As someone who has developed an almost inexplicable love for the Green Bay Packers while living in California I have come to accept my plight as an out of market fan. Since I rent a room in a person's house and that person doesn't have directTV I am unable to subscribe to NFL sunday ticket. This means that if I want to watch a Packer game during a week that we are not nationally televised I have two options. I can go spend money I don't necessarily have at a local bar that does have NFL sunday ticket or I can site glued to my laptop searching through countless live feeds on the internet trying to find a serviceable stream of the game.
Most of these feeds get shut down mid game which only adds to the frustration. There are always the games that we, as fans, "must" see. Today's game between the Green Bay Packers and the San Francisco 49ers was one such game. Being from a town in northern California most of my friends and family are fans of the Squared Sevens and I follow them casually as long as they aren't playing my Packers. When these teams play I feel doubly compelled to watch the game so I can interact with friends and family that will also be watching the game. So, do I go to the bar or do I search for the stream?
This really wasn't a question for me as I knew I wasn't leaving the house. I've been sick all week and there is no way I was going to a bar to spend money nor drink beer nor possibly infect others with my cold. This meant that I needed to find a stream of the game and needed to find it fast. I have a couple go to sites that I check for the games, the most reliable of which is JTV, which is a site I am on at least once a weekend if the Packers aren't nationally televised. Then there are the apps that stream feeds you can use but those require downloads and sometimes registration and sometimes come with risks. This Sunday I was scouring JTV for the Packer game and found only one, which was an audioless feed of someone with a web came pointed at their TV set. It was better than nothing. Then that feed was shut down before half time leaving me with nothing and sending me back to the search engines. I eventually found a decent feed on an application player (TVU) and was happy watching this feed for the rest of the first half. Then this feed was taken down and I was once again cast asunder with no hope in sight.
Eventually I found my last feed of the day through extensive search engine research and couldn't even tell you where I found it nor probably find it again myself (probably should have bookmarked that for future reference, damn). Anyhow, the point of all of this...to any out of market fans out there, I feel your pain and I am in the same boat as you. It is a crappy, warped, and leaky excuse for a schooner but at least we have the faith to keep it afloat.
Keep fighting the good fight.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Week 11 Fantasy Football Predictions (Rivalry Week Edition)
In this, the second week of the NFL’s Thursday night football we find only two matchups in our league that slid by the day with scores untouched. Let’s start with one of these fresh little babies…
Da Bears (5-5) vs. Brownies (4-6)
This rivalry matchup is classic and pits two fantasy owners that couldn’t be different against each other. Few, if any, talk more trash than our loveably arrogant GDS while Thomas is one of the league’s quietest GMs on the message boards. Is confidence in ones self enough to take down our points leader in rivalry week? Brees has a gem of a matchup playing in Tampa, Manningham against Atlanta is also favorable, and Shiancoe should get his projected ten against the Seahawks. Ochocinco faces Oakland where defensive secondary is the only bright spot, Forsett is in Minnesota and Garcon is banged up and in Baltimore…yikes. You’ll notice I didn’t throw Gates into either category and that is because I feel like he is unique in that his matchup is tough against the Broncos but Champ Bailey will be on VJ most of the game which means Gates should be the primary target in that game so he will likely do quite well. Thomas has his Vikings (Harvin, AP, Rice, and Benedict Arnold) playing Seattle, Colston will accompany Brees to Tampa and Crabtree is in Green Bay…You gotta like those matchups if you are Thomas and I gotta like Thomas in this one.
Root Marm (5-5) vs. Errant Dog (6-4)
These two GMs have a long history dating back to the Cedar Meadows days and have brought their rivalry to the streets of Long Beach in the present day. Two of our most devout Niner faithful will not cheer for the same teams on this day as both of these teams needs this win desperately. The Missbehavin Mutts’ tough draws are Addai in Baltimore and Coles against the Raider secondary. Everyone else should do quite well, especially Gore against the Packers where good line play isn’t a readily used phrase. Privers has a tough draw going to the mile high city and Cotch plays the Pats. Jermichael Finley is an interesting play for Wes considering he is coming off injury and has never been considered our (the Packers) starting TE. His ability for big plays is unquestioned though. Cedric the Entertainer being out is a bit disappointing and I don‘t see Scott doing what CB would have…for this reason, I am going to take Adam in this matchup making it that much tougher for Wes to hold on to his playoff spot.
Team Pavlik (7-3) vs. Bulletproof Tiger (2-8)
This is a real rumble…or would be if it were circa 2002, we were in Millville, intoxicated, and there were only one bowl of home made mac and cheese left. Does this battle of old friends and fellow kings fans meet the intensity of the aforementioned scenario? In a word…no. Flacco against Indy, Forte and Hester against Philly, and Carlson in Minnesota aren’t great matchups. Ryan Moats just got demoted behind Steve Slaton again and I doubt Austin and Breaston have the ability to overcome those troubles. Big Ben is in KC, Marshall plays a soft SD secondary, Sims-Walker hosts Buffalo, Sjax hosts Arizona, and Ricky Williams already went supernova on Carolina. All that means Braylon and Olson having tough draws aren’t a big deal and Vimel will win this in a walk. He will mostly likely celebrate by pounding 3-7 shots of 151 and then yelling at you to punch him in the face until you refuse so much that he gets fed up and starts wailing on his own face with closed palms. That kind of intensity is hard to match, and Owen’s fantasy team just doesn’t have the stomach for it.
C-minus (4-6) vs. Late Bloomer (8-2)
This is where I would build up the match between Randy and Hank, the alter egos of Collin and Rob respectively. That being said, I have been forced to side step that point due to this: C-minus
November 18, 2:17 pm
This could be my KO from playoff chances. Every week from here on out is must win.
Late Bloomer
November 18, 7:41 pm
I wish I could help you out this week Collin...but I think it would look kinda obvious if I benched Manning and Clark. Also, Hank takes no prisoners...you can't control that guy.
Late Bloomer
November 20, 5:15 pm
I rescind my previous post...as it seems I have already clinched a playoff spot, I have decided to rest some of my key players. You know, don't want to risk injury. GL HF
Then Rob took out Peyton Manning, Dallas Clark, and Chris Johnson…This is an abomination and I’m over it. I’m not even going to make a prediction because this angers me so much.
Totalitarian Utopia (3-7) vs. Out of first round (4-6)
Dan said it best witih, “This is the red headed step child of rivalry matchups.” These two have known each other for a while now and while Stills’ brash ‘anything goes’ mentality has at times clashed with Doug’s wholesome innocence it is hardly enough to warrant a rivalry for many. Nonetheless they meet here, in this battle for…uhhh…I guess they still have playoff hopes (Doug more so than Stills). The mythical societies have great matchups save TJ in NE while Doug has Burleson in Minn as his toughest draw. The draws seem pretty even and that makes me want to pick this based on roster, which means Stills is at a disadvantage. I have to believe that Doug wins this game and keeps his slim chances alive for another week.
San Diego Booyans! (6-4) vs. Selena Y Los Dinos (6-4)
This very well could be the game of the week as both of these owners come in with the same record and fight for south side pride. Their bad blood can be traced back to their days running around the tough south side streets of Redding and balling on the mean courts of Bonny View. Which former Bobcat will make the other their prey? My WRs continue to be an abomination and with Dwayne Bowe suspended for four games it certainly doesn’t help anything. The SF defense won’t be easy on Rodgers and Baltimore will try to keep the Indy passing attack in check (Austin Collie included). DW had a solid game on Thursday but was it enough for me to pull out the victory? Ken’s draws are easily more favorable than mine with Keller in NE the lone toughy. I think DW will out duel Moreno but with Holmes in KC, Fitz @STL, Schaub hosting Tennessee, and MJD in upstate New York I have this funny feeling like I am in real trouble. Hopefully we get a miracle from someone, cause I am gonna need it. Ken should win this first annual battle, though the rivalry will be far from over as south siders never know when to quit.
Purple People Eaters (3-7) vs. Life and Limb (7-3) *Game of the Week*
This was supposed to be a rivalry game between two of the league’s top teams as indicated from last year’s performances. Dan has held up his end of the bargain while Galen has run into a string of bad luck all year. This game makes or breaks Galen’s season (as will each game for the rest of the regular season). VJ in Denver is Galen’s toughest draw as Champ Bailey will be with him most, if not all, of the night. Everything else is peachy though, and I do mean peachy. For Dan, Hassy and Housh are in Minnesota where they play football indoors. Reggie Wayne plays the Ravens but will undoubtedly continue to do his thing. Andre Johnson gets Tennessee and will have a good time with that. These really are the most evenly matched rosters this week despite their records being inverted. In the spirit of keeping his season alive, and because I really think he has a good shot at it, I am taking Galen in a squeaker.
There you have it. This concludes our rivalry week edition of the predictions and I am looking forward to seeing everyone’s hard fought battles…except for Collin and Robbies’ which is an abomination of gamesmanship. Is it possible for them both to lose? Anyway, enjoy the games tomorrow and Monday everybody. Squared Sevens visit the increasingly colder tundra of Lambeau Field this weekend, both teams fighting for their outside chances of making a wildcard bid.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Predictions for My Fantasy Football League
Well, as maybe three of you may have noticed there was no week 9 edition of the predictions column. While I know this is heart breaking there is a good reason for it…well, a reason at least. Friday night I went out with some co-workers for an after work happy hour at a local bar which turned into a let’s all keep partying and hanging out night. This leads me to Saturday where I found myself slightly hungover with a friend and we decided we needed greasy food and college football, since OSU was in the midst of dispatching PSU and I needed to watching it live for sanity reasons. We decided that a bar was the perfect place to satiate both these needs and promptly discovered that the bar we had decided upon had specials on buckets of Coors Lights running all day. This was good and bad news, of course. Long story short I started drinking at 1pm Saturday and eventually Steve Larson came out of hiding and managed to get thrown out of a bar we migrated to later in the evening and lost my ATM card. That Steve Larson guy is a real ass and makes my life hard to live sometimes. Needless to say, I am gonna go ahead and lay low this weekend. Perhaps sleep a lot, go for a walk on the beach or in lovely Balboa Park but I can assure you Steve Larson is grounded. On that note let’s turn our attention back to our lovely league of fantastical proportions. None of you may recall that when we last left the predictions column I was coming off of a shitty week 7 on the picks side and was needing a rebound. Well let’s see how I faired in week 8 with the predictions. I took my Booyans to avoid being consumed by discolored humans, Tigers to maul idealistic dictators, That silver bullet to pierce some doggies, Bears to be ruthless and soul-less killing machines against elderly women, Tardy fruition to take place all over Selena’s grill, Pavlik to KO the poop stains, and the gaudy mansions to trump a modest goal. With that all being said I am happy to announce that week 8 was, with myself, Owen, Collin, Thomas, Robbie, Vimel, and Dan all winning…my first UNDEFEATED week of the season! Talk about a rebound week. With that nice showing we boost the overall record to 34-22 coming off what we will call the column’s bye week. Let’s keep the momentum rolling!
As we know this is the first week of the rest of our season…and by that I mean that this is the first week a select few get to watch Thursday night games on NFL Network. In honor of this, let’s start with the two teams that this Thursday’s game had the most impact on…
Bulletproof Tiger (2-7) vs. Errant Dogs (5-4)
Each team had three positions going on Thursday and if I had to pick a winner of the day it would be Owen as he saw 45 points from Forte, Hester, and Gould while Adam got 44 and a quarter from Gore, VD, and the Squared Seven defense. If you would have asked me Wednesday who’s three I would have taken I would have Sain scoffed in your face and taken them misbehaving mutts. Shows how much I know I guess; I’m about as qualified at this stuff as Eric Karabel. Does this new information mean that Owen is the favorite to win this matchup now? Well, let’s take a look shall we. Flacco plays in Cleveland, Breaston against the Seahawks (listed as probable), Austin @ Lambeau (where defense is a forget term) and Carlson in the Arizona desert are all a great start for Owern to keep the momentum rolling. Only Cribbs against the Ravens is a poor draw for him. The Mosseseseses have tough draws for Adam’s puppies but Randy is usually a good show despite the draw. Ryan in NC is favorable and Mason should cancel out most of Flacco in Cleveland. I must admit I voted for Adam before the Thursday nighter and I am not convinced the good start for Owen is enough for me to change it. Mutts in a closer win then originally thought.
Too Many Grandmas (5-4) vs. Purple People Eaters (2-7)
Next we find ourselves with two teams that have had polar opposite seasons. Wes got off to a nice start to the year and Owen Daniels was a very large part of that. With OD out of commission the Grandmas have stumbled of late and hope to clot their thinned blood’s flow. On the other hand we have Galen, who has been the poster child for bad luck as his team was at one time second in the league in points (now sitting seventh) yet find themselves at merely 2-7. Are these teams headed in opposite directions? Brady plays in Indy where it will be a gritty game but he will likely fair well in my opinion. Kevin Smith in Minnesota and Vincent Jackson against the Iggles are the tough draws for the PPEs. Boldin against Seattle, Barber in GB, Shockey in the Gateway City, and Celek in my area are all good news for the squad. For Wes’ AARP groupies Privers, Pettigrew, Calvin Johnson, and Cedric the Entertainer all have impeccably tough draws. Is Roddy in NC, Cotch-itch hosting the Jags and Pierre Thomas in the STL enough to overcome? Methinks not so much. I am going with Galen in this one, though it should be close…and Galen doesn’t have a great track record with close weeks this season. Nevertheless, the winds of change are blowing my friends and this matchup is a clear indicator.
