NCAA Talk

[Oznogrd]

1st set of games relatively boring...tempted to fire up the xbox and pull up clemson and wofford on the computer.

[The X]

Yep, woke up early to catch the ends of some of today's games. Not as exciting no. Shame Wofford can't shoot free throws, otherwise they probably would've advanced. Not that I picked them in any brackets, but always like underdog to advance

[Oznogrd]

wofford's actually in my town so i was pulling for them even though i didnt pick them...

its called the charity stripe for a reason..dont know why some teams never practice FTs

[Oznogrd]

so what do you think the big upset of the day could be? Im leaning towards BYU/Kstate...that Fredette kid is frikkin awesome..its like a white iverson (small dude who likes to drive the lane and draw fouls).

[Rip32]

so what do you think the big upset of the day could be? Im leaning towards BYU/Kstate....

I hope so too, I picked BYU to get to the Elite 8. As I watch this Villanova St. Mary's game I think that Omar Samhan has the makings of the yearly mid-major guy who has a great tourney and sky rockets up NBA Draft boards. He can really play inside and he's a smart player, but he also has done this versus Villanova's so-so big man (Yarou is young, but decent at times) and Richmond's non-existent front-court.

It just feels like what Patrick O'Bryant did in 3 games during he 2005 tourney; played really well versus Kansas and Pitt, tricking poor Chris Mullin into thinking he was a superstar in the making.

[Oznogrd]

lol..nah man, this st mary's team is sound fundamentally. "Star" teams like 'Nova live and die with by their 1 player. Reynolds had off games, nova struggled.

Sure it halfway boned my bracket but go Saint Mary's in kicking Nova's ass out.

[Rip32]

I had Nova out in round 2 ... to Richmond , so this works in my favor because it hurts other people's brackets. I'm rooting for Ohio now, they don't play confident and composed. I think that's a big part of why some some schools (Wofford) have failed and others (Ohio, St. Mary's) have thrived.

[dare]

Kansas just loss to Iowa, Damn March Madness is good

[alphanumeric]

Butler over Syracuse would be a huge upset. If it goes through.

[Rip32]

Who are you guys thinking could be the upsets in the Sweet 16?

As a Sparty, I don't see UNI over MSU happening. However, if it does I don't see it as much of an upset because MSU will be playing without the second best point guard left in the tourney.

It also chaps me that UNI has become such a media darling... and I've been riding their bandwagon since they beat up they beat the "better" schools in Iowa lol. Yes, they had one of the greatest games in tournament history vs. Kansas. Yes, Ali Faruknameofanjdkfsaf has no conscious, but c'mon, a guy who averages 9.7 points a game and shoots under .400% from three does not deserve as much credit as he's getting. His clutch shooting has been superb, but he's a one-dimensional shooter; if he goes cold Friday MSU is going to cruise.
The pick? Michigan State

Tenn-OSU is an interesting game. It'll be the first time Evan Turner is forced to actually guard someone for 40 minutes which could slow down his offensive game (which has not been sharp during the tourney). If Scottie Hopson can get going on offense, they can get by the six Ohio State players who actually dress and make it to he Elite 8.
The pick? Ohio State

Syracuse-Butler could be a good game, but I don't see it. Butler is prone to making these kinds of tourney runs, they did it in 07 I believe. They lost to a bigger, faster, and more balanced Florida team. What's Syracuse? A bigger, faster and more balanced team.
The pick? Syracuse

As the media has pounded into our heads, Kentucky-Cornell is the quintessential David vs Goliath match-up. I don't see this one even being close. Cousins goes for 20-20 and Wall gets himself 10+ assists as Cornell goes home proud of their Sweet 16 run.
The pick? Kentucky

Xavier-Kansas State is probably the other even matched game. I know Kansas State has all this talent and dicipline, but I've watched them play a lot this year and they seem like one of the softest teams in the country. I don't see how that's possible seeing as their coach makes Bob Knight look calm, cool, and collected. IF K-State makes threes they probably cruise, but if they aren't going strong on offense Jordan Crawford and Xavier can steal it.
The pick? Kansas State... maybe

Baylor-St. Marys is interesting now, but I don't really see it being interesting during the game. Omar Samhan (who has gotten a little high on himself, proclaiming the Gaels as the eventual NCAA champs on ESPN.....) has dominated two bad front-courts and won't have an easy time against Ekpe Udoh, the best shot blocker in the tournament. Tweety Carter and LaceDarius Dunn>St. Mary's Aussie back-court.
The pick? Baylor

Washington-West Virginia is my upset. I've liked Washington since they were #9 in the preseason and without their starting PG, West Va will be playing 4-on-5 offensively with Joe Mazzula in the game and Huggies has never been known for his post-season success(or lack there of). Pondexter and lil' Isiah make Jon Brockman proud with a win.
The pick? Washington

Duke-Purdue would be an amazing match-up with Robbie Hummel healthy, but he's not. E'Twaun Moore's game in he second round was an honest surprise to me. I thought he was a great player going into the middle of the Big Ten season, but after seeing how awful (shooting like 29% from the field) he was after Hummel's injury made me think his production might be a product of Hummel. Singler goes off on the Boilers.
The pick? Duke

[Oznogrd]

MSU without Lucas? they're gonna get bruised down low by those big men. I watched that UNI game, that 3pt shooter had little to do with it. The big men played hard and rough and kansas had no idea how to handle it. I still do trust Izzo, i just think it could be close Pick MSU

Ohio State SHOULD destroy TN but we'll see..i'd go with Ohio State

Duke Should Destroy purdue (they dont have their best player for god's sake)

WVU played that whole big east tourney without this pg if sportscenter can be believed, they're gonna kill washington

"cuse will roll on

KState Xavier and Cornell/KU could both be fun. If Xavier or Cornell get hot from outside, i see both possibly playing david to goliath. I'd love to see it happen.

