Final Four

It All Comes Down To These Four

The Final Four is set and the participants are Duke West Virginia, Butler and Michigan St. I'll go into detail on these teams and who I think will win later. But these team have a lot in common and they all have benefited from the same thing. First, when you look at these teams all four play defense, and are smart, very poised and rebound the basketball at a very high level. Butler doesn't even have anyone over 6'3 and they are a rebounding machine. Tom Izzo always has his Spartans in the top of country in rebounding and this year is no different. The one thing that all these teams have benefited from is the one and done rule that the NBA has in place. The schools that are in the Final Four are all junior and senior led teams with no distinguishable star or NBA superstar on their roster. That rule has simple changed college basketball and now you will see coaches who can recruit the player or players who will stay four years and try to become better basketball players. The guys who recruit the one and done players although they will get far in the tournament, they will have a tough time winning because players and teams will not have a chance to grow together and learn each other. I was thinking about all the great teams of the past and how I could rattle off their starting lineups. In recent years of college basketball, the back to back Florida teams are the closest that I can come to naming their starting five off the top off my head. This is when you can tell that the game has changed.

Final Four Teams

Here is my analysis and who I think will win this weekend:

Duke: I had a post that I did not finish stating on why I thought that this Duke team was way overrated. They have a lot of wins but when they have played top notch competition they have gotten blown out in road and neutral site games. But when Zoubek came back and solidified the middle this team has taken off. Zoubek and Thomas crash the boards and throw the ball out to their three guards who can straight up shoot. Is this the best Duke team, absolutely not, and I think Coach K would agree. However when you have two seniors and junior who can light it up from the outside and the fact that the committee gave you the easiest bracket to come out of you have a chance to win it all. However, I believe their run ends this weekend when they run into...

West Virginia: You win the supposed toughest conference in America tournament by winning the Big East. Then the selection committee puts an ACC school in front of you on the one line and make you a two seed. Next you are playing in one of your rivals gym for the Regional semi's and finals. Next, your point guard breaks his foot three days before you are supposed to take on not one but two guard oriented teams. After all that the whole world has you losing to Washington and if you do get by them there is no way you can beat Kentucky. When its all said and done, the Mountaineers heard all the noise and won the East region handily. This team is long, athletic, defensive-minded, and well coached. I think they can bully Duke into losing. Even though Huggins likes to play zone and Duke can shoot it well, the Blue Devils will have to shoot over guys taller than them, and that will be a problem.

Michigan St: See West Virginia because the same applies with the exception of the point guard tore his Achilles and he is your best player. Tom Izzo is the best college basketball coach in America. His teams never have any real stars, but the commit to defense and rebounding the basketball. He recruits the state of Michigan well and the amazing part about his run is that every senior that plays basketball at Michigan St. has been to at least one Final Four. Only John Wooden and Dean Smith have similar results.Izzo is in rarefied air and people don't really talk about him. Its ashame too because I don;t think we will witness another run as great as this.

Butler: The hometown team makes it to the Final Four. The only other time this has happened is when UCLA did it back in the late 60's. The Bulldogs are tough and should not be characterized as a Cinderella. This was a top ten team all year, it wasn't like they were hiding in the weeds. The score a little over 60 points and game and hold teams to under 60 points. Their coach looks like one of their players. As I stated before, Butler is small but they play with lots of heart. It would be a magical end to their season if they won the championship, but I don't think they can make it past Michigan St. I think the Spartans have a little more talent but the home crowd will give these kids a little boost, but it won't be enough.

West Virginia should win the National Championship. Were they the best team this year? No, but they have been the steadiest and they are starting to peak at the right time. And in March its not how you start, its when you peak that always determines the winner.

KU Blues

Trying to think of an upset with the magnitude of Northern Iowa over Kansas. The only game that I can remember is when Mike Anderson and his UAB Blazers knocked off Tubby Smith and the the number 1 seeded Kentucky Wildcats in 2004. When number overall seeds dont make it pass the first weekend, it makes the tournament a lot more fun. People are asking how Kansas loss, and I think I know.

