Friday, March 02, 2007

Friday 03/02 A.M. Quickie:
Obsessed With College Hoops

March 2 Hoops-in-Brief: UCLA is DEFINITELY No. 1... I'm back sitting shotgun on Georgia Tech's bandwagon... Who saw UVA coming? Anyone?... Nevada plays its way out of a Top 4 seed... First conference-tourney title games tomorrow ("Big Ohio Atlantic South Sun Valley!")... Top leagues wrap up regular season (Florida better bring it at home vs. UK)...

My top 1-seed? UCLA, which affirmed the spot by beating No. 13 Washington State AT Wazzu to win the Pac-10 regular-season title. Wazzu plays that brutal-D/deliberate-O style that gives favored teams fits in the NCAA Tournament; perhaps drawing on last year's NCAA run, UCLA proved it can win playing that style, in addition to having the guns to score when they need to. And to win AT Pullman? Impressive.

I have said before that I don't think it matters if a contender is a 1-seed, 2-seed or even further down (just ask all of the 1-seeds from the 2006 Tournament about their AWESOME experience at the Final Four... wait.)

But that doesn't mean that the intrigue over the four 1-seeds isn't there. UCLA is a lock, as I just said. Ohio State is a lock, short of losing in their first game of the Big Ten Tournament. After that? Go figure:

Wisco? Eh. They're not even the best in their own conference, and without Brian Butch, they're no 1-seed. Kansas? There's no guarantee they'll even win this weekend's regular-season finale, let alone the Big 12 Tournament. UNC? I'd still give them a 1, but losing last night to a team squarely on the Bubble doesn't help their resume. Florida? Sigh.

The unprecedented parity I forecast at the start of the season and have tracked since is in full effect. Good luck with those brackets, friends.

Georgia Tech: We're Back On! Three and a half months ago, I surveyed the field of college hoops teams and made a few Final Four picks: Florida (obvs), Georgetown (reasonable), Wisconsin (up until the Butch injury, totally legit)...

And Georgia Tech. (Why? I liked Tech's young talent and overall size, even in an ACC that was stacking up as deep, if not loaded with juggernauts.)

For the next three months, I cursed that pick as the Wreck played EXACTLY like a young team should: Inconsistently. But last night was at least a measure of validation: A huge – HUGE – win over UNC.

If Georgia Tech can beat a presumptive 1-seed like the Tar Heels, then they certainly have the ability – if not the consistency – to win four straight in the NCAA Tournament and fulfill my longshot pick.

At the very least, I think this win nudges them to the "in" side of the Bubble, despite an RPI in the 40s (and the fact that that would give the ACC a whopping 7 bids). Too little, too late? Not in college basketball. (Here's a reasonable argument why they're still outside looking in.)

Meanwhile, speaking of ACC, did anyone – ANYONE – have Virginia winning the conference's regular season title? I have been working on a Top 16 teams NCAA seeding chart, and the Hoos win last night – coupled with a loss by Nevada – inspired me to give UVA Nevada's 4-seed spot.

I know that Nevada lost (1) on the road (2) in OT (3) by a basket (4) to a Utah State team ranked in the Top 60 of KenPom's RPI ranking, but if the Wolfpack wants to be taken seriously as a Top 4 seed, they needed to win that game – along with the rest in their season.

College Hoops This Weekend: Smaller Conference Tournaments continue. I will watch ANY conference-tournament championship game. I don't care. Big South, Atlantic Sun, Ohio Valley on Saturday? I don't even know who's playing in them: Sign me up. And reward my attention with either an upset or a dramatic finish!

For the rest, there are two key dynamics among the conferences holding their regular-season finales: Bubble teams trying to get in, and Tournament "locks" trying to jockey for favorable seedings and regional placements.

NYT's Pete Thamel blogs March Madness: The New York Times has done a really good job with event- or season-specific sports blogs. March Madness could be their best yet, because the lead writer behind it – Pete Thamel – is, by far, the best college sports reporter in the country. Here's the link to the NYT's "The Bracket" blog.

The best of the bunch is Texas at Kansas (although they could very well meet again in the Big 12 Tournament). Alright: I just want another chance to watch Kevin Durant. You've got somewhere between 3-10 chances left, depending on how far UT goes in the Big 12 and NCAA Tourneys.

