One Shining Moment
I’ve had butterflies all morning thinking of the game tonight. I’ve had butterflies thinking of the time when “One Shining Moment” will play recapping yet another amazing tournament. Kentucky vs. Kansas. #1 vs. #2. Between them, 10 NCAA Championships have been won. One team that possesses the Naismith Player of the Year, the other the Naismith Coach of the Year. One team that has been expected to play on basketball’s biggest stage, and the other exceeding all expectations. This is the beauty of the National Championship.
For one coach, John Calipari, the stakes are even higher. In what could be categorized as a rather controversial coaching career, this is a chance for him to capture his first ever title, but to achieve this feat, they must battle an extremely talented Kansas team. The Jayhawks have been labeled the “comeback kids” throughout the tournament having survived close encounters with Purdue, NC State, and North Carolina and battling from 13 points down to Ohio State in the National Semifinal.
Thank You, Pat Summitt
As long as I can remember basketball, I can remember being a Tennessee Lady Vols fan. My Dad would refer to Coach Summitt on a regular basis when we were in the gym shooting, ball-handling, playing one on one…he would tell me of her intensity. Her heart. Her determination…and that icy-cold stare. I can remember being at an AAU tournament, 14 years old, seeing her across the gym scouting high school players. To me she was a “larger-than-life” figure and I think my Dad was more excited then I was to meet her. We went right up and got her autograph – I’ll never forget it because it was one of my favorite days.
When I learned of her disease, and early onset of dementia, it nearly broke my heart. Even though I was never coached by her or affiliated with her, I feel like in many ways she has become “America’s Coach.” She has garnered the respect of both men’s and women’s coaches and players across the nation with an old-school, hard-nosed approach to the game that is hard to find now-a-days. The amount of success she has had on the court is uncanny. It is expected that Tennessee will be contenders for the championship every year, and that’s something Pat Summitt has created. Her legacy will never be matched…the lives she’s touched runs far beyond the Knoxville community, and I just have to say thank you.
Tickets Punched to NOLA!
After an exciting weekend of madness, the Final Four is set!!
- Louisville is a #4 seed that came into the tournament as one of the hottest teams and have used the momentum from the Big East championship to carry them to this point. I am so excited for the match-up between them and rival #1 Kentucky. They have been consistent favorites to capture this year’s title and so far, they’ve met the expectations and definitely looked impressive in today’s win over Baylor.
- Ohio State is a #2 seed that’s been questioned all year about their mental and physical toughness…looks like they’re proving the haters wrong, but they’ll face an outstanding group in #2 Kansas, who capitalized on a UNC team that wasn’t full-strength after losing their floor general Kendall Marshall. They ran the floor and put pressure on UNC – all the while remaining cool, calm, and collected at the end of the game, executing when it counted.
Green and MSU “Clean House”
Draymond Green drives to the hoop
Need a housekeeper? Apparently Michigan State Spartans’ Draymond Green can mop floors too? Mr. Double-Double was the man for MSU once again, leading his team over a very talented St. Louis Billikens group. They advance to the Sweet 16 and will face #4 Louisville on Thursday in Phoenix.
On a side note… are Coach Izzo and Coach Roy Williams the shortest coaches in college hoops? HA! I think I’m taller than they are at 5′ 8″… Thank God they can coach 
Watching the UNC/Creighton game now and Marshall is on fire… 6/6 in the first 14 minutes of the game. Henson is back but really favoring that left wrist. They’re leading 39-24 already in the first half…man, UVM played this team tougher than Creighton. Hoping for a close one to keep this interesting…
VCU, Not This Year…
Just when it looked like the Virginia Commonwealth Rams would make another unbelievable run through the tourney, the Indiana Hoosiers came roaring back to win 63-61. VCU had a wide open look at a ’3′ but couldn’t execute.
- Congrats to VCU and Coach Smart on another great season…your team is talented, hard working, and classy.
- Indiana – thank you for not screwing my bracket … It’s been a rough 24 hours having to deal with a Mizzou loss to #15 Norfolk St., but more importantly, DUKE’s loss to Lehigh.
Its Pure March Madness!