Team Pavlik (6-3) vs. C-minus (4-5)
This is a crucial game for both of these teams fighting for position in the playoff picture. Vimel was the only one in this matchup with players playing Thursday night and mustered nearly 29 points from a trio of Greg Olsen, Chicago’s D, and Charles Tillman. Basically they are who we thought they were as Denny Green might say of these Bears. Big Ben with Cincy, Mike Sims-Walker in New Jersey B, and Sjax hosting the Saints are the bad while Brandon Marshall in the nation’s capital, Michael Turner in NC and Braylon hosting the Jags are the good for Vimfuck. CP9 and Hines Ward play against each other in Pittsburgh, LT hosts Philly, and the lone Steve Smith for Collin this week hosts Atlanta to round out the tough draws for C-money. The good includes Witten in GB, Reggie in STL, and a rejuvenated Chambers in the East Bay (I think, he’s a spotty play but if he scores 10 FP it’s a win for Collin). I voted for Collin before Thursday and I am sticking to my guns based on what I have in front of me. Also, a special note to Vimel and his Cowboys: We need this week’s game like mammals need oxygen so please do me a favor and tank it on your trip to Lambeau cause you guys can afford a loss and still make the playoffs. The reality is if we lose this game our season is lost…also, if your D-line could find it in their hearts to not kill Aaron Rodgers as they blow through our disgusting excuse for an O-line I would greatly appreciate it.
Brownies (3-6) vs. Out of the first round (4-5)
This is either going to really put Scip in a real hole for the season or make the playoff picture incredibly cloudy. Brees plays a cupcake as he goes to STL, Bess has a favorable matchup against the Buccs, Shiancoe against the Lions and Marshawn in Tennessee are also quite favorable for GDS. Caldwell is an upgrade with Chris Henry out but playing in Pitt is less than favorable. I have to say I like Romo and Doug’s Packers to score well as I see that game being a who can score last affair. Welker will get his catches as usual and Burleson is in AZ, which isn’t exactly known as a defensive stopper. Despite Brees’ easy week I think Doug’s OOFRs have what it takes to lock this thing down. I really wish I had more to say about this matchup because it really is incredibly meaningful as both teams have a chance at the playoffs still but I words have escaped me for some reason. I apologize and will try to do better with the next matchup…
Da Bears (5-4) vs. Selena Y Los Dinos (5-4)
This is by no means a make or break week for either of these teams but the winner is clearly awarded the inside track to a playoff spot as they come in with the same record. This would be the game of the week if it weren’t for our final matchup to be named later due to it’s importance but there are some key elements that make it lose a little luster in mine eye. The first of those elements being the Texans on bye meaning no Schaub for Kenbo88 and VY instead getting the start. At least he’s playing a poor team. I also don’t dig that Thomas’ team lives or dies by the Vikings (so far living the lifestyle of the rich and famous) and the Vikes are hosting the Lions this week. That doesn’t bode well for anybody in Michigan or Ken. The only question mark for Thomas is whether TO will play or not. All signs point to yes as he practiced today. TO has been, well, horrid by his standards but at least plays one of, if not the, worst pass defense in the league to date this week. Based on these findings I can’t help but assume Thomas is going to win this week in a game that would be close if, perhaps, both teams were at full strength but Ken putting all his eggs in Schaub’s basket and having to go to VY for a week is all bad.
Late Bloomer (7-2) vs. Totalitarian Utopia (3-6)
Somehow we have gone from one of the best matchups of the week to arguably the worst. Not the worst in the sense that both teams are terrible but in the sense this thing is looking pretty one sided. Stills has a miraculous three wins while Rob has quietly become the toast of the league with the best record and second most points. This should be a quick review then. Manning to Clark has been epic this season but finds a tough draw with the Pats but all the others for the Bloomers are good as gold. Stills’ matchups are looking pretty good themselves but Mendenhall and Miller are a little rocky against the Bengals and on an even playing field he basically has no shot at toppling Rob. This won’t be close and as Stills said in the posts, is perfect for a good laugh.
San Diego Booyans! (6-3) vs. Sierra Nevada Estate (6-3) *Game of the Week*
I know what you’re thinking, “Oh great, Jon gave himself the game of the week again…what a prick.“ Well, shut your pie hole whilst I explain. Dan and I enter this week as second and third in the league by record (second and sixth by points) and that record happens to be the same. In addition, Dan has inexplicably carried a deep seeded hatred for my teams throughout the years. Perhaps he fears my incredible genius and talent prospecting prowess. Maybe he is threatened by my ability to consistently field teams that appear immensely pedestrian by name power but manage to make the playoffs year in and year out. Might it be that he is still bitter I control a seemingly insurmountable lead in our epic one on one basketball series? Who can say, really? Enough set up, let’s take a look at the matchup. Hasselbeck and Housh should fair well in AZ, Jackson and McCoy will have fun in SD but that is the extent of the good matchups for DY. Wayne will get his for sure, but it’s a tough draw against the Pats, Stewart is with my boy DW at home with the Falcons and Fred Davis plays the Broncos. I have already said that I think GB vs. Dal will be a who can score last game and that is why I have put in the constantly underperforming RW and I think AR will have one heck of a game at home. Bowe is shady in Oakland with their secondary but he’s the best WR in that city for the weekend. Holt is a trash heap, but should at least get 8 to 9 which is all I have come to expect from him and anything else is just gravy. And then there is Ray Ray in Cleveland on Monday, that is probably going to be the reason I win. Yahoo projects him at 26.33 which is a bit lawl-able but I like his chances. I also like my chances and that is why I am officially jinxing myself against Dan this week in what is the perfect almost rivalry game to get me ready for rivalry week next week.
To the right is a snapshot of our current league standings. I am the San Diego BooYans! in SECOND PLACE!
I am getting a raging clue for our upcoming playoffs. They are rapidly approaching and I can’t wait. That being said I am looking forward to this week and next week as well, unless the Packers lose this week in which case I will add mid-April to my list of things I am looking forward to (the NFL draft is held in mid April for those of you that are slow with the uptake). Good luck this week my friends, Daniel Young excluded of course.
As we know this is the first week of the rest of our season…and by that I mean that this is the first week a select few get to watch Thursday night games on NFL Network. In honor of this, let’s start with the two teams that this Thursday’s game had the most impact on…
Bulletproof Tiger (2-7) vs. Errant Dogs (5-4)
Each team had three positions going on Thursday and if I had to pick a winner of the day it would be Owen as he saw 45 points from Forte, Hester, and Gould while Adam got 44 and a quarter from Gore, VD, and the Squared Seven defense. If you would have asked me Wednesday who’s three I would have taken I would have Sain scoffed in your face and taken them misbehaving mutts. Shows how much I know I guess; I’m about as qualified at this stuff as Eric Karabel. Does this new information mean that Owen is the favorite to win this matchup now? Well, let’s take a look shall we. Flacco plays in Cleveland, Breaston against the Seahawks (listed as probable), Austin @ Lambeau (where defense is a forget term) and Carlson in the Arizona desert are all a great start for Owern to keep the momentum rolling. Only Cribbs against the Ravens is a poor draw for him. The Mosseseseses have tough draws for Adam’s puppies but Randy is usually a good show despite the draw. Ryan in NC is favorable and Mason should cancel out most of Flacco in Cleveland. I must admit I voted for Adam before the Thursday nighter and I am not convinced the good start for Owen is enough for me to change it. Mutts in a closer win then originally thought.
Too Many Grandmas (5-4) vs. Purple People Eaters (2-7)
Next we find ourselves with two teams that have had polar opposite seasons. Wes got off to a nice start to the year and Owen Daniels was a very large part of that. With OD out of commission the Grandmas have stumbled of late and hope to clot their thinned blood’s flow. On the other hand we have Galen, who has been the poster child for bad luck as his team was at one time second in the league in points (now sitting seventh) yet find themselves at merely 2-7. Are these teams headed in opposite directions? Brady plays in Indy where it will be a gritty game but he will likely fair well in my opinion. Kevin Smith in Minnesota and Vincent Jackson against the Iggles are the tough draws for the PPEs. Boldin against Seattle, Barber in GB, Shockey in the Gateway City, and Celek in my area are all good news for the squad. For Wes’ AARP groupies Privers, Pettigrew, Calvin Johnson, and Cedric the Entertainer all have impeccably tough draws. Is Roddy in NC, Cotch-itch hosting the Jags and Pierre Thomas in the STL enough to overcome? Methinks not so much. I am going with Galen in this one, though it should be close…and Galen doesn’t have a great track record with close weeks this season. Nevertheless, the winds of change are blowing my friends and this matchup is a clear indicator.
Team Pavlik (6-3) vs. C-minus (4-5)
This is a crucial game for both of these teams fighting for position in the playoff picture. Vimel was the only one in this matchup with players playing Thursday night and mustered nearly 29 points from a trio of Greg Olsen, Chicago’s D, and Charles Tillman. Basically they are who we thought they were as Denny Green might say of these Bears. Big Ben with Cincy, Mike Sims-Walker in New Jersey B, and Sjax hosting the Saints are the bad while Brandon Marshall in the nation’s capital, Michael Turner in NC and Braylon hosting the Jags are the good for Vimfuck. CP9 and Hines Ward play against each other in Pittsburgh, LT hosts Philly, and the lone Steve Smith for Collin this week hosts Atlanta to round out the tough draws for C-money. The good includes Witten in GB, Reggie in STL, and a rejuvenated Chambers in the East Bay (I think, he’s a spotty play but if he scores 10 FP it’s a win for Collin). I voted for Collin before Thursday and I am sticking to my guns based on what I have in front of me. Also, a special note to Vimel and his Cowboys: We need this week’s game like mammals need oxygen so please do me a favor and tank it on your trip to Lambeau cause you guys can afford a loss and still make the playoffs. The reality is if we lose this game our season is lost…also, if your D-line could find it in their hearts to not kill Aaron Rodgers as they blow through our disgusting excuse for an O-line I would greatly appreciate it.
Brownies (3-6) vs. Out of the first round (4-5)
This is either going to really put Scip in a real hole for the season or make the playoff picture incredibly cloudy. Brees plays a cupcake as he goes to STL, Bess has a favorable matchup against the Buccs, Shiancoe against the Lions and Marshawn in Tennessee are also quite favorable for GDS. Caldwell is an upgrade with Chris Henry out but playing in Pitt is less than favorable. I have to say I like Romo and Doug’s Packers to score well as I see that game being a who can score last affair. Welker will get his catches as usual and Burleson is in AZ, which isn’t exactly known as a defensive stopper. Despite Brees’ easy week I think Doug’s OOFRs have what it takes to lock this thing down. I really wish I had more to say about this matchup because it really is incredibly meaningful as both teams have a chance at the playoffs still but I words have escaped me for some reason. I apologize and will try to do better with the next matchup…
Da Bears (5-4) vs. Selena Y Los Dinos (5-4)
This is by no means a make or break week for either of these teams but the winner is clearly awarded the inside track to a playoff spot as they come in with the same record. This would be the game of the week if it weren’t for our final matchup to be named later due to it’s importance but there are some key elements that make it lose a little luster in mine eye. The first of those elements being the Texans on bye meaning no Schaub for Kenbo88 and VY instead getting the start. At least he’s playing a poor team. I also don’t dig that Thomas’ team lives or dies by the Vikings (so far living the lifestyle of the rich and famous) and the Vikes are hosting the Lions this week. That doesn’t bode well for anybody in Michigan or Ken. The only question mark for Thomas is whether TO will play or not. All signs point to yes as he practiced today. TO has been, well, horrid by his standards but at least plays one of, if not the, worst pass defense in the league to date this week. Based on these findings I can’t help but assume Thomas is going to win this week in a game that would be close if, perhaps, both teams were at full strength but Ken putting all his eggs in Schaub’s basket and having to go to VY for a week is all bad.
Late Bloomer (7-2) vs. Totalitarian Utopia (3-6)
Somehow we have gone from one of the best matchups of the week to arguably the worst. Not the worst in the sense that both teams are terrible but in the sense this thing is looking pretty one sided. Stills has a miraculous three wins while Rob has quietly become the toast of the league with the best record and second most points. This should be a quick review then. Manning to Clark has been epic this season but finds a tough draw with the Pats but all the others for the Bloomers are good as gold. Stills’ matchups are looking pretty good themselves but Mendenhall and Miller are a little rocky against the Bengals and on an even playing field he basically has no shot at toppling Rob. This won’t be close and as Stills said in the posts, is perfect for a good laugh.
San Diego Booyans! (6-3) vs. Sierra Nevada Estate (6-3) *Game of the Week*
I know what you’re thinking, “Oh great, Jon gave himself the game of the week again…what a prick.“ Well, shut your pie hole whilst I explain. Dan and I enter this week as second and third in the league by record (second and sixth by points) and that record happens to be the same. In addition, Dan has inexplicably carried a deep seeded hatred for my teams throughout the years. Perhaps he fears my incredible genius and talent prospecting prowess. Maybe he is threatened by my ability to consistently field teams that appear immensely pedestrian by name power but manage to make the playoffs year in and year out. Might it be that he is still bitter I control a seemingly insurmountable lead in our epic one on one basketball series? Who can say, really? Enough set up, let’s take a look at the matchup. Hasselbeck and Housh should fair well in AZ, Jackson and McCoy will have fun in SD but that is the extent of the good matchups for DY. Wayne will get his for sure, but it’s a tough draw against the Pats, Stewart is with my boy DW at home with the Falcons and Fred Davis plays the Broncos. I have already said that I think GB vs. Dal will be a who can score last game and that is why I have put in the constantly underperforming RW and I think AR will have one heck of a game at home. Bowe is shady in Oakland with their secondary but he’s the best WR in that city for the weekend. Holt is a trash heap, but should at least get 8 to 9 which is all I have come to expect from him and anything else is just gravy. And then there is Ray Ray in Cleveland on Monday, that is probably going to be the reason I win. Yahoo projects him at 26.33 which is a bit lawl-able but I like his chances. I also like my chances and that is why I am officially jinxing myself against Dan this week in what is the perfect almost rivalry game to get me ready for rivalry week next week.
