Category: College Basketball (Page 66 of 153)

      Spartans march on to Detroit

      March 29, 2009 /

      In the middle of the second half, Gus Johnson and Len Elmore started to talk about how Michigan State was “starting to believe,” but the term I like to use is that the Spartans could “start to taste it.” There comes a point in the game when an underdog has enough of a lead that they start to think that they’re about to pull off the upset. I think that point came at about the 7:18 mark in the second half when Draymond Green tipped in an offensive rebound to give the Spartans a 12-point lead. If you’re coming back from a deficit, you don’t want to be down by more than the number of minutes remaining, and if you’re holding on to a lead, you want to get to a point where you are leading by twice as many points as there are minutes remaining. That’s when you start to feel that you’re fully in control of the game.

      Michigan State essentially played the perfect game. They played great defense (holding Louisville to 52 points and just 38% shooting from the field), didn’t turn the ball over (12), and shot great from long range (8 for 16). Goran Suton got hot early and finished with 19 points. In the second half, Durrell Summers and Kalin Lucas each made a pair of three-pointers. The Spartans did a terrific job of passing the ball around and the role players hit shots when they needed to.

      The Cardinals’ second- and third-leading scorers, Samardo Samuels and Terrence Williams, combined to shoot 1 for 13 from the field for five points. It was a disappointing finish to a great season for Louisville. Now Rick Pitino has to answer the question about why he bought a house in Tuscon — is he going to be the next head coach for Arizona?

      Michigan State heads off to the Final Four, which takes place about 75 miles from East Lansing, at Ford Field.

      College Basketball, March Madness

      Pitt falls, UConn advances

      March 28, 2009 /

      It’s all right there in the title — my bracket is f*#kd.

      The Pittsburgh Panthers played with fire for the entire tournament and they finally got burned. In the first three games, they showed tremendous poise in the clutch. But when they had a chance to put this game away, they blew it.

      Up four with the ball and 2:56 remaining, Pitt brought the ball up against Villanova’s full court pressure. If Pitt converts there and goes up six or seven, it would be a tough road to hoe for Villanova. But Jermaine Dixon made a bad decision at half court, which led to a steal and eventually to a three-point play for Villanova. On Pitt’s next possession, Sam Young turned the ball over in the lane. And just like that, the Panthers’ four point lead turned into a one-point deficit.

      Down four with 0:12 to play, it looked like all was lost, but DeJuan Blair slipped to the hoop for a bucket and the Wildcats turned the ball over going for the home run. Levance Fields was fouled and knocked down two free throws to tie the game with 5.5 seconds to play. One more stop and Pitt was going to force an overtime when they had absolutely no business doing so. But they made a mistake on the inbound play, allowing ‘Nova to catch the ball near halfcourt, where it was flipped to Scottie Reynolds who was streaking down the sideline. The long pass covered a lot of ground when Pitt should have forced Villanova to dribble the entire length of the court. Make them catch it in front of you!

      Reynolds drove into the lane and hit a tough game-winner.

      Argh!

      Give credit to Villanova for playing a great game. As a team, the Wildcats shot 22 of 23 from the free throw line, which is outstanding given the pressure of an Elite Eight game. It’s going to be fun to see them play in the Final Four.

      In the other Saturday game, UConn fended off a feisty Missouri team with a 12-5 run over the last two minutes. UConn looked a little out of sorts in the second half, but freshman Kemba Walker scored 23 points off the bench to put the Huskies over the top.

      College Basketball, March Madness

      Elite Eight Preview & Picks: Louisville/MSU, UNC/Oklahoma

      March 28, 2009 /

      #2-seed Michigan State vs. #1-seed Louisville
      Tip-Off: 2:20 PM ET
      Sagarin Ratings: Louisville (92.53), Michigan State (88.53)
      Line: Louisville -6.5
      The Spartans exceeded my expectations when they beat Kansas in the Sweet Sixteen, but anytime a team has a great point guard (Big 10 POY Kalin Lucas) and a lot of grit, they have a shot. Tom Izzo’s team isn’t going to give up, which makes the dog an interesting play in this game. There’s no doubt in my mind that Louisville is the better team, but they looked flat against Siena before blowing out Arizona. The Sagarin numbers say that the line is off by 2.5 points, but Raymar Morgan has a broken nose and has to wear a mask for the first time, so I’d stay away from this one. I think Louisville will win, but it might be tight if the Cardinals put it into cruise control too early or if they don’t bring their A-game.

