Gators

Yeah, OK. The Gators are the champs. We don't like it, but it is what it is.

Greg Oden is not ready for the NBA. Despite scoring 25 points and pulling down 12 rebounds, he is not ready for the 82-game NBA schedule. He looked tired in the second half. We have said all along that Oden is slow and looks for only blocks and dunks. His game needs help. But, he will be drafted in the first round (either 1 or 2).

Let's just get rid of the age-rule in the NBA and let these guys go from high school straight into the pros.

Billy Donovan is surely elated, because as the next Kentucky coach his stock has just soared, and UK will pay mega-bucks for him to bring a couple of National Championships to Ashley Judd and the rest of the Lexington faithfuls.

OSU's Thad Matta is also probably bound for greener pastures. While he is a mediocre recruiter, he will most certainly be pursued by a big name (and bigger conference) team.

College basketball has become nothing more than a host of mercenaries. Players and coaches shirk their commitments to their schools for better money. Very depressing.

This is our last blog for now. We are debating whether to continue. Thanks to all of you (almost 1,000 page views).

OK, Almost The End

We're sticking it out. We'd give anything to see our Heels in the Final Four, but, maybe next year. Tomorrow we'll check out the last four teams and let you know what's going to happen.

Stay tuned. And thanks for staying with us.

Once the 2007 champ has been crowned we will take down this blog and switch over to our UNC blog.

Amiamo i Talloni di Catrame.

The End

We're done. We love the Heels, and it pains us too much to continue to update this blog. So, we have come to the decision to end this blog for good and start one dedicated only to both men's and women's Tar Heel basketball. It has been obvious from our lack of traffic and comments that there are only a few of you out there checking us out anyway, so our shut-down should not be traumatic to anyone.

If you are a Heels fan, check us out in the next week as we will give you the link to our new blog. If not, thanks for the memories, and go to hell Georgetown.

Nós também odiamos Duke.

Out Of Service

This blog will be down for several days as we attempt to do an accident reconstruction investigation into the UNC-Georgetown game.

Bruins. Who Knew?

We are as surprised as you that UCLA advanced to the Final Four today. They basically took Kansas' run and run and run game to the Jayhawks and shoved it down their throats.

While Ohio State demolished Memphis, and despite Oden's 17 points, we're not sold on the Caveman. He doesn't hustle, he doesn't have any kind of sense of urgency when he plays, and he shies away from contact. On defense he does nothing other than look for the potential blocked shot. On offense, he doesn't move. The only thing he seems to have going for him is that he is larger than everyone else.

Sunday games:

Florida(1) v. Oregon(3): no real expert analysis needs to be done here. If the Gators fall behind by a large margin in the first half then the Ducks will make them pay. However, we don't think Oregon is the team to beat Florida. Gators move on to the Final Four.

UNC(1) v. Georgetown(2): this game will be decided by whether or not the Heels want to win. They are certainly capable, with their slew of talent, of not only winning this game but going all the way. But, their lapses (see game against USC) are maddening. Ol' Roy has to get his team fired up and ready to play, or the explosive Hoyas will send them back to Chapel Hill. No word as of now on whether Reyshawn Terry will play, but, regardless, Tyler Hansbrough and Brandan Wright need to have solid games. We are calling this a win by the Heels. BUT, look for Georgetown to feed off of a Meadowlands crowd that will be Hoya-partisan. Carolina will be playing its toughest game of the year. If they beat Georgetown, we look for them to win it all.

Footnote: Billy Packer hates the Tar Heels. This week he called Terry "soft" to which Reyshawn responded that "Packer doesn't know sh*t about college basketball." We concur, as Billy Dook-Packer doesn't even try and hide his hate for the Heels. Note his defense of Gerald "Elbow" Henderson. Let's hope Terry uses Packer's comment as a catalyst.

If Packer is not calling the UNC-Georgetown game. we're betting he will be at Mike Cry's house, sipping chardonnay by the fire, cheering for the Hoyas.