I am getting a raging clue for our upcoming playoffs. They are rapidly approaching and I can’t wait. That being said I am looking forward to this week and next week as well, unless the Packers lose this week in which case I will add mid-April to my list of things I am looking forward to (the NFL draft is held in mid April for those of you that are slow with the uptake). Good luck this week my friends, Daniel Young excluded of course.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Back on the Horse...
Ok, I must admit that I have been completely lazy over the last 6 months which has resulted in me neglecting my want and need to write. This is a complete shame as there have been some great sports action over that time frame as well. Hopefully those select few that have found my blog back then will appreciate the return to form.
As you know the World Series is currently in full swing. Ya know, if the "world" only spans from New York to Philadelphia. I should preface anything that may come in regards to said series by saying I don't necessary like either team, and down right loathe the Yankee's ability to, and general willingness to, outbid everyone else for the best players. I guess that means I am pulling for the Phillies. Currently the Yankees lead the series 3 games to 2 and game 6 is being played as I type this. The score sits at 7-3 in the bottom of the 7th meaning the Yanks have a pretty good shot at wrapping this thing up tonight.
In other sports news, the NBA season is just over a week old. I think the surprise of the season for me so far is the Phoenix Suns. I fully expected them to be completely middle of the road but they were cruising along and undefeated until they ran into the (my) Orlando Magic tonight. Both teams left the game 4-1 after the Magic coasted to a 122-100 victory behind Dwight Howard's 25 points, and Jameer Nelson's double-double. There are still 2 teams clinging to perfection and they are the Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets. Both teams are pumping on all cylinders right now, especially the Celts who are averaging a staggering 101 points for with only 80 points against. That's a scary thought as a fan of the Magic who also reside in the east, yikes.
The NFL is entering week 9 and there are still 2 teams in that league hanging on to perfection as well. The Indianapolis Colts have looked extremely strong in their run to 7-0 and have done so without their second best WR in Anthony Gonzalez who is expected back in the next week or two. However, it is the New Orleans Saints who get the most media play about going undefeated through the entirety of the season as their schedule is pretty easy for the remainder of the season. Their toughest remaining games include hosting New England in week 12 and going to Atlanta in week 14. That isn't to say their 2 remaining games with Carolina and home game against Dallas will be easy, but it is to say that the other 4 games that include 2 with Tampa Bay as well as the Rams and Redskins will be. I don't think it will happen, I should admit I am pulling for it to happen though as I can't stand the '72 Dolphins and their open disdain for any team that comes remotely close to their record. Serious, has any team or individual for that matter made you resent their accomplishment more than this team and Don Shula? I wasn't even alive when it happened but I appreciate the fact that no other team has done it (though that is arguable as the Patriots have a small claim to that record [unless you ask a '72 Dolphins member]). Maybe it's just me, but I want someone to end their stupid champagne party of arrogance.
I think that pretty much covers the recap of where I stand with everything since I've been out of the writing habit. I have hopes to post an entry twice a month at minimum, and hopefully more frequent when the mood or inspiration should strike.
Until that time, keeping cheering sports fans.
As you know the World Series is currently in full swing. Ya know, if the "world" only spans from New York to Philadelphia. I should preface anything that may come in regards to said series by saying I don't necessary like either team, and down right loathe the Yankee's ability to, and general willingness to, outbid everyone else for the best players. I guess that means I am pulling for the Phillies. Currently the Yankees lead the series 3 games to 2 and game 6 is being played as I type this. The score sits at 7-3 in the bottom of the 7th meaning the Yanks have a pretty good shot at wrapping this thing up tonight.
In other sports news, the NBA season is just over a week old. I think the surprise of the season for me so far is the Phoenix Suns. I fully expected them to be completely middle of the road but they were cruising along and undefeated until they ran into the (my) Orlando Magic tonight. Both teams left the game 4-1 after the Magic coasted to a 122-100 victory behind Dwight Howard's 25 points, and Jameer Nelson's double-double. There are still 2 teams clinging to perfection and they are the Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets. Both teams are pumping on all cylinders right now, especially the Celts who are averaging a staggering 101 points for with only 80 points against. That's a scary thought as a fan of the Magic who also reside in the east, yikes.
The NFL is entering week 9 and there are still 2 teams in that league hanging on to perfection as well. The Indianapolis Colts have looked extremely strong in their run to 7-0 and have done so without their second best WR in Anthony Gonzalez who is expected back in the next week or two. However, it is the New Orleans Saints who get the most media play about going undefeated through the entirety of the season as their schedule is pretty easy for the remainder of the season. Their toughest remaining games include hosting New England in week 12 and going to Atlanta in week 14. That isn't to say their 2 remaining games with Carolina and home game against Dallas will be easy, but it is to say that the other 4 games that include 2 with Tampa Bay as well as the Rams and Redskins will be. I don't think it will happen, I should admit I am pulling for it to happen though as I can't stand the '72 Dolphins and their open disdain for any team that comes remotely close to their record. Serious, has any team or individual for that matter made you resent their accomplishment more than this team and Don Shula? I wasn't even alive when it happened but I appreciate the fact that no other team has done it (though that is arguable as the Patriots have a small claim to that record [unless you ask a '72 Dolphins member]). Maybe it's just me, but I want someone to end their stupid champagne party of arrogance.
I think that pretty much covers the recap of where I stand with everything since I've been out of the writing habit. I have hopes to post an entry twice a month at minimum, and hopefully more frequent when the mood or inspiration should strike.
Until that time, keeping cheering sports fans.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Man Ram and the 'Roids
Breaking news of Manny Ramirez testing positive for performance enhancing drugs and being suspended 50 games by the offices of major league baseball.
The Dodgers have the best record in the league and just set the record for consecutive home wins to open a season (13). Reportedly a minor league outfielder has already been contacted for call up and the Dodgers are going to have to try and fill the offensive production lost with Manny at home.
I am not going to say I knew this was coming as Manny has no history of performance enhancing drugs in the past. However, I will note that he has been off personality wise for a while and this news in no way shocks me in hindsight. How someone can be that absurdly productive and that off the wall personality wise and not be on something seems a little far fetched.
We will have to wait and see how Manny tries to explain this. I am sure it will ride somewhere along the lines of the unknowing Barry Bonds argument but could stem from the Sammy Sosa I only did it once camp (referring to Sosa's corked bat discovered in game). Only time will tell, should be interesting news coming from LA for baseball fans in the next few hours/days.
The Dodgers have the best record in the league and just set the record for consecutive home wins to open a season (13). Reportedly a minor league outfielder has already been contacted for call up and the Dodgers are going to have to try and fill the offensive production lost with Manny at home.
I am not going to say I knew this was coming as Manny has no history of performance enhancing drugs in the past. However, I will note that he has been off personality wise for a while and this news in no way shocks me in hindsight. How someone can be that absurdly productive and that off the wall personality wise and not be on something seems a little far fetched.
We will have to wait and see how Manny tries to explain this. I am sure it will ride somewhere along the lines of the unknowing Barry Bonds argument but could stem from the Sammy Sosa I only did it once camp (referring to Sosa's corked bat discovered in game). Only time will tell, should be interesting news coming from LA for baseball fans in the next few hours/days.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
How Anti-climactic?
Real anti-climactic...
That NCAA national title game was over halfway through the first half. It was a dominating performance of near perfect basketball for the Tar Heels. Not much more to say than that. Michigan State has a better chance for next year in all likeliness as North Carolina will lose Ty Lawson, Tyler Hansborough, and probably Wayne Ellington. Ellington was the most outstanding player of the final four.
Congrats to Chapel Hill.
That NCAA national title game was over halfway through the first half. It was a dominating performance of near perfect basketball for the Tar Heels. Not much more to say than that. Michigan State has a better chance for next year in all likeliness as North Carolina will lose Ty Lawson, Tyler Hansborough, and probably Wayne Ellington. Ellington was the most outstanding player of the final four.
Congrats to Chapel Hill.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Final Four
The final four teams are set. The best game in the elite eight was far and away the Pitt versus Villanova game. It ended on a last second running shot in the lane by Villanova to advance them to the final four. It was simply incredible and if you missed it catch it on ESPN Classic in the next couple days...It'll be there I'm sure.
The Bracket looks like this:
The matchups in the final four are interesting. Starting with the Michigan State/Connecticut game we find a couple of smash mouth teams. Michigan State likes to slow ya down (like the rest of the Big Ten Conference, just better). UConn's Hasheem Thabeet will likely cause the Spartans to shoot a lot of jumpers which they are obviously going to have to hit to have a chance. The Huskies seem more able to get up and down the floor than Michigan State. However, there should be something said about the locale of the game. Michigan State doesn't have far to go to get to Detroit's Ford Field where the final four and national championship games will be played. This is essentially a home game for MSU and that could be a factor. That being said I still like UConn to take this game and play for the title.
The other game is a contrast of styles between Villanova and North Carolina. Villanova is a run and gun, spread you out, blow by you type of team. North Carolina, while not averse to running, will likely try to slow the game down and use their sive advantage with Hansborough and company in the paint. The team that imposes their style on the other will win this game and I think it is easier to slow a game down than to consciously speed it up. That leads me to believe that North Carolina will be playing for the nets in the national championship game.
That's my prediction for the final four, UNC will play UConn in the national championship game.
The Bracket looks like this:
The matchups in the final four are interesting. Starting with the Michigan State/Connecticut game we find a couple of smash mouth teams. Michigan State likes to slow ya down (like the rest of the Big Ten Conference, just better). UConn's Hasheem Thabeet will likely cause the Spartans to shoot a lot of jumpers which they are obviously going to have to hit to have a chance. The Huskies seem more able to get up and down the floor than Michigan State. However, there should be something said about the locale of the game. Michigan State doesn't have far to go to get to Detroit's Ford Field where the final four and national championship games will be played. This is essentially a home game for MSU and that could be a factor. That being said I still like UConn to take this game and play for the title.
The other game is a contrast of styles between Villanova and North Carolina. Villanova is a run and gun, spread you out, blow by you type of team. North Carolina, while not averse to running, will likely try to slow the game down and use their sive advantage with Hansborough and company in the paint. The team that imposes their style on the other will win this game and I think it is easier to slow a game down than to consciously speed it up. That leads me to believe that North Carolina will be playing for the nets in the national championship game.
That's my prediction for the final four, UNC will play UConn in the national championship game.
Friday, March 27, 2009
1 great game, 1 decent game, and 2 crappers
Let's start with the crappers.
The first crapper was obviously Louisville versus Arizona. This game was controlled wire to wire by the Cardinals who simply smothered Arizona in every possible way. Chase Budinger scored a game high 22 points and Jordan Hill added 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Wildcats. These efforts weren't enough to even keep it close against Louisville who had five players in double figures lead by the 19 points of Earl Clark. The final score was 103-64. Every player that saw the floor for Louisville scored at least 2 points in this game...ouch.
The other crapper is still being played but that certainly doesn't mean it isn't over. North Carolina is man handling Gonzaga by a score of 95 to 68 with 4:22 left in the game. Lawson is clearly getting healthier and Hansborough had another double-double, big whoop. See ya next year 'Zags have a nice summer vacation.
The decent game tonight was actually the game I was most excited for. Though my excitement stemmed mostly for the opportunity to see Syracuse knock off Oklahoma so that needed to happen for me to really enjoy this game. Jonny Flynn did his part scoring 22 points for the Orangemen and Andy Routins was the only other Orange in double figures with 12. That sounds like I probably didn't enjoy the game...Tony Crocker scored 28 points and the widely considered player of the year, Blake Griffin, had a 30 point 14 rebound double-double...now I know I didn't enjoy this game. The final score was 84 to 71. Good run for Syracuse at the end of the year but they were no match down low for Mr. Griffin.
Now for the great game! The rematch between Kansas and Michigan State. In the first game Michigan State edged Kansas by a narrow margin. Would the Jayhawks reap their revenge on the Spartans this time around? Sherron Collins was certainly trying to make it happen with his 20 point scoring effort and Cole Aldrich had a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds. They got little else from their teammates though. Michigan State's Goran Sutan scored 20 points with 9 rebounds and 5 steals to compliment Kalin Lucas' 18 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 steals. The 6 additional turnovers the Jayhawks had proved to be a deciding factor down the stretch. The game was then sealed as Kansas missed a late free throw that fell into the hands of a Spartan with less than 20 seconds left. This was the game of the night and none of the other games even came close.
The bracket heading into the weekend games, where the final four teams will be decided, looks like this:
See ya tomorrow for the games sports fans.
The first crapper was obviously Louisville versus Arizona. This game was controlled wire to wire by the Cardinals who simply smothered Arizona in every possible way. Chase Budinger scored a game high 22 points and Jordan Hill added 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Wildcats. These efforts weren't enough to even keep it close against Louisville who had five players in double figures lead by the 19 points of Earl Clark. The final score was 103-64. Every player that saw the floor for Louisville scored at least 2 points in this game...ouch.
The other crapper is still being played but that certainly doesn't mean it isn't over. North Carolina is man handling Gonzaga by a score of 95 to 68 with 4:22 left in the game. Lawson is clearly getting healthier and Hansborough had another double-double, big whoop. See ya next year 'Zags have a nice summer vacation.
The decent game tonight was actually the game I was most excited for. Though my excitement stemmed mostly for the opportunity to see Syracuse knock off Oklahoma so that needed to happen for me to really enjoy this game. Jonny Flynn did his part scoring 22 points for the Orangemen and Andy Routins was the only other Orange in double figures with 12. That sounds like I probably didn't enjoy the game...Tony Crocker scored 28 points and the widely considered player of the year, Blake Griffin, had a 30 point 14 rebound double-double...now I know I didn't enjoy this game. The final score was 84 to 71. Good run for Syracuse at the end of the year but they were no match down low for Mr. Griffin.