Looking Ahead

When the brackets came out on Sunday, Kansas was placed in the toughest bracket. Georgetown, Ohio St, Michigan St., Maryland, and Tennessee were all capable of winning this region. But when Georgetown loss and OSU and Michigan St. struggling somewhat in their first round games, the Jayhawks had to be feeling good about their chances about winning the region. If you ever played in a tournament the hardest thing to do is not to get caught up looking at your opponents. The Jayhawks were not focused on Northern Iowa, an lo and behold the Panthers beat them. Kansas just never looked like they were in the game. They were not focused on the task at hand.

No Shooting, No Hustle
Sherron Collins,Brady Morningstar, and Tyshawn Taylor were a combined 0 for 12 from behind the three point line. If one those guys hits just one, then KU wins. Also, the Panthers hustled for every 50-50 ball. When the lower seeds win these battle the upset is bound to happen.

Now CBS is going to have to do some research about the Northern Iowa Panthers. Its just the beauty of March and the story lines are just beginning.

Thursday Was Rough

Most of the brackets in America are now rubbish. The first day of the NCAA tournament produced 5 double-digit seeds taking down the bigger school. Murray St., Old Dominion, St. Mary's, Washington took down higher seeds but the biggest upset came when Ohio University took down Georgetown. The Hoyas were a team this year that played great against the top teams but also played down to the lower teams. But this is more about the Bobcats. A little back story on them is that they finished 7-9 in their conference tournament and had to win four games in four days in order to qualify for the NCAA tourney. Georgetown ran into a buzz saw as the Bobcats were raining three's from all over the court. This is why March is so special. March always gives us a great story. For a weekends in March, the nation finds a little school to root for. None of us may have gone to Ohio but all of us have been in that position a time or two in our lives. We are on the big stage faced with a tall task. No one believes in us but we have the opportunity to prove our naysayers wrong. March makes believers out of all of us.

Its only day one and I am waxing poetic. I hope day two is just as exciting.

Madness of March/ Bracket Challenge

March is here and I am loving all the College basketball. This is my favorite time of year with the surprises, upset and domination of some team. This year at least ten teams could win the National Championship. There isn't one really dominant team. I am going to try to breakdown the field before they are are announced and give some tips on who to watch and who could surprise many. Also at the bottom of the page I have created a Bracket Challenge through USA Today where we can compete against each other.

The Contenders
(Written before brackets were announced)
I know I said 10 teams could win but for this purpose I picked out the strongest 5:

Kansas- the deepest team and the have the most experience. Sherron Collins and Cole Alrdich have already won a title and this team is about as deep as the championship squad from two years ago. Achilles heel-young players can be inconsistent which can be trouble in a tight game.

Kentucky-The best starting five in the country. Wall, Patterson and Cousins can dominate teams from the inside and outside. This team totally is fueled by Wall. They feed off his energy and his ability to completely dominate games when he wants to. Achilles heel-This is one of the worst defensive teams John Calipari has ever coached. At times there is not a commitment to that end of the floor as we have seen in years past from his Memphis and UMass squads. Also the Cats at times play down to the level of their competition, not a good sign in a one and done situation. Another trait that this Kentucky team has is missing free throws, in a close game that will come back to bite them

Syracuse- The Orange were ranked number 1 for the first time in 20 years in the regular season, then they went and promptly lost to Louisville and the Georgetown in the Big East tourney. Syracuse match-up zone can be devastating, especially since they have a lot of length at all five positions. Achilles heel- Potential injury to their starting center. Arninze Onuake hurt his quad in Syracuse's loss in the Big East tournament. They need to control the paint not only in their zone, but offensively this is his best year ever. Hopefully he's healthy because with Rautins and Wes Johnson, Syracuse could be cutting down the nets in Indy.

West Virginia-Your typical Bob Huggins team. Big, strong, lots of length, very athletic and play in your face defense, and grind it out offense. Achilles heel- The Mountaineers offense is a lot screens to try and get their shooters free. They don't have a guy that can consistently breakdown a defense.

Ohio St.- This is my sleeper pick. The Buckeyes have the best player in the country in Evan Turner (more on him later) a solid coach who has led a team to a Final Four before in Thad Matta. Achilles heel- Their depth is real issue. OSU only goes about seven deep and that could be their downfall the longer the tournament goes on.

Upset Specials

Here are some teams that could make a sweet sixteen run depending on the match ups:

Butler, Cornell, Murray St., UTEP, BYU and my personal favorite Baylor.

