Four remain in the NCAA Tournament. Who you putting your money on?
- MICHIGAN STATE – by Dank
Big Ten stand up!
They said we were weak, overrated and didn’t deserve all the nods we got for the tournament. But they won’t be having their Final Four without us!
Congratulations is due to the Michigan State Spartans for knocking off the overall No. 1 seed Louisville Cardinals and earning the right to travel home to Detroit for a chance to play for the NCAA Championship. They are the first team since Duke in 1994 to play a Final Four in their home state and have become the tournament’s best story (sorry, Villanova).
Maybe we (myself included) should have given the Spartans more credit. This is their fifth Final Four appearance under head coach Tom Izzo and they are now 9-0 all-time as a No. 2 seed. Those are some pretty impressive stats right there. Almost as impressive as their handling of Louisville in the Midwest Region Finals, holding Rick Pitino’s Cardinals to their second lowest point total of the season.
I said the Spartans were the tournament’s best story and I meant it for more reasons than basketball. This area of the country needs this game right now. Absolute economic crisis, the failing auto industry and high school graduation rates as low as 25% in Detroit. It’s hard not to root for the Spartans even when you’re a lifetime Buckeye.
Do the Spartans have what it takes to keep the trophy right there in Michigan? They’re going to have to get by Connecticut first, and the Huskies have hardly been tested thus far. My prediction: MSU 82, UCONN 71. They make it look easy and then cut down the nets and win their third National Title.
- CONNECTICUT – by Ray-Way
I guess I guessed right.
Being the only person who picked the winner of their region, that might give the impression that I know more than others, which could be true, but I’d rather not rub it in.
So here it is, Connecticut vs. Michigan State. This should be a hard-hitting game. It’s not the usual reference used for a basketball game but with this you have two of the top teams defensively in basketball, who win games by beating the other thanks to the dirty deeds of out-rebounding, blocking shots, creating turnovers, and getting to the loose balls.
This game will be won by the team that can impose their will onto the other, and the fact that Connecticut reigns supreme in almost every defensive category it’ll be the Huskies that get it done.
They are first in the nation in blocked shots at eight per game. They are third in the nation in rebounding margin, having out-rebounded their opponents by nine boards a game, and they have held their opposition to less than 38-percent shooting per contest, which is fourth-best in the country.
As that old saying goes, offense wins games but defense wins championships. And that is why Connecticut is going to win it all. My deepest apologies to President Obama and North Carolina Nation… Sorry this just isn’t the year for you.
- VILLANOVA – by TimS
So, when I picked the Pitt Panthers to advance through the eastern regional bracket it was obviously a ploy on my part to jinx them (I would’ve had to murder a small child if the city of Pittsburgh brought home two championships this year).
Instead we cross over the rest of anal-rape Pennsylvania and reach into the ‘City of Brotherly Love’ to find the eastern representative in the Final Four. Yes, the Villanova Wildcats are Ford Field bound.
Villanova is one of those rare college teams that does not have a true standout player. And they are facing a North Carolina team that has numerous standout players. The most well-known of those, of course, is Cherokee Parks.
Cherokee Parks is a big, sloppy, white… wait, what was that? His name isn’t Cherokee Parks. Oh, I’m sorry. My mistake. I was obviously talking about Bryant “Big Country” Reeves. Bryant is a big, sloppy, white… wait, what? His name isn’t Bryant either.
What the fuck? I guess his name is Skyler, and if the Wildcats could overcome the output of Pitt‘s Dejuan Blair and 38-year-old Sam Young, then little Skyler shouldn’t pose much of a threat. Villanova should be worried about Ty Lawson though as he tries to make the 2009 Tournament synonymous with his name. But look for Scottie “Tyus Edney” Reynolds to fight the Law and not have the Law win (ironic corniness is a talent not many have, so go ahead and be jealous).
And while you’re at it sit back and enjoy the wonderful sights and sounds of sunny Detroit. Bump some Guilty Simpson and Royce Da 5’9’’ and we’ll see who can match Villanova in the finals.
- NORTH CAROLINA – by J.C.
The Tar Heels couldn’t stop the nations best player from doing his thing in the Elite Eight, but UNC did take care of those other scrubs from Oklahoma he played alongside. Which makes me wonder, is it the coolness of the baby-Carolina blue or are these kids just that good?
Sure, skeptics will look at how North Carolina got this for in the Great American Tournament and say “my YMCA team could have gotten past those clowns.” UNC started with a bye in round one as a No. 1 seed, and merely needed to get past LSU and Gonzaga before playing that game of 5-on-1 against the Sooners.
But now that they’re one of four remaining, Tar Heel-faithful can already hear the sickening sounds of “One Shining Moment” ringing in the distance as only Villanova from the Big Beast Conference stands in their way in the semis.
Does anybody even remember the last time ‘Nova was any good? You don’t think Michael Jordan will let his alma mater get bounced by a program with no relevance while his cash is on the line in Vegas, do you?
On a side note, I plan to watch this matchup with a pair of James Worthy goggles, just for old time’s sake.
So bring on Michigan State of the Big preTenD as they bask in their home court advantage, or ‘Nova’s cousins from UConn who get one last shot at a National Title before being buried in NCAA violations.
You see, UNC has one thing going for them that the other’s do not. And that’s a Presidential Pardon, a vote of confidence in President Obama’s NCAA pool.
And if our own government could get away with assassinating JFK back in the day, then you know they’ll have now problem working this thing out.
3 Comments
oh shit i was close!!…i said 82 – 71 it was 82 – 73……Digger Phipps!!!
motherfuckers are stetting fires down here! is it baseball season yet?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
gotta hear more about that sometime! imagine what they’ll do if they actually win it.
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