Sunday: Kentucky at Florida. And the Gators better freaking show some life and right the ship before the SEC Tournament. And Duke at UNC, where yet another Duke loss would simply make the rest of us laugh at their inevitable placement as a dreaded 5-seed.

NBA: Mavs win 14th straight. I did a local-radio interview yesterday and was asked about the Mavs' chances to win the NBA title. They're playing better than anyone else right now, but I just can't get behind them. I have no analytical reason for that, and they SHOULD earn my favor, because I have a weakness for teams being "motivated" after a previous season's crushing loss. (See Texas A&M, Georgetown in college hoops.)

MLB Steroid Watch: MLB wants more info about Gary Matthews Jr. from the Albany DA. Sure, his name came up, but isn't it obvious that a lot of other names will, too? Why target Matthews individually and not seek to get info on ANY/EVERY MLB player who might be involved?

MLB Deals: Michael Young gets a 5Y/$80M deal. It's the second-largest in Rangers history. Given how well the largest deal worked out, I see nothing but good things ahead here!

More MLB Deals: The Giants locked up promising sophomore SP Matt Cain to a 4-year deal worth $9 million. He led NL rookies with 13 wins and 179 Ks last year. That Giants rotation should be solid this year.

NFL Cuts: The Vikings cut Fred Smoot. It's the end of an era – a Double-Sided era, if you will.

More NFL Cuts: Cowboys bounce Drew Bledsoe, a lame experiment from the get-go, driven by Bill Parcells' overrated personnel management skills. Steelers cut Joey Porter (but what about the dogs?!). Saints cut Joe Horn (legacy secure with his "Celly-bration").

NFL Trades: Lions DB Dre Bly to the Broncos for RB Tatum "If you draft me for your fantasy team, I will ruin you. Yes, Dan, I'm talking to you" Bell and a Broncos OT (and if it's a Denver OT, it MUST be an upgrade to whatever the Lions have up there).

NFL Deals: Fred Taylor signs a 3-year extension with the Jaguars. Inevitable annual injury presumably built in to the terms.

NBA: Blazers Prez and GM Steve Patterson resigns. He's the type of executive who makes me think that I could run an NBA team fairly competently (or at least more competently than he does). TrueHoop's Henry Abbott is a Blazers fan; he'll have the best analysis.

Bud Selig's new MLB-wide drug-test policy: I think it would be only fair if the mainstream media covered the positive drug tests of MLB league and team employees who failed their drug tests in the same breathless way they cover MLB athletes who fail drug tests.

Jared Zabransky on the cover of EA's College Football 2K8 is the most inspired choice on any EA cover ever. Fans can only hope that that means the motif of this year's game is expanded ability to run trick plays, Boise-style.

Kudos to Yahoo's Dan Wetzel for using Shaun Livingston's season (or career) ending knee injury to remind everyone that the NBA's age limit is preposterous.

Gilbert Arenas Watch: I enjoyed Klosterman's take on Gilbert in the new edition of the New York Times' sports magazine, Play (which, for my money, is the best sports magazine out there, including SI and ESPN the Mag), out this weekend and featuring none other than Deadspin's Leitch as a contributor.

Nice way to end a week that started with Gilbert showing me – me! – some love on his blog. (I also finally got a long-awaited custom order from the NBA Store: A Wizards jersey T-shirt with the number 0 on the back, with "Agent" where "Arenas" would be. Whee: Happy birthday to me.)

In case you missed it: The Top 20 Most Influential Sports Bloggers, ranked by two dudes who should know better than to do that.

On a related note, if you live in NYC, mark your calendars for next Wednesday night, for the March edition of the always-excellent Varsity Letters Reading Series, whose theme this month is (ahem) "Online Writers Offline." Among the readers: Me. Yes, I will be there, ready to make a fool out of myself.

The other readers include No. 1-ranked Will Leitch of Deadspin; No. 3-ranked Henry Abbott of TrueHoop/ESPN (and I'm sayin' HE'S buyin'!); No. 6-ranked Matt Ufford of WithLeather and Kissing Suzy Kolber; my neighbor Jason Fry and Greg Prince of Fear and Faith in Flushing (one of the best team-specific blogs you'll read, and if you're a Mets fan, an absolute Must-Read); and Jon Bois, Nick Dallamora and Brandon Stroud of The Dugout (who probably should have made my Top 20, if only for their consistent brilliance).