Players To Watch:

ET Phone Home

Evan Turner is the best player in college basketball today. Think of Magic Johnson but only two inches shorter. Because of Ohio St. low graduation rate they loss a scholarship from the NCAA, and that prevented OSU from recruiting a point guard. Thad Matta went to Turner and told him he was going to be the team's lead guard. All the 6'7 Turner did was put up two triple-doubles in two weeks, fracture his back on a dunk, come back to average 19 ppg, almost 6 assists, 9 rebounds and nearly 3 steals. ET can get any shot on the court he wants and still gets his teammates involved. Turner is they type of player that can carry his team to a championship.


The Great Wall Of Big Blue



John Wall is one of the most electrifying a players in college basketball. Wall probably is the fastest player in all of college basketball, especially with the ball in his hands. J-Dub picks his spots to take over a game, and even has a flair for the dramatics. He has made the game-winning shot and blocks for UK to preserve wins. Wall averaged 17 ppg and 6 assists a game.

Go Wes Young Man

Wesley Johnson is Syracuse go to guy. The Iowa State transfer has truly excelled with Jim Boheim and the Orange. Not since Carmelo Anthony has a Syracuse player had such an impact nationally. Johnson is long and athletic and projected to be a top pick in the upcoming NBA draft. All Johnson did was average 16 points and 8 rebounds to lead Syracuse to the first regular season #1 ranking in twenty years.

Bracket Challenge

I have setup a league to play March Mania. You can sign up and pick against me:) Not bragging but I am pretty good. Here is the link: http://marchmania.usatoday.com/Secure/Contests/CollegeBasketballBracket/standings.aspx?FantasyTeamId=88205

Marchin On is league name

sports is the password

Good luck!!

Youth Being Served

Can't Beat Father Time

I celebrated my 32nd birthday last week. I can deal with the fact that I am a year older. When I workout the bones ache a little longer than I remember, but all in all I feel pretty good about being in my 30's. Its a little different when it comes to sports. 30 means you are on the downside of your career. You get benched, released and in some cases your career is over. Turning 32 made me reminisce about some players I have grown up with and how their games have changed.

No More High Flyers

Kobe Bryant has been in the league for 14 years. Its amazing longevity and speaks to the way he keeps his body in shape. I was talking to a friend and I said Kobe just doesn't look the same. He quickly pointed out to me that Kobe now has the old man game. Post-up and jumpers from the block, no more does Kobe explode to the rim and finish with authority. At least he doesn't do it with the same regularity that he did when he first came into the league. Coming into the league and playing professional basketball for 14 years wears your body down. Kobe was recently asked when was the last time he felt 100% and his answer was when he was 17. Kobe has had four knee surgeries to go along with numerous other ailments has caused the once high-flyer to be grounded. But that's what happen when reach the magic number of 30, you lose a step.


Bryant isn't the only one whose game has changed. Kevin Garnett used to be the Big Ticket. I remember the fantastic dunks, incredible blocks among his other jaw- dropping plays. Now he is a shell of the guy we used to know. The amount of games Garnett has played has now sapped the one of more electric stars of his abilities. Bryant, Garnett, Vince Carter, Tim Duncan are all guys I grew up watching. We are all around the same age and while I am just starting my career, these guys are beginning their decline of theirs.

Its not just basketball where you see this happen. Football really shows how old guys are. LT, Brett Favre, Ray Lewis are guys who are trying to beat father time. One of the advantages that happens in sports is that when you get older, you use your brain to take advantage of the younger players. The brains these players have can add a few extra years but the sheer physicality of games eventually wears them down.

Appreciate The Youth


Watching Jordan growing up, I didn't fully appreciate how great he was. I just enjoyed watching him play and seeing him and the Bulls collecting titles. As a teen, I didn't see his drive, dedication and determation he had to will his team to victories. I'm not going to make that same mistake twice. The Nike slogan for LeBron James is dead on. "We Are All Witnesses." There will never be another player like James, with his size, speed, and quickness. Its like watching Karl Malone, Magic Johnson and Oscar Robertson rolled into one. He along with Rajon Rondo, Kevin Durant (who is a taller, thin version or Bernard King) Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony are the future of the NBA. Appreciate how great these guys are before they hit their 30's.

Now where did I put the Ben-Gay.....?