      #2-seed Oklahoma vs. #1-seed North Carolina
      Tip-Off: 5:05 PM
      Sagarin Ratings: UNC (94.64), Oklahoma (89.96)
      Line: North Carolina -7
      The big question heading into the tournament was the health of Ty Lawson’s toe. I think that question was answered with his solid play against LSU and Gonzaga. North Carolina should have enough firepower to beat the Sooners, but seven points is a lot to give a good Oklahoma team. In addition to POY candidate Blake Griffin, Willie Warren is one of the best freshman in the country, and Tony Crocker is capable of stepping up and hitting a bunch of threes. Still, the way the Tar Heels playing, I wouldn’t be comfortable taking the Sooners and the points.

      College Basketball, March Madness

      TSR’s running diary of March Madness: Let’s play in the Sandbox

      March 28, 2009 /

      These March Madness diaries have turned into something of a tour of the sports bars of Orange County. Last Thursday it was Rudy’s in Newport Beach (still my favorite), yesterday it was the Costa Mesa Hooters, and tonight it’s Sandbox, a relatively new sports bar/lounge on Beach Blvd in Huntington Beach. The setup is nice – but no wifi, so this diary is going up in one fell swoop – with a number of HD flatscreens positioned around the restaurant. At night, it turns into more of a lounge/dance club for the well-dressed. Our server’s name is Jessie and she’s looking sharp in her little black dress. We’ll see if I can get a picture of her for you.

      I’m watching the games with LaRusso and his co-worker/buddy Kevin, who is from Foxboro, so he’s a big Patriots, Celtics and Red Sox fan. We got into a minor spat last year over whether or not the Celtics would have beat the Lakers had Andrew Bynum been healthy – he thought a Boston win would have been a sure thing while I thought it would have thrown the series on its ear, but we’re way past that now.

      5:14 PM: Louisville is spanking Arizona (not a huge surprise) and Oklahoma is up eight or ten on Syracuse (a bit of a surprise). I think the Orangemen have a shot at pulling this one out, though it’s not looking particularly good right now.

      5:20 PM: What is the deal with these Howie Long commercials where he mocks anyone who has a truck that’s not a Chevy? This probably brings back memories of high school for Howie. Is there any chance that he wasn’t stuffing freshman in lockers on a regular basis? He reminds me of a meaner “Big John” from “Can’t Buy Me Love.” He was the one who stuck his butt out the window of a house party and farted in the face of a young Seth Green. For those that haven’t seen the flick, it’s one of my favorites from the ’80s — McDreamy plays a McLoser who pays a girl to date him so he can be popular. Hilarity (and surprisingly touching social commentary) ensues. Anyway, I’m waiting for one of these guys in these commercials to tell Howie to go f*ck himself. Do we really need a washed up NFLer mocking a fellow truck owner because it has a convenient “man step” or gets two fewer miles to the gallon? Give me a break.

      Continue reading »

      College Basketball, March Madness

      Kentucky fires Billy Gillispie

      March 27, 2009 /

      I wrote earlier today about Billy Gillispie being in limbo, and now he’s not. He’s just been fired.

      Billy Gillispie is out as coach of Kentucky in his second season at the helm, and the school has called a 4:30 p.m. news conference to announce the change.

      School officials had been quiet about Gillispie’s job status after the Wildcats tumbled through the second half of the season to finish 22-14, tied for the second-most losses in the program’s 106-year history.

      When something like this happens, I wonder if his fate was sealed after the team missed the NCAA tournament or if a NIT championship would have been enough to buy him another season.

      Let the rumor mill begin…Billy Donovan? Rick Pitino?

      You have to think that UK wouldn’t make this move unless they had a plan in place.

      College Basketball, March Madness, Rumors & Gossip

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