All the logistical details are here.

-- D.S.

67 comments:

CMFost said...

I will state again what I have state before this is going to be the toughest NCAA Tourney in recent memory to be able to pick for a pool. There has to be at least 10-15 teams that could make a run to the final four if not more.

Mega said...

Agreed cmfost, this is going to be a tough year. I will never be able to duplicate a few years back that I went 13/16, 7/8, 4/4, and 2/2 for my picks in the final four rounds of the tourney. The one year I don't put money down, argh!

Taking a Broncos RB in fantasy football is like taking a Bears QB, it won't work. This coming from a Bears fan.

Unsilent Majority said...

Come on Dan, as a Gator fan you shouldn't be taking shots at Freddy T. Take away the '01 season and his injury history is overblown.

Jon said...

I really don't want to see GT in the tournament. Just because they won a big game late shouldn't overwrite that they can't win away from home. I'm sure they'll get in though with the 8-8 ACC record if they beat BC on Sunday. I'd rather see some more of the so called mids who are probably more deserving.

What was the big deal about Porter, Bledsoe and Horn being cut? Porter is an overrated linebacker that beats his dogs, Bledsoe is a back QB and Horn hasn't done anything in the last 2 seasons.

Luke Bell said...

I am a Badger fan, and I don't want Wisconsin as a #1 seed. Maybe they deserve it by default, maybe not, but I would rather have them as a #2.

Geoff said...

So Livingston was drafted and clearly didn't have a body ready for the NBA. So now the Clippers have wasted millions of dollars on a guy that wasn't and might not have ever been ready for the NBA, and this is a reason there shouldn't be an age limit?

If he never makes it out of college because his body is fragile than guess what... he didn't deserve to make millions.

jhawkjjm said...

I don't think Wisconsin should get a 1 seed. I'ld be in favor of it if Butch was healthy but he's done. If the committee has admitted to taking injuries into account when determining who's in and who's not, then the same has to apply to seeding. I think they should drop to a 2.

KU-Texas will be huge this weekend. The winner gets to avoid A&M in the semi's of the Big 12 tourney and basically has a free path to the championship game. Also an interesting fact. This is KU's 50th (!!!!) time they've won or shared the league title in their hundred years of league affiliation.

Danielle said...

I love when people say that a team *should* have won. If the team was so dominant, and so much better than their opponent, then they shouldn't have been in a position where a *possible* bad call could lose them the game. (Miami Football 2003) What matters is the W, don't give me any of this "should have" or "but they dominated" crap.

Unknown said...

jon-

Bledsoe will get a gig. I'm biased, but I still think he can start on 5 teams right now.

Luke Bell said...

Wisconsin lost by a point on the road, without Butch for most of the game. I think it is fair to say that Wisconsin is better than OSU, despite the loss. Even without Butch, I think the Badgers are better on a neutral court.

Brian in Oxford said...

Did the Cowboys really *release* Bledsoe, or did Romo just drop him from the roster. Ha! Thank you, and tip your waitress :)

Anyways, I could see Bledsoe back in NE...Vinny Testaverde's not coming back and it seemed Hoodie wasn't sold on Matt Cassel. The pay cut would have to be tremendous, though. And hey, if Brady has to miss time from the psychological effects of fatherhood, who better to step in...

Denver HAD to get a DB to try to replace Darrent. And of course, Denver running backs look like trade bait.

Anyone else read Jim Caple's ESPN.com story about the Tough Guy race in England? That sounded awesome!

I could envision the Tar Heels fans shouting "NIT" while pounding Duke on Sunday, but that would probably just lead to Duke winning the conference tournament.

Thanks Dan for the NCAA2008 cover. I was afraid I'd have to actually watch Cold Pizza at 11:30 to find out.

CMFost said...

Dan the other killer for fantasy teams has been Culpepper the last 2 years. In my league the team that has drafted him the last 2 years has finished in last place.

Anonymous said...

Fear the turtle

Actually though I think livingston is a proof of why a age limit is bad, lets say this happened in college and then he never plays again. the nba efectivbely kept him out of the leaue and millions, imagine if thsi happens to like oden... that is a big problem.