Drar til helvete Billy.

How We Fare So Far

Here's how we are doing in our seven brackets:

1. 41-15 (73%) Blog
2. 42-14(75%) CBS
3. 42-14 (75%) ESPN
4. 35-21 (63%) ESPN
5. 29-27 (52%) ESPN
6. 45-11 (80%) ESPN
7. 33-23 (60%) ESPN

Overall:

267-125 (68%)

Not good, but note that several of those brackets are based on upsets that didn't happen. Keep an eye out for our number 6 bracket.

We would really appreciate your reports on how you are doing so far.

Beten Sie für Rameses.

Tyler Who?

We are composing this with 14 minutes left to go in the USC-UNC game so that we can have something to distract us until this game mercifully ends, one way or another. Carolina trips around the court in some sort of opiate daze while the Trojans score at will. It's a little disconcerting knowing that we may be seeing several underclassmen Heels in a light blue uniform for the last time.

Speaking of the Heels, even if you know very little about Carolina, you most certainly have seen Ramses, the ram mascot. Sadly, Jason Ray, who has worn the Ramses uniform for the past three years, has been seriously injured today as he was hit by a car near the hotel where the UNC team and cheerleaders are staying. He is in critical condition.

Enough about Carolina, what else happened today? Anything exciting? Upsetting? Worth watching?

Florida had to fight back from 9 down to Butler to win. Are they going to win it all though? Uh, no.

Georgetown also had a big problem tonight with Vandy as they showed they may be wearing down after making a huge run in the second half of the season. Credit the Hoyas, though, as they played the last 4 minutes without Roy Hibbert, who fouled out. We also like John Thompson III. He's a classy coach, just like his dad. And he's good.

With 2 minutes left, Oregon is up by 10. Go ahead and put the Ducks in the Great Eight Bracket.

So, when we started this blog, the Tar Heels were down by double digits with 14 minutes left. They are now up by 7 at the final TV timeout. This is a perfect example of why we are certain Carolina fans probably die at an earlier age than most people. This yanking back and forth is just too much for our hearts.

UNLV is trying to mount a little bitty run, but probably to no avail. They are still down 6 with a minute left. You never know...

But it wasn't to be. The Ducks fly into the Great Eight and play Florida.

And UNC wins by 10. How did that happen? No need for us to pop another nitro, but we'll keep it by the TV for the Georgetown game on Sunday.

And where was Tyler Hansbrough? 33 points against Michigan State and FIVE points and THREE rebounds tonight? Dude.

Saturday's games:

Ohio State(1) v. Memphis(2): this will be a game worth watching. OSU had to battle back yesterday to a very good Tennessee team, and Memphis will offer more of a challenge. The Tigers have won 25 in a row and are just damn confident. But, Memphis has the disadvantage in the backcourt. Oden looked mortal, though, in the UT game, despite blocking that last shot. The fact that Memphis plays in a weak conference doesn't mean a thing. If the Tigers can out-rebound the Buckeyes, and contain Conley and Lewis, then they win. We're going with Ohio State here, though. Oden bounces back and dominates, leaving Memphis no choice but to double and triple-team him, which, of course, opens up scoring opportunities for the OSU guards.

Footnote: Memphis' Joey Dorsey, who fouled out (and promptly took off his uniform to show off his ripped body) against Texas A&M, made another classy move today as he called Greg Oden "over-rated." Has Dorsey been locked in a closet all year, or is he just stupid?

Kansas(1) v. UCLA(2): Kansas can run-run-run. UCLA can defend-defend-defend. If this turns into a faced-paced game, give the Jayhawks the edge. A slow-down game could be a plus for the Bruins. UCLA also can claim home-court advantage as the game is in San Jose. Many pundits also say that Kansas has a deeper bench, but we don't agree. The keys to the game will be rebounding (the Jayhawks are bigger) and points beyond the arc. The Bruins can't afford to get into a 3-point shooting contest. Our call? We pick Kansas, but this will be a very close game.

