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My Final Four is still alive
March 26, 2008Thursday's games are only a day away, and as I write this, I am sitting in fifth place (out of 27) in the office pool.
My Final Four of UCLA (that A&M scare was a little much), Kansas, Texas and Tennessee are still alive.
I feel pretty good about three of those. Tennessee is another matter, although the Vols had the toughest second-round game playing a 30-win team like Butler.
Nothing too surprising happened over the weekend, although Stephen Curry and Davidson is a great story (I wrote a column on this a few days ago).
I thought three No. 2 seeds had a pretty decent chance of losing after Friday, and I was right on two fronts.
The only two-seed I figured was in good shape was Texas, which was whipping Miami until the Hurricanes made it close until the end.
After seeing Duke almost stumble against Belmont, I would have picked the Mountaineers to advance if given the chance.
Next on the line were the Vols, who escaped Butler in OT. And after the Hoyas struggled in their opener, I was not shocked when Davidson brought them down.
What will this weekend entail. Hopefully, all my Final Four teams advancing. I suspect to see some pretty good ball over the next few days.
Posted by at 6:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Only one bracket next year
March 21, 2008You heard it right. Next year, I am only filling out one bracket.
Not because I believe it's the wholesome or correct thing to do. And not because the extra $5 will make or break me.
But because I am tired of wondering why did I split my picks in some of these toss-up games. As we speak, I have lost only four or five games in my good bracket, not bad considering the upsets.
My second bracket, one that I will know refer to as the "Devil" bracket, at one point today I was 10-10. That has to be bringing up the rear in the office pool.
It seemed like every game I wasn't sure about, I went with my gut for the first bracket and then picked the opposite in the devil bracket. Then, there were the USC, Baylor and St. Mary's picks I wrongly made in both -- those aren't helping the cause.
Oh well, I guess it could be worse. Just checked everybody's brackets out and one guy had UConn going to the national championship game.
Ummm, not so much.
Posted by at 5:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Friday morning games go the distance
By now, you have seen or heard about Belmont's near-upset of Duke, which would have been only the second time in NCAA history that a No. 2 seed went down in the first round.
That was by far the most entertaining game of Thursday.
There have been only four games played so far Friday, but already two have gone down to the wire.
Behind 40 points from Stephen Curry, Davidson squeezed by Gonzaga. Right after that, Western Kentucky eliminated Drake with a last-second deep 3-pointer in overtime.
Both games involved mid-major schools and one of the best players in the country in Curry. He scored 30 points after halftime and when the Zags went to a zone late, Curry got open after an offensive rebound and drained the tie-breaking three.
I think Davidson, which has won 23 straight, can definitely hang with Georgetown. And if Western Kentucky can't in its next round, it is because the Hilltoppers would be drained after the 101-99 win over Drake.
Western Kentucky led by as many as 16 in the second half, before Drake made a charge. The lead switched hands three or four times in the last minute of OT before the game ended dramatically.
Hopefully, this is a sign of more good things to come.
Posted by at 2:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Where are the upsets?
March 20, 2008As I write, Stanford is winning its game against Cornell by 35 points.
That seems to be the theme of this Thursday so far. Out of eight games, two were close.
Georgia had Xavier on the ropes for awhile before bowing out, while Kentucky gave Marquette a run.
That game was probably the best. Not that that says a lot.
At one point this afternoon, three of the four games were 20-point margins. Kent State scored 10 first-half points against UNLV.
Awesome. Well, hopefully tonight's games have a little more drama with them.
Posted by at 5:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
My bracket is finished
March 19, 2008Right now, I am supposed to be vacuuming the floor and doing a couple more chores before my wife gets home.
But instead, I just finished up my bracket. And now in my hands I have a computer instead of a Dirt Devil so I can tell you about my picks.
First off: Full Disclosure. This is only one of the two brackets I will fill out for the office pool.
It is the one I put the most thinking in. And sadly, it is the one that ends up doing the worst of the two.
Before I break it down, let me first say that there are 6-7 teams who could win the national title this year, and they are all flawed.
Memphis cannot shoot free throws and hasn't played a whole lot of decent teams lately; UCLA is not as prolific scoring as most contenders and has a couple of minor injuries; Kansas is Kansas (more on this later); UNC forgets what defense is from time-to-time; Texas has a superb backcourt and an iffy frontcourt.
