that and and we

Got some more bids to be punched this week obviously but that that’s in addition to the power conference ones uh that’s what we got so far love it thank you so much cal um all right let’s get into some previews and we’ll start with the big 12 um already underway but

Championship game is on Tuesday night um so the day that this podcast comes out as we’re recording um Iowa State defeated Oklahoma and we’re still awaiting Kansas state versus Texas so by the time you’re listening to it you will know who is set for that championship

Game thoughts on Iowa State and a Crooks and also Oklahoma’s kind of like run to cap off the end of the regular season because they’ve also been pretty impressive Oklahoma really really turned their season around after losing at home to Southern University somehow and proceeding to go on and Wing the Big 12

Outright just college basketball make it make sense and now Iowa State you know then they run into this Iowa State buz saw today and that great way to describe this team yeah yes and and and Addie Brown the freshman and of course Emily Ryan as a senior leader on this team but

Those two freshmen when you look at the recruiting ranks and this is why the recruiting ranks they mean something obviously guju was ranked first as she should have been but just because you’re ranked 50th or 30th or 40th or whatever doesn’t mean that you can’t come out and

Be one of the best freshmen in the country and and that’s where these two were ranked and they have given Iowa State a massive massive Boost after what they lost last year in terms of most of their starters Ashley Jones being being the big star that they lost and you

Bring in krooks krooks and Addie Brown who we talked about this team is really fun and they can really do some damage and then on the other side I’m excited to watch this Kansas State Texas game tonight that again will be done by the time this pot is out uh Tex

I think it is definitely the favorite here in this one and if they move on in a championship game but this is not one of those like uh Yukon type of conferences where you know you have a Surefire thing Kansas State aoka Lee is a problem for anyone uh and they

Obviously they they lost her for a little bit earlier this season and and all of last season so they don’t know how to play without her too but what they’ve been able to do Under Jeff midi I think this year has been also incredibly impressive and uh this is

This game tonight and then the championship game Tuesday night are GNA be two of the best games of the week I would say yeah so there you go um Kansas state versus Texas on Monday night and then the championship game between Iowa State and whoever wins that one will be

Tuesday night so make sure you watch that um besides the Big 12 there are also 21 other bids up for grabs this week uh we’re just going to talk about some of the more dominant teams in the specific leagues and I’m going to start us off with Gonzaga in the WCC because I

Do have to shout out one of my favorite Canadians and Senior who is returning for Gonzaga next year and that is Ivon eim uh who just also won the defensive player of the year and Player of the Year in her League I mean what a year Canadians kind of rock don’t

They Canadians are awesome Canadians are so cool I don’t know why you would think that you have nothing in particular why you no yeah I have no connections to Cana at all or like this definitely not recording this in Canada right now uh but no she’s just been really cool

Obviously Brena Maxwell as well too who we had on the podcast I think it’s probably like a month ago at this point by the way the weeks kind of fly um but Gonzaga has been really really fun to watch um going through some of these other teams do you have any that you

Kind of want to mention or give some love to as well you know I had shout out yvon first yeah you did and and she’s on the Becky himman mid major player of the year watch list by the way top five we should we should give some love to that

As well uh there are uh some other teams you know out of out of those 21 bids up for grabs there are some teams that are very very heavy favorites that you know I don’t want to like dis dismiss or discredit any of the other teams in

These leagues but that you some of these teams including Gonzaga went undefeated in their league and it would be a very big upset if they don’t go undefeated through their conference tournament as well and I think uh and then there’s some other ones we’ll get into after

That that are a lot more sort of up for grabs but in in terms of some of those teams who are kind of separating themselves from the pack and at outside of Gonzaga you got UNLV in the Mountain West who’s who’s getting started tonight uh Mountain West started yesterday unv

Has buy they start tonight Fairfield in the Mac not to be confused with the Mac two A’s so it’s not the Mac it’s the [Applause] mac and Fairfield by the way there are two teams in the country who have not lost a second game yet obviously South Carolina’s undefeated and then there’s Fairfield

One loss came back in the first week of the season in November on the road at Vanderbilt at an SEC team they lost by three they’re three points away in a road power conference game from being undefeated this year so if you’re not paying attention to Fairfield time to

Start paying attention to them Mark Schindler take a shot brought him up again had a great pod with fairfield’s Coach Carly TBO dudonis that you can go listen to uh really got into kind of what is making them successful this year they got a couple freshman as well one

In particular Magie Anderson who played really well this year Middle Tennessee in Conference USA uh is another one that that you should watch out for I think in March uh and and one that is heavily favored in their league Anastasia buera anchoring the inside on on both ends uh

Fun to watch Green Bay in the Horizon this one is not quite probably as as a sh thing as some of those other ones I think Cleveland State could give them a lot of trouble if they both make the championship game but do think Green Bay’s favored here uh and Green Bay team

That I saw a person this year and they’re scary they’re so athletic they’re so they’re so tough uh the the way that they defend the way that the way that they can shoot when they’re on uh that’s a team that I think could and they they’ve had success before so this