Good to see Steve Alford in a new coaching position. He won't be as pressured to win it all each year at New Mexico State like he was in the Big Ten. And, because of that, he will win it all in the next 8-10 years.

Does the Slipper Fit the Runnin' Rebels?

Is UNLV the Cinderella Team this year? What about Butler? After tonight there are only a few teams left to try on the glass slipper.

UNC(1) v. USC(5): Reyshawn Terry, the lone starting senior for the Tar Heels, is doubtful for this game. How important is he? It depends on who can step-up. Danny Greene is the most likely Heel to see lots of action, and he can be explosive. "Can be" is kind of the mantra for Carolina this year. Lots of talent, but, despite their number-one seed, flaky. Look for Hansbrough to take over, though, and Ty "Hummer" Lawson to turn up the volume as the Trojans fall.

Florida(1) v. Butler(5): is Donovan going to be the next coach at Kentucky? No matter, he is taking a "Roy Williams"-approach to answering questions about his possible limited time as a Gator and just "concentrating on winning the national championship." While that may be out of reach, Florida beats up on Baylor to advance.

Oregon(3) v. UNLV(7): the Runnin' Rebels hold out the only chance to be a Cinderella. If UNLV can subdue Aaron Brooks, then they will win. Sound simple? Not. The Rebels have to limit Brooks ability to score and/or dish out the rock. We don't think they can do it, as the Ducks advance.

Georgetown(2) v. Vandy(6): bye-bye Commodores. Hoyas win.

Tubby going to Minnesota is a great move for him. He deserves the respect that the UK fans never gave him. Look for Ricky P. to seriously consider coming back to Kentucky.

Disgusted

We're Tar Heels fans. We've told you that before. We are also college basketball fans. Our love for college hoops, and our inherent core belief in loyalty, makes us completely disgusted and disheartened by kids who commit to play for a university and then bolt after one year for the NBA. Of course, the NBA is to blame for some of this. The age rule for entering the draft has produced a batch of one-and-done mercenaries who are using their freshman year of college ball as an opportunity to just create a more impressive resume before bolting to the NBA before their sophomore season.

For Heels fans like us, this has been a sore spot since Marvin Williams played just one year before going for the fat checking account and shiny Escalade. Now, we find out today, there are at least two Carolina freshmen who will say good-bye to Ol' Roy after the end of the season.

Our inside source informed us today that Ty Lawson is a lock to enter the draft. He has even stopped going to class. Brandan Williams is also NBA-bound.

Also, according to our source, Tyler Hansbrough has said recently "If I listen to my heart, then I will stay another year. But if I listen to my head, I will declare for the draft."

Do we have a case of sour grapes here? I mean, who are we to imply that someone should not have the opportunity to go for their dream? Wouldn't anyone pursue a chance to make a lot of money and do something they love?

But there should be some integrity here. If you commit to four years with a team, then you should be held accountable. Same for Durant and Oden (assuming he will go pro).

College basketball has become nothing more than a development league for the NBA. Either the NBA should get rid of the age restriction for entering the draft, or the NCAA--no stranger to rules and restrictions--should require a player to at least finish his junior year before entering the draft.

Of course, the more likely scenario will be that the NBA drops their restriction. Either way, we hope that someone sees this problem and solves it soon.

And as for Ty? He's a great player, but his jersey will never hang in the Dean Smith Center. How rewarding is that? We guess money talks louder than respect for oneself or for the institution that took a chance that a player would have the integrity to think about more than just a new car and cash to burn.

Hope you like the Hummer, Ty.

Who's Got Next?

Here we are. Sweet Sixteen on the doorstep. Not quite as fascinating as it has been before. In fact, the biggest upset possible is UNLV winning it all. A number seven seed.