Josh said...

Is it necessary to point out again that the NBA has always had an age limit? ALWAYS? That they just raised the limit to 19 now? Do I need to repeat this?

OK, didn't think so.

If you argue for no age limit, Dan, you have to believe that HS sophs and juniors can enter the league as well. Otherwise, you are arguing for the limit to be 18 and/or HS class graduating.

Danielle said...

In fact, I did watch the game, and I'm also not ignorant, but thanks. My point is, it's not so clear who the best team in the Big Ten is if the game is that close. (And remember, OSU did win in Madison too, but I didn't see that game.) I'm sick of excuses, win the games and no one will have to argue. You obviously missed that.

Ian said...

The trade for Dry Bly was a heist. Tatum Bell can't hold on to the ball, and George Foster played his way out of a starting job. Thanks Matt Millen!

Luke Bell said...

Ummm, OSU lost to UW in Madison. Not only did you not see the game, you don't even know who won. :)

Danielle said...

I'm sorry I meant to say they almost won. They had a shot at a three at the buzzer. Sorry, typing to fast. :)

Perks said...

drdoom, et.al.,

I want to first say that I take a Klosterman stance on the issue of High School-> NBA. I think for some (Kwame) the rule should be there, but for others (LBJ), it's horrible. So, I'm torn.

But, I have a slight edge towards disagreeing with the current rules.

I think Livingston is one of those 50/50 borderline subjects to study. Thing is, when you're 18, you can get drafted and go to war. If the NBA is an association, it shouldn't be discriminating against age. Now for someone like Kwame, Outlaw, Webster, etc. it makes sense. Nonetheless, it should be their decision, and that's why people like HS counselors and teachers should be better paid/respected, because then maybe the student(ahem, athlete) would listen to their advices.

But for Shaun, I get the feeling that in a time when everyone who was over 18 playing for national aau teams and being told to jump to the NBA and get millions-- he wouldn't have taken the college road. Also, I believe he was told ahead of time that he would be eased into the NBA scene, and wouldn't log minutes right away.

Even still, hindsight is always 20/20, so I don't think Shaun being forced to college would've solved any problems physically, mentally, or any other -ally.

Just my $2 worth

Danielle said...

I already responded about my whoops in my post regarding Madison. Other than that I'm not going to respond.

Brian in Oxford said...

If athletes made 5 and 6-figure incomes only, this wouldn't be an issue.

I didn't leave school early to do my job, but I bet I could have skipped college altogether. Was I discriminated against? Employers have the right to set their own rules for employment. Discrimination only exists if ONE 18-year-old is allowed in and others aren't....or if white 18-year-olds are allowed in and blacks aren't.

If a bunch of 18-year-olds want to tour the country playing basketball for anyone who wants to buy a ticket to see them, they are free to do so.

Danielle said...

Are you 12?

Luke Bell said...

OSU had a shot at a three to tie the game at the buzzer, after being down double digits. The Badgers simply relaxed while OSU hit a lot of threes to get back in the game(along with many missed free throws).

I don't think I will change any minds, but if the Badgers make a damn free throw, they win both games (and the one in Madison wouldn't have been close).

Danielle said...

Ok. My whole point was not that OSU was better. My point was twofold. I hate excuses for losing, and that I don't think it is so clear which team is better since both games were close (at least at end if referring to Madison). But all in all, I'm glad you are making the blogging world a better place.

CMFost said...

I think it was Dickie V I heard talking about it and I think his rule for Basketball Players going HS to Pros made sense. Basically if a players is judge to have top 10-15 pick potential they are allowed not to go to college and can enter the pro draft but if they do not then they have to go to college and stay for at least 3 years to eligible to enter the NBA draft. That way the Oden's and Lebron's of the world can go straight to pros but HS that have no business being in the pros would have to go to college.

CMFost said...

Here is an easy way to settle the OSU-UW agruement. Wait until the Big 10 title game when hopefully both will make it and then the winner on a neutral court would be the better team. Otherwise if you look at it they a pretty equal.

Lou said...