Now for the great game! The rematch between Kansas and Michigan State. In the first game Michigan State edged Kansas by a narrow margin. Would the Jayhawks reap their revenge on the Spartans this time around? Sherron Collins was certainly trying to make it happen with his 20 point scoring effort and Cole Aldrich had a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds. They got little else from their teammates though. Michigan State's Goran Sutan scored 20 points with 9 rebounds and 5 steals to compliment Kalin Lucas' 18 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 steals. The 6 additional turnovers the Jayhawks had proved to be a deciding factor down the stretch. The game was then sealed as Kansas missed a late free throw that fell into the hands of a Spartan with less than 20 seconds left. This was the game of the night and none of the other games even came close.
The bracket heading into the weekend games, where the final four teams will be decided, looks like this:
See ya tomorrow for the games sports fans.
What time is it?!
Game time, WHOOP!
Arizona and Louisville up first, hopefully the 'Cats can figure out the press and at least make a game of it.
Arizona and Louisville up first, hopefully the 'Cats can figure out the press and at least make a game of it.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Tiger Supremacy
Missouri and Memphis battled tonight for the title of Tiger supremacy...oh, and a trip to the elite eight. Missouri was up big and the game looked like a route at times. All five Missouri Tigers scored in double figures including Leo Lyons' double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds. Nobody could have expected that this game between two teems that run full court presses for much of the game would be so high scoring either. The final was 102-91. Senior Robert Dozier finished his career at Memphis with a double-double of 19 points and 16 rebounds to compliment sensational freshman Tyreke Evans scoring 33 on the night. But alas, it wasn't enough as Missouri ran away with it and earns the right to take on UConn in the next round.
The Duke and Villanova game just wrapped up as well. This was a great game for twenty minutes. Unfortunately for the Blue Devils they play forty minute games. A three point game at halftime turned ugly as the Duke offense continued to stall throughout the second half with the pressure of the 'Nova defense. Duke standout, Gerald Henderson, struggled all game finishing with 7 points on 1 of 14 from the floor...not the way you want to finish out your year. Highlights for the Wildcats include Dante Cunningham's double-double (14 points 11 rebounds) and Reggie Redding's 11 points with 9 rebounds and some amazingly stiffling defense on Henderson all game. A truly remarkable performance from Villanova in this one and if they play like this in the next round they could quite easily take down the Pittsburgh Panthers.
The tournament bracket looks like this:
More games tomorrow night to decide the remaining four spots in the elite eight. See you then.
The Duke and Villanova game just wrapped up as well. This was a great game for twenty minutes. Unfortunately for the Blue Devils they play forty minute games. A three point game at halftime turned ugly as the Duke offense continued to stall throughout the second half with the pressure of the 'Nova defense. Duke standout, Gerald Henderson, struggled all game finishing with 7 points on 1 of 14 from the floor...not the way you want to finish out your year. Highlights for the Wildcats include Dante Cunningham's double-double (14 points 11 rebounds) and Reggie Redding's 11 points with 9 rebounds and some amazingly stiffling defense on Henderson all game. A truly remarkable performance from Villanova in this one and if they play like this in the next round they could quite easily take down the Pittsburgh Panthers.
The tournament bracket looks like this:
More games tomorrow night to decide the remaining four spots in the elite eight. See you then.
Xavier/Pitt
Great game as a fan with no tie to either team. Pitt's Levance Fields hit a huge (and deep) three with just under two minutes to play to give his Panthers a 1 point lead. On the ensuing possession for the Musketeers DeJuan Blair poked the ball away leading to Fields picking up the ball on the run and laying it in on the other end for a 3 point lead. Xavier would be fouled at the other end and make 1 of 2 free throws. Pitt knocked down their two free throws after securing the rebound on the second free throw miss from Xavier. The three point attempt to tie the game hit back iron for the Musketeers and fell into the hands of a Panther. For the first time ever Pitt will advance to the Elite 8.
The Panthers will play the winner of the Villanova and Duke game to be played in a matter of minutes.
The Panthers will play the winner of the Villanova and Duke game to be played in a matter of minutes.
Sweet 16, Day 1
The first two games are winding down in this year's sweet 16 action.
The Purdue versus UConn game was never out of hand but after a well played first half that saw Purdue's Robbie Hummel keeping the Boilermakers in it with the jumper. Hummel would finish with 17 points and JaJuan Johnson had 13 as well. UConn was just too much for the overmatched Big Ten team down low though. Hasheem Thabeet tallied 15 points, 15 rebounds, and 4 blocks clearly controlling the paint. Three other Huskies finished in double figures including another double-double for Stanley Robinson. UConn advanced fairly easily by a final score of 72-60.
The more heatly contested of the two early games was that of Pittsburgh and Xavier. Close games are becoming a theme of this year's tournament for the top seeded Panthers of Pitt. Pittsburgh actually trailed at the half by 8 points and Xavier has kept them on the run all game. There is still 3:46 left in this game at the moment and the two teams are tied at 52. More to come at game's end.
The Purdue versus UConn game was never out of hand but after a well played first half that saw Purdue's Robbie Hummel keeping the Boilermakers in it with the jumper. Hummel would finish with 17 points and JaJuan Johnson had 13 as well. UConn was just too much for the overmatched Big Ten team down low though. Hasheem Thabeet tallied 15 points, 15 rebounds, and 4 blocks clearly controlling the paint. Three other Huskies finished in double figures including another double-double for Stanley Robinson. UConn advanced fairly easily by a final score of 72-60.
The more heatly contested of the two early games was that of Pittsburgh and Xavier. Close games are becoming a theme of this year's tournament for the top seeded Panthers of Pitt. Pittsburgh actually trailed at the half by 8 points and Xavier has kept them on the run all game. There is still 3:46 left in this game at the moment and the two teams are tied at 52. More to come at game's end.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
NIT Update
The first NIT game of the night found Norte Dame hosting Kentucky. A hard fought game between two pretty evenly matched teams. The Wildcats were paced by the 21 points of Jodie Meeks and Patrick Patterson also had 18 points and 7 rebounds for UK. The Fighting Irish's Luke Harangody wasn't ready to end their season though. Harangody's double-double with 30 points and 11 rebounds lead Notre Dame who had three other players in double figures. The final was 77-67 in favor of the home Irish.
The second game to decide the final member of the foursome that would travel to New York was between San Diego State and Saint Mary's. The Aztecs are the only number one seed left in the NIT and hosted the Gaels in San Diego for this one. It was a rout early as the Aztecs found themselves up by as much as 16 at times in the first half. The teams headed to the locker room with SDSU up 11 at the half. Saint Mary's was down but certainly not out. They would battle back to tie the game late in the second half. Patty Mills lead the Gaels' attack with his 18 points and 5 assists. Diamon Simpson's 11 points and 14 rebounds along with Omar Samhan's 10 points and 12 rebounds were the games only double-doubles.
The Aztecs were lead by the 17 points of Billy White off the bench. Ryan Amoroso added 12, Kyle Spain had 11 and Lorrenzo Wade chipped in 10 for SDSU. Richie Williams was the story of this game though. The biggest man on the court stood all of 5 foot 10 inches. Williams was constantly in the pocket of Patty Mills forcing one of the best point guards to commit 5 turnovers. Williams, a 65% free throw shooter, also found 4 of his 8 points from the line with the game's outcome hanging squarely in the balance. This was a great game by both teams but as the clock ticked to zeroes it was the host fans joyously storming the court as the Aztecs nipped the Gaels 70-66.
The top seeded San Diego State team will face the lowest remaining seed in Baylor, a 3 seed. In the other semi-final in Madison Square Garden Notre Dame will take on Penn State, both teams are 2 seeds. These should be some great games coming up on March 31st.
Sorry gotta do it.
S-D-S-U...AZTECS FIGHT!
Bracket looks like this.
The second game to decide the final member of the foursome that would travel to New York was between San Diego State and Saint Mary's. The Aztecs are the only number one seed left in the NIT and hosted the Gaels in San Diego for this one. It was a rout early as the Aztecs found themselves up by as much as 16 at times in the first half. The teams headed to the locker room with SDSU up 11 at the half. Saint Mary's was down but certainly not out. They would battle back to tie the game late in the second half. Patty Mills lead the Gaels' attack with his 18 points and 5 assists. Diamon Simpson's 11 points and 14 rebounds along with Omar Samhan's 10 points and 12 rebounds were the games only double-doubles.
The Aztecs were lead by the 17 points of Billy White off the bench. Ryan Amoroso added 12, Kyle Spain had 11 and Lorrenzo Wade chipped in 10 for SDSU. Richie Williams was the story of this game though. The biggest man on the court stood all of 5 foot 10 inches. Williams was constantly in the pocket of Patty Mills forcing one of the best point guards to commit 5 turnovers. Williams, a 65% free throw shooter, also found 4 of his 8 points from the line with the game's outcome hanging squarely in the balance. This was a great game by both teams but as the clock ticked to zeroes it was the host fans joyously storming the court as the Aztecs nipped the Gaels 70-66.
The top seeded San Diego State team will face the lowest remaining seed in Baylor, a 3 seed. In the other semi-final in Madison Square Garden Notre Dame will take on Penn State, both teams are 2 seeds. These should be some great games coming up on March 31st.
Sorry gotta do it.
S-D-S-U...AZTECS FIGHT!
Bracket looks like this.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
NIT Update
Half of the Final four has been decided...er...for the NIT that is.
Baylor played the played at Auburn tonight in what was a very good game. Back and forth the Bears and Tigers would go all night. Baylor was lead by LaceDarius Dunn's 19 and 9 in addition to Kevin Rogers' 15 and 12 double-double. Auburn had three players in double figures lead by Korvotney Barber's 11 points and 13 rebounds. His effort wasn't enough to overcome the Bears though as Auburn lost the game 74-76 after missing their attempt to tie in the final seconds.
Penn State and Florida also met tonight in a fight to get to Madison Square Garden on the 31st. This game was certainly not as exciting as the first game but didn't lack its moments either. Florida had three players in double digits lead by Erving Walker's 16 and Alex Tyus' 15. The real star of this game was a Nittany Lion though. His name, Jamelle Cornley. Cornley scored a game high 23 points and collected a game high 12 rebounds. A total of four players for Penn State scored in double digits but Cornley was certainly the alpha lion of the pride.
The updated tournament bracket looks like this:
San Diego State will host Patty Mills and the St. Mary's Gaels tomorrow night and Kentucky will travel to take on Notre Dame to decide the other half of the NIT final four.
Let's go Aztecs! :)
Baylor played the played at Auburn tonight in what was a very good game. Back and forth the Bears and Tigers would go all night. Baylor was lead by LaceDarius Dunn's 19 and 9 in addition to Kevin Rogers' 15 and 12 double-double. Auburn had three players in double figures lead by Korvotney Barber's 11 points and 13 rebounds. His effort wasn't enough to overcome the Bears though as Auburn lost the game 74-76 after missing their attempt to tie in the final seconds.
Penn State and Florida also met tonight in a fight to get to Madison Square Garden on the 31st. This game was certainly not as exciting as the first game but didn't lack its moments either. Florida had three players in double digits lead by Erving Walker's 16 and Alex Tyus' 15. The real star of this game was a Nittany Lion though. His name, Jamelle Cornley. Cornley scored a game high 23 points and collected a game high 12 rebounds. A total of four players for Penn State scored in double digits but Cornley was certainly the alpha lion of the pride.
The updated tournament bracket looks like this:
San Diego State will host Patty Mills and the St. Mary's Gaels tomorrow night and Kentucky will travel to take on Notre Dame to decide the other half of the NIT final four.
Let's go Aztecs! :)
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Late games escalate quickly
...I mean, they really got out of hand fast.
USC fell to Michigan State which was no surprise really. The Trojans made a game of it though and only lost by a score of 74-69. Taj Gibson fouling out with over 4 minutes to play was huge as the Trojans missed his defensive presence down low late in this game. Four USC players finished in double digits lead by Dwight Lewis' 19 and DeMar DeRozan's 18. Four Spartans also finished with double digits lead by Travis Walton's 18. Walton hit a number of key jumpers down the stretch simply not allowing his team to fall behind late. Michigan State will play the Kansas Jayhawks in the round of 16.
Marquette and Missouri turned out to be one hell of a game. At one point this looked like a run away win for the Tigers of Mizzou as they had a 16 point lead for a while. The Golden Eagles battled all the way back to tie the game late but made a key mistake on an inbound play stepping over the end line with the ball and turning it over. Then, down four with 4.4 seconds left a desperation three, and a questionable no call on the shot, fell short of everything and the ball came crashing to the floor out of bounds taking Marquette's tournament hopes with it. Marquette's Jerel McNeal was sensational in the comeback effort scoring 30points. His teammate Wesley Matthews added 24 points and Lazar Hayward chipped in a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds. Five Missouri Tigers scored in double digits lead by Leo Lyons' 18. Kim English produced 17 off the bench. Missouri will take on Memphis in a battle for Tiger supremacy.
Perhaps the biggest roller coaster of a game was that of Siena and Louisville. At first it was the Cardinals that looked in control and well on their way to the next round. Then after a strenuous effort by the Saints they found themselves up 5 late in the second half. Unable to hold on to their lead, however, Siena trailed by 4 with 14 seconds to play. Louisville hit just enough of their free throws down the stretch to stave off the upset bid. For Siena, Edwin Ubiles cashed in for 24 points and 8 rebounds to lead the team. Two double-doubles for Louisville are the main reason they will move on as Earl Clarks 12 points and 12 rebounds were only outdone by Terrence Williams' 24 points and 15 rebounds. The Cardinals will face the Arizona Wildcats in the sweet 16.