But, hell, we love this time of year, regardless of the seeds remaining. It's such a battle, with every team thinking they can win it all. Fans all painted up. Coaches sweating and ranting.

So who will win tomorrow? We thought you'd never ask.

Southern Illinois(4) v. Kansas (1): the Jayhawks seem to hold all the cards. They average 16 more points per game than the Salukis, rebound better by +10, and share the ball more evenly. This won't be an easy game for Kansas, though. Southern Illinois can defend like nobody's business, and you know, defense wins championships. But, not here. While it may be close, the Jayhawks will advance.

Memphis(3) v. Texas A&M(2): Memphis is deep, and A&M is not. The Aggies are playing close to home. How to balance those two factors? We'll take the close-to-home advantage and call this a win by Texas A&M.

Pitt(3) v. UCLA(2): we talked yesterday about this game as a potential upset. We still believe that can happen if all of the stars align for the Panthers, but we'll have to stick with our way-back original prediction that the Bruins will win this game. Call it a "feeling."

Tennessee(5) v. Ohio State (1): we also talked about this game yesterday and flagged it as a possible upset. And it could be. Check out our reasons in our "Sweet" blog entry. The down-low is that if Greg Oden can dominate this game, stay out of foul trouble, and pass effectively out of the double or triple team, then the Buckeyes move forward. If the Vols can distract and frustrate Oden, then look for Chris Lofton to take over. Rebounding may raise it's ugly head as the deciding force in this game, and, if it does, Tennessee takes the late flight back to Knoxville. All said and done, the Buckeyes win, but we would LIKE to see Lofton and his team knock off what is probably one of the most over-rated number one seeds in the past three years.

So be it. Our predictions are now etched in stone. We will own-up to any misjudgements we have made.

O que acontecerá, acontecerá.

NIT. The Other White Meat.

Who's still alive in that "other" college basketball tournament?

Mississippi State

West Virginia

Clemson

Syracuse

Air Force

DePaul

Pretty outstanding teams, aren't they? Too bad they had to play in the "forgotten" tournament.

NOTE: We hope that the Rev. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson will not see our use of the word "white" in the title of this blog as anything other than a parody of the "Pork. The Other White Meat" promotion. No racism was intended.

Sweet

So, what do you think? After having a couple of days to go over the match-ups, and hashing it out with your peers at work, who is the team that will rise above all of this? Of course, the word "rise" is used here tongue-and-cheek, because all of the teams left to vie for the National Championship are already there. No less than a number seven seed playing now. Still exciting, but not as. Don't even bet on Butler.

Are there any upsets left, you ask? Will the Final Four be all number one seeded teams?

Fear not, for lurking out there are a couple of teams that can pull off what only 10 out of 64 teams have done in the past week--an upset.

Pitt: while we have touted them as too highly-rated all season, we have said the same about UCLA. Pitt has the edge in this sweet sixteen game, both in height and the ability to be able to transition turnovers into points. UCLA lacks height and they don't defend the break extremely well. If Pitt can prevent UCLA from running the half-court, and if Aaron Gray can score, then they will win.

USC: if you are a Carolina fan, you live with inconsistency. This Heels team can go onto Lute Olsen's home court and blow out his team like no other team has done, and then let a pansy-like Eastern Kentucky get within 4 points (after being down by 26). Maddening. USC is not a particularly good team, but they can play defense well, and they are almost as athletic as North Carolina. If the Trojans were facing any opponent other than the Tar Heels in the sweet sixteen we would not give them a chance. But, because Roy Williams' squad has the tendency to drift we have to say that this could be an upset.