Isn’t one of those teams like we talked about with Presbyterian or whoever else where this is kind of a new new deal for them they got experience having success in March so watch out for them South Dakota state did did I’m sorry did were you

Gonna jump in I was just gonna ask like actually real quick before we keep going like CU you went to a lot of games this year so I was going to actually ask you like who is your favorite team to watch like which Arena was your favorite to go

To oh that’s a good question so uh you know outside of Illinois state of course my favorite team we gotta keep the bias out yeah we biased always uh my favorite team that I’ve watched that’s a great question honestly I would say my favorite team and my favorite

Arena probably Nebraska I think going to Nebraska and seeing them win that game and seeing how lit that place was I think that was incredibly fun and I really enjoyed it all around and that’s that’s that’s a great team to watch great place to watch a game so I would

Say that that’s the answer for both questions I’m glad you asked that was a fun question yeah because you mentioned going to see um you mentioned going to see the team so I was like I gotta ask him who’s his favorite yeah I have I have seen some of these teams Green Bay

I saw this year UNLV not this year I did see him in person last year uh South Dakota state is is another one I was was going to get into you know it used to be kind of this rivalry between South Dakota and South Dakota State for the

Top two in this league and South Dakota’s fallen off a little bit uh since Don plitz White left South Dakota State sort of owns this league now so uh they went undefeated through the summit and uh they’ll be obviously favored in that League FGCU kind of every year same same deal

With them uh favored in the Aon and that’s a if you’re like an analytics nerd if you’re listening to her hoop stats because you actually like the stats and all that stuff you should check out FGCU because they take like one mid-range jumper a week they’re just the Classic analytics nerd like layups

And threes type of team and it’s it’s really fun in that respect what Carl smesco does there I think I saw an article about him one time that called him I’m apologize for forgetting who wrote this so I can’t credit you but called him the mad scientist uh a couple people I’ve talked

To that worked with him before say that that’s an accurate descriptor so fun team Stony Brook in the CAA the coastal Athletic Association this year it used to be the colonial changed it this year Stony Brook has had an awesome season under Ashley Langford uh who has had to

Navigate them through kind of a tough transition of conference a couple years ago when they were in the America East and they were having a really good season and they they announced that they were leaving the America East didn’t let them play in the conference tournament because they were salty about them

Leaving and they were having a good enough season that that you know they really deserve to be able to play in that and navigating them through all that and then bringing them back to probably an even better season this year I think great story Ashley langford’s done an awesome job with them Jackson

State in the swack another one year in year out Tama Reed does an outstanding job there I will never ever ever in my life get over the game when they lost to LSU in the first round of of the NCAA tournament a couple years ago when they

Were up nine or 10 with a few minutes left and LSU came back and won that game it it hurts my heart every time I think about it and I can feel the pain yes it’s I I will feel so good for Tama Reed and Jackson State if they can

Ever win a tournament game and sort of exercise those demons from that one but uh and then the last one sticking with the HBCU here is norfol state in the MC Diamond Johnson who a lot of people who only follow power conferences probably are familiar with from uh Maryland and

Ruckers is that right no NC State uh why am I drawing a blank on this I I NC State and one of those other two schools which one was it I should know this but she’s played some power Conference basketball and she was not going to be

Eligible at the beginning of this year and then they made made that ruling where the two-time transfers are uh did become eligible I believe that was in December so ever since they’ve gotten her eligible they have been on a tear uh and they’re going to be the heavy

Favorites in the M conference I think that’s a team that another one that you can look for it was NC State and Ruckers NC State and Ruckers okay you know what I think I got I had diamond in my head and Diamond Miller went to Maryland there are so many diamonds yeah was

Throw me off that’s fair that’s fair yeah uh so my bad on that one but Diamond Johnson fun to watch at northw State and yeah I think those are probably the teams I’m kind of looking at as sort of heavy favorites and those are also the teams that if you’re a

Bubble team you’re rooting for those teams because if someone knocks them off I’m not saying all 10 of those would be at larges certainly like Gaga would be an at large UNLV would be an at large I think it’d be a travesty if Fairfield lost and wasn’t an at large uh

But not you know maybe not all of them but if you’re a bubble team you you need those teams to win their conference tournaments those teams that we just listed because if someone knocks them off that takes away an at llarge spot because now you have the auto bid going

To someone else and then you’ll have whichever team from that League that we just listed is going to get a bid too and that that League gets two bids instead of one all of a sudden so if you’re a fan of a bubble team that’s those 10 teams that’s who you’re rooting

For this week uh and I think those are the teams that are heavy favored and then there’s some ones that are wide opening who knows uh and those ones are going to be really exciting as well yeah um some other fun ones I could see upsets I’m personally excited for the

Ivy league um Princeton and Columbia uh they’re going to be playing uh and then I forget who the other two teams are but um I’m excited is in there I can’t remember the fourth one but I was just looking at it too so I probably should remember but um for those of you