I could go on and on. Instead, I will give you my picks (beginning in the Sweet Sixteen):
East
UNC over Washington State
Tennessee over Louisville
Tennessee over UNC for the Final Four
Why: Because usually the top overall seed does not win the whole thing. It's a total gamble, but one I am willing to make.
Midwest
Kansas over Clemson
Georgetown over USC
Kansas over Georgetown
Why: As good as the Hoyas are, they scare me with an inefficient offense at times. They won a lot of close games, which is good, but surely the have exhausted that luck now that the tournament is starting.
South
Memphis over Pitt
Texas over Stanford
Texas over Memphis
Why: At first, I had Stanford in the Final Four, even though no credible college hoops analyst did. I figure the Lopez brothers are trees inside, plus they are a really good team. I do not like Memphis that much and Texas scares me a little too.
I anguished over this region more than any other, so I called my friend Scott in Austin to get this opinion. He is a Duke alum and knows his college hoops, but is not a biased Texas fan. He thought Stanford was too risky, considering Marquette is a tough second-round matchup. Plus, while Stanford's big guys might hurt Texas inside, the Longhorns could play a run-n-gun style that might be too much to handle.
West
UCLA over UConn
Xavier over Duke (Sorry Scott)
UCLA over Xavier
Why: UCLA has the easier region. I do not like Duke as a two seed -- even Scott thinks they should be a three -- and Xavier is a quality team, but not that good.
Semifinals
Kansas over Tennessee
UCLA over Texas
Finals
UCLA over Kansas
Why: Basically, UCLA is the team I have the least worries about. Except maybe Kansas. But like a jilted lover, the Jayhawks have broken my heart way too much in tournament time.
I had them to win it all in my No. 1 bracket last year, and they failed to get out of the region.
I had them Final Four-bound when they lost first-round to Bucknell and Bradley (that was before I started doing two brackets. In fact, Kansas is the sole reason why I do two brackets now.)
So any other year, I might pick Kansas. In my second bracket, I will not even have them making the Final Four because I believe it is too risky.
So there you have it. There's my tournament selections (my other Final Four is UCLA, Memphis, UNC and Georgetown, for whoever cares).
And if Stanford somehow makes it, I will have proof that at least I had a correct hunch.
Posted by at 3:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
The brackets are set
March 18, 2008The field of 65 (soon to be 64 after tonight's play-in game) is set. What are some of my opinions?
* I thought the NCAA committee did a pretty good job selecting the at-large teams and slotting the seeds.
Like I said in Monday's column, the teams that did not get in -- Virginia Tech, Arizona State, Ohio State, etc. -- have perfectly good reasons for it.
Thought it was funny Baylor was the last team announced on the selection show. My brother and I am sure many more students, players and alumni, were definitely on edge until the final seconds. Waco was a stressed-out place there for a few minutes.
* It kills me to watch ESPN college basketball analysts pick all four No. 1 seeds to go to the Final Four. This has not happened since the '70s. I do not care if the No. 1 seeds are all heads-and-shoulders above everyone else, it won't happen. So why pick it.
* There is not one team I really like to win it all. I have been asked by many who I am going to pick, and each team causes me concern. I will go into this more tomorrow when I blog about my selections.
* There are a couple of pretty tantalizing first-round matchups:
Gonzaga-Davidson and Butler-South Alabama are two interesting mid-major showdowns. USC-Kansas State offers two of the best freshmen in the country in O.J. Mayo and Michael Beasley.
Also looking forward to Notre Dame-Geroge Mason and Clemson-Villanova.
After work tonight I am going to delve into my brackets (I always do two in the office pool) and tomorrow I will divulge my selections.
Posted by at 5:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Baylor is in trouble, sort of
March 14, 2008I would like to see Baylor make the NCAA Tournament simple because I think it is a great story.
Remember, it was only a few years ago the Bears had one player murdered by another, and a seedy coach who tried to cover it up.
They have had a great year. But Thursday was a day to forget, as Baylor became the first No. 5 seed to lose to a last-place team (Colorado) in the Big 12 Tournament.
Baylor looked in before this happened, but now they will have to wait around Sunday to see.
But the Bears' prospects became better as the day progressed. Check out how these bubble teams did:
Maryland -- Terrapins are done after three-point loss to Boston College (4-12 in ACC).
Villanova -- Cannot give up 17 three-pointers to Georgetown and expect to win.