Tennessee: no one is giving the Vols a chance in this game. Everyone expects Greg Oden to dominate on his way to the NBA. But we see a different story line. We see a player like Chris Lofton. This guy is one of those rare athletes who can "will" his team to win. He dominates. Not like "Caveman" Oden dominates with his size and Tonka-sized hands--we're talking about a player, like a Jordan, who just wants to win so bad that he can literally take over a game and push his team to a victory. Oden is, just by genetics alone, a force to be reckoned with. But, witness his game against Xavier, and the frustration he showed. Lofton doesn't get rattled, and he seems to thrive on being able to carry his team up and over a deficit. Sure, if you are a Buckeyes fan you quickly point out the Lewis/Conley effort in OT against Xavier, but, let's face it, if you add up those two players' cumulative scoring average for the year (22.8) it is just a squirt better than Lofton's (20.6). So, what do we think? Unless Oden shows us more than just catch and shoot (dunk), and if he gets in early foul trouble and starts shoving opposing players around (SEE: no-call technical/intentional foul in Xavier game), the Vols win. Hell, UT may win anyway if Chris Lofton has anything to say about it.

Catch up with us tomorrow and we will lay out the Thursday/Friday games for you.

È un e fatto adesso.

Exciting So Far?? Well....

Thrill

Agony

Other than Saturday's games, the 2007 Big Dance has been pretty ho hum. No double-digit seeds left--first time in more than 10 years--and no real upsets. Sure, everyone jumped on the Winthrop bandwagon for about a half-second, but the highest seed left standing for the Sweet 16 is a number 7. Yawn.

How dull has it been? Pretty bad, unless you look at the Saturday games. Take a look:

Thursday (16 games)

Games Decided By Less Than 10 (3) 19%

Games Decided By Less Than 5 (2) 13%

OT Games (0) 0%

Friday (16 games)
Games Decided By Less Than 10 (5) 31%
Games Decided By Less Than 5 (3) 19%
OT Games (1) 6%

Saturday (8 games)
Games Decided By Less Than 10 (7) 88%
Games Decided By Less Than 5 (3) 38%
OT Games (3) 38%

Sunday (8 games)
Games Decided By Less Than 10 (2) 25%
Games Decided By Less Than 5 (1) 13%
OT Games (0) 0%

Overall (48 games)

Games Decided By Less Than 10 (17) 35%

Games Decided By Less Than 5 (9) 19%

OT Games (4) 8%

How about upsets, you ask? Well, take a look:

Midwest: 4 (33%)

West: 1 (8%)

East: 3 (25%)

South: 2 (17%)

Overall: 10 (21%)

Largest seed to fall: #2 Wisconsin

So, if you just filled out your brackets and picked all top-seeds you are looking good at 79% accuracy. Surely that middle-aged woman in the cubicle next to yours who has never watched a college basketball game in her life(and has an irritating laugh) is probably leading your office pool right now, while you lament over your Long Beach State and Creighton upset picks.

How are we doing? Well, depends on which bracket you're asking about.

1. 35-13 (73%) Blog

2. 36-12 (75%) CBS

3. 36-12 (75%) ESPN

4. 28-20 (58%) ESPN

5. 24-24 (50%) ESPN

6. 38-10 (79%) ESPN

7. 30-18 (63%) ESPN

We're not disappointed. It could have been much worse. Hope your brackets are doing well. Let us know.

Dé al hoy pobre.

Caveman

The two number one seeds in action today each got a scare, but ended up winners. Ohio State had to grind it out in OT without Manchild (and potential GEICO caveman) Greg Oden who fouled out in regulation as he shoved a Xavier player (above picture) for his 5th foul. And North Carolina had to rely on Tyler Hansbrough's season-high 33 points to overcome a pesky Michigan State team. NOTE: Tyler started out wearing "The Mask" but took it off for good before the first TV timeout.

Two upsets as Vandy surprised everyone by beating 3-seeded Washington State, and Butler surprised the hell out of us with a win over 4-seed Maryland. We are still not big on Butler, though. They will not advance now as they most likely will play Florida in the sweet-16.

So, you ask, how did we do with our picks for today? Let's have a look-see:

Xavier(9) v. Ohio State(1): Xavier squeaked by BYU. Can they beat the Buckeyes? No. Ohio State wins. It took some doing, but the Buckeyes advanced.