Even if Wisconsin lost by 1 on Sunday, it's tough to think that they can be considered by any measure to be better than OSU right now without Butch. Butch gave them a unique weapon, a 7-footer who can post up and hit the outside shot. Without him, teams are going to key in on Tucker/Taylor even more. OSU would've probably game-planned much differently for a game without Butch, and I'd expect them to do the same if they meet up in the Big 10 tourney.

Frankly, I don't see either of these teams making a championship run anyway. Wisconsin was definitely the stronger contender, but without Butch, it's a tough road. And as for Ohio State, while they've got a lot of talent, their youth and seeming inability to string consistent solid performances together (see both of the Penn State games, for instance) make me have a hard time believing they can put 6 good games in a row together in the tournament.

Lou said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lou said...

Even if Wisconsin lost by 1 on Sunday, it's tough to think that they can be considered by any measure to be better than OSU right now without Butch. Butch gave them a unique weapon, a 7-footer who can post up and hit the outside shot. Without him, teams are going to key in on Tucker/Taylor even more. OSU would've probably game-planned much differently for a game without Butch, and I'd expect them to do the same if they meet up in the Big 10 tourney.

Frankly, I don't see either of these teams making a championship run anyway. Wisconsin was definitely the stronger contender, but without Butch, it's a tough road. And as for Ohio State, while they've got a lot of talent, their youth and seeming inability to string consistent solid performances together (see both of the Penn State games, for instance) make me have a hard time believing they can put 6 good games in a row together in the tournament.

Brian in Oxford said...

I don't necessarily buy that. If the Big 10 final is OSU-Wisc, I could easily see the Committee leaving a 1 spot and a 2 spot open, winner gets the 1. Then they'll get to tell Billy Packer not to schedule the game so late before the show.

The real hard part is if it's ONE of those teams, plus a lesser team (which may or may not already have locked up an at-large, too....)

Unknown said...

Danielle,
Please don't respond anymore. It is not worth it. What I like about this blog is that the comments tend to stay intelligent and flame wars have been pretty much avoided. When some little kid wants to get on the comments section and start a flame war, best thing is to ignore them and they go away.

Dr. Zoom said...

C'mon, Dan. It's the End of a Double-Ended Era. Not Double-Sided.

ToddTheJackass said...

Before we all fall on the UVA bandwagon, people should note that their RPI is pretty bad (considering they're on top of the ACC standings). As of yesterday, they were ranked 39th, lower than UNC, Duke, BC, Maryland, and V-Tech from the ACC alone. Their Nonconf. SOS was an abysmal 174, and they're 3-7 (as of yesterday) in road/neutral games.

So let's not write them in for a 4 seed just yet.

@EN, you realize you lose a lot of credibility in the OSU v. WISC debate by being an obvious homer in this debate. Danielle has a different point than you, and you obviously disagree. Just let it go already, you're making yourself look like a whiny ar-tard with some of your comments.

CMFost said...

What might happen is if Wisconsin and OSU play in the Big 10 title game and the committee might have the seedings set that the winner gets a 1 seed and the loser gets a 2 seed and all they have to do is put the team name in.

Brian in Oxford said...

And if it's only one of those teams against, say, Penn State....then the committee will probably say, (using Wisconsin as the example), we coulda made them a 1, but not if they lose. Let's just keep them a 2 so we don't have to re-do our entire board, win or lose.

kway34 said...

In order to decide who's better, you HAVE to discuss it (or "argue," as you frame it) because it is relevant for seeding purposes, etc. There's no way anyone can argue OSU could/should have won the game in Madison.

1) They split the series, but Wisky also lost to MSU and Indiana, which OSU did not. Therefor, OSU is better until proven otherwise.

2) Jamar Butler makes a 3 pointer at the buzzer and OSU gets the game to OT. Using the momentum gained from a huge rally in the closing minutes of regulation, OSU edges the Badgers in OT. There's your argument for how OSU could have won that game. SHOULD they have won? No, but to say you can't argue for how they COULD have won is ignorant.

verbal97 said...

En:

As a complete neutral who didn't watch either game, I can dismiss your argument. Saying a 78% FT missing one free throw is equal to Wisc should have won is a poor argument. One can easily say the Bills should have won SB XXV if Norwood doesn't miss a very missable kick or the Yankees should have won the 2001 WS if Rivera (who makes that play more than 90% of the time) doesn't throw the fielded bunt into CF.