Pac-10 -- Three bubble teams (Arizona, Arizona State and Oregon) all bowed out in quarterfinals.
Mississippi -- Rebels lost to bad Georgia team on OT buzzer-beater.
Florida -- Defending champ Gators are out after 80-69 loss to Bama.
Dayton -- Could have really used a win over Xavier.
Massachusetts -- Knocked out of Atlantic 10 quarters by Charlotte.
UAB -- Cannot like chances after losing to Tulsa.
New Mexico -- Loses OT heartbreaker to Utah.
So did any bubble teams actually win to increase their chances? How about UNLV (which to survive TCU by one point), Temple, Saint Jo’s and Florida State.
So it was not a good day for bubble teams. Which means Baylor could still make it after all.
Posted by at 10:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
The Madness is here
March 12, 2008It's the best time of the sports season -- football season not withstanding (and it also takes backseat once every four years while the World Cup is going on).
March Madness is right around the corner. While I write this, Syracuse-Villanova is near tip-off in the Big East Tournament first round.
It's pretty much an elimination game for the real tournament, which is eight days away from starting. I am already prepping the sports room.
(Yes, I have a sports room in my house. It is guaranteed until we start having multiple kids.)
So here are some of my thoughts as we head the corner into the tournament:
1) As I stated in my column on Monday, the Big 12 really should have six teams advance. Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas are already in, but Kansas St., Baylor and Texas A&M -- unless it loses its first-round Big 12 game -- should go too.
It was just too good a basketball conference this year to only send four or five teams.
2) Right now, you have to think Memphis, North Carolina, Tennessee and UCLA are the four No. 1 seeds. The reason why Kansas or Texas (whichever wins the Big 12 Tournament) will not be is because the conference winner will not be crowned until late Sunday, when the NCAA committee is finishing up its final bracket.
Besides, the aforementioned top seeds all have fewer conference losses than UT or Kansas had.
3) I plan on watching a good bit of the conference tournaments this week just to maybe help with my brackets -- I always fill out two just in case one tanks the first weekend.
I was close to winning the office pool a year ago (I has seven of the eight Elite 8 teams) and am hoping extra time in front of the tube the next few days pays off in a couple of weeks.
I will also be blogging tons once the NCAA tournament starts (especially the first Thursday, where I will be off from work), so check back here in a few days.
Posted by at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
My Top 10 sports places to visit
March 3, 2008Driving back from NASCAR media day last week, my boss Nick Gholson and I were coming up with sports places we would like to go see in our lifetimes.
I have already been to Wrigley Field and Fenway Park, so those two are excluded from my list.
But there are some other sports places/events that I have to see. So here they are:
1) The Masters -- Golf's most prestigious place, surrounded by azaleas and the sound of Tiger crushing one off the tee. It is a hard ticket to get, but someday I hope to find a way.
2) Memorial Stadium -- No, not the one in Wichita Falls. As a die-hard Nebraska fan, there is no way I could pass up a trip to Lincoln and be a part of a red sea.
3) Yankee Stadium -- This place is closing down after this year, but luckily I will get a chance to go. Have not nailed down the date yet, but am looking forward to the trip and seeing Monument Park (By the way, I am not a Yankee fan). And maybe I can swing a trip to Cooperstown while in NY.
4) England for a soccer game -- Ole Trafford, where Manchester United plays, is ideal, but I am not a supporter of any particular team, so anywhere is fine by me.
5) Lambeau Field -- How cool would it to see the Frozen Tundra. This is the only NFL stadium on my list. And on a side note, at a family Thanksgiving outing I met a guy who drove up to Lambeau and to the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio on a whim while in college. Nice.
6) Kentucky Derby -- Hear this is a must-do. Not a big horse racing fan, but some day, count me in.
7) St. Andrews -- It is the birthplace of golf. And I want to get a shot at the most famous hole in golf, the Road Hole. The question is, if I hit the hotel with my drive, am I liable?
8) Cameron Stadium -- Oh, to be a part of the Cameron Crazies, all painted up and jumping up and down for two hours. Just do not want to camp outside for days to get in.
9) Other college football stadiums -- I am not sure how to differentiate these in any sequential order, so I will just list all of them in no particular order: College Station (Texas A&M), The Big House (Michigan), The Horseshoe (Ohio State), Tennessee and Notre Dame.
10) Indy 500 -- Not the biggest racing fan, but I hear it is great (and loud).
Posted by at 12:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