Who haven’t been able to watch Princeton this season like and I’m also biased on this because I may not be doing an interview with her this week but Caitlyn Chen is a Hooper she is Hooper Hooper like she is the definition like when you look at Players like Hannah hgo is like

Another name that I would categorize as like being a Hooper like she’s just got this like innate ability to get Buckets in scoring ways that are just so fun she’s so quick like she is a driving force for Princeton on the offensive side of the floor and yeah that she’s

Definitely one of my players to watch um as they kind of start their conference tournament as well but yeah do you have any thoughts on Ivy League or any of these other leagues that we’re going to get into yeah you know most of the conferences have everyone make the conference tournament although that’s

Going to not be the case as much next year when some of these power conferences expand to 18 teams because they’re soaking up the Pack 12 leftovers but right now most conferences do it that way the ivy doesn’t the ivy didn’t used to have a conf Conference tournament and when they implemented it

A few years ago they that only four teams make it out of the eight so that’s why that’s why we couldn’t remember who the fourth team was because not everyone makes it but I believe it’s uh Harvard is one of those other two Princeton and Columbia are the favorites though and

Those those are the teams that I think a lot of us would expect in the championship I really don’t know who would win that game I think both those teams would have a legit shot they split in the regular season like you said Caitlyn Chan on one side and then

Columbia you got Abby Shu another one who has been on lots of awards watch list last year the Becky Hammond uh the an Myers D still I think we talked about her when I went through my ballot for the top 10 of that one uh and if if you

Need a reason to to look at the talent uh of those two and other players in the Ivy and and look at how good it is number one they’ve had a couple first round WNBA draft picks in the last few years uh and Abby Meers who went to

Maryland her last year but she came from Princeton and uh then Bella Aller from Princeton as well and number two we talked about about USC three of the five starters on what is at least a top 10 team came from the ivy league so when you talk about the talent in this league

Like it’s no joke there’s some talented players there’s some hoopers in this league it’s gonna be a fun one this coming weekend and two others that I’m watching are the wack California Baptist Grand Canyon we talked about that end of regular season game on last week’s pod

California Baptist did win that game in overtime it was as thrill as it was set up to be and they are on a collision course if no one upsets them to meet again in the conference Championship and that dumb rule that affected Southern Indiana this year that affected California Baptist when they

Went undefeated a few years ago now now they’re past that period so so if they can win this conference tournament they will get into the NCAA tournament for the first time ever as a division one team that would be exciting with Grant Canyon it’s a fun story too coached by

Molly Miller came from D2 just a few years ago uh and and led durri to all sorts of success there was a National Power in D2 and so I think both of these teams are are team I’ll be tuning into that one if they if they meet up in the

Championship game and then the last one I’ll be at this one in person MVC Missouri Valley Drake is 19 and one they’re the one seed they’re the favorites obviously but last time that a top three seed a one seed or a two or three won this league was half a decade

Ago it’s 2019 it’s been a while this is a league that always has stop 2019 is half a decade ago crazy you feeling old now just a little just a little I’m starting to get up there you know yeah you really are you really are you’re probably getting letters from

RE yeah yeah yeah uh yeah it’s it’s been a while it four seeds five seeds six seed a lot of a lot of success for non one seeds in this league as a fan of the five seed I hope that continues we’ll see but Drake is going to be a very

Tough out in this league with another Hammond watch list a member ktie denir leading the way uh and and Drake we saw last year they almost knocked off Louisville in the first round of the NCAA tournament where they got in so I think if if Drake does come out of this

League that’s going to be a really dangerous opponent for someone but again 2 three4 four five six in this league can can beat they can all beat each other on any given night so it’s going to be it’s going to be chaos before the chaos and I am excited to be there in

Person and see it all go down uh just just another one that that I think is has no foregone conclusion at all and I’m really looking forward to it love it um I hope you have so much fun also for those wondering the fourth uh Ivy team

Is pen um which was Harvard the third where we read about yes Harvard yeah Harvard was the other one um just had to get that in there because it was going to bother me if I didn’t pull it up because I kid you not I was looking at

It five minutes before we started podcasting um so you think I would remember but it’s been a long day it’s been a long podcast thank you so much for sticking with us throughout all this if you’re still here by the end we went through Recaps we went through previews

We went through lots of conferences lots of teams lots of players um conference tournaments will be wrapping up this week and then we will have selection Sunday on the 17th and then March Madness round one begins March 20th it’s literally around the corner Cal how excited are you for the tournament to

Start I can see you beaming already um I’m bubbling over with excitement it’s we’re in the middle of the three or four greatest weeks of the year right now and I just like every day live in the dream right now I don’t even know what to say

Love it we love Hoops all day Hoops all day on her Hoops stats uh you can make sure to catch us on wherever you listen to podcast on YouTube Coast to Coast will be back every single Tuesday with more coverage you can follow us at Social Med on social on social media wow

It’s been a long POD at her hoop stats myself at Karina mm Calvin at czel 31 and we will see you next Tuesday