A 78% FT shooter missed in a pressure situation, which would happen at least 22% of the time anyway. Plus you're statement about a 78% shooter should make two consecutive free throws 80% of the time is "fuzzy math".

Mega said...

You have to be joking, WI "clearly" better than OSU? LMAO. OSU would have won by 10 if the refs didn't have Badger jerseys on underneath their shirts. The Buckeyes guards were getting hipchecked to the floor without any whistles blown. Plus WI was playing "hack a shaq" defense the entire game with barely a call. WI "clearly" better than OSU, no. They are on par with each other.

rukrusher said...

Here is the thing about UVA, they lost to App State, Utah, Purdue and Stanford. If any other conference champion lost those games the conference would be talked about like the A-10, instead, the ACC boosters discount those losses as early season poor performances. If you are punsihing teams who play weak out of conference schedules then you should question a conference whose champ can't win a big game out of conference.

rukrusher said...

P.S. I do not think wins over Arizona and Gonzaga this year are that impressive.

ToddTheJackass said...

Wow dude, seriously, get a life. You're still dwelling on a loss from over a week ago?

I could care less about OSU or WISC, but from the records, and what I've seen of the two teams for the entire year, there's just no way you can't say that OSU is the better team (if only marginally).

Only a serious homer with some serious OSU-envy issues would keep dwelling on this the way you do. It's kind of sad actually that you have to come on a message board, to only get shut down like this. Do women/men shut you down like this on a normal basis? Are they not impressed when you try and use big words to make your points?

Oh and by the way, Alando Tucker is a nice player. Love that kid.

rukrusher said...

I am going to do one grid this year using a coin flip for every matchup, heads for the higher seed, tails for the upset. I think it might just beat my shrewed analysis bracket.

verbal97 said...

En:

You missed my point. In any close game, you can say the losing team "should have one if (blank) happened". It's just sour grapes to harp on a loss, especially one if a call or something out of the players' control didn't cause the loss. Of course the point is moot. One of them will probably be a 1 and the other will likely be a 2. It's all meaningless because in either case you have to win 7 games to win the title...which is why college BB is so much more legit than college FB.

Ruk:

I'd be interested in the results of your coin flip experiment. My mother, who knows nothing about college football, does a football pool based on team nicknames and colors...and she won a few years back.

Brian in Oxford said...

...well, unless you're notre dame, and you get #1 votes and a BCS shot for going 9-3.


Oh calm down, I'm just kidding!

AtownTim said...

I'm not exactly sure how the physical injury that Livingston suffered through has anything to do with an age limitation for the NBA? A dislocated knee and torn tendons wouldn't have mattered if Livingston was 18, 23, or 28? It all depends on how you land on your knee and the way it reacts to the pressure against it? At any age!

Wade dislocates his shoulder but because he went to college he is different than Livingston? This is just a terrible attempt to say that high school kids are ill prepared for the league.

Mega said...

You're right, you didn't say clearly. But I'm not biased toward either of the two teams, and what I saw was that OSU was getting slapped and pushed around with no whistles. I still say they're about the same talent wise.

Brian in Oxford said...

Livingston's injury didn't have to do with his age. But the point was that if he were still in college, he would not have then been able to get a guaranteed multi-million dollar contract. And the argument of Wetzel's column was that all 18 year olds with game have a right to tens of millions, if someone's willing to pay it.

CMFost said...

Brian do not lie, you were not kidding.

verbal97 said...

Tell that to Auburn Jason, tell that to Auburn.

verbal97 said...

Does anyone else find it completely unnecessary and totally gross that Yahoo is running a picture Livingston holding onto his dislocated knee on the front page with Wetzel's column?! I've tried hard not to see it and then it pops right in my face against my will.

Mega said...

Hey Pats fans...

Any chance you guys want to see Drew Bledsoe backing up Brady next season? Eh, eh, eh? LOL!

Can't wait to see the responses, make em good please...

...or even better, a team signs Bledsoe, then during the 2007 NFL draft, Goodall says "The New York Jets have traded their first round pick to (team) for Drew Bledsoe..."! I wish no harm to the Jets and their fans, I just think it could be the most priceless reaction ever during the draft.

verbal97 said...

dan mega:

That wouldn't be the most priceless. What could make it better you ask? The Jets trade their first round pick for Bledsoe, followed by the Jets trade their second round pick for...Kyle Brady.

