March Madness...

[Ozzie3178]

I know it sucks and weird without us in there but it has been exciting as usual

So who do you all have winning it all... I got Arizona in all my pools!!

Nova lookin like the first 1 seed to bounce as I predicted... Still 5 plus minutes left though

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

I had Nova as the 1st #1 seed going out. They are soft. I had not seen them play this year until today. They looked like they did against UConn last year in the 2nd round, soft as Charmin and they don't play good defense and never have.

 

[the Blades]

Good call Ozzie....Nova played like a fraud seed just like Creighton and them last year out of the NBE...
losing to a team that could've easily been a bubble team except for their P-5 entitlement....hell (20-13)
NC St. only got by USF by 3 points at home....a team Uconn beat 3 times this year by a total of 56 points.....

they also lost to Cincy by 16 points who Uconn beat twice.

Nova vs. Cincy would've been a nice match-up but I guess the committee didn't want to put Nova vs. an old BE team
2 years in row ..( instead they gave Cincy the toughest match-up in the field vs. UK's pro team in a KY home game)
....and how old are Nova's guys like 30 years old ??? They seem like they been around forever.
This post was edited on 3/22 11:13 AM by the Blades

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

Barack-etology criticized by NC State!

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/n-c--state-guard-calls-out-president-obama-after-villanova-upset--video-031635749.html

 

[the Blades]

USA Today article calling the out new Big East...and says:

" But the '(Nova) didn't really have a No. 1 résumé. They had one if the Big East were the old Big East, not the
new Big East with Marquette, DePaul and Creighton, and one that has few tests outside of Georgetown, Xavier
and Butler, nor any contenders for a top-four seed. (Georgetown as a No. 4 was one of the committee's worst
decisions in years. ) "

USA TODAY- How the overrated Big East led to Villanova's No. 1 downfall

Well at least they got that miracle gift from Ga St. to knock Baylor out and Xavier took care of business vs.the 14th seed
.....I'll be interesting to see if Xavier can save face for the conference and become the only NBE team to make it out of the
round of 32 in it's first 2 years( with 10 teams given tourney bids no less), but that could be a tough out, playing in the
west vs. Arizona.
This post was edited on 3/22 11:24 AM by the Blades

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

I was hoping that they would set up the brackets so that Dayton (if they advanced, and they did) would play Arizona, setting up a Miller vs. Miller showdown between the brothers like Harbaugh v. Harbaugh in the Super Bowl a few years ago when the best Harbaugh won. Instead the NCAA is more interested in regional rivalries like the Wichita State v. Kansas showdown today which is all about $$$. rather than sibling rivalries which are just as interesting in some ways for those of us outside these regions like Kansas.

 

[Ozzie3178]

Yea Blades agree that new BE is a joke and Nova is soo soft KSTW much like last year!

I really hope SDSu beats Duke today... Don't see it but would love it!!

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

Here is what I have for regional finals now:

UNI-Michigan State
Duke-Gonzaga
Kentucky-Wichita State
Arizona-Wisconsin

If you guys recall Wisconsin beat Arizona in a nailbiter last year to go to the Final 4 before Wisconsin lost a nailbiter to Kentucky in the Final 4.

I feel like Duke, and Wisconsin-Arizona winner, are only teams that can stop Kentucky,

There is however an excellent opportunity here for UNI or Dayton to become a cinderella in the Final 4. That bracket is now wide open, I can also NC State getting there but I am going with MSU-UNI. MSU is a battle tested team. Sweet 16 in 7 of 8 years proves that they have a tough tourney tested program.

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

Watching the Kansas -Wichita State game I really like the Kansas point guard Frank Mason Jr. This is a kid who was not highly recruited (not sure why he wasn't) but he has a strong body and looks very aggressive and I can see hunger and the look of a winner in his face. I watched this kid for like 3 possessions and he is already my favorite player on the floor. Why didn't UConn recruit him? He could have been on our team.

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

Wichita State beats Kansas

Probably most of you guys had Kansas winning this game, but I had Wichita State going to Elite 8 and then losing to UK. An easy call. Wichita State plays a very good style of ball for the tournament, a 3 guard offense and they are very good defensively despite being a bit undersized. They do the little fundamental things like box out so other teams don't get easy baskets on O-boards, and they communicate so that guys don't get left open. Every kid on the Wichita State team is a baller with high basketball IQ. Kansas is bigger and more athletic but not as experienced, not as smart and I think that outside of Ellis (who is banged up) and Mason, they don't have a whole lot of offense. Like UConn they are spotty on offense and not up to recent Kansas standards.