After all of the second round has been completed the updated bracket looks like this:
USC fell to Michigan State which was no surprise really. The Trojans made a game of it though and only lost by a score of 74-69. Taj Gibson fouling out with over 4 minutes to play was huge as the Trojans missed his defensive presence down low late in this game. Four USC players finished in double digits lead by Dwight Lewis' 19 and DeMar DeRozan's 18. Four Spartans also finished with double digits lead by Travis Walton's 18. Walton hit a number of key jumpers down the stretch simply not allowing his team to fall behind late. Michigan State will play the Kansas Jayhawks in the round of 16.
Marquette and Missouri turned out to be one hell of a game. At one point this looked like a run away win for the Tigers of Mizzou as they had a 16 point lead for a while. The Golden Eagles battled all the way back to tie the game late but made a key mistake on an inbound play stepping over the end line with the ball and turning it over. Then, down four with 4.4 seconds left a desperation three, and a questionable no call on the shot, fell short of everything and the ball came crashing to the floor out of bounds taking Marquette's tournament hopes with it. Marquette's Jerel McNeal was sensational in the comeback effort scoring 30points. His teammate Wesley Matthews added 24 points and Lazar Hayward chipped in a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds. Five Missouri Tigers scored in double digits lead by Leo Lyons' 18. Kim English produced 17 off the bench. Missouri will take on Memphis in a battle for Tiger supremacy.
Perhaps the biggest roller coaster of a game was that of Siena and Louisville. At first it was the Cardinals that looked in control and well on their way to the next round. Then after a strenuous effort by the Saints they found themselves up 5 late in the second half. Unable to hold on to their lead, however, Siena trailed by 4 with 14 seconds to play. Louisville hit just enough of their free throws down the stretch to stave off the upset bid. For Siena, Edwin Ubiles cashed in for 24 points and 8 rebounds to lead the team. Two double-doubles for Louisville are the main reason they will move on as Earl Clarks 12 points and 12 rebounds were only outdone by Terrence Williams' 24 points and 15 rebounds. The Cardinals will face the Arizona Wildcats in the sweet 16.
After all of the second round has been completed the updated bracket looks like this:
Games keep on rolling
Number 1 seeded Pittsburgh looked like it was going to have another struggle on their hands as they were tied at the half with Oklahoma State. The Panthers asserted themselves over the Cowboys in the second half on their way to an 84-76 win. Fields had 13 points and 9 assists to compliment Blair's double-double of 10 points 12 boards for Pitt. The star of the game was Sam Young for the Panthers who dropped 32 points and collected 8 rebounds and 3 blocks on the game. Oklahoma State was balanced in their point production having 5 players in double figures...unfortunately those were the only 5 players that scored for the team. Pittsburgh will play Xavier in the sweet 16 as the Musketeers took down Wisconsin today as well.
Wisconsin put up another good effort trying to advance again after many doubted their even being in the field. The final score was 60-49 in favor of Xavier, however. Xavier will be hard pressed to tackle the top ranked Panthers in the next round.
Upstate New York continues to party as Syracuse's run in the tournament continues. The Orangemen took down the Arizona State Sun Devils 78-67 today. The zone that Syracuse employs forced the Sun Devils to shoot from the outside often. Ty Abbot and Rihards Kuksiks both hit 6 three pointers for ASU but James Hardin and Derek Glasser missed all 10 of their combined attempts. Abbot and Rihards both finished with 20 points each. Eric Devendorf paced the Orange with his 21 points and the team had a total of 5 players in double figures to secure the win. Syracuse will attempt to keep up with the Griffin's and Oklahoma in their sweet 16 match-up next week.
Bringing some good news to the state of Arizona is that of the university's Wildcats. Arizona beat Cleveland State 71-57 and never looked back after crafting a 10 point halftime lead. Cleveland State's bid for a sweet 16 spot was denied by a team many believe to be the last at large team invited to the tournament. Nice Wise lead all scorers with 21 on the game for the Wildcats. Arizona will face the winner of the Louisville versus Siena game to be played in today's nightcap.
Another perennial tournament terror moved on today as well. Kansas had little trouble dispatching the Dayton Flyers by a final of 60-43. Cole Aldrich continues his absurdly dominate play throwing in a triple double today that included 10 blocks to go along with his 13 points and 200 rebounds. Yowza! Aldrich will lead his Jayhawks into battle against the winner of the Michigan State and USC game being played as I type.
Games being played right now are Marquette and Missouri in addition to the afformentioned USC and MSU game. Marquette got their star point guard (James) back tonight which would be a huge lift for them against a very tough Missouri team. Should be a good game either way.
Siena versus Louisville was scheduled to tip off at 5:20pm EST (2:20pm PST) but tipped a bit late of that. They are less than a minute underway in that game. Louisville shouldn't have any problems smothering the Saints of Siena with their high pressure defense.
Wisconsin put up another good effort trying to advance again after many doubted their even being in the field. The final score was 60-49 in favor of Xavier, however. Xavier will be hard pressed to tackle the top ranked Panthers in the next round.
Upstate New York continues to party as Syracuse's run in the tournament continues. The Orangemen took down the Arizona State Sun Devils 78-67 today. The zone that Syracuse employs forced the Sun Devils to shoot from the outside often. Ty Abbot and Rihards Kuksiks both hit 6 three pointers for ASU but James Hardin and Derek Glasser missed all 10 of their combined attempts. Abbot and Rihards both finished with 20 points each. Eric Devendorf paced the Orange with his 21 points and the team had a total of 5 players in double figures to secure the win. Syracuse will attempt to keep up with the Griffin's and Oklahoma in their sweet 16 match-up next week.
Bringing some good news to the state of Arizona is that of the university's Wildcats. Arizona beat Cleveland State 71-57 and never looked back after crafting a 10 point halftime lead. Cleveland State's bid for a sweet 16 spot was denied by a team many believe to be the last at large team invited to the tournament. Nice Wise lead all scorers with 21 on the game for the Wildcats. Arizona will face the winner of the Louisville versus Siena game to be played in today's nightcap.
Another perennial tournament terror moved on today as well. Kansas had little trouble dispatching the Dayton Flyers by a final of 60-43. Cole Aldrich continues his absurdly dominate play throwing in a triple double today that included 10 blocks to go along with his 13 points and 200 rebounds. Yowza! Aldrich will lead his Jayhawks into battle against the winner of the Michigan State and USC game being played as I type.
Games being played right now are Marquette and Missouri in addition to the afformentioned USC and MSU game. Marquette got their star point guard (James) back tonight which would be a huge lift for them against a very tough Missouri team. Should be a good game either way.
Siena versus Louisville was scheduled to tip off at 5:20pm EST (2:20pm PST) but tipped a bit late of that. They are less than a minute underway in that game. Louisville shouldn't have any problems smothering the Saints of Siena with their high pressure defense.
Tournament day 4
Syracuse and Arizona State are already well underway. The Orangemen lead ASU at the half by a score of 41-32 and look as though they are picking up where they left off continuing their hot play of late. Jonny Flynn already has 5 assists at half for Syracuse. Also for the Orange, Devendorf and Onuaku already have double digit points with 11 and 10 respectively. Rautins has 2 three pointers and 8 points off the bench.
For the Sun Devils, Rihards Kuksiks has poured in 15 first half points and Ty Abbot has 8 but that is the extent of the production on that side. ASU is going to need to find some scoring in the second half if they hope to have a chance here.
Four more games are scheduled to start before noon on the west coast:
(4) Xavier v. (12) Wisconsin - Xavier is the better team in this one but the Badgers were able to slow the game down in their first round game against Florida State and will likely try to do the same here. Pace of the game should dictate who is ultimately victorious.
(3) Kansas v. (11) Dayton - Dayton is a dangerous team as they get scrappy play in the paint from their bigs and can shoot the equalizing three pointers. I wouldn't be surprised if Dayton showed up and gave the Jayhawks all they can handle and more in this one. Kansas doesn't impress me.
(13) Cleveland State v. (12) Arizona - Cleveland State beat arguably the most purely talented team in the ACC in the first round in Wake Forest and if they can pull that off they should be able to give the Wildcats of Arizona some fits. Arizona is wild at times but have been playing their best basketball in the tournament. I still like Cleveland State here.
(1) Pittsburgh v. (8) Oklahoma State - The Cowboys played tough in their first round game against Tennessee needing every minute of that game to advance. The Panthers of Pitt didn't find easy going of it in their first game either and it will be interesting to see who has what left in the tank after playing their tough games only a full day removed. I think Dejuan Blair will prove too much to handle down low and that means Pitt moves on.
The updated bracket looks like this after last night's games became final.
For the Sun Devils, Rihards Kuksiks has poured in 15 first half points and Ty Abbot has 8 but that is the extent of the production on that side. ASU is going to need to find some scoring in the second half if they hope to have a chance here.
Four more games are scheduled to start before noon on the west coast:
(4) Xavier v. (12) Wisconsin - Xavier is the better team in this one but the Badgers were able to slow the game down in their first round game against Florida State and will likely try to do the same here. Pace of the game should dictate who is ultimately victorious.
(3) Kansas v. (11) Dayton - Dayton is a dangerous team as they get scrappy play in the paint from their bigs and can shoot the equalizing three pointers. I wouldn't be surprised if Dayton showed up and gave the Jayhawks all they can handle and more in this one. Kansas doesn't impress me.
(13) Cleveland State v. (12) Arizona - Cleveland State beat arguably the most purely talented team in the ACC in the first round in Wake Forest and if they can pull that off they should be able to give the Wildcats of Arizona some fits. Arizona is wild at times but have been playing their best basketball in the tournament. I still like Cleveland State here.
(1) Pittsburgh v. (8) Oklahoma State - The Cowboys played tough in their first round game against Tennessee needing every minute of that game to advance. The Panthers of Pitt didn't find easy going of it in their first game either and it will be interesting to see who has what left in the tank after playing their tough games only a full day removed. I think Dejuan Blair will prove too much to handle down low and that means Pitt moves on.
The updated bracket looks like this after last night's games became final.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Second round action
The most interesting finish so far was that of Purdue's win over Washington. The game came down to the wire for the Boilermakers who made just enough late free throws to take the 76-74 victory over the Huskies of UW.
Washington was down by considerable margins early in this game and for them to battle back took quite an effort. They had 3 players recording 20 points or more in Jon Brockman and Quincy Pondexter who both had triple doubles and freshman Isiah Thomas, who was the main reason for the comeback scoring 24 and using his quick dribble penetration to cause problems in the lane in the second half.
Keaton Grant recorded a double-double off the Purdue bench to help stave off the late surge from the Huskies and JaJuan Johnson was a man all game scoring 22 points on 9 of 16 shooting and adding 4 blocks on the defensive end.
Purdue will face another pack of Huskies in the sweet 16, this time it is the top seeded Connecticut Huskies.
The other game currently being played is that between Oklahoma and Michigan. The Wolverines had hung tough all game but clearly rang out of gas toward the very end of the game. Blake Griffin was a beast as usual recording a double-double that included 33 points and 16 rebounds. Willie Warren and Austin Johnson also added double figure scoring for the Sooners with 16 and 12 respectively.
CJ Lee, Manny Harris, and DeShawn Sims all scored 11 points for Michigan. Anthony Wright added 14 off the bench but there was just no answer for arguably the best player in the country in Griffin.
The Sooners await the winner of the Arizona State and Syracuse game to be played tomorrow.
Other less interesting results include North Carolina's win over LSU (though if Lawson hadn't returned in this game and played so well in the second half this game was on pace to be far more interesting than it actually turned out), UConn blowing out Texas A&M, Memphis smothering Maryland with defensive pressure, and UCLA coming up well short of Villanova.
The evening session of play pits Texas against Duke and Western Kentucky battles Gonzaga. Both could, and should, be highly contested match-ups and anything can happen. If I were a betting man I would take the higher seeds in Duke and Gonzaga, but I have heard good arguments for Western Kentucky and Texas as well. Should be fun, enjoy.
Washington was down by considerable margins early in this game and for them to battle back took quite an effort. They had 3 players recording 20 points or more in Jon Brockman and Quincy Pondexter who both had triple doubles and freshman Isiah Thomas, who was the main reason for the comeback scoring 24 and using his quick dribble penetration to cause problems in the lane in the second half.
Keaton Grant recorded a double-double off the Purdue bench to help stave off the late surge from the Huskies and JaJuan Johnson was a man all game scoring 22 points on 9 of 16 shooting and adding 4 blocks on the defensive end.
Purdue will face another pack of Huskies in the sweet 16, this time it is the top seeded Connecticut Huskies.
The other game currently being played is that between Oklahoma and Michigan. The Wolverines had hung tough all game but clearly rang out of gas toward the very end of the game. Blake Griffin was a beast as usual recording a double-double that included 33 points and 16 rebounds. Willie Warren and Austin Johnson also added double figure scoring for the Sooners with 16 and 12 respectively.
CJ Lee, Manny Harris, and DeShawn Sims all scored 11 points for Michigan. Anthony Wright added 14 off the bench but there was just no answer for arguably the best player in the country in Griffin.
The Sooners await the winner of the Arizona State and Syracuse game to be played tomorrow.
Other less interesting results include North Carolina's win over LSU (though if Lawson hadn't returned in this game and played so well in the second half this game was on pace to be far more interesting than it actually turned out), UConn blowing out Texas A&M, Memphis smothering Maryland with defensive pressure, and UCLA coming up well short of Villanova.