Butler(5) v. Maryland (4): Don't let the seeding fool you. The Terps will turn up the volume and beat Butler. Obviously we were wrong. Butler goes ahead, but will be going home after losing in the sweet-16 to Florida.

Louisville(6) v. Texas A&M(3): Upset. Louisville wins. Wrong again. We were certain that the nearly-home court advantage would push the Cardinals over the top, but it was not so.

Vandy(6) v. Washington State(3): No upset here. Washington State wins. And another miss. We are a little comforted that it took 2 OTs for Vandy to knock of WSU.

BC(7) v. Georgetown(2): The Hoyas are probably the strongest #2 seed in the Tourney. They will beat BC. And they did. BC had signs of life in the first half, but, as usual, they were not able to finish.

VCU(11) v. Pitt(3): Pitt is perhaps the weakest #3 seed and they will have some real challenges with VCU. Upset. VCU wins. Oh, and it almost was. But VCU looked tired in OT as they fell to the Panthers.

Indiana(7) v. UCLA(2): The Bruins win. No upset here. The Bruins won this low-scoring affair. Indiana had a measly 13 points in the first half.

Michigan State(9) v. UNC(1): This could be an upset. If the Heels continue to lose focus they will lose. If they play with defensive intensity and stick with the fundamentals on offense they will win. We call this a win for Carolina. Carolina won, but they must defend-defend-defend to advance any further in the Tourney. Hansbrough was sensational, but if he is forced to spend his energy defending the likes of Kevin Durant will he be able to do what he did tonight?

The games on Sunday will be no less exciting than today. Here's what we think:

Tennessee(5) v. Virginia(4): Yeah, UT scored 121 against Long Beach State on Friday, but they will have a much more difficult time defending and scoring against Virginia. We like Chris Lofton, but he will have his hands full with Sean Singletary and JR Reynolds. Virginia wins this one, but look for OT.

Purdue(9) v. Florida(1): Florida had 62 rebounds in their first-round game against Jackson State, and Purdue's starters are all 6-7 or shorter. Get the drift? Florida wins.

UNLV(7) v. Wisconsin(2): Without Brian Butch, Wisconsin is very vulnerable in this game. We're going with the upset here. The Running Rebels win. Sorry to our cheese-loving friends. But, your after-dinner drink was a hit with us.

Virginia Tech(5) v. Southern Illinois(4): The third-leading scorer for the Salukis, Matt Shaw, will either not play or be limited in his ability to move after spraining his ankle in the game against Holy Cross. This will make a huge difference as Southern Illinois relies on a 5-man defensive attack. This is going to to an ugly game, and the Hokies will win.

Winthrop(11) v. Oregon(3): Winthrop beat Notre Dame, but don't look for them to advance any farther as they lose to the Ducks.

Nevada(7) v. Memphis(2): Memphis' #2 seed is questionable as they play in a very weak conference. But, give them their props, as they are extremely athletic. They suck at free-throws, though, so if the game comes down to scoring from the charity stripe then they will be challenged. However, despite their shortcomings, we think Memphis will win.

Kentucky(8) v. Kansas (1): Barn-burner. This could be an upset. But will it be? No. The Jayhawks win.

USC(5) v. Texas(4): Kevin Durant, on his college basketball farewell tour, will be too much for USC. The Longhorns win.

El baloncesto es maravilloso!

Pre-Season Picks

Ever wonder how accurate all of the pre-season picks by the so-called reputable sports magazines are? Granted, it is not easy to predict the NCAA Tourney field in October, but we did some research and found some stats that may surprise you.

We looked at 3 of the top sports magazines to see how they fared pre-season in picking the seeds for the Big Dance. Let's take a look:

Athlon

Champion: UNC

64 Team Tournament Prediction: 35-29 (55%)

CBSSportline

Champion: Ohio State

64 Team Tournament Prediction: 37-27 (58%)

Sports Illustrated

Champion: Kansas

65 Team Tournament Prediction: 35-30 (54%)

Overall

107-86 (55%)

So, our lesson here is to not put much stock in any pre-season predictions.