C.J. McCollum dunks over Mason Plumlee in Friday's bracket buster
Wow! Upset City! I really love when the underdog upsets the big dog! I’m so happy for the Norfolk State Spartans and their defeat over Mizzou! (Even if they did just destroy my bracket!) The Spartans became just the fifth No. 15 seed to beat a No. 2 seed in NCAA tournament history. Norfolk State’s moment in the spotlight unbelievably only lasted a few hours though as the No. 15 Lehigh Mountain Hawks knocked off No. 2 Duke and became just the sixteenth team to ever pull it off. Whoa!
Who knew that Lehigh was going to have the best player on the court in C.J. McCollum? The junior guard had 30 points, added six rebounds, six assists, two steals and totally got in the heads of the Duke guards, who combined to shoot 9-of-32. Unbelievable. It was pure March Madness.
Xperts Edge: NCAA Tournament and Fantasy Baseball Awards
Jake “All-in” Ciely and Doug “RotoDaddy” Anderson, give you the Fantasy Sports deal
Listen as this week, Andrew Feingold joins Jake early for NCAA Tournament talk:
- Is Kentucky the heavy favorite?
- Will Roy Williams and the Tar Heels face his former team Kansas?
- Can VCU repeat their success?
- Who are the best upset picks?
- Will Andrew and Jake have the same four Final Four teams?
Then Doug comes in from the bullpen for 2012 Fantasy Baseball Awards:
- Who will be the most valuable pick?
- Is Chris Carpenter a value pick or disappointment waiting to happen?
- Are Prince Fielder and Josh Hamilton worth early picks?
- Can Ryan Zimmerman and Shin-Soo Choo bounce back?
- Who are the best sleepers for 2012?
NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Cinderella Picks
This is absolutely my FAVORITE time of year!! Nothing makes my heart flutter quite like march madness can … that’s love, right? I watched the Selection Show last night in Burlington, Vermont with the Catamounts who are set to play Lamar on Wednesday night in Dayton … the winner plays UNC! I’m a Dukie fan, so I almost threw up when I saw that on the screen – but I will hopefully be in attendance come Friday night in Greensboro. Now – everyone loves a good upset right? I know I do! Maybe it’s because I played in a mid-major conference – but I love the idea of an underdog shocking the world and shaking up the brackets…(unless it’s mine of course!) Who can forget VCU’s run through the tourney last year? All of America seemed to be behind that team and in 2012, I’m counting on a few more cinderella’s to make it to the ball! Here are my 2012 picks:
#1. IONA (14) – They are set to play BYU in the play-in game, which I am counting on them winning then will battle Marquette in the second round. This team can flat out score; They average a NCAA best 83.3ppg. The Gaels are also led by a large crop of upper-classmen including senior guard, Scott Machado who leads the NCAA in assists with just under 10 per game.
Yay! It’s March Madness!!!
Let’s get one thing straight and out of the way: You’re not going to pick a perfect bracket. It’s not going to happen, and in fact, it’s impossible. How do I know? You’re mathematical odds are one in nine quintillion. That’s a nine with 18 zeros. Now that I’ve shattered your hopes and dreams to start, I figured I’d give you my preview of this year’s tournament and some tips to at least win your pool, joining me in my yearly success.
First, let’s hit on what tricks I use to pick winners and the all-important upsets. Even though I watch a decent amount of games each year, I’m only human and don’t have access to the MEAC regular season game package. So, what stats are important to me when it comes to the tougher matchups? The first stat I look at is losses, and more importantly, the quality and location of them. Road wins and losses are a major factor in a team’s tournament success. Even though teams may be in their region, no one is “home” and every game is a road game. Especially telling are the teams that nearly run the table at home but are no more than .500 on the road. Don’t expect those teams to do much, let alone escape Round One Two (stupid round changes with the play-in round now Round One… I digress).
Fightin’ Finish
Eric Atkins scored all six of his points in OT during Notre Dame's 57-53 victory over South Florida Thursday
Bring on the Madness!!! The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are doing just that…FIGHTING their way through this post-season and on to the semi-finals of the Big East Tournament. This is a team that lost leader Tim Abromaitis early on to a knee injury (so sad, he’s easy on the eyes J), they’ve struggled to find their identity – but have won some HUGE key games this season and now have a chance to get back to the Big East championship, where they’ve never been.
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