The evening session of play pits Texas against Duke and Western Kentucky battles Gonzaga. Both could, and should, be highly contested match-ups and anything can happen. If I were a betting man I would take the higher seeds in Duke and Gonzaga, but I have heard good arguments for Western Kentucky and Texas as well. Should be fun, enjoy.
NIT Update
The only NIT game has already been completed. Baylor dismantled Virginia Tech by a score of 84-66. The Hokies couldn't hit the broad side of a barn in this thing shooting only 32% from the field. Baylor, on the other hand, couldn't miss. The Bears shot 61% on the game. This was a huge reason they won the game as most of their shots were ridiculously high percentage shots in the paint.
The result has been recorded and added to the NIT bracket (below) and the Baylor Bears will take on Auburn in the next round.
The result has been recorded and added to the NIT bracket (below) and the Baylor Bears will take on Auburn in the next round.
Games currently underway
Maryland and Memphis just tipped off. Memphis is the better team to be sure but Maryland is scrappy and doesn't lay down for anybody. Maryland appears to be the hotter team at this point in the year also. This should make for a good game.
Texas A&M is set to tip off against Connecticut in about 5 minutes or so. UConn should handle the Aggies easily in this game. Jim Calhoun is hydrated and back on the bench which should lead to a quicker start to this game than the Huskies showed in their first round game.
My bracket is completely effed so I am just pulling for pure underdogs at this point, so go Maryland and go A&M...thanks a lot Wake Forest, you really effed me here.
Texas A&M is set to tip off against Connecticut in about 5 minutes or so. UConn should handle the Aggies easily in this game. Jim Calhoun is hydrated and back on the bench which should lead to a quicker start to this game than the Huskies showed in their first round game.
My bracket is completely effed so I am just pulling for pure underdogs at this point, so go Maryland and go A&M...thanks a lot Wake Forest, you really effed me here.
No surprise early
Villanova handled UCLA very easily today.
UCLA was not without it's highlight though. Josh Shipp contributed a fine 18 points to lead the Bruins but they couldn't seem to find a rhythm offensively. Only 10 team assists is not the way to get to the sweet 16 for any team, especially when your opponent nearly doubles that statistic. Nova had 6 players in double figures paced by Dante Cunningham with 18. The only starter to not score in double figures was Shane Clark who apparently slacked for only 8 points...I kid.
Villanova awaits the winner of today's later match-up between the Texas Longhorns and the Blue Devils of Duke.
UCLA was not without it's highlight though. Josh Shipp contributed a fine 18 points to lead the Bruins but they couldn't seem to find a rhythm offensively. Only 10 team assists is not the way to get to the sweet 16 for any team, especially when your opponent nearly doubles that statistic. Nova had 6 players in double figures paced by Dante Cunningham with 18. The only starter to not score in double figures was Shane Clark who apparently slacked for only 8 points...I kid.
Villanova awaits the winner of today's later match-up between the Texas Longhorns and the Blue Devils of Duke.
NIT Update
There were three games in the NIT last night and none of them were close. Miami (FL) met up with Florida in a battle for the state of Florida end of season supremacy. Miami is a dangerous team if you let them get hot but Florida did not. The Gators won the game 74-60 advancing at the hands of the Hurricanes.
The second game on the ticket was between Tulsa and Auburn. Tulsa couldn't get anything started all game and allowed the Tigers to run away with this one. The final score was 74-55.
San Diego State took on Kansas State in the nightcap. The game was close at halftime but then the Aztecs of SDSU asserted their will on KSU. SDSU was nearly an NCAA tournament invitee and are playing as though they should have gotten a nod. 70-52 the final in this one.
For those of you, like myself, who have an interest in the NIT this year I bring to you the bracket as it sits now:
There is one NIT game to be played today between Baylor and Virginia Tech. Should be a good game between two solid teams. It has already tipped off and Baylor leads 7-3 with 5 minutes gone by in the first half.
The second game on the ticket was between Tulsa and Auburn. Tulsa couldn't get anything started all game and allowed the Tigers to run away with this one. The final score was 74-55.
San Diego State took on Kansas State in the nightcap. The game was close at halftime but then the Aztecs of SDSU asserted their will on KSU. SDSU was nearly an NCAA tournament invitee and are playing as though they should have gotten a nod. 70-52 the final in this one.
For those of you, like myself, who have an interest in the NIT this year I bring to you the bracket as it sits now:
There is one NIT game to be played today between Baylor and Virginia Tech. Should be a good game between two solid teams. It has already tipped off and Baylor leads 7-3 with 5 minutes gone by in the first half.
First round recap
The games in last night's final group were far and away the best games of the tournament so far. The least entertaining was that of 15th seed Robert Morris and Michigan State, and that's is a stretch to call it that. Robert Morris lost by 15 points eventually but they played MSU much tougher than that score indicates.
The second most boring game was probably the biggest upset so far. Cleveland State ran away from Wake Forest. The 13th seeded Vikings looked like the power conference team while the 4th seeded Demon Deacons looked like what they are, a quite young and sporadic team. WF is so talented it is embarrassing they lost in the first round, but they are an inexperienced team and should be a force in years to come...just not this one I guess. Kudos to the Vikings.
One of, if not the, last teams in the field was the Wisconsin Badgers. The 12 seed was 19-12 on the year and really surprised me when their name was called last weekend. They took on a Florida State team that was 25-9 heading into the tournament which is no small feat in a very competitive ACC. Well, when two teams as seemingly uneven as these two meet in the month of March you know what that means, just throw out statistics and papers and let them play the game. FSU asserted themselves early on but the Badgers battled 'til the end. Mounting a comeback late in the fourth Wisconsin tied the game and would need extra basketball to knock off the 5th seeded Seminoles. This was a great game and one heck of an effort from the Badgers.
Siena and Ohio State is the game of the tournament so far and we may not beat it later on either. The teams were only separated by 2 points in the final score and it took two extra frames to decide that slim margin. The Siena Saints were the lower 9th seed in this 8/9 match-up so by seed this wasn't a huge upset. However, most experts had the Buckeyes winning in the first round so this was likely to be considered something of a surprise. Either way it was the greatest game played in this years tournament so far and even though it is no SyraConn game it will likely be on ESPN Classic in the coming days. Nice win for the Siena Saints.
The updated bracket looks like this (click for larger image):
Games I am looking forward to on today, March 21, 2009 include:
Purdue versus Washington - I am going to give a slight edge to the Huskies of UW as this game is being played in Portland, OR.
Maryland versus Memphis - Should be interesting to see how Memphis responds to being tested by Cal State Northridge in the first round. The Turtles are dangerous but inconsistent.
Western Kentucky versus Gonzaga - Two well known mid-majors meet to end one's tourney run. Gonzaga should win this game, and really needs to to solidify their spot as THE mid-major program in the country.
Texas versus Duke - Playing in Greensboro, NC is a distinct advantage for the Dukies but Texas will be no push over and Duke has struggled at time with their younger players playing such large roles in the offense. I'll go with Duke here, but it's going to be close.
Other games being played:
UCLA versus Villanova - Should be a decent game though Villanova is more talented and should win it if everyone plays as they are capable.
UNC versus LSU - Lawson is a game time decision and the Tar Heels are a decidedly differently paced team with him healthy. I think they can beat the Tigers without him but if he plays they run away with it, if not they get to sweat it out.
Michigan versus Oklahama - Oklahoma will assert themselves down low with Griffen in this game. It may take a little while to build their lead but they will build it and they will build it big.
UConn versus Texas A&M - Huskies should own this game and the paint with Thabeet. A&M will try to get up and down on UConn but they can run some too and the Aggies won't have an answer for the Connecticut talent.
The second most boring game was probably the biggest upset so far. Cleveland State ran away from Wake Forest. The 13th seeded Vikings looked like the power conference team while the 4th seeded Demon Deacons looked like what they are, a quite young and sporadic team. WF is so talented it is embarrassing they lost in the first round, but they are an inexperienced team and should be a force in years to come...just not this one I guess. Kudos to the Vikings.
One of, if not the, last teams in the field was the Wisconsin Badgers. The 12 seed was 19-12 on the year and really surprised me when their name was called last weekend. They took on a Florida State team that was 25-9 heading into the tournament which is no small feat in a very competitive ACC. Well, when two teams as seemingly uneven as these two meet in the month of March you know what that means, just throw out statistics and papers and let them play the game. FSU asserted themselves early on but the Badgers battled 'til the end. Mounting a comeback late in the fourth Wisconsin tied the game and would need extra basketball to knock off the 5th seeded Seminoles. This was a great game and one heck of an effort from the Badgers.
Siena and Ohio State is the game of the tournament so far and we may not beat it later on either. The teams were only separated by 2 points in the final score and it took two extra frames to decide that slim margin. The Siena Saints were the lower 9th seed in this 8/9 match-up so by seed this wasn't a huge upset. However, most experts had the Buckeyes winning in the first round so this was likely to be considered something of a surprise. Either way it was the greatest game played in this years tournament so far and even though it is no SyraConn game it will likely be on ESPN Classic in the coming days. Nice win for the Siena Saints.
The updated bracket looks like this (click for larger image):
Games I am looking forward to on today, March 21, 2009 include:
Purdue versus Washington - I am going to give a slight edge to the Huskies of UW as this game is being played in Portland, OR.
Maryland versus Memphis - Should be interesting to see how Memphis responds to being tested by Cal State Northridge in the first round. The Turtles are dangerous but inconsistent.
Western Kentucky versus Gonzaga - Two well known mid-majors meet to end one's tourney run. Gonzaga should win this game, and really needs to to solidify their spot as THE mid-major program in the country.
Texas versus Duke - Playing in Greensboro, NC is a distinct advantage for the Dukies but Texas will be no push over and Duke has struggled at time with their younger players playing such large roles in the offense. I'll go with Duke here, but it's going to be close.
Other games being played:
UCLA versus Villanova - Should be a decent game though Villanova is more talented and should win it if everyone plays as they are capable.
UNC versus LSU - Lawson is a game time decision and the Tar Heels are a decidedly differently paced team with him healthy. I think they can beat the Tigers without him but if he plays they run away with it, if not they get to sweat it out.
Michigan versus Oklahama - Oklahoma will assert themselves down low with Griffen in this game. It may take a little while to build their lead but they will build it and they will build it big.
UConn versus Texas A&M - Huskies should own this game and the paint with Thabeet. A&M will try to get up and down on UConn but they can run some too and the Aggies won't have an answer for the Connecticut talent.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Portland State/Xavier
Probably the least interesting game of this early evening group. Xavier didn't blow them out but didn't really let the game become in question at any point. It was just a bit of a coast out there. The final was 77-59. Both teams were balanced in scoring as Jamie Jones, Andre Murray, and Jeremiah Dominguez all scored in double digits for the Vikings of PSU (16, 14, and 13 respectively). The Musketeers were lead by CJ Anderson's 14 while Derrick Brown, BJ Raymond, and Dante Jackson all scored 13. All in all, a relatively boring game and I am glad it wasn't the televised game in my region...sorry kids.
Xavier will play the winner of the final 5/12 match-up left, Florida State and Wisconsin.
Xavier will play the winner of the final 5/12 match-up left, Florida State and Wisconsin.
USC/BC
So Many initials I don't know what to do with myself!
This game was much closer than the final score would indicate as the Trojans of USC pulled away to beat the Boston College Eagles 72-55. Corey Raji and Joe Trapani lead the Eagles with 15 and 12 points respectively, both adding 7 boards. BC only shot 32% from the field and when your opponent shoots a staggering 53% it makes for a long night. USC's attack proved to be three headed. Dwight Lewis threw in 20 points, 6 boards, 5 assists, a steal and a block...nice fantasy line. DeMar DeRozan added 18 points and 9 rebounds...also a solid fantasy game. The fantasy stud would have been Taj Gibson, however. Gibson was a perfect 10 for 10 from the floor (4 of 5 from the line) for 24 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks...can I draft him now?
USC will likely face 2nd seeded Michigan State unless 15th seeded Robert Morris catches lightening in a bottle.
This game was much closer than the final score would indicate as the Trojans of USC pulled away to beat the Boston College Eagles 72-55. Corey Raji and Joe Trapani lead the Eagles with 15 and 12 points respectively, both adding 7 boards. BC only shot 32% from the field and when your opponent shoots a staggering 53% it makes for a long night. USC's attack proved to be three headed. Dwight Lewis threw in 20 points, 6 boards, 5 assists, a steal and a block...nice fantasy line. DeMar DeRozan added 18 points and 9 rebounds...also a solid fantasy game. The fantasy stud would have been Taj Gibson, however. Gibson was a perfect 10 for 10 from the floor (4 of 5 from the line) for 24 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks...can I draft him now?
USC will likely face 2nd seeded Michigan State unless 15th seeded Robert Morris catches lightening in a bottle.
Arizona/Utah
The first game to finish up will be that of 12th seeded Arizona and 5th seeded Utah. The Utes have gotten the majority of their production from the bench. Tyler Kepkay and Shaun Green have combined for 29 of Utah's 71. Luke Nevill was the Mountain West Conference's best player all year long but didn't look like it in this one. Jordan Hill for Arizona was the better man in the paint today as his double-double (17 points 13 rebounds) proved too much for the Utes down low. A pair of players scoring 20 points or more for the Wildcats out shone Utah's bench production as Nic Wise capped 29 for the game followed by Chase Budinger's 20.
Arizona will take on the winner of the Wake Forest and Cleveland State 4 versus 13 tussle.
Arizona will take on the winner of the Wake Forest and Cleveland State 4 versus 13 tussle.
Louisville/Morehead State
After a slow start the top seeded Louisville Cardinals found a rhythm in the second half. The final was 74-54 in favor of Louisville. After trailing by only 2 at halftime the Eagles of Morehead State scored only 21 points unable to match their energy from the first half. Leon Buchanan lead the Eagles with 17 points and two others had 14. Louisville was balanced as usual in the scoring column having 6 players scoring between 15 and 7 points for the game. Samardo Samuels paced the Cards with his 15 on 6-10 shooting.
