Monday, March 13, 2006

Top 10 Trios

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In addition to a solid inside-outside combo, which many teams have, the thing that sets apart the elite from the also-rans is that third option. Opponents can set up a game plan to shut down the top two players, but it is nearly impossible to contain a solid troika. Here are the Top 10 trios heading into March Madness:

1. LSU: Darrell Mitchell, Glen Davis, Tyrus Thomas (Combined numbers: 48.5 ppg, 23.0 rpg)
2. Texas: Daniel Gibson, P.J. Tucker, LaMarcus Aldridge (Combined numbers: 44.9 ppg, 21.8 rpg)
3. Michigan State: Shannon Brown, Maurice Ager, Paul Davis (Combined numbers: 54.5 ppg, 17.9 rpg)
4. Connecticut: Marcus Williams, Rashad Anderson, Rudy Gay (Combined numbers: 39.2 ppg, 13.6 rpg, 11.4 apg)
5. Memphis: Darius Washington, Rodney Carney, Shawne Williams (Combined numbers: 44.4 ppg, 13.4 rpg)
6. San Diego State: Brandon Heath, Marcus Slaughter, Mohamed Akubar (Combined numbers: 48.9 ppg, 18.9 rpg)
7. Iowa: Jeff Horner, Adam Haluska, Greg Brunner (Combined numbers: 41.6 ppg, 18.0 rpg, 9.8 apg)
8. Wisconsin-Milwaukee: Joah Tucker, Boo Davis, Adrian Tigert (Combined numbers: 45.5 ppg, 18.4 rpg)
9. Indiana: Marshall Strickland, Robert Vaden, Marco Killingsworth (Combined numbers: 42.9 ppg, 17.3 rpg)
10. Florida: Taurean Green, Corey Brewer, Joakim Noah (Combined numbers: 40.1 ppg, 14.4 rpg, 10.2 apg)

7 comments:

  1. tourney fan in BostonMarch 14, 2006 at 11:32 AM

    Again I have to question your rationale here. You put UConn and Memphis's trio in here rated very highley, but then leave out Duke's trio of McRoberts, Williams, and Redick, which blows UConn and Memphis's trio out of the water in terms of points and rebounds, at 54.3ppg, and 17.2rpg?!?!?!?!

    What is going on here????? Are you a Tarheel or something??

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  2. That trio is carried by Redick and Williams. Those numbers are made up mostly from J.J. and Shelden. If you shut down Redick and Shelden, McRoberts is not capable of leading Duke to victory--yet.

    That's my rationale.

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  3. Where's Villanova?

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  4. morrison, batista and raivio
    58.8 points 17.3 rebounds

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  5. Tourney Fan in BostonMarch 14, 2006 at 2:52 PM

    Sorry anonymous, but Morrison, Batista, and Raivio's numbers are fattened up by the WCC. Isn't Gonzaga he only tourney team from that conference? I think that pretty much says it all.

    Good point Jeff, but remember these guys play on a team in a team sport. And McRoberts was insane in the ACC tournament! If he plays like he did there in the Big Dance as well, they have a great chance to cut down the nets in April.

    I think McRoberts has the potential to be the greatest Duke player of all time if he stays for four years (well, maybe not better than Leattner, but it would be close). He has a lot of nastiness in him, and I love it!

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  6. I had Villanova on it, but I didn't want to include trios that are solely in the frontcourt or backcourt. Villanova's trio is already ranked in the backcourt. I tried to make a mixture of backcourt and frontcourt players with these rankings.

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  7. As for Gonzaga, it's the same situation as Duke...if you slow down Morrison and Batista, Raivio isn't capable of having a big-time game and leading them to victory. He's had above 20 points only four times this season.

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