And/but
-- Basketball Prospectus’ John Gasaway argues that UCLA is grossly underrated because Ben Howland's club is much more efficient on offense than is widely assumed. (ESPN's Dick Vitale appears to concur and ranks UCLA as the nation's fifth best club). And/but this season's Bruins aren't as good -- or as highly regarded -- as last season's squad because UCLA is this year less efficient on defense. Whereas the 2007-2008 Bruins allowed only 83.9 points per 100 possessions, the 2008-2009 Bruins give up 90.4 points per 100 possessions.
-- ESPN's Andy Katz opines that "Memphis had the look of an Elite Eight team in Spokane." And/but the Tigers were playing second round, not Sweet Sixteen, competition. Gonzaga has yet to beat a single RPI Top 20 club.
-- Yahoo Sports' Jason King ranks Miami ahead of Boston College the ACC, which makes good sense not only given recent results but also because the Hurricanes won on the Eagles' home court. And/but King also ranks Florida State ahead of Duke, which makes little sense because the Blue Devils won in "Tallaclassy" and have lost only three games to the Seminoles' four.
-- Fox Sports' Jeff Goodman suggests Duke would wise to continue starting Greg Paulus at point guard because Paulus brings the Blue Devils energy, even if he is a worse defender than Nolan Smith. And/but there is little reason to believe Duke needs to trade defense for offense, particularly before North Carolina and the nation's second best offense come calling. After all, "defense wins championships."
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