Upsets? Uh, No.

32 games and only 5 upsets. Not very exciting. Let's hope things pick up in the second round.

We are 23-9 (72%) so far. Not bad. The 8-9 games, as we said, are hard to call. We are 1-3 in those match-ups.

Note that all of the teams we have predicted to win in the second round are still alive. We feel pretty good about that.

We have to come clean with you. The bracket we shared with you is just one of 7 brackets we have going right now. Other than what we posted on our blog we have one entered with CBSSportsline and five with ESPN. We tried to come up with several scenarios based on lots of different criteria and stats. We picked a lot of upsets in some brackets, and stayed conservative in others.

So, how are our other brackets doing?

1. 24-8 (75%) CBS
2. 23-9 (72%) ESPN
3. 19-13 (59%) ESPN
4. 17-15 (53%) ESPN
5. 27-5 (84%) ESPN
6. 21-11 (66%) ESPN

Please leave your comments and let us know how your brackets are doing.

Sognare delle cose buone.

Eight Games Saturday

Let's have a look:

Xavier(9) v. Ohio State(1): Xavier squeaked by BYU. Can they beat the Buckeyes? No. Ohio State wins.

Butler(5) v. Maryland (4): Don't let the seeding fool you. The Terps will turn up the volume and beat Butler.

Louisville(6) v. Texas A&M(3): Upset. Louisville wins.

Vandy(6) v. Washington State(3): No upset here. Washington State wins.

BC(7) v. Georgetown(2): The Hoyas are probably the strongest #2 seed in the Tourney. They will beat BC.

VCU(11) v. Pitt(3): Pitt is perhaps the weakest #3 seed and they will have some real challenges with VCU. Upset. VCU wins.

Indiana(7) v. UCLA(2): The Bruins win. No upset here.

Michigan State(9) v. UNC(1): This could be an upset. If the Heels continue to lose focus they will lose. If they play with defensive intensity and stick with the fundamentals on offense they will win. We call this a win for Carolina.

We'll talk to you later tonight to see if Jackson State can upset Florida. The Tigers are only down 6 at the half to the defending national champs.

NIT Who?

Admit it. You could care less about the NIT.

Don't be ashamed. We tend to overlook this tournament as well. Just a bunch of teams not good enough to play in the Big Dance, right?

Well, we would argue that the top teams in the NIT should have been in the NCAA Tourney, which has not expanded its field of 64 (other than the play-in game) since the mid-80's.

Syracuse, Bradley, Michigan, West Virginia, Air Force, Marist, Kansas State, and even Florida State would have been given the opportunity to Dance if there were just 8 more teams allowed in the NCAA Tourney.

Just something to think about.

The Need to Focus

Yeah, North Carolina won by 21. BUT, Eastern Kentucky got within 4 in the second half. What is it going to take for the Heels to learn to focus their intensity and ability for a full 40 minutes? Their lapses in concentration are going to be their downfall.

Roy Williams lost his sister last night. She had been ill for some time and had been in a facility in Charlotte. Our prayers go out to Ol' Roy and his family.

So, other than Duke losing, no other real upsets to talk about. Michigan State(9) beat Marquette(8), and Xavier(9) beat BYU(8), but in those 8-9 games it is expected.

We weren't especially surprised by Duke losing. Mike Cry said after the game, "One of the things about success is sometimes you are going to lose." Huh? We could spend an entire hour explaining why this Blue Satans team has not attained "success" this year, but, for now, we'll just be satisfied that Gerald "Elbow" Henderson and the rest of his teammates will be watching the Big Dance on CBS in their dorm rooms this year.

If you are going to watch just one game tomorrow, check out the Wisconsin-Texas A&M Corpus Christi match-up at 2:45. This could be the big upset of the day.