Wichita State will be a very tough out for whomever they play and if they were in the East this team would be going to the Final 4. But they are not in the East, and instead are stuck in Kentucky's bracket, so no cigar for Marshall this year. Too bad, because this is one of the two best fundamental basketball teams in the country, the other being Gonzaga which has to get by Duke as WSU must get by UK.

This post was edited on 3/22 7:32 PM by KhalidShockedTheWorld

 

[Ozzie3178]

Re: Wichita State beats Kansas

I had the wheat shockers as well. But losing to Notre Lame next.

This tourney is working out great so far. Just need KY to lose eventually to Arizona or whoever and perfecto

 

[Ozzie3178]

Welp... Most likely lost my pool. Zona is not UConn tough!!

Although they hit the most 3s without missing I have ever seen or remember. What was that about Wisky?!?!

I bet next week they will miss a ton of shots against UK most likely watch!

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

Arizona played very poor D. You have to guard the perimeter against Wisconsin, although it's tough because they have bigs who can shoot the 3.

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

I was very disappointed by Gonazaga's performance against Duke. In particular, I have watched a few Gonzaga games this year and I believe their guard play held them back, Pangos and Bell are average players, good passers and good fundamentally but neither one has scoring talent. When Pangos missed the wide open 3 in the corner that would have cut the lead to 1, I knew it was over. He and Bell are not big time players.

Now up to the Big 10 to stop a Duke Kentucky final in which I would be forced to root for Duke. Nobody should be made to have such rooting choices.

 

[Ozzie3178]

No UConn fan no matter what the circumstances ever roots for Puke!!

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

I would be forced to do it if Duke plays Kentucky.....it's called lesser of two evils analysis............

 

[Dominicfrank]

Duke is easy to root for over UK. Coach K is a legend and a great success, my hate for Duke is because they are good and well coached. My hate for Calamari is that he cheats, destroys programs and is the basketball anti-christ.

 

[Husky fan in Va.]

Hate to say it Ozzie but I am in agreement with them, anybody but Kentucky!

 

[the Blades]

Can't root for either of them.......poetic justice would be an all B1G final.....

Cal and K are 2 snakes in the grass....Cal runs whenever the posse starts to round up and K lets his NCAA
Ol' boys network whitewash everything for him anytime his dirt surfaces...you know stuff like:

" After leaving Duke, former star Corey Maggette admits to accepting thousands of dollars from summer-league coach Myron
Piggie. Though such payments would presumably have made Maggette ineligible, the NCAA declines to strip Duke of its Final
Four appearance. The Blue Devils, in fact, aren't punished at all. "

"An investigation by the New Orleans Times-Picayune reveals that point guard Chris Duhon's mother "landed a job working
for a Duke booster; co-workers say the job opening was never posted and that Harper was overpaid and lacked qualifications."
Again, Duke gets absolutely no heat from the NCAA."

"If you were wondering whether anything would come of Lance Thomas, Duke and all that jewelry, Tuesday brought an answer.
Nothing."

And now that Cal is at UK and part of the Ol' boys network don't expect a peep out of the NCAA no matter what he does either.

This post was edited on 3/30 9:53 AM by the Blades

 

[TripleDribbleMan]

I saw the 1st Duke-MSU game this year which was 10 point Duke win on a neutral court. MSU was in that game until the end. I give MSU a fighter's chance in the rematch. Their guard play is a bit more solid than Gonzaga's was.

Wisconsin should have beaten Kentucky in the Final 4 last year. They are a hard matchup because their bigs can shoot the 3 ball which will suck Kentucky's shotblockers away from the basket. I don't really see UK blowing Wisconsin out. On the other hand no way Wisconsin will be draining 3s like they did against Arizona, UK is much better than Arizona defensively.So it should be a decent game.

 

[Ozzie3178]

I hear you Husky Va and Dom and KSTW I just can never ever root for Duke!

Besides Cuse... they are up there for teams I can care less about with Notre Dame and Kansas.

As Blades points out Duke and K gets all the advantages with rankings or 1 seeds etc... Plus the dirt they do on the trail which almost always gets swept under the rug or never comes out!

Kentucky is Kentucky yea no one including me likes Cal or thinks he is a really good coach. He is the best recruiter a la Nick Saban in football.

I want an all B1G final as well and I said I am pulling for MSU. Some similarities to our run last year and being a 7 seed.