CMFost said...

Bledsoe on the Jets would be fantastic. Bledsoe on the Patriots no so much. I would rather have Vinny then Drew.

Brian in Oxford said...

Did anyone else know that Princeton is 2-9 in the Ivy League?! Talk about the mighty falling, no wonder JT3 abandoned the ol' alma mater and moved up to GTown.

Brian in Oxford said...

I just saw Jake the Snake to Tampa for a 4th round pick, only then to read (on Yahoo) that Jake's going to retire instead.

Jen said...

Not to interrupt this OSU-WI banter, but did anyone read about that horrible bus accident in Atlanta? It looks like the driver misjudged to road and careened over the side of the road onto I75. The bus was taking the Bluffton baseball team to FL. It just so happens that my boss is an alum of Bluffton...a small school in western OH. Tragic.

rukrusher~ I like your coin flip idea!! I am putting NO thought into my bracket also. This is going to be a great tourney.

Unknown said...

A couple of notes-

en- I understand your arguements to an extent, but the fact is that OSU's losses are simply more understandable than the badgers. By 3 at Wisc? At UNC without Oden? At Florida in Oden's first came?

I mean seriously. That's 3 losses, all on the road, to teams with seedings of 1, 2, and 2.

I know Wisc only lost on the road as well but they lost 4 games to teams with seeds 1, 10, 10, and 11.

And Ohio St. was missing a best player for 1 1/2 of those losses and now Wisc lost a great player. You just can't expect a higher seed.

And you are bad at math. A 78% FT shooter making 2 is 8/10? It's actually 6/10.

Unknown said...

On to the best conference....The ACC!

UNC can't be punished for losing a road game to a tourney team on the road in the ACC. For the third time this week... ACC teams are not expected to win on the road, the exceptions for this year are Wake Forest, NC ST., and Miami.

I saw Virginia coming at the beginning of the year, just not in the top spot. I think I had them 2nd or 3rd, I'm not sure. Before you doubt that I had this remember that to the ACC fan JR Reynolds and Sean Singletary are not new names.

Note that due to the rule stated in bold above that this lost should not hurt Va Tech.

Florida St. is currently listed as the 5th team out so they culd get in to make it 8 ACC teams.

Duke losing that game at UNC won't hurt them due to the rule stated in bold above especially due to the fact that it's at UNC who is a 2 seed.

And as always FEAR THE TURTLE

Unknown said...

Side note on fear the turtle:

I have one of the original fear the turtle shirts. I bought it the day after they won the title in '02.

futurelegendvinceyoung said...

Why is nobody talking about the two biggest news items of the day. The first one is that Cliff Clavin is replacing Big Pussy from the Sopranos on Dancing with the Stars. Second is of course the Anna Nicole Smith funeral how has this not been mentioned. My life was forever changed when I heard the news that she had died.

Can the AP not impose a blackout on all of the Anna Nicole coverage like they did with Paris Hilton last month? I wish they would.

As the one Duke fan on this board I have mixed feelings about this team. They have the talent to make a run to a Regional Final but they are way to inconsistent when it comes to scoring. They have no inside presence. I thought McRoberts would be that this year but he has no low post game. All it consists of is, if no one is open then I am going to try a hook shot that is really me throwing the ball at the basket and hoping it goes in. We will see what, in Dan's opinion, the mediocre Coach K can do with this team in the tournament.

Brian in Oxford said...

I will say this....it will actually be rewarding to see Coach K show off some coaching, having a lesser-regarded team this year.

CMFost said...

DUKE WILL BE OUT IN ROUND 1 OF THE TOURNEY!!!!

verbal97 said...

cmfost:

Wishful thinking...you know Duke's contract with the devil hasn't run up yet.

Tyler said...

The Dugout is amazing. Best site since sliced bread.

Andy said...

Can I have the fantasy baseball people chekc out the message board in the league? THanks!

ToddTheJackass said...

@ Verbal...

I think it's the other way around. I'm pretty sure Satan is the one that just has a contract with Duke...

verbal97 said...

clever...very clever