Baylor should show the rest of the tourney why the big 12 had so many teams in the first place.

[Rip32]

Welp, Jim Boeheim and another highly touted Syracuse team fail to get the job done in March (why I picked them to win it all boggles my mind lol). They looked much better in the second half, but once Butler took the lead it all went to hell. Apparently Scoop Jardine didn't get the memo that he has 2 supremely better players to get the ball to in the final minutes.

Why Wes Johnson and Andy Rautins didn't shoot the ball every single time down the stretch is beyond me, horrible game management by Jardine (2-5 FG).

Washington put up a fight in the first half without Pondexter, but as you said Oz, WV just pounded them in the second half. Good run by Wash, Gaddy should improve this off-season and be a great partner for Thomas.

[Oznogrd]

g/f trumped basketball tonight..looks like i missed a couple of great games

oh well

Sex > sports

[Rip32]

Sex > sports

lol agreed, but if there was a game that could compare to sex it's a double-OT thriller with Gus Johnson screaming for the better part of the second half/OT hahaha

[alphanumeric]

Butler over Syracuse would be a huge upset. If it goes through.

Well what do you know, it did happen. Should've went through with betting on it. What a waste.

[The X]

Sex > sports

lol agreed, but if there was a game that could compare to sex it's a double-OT thriller with Gus Johnson screaming for the better part of the second half/OT hahaha

Agreed about both. But yep, that Xavier-Kansas State game was great. Gus Johnson was great too

I was wanted the Musketeers to get up despite having the Wildcats advancing in both my brackets.

Butler over Syracuse would be a huge upset. If it goes through.

Well what do you know, it did happen. Should've went through with betting on it. What a waste.

I'm happy I decided to put a small wager on Butler

[Oznogrd]

So far we've got Butler WVU...

could this be a final four with no "1" seed? id love to see a 2-5-6-3 final four

[Rip32]

Izzo and MSU back to the Final Four... again! No big deal.

[The X]

Great to see West Virginia make it. Hopefully they can win it & make it the first year I picked the overall winner in my brackets

If they don't, then I wouldn't mind Butler winning it

[benji]

Play of the night: Duke fans chanting "5, 4, 3, 2, 1!" and WVU jacking up a terrible shot with six seconds still left on the clock.

[Rip32]

Play of the night: Duke fans chanting "5, 4, 3, 2, 1!" and WVU jacking up a terrible shot with six seconds still left on the clock.

Yeah, I'm surprised, that trick never works lol. Apparently Sodomy IS legal in West Virginia because they got absolutely embarrassed tonight. I'm kind of glad, I hate Duke/like Coach K, but everyone has been talking Huggins up to be some Jesus-type coach when he's really the fat slob you see at the bar night after night.


Butler Duke will be a fun game to watch, I hope Butler wins... but they don't match-up very well with Duke.

[Patr1ck]

West Virginia would have been fine if they had played Butler or Michigan State since they looked exactly the same on the floor: scrappy.

I don't think Butler has a chance to beat Duke. They have way too much composure and confidence out there.

[benji]

Yeah, I'm surprised, that trick never works lol.

The worst part is the announcers didn't realize it was a trick and thought WVU actually did run out the clock.

Butler is Duke-lite. If Duke's shots aren't falling, Butler can stay in it, they went the entire second half pretty much without scoring but shut out Michigan State. You do have to wonder if Duke blew their wad with all their top shooters going off in this game.

I do think it should be a solid game, unless Duke starts off hot in which case it will not matter. Michigan State doesn't have the offense to hang with Duke, so Butler potentially getting hot from outside is the best chance for a competitive title game.

I think a gross majority is rooting for Butler to get their 26th straight win though. They've beat better team after better team by being prepared for them and exploiting.

[Rip32]

100% true. They (Butler) beat Michigan State at their own game last night.

I don't really understand why people are still calling them a Mid-Major though. I know the Horizon league is no big shot conference or anything, but just because a team plays in a mid-major conference doesn't mean the team itself is one. Gonzaga plays in a similar conference, but they aren't a mid-major team. Butler's been ranked in the Top 25 at the end of the year EVERY year for the past 4 seasons, so it's not like they're George Mason.

Butler really only matches up well with Duke at SF with Hayward-Singler kind of equaling out. If Mack is healthy he can subdue Nolan Smith a little bit too. If the Plumlee brothers have a productive night Duke's going to win.... Matt Howard is just awful when healthy.

[Lamrock]

I think Duke easily wins tomorrow, but I'm really pulling for Butler. I love Gordon Hayward's game (hope he ends up in Portland), and when I was watching it yesterday at the UW Bookstore, this random Butler alumnus was there.