Louisville will play the winner of the 8/9 match-up between Ohio State and Siena to be played in the night group.
Louisville will play the winner of the 8/9 match-up between Ohio State and Siena to be played in the night group.
Early evening, day two
Portland State is hanging tough in the first half against Xavier. I picked Xavier to win this one and didn't really expect Portland State to put up much of a fight...though it is always more fun when they do.
Boston College and Southern Cal are nearing the half (5 minutes left) and it's a 1 point game. This one should be close to the end. USC looks to be continuing their hot play of late. I wouldn't want to be playing this team in the tourney that is for sure.
Arizona and Utah are within 3 minutes of reaching halftime. Arizona currently leads 31-23 and most people aren't giving the Utes much of a shot in this thing. Even though there were many talking heads that questioned Arizona's even being in the field those same talking heads picked them to win...hypocrisy at it's finest I guess. Utah is going to need to quit turning the ball over if they want to have a shot at this game though.
The biggest surprise of this group of games so far is another 16 seed. Morehead State is down only 3 to top seeded Louisville and they are under 2 minutes to play in the half. I didn't have Louisville going all that far in my bracket so I must admit I am really pulling for this upset. On the 100th playing of a 16 versus a number 1 it would be kinda fun to see it finally happen.
More updates later, enjoy the games.
Boston College and Southern Cal are nearing the half (5 minutes left) and it's a 1 point game. This one should be close to the end. USC looks to be continuing their hot play of late. I wouldn't want to be playing this team in the tourney that is for sure.
Arizona and Utah are within 3 minutes of reaching halftime. Arizona currently leads 31-23 and most people aren't giving the Utes much of a shot in this thing. Even though there were many talking heads that questioned Arizona's even being in the field those same talking heads picked them to win...hypocrisy at it's finest I guess. Utah is going to need to quit turning the ball over if they want to have a shot at this game though.
The biggest surprise of this group of games so far is another 16 seed. Morehead State is down only 3 to top seeded Louisville and they are under 2 minutes to play in the half. I didn't have Louisville going all that far in my bracket so I must admit I am really pulling for this upset. On the 100th playing of a 16 versus a number 1 it would be kinda fun to see it finally happen.
More updates later, enjoy the games.
Second batch of games out of the oven
There were some really interesting games in this second group of games. I predicted Cornell against Missouri and Dayton versus West Virginia would be the games to watch. I can claim fifty percent on that.
Cornell didn't put up quite the fight against Missouri that I thought they would. Big Red lost the game 59-78. They clearly couldn't handle the swarming defense of the Tigers for the game's entirety. Missouri will face Marquette in the next round in what should be one of the better games of the round. Missouri likes to run the floor and play their full court press while Marquette isn't opposed to getting up and down but they will likely want to avoid a track meet with this Tiger team.
In an interesting surprise, East Tennessee State gave Pittsburgh all they could handle today. Even though Pitt ended up winning this game they needed a full effort from Dejuan Blair who had 26 points and 16 rebounds. This was a game that should have been a walk for the Panthers and turned out to be anything but. All in all, Pitt moves on and will face Oklahoma State over the weekend. That match-up should also be a hard fought battle which makes me think a little bit. Assuming Pitt gets past the Cowboys, how much are they going to have left in the tank after two difficult games in the first and second rounds?
The biggest surprise was the 11th seeded Dayton Flyers upsetting the 6th seeded West Virginia Mountaineers. Huggins and company were in the game the whole way down the stretch and had a ridiculous amount of chances to tie the game and even take the lead late but could never seem to find the buckets when it mattered. Ruoff being in foul trouble, and eventually fouling out, certainly didn't help any. Tough loss for both WVU and my bracket. It's never a good thing when you have a team you pick as your sleeper sweet 16 team lose in the first round, ouch. Dayton gets Kansas next round and I am convinced the Flyers have more than an average chance at winning that game also.
It is break time for the tourney games and that means we all have a chance to breath, eat, workout, shower...ya know, whatever you gotta take care of until the 7:00pm EST games start. Those games include:
(1) Louisville vs. (16) Morehead State
(5) Utah vs. (12) Arizona
(7) Boston College vs. (10) Southern Cal
(4) Xavier vs. (13) Portland State
The Utah game should be the best one as they match up well against the Wildcats. The only other game that I could see being a great game is BC vs. USC but that all depends on which USC team we get today. Will we get the team that was red hot and won the Pac-10 tourney or will we get the team from the regular season that was average at best? No way to know until we watch the game. Enjoy your break and see ya on the other side.
Cornell didn't put up quite the fight against Missouri that I thought they would. Big Red lost the game 59-78. They clearly couldn't handle the swarming defense of the Tigers for the game's entirety. Missouri will face Marquette in the next round in what should be one of the better games of the round. Missouri likes to run the floor and play their full court press while Marquette isn't opposed to getting up and down but they will likely want to avoid a track meet with this Tiger team.
In an interesting surprise, East Tennessee State gave Pittsburgh all they could handle today. Even though Pitt ended up winning this game they needed a full effort from Dejuan Blair who had 26 points and 16 rebounds. This was a game that should have been a walk for the Panthers and turned out to be anything but. All in all, Pitt moves on and will face Oklahoma State over the weekend. That match-up should also be a hard fought battle which makes me think a little bit. Assuming Pitt gets past the Cowboys, how much are they going to have left in the tank after two difficult games in the first and second rounds?
The biggest surprise was the 11th seeded Dayton Flyers upsetting the 6th seeded West Virginia Mountaineers. Huggins and company were in the game the whole way down the stretch and had a ridiculous amount of chances to tie the game and even take the lead late but could never seem to find the buckets when it mattered. Ruoff being in foul trouble, and eventually fouling out, certainly didn't help any. Tough loss for both WVU and my bracket. It's never a good thing when you have a team you pick as your sleeper sweet 16 team lose in the first round, ouch. Dayton gets Kansas next round and I am convinced the Flyers have more than an average chance at winning that game also.
It is break time for the tourney games and that means we all have a chance to breath, eat, workout, shower...ya know, whatever you gotta take care of until the 7:00pm EST games start. Those games include:
(1) Louisville vs. (16) Morehead State
(5) Utah vs. (12) Arizona
(7) Boston College vs. (10) Southern Cal
(4) Xavier vs. (13) Portland State
The Utah game should be the best one as they match up well against the Wildcats. The only other game that I could see being a great game is BC vs. USC but that all depends on which USC team we get today. Will we get the team that was red hot and won the Pac-10 tourney or will we get the team from the regular season that was average at best? No way to know until we watch the game. Enjoy your break and see ya on the other side.
Arizona State
The Sun Devils just polished off the Temple Owls. Wasn't a terrible game but ASU was in control pretty much since the half. There were runs here and there by Temple, but it's basketball and those will happen. ASU had runs of their own and were victorious in the end behind a career high 22 points for Derek Glasser. The Sun Devils will face a hot Syracuse team in the next round.
Temple/ASU
Just reached the half and it was close for a long time in this one. The Sun Devils went on a run before the end of the half behind some timely shooting by Derrick Glasser who has 17 at the break including 4 three pointers. ASU looks like the better team inside and out. I really can't see them giving their 35-26 lead but hey, it's March so anything is possible.
First set wrapping up
As mentioned, Syracuse is already awaiting the winner of the Arizona State v. Temple game that will be played later today.
North Dakota State played a very tough game against Kansas until the very end. However, Aldridge proved to be too much for the Bison as he collected a double double in his return to his home state of Minnesota. Woodside scored a game high 37 points for NDSU but couldn't find any help on the offensive end. Too much size and talent for the Jayhawks in this one. At least it was a close game all the way through. 84-74 was the eventual final. Kansas will play the winner of the 6 v. 11 match-up between West Virgina and Dayton coming up later.
Oklahoma State stayed alive in another tight ball game. Tennessee was leading by 1 with less than 30 seconds to go, but Byron Eaton wasn't having any of that. Eaton drove to the hoop hard and some how converted a diving layup, absorbing contact and a foul. After making the free throw the Cowboys were up 2 and the Vols final shot would fall short. 77-75 was the final here, and this was a close game wire to wire. I think the biggest lead for either team was 8. OK State will likely play the top seed in the East region, Pittsburgh Panthers unless Eastern Tennessee State becomes the first 16 seed to dethrone a number 1.
In the fourth and final game of the early session on day two we find another great game. 11 seeded Utah State trailed the entire game against the Marquette Golden Eagles but that didn't stop this game to come down to the final seconds. Behind a late flurry of jumpers from Quayle and the rest of the Aggies they pulled the margin to 3 and had the ball with less than 20 seconds to go. They got a decent look at a three for the tie but the effort came up short and Marquette corralled the rebound. After a foul and one Golden Eagle free throw the margin was 4. Utah State hit a three pointer at the buzzer to make the final score 57-58. A great game and effort for the Aggies but they came up 1 short in the end. Marquette will play either 3 seeded Missouri or 11 seeded Cornell in the next round.
Arizona State and Temple have just tipped off. Other games included in the second session of games today include Eastern Tennessee State versus Pittsburgh, Dayton versus West Virginia, Cornell taking on Missouri. Dayton/WV and Temple/ASU are the potentially entertaining games in this group.
North Dakota State played a very tough game against Kansas until the very end. However, Aldridge proved to be too much for the Bison as he collected a double double in his return to his home state of Minnesota. Woodside scored a game high 37 points for NDSU but couldn't find any help on the offensive end. Too much size and talent for the Jayhawks in this one. At least it was a close game all the way through. 84-74 was the eventual final. Kansas will play the winner of the 6 v. 11 match-up between West Virgina and Dayton coming up later.
Oklahoma State stayed alive in another tight ball game. Tennessee was leading by 1 with less than 30 seconds to go, but Byron Eaton wasn't having any of that. Eaton drove to the hoop hard and some how converted a diving layup, absorbing contact and a foul. After making the free throw the Cowboys were up 2 and the Vols final shot would fall short. 77-75 was the final here, and this was a close game wire to wire. I think the biggest lead for either team was 8. OK State will likely play the top seed in the East region, Pittsburgh Panthers unless Eastern Tennessee State becomes the first 16 seed to dethrone a number 1.
In the fourth and final game of the early session on day two we find another great game. 11 seeded Utah State trailed the entire game against the Marquette Golden Eagles but that didn't stop this game to come down to the final seconds. Behind a late flurry of jumpers from Quayle and the rest of the Aggies they pulled the margin to 3 and had the ball with less than 20 seconds to go. They got a decent look at a three for the tie but the effort came up short and Marquette corralled the rebound. After a foul and one Golden Eagle free throw the margin was 4. Utah State hit a three pointer at the buzzer to make the final score 57-58. A great game and effort for the Aggies but they came up 1 short in the end. Marquette will play either 3 seeded Missouri or 11 seeded Cornell in the next round.
Arizona State and Temple have just tipped off. Other games included in the second session of games today include Eastern Tennessee State versus Pittsburgh, Dayton versus West Virginia, Cornell taking on Missouri. Dayton/WV and Temple/ASU are the potentially entertaining games in this group.
Syracuse
The Orangemen of Syracuse made quick work of Stephen F. Austion University today. Their game is a final and the next closest game is at 4:36 left in the second half, that being the NDSU/KU game. Final score in this one was 59-44 and the outcome was never in question. Too much Orange and it was clearly overwhelming for SFA.
Things getting interesting
Tennessee and Oklahoma State are tied at 44, Utah State has battled back and trial by only one against Marquette, and North Dakota State is down only 3 to Kansas. These are all early in their second halves but still getting very tight. Hopefully this keeps up. Good games for all!
First break, day two
Stephen F. Austion and Syracuse are at the half with a score of 38-22 in favor of the Orange. This is no surprise, though SFA is a pretty good mid-major team they have just run into a team playing hot at the right time. Don't expect this outcome to change any in the next twenty minutes of play in this one.
Tennessee and Oklahoma State have just reached their halftime as well. The score in that one is 34-38 with OK State holding the slight lead. This game will continue to be tight and if the Cowboys want to hold on Byron Eaton is likely going to have to avoid further foul trouble in the second half as he picked up his third infraction before the break.
Kasnas closed the first half on a 16-7 run against the Bison of North Dakota State and the Jayhawks find themselves leading 43-34. This game is by no means out of the realm of possibility for NDSU as they are a much better three point shooting team than Kansas and that could equalize things later in this game. Someone other than Ben Woodside may need to do anything for NDSU to have a chance though. Kansas has a distinct advantage and if NDSU hits a cold streak that advantage in the paint could allow this game to get out of hand.
Marquette and Utah State has been the slowest tempo game of the morning. The Golden Eagles lead the Aggies by a score of 26-18 at halftime. I am calling this one a victim of poor offense as opposed to good defense. Utah State is shooting only 30% from the floor including 1 of 8 from behind the arc. Marquette is only marginally better at 34% overall with 3 of 10 from downtown. I can only hope as a spectator that this doesn't continue as my TV is contemplating spontaneous combustion...I can see it, we have that kind of relationship.
Tennessee and Oklahoma State have just reached their halftime as well. The score in that one is 34-38 with OK State holding the slight lead. This game will continue to be tight and if the Cowboys want to hold on Byron Eaton is likely going to have to avoid further foul trouble in the second half as he picked up his third infraction before the break.
Kasnas closed the first half on a 16-7 run against the Bison of North Dakota State and the Jayhawks find themselves leading 43-34. This game is by no means out of the realm of possibility for NDSU as they are a much better three point shooting team than Kansas and that could equalize things later in this game. Someone other than Ben Woodside may need to do anything for NDSU to have a chance though. Kansas has a distinct advantage and if NDSU hits a cold streak that advantage in the paint could allow this game to get out of hand.