Oh, and we are 11-5 today. We called the Duke game, but the Marquette injury caught us by surprise. The big Vandy win was strange. Let's see how they fair against Washington State. Are the Commodores on a roll?

Would we change our predictions if given another chance? No. Butler is over-rated, and Gonzaga should have beat Indiana. Boston College was looking extremely vulnerable coming into the game with Texas Tech. We did consider Bobby Knight's record in the Big Dance, and that he puts so much pressure on his teams to win that, unless they are remarkably talented that they falter. But, as relaxed as he seemed to be in the past week we felt sure he could at least beat BC.

If you believe in prayer (or even in God), please pray for a teenage athlete named Will Dicus who is dying of cancer. He has a brain tumor and a tumor in his chest. The prognosis is not good. He is a helluva baseball player who may not make it to opening day.

Obtenir quelque sommeil.

Confused By the Heels

OK, so North Carolina is a number 1 seed in the East. They are ranked number 4 in the Coaches Poll. They are FAR more talented than Eastern Kentucky. So, please explain to us how in the world is it possible that they blow a 26-point first-half lead to only be up by 7 with 15 minutes to play??

Duke Down

For the first time since 1996 the Blue Satans have lost in the first round. VCU was down 13 and came back to beat Dook by 2. We called this game, but we'll stay humble as we have missed several other games today.

So far? Well, we are 8-4. Vandy, Butler, BC and Michigan State were teams we did not pick. Still 4 more games to be played tonight, so we hope to up our average.

See you tomorrow.

Tyler's Got a Brand New Mask

Looking less like the Phantom of the Opera, Tyler Hansbrough wore this new mask yesterday in practice. Just to us, it seemed that he was able to connect more accurately on his hook shot, which may mean that his vision is not as limited.

More importantly, he did not constantly tug on and readjust the new mask, as he was doing almost constantly with the old one.

It all may be a moot point, however, since reports today indicate he may not wear a mask at all in the Tourney.

UPDATE!!! URGENT!!!

Marquette will play Michigan State without their second leading scorer, Jerel McNeal. He is sidelined with a thumb injury. McNeal averages 14.7 pts and 3.8 assists per game. This is a blow to their backcourt. We were at Marquette's practice today and McNeal did work out but he had a very large cast on his hand.

What does this mean? Well, we think this means that Michigan State will beat Marquette.

We'll continue to keep you up-to-date on injuries and other news.

We were also at the Tar Heels' practice today, and they were loose and having fun. They also looked very good running the offense.

Good night, and good luck. Let the games begin!

We're Ready

Looks small, we know, but just click once on the image above to view the large version.

Yeah, we spent a lot of time crunching stats, but we also just went with what we know. The truth is there will be some upsets that no one this side of God Himself can predict, but we've put in the hours and given you our best shot. We believe in it.

Now, if you're looking for upsets (that not many other folks will call) to spice up your bracket, check these out:

Midwest
Wisconsin v. Texas A&M-CC
We are not quite crazy enough to call this an upset, but we do think it could happen. Wisconsin has Brian Butch injured, and taking him out eliminates the Badgers' height advantage. And the Islanders like to run and control tempo, and they share the rock much better than the Cheese Team. Longshot, but if you like a good 2-15 upset, go for it!

West
Virginia Tech v. Illinois
The Hokies are a crapshot. Will they come to play or not? Illinois can buckle down and frustrate a team with their defense. No, we didn't call this upset either, but maybe we should have.

South
Louisville v. Stanford
This should prove to be a close game. Both teams are poor-shooters. Stanford can play some D with tall guys. We stuck with Louisville, but Stanford could easily win.

East
Vandy v. George Washington
We did call this upset, as we think Vandy cannot win in the NCAA Tourney by relying on the 3-pointer.

Check out our bracket and let us know what you think.

Hello Big Dance. See you Thursday night.