Marquette and Utah State has been the slowest tempo game of the morning. The Golden Eagles lead the Aggies by a score of 26-18 at halftime. I am calling this one a victim of poor offense as opposed to good defense. Utah State is shooting only 30% from the floor including 1 of 8 from behind the arc. Marquette is only marginally better at 34% overall with 3 of 10 from downtown. I can only hope as a spectator that this doesn't continue as my TV is contemplating spontaneous combustion...I can see it, we have that kind of relationship.
Day Two Introduction
Here we go folks. Day two is underway in the NCAA Tournament. The first set of games is as follows:
14th seeded Stephen F. Austin takes on 3rd seed Syracuse. The Orangemen have been playing their best basketball of the season at the exact right time and should have no trouble with SFAU in this one.
9th seeded Tennessee battles 8th seeded Oklahoma State. This should be the best game early as both teams have been a little up and down all season. The teams seem to be evenly matched and I am looking forward to keeping my eye on this one.
Another interesting game which could have a perennial power school on upset watch is number 3 Kansas versus 14th seeded North Dakota State. NDSU is one of those senior heavy smaller schools that could prove to be dangerous around this time of the year. This is their first year of tournament eligibility and I am sure they will make this first round contest quite a game.
The fourth game early on is 11th seed Utah State against 6th seeded Marquette. This looks pretty lopsided on paper as the Golden Eagles have been a highly ranked team all season. We must remember that one of Marquette's best players (James) is injured and that could be a factor against a hungry mid-major.
Enjoy early action, updates to come.
14th seeded Stephen F. Austin takes on 3rd seed Syracuse. The Orangemen have been playing their best basketball of the season at the exact right time and should have no trouble with SFAU in this one.
9th seeded Tennessee battles 8th seeded Oklahoma State. This should be the best game early as both teams have been a little up and down all season. The teams seem to be evenly matched and I am looking forward to keeping my eye on this one.
Another interesting game which could have a perennial power school on upset watch is number 3 Kansas versus 14th seeded North Dakota State. NDSU is one of those senior heavy smaller schools that could prove to be dangerous around this time of the year. This is their first year of tournament eligibility and I am sure they will make this first round contest quite a game.
The fourth game early on is 11th seed Utah State against 6th seeded Marquette. This looks pretty lopsided on paper as the Golden Eagles have been a highly ranked team all season. We must remember that one of Marquette's best players (James) is injured and that could be a factor against a hungry mid-major.
Enjoy early action, updates to come.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Day One Conclusion
All in all this was a pretty good day one for the NCAA tournament. The later games weren't all that exciting as it saw a couple 1 and 2 seeds beat up on some 15 and 16 seeds but there were some close ones as well. The 12 seed success continues against the 5 seeds as Western Kentucky knocked off the Fighting Illini. Though I don't know if I consider it a huge upset, I picked it to happen. Most experts I have listened to had it happening, so regardless of what the seeds say I think this was a pretty good game of evenly matched teams and really, the better team won.
The bracket after day one looks like this (click for larger image):
More action tomorrow sports fans, I know I'm looking forward to it and you should be too. See ya then.
The bracket after day one looks like this (click for larger image):
More action tomorrow sports fans, I know I'm looking forward to it and you should be too. See ya then.
Second set of games
The second set of games are coming to a close. As we know, Purdue outlasted Northern Iowa.
Maryland has just defeated California. This was a slight upset as the fighting turtle's were ranked 10th against the 7th seed bears (who turned out to be cubs). The final score was 84-71 but the game was much closer than that indicates. Vasquez was the games leading scorer with 27 and was clearly the best player on the floor for either team. Cal shot an uncharacteristic 29% from three point range and that was one of the big factors that did them in. The Terps have the second seeded Memphis Tigers, who survived a scare from Cal State Northridge earlier today, in the second round.
North Carolina dismantled Radford by a final score of 101-58. This wasn't a shocker. Perhaps the margin of victory could be considered a surprise with Lawson on the sideline but UNC was never in danger of losing to RU.
Uconn also handled their 16 seed by a considerable margin. 103-47 is the final that Chattanooga fell victim to. A nice "win one for the gipper" victory for the Huskies in this one as they hope to have Calhoun back for their weekend game.
There are no games currently on TV here on the west coast and the only game being played right now is the Washington Huskies taking on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. The teams are currently locked at 10 all early in the first half. This is clearly my cue to go on my run for the day so I can get back before the night caps get rolling. God bless March.
Maryland has just defeated California. This was a slight upset as the fighting turtle's were ranked 10th against the 7th seed bears (who turned out to be cubs). The final score was 84-71 but the game was much closer than that indicates. Vasquez was the games leading scorer with 27 and was clearly the best player on the floor for either team. Cal shot an uncharacteristic 29% from three point range and that was one of the big factors that did them in. The Terps have the second seeded Memphis Tigers, who survived a scare from Cal State Northridge earlier today, in the second round.
North Carolina dismantled Radford by a final score of 101-58. This wasn't a shocker. Perhaps the margin of victory could be considered a surprise with Lawson on the sideline but UNC was never in danger of losing to RU.
Uconn also handled their 16 seed by a considerable margin. 103-47 is the final that Chattanooga fell victim to. A nice "win one for the gipper" victory for the Huskies in this one as they hope to have Calhoun back for their weekend game.
There are no games currently on TV here on the west coast and the only game being played right now is the Washington Huskies taking on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. The teams are currently locked at 10 all early in the first half. This is clearly my cue to go on my run for the day so I can get back before the night caps get rolling. God bless March.
Updates, Updates, Updates! (part deux)
Purdue and Northern Iowa is a final now. Purdue won by hitting free throws down the stretch. UNI hit some clutch shots to make this a very good game to the end though. Kudos to UNI for not giving up and battling back.
Both of the 1 v. 16 matchups are embarrassing.
Cal and Maryland is still a heck of a game though. Currently Berkeley is up 1 with 11:49 left in the second half. Foul trouble is mounting for the Bears as time moves along, we'll have to wait and see if that becomes an issue later in the game.
Both of the 1 v. 16 matchups are embarrassing.
Cal and Maryland is still a heck of a game though. Currently Berkeley is up 1 with 11:49 left in the second half. Foul trouble is mounting for the Bears as time moves along, we'll have to wait and see if that becomes an issue later in the game.
Second break
Well, the second set of games today in the NCAA Tournament is well underway. The majority of the games are at halftime.
Purdue versus Northern Iowa is already more than halfway through the second half and finds the Boilermakers up by 10 with 8:23 left. Still a lot of game for a comeback and ten points is certainly a manageable margin. However, Northern Iowa is going to need to score on a more consistent basis as they have been hot and cold in spurts throughout the game.
53-34 is the halftime score of North Carolina against Radford. No Lawson, no problem for the Heels in this one. I don't expect anything to change in the second half either.
Even without Jim Calhoun on the bench for the Huskies they did eventually find that flow I mentioned last post. They are up 28 over Chattanooga at the half. Don't expect that to change in this game either. Looks like both the number one seeds in action in this set are going to advance comfortably.
With the point that the first three games are at I would really consider going on my run right now since they aren't close at all. However, California and Maryland are single handedly keeping me from doing so. There is a 3 point advantage for the Terrapins in this one at the half. I don't want to miss the second half of this thing. My earlier assessment that Maryland appears to be the more athletic team while Cal is more prolific shooting jumpers has held true. Some Cal players have struggled at times and if that turns around this could turn out to be a Beary good game...lots of pun intended.
In the time it took me to type this post Northern Iowa has crawled back to within 6 against Purdue...I love when they make it interesting for me.
Purdue versus Northern Iowa is already more than halfway through the second half and finds the Boilermakers up by 10 with 8:23 left. Still a lot of game for a comeback and ten points is certainly a manageable margin. However, Northern Iowa is going to need to score on a more consistent basis as they have been hot and cold in spurts throughout the game.
53-34 is the halftime score of North Carolina against Radford. No Lawson, no problem for the Heels in this one. I don't expect anything to change in the second half either.
Even without Jim Calhoun on the bench for the Huskies they did eventually find that flow I mentioned last post. They are up 28 over Chattanooga at the half. Don't expect that to change in this game either. Looks like both the number one seeds in action in this set are going to advance comfortably.
With the point that the first three games are at I would really consider going on my run right now since they aren't close at all. However, California and Maryland are single handedly keeping me from doing so. There is a 3 point advantage for the Terrapins in this one at the half. I don't want to miss the second half of this thing. My earlier assessment that Maryland appears to be the more athletic team while Cal is more prolific shooting jumpers has held true. Some Cal players have struggled at times and if that turns around this could turn out to be a Beary good game...lots of pun intended.
In the time it took me to type this post Northern Iowa has crawled back to within 6 against Purdue...I love when they make it interesting for me.
Updates, Updates, Updates!
Purdue has opened up a 12 point lead at their halftime over Northern Iowa, no surprise there really...unless you took UNI as your 12 seed upset in the first round.
Radford is down 12 midway through the first half to UNC, again no surprise there either. Without Lawson, the Heels shouldn't have a problem in this game. Tyler Hansborough's flop fest will continue to get whistles against teams like this.
Chattanooga is only down 3 to UConn nearing the halfway point of the first half. This is a tough situation for the Huskies as they are without their coach Jim Calhoun for health reasons. While they are far more talented than their opponent it will likely take them a little bit to get into the flow of the game without their coach.
As expected the California versus Maryland game has been the closest and most interesting contest so far in this second set of games. Both teams lack tremendous size. Maryland appears to be a bit more atheletic than Cal, but them Bears sure can shoot that rock. Cal trails by 3 with 7:31 left in the first half.
Radford is down 12 midway through the first half to UNC, again no surprise there either. Without Lawson, the Heels shouldn't have a problem in this game. Tyler Hansborough's flop fest will continue to get whistles against teams like this.
Chattanooga is only down 3 to UConn nearing the halfway point of the first half. This is a tough situation for the Huskies as they are without their coach Jim Calhoun for health reasons. While they are far more talented than their opponent it will likely take them a little bit to get into the flow of the game without their coach.
As expected the California versus Maryland game has been the closest and most interesting contest so far in this second set of games. Both teams lack tremendous size. Maryland appears to be a bit more atheletic than Cal, but them Bears sure can shoot that rock. Cal trails by 3 with 7:31 left in the first half.
Forgot to mention...
The other game starting before the end of the hour is California versus Maryland at 11:55 am PST. I am looking forward to this one. There have been reports that the Bears of Berkeley feel disrespected with their 7-seed. Maryland, on the other hand, has been playing much better basketball late in the season and will be a very tough opponent for anyone at this point. Being from northern California I am biasly (making up words) pulling for Cal, though I am expecting a UM win. Though if this were nature I would imagine a bear wouldn't have much problems with a turtle, so we'll see.
First set of games...
The first three games are in the books, or close enough to it for me to pencil them in.
Butler played hard the whole way but eventually fell to LSU. Howard played well for the Bulldogs down low but they weren't able to slow down the LSU offense. The Tigers shot 49% from the floor spearheaded by Marcus Thornton's 30 points on 10 of 15 shooting. LSU is going to need to play just as well, if not better, in the next round as they will likely face the number one seeded North Carolina Tar Heels.
California State University at Northridge put up one hell of a fight that saw my cellular and social networking usage spike for nearly half an hour. The score won't reflect how well the Matadors played today as they lost by 11 but it was a battle through and through. These Tigers needed 35 points and 10 three pointers from Roburt Sallie off the bench to down CSUN. This was surprisingly the most entertaining game of the morning for me, and it wasn't even close.
Texas A&M handled BYU easily beating them 79-66. The Aggies shot a gaudy57% from the floor. Their defense kept BYU from ever really making a game of this thing. Another disappointing performance from a Mountain West Conference team in the tourney. Utah hopes to improve on this slightly in tomorrow's tournament games.
Starting now is the 12th seeded Northern Iowa Panthers taking on the 5th seeded Purdue Boilermakers. I took Purdue in this one but there is usually a 12 seed upsetting a 5 seed so anything could happen.
At 11:50 am PST (2:50 EST) our first number one seed will take to the floor as the Tar Heels of North Carolina face Radford and their Highlanders (There can only be one...unless you're the movie, then there can be six).
Butler played hard the whole way but eventually fell to LSU. Howard played well for the Bulldogs down low but they weren't able to slow down the LSU offense. The Tigers shot 49% from the floor spearheaded by Marcus Thornton's 30 points on 10 of 15 shooting. LSU is going to need to play just as well, if not better, in the next round as they will likely face the number one seeded North Carolina Tar Heels.
California State University at Northridge put up one hell of a fight that saw my cellular and social networking usage spike for nearly half an hour. The score won't reflect how well the Matadors played today as they lost by 11 but it was a battle through and through. These Tigers needed 35 points and 10 three pointers from Roburt Sallie off the bench to down CSUN. This was surprisingly the most entertaining game of the morning for me, and it wasn't even close.
Texas A&M handled BYU easily beating them 79-66. The Aggies shot a gaudy57% from the floor. Their defense kept BYU from ever really making a game of this thing. Another disappointing performance from a Mountain West Conference team in the tourney. Utah hopes to improve on this slightly in tomorrow's tournament games.
Starting now is the 12th seeded Northern Iowa Panthers taking on the 5th seeded Purdue Boilermakers. I took Purdue in this one but there is usually a 12 seed upsetting a 5 seed so anything could happen.
At 11:50 am PST (2:50 EST) our first number one seed will take to the floor as the Tar Heels of North Carolina face Radford and their Highlanders (There can only be one...unless you're the movie, then there can be six).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)